Author: staff
This amounts to “indirect taxation,” said David Laborde, one of the authors behind the report and the FAO’s lead director of agrifood economics. The EU’s direct farm subsidies from the Common Agricultural Policy, which Europe has paid since the 1960s, is partly to blame. Europe’s agricultural subsidies (CAP) form one of the largest EU funding programs. But, the lack of investment into research to bring down the costs of producing fruit and vegetables, which tend to be labor-intensive, has had an even bigger effect on the affordability of healthy foods in Europe, Laborde said. “This has increased productivity in some…
The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah in Saudi Arabia has announced a new multiple-entry visa for Umrah pilgrims. With the newly launched visa, valid for 365 days from the date of issuance, visitors can enter the holy cities multiple times to perform Umrah for a cumulative stay of no longer than 90 days. According to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), this move “aligns with Saudi Vision 2030 and the Pilgrim Experience Program’s goals of facilitating arrival, enriching the pilgrim experience and improving service efficiency”. Pilgrims are eligible to use the new visa only if they purchase an Umrah service package…
Published on 21/07/2026 – 9:46 GMT+2 Posts circulating online claim that the EU will ban the sale of traditional shrink-wrapped multipacks of bottled water from this summer. Among those sharing the claim is far-right MEP Virginie Joron, from the French National Rally and Patriots for Europe group, who argues that new EU rules will force consumers to carry bottles individually. The posts refer to the EU’s new Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR). However, this is misleading. The legislation forms part of a broader EU effort to reduce packaging waste and improve recyclability across the bloc. While some provisions of…
Two Portuguese scientists were the lead authors of a study, published in the scientific journal Journal of Geophysical Research: Planets, (source in Portuguese) which set out to “hunt” and analyse clouds on Mars, in a breakthrough designed to make future missions to the Red Planet easier. As part of this research, the aim was to measure simultaneously the altitude and propagation speed of Martian atmospheric waves, which are a key element in understanding how energy is transported in the planet’s atmosphere. As scientist Francisco Brasil, who led the study alongside Pedro Machado, both from the Faculty of Sciences of the…
Published on 21/07/2026 – 9:27 GMT+2 What a fun World Cup this has been… If only FIFA and Argentina hadn’t ruined the whole thing. It’s a sentiment shared by many online, who believe that this year’s tournament has brought the culture of football further into disrepute – whether it’s the exorbitant ticket prices, the controversial “hydration breaks”, the Trump-Infantino relationship leading to the infamous red card scandal, some dubious refereeing and allegations of favouritism… The list goes on, and went on up until the final, in which Spain defeated Argentina 1-0 in extra time. Indeed, FIFA has confirmed that Argentina…
The Andy Burnham era is under way, and the new prime minister is kicking off with a bang – cutting VAT on electricity bills. He promised the country some “breathing space” on the cost of living, but with prices still rising will anyone actually feel better off? And is it properly funded? Sam Coates and Anne McElvoy examine what the announcement shows about Burnham’s direction of travel in government, as his new cabinet gathers for the first time. Plus, the duo unpack the biggest cabinet appointments – from John Healey as chancellor to Wes Streeting as defence secretary – after…
By Akis Tatsis & ΑΠΕ-ΜΠΕ Published on 21/07/2026 – 9:28 GMT+2 Two tourists were injured on Tuesday morning after a knife attack at the entrance to the Acropolis archaeological site, one of the busiest tourist spots in Athens. According to the Hellenic Police, the incident occurred at around 8.05am local time (7.05am CET), when a man attacked a couple of Greek-American tourists. The woman sustained a minor injury to her arm, while the man suffered a more serious wound to his leg. Officers from the DIAS motorcycle unit, who arrived immediately at the scene, bandaged the injured leg to stem the bleeding until…
A large fire broke out at a home improvement shopping centre in Sumy, northeastern Ukraine, after a Russian drone strike. Video shows flames spreading across the site as firefighters work to bring the blaze under control. Emergency crews battled the fire for hours, with thick smoke rising above the building as they tackled the flames. Local media reported that rescue operations were complicated by the threat of further drone attacks in the area. The strike comes as Sumy, located close to the Russian border, continues to face attacks amid the ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine.
Researchers have found a strange but effective way to stop an AI hacking agent in its tracks by using the exact trick that hackers already use against AI systems. Crucially, it uses built-in safety levers or no-go topics that the world’s major AI systems rely on, such as Claude stopping queries that relate to the creation of biological weapons or Chinese-built AI models ignoring sensitive political subjects like Tiananmen Square, to shut down an AI cybersecurity attack. Race against the machine The technique comes from Tracebit, a London-based security firm and builds on a study the company published in May.…
Published on 21/07/2026 – 8:03 GMT+2•Updated 8:42 On today’s show: Spanish football journalists Jorge López-Torrecilla and Pablo Montaño join us to discuss Spain’s World Cup success and why the team is cementing their place as a dominant force in world football as the country celebrated the title last night in Madrid. Euronews’ Sonja Issel reports on a potential Germany’s government reshuffle as Chancellor Friedrich Merz seeks to fill the vacancy left by his centre-right CDU party’s parliamentary leader Jens Spahn. Euronews’ Mared Gwyn speaks to Professor Tony Travers of the London School of Economics about the UK’s new prime minister,…