Author: staff
Russian forces are pushing into EU and NATO territory through hybrid warfare tactics including surveillance, airspace violations and psychological operations — and increasingly in the digital realm. That is what a German soldier deployed in Lithuania experienced when he answered his phone and heard his own voice — a chat he’d had just hours earlier — by an unknown caller. “A comrade phones home, speaks for half an hour, and then gets a call from an unknown number. He answers – and hears his own conversation from earlier, recorded and played back,” Joshua Krebs described the experience in his book,…
Updated: 07/02/2026 – 7:00 GMT+1 Catch up with the most important stories from around Europe and beyond this February 7th, 2026 – latest news, breaking news, World, Business, Entertainment, Politics, Culture, Travel. … More
Ballet star Nicoletta Manni, prima ballerina at La Scala, carried the torch through the square before lighting the cauldron, which will burn guarded 24/7 until the Opening Ceremony this 6 February at San Siro Stadium. The relay, delayed by about an hour due to the crowd, had crossed several Milan suburbs earlier in the day. The Milan leg marked the 60th stage of a 12,000 km journey that began in Olympia last November. The flame is set to pass from the Duomo to Arco della Pace on Thursday before being escorted to San Siro Stadium for the 20:00 CET ceremony,…
Iranian and US officials arrived separately on Friday for indirect talks on Iran’s nuclear programme, mediated by Oman’s top diplomat. An Iranian convoy was seen departing from a palace on the outskirts of the Omani capital, Muscat, with Iranian state media acknowledging Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi met with his Omani counterpart, Badr al-Busaidi. Only after the Iranian vehicles left did another convoy including an SUV flying the US flag enter the palace grounds. It stayed there for about an hour and a half before leaving, according to reports. Oman’s Foreign Ministry published a statement saying al-Busaidi met separately with Araghchi,…
A high-profile Russian general and military intelligence official has been shot several times by an unidentified gunman in Moscow on Friday. Lieutenant General Vladimir Alekseyev was immediately taken to hospital after the attack in a residential building on the north-western outskirts of the capital. According to the reports, the assailant fled the scene. Alekseyev’s condition is unknown at this time, but he is said to have survived the shooting, according to Russian media reports. Russian media said that “the killer was waiting for the Lieutenant General of the Russian Defence Ministry near a residential building”. The Russian Investigative Committee opened…
China is seeing a rush on horse-themed decorations at Yiwu International Trade Market in Zhejiang as Lunar New Year approaches. Among the best sellers is the “crying horse”, a plush toy born from a factory mistake that left its face looking tearful. The error turned it into a Douyin hit, with millions of views. Young shoppers have embraced the sad-looking horse as a quiet joke about work stress, while factories in Yiwu have added new production lines to meet demand. Some buyers even pair it with a normal version, keeping the “sad horse” at work and the “happy horse” at…
Updated: 06/02/2026 – 12:00 GMT+1 Catch up with the most important stories from around Europe and beyond this February 6th, 2026 – latest news, breaking news, World, Business, Entertainment, Politics, Culture, Travel. … More
Kazakhstan and Pakistan signed a strategic partnership agreement during a state visit by Kazakh President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev to Islamabad, focusing on transport corridors that would give the landlocked Central Asian nation access to Arabian Sea ports. Tokayev met with Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to discuss access to Karachi and Gwadar ports, with both leaders signing 20 agreements covering transport, logistics, mining, healthcare, education and other sectors. “The development of the Trans-Caspian Transport Corridor and transit routes through Afghanistan were also considered as a priority,” Tokayev said. The partnership would benefit both nations: Kazakhstan would gain access to ports connecting…
Spain is still searching for a 45-year-old woman who was swept away by a swollen river in Malaga while trying to rescue her dog, as Storm Leonardo continues to hit the south. Police have deployed air and canine teams, while thousands of residents across Andalusia have been evacuated. In Cadiz, Grazalema was cleared after water pushed up through floors and cracked walls. Engineers are now checking building foundations. Dozens of roads remain closed, and rivers have burst their banks in several areas. Rain eased on Friday, but forecasters warn another storm, Marta, could arrive this weekend, raising fears of fresh…
Fit and proper It was essential, McSweeney would tell his audiences, that the first criterion for choosing a candidate should be that they are a “fit and proper” person for the job. In a cynical age when most voters have no automatic loyalty to parties in the way they used to, fielding credible candidates is even more critical, he argued. Trust is personified in the individual standing on the doorstep, according to McSweeney. Voters must see the Labour rosette pinned to a candidate’s lapel as a mark of quality, in his view. McSweeney believed the Labour party Starmer inherited when…