The disgraced Hollywood mogul is expected to surrender to police forces in New York, CNN reports
Hello, this is Anna getting you caught up on Friday's news.
Today's headlines
Harvey Weinstein charged with rape
Harvey Weinstein is expected to surrender to New York police Friday morning on charges that he raped one woman and forced another to perform oral sex on him, a source told CNN. Manhattan prosecutors will charge Weinstein with first- and third-degree rape in one case and a first-degree sex act in a second case, the source said. Weinstein's New York-based attorney, Benjamin Brafman, on Thursday declined to comment on whether his client would turn himself in.
Ireland goes to the polls
The Irish public are currently voting today in a historic referendum on whether to repeal or retain a the Eighth Amendment - a constitutional clause protecting the rights of the unborn that has led to some of the most restrictive abortion laws in the world. Polling stations across Ireland opened at 7am and close at 10pm. A result is expected tomorrow afternoon.
Explosion at Canadian restaurant
More than 12 people were injured after an improvised explosive device was detonated inside a restaurant in Mississauga, Canada. Roughly 15 people were taken to hospital after the blast at the Bombay Bhel restaurant. Three people had injuries that were initially described as critical by the Peel regional paramedic service, but were later said to be in a stable condition. Peel regional police said that two men in their mid-20s had detonated an improvised explosive device inside the restaurant.
North Korea still wants talks
North Korea has said it is still willing to hold direct talks between its leader Kim Jong-un and Donald Trump, calling the planned summit ‘desperately necessary’ to resolve potential hostilities after the US cancelled the meeting. ‘We express our willingness to sit down face-to-face with the US and resolve issues anytime and in any format,’ North Korea’s vice foreign minister Kim Kye-gwan said in a statement. ‘Our commitment to doing our best for the sake of peace and stability for the world and the Korean Peninsula remains unchanged, and we are open-minded in giving time and opportunity to the US.’
MH17 ‘gunned down by Russia’
Australia and the Netherlands have formally accused Russia of being responsible for downing a Malaysia Airlines passenger jet in 2014. All 298 people on board MH17, which was en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur, died when it was shot down over rebel-held territory in Ukraine. On Thursday, Dutch-led international investigators concluded that the missile belonged to a Russian brigade. Russia has denied any involvement in the plane's destruction.
Morgan Freeman accused of harassment
Morgan Freeman has been accused of sexual and verbal harassment by eight different women. According to CNN, the women, who say Freeman subjected them to inappropriate remarks about their bodies, allege that he harassed them on the set of his films, at his production company Revelations Entertainment and at press junkets. One woman, who in the summer of 2015 worked as a production assistant on the set of the comedy Going in Style, said she experienced months of harassment, claiming the actor touched her inappropriately and frequently commented on her figure and clothing. She said he also lifted up her skirt.