Category Archives: Europe

‘Incompatible with the symbolism’: Yorgos Lanthimos denied permission to shoot new film at the Acropolis

Posted on by

The country’s best-known director was refused by Greece’s culture ministry when he applied to shoot scenes for sci-fi comedy Bugonia at iconic Athens site

Greece’s leading contemporary director has had a request to shoot footage for his new film at the Acropolis in Athens denied by his country’s culture ministry.

Yorgos Lanthimos had filed a request to film scenes for sci-fi comedy Bugonia at the fifth-century BC site in April. But in a statement on Thursday, the culture ministry said permission had been refused because “the proposed scenes are incompatible with the symbolism … and the values the Acropolis represents”.

Continue reading...

Le Pen vows to fight ‘political’ ruling, as France’s main parties stage rival rallies

Posted on by

Far-right leader tells supporters she is victim of ‘witch-hunt’, while radical left says RN’s mask has slipped

• What is Marine Le Pen guilty of in National Rally embezzlement case?

The French far-right leader Marine Le Pen has told supporters in Paris she would fight “a political, not a judicial ruling” that could bar her from the next presidential election, as a rival rally denounced an “existential threat” to the rule of law after her conviction for embezzling public funds.

“This decision has trampled on everything I hold most dear: my people, my country and my honour,” the figurehead of National Rally (RN) told a crowd of flag-waving supporters as the country’s three main political movements staged events in the Paris.

Continue reading...

Unsafe for Russia to restart Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, says Ukraine energy chief

Posted on by

Energoatom CEO, Petro Kotin, says ‘major problems’ need to be overcome before it can safely generate power

It would be unsafe for Russia to restart the occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant and would take Ukraine up to two years in peacetime if it regained control, the chief executive of the company that runs the vast six-reactor site has said.

Petro Kotin, chief executive of Energoatom, said in an interview there were “major problems” to overcome – including insufficient cooling water, personnel and incoming electricity supply – before it could start generating power again safely.

Continue reading...

Pope Francis makes surprise appearance in St Peter’s Square for jubilee mass

Posted on by

Pontiff makes first public appearance in the Vatican since his release from hospital two weeks ago

Pope Francis has made a surprise appearance in St Peter’s Square during a special jubilee mass for the sick and health workers, marking his first public appearance at the Vatican since his discharge from hospital two weeks ago.

The pontiff waved at the crowd that stood and applauded as he was appeared unannounced, assisted in a wheelchair to the front of the altar in the square.

Continue reading...

‘There is no ceasefire. Attacks are ongoing’: how Putin’s envoy played US over Ukraine

Posted on by

White House welcome for key member of Russian president’s inner circle raises fears over America’s commitment to peace

Kirill Dmitriev’s meetings with US officials in the White House last week went largely below the radar. And deliberately so.

The dapper investment envoy to Russian president Vladimir Putin, who also serves as a key negotiator for Moscow on Ukraine, posted an image of his flight plan on social media to make the point that a senior sanctioned Russian official was being welcomed by the Trump administration. Otherwise, details of what was discussed remain opaque.

Continue reading...

Thousands in Spain join nationwide march to protest against housing crisis

Posted on by

Organisers say 150,000 joined protest in Madrid urging the government to ‘end the housing racket’ and to demand access to affordable housing

Tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets of Spain in the latest protest against housing speculation and to demand access to affordable homes.

Organisers claim that up to 150,000 joined the protest in Madrid while smaller demonstrations were held in about 40 cities across the country. Protesters from Málaga on the Costa del Sol to Vigo in the Atlantic northwest chanted “end the housing racket” and “landlords are guilty, the government is responsible”.

Continue reading...

Space probe to map carbon content of world’s remotest tropical forests

Posted on by

Revolutionary scanner to be fired into Earth orbit this month to measure effects of deforestation

Scientists are about to take part in a revolutionary mission aimed at creating detailed 3D maps of the world’s remotest, densest and darkest tropical forests – from outer space. The feat will be achieved using a special radar scanner that has been fitted to a probe, named Biomass, that will be fired into the Earth’s orbit later this month.

