from belarus with aircraft piracy, over the diversion of a passenger plane in order to arrest a journalist. the incident took place last may, when a ryanair plane travelling from greece to latvia was forced to divert to minsk, after the belarusian authorities said there was a suspected bomb threat. the lower house of austria's parliament has passed a bill to make covid—i9 vaccinations compulsory for adults. the bill, which is now likely to become law, will mean everyone over the age of 18 without a valid exemption must get the jab. the french government has announced plans to ease covid—i9 restrictions from 2nd february. on that date it will end the mandatory wearing of face masks when outdoors and lift capacity restrictions for large events such as sport matches and concerts. during a press conference the prime ministerjustified the move saying it coincidened with the introduction of a covid vaccination