Author: staff
Uzbekistan is preparing to launch its first domestically developed scientific satellite while also outlining plans to send its first national astronaut into orbit. Both initiatives remain at an early stage, but together they mark a structured attempt to build technical capacity, secure independent data and gradually enter the global space sector. Officials in Tashkent present the programme primarily as an economic and institutional project, as demand for remote sensing data has tripled over the past five years. More than ten government agencies and all regional administrations now use satellite monitoring in sectors such as agriculture, natural resource management and regional…
“Big Brother is watching you.” Unless you’ve been in a blissful state of comatose, you’ll have noticed that the ubiquitous slogan at the heart of George Orwell’s dystopian novel “Nineteen Eighty-Four”, as well as the author’s concepts of “newspeak” and “doublethink”, have gone beyond the realm of popular culture. They have gained increasing relevancy in our reality. With his new documentary Orwell: 2+2=5, renowned filmmaker Raoul Peck intertwines the life and words of Orwell with archival footage and ripped-from-the-headlines clips to make viewers realise that while Orwellian terms have become household phrases, we may be failing to still fully appreciate…
However, he said that “despite this, Tottenham find themselves in crisis. They are fighting at the bottom of the table, just a few points from the relegation zone. Not because they lack resources, not because they lack benefits, but because they have squandered their opportunities.” Spurs are currently 16th in the 20-team Premier League, just five points clear of the relegation zone. They sacked their manager, Thomas Frank, earlier this month, replacing him with Igor Tudor. Damberg, who was finance minister from 2021 to 2022, said that the word “Spursy” was even used “when you have opportunities but get no…
EU Commission Vice-President Dubravka Šuica is set to be grilled by member states at Monday’s Foreign Affairs Council, where she will brief ministers on her visit to the inauguration of Donald Trump’s Board of Peace. Šuica has been at the centre of controversy and faced criticism for attending the event in Washington as an observer. France’s foreign minister, Jean-Noël Barrot, said the European Commission lacked a mandate from member states to take part in the meeting. The criticism stemming from the Commission overstepping its mandate on foreign policy, without the approval of the 27 member states. The Board of Peace…
Updated: 20/02/2026 – 12:00 GMT+1 Catch up with the most important stories from around Europe and beyond this February 20th, 2026 – latest news, breaking news, World, Business, Entertainment, Politics, Culture, Travel. … More
Published on 20/02/2026 – 12:22 GMT+1 Are you still smarting over the end of Game of Thrones? Or unsatisfied with the spin-offs? Britain’s Royal Shakespeare Company may have the answer to your woes. It’s announced plans to stage Game of Thrones: The Mad King, a new play based on the novels by George R. R. Martin, adapted by Duncan Macmillan and directed by Dominic Cooke. The RSC says its stage is a natural home and the perfect setting for fans to reacquaint themselves with the houses of Targaryen, Stark, Lannister, Baratheon and Martell as Martin’s work was “Shakespearian in its…
A mix of heavy security around Prime Minister Narendra Modi, organizational confusion, and unforgiving Delhi traffic made even basic planning difficult. At points, attendees were warned not to come at all or abruptly told to leave. One POLITICO reporter arrived at the designated entrance only to find it closed — and was then redirected to another closed entrance. Inside, signage was poor, crossing the venue could mean multiple security checks, and everyday items like car keys or laptops were occasionally treated as potential hazards. Then again, several Delhi regulars noted that, by local standards, summit week was comparatively well organized.…
Published on 20/02/2026 – 12:34 GMT+1•Updated 12:35 European steel shipments to the US declined 30% between June and December 2025 compared with the same period a year earlier, according to recent Eurostat data compiled by Eurofer, the Brussels-based industry group. The decline underscores the impact of the US’s 50% tariffs on EU steel, even after the EU and US signed a trade agreement in July 2025 agreeing a blanket 15% US tariff on EU goods. Steel was carved out of that deal and talks to ease duties remain stuck. “A 30% drop in steel exports to the US within just…
Tina, a white stoat chosen by public vote in 2024, represents the Winter Olympics and their Alpine roots. Ayo, a young lion from Senegal whose name means joy in Yoruba, arrived for a friendly visit before the Youth Olympic Games. The pair posed in Piazza del Duomo and by Castello Sforzesco, drawing families and tourists. Tina will stay in the spotlight until the Winter Olympics close on Sunday. Ayo now looks ahead to Dakar, where the Youth Olympic Games run from 31 October to 13 November 2026.
Published on 20/02/2026 – 11:32 GMT+1 Chart-topping French rapper Naps has been sentenced to seven years in prison for raping a young woman while she was asleep in October 2021 in a Paris hotel room. The 40-year-old artist from Marseille, whose real name is Nabil Boukhobza, was convicted by the Paris criminal court, which cited an “absence of consent” in its ruling. Judges noted that the complainant had consistently maintained she was asleep and said the “pain of vaginal penetration” woke her. Boukhobza, who has more than three million subscribers on YouTube, and best known for his 2021 hit “La…