For the next five years, the 1.25-tonne spacecraft will sweep over the tropical rainforests of Africa, Asia and South America and peer through their dense 40m-high ­canopies to study the vegetation that lies beneath. The data collected by Biomass will then be used to create unique 3D maps of forests normally hidden from human sight.

Continue reading...

Eighteen people killed in Russian missile strike on Zelenskyy’s home city

Posted on by

Missile attack on Kryvyi Rih left 61 injured including three-month-old baby and elderly residents

Eighteen people, including nine children, have been killed in a Russian missile strike on Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s home city, a Ukrainian official has said.

A further 61 people were injured in the attack on Kryvyi Rih on Friday, including a three-month-old baby and elderly residents, the regional governor, Serhii Lysak, said. Forty remain in hospital, including two children in critical condition and 17 in a serious condition.

Continue reading...

US neo-Nazi group with Russia-based leader calls for targeted Ukraine attacks

Posted on by

The Base, terrorist group founded in 2018, free to export violence abroad as Trump pulls FBI from pursuing far right

A US neo-Nazi terrorist group with a Russia-based leader is calling for targeted assassinations and attacks on the critical infrastructure of Ukraine in an effort to destabilize the country as it carries out ceasefire negotiations with the Kremlin.

The Base, which has a web of cells all over the world, was founded in 2018 and became the subject of a relentless FBI counter-terrorism investigation that led to several arrests and world governments officially designating it as a terrorist organization.

Continue reading...

‘Eat, sleep and party’: a taste of La Dolce Vita aboard Italy’s Orient Express

Posted on by

Replica of world-famous train aimed at reviving glamour of the classic version makes debut journey from Rome

A replica of the world-famous Orient Express made its debut journey from Rome on Friday, transporting well-heeled passengers into the heart of Tuscany’s wine region.

La Dolce Vita Orient Express, the first Italian-made luxury train, is aimed at reviving the glamour of the classic version as well as the romanticised notion of Italy’s dolce vita, or “sweet life”, all the while promoting slow tourism.

Continue reading...

‘So resonant’: the 19th-century Russian opera being revived across Europe

Posted on by

Mussorgsky’s Khovanshchina – set in the troubled 1680s – can almost describe current events, say directors

A Russian political leader sings about war with Ukrainians and the need for a “durable peace”. The fractured political elite argues over whether they should pursue closer ties with Europe or embrace Russian traditions.

The plot of Modest Mussorgsky’s opera Khovanshchina was written in the 1870s and is set in the 1680s. But, as the characters lament the fact that their homeland is mired in an endless cycle of violence and unhappiness, the dark and brooding work can feel alarmingly contemporary.

Continue reading...

US ‘testing’ if Russia is serious about peace in Ukraine, says Marco Rubio

Posted on by

Secretary of state says Putin ‘will have to make a decision’ as US officials appear to be growing impatient

The US will know within weeks whether Russia is serious about pursuing peace with Ukraine, the secretary of state has said, warning that Donald Trump was not “going to fall into the trap of endless negotiations” with Moscow.

“We’re testing to see if the Russians are interested in peace,” Marco Rubio told journalists in Brussels after talks with Nato allies. “Their actions – not their words, their actions – will determine whether they’re serious or not, and we intend to find that out sooner rather than later.”

Continue reading...

IMF warns of ‘significant risk’ to global economy from Trump tariffs as markets plunge

Posted on by

Fund boss Kristalina Georgieva says it is important that US and trading partners avoid escalating trade war

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned that Donald Trump’s implementation of swingeing tariffs poses a “significant risk” to the global economy, as stock markets were hit by a punishing worldwide sell-off by investors.

Kristalina Georgieva, the managing director of the IMF, said it was important that the US and its trading partners avoided further escalating Trump’s trade war, while stock markets plunged on Friday as China retaliated against the tariffs.

Continue reading...

