~theguardian-world | Bookmarks (524)

Locals say city is against plan and accuse authorities of turning Venice into a ‘theme park’ by charging day trippers for visitsOnly about one in ten people present in Venice have paid a €5 fee to access the city, Ansa reported today.The daily Le Parisien ran a front page on the Venice scheme drawing comparisons with the challenges of over-tourism at some sites in...

Ukrainian president meets Jeremy Hunt and calls for sanctions against Russia to be tightenedBelarusian president Alexander Lukashenko said on Thursday that the risk of military incidents along his country’s border with Ukraine was quite high, reports Reuters citing Russia’s state-run RIA news agency.RIA also cited him as saying that neighbouring Poland should not expect aggressive actions from Belarus. Continue reading...

Blades of famous cabaret venue fall from roof overnightThe blades of the Moulin Rouge windmill, one of the most famous landmarks in Paris, have collapsed, firefighters have said, just months before the French capital hosts the Olympics.There was no risk of further collapse, Paris firefighters said after the incident overnight. Continue reading...

Pedro Sánchez halts public duties, hitting out at opponents after court launches inquiry into alleged corruption by Begoña GómezSpain’s socialist prime minister has cancelled his public duties for the rest of the week and said he is considering resigning, blaming a “harassment and bullying operation” by his political and media opponents for a court’s decision to launch an investigation into his wife for alleged...

Critics of Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa say behind remarks is lack of national recognition that slavery should be discussed in schoolsPortugal needs to “pay the costs” of slavery and other colonial-era crimes, the country’s president has said, in a rare instance of a European leader seemingly backing the need for reparations.Portugal has long grappled with calls by campaigners to address its legacy as the...

Arrest of deputy defence minister Timur Ivanov comes weeks after Vladimir Putin urged FSB to step up efforts to root out corruptionA well-connected Russian deputy defence minister has been charged with bribe-taking, in the highest-profile corruption scandal in the country in years, triggering speculation about a possible purge within Moscow’s elites.Timur Ivanov, 47, who was responsible for Russia’s military infrastructure projects, was detained by...

Ukraine’s SBU security service drones struck two oil depots in Russia’s Smolensk overnight, according to a Ukrainian intelligence source. It came as the US Senate approved wartime foreign aid for UkraineHere are some of the latest images on the newswires:Ukraine’s SBU security service drones struck two Rosneft-owned oil depots in Russia’s Smolensk region in an overnight attack, according to a source in Ukrainian intelligence...

Authorities in Greece warn the dust concentrations can reduce sunlight and visibility, while increasing levels of fine pollution particles pose health risksClouds of dust blown in from the Sahara covered Athens and other Greek cities on Tuesday, one of the worst such episodes to hit the country since 2018, officials said.A yellow-orange haze smothered several regions after days of strong winds from the south,...

Attempt to cross via overcrowded dinghy from Wimereux aborted after engine stalls and five people drownThey could have been on a school trip. Fifty teenagers from Vietnam, dressed for the biting cold in puffer jackets, smart trainers and woolly beanies, sat on the pavement by the bus shelter outside Gare Calais listening to music and watching videos on their smartphones.They were waiting for the...

French coastguard says small boat was carrying more than 100 people during failed crossing attemptFive people have died in an attempt to cross the Channel near the town of Wimereux, south of Calais, French police have said.A spokesperson for France’s national police told Reuters that five asylum seekers had died, while the French coastguard confirmed there was a failed attempt to cross the Channel...

Man worked as assistant to Maximilian Krah, top candidate in European parliament elections, say prosecutorsAn aide to a German far-right politician standing in the European elections in June has been arrested on suspicion of spying for China, German prosecutors have said.The man, named only as Jian G, was accused of sharing information about negotiations at the European parliament with a Chinese intelligence service and...

App feature could be suspended unless child safety concerns addressed, in first use of sweeping new digital powersThe EU has said it will ban a new service launched by TikTok in Europe that it believes could be “as addictive as cigarettes” unless the company offers “compelling” fresh evidence that children are safeguarded.If the ban goes ahead, it would be the first time the EU...

