Author: staff
Former GB News producer Liam Deacon, who is now consultant at London public affairs firm Pagefield, said: “Trump taking GB News seriously has been useful in that it’s made them feel like a prestigious brand. But they also thrive as an underdog, so it’s not critical.” Stirring the pot Criticism of the BBC is nothing new, but the broadcaster has been under pressure in recent months over more than just its Trump edit, with its coverage of the war in Gaza coming under particular criticism. That’s allowed GB News to position itself as a fresh alternative, even though television viewers in the UK have other options, including Sky…
Updated: 16/12/2025 – 20:29 GMT+1 Thousands of dinosaur footprints have been found in a national part in northern Italy known as the Parco Nazionale dello Stelvio Branchi. Experts say they are from enormous herbivores that lived there 210 million years ago in the Triassic period. … More
Built deep underground, the stations combine modern transport with layers of ancient history uncovered during excavation. Commuters and visitors entering the stop near the amphitheatre can see ceramic vessels, stone wells and the remains of a Roman bath from a first century home, displayed along the platforms. The line has taken nearly two decades to build. Work was slowed by funding issues and by the need to protect ruins buried beneath Via dei Fori Imperiali. Engineers also had to manage groundwater while preserving what lay above ground. Nearby, the Porta Metronia station reveals a military barracks and decorated rooms from…
But according to two legal opinions — one prepared by law firm Covington & Burling, another by a group of international legal scholars — assert that the risk of a successful legal claim against Belgium over the assets is minimal. The main reason cited by the scholars is that Russia would find it nearly impossible to find a jurisdiction that would be willing to hear a case against Belgium or enforce any claim against the Belgian government or Euroclear over the assets. “Any judgment of a Russian court would not be recognized or enforced in the EU or the U.K.…
Published on 16/12/2025 – 19:51 GMT+1 Authorities in Lithuania said on Tuesday they had arrested 21 people allegedly connected to a criminal network that smuggled cigarettes using specially equipped weather balloons from Russia-allied Belarus which have violated the Baltic country’s airspace in recent weeks. Investigators conducted more than 80 searches, seizing cigarettes with Belarusian excise stamps, SIM cards, communication and tracking signal jammers and firearms, the Lithuanian general prosecutor’s office said in a statement. Luxury cars and valuable property were also confiscated. Tuesday’s operation involved more than 140 officers from the Lithuanian Criminal Police Bureau, Vilnius police and special anti-terrorism…
The government now faces the more arduous task of passing a state budget for next year, which is a separate piece of legislation. The National Assembly’s first attempt to pass a state budget ended with all but one MP voting against the bill, which MPs had saddled with untenable and sometimes conflicting amendments. Lawmakers from both branches of parliament will on Friday attempt to forge a compromise text during a U.S.-style conference committee in what one National Assembly official described as a “make or break” moment. France is highly unlikely to face a government shutdown similar to what happened in…
Ahead of the European Council summit, where EU leaders will decide on Ukraine financing, a new YouGov survey shows that major European countries tend to support using frozen Russian funds to provide financial support for the war-torn country. The majority of British, Polish, German, and Spanish respondents support using frozen Russian funds in European bank accounts to fund additional aid for Ukraine. However, Italy proves to be the exception, as Italians are closely divided on the issue, with 39% supporting and 38% opposing it. Experts claim Italy’s division reflects “a deeper fracture in its political landscape”, particularly regarding a “pro-Ukraine”…
Published on 16/12/2025 – 18:56 GMT+1 More than 17 million people in Afghanistan are facing crisis levels of hunger in the coming winter months, the leading international authority on hunger crises and the UN food aid agency warned on Tuesday. Economic woes, recurrent drought, shrinking international aid and an influx of Afghans returning home from countries like neighbouring Iran and Pakistan have strained resources and added to the pressures on food security, reports the Integrated Food Security Phase Classification, known as IPC, which tracks hunger crises. “What the IPC tells us is that more than 17 million people in Afghanistan…
Published on 16/12/2025 – 17:15 GMT+1 After firing hundreds of thousands of government workers and shuttering several federal tech offices this year, the United States is launching a new programme to hire new top tech talent and close “critical skills gaps” within federal agencies. The “US Tech Force,” announced this week, aims to recruit the tech and artificial intelligence (AI) talent needed to modernise the US government and “help win the global race for AI dominance,” according to Scott Kupor, director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), which manages the US federal civil service and is overseeing the project.…
STRASBOURG — Jordan Bardella said his National Rally party remains against deploying French troops to Ukraine, underscoring the long-term fragility of France’s commitment to Kyiv if the far-right faction wins the presidential elections in 2027. “We are opposed to sending French military troops to Ukraine, like many, many French [people],” Bardella told reporters in Strasbourg. “On the other hand, in the discussions we have around security guarantees, we could consider a demilitarized zone, which is under the aegis and under the responsibility of the U.N.,” he added. The comments from the president of the National Rally, the far-right party leading opinion…