PARIS (AP) – The latest on the Nov. 13 attacks in Paris that killed 130 people. All times local:
12:30 a.m.
A key committee of EU lawmakers has voted in favor of a new scheme to track extremist fighters, paving the way for the long-delayed system to be approved early next year.
The European Parliament Civil Liberties committee voted 38-19 Thursday to approve the airline passenger information system, with two abstentions. It means that an endorsement in the plenary session in January or February is now a formality.
The lawmaker who chaperoned the plan through parliament, Timothy Kirkhope, said: “now we have to get this implemented.”
The system has been held up in the assembly for more than two years but the deadly attacks last month in Paris brought new urgency to the process. The plan grants law enforcement agencies access to information about air travelers for at least six months.
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9:20 a.m.
Pop star Madonna has staged an impromptu concert at Paris’ Republique plaza to honor victims of the Nov. 13 attacks in which 130 people died.
The singer, who had just finished her show in Paris Wednesday evening, tweeted to her fans: “Im singing some songs in place de la republique. Meet me there now.”
Accompanied by a guitarist, she performed songs including John Lennon’s “Imagine” – a song that became an unofficial anthem in the aftermath of the attacks.
The iconic statue at Republique, transformed into an informal memorial since the attacks, is piled with flowers and candles left by passers-by.