Iran spies targeted in German police searches

*'Iranian spies' targeted 👀 in German police 👮 searches*

German special police teams have searched flats linked to 10 suspected Iranian state spies. Germany's Focus news said the raids took place in Berlin, Bavaria, North Rhine-Westphalia and Baden-Württemberg.

In 1997 a Berlin verdict linked top Iranian politicians to the killing of four Iranian Kurdish dissidents.

German investigators concluded that the assassination at Berlin's Mykonos restaurant in 1992 was the work of Iranian secret service agents.

The force carries out special operations abroad for Iran's Revolutionary Guards and has links to Lebanese Hezbollah militants and the Palestinian Hamas movement.

Bangladesh and Myanmar agree repatriation timeframes

*Rohingya crisis: Bangladesh and Myanmar agree repatriation timeframe*

Bangladesh and Myanmar have agreed a timeframe for repatriating hundreds of thousands of Rohingya who fled crackdowns from the military. Myanmar has agreed to accept 1,500 Rohingya each week, Bangladesh says, adding that it aims to return all of them to Myanmar within two years.

More than 740,000 Rohingya have fled to neighbouring Bangladesh amid violence in Rakhine state in 2016 and 2017. Aid agencies have raised concerns about forcibly repatriating them.

Bangladesh says it aims to repatriate families together, as well as orphans and "children born out of unwarranted incidence" - meaning children conceived as a result of rape. However, displaced Rohingya in Bangladesh have expressed concerns about returning to Myanmar.

Ex-CIA officer Jerry Chin arrested

*Ex-CIA officer Jerry Chun Shing Lee held over secret records*

A former CIA officer has been arrested on charges of unlawful retention of classified information, the US justice department says. Jerry Chun Shing Lee, a naturalised US citizen, was held after arriving at New York's JFK airport on Monday. He worked for the CIA between 1994 and 2007, when he left for Hong Kong.

When he returned to America in 2012, FBI agents searched his hotel rooms in Hawaii and Virginia and found finding two small books with secret records. The US justice department says in a statement that the books contained handwritten notes on details such as "true names and phone numbers of assets and covert CIA employees".

The statement says that Mr Lee, 53, has been charged "with unlawful retention of national defence information and faces a maximum penalty of 10 years in prison if convicted". Mr Lee, also known as Zhen Cheng Li, began his CIA career as a case officer, maintained a top secret clearance and signed non-disclosure agreements. He has made no public comments on the issue.

Mayon Volcano's Eruption at Night

*Mayon Volcano's Eruption at Night

Lava flowing down the slopes of Mayon Volcano lit up the sky in Albay on Monday night. Netizens who live near the volcano have shared their photos of the erupting volcano. One of them is Department of Science and Technology employee Richard Esplana, who snapped the photo from Brgy. Tamaoyan in Legazpi City.

Esplana, who lives within the 10-kilometre danger zone, advised his fellow Bicolanos to tune in to government advisories and follow the precautionary measures. Mayon is under Alert Level 3, meaning "increased tendency towards hazardous eruption," Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) research specialist Paul Alanis told ABS-CBN News.

More than 12,000 residents living near the volcano have already fled to evacuation centres according to the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.

Sanchez to swap with Henrikh

*Alexis Sanchez's Man Utd move hinges on Henrikh Mkhitaryan agreeing Arsenal deal*

Alexis Sanchez's move to Manchester United is hinged on Henrikh Mkhitaryan agreeing terms with Arsenal.

That is according to the Armenia international's agent Mino Raiola, who has told Sky Sports News that "Sanchez is part of Mkhi's deal. Not the other way around. Without him, Sanchez simply cannot go to United".

The agent, who counts Paul Pogba, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Romelu Lukaku among his clients, says he proposed the 'Sanchez to Old Trafford, Mkhitaryan to Arsenal' deal more than six weeks ago.

Sky Sports News understands United are leading the chase to sign the Chile international after Manchester City withdrew from negotiations over cost, but Chelsea also hold an interest in the player.

But it is understood that, if an agreement can be reached with Arsenal, the deal will be a straight player swap and will not include United paying a transfer fee for Sanchez.

Raiola told Sky Sports News: "Mkhi's problems at Man Utd are purely related to playing football. He has no problem with the manager. It is not personal.

"And he has two and a half years left on his contract. He doesn't have to leave."

Singer Dolores dead

*Cranberries Lead Singer Dolores O'Riordan Dead*

Irish rock group The Cranberries just posted the following statement on Facebook:

```Irish and international singer Dolores O’Riordan has died suddenly in London today. She was 46 years old. The lead singer with the Irish band The Cranberries, was in London for a short recording session. No further details are available at this time.```

```Family members are devastated to hear the breaking news and have requested privacy at this very difficult time.```

The Cranberries were an influential rock group in the 90s. Widely associated with alternative rock, the band's sound incorporated indie pop, post-punk, Irish folk, and pop rock elements.