Author: staff

More than 1 million undocumented migrants in Spain have sought legal status under a scheme that has defied a wider European crackdown on irregular immigration, the government said on Tuesday, the final day for submissions. The vast scheme was predicted to benefit around 500,000 people, mostly from Latin America, when the left-wing government launched it in April. “The more than one million applications submitted…show how necessary this recognition of rights and responsibilities was,” Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said at an event in Madrid. Sánchez has become a standard bearer of more open immigration policies as his European neighbours, including…

Iran is preparing the largest state funeral in the history of the Islamic Republic, with ceremonies spanning five cities across Iran and Iraq over six days beginning Saturday, as the country buries the late Ayatollah Ali Khamenei nearly four months after his death in the opening US-Israeli strikes of the war on 28 February. Khamenei served as the Islamic Republic’s ayatollah for 37 years, the second-longest-serving holder of the position since the Islamic Republic’s founding following the 1979 revolution. Born in 1939 in Mashhad, he served as Iran’s president from 1981 to 1989 before being selected as ayatollah by the…

Published on 30/06/2026 – 13:25 GMT+2•Updated 13:32 The Scandinavian airline SAS confirmed a record order at a press conference in Copenhagen on Tuesday, committing to as many as 40 twin-aisle aircraft from Airbus’s A330 family to renew and expand its long-haul fleet. At list prices the jets carry a combined value above $10 billion (€8.75bn), though, as is standard in the industry, SAS is likely to have negotiated a substantial discount for such a large bulk purchase. The order covers a mix of the new, more fuel-efficient A330-900, part of the upgraded A330neo range, and the older A330-300, which will…

Published on 30/06/2026 – 11:02 GMT+2 Forget the caviar, there’s a new must-have dish for first-class passengers on Swiss International Air Lines. This summer, the carrier has added a gourmet hot dog to its premium in-flight dining menu. But before you picture a burnt frankfurter drowning in ketchup and mustard, think again – this hot dog created by Swiss chefs shows that comfort food can be just as luxurious as fine dining. Available in SWISS First on all flights departing from Switzerland until 1 September 2026, the “Bastardo” hot dog comes from Winterthur-based gourmet takeaway Frau Hund, which was founded…

With a week of major articles looking at the EU’s foreign policy branch, POLITICO asks whether budget constraints, a lack of tools and a turf war with the European Commission is threatening its survival. Jun 29 13 mins read

Published on 30/06/2026 – 12:53 GMT+2 The UK’s outgoing Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced on Tuesday that Britain would spend almost £300 billion (€348 billion) over the next four years to modernise its armed forces amid rising threats. Starmer, expected to leave office next month after losing the support of Labour MPs, announced that the overall defence budget would increase by £15 billion (€17 billion) over the next four years to almost £300 billion, as he launched his long-awaited 10-year Defence Investment Plan. “Last year I made the decision in the national interest to reprioritise aid spending towards defence and…

La Guaira port in Venezuela has been turned into a makeshift morgue after twin earthquakes left more than 1,700 people dead and thousands missing. Forensic thanatology teams work among rows of caskets and body bags near the port’s silos as they document and process the victims. The scale of loss is visible across the quayside, now filled with temporary facilities and recovery operations. Teams move between containers, carrying body bags and recording details in a controlled but heavy atmosphere. Nearby, relatives wait outside the identification area, some holding flowers and others standing in silence as they look for news of…

Published on 30/06/2026 – 11:57 GMT+2 The Japanese yen fell to around 162.4 per dollar in Asian trading on Tuesday morning, its lowest level since 1986. The drop extends a punishing run for the yen, which has kept weakening despite the Bank of Japan’s efforts to support it, and now revives the prospect that the authorities will step into the market directly. Japan’s finance minister, Satsuki Katayama, has already responded to the situation by stating that the government was ready to take “appropriate” and even “decisive” action against excessive currency moves, adding that she had confirmed with Washington that such…

The UNESCO-listed Bay of Kotor, known locally as Boka Bay, winds into Montenegro’s coastline on the Adriatic Sea, where views of striking mountains meet calm fjord-like waters. Now, one of its secluded islets is home to Banyan Tree’s first resort in Europe. Called Mamula Island by Banyan Tree, the resort is tucked away in a restored 19th-century fortress at the entrance to the bay. The resort is the result of a seven-year restoration that carefully preserves the site’s historic character while blending it with a contemporary luxury flair. Originally built in the 1850s, Fort Mamula was once a coastal defence…

Inside the burial mound of Casas del Turuñuelo, in the town of Guareña (Badajoz), in the Vegas Altas del Guadiana region, the eighth excavation campaign of the Building Tartessos project has brought to light a bronze chariot with no known equivalent in the Iberian Peninsula. The piece features a box decorated with figures in relief: at the front, an Achelous, a river deity associated with the underworld; on the sides, two griffins with eagle heads and lion bodies; and at the ends, two human figures with their arms raised, supporting the structure, which rests on two equally ornate wheels. “It…