Category Archives: Romania

Romanian court defers decision on annulling presidential vote

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Court has ordered recount of vote won by far-right candidate and will decide whether it needs to be rerun

Romania’s constitutional court has deferred a decision on whether to annul the first-round vote in the country’s presidential election until Monday, a day after parliamentary elections in which far-right parties are forecast to post major gains.

The court, which had already ordered a recount, considered for two hours on Friday a request to annul the 24 November vote, which was won by Călin Georgescu, a far-right, Moscow-friendly independent who had previously been polling at barely 5%.

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Romanian court orders recount of presidential election’s first-round votes

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Recheck of result of the first round, won by Călin Georgescu with Elena Lasconi second, likely to take days

Romania’s constitutional court has ordered a recount of all first-round votes to rule out a suspicion of fraud in the country’s presidential election, which was won in a major upset by a little-known far-right candidate.

The court said on Thursday it had decided unanimously to order Romania’s central electoral bureau to “recheck and recount all valid and invalid ballots” cast in Sunday’s election, won by the Moscow-friendly ultranationalist Călin Georgescu.

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Romania regulator calls for TikTok suspension amid vote interference fears

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Far-right, pro-Moscow candidate Călin Georgescu came from 5% in polls to win presidential election’s first round

Romania’s telecoms regulator is asking for TikTok to be suspended as the country’s defence council prepares to discuss cyber risks to its elections, after a little-known ultranationalist came from nowhere to win the first round of the presidential vote.

The country’s constitutional court will also examine two allegations of electoral fraud after Călin Georgescu, a Moscow-friendly, EU-sceptic and anti-Nato independent, topped the ballot in a result that upended Romanian politics.

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Shock as pro-Russia independent wins first round of Romanian election

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Călin Georgescu, a critic of Nato, says people have ‘cried out for peace’ after he heads into runoff with 22.9% of vote

An ultranationalist, Moscow-friendly Nato critic is set to face a centre-right candidate in the runoff of Romania’s presidential elections after a shock first-round result that has upended the country’s politics and could jeopardise its support for Ukraine.

With 99.98% of votes counted, Călin Georgescu, an independent who has praised Vladimir Putin as “a man who loves his country”, was on 22.9%, with the reformist Elena Lasconi, of the Save Romania Union (USR), second on 19.17%.

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Romania votes in presidential poll with nationalist and leftist vying for runoff

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Sunday’s election could lead to a battle between far-right’s George Simion and Marcel Ciolacu of Social Democrats

Romanians are casting ballots on Sunday in the first round of a presidential election that could pit a far-right nationalist against the incumbent leftist prime minister in the runoff.

Thirteen candidates are vying for the presidency in the EU and Nato member country and the vote is expected to go to a second round on 8 December. Polls opened at 7am local time (05.00 GMT) and will close at 9pm. Romanians abroad have been able to vote since Friday.

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Central Europe braces for further flooding as swollen rivers continue to rise

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Deadly Storm Boris has dumped up to five times average September rainfall in four days

As swollen rivers continued to rise, volunteers and emergency workers in towns and cities across a swathe of central Europe were reinforcing defences against floods that have killed at least 21 people in four countries.

Storm Boris has dumped up to five times the average September rainfall on parts of Austria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Romania and Slovakia in four days, submerging entire neighbourhoods and forcing hundreds of thousands of people to evacuate.

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Death toll reaches 16 as ‘dramatic’ flooding in central Europe continues

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Czech Republic, Poland and Austria fear worst may yet be to come as thousands are evacuated to higher ground

The death toll from torrential rain and flooding in central and eastern Europe has risen to at least 16, with several more people missing, as authorities reported deaths in the Czech Republic, Poland and Austria and warned the worst may be to come.

The number of victims in Poland rose to five after a surgeon returning from work drowned in the south-western town of Nysa, where the hospital was evacuated and patients rescued by raft. Four more people had died in the southern towns of Bielsko-Biała and Lądek-Zdrój, firefighters said.

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Climate scientists troubled by damage from floods ravaging central Europe

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Experts unsurprised at intensity of extreme weather but say damage wreaked shows how unprepared world is

Picturesque towns across central Europe are inundated by dirty flood water after heavy weekend rains turned tranquil streams into raging rivers that wreaked havoc on infrastructure.

The floods have killed at least 15 people and destroyed buildings from Austria to Romania. The destruction comes after devastating floods around the world last week when entire villages were submerged in Myanmar and nearly 300 prisoners escape a collapsed jail in Nigeria, where floods have affected more than 1 million people.

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‘Catastrophe of epic proportions’: seven drown in Europe amid heavy floods

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Storm Boris has caused rivers to burst banks and trapped people in their homes across Austria, Poland and Slovakia

Seven people have drowned in Austria, Poland and Romania and four others are missing in the Czech Republic as Storm Boris continues to lash central and eastern Europe, bringing torrential rain and floods that have forced the evacuation of thousands of people from their homes.

Swathes of Austria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Romania and Slovakia have been battered by high winds and unusually fierce rains since Thursday.

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Romanian court places Andrew Tate under house arrest for 30 days

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Social media influencer and brother among six detained for crimes including trafficking and sexual exploitation of minors

A Romanian court has ordered Andrew Tate to be placed under house arrest, his representative said, after he was among six people taken into custody in an investigation into human trafficking and sexual exploitation.

