Author: staff

Names of frontrunners —  to be taken with communion-wafer-sized grains of salt — have surfaced. One is Maltese Cardinal Mario Grech, who presided over the so-called synods, consultative bodies intended to give more power in daily church decision-making to laypeople, women and small peripheral churches. Another is Cardinal Robert Prevost, an American who served in both Latin America and Rome, and is considered a potential bridge-builder between opposing factions. Earlier this week Prevost gave a speech calling for more participation in the selection of bishops, who are normally chosen by the pope, from local bishops’ conferences, a key demand of…

A 15-year-old autistic Nigerian has set the Guinness World Record for the world’s largest art canvas to raise awareness for autism.Kanyeyachukwu Tagbo-Okeke’s painting, which features a multi-coloured ribbon – the autism symbol – surrounded by emojis, spans 12,304 square meters.It is aimed at highlighting the spectrum disorder and the challenges that people like him face amid stigma – like the highly controversial comments made by Robert F. Kennedy Jr.The US Secretary of Health and Human Services recently declared autism an “epidemic”, while stating that many autistic people will “never pay taxes, they’ll never hold a job, they’ll never play baseball, they’ll never write…

Seinen ersten Arbeitstag verbringt Friedrich Merz mit Reisen. Erst ist er in Paris, dann in Warschau. Gordon Repinski begleitet den neuen Kanzler sowohl in Frankreich als auch in Polen und berichtet aus Paris, wie sich Merz gibt, wo er außenpolitisch erste Akzente setzt und wo sich weiterhin Differenzen zwischen ihm und Emmanuel Macron abzeichnen. Außerdem ist Rasmus Buchsteiner im Studio bei Rixa Fürsen. Er hat nicht nur die diversen Amtsübergaben in den Ministerien beobachtet, sondern auch Neuigkeiten aus den Fraktionen von SPD und Union, die sich ebenfalls neu einstellen. Da herrscht Klarheit bei den Sozialdemokraten, während die Unionsfraktion wohl nochmals…

British actor-comedian Russell Brand was granted conditional bail by a London court today after appearing to face charges of rape and sexual assault involving four women.Brand, 49, did not enter a plea. He previously denied the allegations made against him.He was swarmed by photographers as he arrived at Westminster Magistrates’ Court for his first hearing since he was charged last month with one count each of rape, indecent assault and oral rape, as well as two counts of sexual assault. Chief Magistrate Paul Goldspring told Brand to present himself at the Central Criminal Court, commonly known as the Old Bailey, in central…

While most legal experts argue that rejecting people who want to claim asylum violates EU law, Dobrindt argued there is a clear legal basis for the decision, and said he and Merz are “in talks” with Berlin’s neighbors about the new approach. Officials from Poland and Austria criticized the new German government’s plan in comments to POLITICO last week. Poland’s chief diplomat in Berlin, Jan Tombiński, said the current controls were “already a problem for daily border traffic and the functioning of the EU internal market,” while the Austrian Interior Ministry cited a ruling of the European Court of Justice,…

The signs of a diplomatic reset between the European Union and China continue to intensify despite Beijing doubling down on its “no-limits” partnership with Moscow, which until recently was considered a disqualifying factor in the eyes of the bloc.Ursula von der Leyen, the president of the European Commission, and António Costa, the president of the European Council, exchanged messages on Tuesday with President Xi Jinping and Premier Li Qian, celebrating the 50th anniversary of bilateral relations.Upbeat in tone, the statements highlight a mutual willingness to advance cooperation in areas of common interest and tackle global challenges together. The anniversary “takes…

Disney will build its seventh theme park, this one in the United Arab Emirates, the entertainment company announced on Wednesday.The waterfront resort will be built on Yas Island on the outskirts of Abu Dhabi, already home to Formula One’s Abu Dhabi Grand Prix, the Ferrari and Warner Bros. amusement parks, SeaWorld and a waterpark.Abu Dhabi is the capital of the United Arab Emirates, a federation of seven sheikhdoms on the Arabian Peninsula. Home to 9 million people, it has leveraged its long-haul carriers Emirates and Etihad Airways to bring in more tourists over the years. A real-estate boom and the…

“I am not worried,” she said. According to Dati, the United States has little to gain from a trade war in the movie sector as Hollywood successfully exports movies around the world. “{Trump] would expose himself to, quote-unquote, ‘retaliation’,” she explained in an interview with France Inter earlier on Wednesday, downplaying the economic impact on France and noting that U.S. movies only account for 15 percent of total film shooting in the country. In a social media post on Monday, Trump accused foreign countries of trying to lure U.S. productions by offering incentives and called it a “national security threat.”…

The European Commission is preparing for a possible no-deal scenario in negotiations over a future free trade agreement with Ukraine as time is slipping away with the existing scheme set to expire on 5 June.“There are time constraints, therefore we are also exploring potential transitional measures in case the negotiations for reviewing the Deep and Comprehensive Free Trade Area (DCFTA) are not finalised and applied by 6 June,” a Commission spokesperson said on Wednesday.The spokesperson added that these potential measures are now also being discussed with Ukrainian counterparts.“I’m not saying transitional measures will definitely be needed,” he continued. “What I am…

Happy birthday David Beckham! The former England football captain is 50 today. Hitting the half-century mark is significant in most people’s lives, perhaps even more so if you’re well established, internationally recognised bona fide star worshipped for your good looks. Euronews Culture never needs an excuse to come correct if anyone says party so while we wait patiently for our invite to David Beckham’s 50th birthday bash let’s take a moment to celebrate Walthamstow’s legend’s rise and rise, and his glittering trophy-laden career that’s taken him from east London to Miami, via Manchester, Madrid, Milan, Los Angeles, and Paris. Celebrity…