On the EU’s doorstep, Alexander Lukashenko remains in power after 26 years, deploying riot police to cling on amid widespread protests
Category Archives: Europe
Russian activist Alexei Navalny unconscious after being ‘poisoned’
Opposition politician may have been poisoned by toxic substance in his tea, says press secretary
The Russian opposition activist Alexei Navalny is unconscious in hospital after allegedly being poisoned with a toxic substance in his tea, according to his press secretary Kira Yarmish.
A doctor at the hospital said that Navalny was in a “serious condition” but did not specify the cause. The opposition activist is currently on a ventilator.
Continue reading...Hunt is on for rightful owner of Nazi-looted French painting
Sign hangs next to Nicolas Rousseau artwork in Verdun asking public for information
A 19th-century oil painting stolen from Nazi-occupied France during the second world war has gone on display in an attempt to trace its rightful owners, after being returned by the son of the German soldier who was ordered to take it.
After 76 years in Germany, the small untitled artwork by the French painter Nicolas Rousseau is back in France and being exhibited at the World Centre for Peace, Liberty and Human Rights in the north-eastern town of Verdun.
Continue reading...August brings fierce heat to Europe and storms to Atlantic
Weather conditions this month include soaring temperatures and earliest-forming ‘J’ storm
A heatwave has brought sweltering conditions to much of north-west Europe and the UK this month. Temperatures have exceeded 30C (86F) across France for several days, climbing to the low 40s in the south-west of the country. The heat has exacerbated a drought, with 72 of 96 regional departments subject to water restrictions.
Europe is not alone in experiencing intense heat. High temperatures in California have resulted in increased demand for electricity as residents increasingly rely on air conditioning.
Continue reading...Teenager found dead tried to cross Channel in dinghy with shovels for oars
Sudanese teenager, found near Calais, attempted crossing with another boy in inflatable dinghy
A Sudanese teenager who disappeared at sea has been found dead on a beach near Calais on Wednesday morning, after trying to cross the Channel with another boy in an inflatable dinghy using shovels for oars.
The French citizenship minister, Marlène Schiappa, said the body was found on the beach of Sangatte, near to the former site of the notorious “jungle” refugee camp, and was believed to be that of a 16-year-old boy, although some uncertainty remains over his age while authorities are continuing to investigate the matter.
Continue reading...Mali’s new rulers urged to ensure rapid restoration of democracy
US calls on military to reject violence and work towards return of constitutional government
Mali’s new military rulers have come under intense pressure to ensure a rapid restoration of democracy following the coup that brought them to power overnight.
There were reports on Wednesday that the officers who led the coup met Mahmoud Dicko, a conservative cleric with a large popular following and de facto leader of the recent protest movement in Mali, during the afternoon, suggesting they may be seeking to work with political actors in the unstable west African country.
Continue reading...Sweden records highest death tally in 150 years in first half of 2020
Covid-19 caused about 4,500 deaths in six months to end of June as Sweden opted against strict lockdown
Sweden, which has stood out among European countries for its low-key approach to fighting the coronavirus pandemic, has recorded its highest tally of deaths in the first half of 2020 for 150 years, the Statistics Office said.
Covid-19 claimed about 4,500 lives in the period to the end of June – a number that has now risen to 5,800 – a much higher percentage of the population than in other Nordic nations, though lower than in some others, including Britain and Spain.
Continue reading...Belarus crisis: EU says it does not recognise election results
Bloc declares solidarity with protests against Lukashenko’s grip on power as it vows to press ahead with sanctions
The EU has said it does not recognise Alexander Lukashenko as Belarus’s president and vowed to press ahead with sanctions on his regime, following an emergency summit in response to 10 days of protests that have shaken the autocrat’s 26-year grip on power.
“The European Union stands in solidarity with the people of Belarus,” said Charles Michel, the European council president, who convened the last-minute meeting of the EU’s 27 leaders. Belarus’s presidential elections had been “neither free nor fair and did not meet international standards”, he said. “We don’t recognise the results presented by the Belarus authorities.”
