Category Archives: Europe

AfD launches manifesto as campaign season for German election begins

Posted on by

Polling for far-right insurgent and its extreme policies is rising but other parties have closed ranks against it despite their weak popularity

Germany’s far-right AfD party has signed off on its manifesto before next month’s critical election, proposing a series of deeply controversial policies on everything from migration to education as the campaign for a new government in Europe’s powerhouse formally kicked off.

The party, founded in 2013, endorsed the far-right concept of “re-migration” into its programme, threatening the mass deportation of migrants if it came to power.

Continue reading...

Italy releases Iranian man wanted by US over drone attack in Jordan

Posted on by

Mohammad Abedini detained on US warrant three days before Italian journalist Cecilia Sala was arrested in Iran

Italy has released an Iranian citizen wanted by the US over a drone attack in Jordan that killed three Americans a year ago, after the Italian justice minister asked a court to revoke his arrest.

Mohammad Abedini has already returned to Iran, Iranian state TV said on Sunday afternoon.

Continue reading...

Northern Irish nun killed in Ecuador earthquake takes step towards sainthood

Posted on by

Beatification ceremony for Clare Crockett, former party girl from Derry, draws more than 100 people to Madrid

A nun from Northern Ireland who was killed in an earthquake while she was teaching music in Ecuador has taken a step closer to sainthood.

A ceremony on Sunday afternoon started the process of beatification for Clare Crockett, who died in Portoviejo, Ecuador during an earthquake in April 2016. The 33-year-old had been working in the country as part of her work as a nun, which had also taken in placements in Spain and the US.

Continue reading...

Sweden neither at war nor at peace, says PM, as warships sent to Baltic Sea

Posted on by

Ulf Kristersson says ‘hostile intent cannot be ruled out’ as increased surveillance follows suspected cable sabotage

The Swedish prime minister has said that his country is neither at war nor at peace as he announced that Sweden would be sending armed forces into the Baltic Sea for the first time as part of increased surveillance efforts amid a spate of suspected sabotage of undersea cables.

The country announced it will contribute up to three warships and a surveillance aircraft to a Nato effort to monitor critical infrastructure and Russia’s “shadow fleet” as the alliance tries to guard against sabotage of underwater infrastructure.

Continue reading...

Court ruling on Belgium’s conduct in colonial Africa hailed as turning point

Posted on by

Verdict of crimes against humanity for kidnap of mixed-race children could pave way for wider justice, activists say

A historic court ruling that found Belgium guilty of crimes against humanity during its colonial rule of central Africa has been hailed as a turning point that could pave the way for compensation and other forms of justice.

Belgium’s court of appeal ruled last month that the “systematic kidnapping” of mixed-race children from their African mothers in Belgian-ruled Congo, Rwanda and Burundi was a crime against humanity. The case was brought by five women who were removed from their Congolese mothers as small children between 1948 and 1953, and who now live in Belgium and France. Each was awarded €50,000 (£42,000) in damages.

Continue reading...

Two killed and four seriously injured in bus crash on German motorway

Posted on by

Coach en route from Berlin to Polish city of Szczecin ended up on its side near Prenzlau, north-east of German capital

A bus accident on a motorway in northeastern Germany on Saturday left two people dead and another four seriously injured, police said.

The accident happened on an exit from the A11 motorway that leads to a car park close to an interchange near Prenzlau, north-east of Berlin, German news agency dpa reported. Seven people were slightly injured.

Continue reading...

Tram collision in Strasbourg leaves dozens injured

Posted on by

Rescue services treat 100 more people for shock or stress after collision in tunnel leading to central train station

Two trams collided in Strasbourg in eastern France on Saturday, causing dozens of injuries, though none critical, authorities said. The accident took place during the afternoon in a tunnel leading to the city’s central train station.

An additional 100 people, though uninjured, were assessed for shock or stress, said René Cellier, director of the Bas-Rhin fire and rescue service. Emergency services deployed 130 firefighters, 50 rescue vehicles and established a wide safety perimeter.

Continue reading...

How Elon Musk has meddled in European affairs

Posted on by

From bashing Keir Starmer to promoting the AfD, the X owner is not shy about intervening

A limited – at best – understanding of the continent of Europe and its component countries has not prevented the world’s richest man from intervening in the domestic politics of several of them, as well as attacking the EU itself.

Here we take a brief look at some of the occasions on which X owner Elon Musk has used his position as proprietor of one of the world’s largest social media platforms to meddle in the internal affairs of sovereign democratic states outside the US.

Continue reading...

Friend of British hiker missing in Italy voices ‘acceptance’ as search continues

Posted on by

Joe Stone says authorities ‘trying everything’ to find Aziz Ziriat after body of Sam Harris discovered on Wednesday

A close friend of a British hiker who has been missing in the Dolomites since New Year’s Day has said “there is an acceptance that it won’t be good news” as search efforts continued.

Sam Harris, 35, and Aziz Ziriat, 36, from London, last sent messages home on 1 January and the pair did not check in to their flight home on 6 January. Friends and relatives have travelled to Italy.

Continue reading...

Protesters in Calais condemn UK policies to stop Channel crossings

Posted on by

Alliance of groups from across France call for measures to make crossings safer after 77 deaths recorded in 2024

More than 70 organisations from across France willcome together on Saturday to protest in Calais about UK policies to try to stop people crossing the Channel.

At least 77 people died trying to cross the Channel in 2024, the highest number since crossings began in 2018. Non-governmental organisations that monitor these deaths believe the total figure last year was even higher, with 89 deaths at the UK-French border of people attempting to reach the UK.

Continue reading...

