‘Like a tsunami’: Spaniards recount horror of deadly floods
Flash floods sparked by torrential rainfall have killed 95 people around Valencia, while dozens are still missing.
National Insurance hike ‘pain’ to hit jobs and pay, firms warn – BBC.com
- National Insurance hike 'pain' to hit jobs and pay, firms warn BBC.com
- Budget 2024 live: Rachel Reeves admits tax rises will impact wage increases for workers The Independent
- ‘That’s two people we won’t hire now’: bosses react to Reeves’s tax rises The Guardian
- Autumn Budget 2024: National Insurance for employers increased to 15% Portfolio Adviser
- Workers warned they will bear burden of tax raid on employers The Telegraph
At least 95 people dead in Spain’s worst floods in three decades
Soldiers aid search for dozens still missing as prime minister warns extreme weather may not be over
At least 95 people have died in eastern, central and southern Spain after torrential rains triggered the country’s deadliest floods in three decades, unleashing torrents of muddy water that surged through cities, towns and villages, trapping people in their homes, bringing down trees, and cutting off roads and railway lines.
As the search for dozens of missing people continued, motorists were urged to stay off the roads and away from swollen rivers amid warnings that the severe weather was not over and that the number of deaths could still rise.
Continue reading...World must act to prevent ‘ethnic cleansing’ of Gaza, António Guterres warns
Secretary general makes appeal as civilian casualties mount amid intensive Israeli strikes on north
The UN secretary general, António Guterres has warned Israel could carry out the “ethnic cleansing” of Gaza if the international community does not make a determined stand to prevent it.
Guterres made his appeal at a time of mounting civilian casualties from the Israeli bombardment of northern Gaza. A strike on Tuesday in Beit Lahiya district killed at least 93 people, in what the UN said was just one of at least seven “mass casualty incidents” across Gaza in the past week.
Continue reading...Georgia must change course to open EU membership talks, says European Commission
Western powers call for investigation into Georgian Dream party election win amid reports of voter intimidation and fraud
The European Commission has said it will not recommend opening EU membership talks with Georgia unless the country changes course, days after the increasingly anti-western Georgian Dream (GD) party won pivotal parliamentary elections amid reports of irregularities and voter intimidation.
The commission recommended that Georgia be granted EU candidate status last year – something Ukraine and Moldova had already achieved – but made clear at the time that this could be withdrawn if the government in Tbilisi did not follow through on agreed reforms.
Continue reading...This is not a Budget we want to repeat, says Rachel Reeves – BBC.com
- This is not a Budget we want to repeat, says Rachel Reeves BBC.com
- Wages, stamp duty, tax: What does the Budget mean for your money? BBC.com
- Budget 2024: Reeves crushes hopes of higher growth with record tax raid The Telegraph
- UK Budget: Labour Party to Raise Taxes by 40 Billion Pounds The New York Times
- UK borrowing costs spike after extensive tax hikes announced in budget CNBC
Palestinian student stripped of UK visa after Gaza remarks wins human rights appeal
Home Office failed to show presence of Dana Abu Qamar ‘not conducive to public good’, according to tribunal ruling
A Palestinian student who was stripped of her student visa after remarks she made about the Israel-Gaza war has won a human rights appeal against the Home Office’s decision.
The Home Office failed to demonstrate that the presence of Dana Abu Qamar, 20, was “not conducive to public good” after the law student’s visa was revoked in December 2023, according to a tribunal ruling.
Continue reading...Scientists rebuild the face of 400-year-old Polish ‘vampire’ – Reuters
- Scientists rebuild the face of 400-year-old Polish 'vampire' Reuters
- Archaeologists reconstruct face of 400-year-old "vampire" buried with iron sickle across her neck CBS News
- A Gruesome Discovery in Rural Poland PBS
- Exhuming Dracula’s Ancestors: What Vampires Reveal About Our Latent Fears Literary Hub
- How Poland's mysterious 'vampire' spent her final moments: Wealthy 18-year-old dubbed 'Zosia' was pinned to th Daily Mail
US warns Israel over Gaza aid as deadline approaches – BBC.com
- US warns Israel over Gaza aid as deadline approaches BBC.com
- US struggles to get answers on 'horrifying' Israeli strike in northern Gaza ABC News
- U.S. condemns Israeli airstrikes that killed dozens of civilians in Gaza CBS News
- US says Israeli steps to address humanitarian crisis in Gaza minor and insufficient The Times of Israel
- Gaza aid falls to lowest level since start of war despite US warning to Israel Financial Times
Five charged in Texas over alleged $1m ring to certify unqualified teachers
Prosecutors say impersonators took tests on behalf of applicants, and testing proctor was allegedly bribed
Five people in Texas have been charged in connection with an alleged fraudulent teacher certification scheme, which prosecutors say was used to improperly certify hundreds of unqualified teachers to work in local school districts throughout the state.
