Author: staff
The international jury of the Venice Biennale resigned on Thursday, just days before the world’s oldest and most important contemporary art fair opens. No reason was given, but the move came as Italy’s government opposed Russia’s participation. The Biennale said in a statement that the jury, made up of the president, Solange Farkas, and Zoe Butt, Elvira Dyangani Ose, Marta Kuzma, Giovanna Zapperi, had resigned. It didn’t provide an explanation for the highly unusual move. It followed a visit to the Biennale by Cultural Ministry officials who arrived on Wednesday to gather information about the reopening of the Russian Pavilion.…
But by suggesting that the Trump administration had been “humiliated” by the Iranians, the chancellor may have gone too far — risking a rupture with a president known for his vindictive streak. While the stakes are potentially extremely high for Germany, political leaders remained relatively sanguine, noting that the U.S. needs its military presence in Germany for its own operations. Despite Trump’s attacks on Merz, many argue, military cooperation on the ground remains close and deeply integrated, and a rapid American drawdown is unrealistic. “This is not the first time we’ve been confronted with such threats,” said Christoph Schmid, a…
LONDON — Nigel Farage described the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party as a “mixed bag,” as the British politician eyes gains in crunch U.K. elections next Thursday. Germany’s AfD has an “utterly respectable and decent” cultural stance — but its ties with dictators like Russian President Vladimir Putin are “very, very difficult,” the right-wing Reform UK leader told Axel Springer CEO Mathias Döpfner for his podcast series MD Meets. Axel Springer is the owner of POLITICO. Centrist German politicians have accused the AfD of using its rising influence to act as a mouthpiece for Putin inside Germany — a claim AfD leaders…
The UK government raised the country’s official threat level from terrorism from substantial to severe on Thursday, after two Jewish men were stabbed in north London the day before in what police are calling an act of terrorism. Severe is the second-highest rung on a five-point scale and means intelligence agencies consider an attack highly likely in the next six months. Officials in Westminster said that the country is facing an antisemitism emergency and pledged to increase security for Jewish communities after a string of attacks that have sparked fear and anger among Jews. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said that…
In theory, “there are no significant legal or political obstacles” for him to try pull troops out of Germany again, said Jennifer Kavanagh, director of military analysis at the Defense Priorities think tank, given the “very limited leverage” U.S. Congress has over military matters. The only concrete limit is a 2025 law that prevents the president from leaving fewer than 76,000 troops in Europe. With up to 85,000 soldiers on the continent, that gives him a legal maximum of 9,000 soldiers. But even doing that would take “four years at the minimum” and could cost “hundreds of billions” of dollars…
Spain’s migration policy is “almost like a state policy”, focused on integration, coexistence and recognising the positive contribution of migrants, the country’s migration minister Elma Saiz told Euronews. While much of Europe is hardening its stance on migration, Spain, under Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s leadership, is taking a very different approach. “Spain was once a country of migrants. Today it is a country of opportunities,” Saiz said during an interview for Euronews’ interview programme 12 Minutes With, stressing migration is a key factor in the country’s economic and social development. At the centre of its current migration policy is a…
Published on 30/04/2026 – 18:24 GMT+2 The man accused of trying to storm the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner with guns and knives and attempting to kill President Donald Trump agreed on Thursday to remain jailed while he awaits trial. Cole Tomas Allen did not enter a plea during his brief appearance before Magistrate Moxila Upadhyaya. Prosecutors allege Allen planned his attack for weeks and tracked Trump’s movements online before he ran through a magnetometer at the Washington Hilton on Saturday night while holding a long gun and disrupted one of the highest-profile annual events in the US capital. Allen…
Moscow, meanwhile, is floating a limited Victory Day ceasefire as it scales back its May 9 parade, dropping tanks and heavy equipment for the first time in nearly 20 years, a sign of strain after months of losses and Ukrainian strikes deep inside Russia. At the same time, Europe is being forced to rethink its own defenses. U.S. President Donald Trump on Wednesday threatened to pull American troops out of Germany, raising fresh doubts about Washington’s commitment to European security, after repeatedly saying he is reconsidering America’s membership of NATO. Kallas warned Thursday that Russia is “gearing up its military…
False rumours have gained traction online alleging that Ukraine’s ambassador to the US, Olga Stefanishyna, stole several bottles of wine after a gunman opened fire and attempted to storm the annual White House Correspondents’ Dinner (WHCD). The allegations targeting Stefanishyna snowballed after footage shared across social media racked up hundreds of thousands of views, accompanied by dubious claims. The video in question shows a woman putting multiple wine bottles under her arm, in the aftermath of the attempted shooting at the Washington Hilton hotel on 25 April. The room appears to be largely empty, following the cancellation of the dinner,…
The United States is set to launch an international coalition to restart shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, an official confirmed on Thursday, as the vital waterway remains largely cut off amid stalled talks with Iran. The “Maritime Freedom Construct” (MFC) will “take steps to ensure safe passage, including providing real-time information, safety guidance, and coordination to ensure vessels can transit these waters securely,” a State Department official told the AFP news agency. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, was responding to questions about a reported diplomatic cable calling on US embassies to press foreign governments to join such…