Continue reading...Belarus opposition leader calls on EU not to recognise ‘fraudulent’ elections – video
Svetlana Tikhanovskaya is appealing to EU leaders to disregard the results of the election on 9 August, calling them fraudulent. In the statement issued from Lithuania, where she is exiled, she said: 'I call on you to support the awakening of Belarus'. Tikhanovskaya claimed the election results were falsified and protesters had been beaten and tortured
Continue reading...Coronavirus live news: Spain and Italy report high increase in cases; Mykonos bans parties and festivities
Spain sees more than 3,700 new cases as Italy records 642 new infections; Iran death toll exceeds 20,000; strict restrictions imposed on Greek island
- Sweden records highest death tally in 150 years in first half of 2020
- Global report: Iran exceeds 20,000 official Covid-19 deaths
- Italy at crossroads as fears grow over second wave
- German leaders brace for backlash over possible carnival ban
- UK coronavirus updates - live
The 25th edition of France’s Colmar Jazz Festival, scheduled for September, has been postponed until next year due to the coronavirus epidemic, the city said in a statement on Wednesday.
“Current progress in the health crisis does not allow us today, realistically, to consider staging concerts in September,” the statement says, adding that this edition of the festival will now take place in 2021.
American Indians and Alaska Natives have been hit harder by Covid-19 than the white US population and have been more likely to become infected by coronavirus at a younger age, a US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report showed on Wednesday.
The incidence of laboratory-confirmed Covid-19 cases among people identified as American Indians or Alaska Natives was 3.5 times that of non-Hispanic whites, making them one of the racial and ethnic minority groups at highest risk, according to the study based on data from 23 US states from 22 January to 3 July.
Continue reading...Malfunction at Swiss chocolate factory sends out plume of cocoa ‘snow’
Fine particles dust the ground around Lindt & Spruengli factory in town of Olten after ventilation defect
A real-life Willy Wonka would have been proud. But residents of a Swiss town got a bit of a shock when it started snowing particles of a fine cocoa powder after the ventilation system at a chocolate factory malfunctioned.
The Lindt & Spruengli company confirmed local reports on Tuesday that there was a minor defect in the cooling ventilation in an area making roasted “cocoa nibs” in its factory in Olten, between Zurich and Basel.
Continue reading...Germany to extend coronavirus furlough to 24 months
Angela Merkel backs proposal to continue Kurzarbeit part-time working scheme
Germany is expected to extend its pandemic furlough scheme to 24 months after Angela Merkel indicated that she welcomed the proposal to let the Kurzarbeit programme run on.
The chancellor’s spokesperson said on Monday she was “positively” inclined towards the suggestion to extend the scheme, which allows firms to put their staff on part-time work to reduce their cost. Britain’s furlough scheme initially only allowed staff to be sent home and not work, but staff have been allowed to work part-time since July.
Continue reading...Belarus protests: who are the key players and what do they want?
The opposition challenge to Lukashenko also presents an issue for Russia and the EU
Historic protests in Belarus have driven the longtime president, Alexander Lukashenko, into the worst crisis of his career. It appears possible, though not certain, that his regime could fall in the coming weeks. For the first time in a generation, opposition protesters can see a path to power through free and fair elections. The former Soviet republic is a close ally of Russia but has played towards the west in recent years. Here is a short guide to what each side wants and how they might get it.
Continue reading...Belarusians are speaking as one: Alexander Lukashenko’s time is up | David Kurkovskiy
More than a week after a sham election, public rage has not died down
“And what is it, what is it that they want / Centuries despised: those deaf, blind ones? / To be called people.” These words by Janka Kupala, Belarus’s national poet, published in the early 1900s, have come to mind in recent days as protests have rippled through the nation. Twenty-six years after Alexander Lukashenko came to power in the Republic of Belarus’ first and last democratic elections – almost immediately stripping the country of any ambitions to recover its national language, democratic process or historic myths and symbols after more than 70 years under the Soviet yoke – Belarus and Belarusians are seeing for the first time a fighting chance at meaningful politics and civic rights. Make no mistake, a people once described as the “dark, despised ones” (ciomny, pahardžany narod) have crossed a point of no return.
Olga Shparaga, a leading Belarusian political philosopher (whom I work alongside at the European College of Liberal Arts), described the emotions of fellow protesters in a phone conversation last Wednesday morning: “People are completely infuriated, ready to go wherever they need. This is not the time to think, but to act.” The protests followed the sham election on 9 August: the election commission gave Lukashenko approximately 80% of the vote when in all likelihood the main opposition actually won by a landslide. Unable to take these lies any longer, Belarusians took to the polling stations and streets in peaceful protest, only to be brutally attacked, gassed and shot at by riot police.
