Author: staff

Both the protests and the market fallout could have been worse, Deutsche Bank strategist Jim Reid said in a note to clients on Monday. “The fact that he wasn’t charged with terrorism means the news isn’t as extreme as it could have been,” he argued, noting that “such a move would have led to the appointment of a trustee to the Istanbul Municipality, risking more protests and unrest.” Turkey’s interior minister said on Monday around 1,100 protesters have been detained in total so far. Déjà vu all over again The events have revived fears — never far from the minds…

BERLIN — Pour Friedrich Merz, le plus dur commence maintenant. Le futur chancelier conservateur a entamé les négociations de coalition avec les sociaux-démocrates en leur donnant exactement ce que les partis de centre gauche ont toujours voulu : conclure un accord historique pour emprunter des centaines de milliards d’euros pour l’armée et les infrastructures, mais aussi débloquer des financements pour l’énergie verte. Pour Merz, qui prêche depuis longtemps en faveur de la discipline budgétaire, l’accord sur les emprunts constitue un revirement politique historique, que le Parti social-démocrate (SPD) n’a eu aucun mal à approuver. La pression s’accentue désormais sur Merz,…

American support for Ukraine has been in question since the Jan. 20 inauguration as Trump has frequently made clear his disdain for Kyiv’s leadership — a stance the Oval Office meeting brought into sharp focus. “In that moment there was the sense of not being allies, or not taking the position of an ally,” Zelenskyy said. “In that conversation, I was defending the dignity of Ukraine.” Zelenskyy’s visit to the White House became a historic diplomatic flop, as the high-stakes summit saw Trump and Vance lecture Zelenskyy for “not being grateful enough” for U.S. support, “not having strong cards” and…

Passengers can still travel between Berlin and Brussels on an overnight train using the European Sleeper. A sleeper train service connecting Berlin and Brussels will end operations at the end of March. The Nightjet that links the German and Belgium capitals currently runs three times a week. The service is operated by ÖBB Austria’s national railway company and is part of a wider network of night trains that connect many of Germany’s big cities to other European destinations.Sleeper train axed over construction work in GermanyThe Nightjet sleeper train from Berlin to Brussels, which was launched in December 2023, will cease operations on…

In 2022, EU citizens bought about 19 kilograms of new clothes, shoes and other household fabrics each — up from 17 kilograms in 2019 —  yet throwing out as much as 16 kilograms of clothes annually. This created about 7 million metric tons of textile waste across the bloc: Enough to fill a large suitcase per person each year.  The report states that 85 percent of these discarded clothes aren’t reused or recycled, and often end up getting burnt or landfilled. As of January, EU countries are supposed to have separate collection systems in place for textile waste to prevent…

Record high temperatures last year fuelled demand for air conditioning, in turn driving an increase in dirty coal-fired power generation in a dangerous feedback loop revealed by a new global survey from the International Energy Agency. The rate of increase in global energy demand shot up last year, driving increased greenhouse gas emissions even with renewable energy and nuclear power supplying bulk of new electricity generation capacity.The International Energy Agency reported on Monday a 2.2% increase in global energy demand last year, almost double the average of 1.3% a year recorded in the decade to 2023. But electricity use saw…

This marks the fourth wave of detentions since Mohamed Amra, who was on the run as a fugitive for nine months, was arrested in Romania last month. Twenty-four individuals suspected of helping French drug dealer Mohamed Amra escape from police custody in May 2024 were detained on Monday, according to reports by French broadcaster FranceInfo. This latest development marks the fourth wave of detentions since Amra, who became France’s most wanted fugitive during his nine months on the run, was arrested in Romania last month. Since his arrest, Amra has been held at the ultra-high security Condé-sur-Sarthe prison, which is…

Catholics celebrated Pope Francis’s release from hospital not only with a shout of “Hallelujah,” but also perhaps a cone – the launch of the new gelato flavour has launched in Rome, in a coincidental nod to the pontiff’s love of the sweet treat. “Hallelujah!” was the joyous cry of many Catholics as Pope Francis left Rome’s Gemelli hospital on Sunday after a month-long battle with pneumonia. But it wasn’t just a word of relief – it’s also the name of a new gelato flavour.Coinciding with the Pope’s much-anticipated release, Rome saw the debut of “Hallelujah” gelato, a new creation that…

“As a Council of Europe [the international human rights organization] member and EU candidate, Turkey must uphold democratic values. The rights of elected officials as well as right of peaceful demonstration need to be fully respected,” he added. However, the spokesperson said that at this stage he “will not speculate on possible cancellations” of high-level dialogues between the EU and Turkey scheduled for April. İmamoğlu, a highly popular secularist who was widely viewed as a contender to oust Erdoğan, was on Monday officially nominated as a presidential candidate by opposition — despite being jailed on Sunday.

Kaja Kallas of the EU highlighted the “dangerous escalation” in Gaza following the resumption of fighting, stressing the urgent need for resumed negotiations to end the conflict. European Union foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas appealed on Monday that negotiations must resume in response to an escalation in the Israel-Hamas war last week following a surprise wave of IDF airstrikes on Gaza. At a briefing in Jerusalem, where she met with Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa’ar, Kallas remarked, “Violence feeds more violence.” “What we are witnessing now is a dangerous escalation. It is causing unbearable uncertainty for the hostages and their…