Nikol Pashinyan urges calm after making concessions in attempt to avoid war with his country’s heavily armed neighbourNikol Pashinyan, the Armenian prime minister facing four days of protests against his decision to hand four villages to Azerbaijan, has urged Armenians to recognise that the way the issue is handled will determine the viability of the future peace process with its neighbour.In an interview with...

Bruges court heard how defendant had condition called auto-brewery syndrome sometimes brought on by intestinal problemsA Belgian man has been acquitted of drunk-driving because he has auto-brewery syndrome (ABS), an extremely rare condition whereby the body produces alcohol, his lawyer has said.Anse Ghesquiere said on Monday that in “another unfortunate coincidence” her client worked at a brewery, but three doctors who independently examined him...

Prosecutors say trio are accused of passing on technical military knowledge and export of a laser without permissionsThree German citizens, a married couple from Düsseldorf and a man from Bad Homburg, have been arrested on suspicion of spying on behalf of China, prosecutors have said, in the second high-profile alleged espionage case reported in the country in days.The three are accused of passing on...

Andrzej Duda says country could host arms if Nato decides to deploy the weapons in the face of Russia reinforcing its armaments in Belarus and KaliningradEurope “cannot relax” its support for Ukraine following US lawmakers’ approval of a $61bn (€57bn, £49bn) aid package, Kyiv’s most vocal allies in the region have said.Baiba Braže, Latvia’s new foreign minister, warned against slackening the EU’s efforts to...

Environmentalists fear focus on economy may undermine country’s climate transition – one of most radical in EuropePortugal has been among Europe’s more ambitious countries in terms of climate action, but the rise of the far right in recent elections could threaten the positive steps the country has taken.At the end of 2023, Portugal broke records as it went for six consecutive days relying solely...

Outcry over cancellation of Antonio Scurati’s Rai talkshow appearance as note says move was taken ‘for editorial reasons’A high-profile Italian author has accused Rai of censorship after his antifascist monologue was abruptly stopped from being aired, in what he called the “definitive demonstration” of alleged attempts by Giorgia Meloni’s government to wield its power over the state broadcaster.Antonio Scurati was due to read the...

Faced with competition from rival sporting events, the future of the Games hung in the balance. A century on, new hurdles are loomingParis 1924 was the sixth and last Olympics presided over by Baron de Coubertin, the modern movement’s founder. He had good reason to be pleased with his work. The French government had enthusiastically backed the enterprise, providing a budget of 20m francs...

Turkish president says recent events between Iran and Israel should not allow Israel to ‘gain ground’ in GazaTurkish president Recep Tayyip Erdoğan urged Palestinians to unite amid Israel’s war in Gaza following hours-long talks with Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh in Istanbul on Saturday, his office said.Erdoğan has failed to establish a foothold as a mediator in the Gaza conflict that has roiled the region,...

Report says man carrying knife at time of arrest after attack left two women seriously injuredSwedish police have shot and arrested a man who allegedly injured three women with a sharp object in Vasteras, a town in central Sweden.The women, aged between 65 and 80, were taken to hospital, police said on their website. Continue reading...

Prime minister Petteri Orpo says eastern Finland ‘suffering because of Russian behaviour’Volodymyr Zelenskiy, Ukraine’s president, visited the Donetsk region today.Two people have been detained in Poland on suspicion of attacking Leonid Volkov, an aide to the late Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda told reporters today, Reuters reported. Continue reading...

Surveys suggest EH Bildu’s focus on health, housing and employment is attracting younger votersA leftwing coalition of Basque separatists, partly descended from the political wing of the defunct terrorist group Eta, could become the largest party in the Basque Country’s parliament after an election in the northern Spanish region on Sunday.Latest polls suggest that EH Bildu, which is led by a convicted Eta member...

New post-Brexit border checks ‘set to zero’ to avoid what Defra calls risk of serious disruptionThe UK government has reportedly told port health authorities it will not “turn on” health and safety checks for EU imports as new post-Brexit border controls begin this month.A presentation prepared by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) highlighted the risk of “significant disruption” if the...