The former professional kickboxer and his brother Tristan were among six people detained on Wednesday for an initial 24 hours after Romania’s anti-organised crime prosecuting unit, Diicot, conducted four house searches in Ilfov county and the Bucharest municipality.

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Romanian PM to boycott Olympic closing ceremony in gymnastics protest

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  • Ana Barbosu demoted from bronze while celebrating
  • Romanian great Nadia Comaneci also criticises decision

Romania’s prime minister, Marcel Ciolacu, said he will boycott the Olympic closing ceremony after his country were denied a medal in the women’s gymnastics.

Ana Barbosu had already begun celebrating her bronze for the floor event on Monday when coaches for Jordan Chiles, of the United States, entered an appeal to judges over Chiles’s score. The inquiry resulted in a 0.1 boost for Chiles, enough to overtake Barbosu for the last spot on the podium.

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Ancient Roman Appian Way becomes Italy’s 60th Unesco world heritage site

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Highway that consolidated Roman empire joins modernist Romanian sculptures as latest sites added to list

Italy’s Via Appia Antica, or Appian Way, the earliest and most important road built by the ancient Romans, has been named a Unesco world heritage site, making Italy the country with the world’s highest number of locations on the coveted list.

Known as the Regina Viarum, or Queen of Roads, it connected Rome with the port of Brindisi in the south and marked a revolution in the construction of roads.

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Romania to step up cull of brown bears after hiker killed

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MPs approve cull of 481 bears this year, up from 220 last year, to control ‘overpopulation’ of protected species

Romania’s parliament has approved the culling of almost 500 bears this year in an effort to control the “overpopulation” of the protected species after a deadly attack on a hiker sparked nationwide outcry.

The country is home to 8,000 brown bears, according to the environment ministry, Europe’s largest brown bear population outside Russia.

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Andrew Tate’s human trafficking trial can proceed, Romanian court rules

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‘Misogynist influencer’ was indicted in June along with his brother and two Romanian female suspects

Andrew Tate’s trial on human trafficking charges can proceed, a Romanian court has ruled, 10 months after he was first indicted.

The self-professed “misogynist influencer” was indicted in June along with his brother, Tristan, and two Romanian female suspects for human trafficking, rape and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women, allegations they have all denied.

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Andrew Tate loses appeal against ruling that stops him leaving Romania

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Bucharest court upholds restriction on online influencer, who is charged with human trafficking and rape

A Romanian court has rejected an appeal by the online influencer Andrew Tate to ease judicial control measures imposed while the legal case continues in which he is charged with human trafficking, rape and forming a criminal gang to sexually exploit women.

The Bucharest court of appeal’s decision on Tuesday upheld a ruling by another court on 18 January that extended by 60 days the geographical restrictions against Tate, 37, stipulating that he cannot leave the country.

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‘The war had come to us too’: how Ukraine’s Danube ports became vital hubs – and targets

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With Odesa out of action, Izmail and Reni are now the only places grain can reliably be exported

It had been hundreds of years since the world paid much attention to the Danube river port of Izmail at the edge of the estuary that now separates Romania and Ukraine.

The Russian and Ottoman empires traded blows here in the 18th century, and one epic battle in 1790 – followed by a bloody massacre of civilians – was so central to Moscow’s concept of its military power that it was glorified in the country’s first unofficial national anthem.

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Nato pledges ‘strong solidarity’ with Romania over likely Russian drone debris

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Romanian president deplores potential ‘serious violation of sovereignty and territorial integrity of Romania, a Nato ally’

Nato has said it stands in “strong solidarity” with Romania, which has reported that parts of a probable Russian drone fell on its territory during a Russian attack on neighbouring Ukraine.

“We continue to monitor the situation closely, and we remain in close contact with our ally Romania,” Nato said in a statement on Wednesday night.

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Romania recalls ambassador who allegedly compared monkey to African diplomats

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UN’s Africa group ‘not prepared to participate’ with Dragos Viorel Tigau after alleged comment in Kenya

The Africa group within the United Nations said it would never work again with the Romanian ambassador to Kenya in certain forums after he allegedly compared them to a monkey while attending a meeting in Nairobi.

The group also demanded an unconditional and public apology to the people of Africa.

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Don’t talk to pupils about misogynist Andrew Tate, government urges teachers in England

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Advice comes despite charity’s warning that social media figure is fuelling shocking growth of misogyny in schools

Teachers are being advised by the government not to discuss social media influencer Andrew Tate, the “king of toxic masculinity”, with pupils – despite schools reporting a rising tide of misogyny and sexual harassment from boys as young as nine.

One small charity, Diversify, based in Rotherham, which runs school workshops about inclusion, receives about 25 calls a week from primary and secondary schools across England who want help dealing with sexual harassment and “shocking misogynistic incidents”. Many cite the influence of Tate, who is under house arrest in Romania for suspected human trafficking and organised crime. Tate’s TikTok videos tell boys that a woman belongs to her boyfriend; girls who don’t stay at home are “hoes”; and rape victims must “bear responsibility” for their attacks.

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Andrew Tate speaks of ‘absolute clarity of thought’ after move to house arrest

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Social media influencer posts video about release from police custody in Romania after court ruling

Andrew Tate has posted a video saying he has “absolute clarity of thought” after he was moved from police custody to house arrest.

The social media influencer was released into house arrest on Friday after a Romanian court overturned a request by prosecutors for him to be detained until late April.

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