Category Archives: Europe

‘A serious urban mistake’: why Paris went sour on the new Gare du Nord

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As developers aim to turn France’s busiest train station into a gargantuan airport-style mall, Parisians fear for the local neighbourhood – and the station’s soul

“When you tell people in Paris you live near the Gare du Nord, they usually grimace,” sighed Sarah, a French academic in her 50s who has lived on a narrow, traffic-choked street next to Europe’s busiest station for 30 years.

“Architecturally, the station building is superb. But neighbourhoods around stations are never easy, wherever they are in the world.”

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Germany: mass shooting attempt that killed two was antisemitic attack, minister says

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  • Authorities say indications suggest ‘rightwing extremist motive’
  • Reports say gunman was 27-year-old German citizen

Two people died and two more were severely injured in the eastern German city of Halle on Wednesday after a gunman in a military-style outfit tried to force his way into a synagogue in an attempted mass shooting.

In a chilling echo of the Christchurch mosque shooting, the gunman recorded the attacks on a head-mounted camera and uploaded it online with an antisemitic and rightwing extremist rant. German media identified the killer as Stephan Balliet, a 27-year-old German citizen from the town of Eisleben in Saxony-Anhalt.

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Magazine aimed at MEPs ‘filled with pro-Russia content’

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EP Today using articles from Kremlin-funded outlet RT, says EU disinformation taskforce

An EU taskforce responsible for tackling disinformation has revealed a self-styled “news magazine for the European parliament” is copying half of its articles directly from the Kremlin-funded news channel RT.

EP Today, whose readers include senior MEPs, the European commissioner for digital economy and society, Mariya Gabriel, and European ambassadors to the EU, is said to be dominated by articles from the Russian outlet.

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White House says it will not comply with impeachment inquiry – as it happened

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Eight-page letter to House Democratic leaders claims investigation is effort to overturn 2016 election

Here’s a recap of today:

Secretary of state Mike Pompeo has announced visa restrictions on Chinese officials suspected of being involved in “a highly repressive campaign against Uighurs, ethnic Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and other members of Muslim minority groups in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region (Xinjiang).”

Earlier today, the US commerce department issued a list of 28 state security bureaus and tech companies in China that it said are being used to suppress muslims and other ethnic minorities.

Related: US restricts visas for Chinese officials over internment of Muslim minorities

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Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal appears doomed as deadline looms

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EU may offer to extend Brexit talks to summer, despite PM’s insistence UK will leave on 31 October

Boris Johnson’s Brexit plan appeared to be all but dead on Tuesday night as the government admitted there was little prospect of a deal before 31 October, following a day of furious recriminations.

The prime minister spoke to the Irish taoiseach, Leo Varadkar, on the phone after a stormy 24 hours of briefing and counter-briefing, as concerns about his tactics were even raised in Johnson’s cabinet.

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13 women dead and eight children missing after boat capsizes off Italy

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Vessel carrying people from sub-Saharan Africa hit rough seas near island of Lampedusa

At least 13 women have died and eight children are missing after a boat capsized in rough seas off the Italian island of Lampedusa on Sunday night as a patrol vessel attempted to save it.

Italian authorities have rescued 22 survivors from the boat, which was carrying about 50 people. Only four of the 13 recovered bodies have been identified by surviving family members, including that of a 12-year-old girl.

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Brexit: Tusk accuses Johnson of ‘stupid blame game’ as No 10 signals talks about to collapse – live news

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Rolling coverage of the day’s political developments as doubts grow over future of Brexit negotiations

This is from Mujtaba Rahman, the Brexit specialist at the Eurasia consultancy.

Collapse of negotiations now leaves MPs with a huge dilemma. Do they put trust in Benn Act to be robust enough to prevent the no-deal Boris will now gravitate to? Or do they oust him in a VONC to make totally sure? Former more likely- still no sign of agreement on caretaker PM

And these are from the BBC’s Berlin correspondent, Jenny Hill.

Worth bearing in mind the following when looking at No 10’s interpretation of Merkel / Johnson call. 1. This confrontational language / style is unusual for Merkel 2. Germany - more than most - has been careful to avoid leaks / statements which wld inflame tensions between UK&EU

3. My understanding is that German govt still ready to work to find solution not least because....4. Germany doesn’t want no deal. Met president of German exporters assoc earlier - they are horrified by prospect

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I thought I’d seen all the horrors possible here in Idlib – until now | Raed Al Saleh

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The terror being unleashed from the sky is the worst it’s ever been in my eight years of leading White Helmet rescue workers

Most of my country is in ruins. But the worst crisis of Syria’s conflict is unfolding now. Beautiful cities have become ghost towns, their inhabitants forced to flee the country or pushed into one of the last remaining areas outside of Assad’s control. More than 3 million people, half of whom are children, are trapped in Idlib, where a tyrant is unleashing horror from the sky. It’s the largest displacement crisis of the 21st century and yet Idlib’s people have been abandoned by the world.

After eight years leading teams of volunteer rescue workers, the White Helmets, I thought I had seen all the horrors possible. But looking at the state of Idlib today, I can honestly say it’s the worst my country has been.

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Artificial womb: Dutch researchers given €2.9m to develop prototype

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Model from Eindhoven University will surround baby with fluid and deliver oxygen and nutrients via umbilical cord

Attempts to create an artificial womb for premature babies have been given a boost by the award of a €2.9m (£2.6m) grant to develop a working prototype for use in clinics.