Greece’s Aegean islands reel from ‘lake of mud’ flash floods before Easter rush

Posted on by

Authorities race to complete clean-up operation after devastation from gales and heaviest rainfall in 20 years

People on the Aegean islands, more used in April to the sight and scent of spring’s blossoms, have been left reeling from flash floods spurred by typhoon-strength gales, with authorities calling a state of emergency in some of Greece’s most popular destinations less than three weeks before Easter.

“It’s a total catastrophe and it happened in just two hours,” said Costas Bizas, the mayor of Paros, the island worst hit by weather not seen in decades. “We need all the help we can get.”

Continue reading...

EU urged to put human rights centre stage at first central Asia summit

Posted on by

Bloc to discuss trade, security and energy with leaders of Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan

The EU is being urged to put human rights centre stage as it begins its first summit with the leaders of central Asia.

The president of the European Council, António Costa, and the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, are meeting the leaders of Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan on Friday.

Continue reading...

Danish PM tells US ‘you cannot annex another country’ on visit to Greenland

Posted on by

Mette Frederiksen, who met island’s new and outgoing PMs, says she wants to cooperate with Trump on Arctic security

The Danish prime minister has put on a show of unity with Greenlandic leaders in her first visit to the Arctic island since Donald Trump’s renewed threats to acquire the territory, telling the US: “You cannot annex another country.”

Speaking onboard an inspection ship in front of a military helicopter, alongside Greenland’s new prime minister, Jens-Frederik Nielsen, and its outgoing prime minister, Múte B Egede, Mette Frederiksen switched from Danish to English to address the diplomatic standoff with the Trump administration.

Continue reading...

Hungary to pull out of ‘political’ ICC as Netanyahu visits Budapest

Posted on by

Israeli PM, who is wanted by the court, hails Viktor Orbán’s ‘bold and principled’ decision to leave the ‘corrupt’ body

Hungary will leave the international criminal court because it has become “political”, the country’s prime minister, Viktor Orbán, said as he welcomed his Israeli counterpart, Benjamin Netanhayu – the subject of an ICC arrest warrant – to Budapest for an official visit.

Standing beside Netanyahu at the start of the four-day visit, Orbàn said Hungary was convinced the “otherwise very important court” had “diminished into a political forum”.

Continue reading...

Murders of two female students prompt calls for a ‘cultural rebellion’ in Italy

Posted on by

Sara Campanella and Ilaria Sula were found within 48 hours of each other, bringing the number of femicides in 2025 to 11

There have been calls in Italy for a “cultural rebellion” amid outrage and protests over the murders of two female students found within 48 hours of each other, bringing the number of femicides in the country since the start of the year to 11.

Sara Campanella, a 22-year-old biomedical student, was stabbed at a bus stop in the Sicilian city of Messina on Monday afternoon and died while being taken to hospital.

Continue reading...

Netanyahu to visit Hungary as Orbán vows to defy ICC arrest warrant

Posted on by

Israeli prime minister begins four-day trip after Hungarian counterpart says court ruling would ‘have no effect’

Benjamin Netanyahu is expected to begin a four-day official visit to Hungary on Thursday, marking the first time the Israeli prime minister has stepped foot on European soil since the international criminal court issued an arrest warrant for him over allegations of war crimes in Gaza.

Hours after the ICC announced the warrants in November, Hungary’s prime minister, Viktor Orbán, made it clear he would defy the court to host Netanyahu, telling reporters that he would “guarantee” the ICC’s ruling would “have no effect in Hungary”.

Continue reading...

Trump hits UK with 10% tariffs as he ignites global trade war

Posted on by

Britain gets off comparatively lightly but US president’s action could still cost billions in lost growth

Donald Trump has hit the UK with tariffs of 10% on exports to the US as he ignited a global trade war that could wipe billions off economic growth.

The US president accused other nations, including allies, of “looting, pillaging, raping and plundering” the US, as he announced tariffs on economic rivals including 20% on the EU and 34% on China as part of what he dubbed “liberation day”.

Continue reading...