Ukraine’s highest profile combat unit to recruit English-speaking soldiers

Posted on by

Azov, a volunteer brigade, plans to form international battalion to boost numbers as Ukraine heads into fourth year of war

Ukraine’s highest profile combat unit is seeking English-speaking recruits at a time when the impending presidency of Donald Trump means that Kyiv is expected to come under intense pressure on the battlefield.

Azov, a volunteer brigade whose decade-old nationalist origins have made it a target of Russian propaganda, plans to form an international battalion to boost its numbers as Ukraine heads into a fourth year of full-scale war.

Continue reading...

Starmer’s top aide made low-key Brussels trip as No 10’s EU reset efforts continue

Posted on by

Morgan McSweeney met EU counterparts before Christmas as Downing Street poised to hire new foreign adviser

Keir Starmer’s chief of staff, Morgan McSweeney, made a below-the-radar trip to Brussels last month, as No 10 prepares to appoint its own foreign affairs adviser to help bolster the Downing Street policy operation.

As the UK’s attempts at a “reset” with the EU continue behind closed doors, No 10’s most senior aide made the trip to meet counterparts in Brussels before Christmas.

Continue reading...

Gay men can train as priests but must be celibate, say Italian bishops

Posted on by

Move marks shift in views but sexually active gay men will not be admitted to Roman Catholic seminaries

Gay men will be allowed to train as priests in Roman Catholic seminaries, so long as they observe celibacy, according to new guidelines announced by the Italian Bishops Conference (CIE).

The decision marks a shift from the view previously held by Pope Francis that gay men should not be admitted to seminaries owing to the risk of them leading a double life.

Continue reading...

‘It was extraordinary’: Spanish captain recalls rescue of woman who gave birth in dinghy

Posted on by

Mother and newborn saved from inflatable boat off Canary Islands, on a route on which thousands have died

The call that would lead to one of the most poignant images of the humanitarian emergency in the deadly waters off the Canary Islands came at 4am.

In the early hours of Monday, the Las Palmas command centre of Spain’s maritime rescue service, Salvamento Marítimo, told Domingo Trujillo, the captain of the search-and-rescue vessel Talía, that a small inflatable boat, packed with people, was adrift 97 nautical miles (180km) off the coast of Lanzarote. Among those onboard, they added, was a woman who was due to give birth at any moment.

Continue reading...

Visa-waiver system could overwhelm UK immigration services, law firm warns

Posted on by

There are also fears electronic travel authorisation will threaten post-peace tourism sector in Northern Ireland

The UK Home Office’s already burdened immigration services could be overwhelmed this summer when a new visa-waiver system comes into force for European business travellers and tourists in April, a leading law firm has said.

There have also been fresh warnings that the electronic travel authorisation (ETA) requirements could threaten the post-peace tourism sector in Northern Ireland, with Americans and Europeans travelling to Dublin and beyond deciding not to bother crossing the border because of the red tape.

Continue reading...

Elon Musk heaps praise on AfD’s Alice Weidel during live talk on X

Posted on by

X owner and far-right politician appear to agree on everything, as Musk faces accusations of meddling in German election

Elon Musk has praised the co-leader of Germany’s far-right Alternative für Deutschland party, as he repeated his claim that “only the AfD can save Germany” during a controversial live talk on his social media platform X.

The virtual encounter between Musk and Alice Weidel on Thursday took place amid growing criticism over the US billionaire’s vocal support of far-right, anti-establishment parties across Europe, and accusations he is meddling in the campaign for Germany’s 23 February election.

Continue reading...

Italian mayor vows to stop sale of Neapolitan islet to wealthy speculator

Posted on by

Bacoli mayor says his administration wants to buy Punta Pennata and turn it into an ‘open-air museum’

An Italian mayor has vowed to do everything in his power to stop Punta Pennata – a slice of island paradise close to the heart of Naples, from where a fleet departed to rescue survivors of the AD79 eruption of Mount Vesuvius – being sold to a wealthy speculator.

Located within the pristine waters of Bacoli, a fishing town located in the vast volcanic area of the Campi Flegrei, and described as a “historical and natural gem”, the strip of land was put up for sale to the highest bidder this week.

Continue reading...

Birkenstock sues ‘copycat’ rivals claiming its sandals are applied art

Posted on by

German maker of fashionable cork-based footwear files three lawsuits alleging copyright infringement

Once sneered at as the preserve of muesli-loving, Guardian-reading hippies, Birkenstocks have more recently been promoted to the status of fashion item, not least since they took a starring role in the Barbie movie. But now cork-soled sandals are facing their day in court as their German makers call for them to be protected in perpetuity – and to be recognised as nothing less than a unique work of art.

Germany’s federal court of justice is to decide on the future of the ergonomic sandal after three lawsuits against alleged copycat competitors were lodged on Thursday by the footwear manufacturer.

Continue reading...

Greenland’s prime minister calls for calm after Trump comments

Posted on by

Pro-independence Múte Egede says Greenland must stay unified after becoming centre of US-Denmark spat

Greenland’s prime minister has called for unity, urging citizens not to panic, after being thrown into a geopolitical battle between the US and Denmark by Donald Trump’s interest in taking control of the territory.

Múte Egede said he understood people may be concerned after the incoming US president declined to rule out using military and economic force to gain control of Greenland, but called on his fellow citizens to “put aside differences and stand together”.

Continue reading...

Murder investigation in Spain after body of missing Belfast man found

Posted on by

Family ‘heartbroken’ after discovery of body of John George, 37, who went missing in Alicante area in December

A murder investigation is under way in Spain after the body of a 37-year-old man from Northern Ireland was found three weeks after he went missing.

John George from Belfast, a father of two children, was in Spain for a short visit in December but the alarm was raised when he failed to board a flight home on 18 December.

Continue reading...