At a press conference on Monday led by the Harris county district attorney, Kim Ogg, prosecutors said the alleged scheme generated at least a million dollars and was used to certify more than 200 unqualified teachers who are currently or have previously worked in Texas public schools.
Continue reading...Recent whale deaths highlight risks from Antarctica’s booming krill fishery – The Associated Press
- Recent whale deaths highlight risks from Antarctica’s booming krill fishery The Associated Press
- China-Russia cooperation blocks Antarctic conservation proposals VOA Asia
- Fighting for the Rights of . . . Antarctica? National Review
- Antarctica’s Fate Will Impact the World. Is It Time to Give The Region a Voice at Climate Talks? InsideClimate News
- Antarctica-Whale Deaths guardonline.com
Paramedic gave Sergei Skripal novichok antidote by chance, inquiry hears
Knocked-over bag led to unintended use of drug to counter nerve agents, which may have saved former Russian spy
A paramedic has described the extraordinary moment he knocked over a drugs bag as he treated the former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and then by chance gave him a nerve agent antidote that may have saved his life.
Emergency services workers who went to help Skripal and his daughter, Yulia, after they were poisoned with the nerve agent novichok, initially suspected they may have been experiencing the effects of a recreational drugs overdose.
Continue reading...Hezbollah says will only accept ‘suitable’ truce as Israel pounds Baalbek
Hezbollah chief says the group will keep fighting Israel until its conditions for a ceasefire are met.
Some US states have firearm death rates comparable to countries in conflict, report says
Mississippi’s firearm-related violence rate nearly double that of Haiti, which is plagued by political and gang strife
A new report by the Commonwealth Fund finds some US states have firearm death rates comparable to countries in conflict, and even states with the fewest firearms deaths are far higher than peer developed democracies.
For instance, Mississippi’s rate of firearm-related violence (28.5 per 100,000 people) was nearly double that of Haiti (15.1 per 100,000) in 2021, when mercenaries assassinated the country’s president, unleashing a fresh round of gang warfare which pushed the country into a state of civil war.
Continue reading...Scientists say climate change made Spanish floods worse
Climate change had a role in making the storm that hit Spain more intense and deadly, say scientists
US sanctions 398 firms in more than a dozen countries, accusing them of helping Russia’s war effort – The Associated Press
- US sanctions 398 firms in more than a dozen countries, accusing them of helping Russia's war effort The Associated Press
- Putin’s cash crunch POLITICO Europe
- US cracks down on Russia’s facilitators worldwide Financial Times
- US Sanctions 398 Firms in Multiple Countries for Allegedly Aiding Russia Newsweek
- US cracks down on Russia sanctions evasion in fresh action Reuters
Hundreds of damaged ballots saved following fire at drop box in Washington
FBI is investigating and workers are contacting voters about new ballots after incendiary devices were put in drop box
Officials in south-west Washington were able to salvage almost 500 damaged ballots from a ballot box that was set on fire on Monday in what officials have called an attack on democracy ahead of a contentious US election.
An unknown number of ballots were destroyed when someone placed incendiary devices in a drop box in Vancouver, Washington, while three ballots were damaged in a fire at a box in nearby Portland, Oregon. Those fires and one other are linked, officials have said.
Continue reading...Scientists discover oldest ever giant tadpole fossil in Argentina
Tadpole that wriggled around 160m years ago surpasses previous record holder by about 20m years
Scientists have discovered the oldest-known fossil of a giant tadpole that wriggled around over 160m years ago.
The new fossil, found in Argentina, surpasses the previous ancient record holder by about 20m years.
Continue reading...The world braces for the fallout of next week’s US election – Semafor
- The world braces for the fallout of next week’s US election Semafor
- US election: what a Trump victory would mean for the rest of the world The Conversation
- As Election Nears, Foreign Leaders Fear ‘a Vacuum’ in American Leadership The New York Times
- IR Experts See Glaring Differences Between Harris and Trump Foreign Policy
- How this US election could change state of the world BBC.com
Israel cease-fire plan for Lebanon seeks to bypass UN, as US mediators travel to Jerusalem for talks – Fox News
- Israel cease-fire plan for Lebanon seeks to bypass UN, as US mediators travel to Jerusalem for talks Fox News
- New Hezbollah chief: We hit Netanyahu’s home, he ‘survived this time’ but may yet be killed The Times of Israel
- Lebanon, Israel could agree to ceasefire within days, Lebanese prime minister says Reuters
- Biden advisers to visit Israel to try to seal a deal to end war in Lebanon Axios
- A new push to wind down the Middle East wars faces familiar challenges The Associated Press