Author: staff
The attack happened shortly after Zelenskyy announced strikes in retaliation for Russia’s massive two-day attack on Ukraine last week, which killed 24 people and injured 48 in Kyiv alone. Kyiv claimed successful attacks on the Angstrem factory, which produces radio electronics and microchips for precision weapons, the Moscow oil refinery and oil pumping stations in Solnechnogorsk and Volodarskoye near the capital. The drone attack also led to more than 50 civilian flights being redirected and more than 30 being delayed, Russia’s transport ministry reported. “It is the largest one-time deep strike by Ukraine so far in this war. Ukraine has…
When Angela Merkel receives the new European Order of Merit in Strasbourg this week, the ceremony will not simply celebrate a former German chancellor. It will render a broader European judgment about an era — and about the kind of leadership the European Union believes it needs in an age of instability. The European Parliament says the award honours individuals who made “significant contributions to European integration” and to the defence of “democracy and values.” Merkel was elevated to the highest category of “Distinguished Member,” alongside Volodymyr Zelenskyy and Lech Wałęsa — a symbolic trio linking democratic resistance, European unity,…
Published on 18/05/2026 – 17:15 GMT+2•Updated 17:17 Iran’s Supreme National Security Council announced on Monday the launch of an official X account for the Persian Gulf Strait Authority, the body Tehran says will manage ship transits through the Strait of Hormuz and collect passage fees — formalising a system that has reportedly already been in place since March. Vessels wanting to transit the strait must apply via the PGSA’s official email address, submitting ownership details, insurance, crew manifests, cargo declarations and intended routing. A transit permit is issued only after the authority approves the submission and a fee is paid.…
Russia and Belarus practiced deploying tactical nuclear weapons on Monday, just one day after Ukraine carried out its biggest drone attack on Moscow. In a statement, Belarus’ Defense Ministry said the exercise, which was held with units of the Russian armed forces, intended to test the military’s readiness to launch nuclear weapons from mobile or unplanned launch sites. It also stated the drill was a scheduled event and not aimed against any specific third party. The joint military exercise, which wasn’t immediately confirmed by the Russian Defense Ministry, took place following Ukraine’s largest drone attack on Moscow and the surrounding…
A series of regional votes, capped by a conservative win in Andalusia on Sunday, has cemented Spain’s rightward shift, even as Pedro Sánchez builds his international profile as the leader of the progressive left in defiance of President Donald Trump. Successive regional votes in Aragon, Castilla y León and Andalusia this year saw Spain’s Socialist Party lose seats, with the conservative People’s Party coming out on top and the hard-right Vox emerging as kingmaker. The ballots paint a complex picture of Spanish society, where the coexistence of the mainstream right, backed by the hard right, is becoming the norm at…
Dramatic footage captured the moment two fighter jets collided during an aerial demonstration at the Gunfighter Skies air show in Idaho. The aircraft tumbled through the sky before crashing to the ground, triggering explosions and thick black smoke. Four crew members ejected safely and were later reported to be in stable condition. The incident happened near Mountain Home Air Force Base during the second day of the event, prompting an emergency response and an investigation into the crash. The last fatal crashes at an air show in the US came in 2024 when two people were killed in separate crashes…
Updated: 18/05/2026 – 16:17 GMT+2 Oscar-winning actor Javier Bardem called out world leaders U.S. President Donald Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel for “male toxic behavior that is creating thousands of dead people,” during his appearance at the Cannes Film Festival, Sunday. … More
Pressure is building on Europe to appoint a special envoy for peace talks between Russia and Ukraine. Both Moscow and Kyiv have signaled openness to such a mediator at a time when Trump’s negotiating team is squarely focused on the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran. Merkel, who served as Germany’s chancellor from 2005 to 2021, said she had proposed establishing a diplomatic format between the EU and Russia during her last European Council meeting in October 2021 at the end of her tenure — four months before Russia’s all-out war began. But she added that it had failed due to differing…
Experts have so far dismissed reasons to panic over hantavirus, but the deaths caused by the aggressive Andes variant on the MV Hondius cruise ship are raising concerns. Even though the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) has classified the risk as “very low”, the Council of the European Union last week activated its crisis response mechanism in information-sharing mode to actively monitor the outbreak. Yet this is not the only measure the EU can employ: it has more tools to deal with the outbreak in case of a serious escalation. How about hantavirus quarantine and distancing measures?…
With the peacocks now attracting international attention, Meloni’s Brothers of Italy party is attempting to transform local frustration into a political issue, accusing the local council, run by the left-wing Partito Democratico, of paralysis and promising action. Ruling party politicians called a public meeting on Monday, accusing the opposition-led local council of failing to tackle what has become one of the most divisive local issues. The meeting is intended to address the need for a “political and administrative response” to the growing number of complaints about damage to gardens and cars, hygiene issues related to droppings, and disturbance of the…