Author: staff
Published on 24/11/2025 – 13:02 GMT+1 One of the world’s largest mining companies, Australia’s BHP, has formally withdrawn its interest in a takeover of Anglo American, a British multinational, bringing an abrupt end to what would have been one of the most consequential mining mergers of the decade. The decision arrives just weeks after BHP’s latest pitch for Anglo — its second in a year and a half — was swiftly rejected by Anglo American’s board. Previous rejections, including one in spring last year, were based on claims that BHP’s offer undervalued Anglo American and its future prospects. BHP issued…
Published on 24/11/2025 – 12:26 GMT+1 Former French President Nicolas Sarkozy will publish a book about his three weeks behind bars, titled “A Prisoner’s Diary” (“Le journal d’un prisonnier” in French). His publisher Fayard, part of the media group controlled by right-wing billionaire Vincent Bolloré, announced that the prison memoir is 216 pages long and will hit shelves on 10 December. By our count, that’s just under 11 pages per day in the slammer. Which, considering the 20 days he spent inside, could seem like overkill. Sarkozy, who was separated from the general prison population, trailed the release in a…
Though a full government shutdown is unlikely — the French government can fall back on a stopgap mechanism that temporarily rolls over the current year’s budget until a new one is adopted — the discord is concerning given Lecornu’s promise to allow lawmakers to debate, amend and vote on a budget as they see fit. In the wake of the Friday vote, Lecornu said he will host party leaders and representatives of labor and trade organizations for talks on key national priorities, among them agriculture, energy, defense spending and deficit reduction. He also restated next year’s final budget with a…
Lisbon welcomed the start of the festive season with a ceremony lighting up the city’s Christmas tree and decorations displayed across downtown on Saturday night. This year Portugal’s capital will showcase a total of 1,050 lights with over 5,000 decorations, according to city authorities. The ceremony at Praça do Comércio saw the crowd count down to the illumination of the 30-meter-tall tree, complete with fireworks, marking the official launch of the city’s holiday celebrations.
“The negotiations were a step forward, but there are still major issues which remain to be resolved,” Finnish President Alexander Stubb said in a post on X on Monday, after talking with Zelenskyy. “Any decision falling in the remit of the EU or NATO will be discussed and decided by the EU and NATO members in a separate track,” Stubb added. Washington still wants to get the peace plan finalized as soon as possible, but is less firm about a Thanksgiving deadline. “Obviously, we’d love it to be Thursday,” Rubio said, adding: “Whether it’s Thursday, whether it’s Friday, whether it’s…
Israel on Sunday struck Lebanon’s capital, Beirut, for the first time since June, saying it targeted Hezbollah’s chief of staff and warning the Iran-backed militant group not to rearm and rebuild a year after their latest war. Hezbollah said the strike, launched almost exactly a year after a ceasefire ended that Israel-Hezbollah war, threatened an escalation of attacks — just days before Pope Leo XIV is scheduled to visit Lebanon on his first foreign trip. The strike in the suburb killed five people and wounded 25 others, Lebanon’s Health Ministry said. Heavy machinery and workers cleared debris and shattered glass…
Published on 24/11/2025 – 10:46 GMT+1 The Eurovision Song Contest is changing rules around voting and promotion following the controversy caused by Israel’s result at this year’s competition and allegations of “interference” by the Israeli government. This comes after several countries requested an audit after Israel topped the public vote at the contest in May. Israel finished second in this year’s competition once the jury votes were taken into consideration. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU), which runs the music extravaganza, said that the changes ahead of next year’s edition in Vienna were “designed to strengthen trust, transparency and audience engagement.”…
The case is part of a broader movement of strategic litigation that aims to test the courts and their ability to enforce changes on the oil and gas industry. More than 2,900 climate litigation cases have been filed globally to date. “It’s the first time that a court, at least in Belgium, can recognize the legal responsibility, the accountability of one of those carbon polluters in the climate damages that citizens, and also farmers like Hugues, are suffering and have already suffered in the previous decade,” Joeri Thijs, a spokesperson for Greenpeace Belgium, told POLITICO in front of the courtroom. Making…
Thousands gathered in Marseille Saturday to mourn the 20-year-old brother of a prominent anti-drugs activist murdered earlier this month, and to protest against the ongoing drug trafficking violence plaguing the French city. Mehdi Kessaci was killed by two gunmen on Nov. 13 while he was in his car. He was the younger brother of Amine Kessaci, a 22-year-old well known anti-drug trafficking activist who already lost an older brother in a drug related execution five years ago. Medhi Kessaci didn’t have any police record and was preparing to become a policeman, he family said.
As business leaders gather for the CBI conference, will the chancellor be on their side? Sam and Anne consider whether Rachel Reeves could make this budget for business a “death by a thousand taxes”. Elsewhere, Sam has a scoop on the OBR’s growth forecasts and how they could impact the budget. Plus, Anne has the behind-the-scenes take from the talks to end the war in Ukraine.