Author: staff
Venezuela’s government called for the release of frozen assets on Wednesday to help raise funds for the country’s recovery from last month’s twin earthquakes that killed at least 3,600 people. “We call upon all countries currently holding blocked funds belonging to Venezuela to initiate a plan to release these funds so that they can be used for recovery efforts,” Foreign Minister Yvan Gil Pinto told a meeting of UN officials and partners. “There are accounts belonging to the Venezuelan state in various parts of the world that have been frozen as a result of illegal sanctions.” Gil referenced gold held…
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) confirms growth of 0.5% for Italy both this year and in 2027. The figures are set out in the World Economic Outlook published on Wednesday. They are “modest but expected” levels, noted the Fund’s deputy director of research, Petya Koeva Brooks. “The investments planned under the NRRP (National Recovery and Resilience Plan) continue to support economic activity. At the same time, higher energy and food prices and elevated uncertainty are weighing on household consumption,” Brooks said. As for inflation, “the forecast has been revised upwards, partly because of greater dependence on energy imports, and we…
A survey taken by pollster Ifop after Le Pen declared her candidacy found she would win the first round handily and then beat former center-right Prime Minister Edouard Philippe by 54 to 46 percent. Le Pen was accused of illicitly using European Parliament funds to pay for assistants who worked on domestic party business as opposed to affairs in Brussels. During her first public outing Wednesday morning after being found guilty by an appeals court, a defiant Le Pen said she would “not spend the campaign making legal analyses,” and insisted that nothing could make her go back on her decision to run for president. Le Pen said the…
Barcelona registered a maximum temperature of 40.5C on Wednesday, its highest figure in 112 years of records, weather agencies said as another heatwave struck Spain. The provisional reading at the Fabra Observatory on Barcelona’s western outskirts broke the previous record of 40C set on July 30, 2024, regional weather monitor Meteocat said on X. At Barcelona’s El Prat airport, which is almost at sea level and sits next to the Mediterranean, the thermometer hit 37.7C, the highest reading in records going back to 1924, national weather agency AEMET said. “Barcelona has recorded the hottest day,” confirmed AEMET spokesman José Ángel…
Published on 08/07/2026 – 17:59 GMT+2 Rescue teams in the southern Indian state of Kerala raced to find five people still missing a day after heavy monsoon rains caused a deadly landslide, officials said. The landslide killed at least three people working near a tunnel construction site in Wayanad district, a hill region known for its lush forests and rolling green landscapes. Seven workers were also injured and are undergoing treatment in a hospital. Authorities divided the area into zones as rescue crews, including disaster response teams and sniffer dogs, searched the region for missing despite heavy rain hampering operations,…
Updated: 08/07/2026 – 17:17 GMT+2 Scientists are questioning whether FIFA’s hydration breaks do enough to protect players competing in extreme heat. While some argue the breaks disrupt the game, researchers say longer cooling periods and active cooling measures may better reduce heat-related health risks. … More
Published on 08/07/2026 – 17:48 GMT+2 France’s competition authority has ordered Meta to resume talks with French press groups over copyright payments, saying the company’s approach “caused serious and immediate harm to the press sector” and weakened protections for news content. The order follows complaints from two organisations representing French news publishers that Meta failed to reach new agreements with: Société des Droits Voisins de la Presse (DVP), which manages rights on behalf of publishers and news agencies, and l’Alliance de la Presse d’Information Générale (APIG), an industry group representing around 300 publications. Their complaints centre on neighbouring rights or…
Marine Le Pen s’est enfermée plusieurs heures au siège du RN avant d’officialiser sa candidature à la présidentielle mais elle n’a pas hésité longtemps pour se lancer une quatrième fois dans la course à la présidentielle. Quels sont les risques qu’elle prend ? Pourquoi met-elle en avant son ticket avec Jordan Bardella ? En quoi son choix bouleverse-t-il la campagne de ses adversaires ? Anthony Lattier fait un premier debrief à chaud avec Pauline de Saint Remy, Elisa Bertholomey et Sarah Paillou de POLITICO dans le podcast Playbook Paris.
Published on 08/07/2026 – 14:45 GMT+2•Updated 14:53 The European Union is discussing a narrower version of its proposal to ban the issuing of visas to Russian soldiers and military veterans after pushback from France and Italy, limiting the measure to short-stay visas and to those who directly took part in the fighting in Ukraine. The ban will form part of the EU’s 21st package of sanctions against Russia over its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. EU ambassadors are due to discuss the package on Wednesday, with the aim of adopting it by mid-July to avoid an automatic revision of the Russian…
Erling Haaland has spent the 2026 World Cup doing what he does best — scoring goals and generating content. The Norwegian striker’s unpolished posts on his Snapchat account, which has upwards of 3.3 million followers, have made him one of football’s most meme-able personalities, with regular posts featuring his nostril-angle selfies comparing himself to Shrek, bald filters, silly Q&As and comedic skits. The problem is that much of the content circulating online, however, is not actually his and it is largely AI-generated. A video that racked up more than 31 million views on X in a matter of days last…