Continue reading...Sweden’s Covid-19 strategist under fire over herd immunity emails
Anders Tegnell appears to have asked if higher death rate among older people acceptable if faster herd immunity achieved
Sweden’s light-touch approach to Covid-19 has come under renewed criticism after emails show the country’s chief epidemiologist appearing to ask whether a higher death rate among older people might be acceptable if it led to faster herd immunity.
Speculation about the views of Sweden’s leading public health officials was further fanned after it also emerged that Anders Tegnell, the architect of the country’s no-lockdown strategy, had deleted some of his emails.
Continue reading...Coronavirus live news: Czech Republic reintroducing mask wearing; New Zealand postpones election
Czech Republic sees resurgence of coronavirus infections; India death toll passes 50,000; Japan GDP falls at annual rate of 27.8%
- Global report: Japan hit by biggest GDP fall in 40 years
- New Zealand delays election by month amid Auckland outbreak
- See all our coronavirus coverage
In the UK, the government has performed a juddering u-turn to say that this summer’s exam results will be based on teacher assessment rather than a controversial standardisation model that prompted fury from students who found themselves sharply downgraded on the basis of their schools’ previous performance.
My colleagues Richard Adams and Sally Weale have a write-up here...
Related: A-level and GCSE results in England to be based on teacher assessments in U-turn
Earlier we posted a link to an interesting El Pais piece which noted that in recent months the average age of those newly infected with coronavirus had dropped significantly. If you’re interested in this phenomenon and its consequences more broadly, take a look at this piece by our own Jon Henley from last week:
Unlike during the early months of the crisis in March and April, when older people accounted for the biggest share of cases, in France, Germany, Spain, the Netherlands and Belgium 20 to 39-year-olds now represent up to 40% of new infections...
The challenge for governments and health agencies, experts say, is to prevent the virus from spreading to more vulnerable populations. “There’s no reason to imagine it can be contained to just one age group, without affecting others, Pascal Crépey, an epidemiologist and public health expert, told Le Parisien.
Related: Surge in Covid-19 cases across Europe linked to young people
Continue reading...Threat to kill wild boar that stole nude bather’s laptop prompts outcry
Berlin officials say Elsa and her piglets pose a danger and may have to be ‘withdrawn’
A wild boar that has become a frequent visitor at a lakeside bathing resort in Berlin is attracting a growing band of supporters following authorities’ suggestion that it could have to be killed.
The animal, nicknamed Elsa, has earned something akin to celebrity status after a series of photos of it and its piglets stealing a nude bather’s laptop at Teufelssee lake in west Berlin went viral this month.
Continue reading...Belarus workers chant ‘resign!’ at Lukashenko on factory visit – video
The Belarusian president, Alexander Lukashenko, walked off stage to chants of 'step down' after a speech to workers at the Minsk tractor works on Monday. The factory is one of the large state-run industrial plants that are the pride of his Soviet-style economic model and core support base. During his speech, Lukashenko said he would be willing to hand over power after a referendum in an apparent attempt to pacify mass protests and strikes
Continue reading...‘Resign!’: Alexander Lukashenko heckled by factory workers in Minsk
Embattled Belarus president looked shaken as people yelled ‘liar’ in fresh blow to regime
Alexander Lukashenko’s grip on power in Belarus has taken a further hit, as workers heckled him during a visit to a factory on the outskirts of Minsk.
The visit to the the state-owned MZKT military vehicles factory on Monday was meant to show the Belarusian president was still in control and retained the support of workers at the vast factories that are the backbone of the country’s neo-Soviet economy, a day after the biggest rally in the country’s recent history against his rule.
Continue reading...In Poland we’ve become spectators at the dismantling of democracy | Karolina Wigura and Jarosław Kuisz
A disturbing future awaits the country after Andrzej Duda’s campaign, which merged politics, populism and entertainment
The political and ideological project being implemented by Poland’s populist governing party, Law and Justice (PiS), has a long way to run. The re-election of the party’s candidate Andrzej Duda to the presidency last month has merely ushered in a new chapter and it will be even more demanding for liberals than what went before.
International attention may be focused on Belarus, but in Poland, ministers have just announced an autumn agenda which involves a simultaneous attack on the judiciary and the independent media. It coincides with intensifying pressure on the LGBT+ community in the form of verbal assaults from PiS figures. Demonstrations in cities across the country against the pre-trial jailing of an LGBT+ activist have led not to dialogue, but to the heavy-handed arrests of dozens more.
Continue reading...