The model, which is being developed by researchers at the Eindhoven University of Technology, would provide babies with artificial respiration. However, unlike current incubators the artificial womb would be similar to biological conditions, with the baby surrounded by fluids and receiving oxygen and nutrients through an artificial placenta that will connect to their umbilical cord.

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Nobel prize in physics awarded to cosmology and exoplanet researchers

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James Peebles, Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz honoured for for ‘improving our understanding of evolution of universe and Earth’s place in the cosmos’

Three scientists have been awarded the 2019 Nobel prize in physics for groundbreaking discoveries about the evolution of the Universe and the Earth’s place within it.

The Canadian scientist James Peebles has been awarded half of the 9m Swedish kronor (£740,000) prize for his theoretical discoveries about the evolution of the universe. A Swiss duo of astronomers, Michel Mayor and Didier Queloz, will share the other half of the prize for their discovery of the first planet beyond our solar system.

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Eight injured as stolen lorry crashes into cars in Germany

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Authorities investigating 32-year-old Syrian national over incident in Limburg

German authorities are investigating a man who drove a stolen lorry into a line of cars in Limburg in the western state of Hesse, injuring eight people.

The 32-year-old had pulled the driver of the vehicle from his cabin at a red light before using the lorry to plough into eight cars waiting at a light near the town’s central railway station at about 5.20pm (1620 BST) on Monday.

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No 10 continues to deflect blame for Brexit impasse on to EU

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PM calls on EU to engage but leaked document suggests it has refuted his plans in detail

Downing Street has sought to deflect the blame for the Brexit impasse on to Britain’s EU counterparts, as Boris Johnson’s plans continued to meet a frosty reception.

After the French president, Emmanuel Macron, set a deadline of Friday for progress towards a deal, the prime minister’s official No 10 spokesman repeatedly said Johnson was still waiting for the EU27 to engage with Britain’s plan.

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Portugal election result cements modest gains for Europe’s centre-left

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Socialists now have incentive to govern alone rather than seeking formal alliance

Portugal’s Socialists won Sunday’s general elections but fell short of an absolute majority, leaving the prime minister, António Costa, needing to negotiate a delicate new alliance with the far-left parties that backed him last time around.

Cementing a modest and partial recovery for Europe’s centre-left after a disastrous few years of fallout from the 2008 financial crisis, the Socialists won 106 seats, up from 86 in the previous parliament, against 77 for the opposition centre-right Social Democrats (PSD), their worst result since 1983.

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HSBC plans to cut 10,000 more jobs worldwide, says report

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Bank forced to shed jobs due to low interest ratess, Brexit and global tariff wars

HSBC plans to lay off up to 10,000 staff, more than 4% of its global workforce, as it embarks on a fresh cost-cutting drive, according to reports.

The cuts will affect mostly high-paid roles and come as the UK-based bank grapples with falling interest rates, Brexit and global tariff wars, the Financial Times reported. HSBC declined to comment.

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Portugal election: Socialists retain power with increased share of the vote

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António Costa bucks the trend of declining fortunes for Europe’s left, but remains short of an outright majority

Portuguese prime minister António Costa’s Socialist party has won the country’s general election but has fallen short of an outright majority, according to exit polls.

The Socialists (PS) took 36.65% of the vote, followed by the centre-right Social Democrats (PSD) with 27.9%, according to near total results released by the interior ministry early on Monday.

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‘It’s like a death sentence’: retired Britons in EU face loss of healthcare

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Reciprocal scheme in which NHS reimburses cost of treatment will cease under a no-deal Brexit

Britons with serious, sometimes terminal, illnesses who live in the EU say they have no certainty about how or even whether their healthcare costs will be covered after a no-deal Brexit and are suffering a “living nightmare” of anxiety and despair.

“It’s like a death sentence,” said Denise Abel, who moved to Italy in 2012. “It’s all you think about. I feel abandoned, betrayed and furious. There are no words for the rage I feel. We’re the collateral damage in the government’s war with the EU.”

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Macron gives Johnson until end of week to overhaul Brexit plan

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French president’s insistence that UK should give way raises chances of talks imploding

The French president has given Boris Johnson until the end of the week to fundamentally revise his Brexit plan, in a move that increases the chances of the negotiations imploding within days.

The UK proposals tabled last week are not regarded in Brussels as being a basis for a deal and Emmanuel Macron emphasised it was up to the UK to think again before an upcoming EU summit.

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Prague prepares for England fans’ long weekend with ‘anti-conflict units’

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• Six thousand England fans expected in Czech capital
• Police warn of zero tolerance for violation of local laws

Czech police have been put on high alert for the arrival of an estimated 6,000 English supporters here for Friday’s Euro 2020 qualifier between England and the Czech Republic, with preparations afoot to deploy anti-riot squads in the event of violent disorder.

With widespread fears of alcohol‑fuelled disturbances that could be exacerbated by the country’s reputation for cheap beer, an unprecedented number of officers – including special English‑speaking “anti-conflict units” – will patrol the capital’s tourist districts for a fixture designated as high risk. Criminal, traffic and helicopter units, along with police on horseback, will be on duty for a match that has already drawn an appeal from the England manager, Gareth Southgate, for fans to be on their best behaviour.

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