Author: staff

Adult activity books, which combine puzzles with pop culture and mysteries to solve, have become a publishing phenomenon. Murdoku, with more than 140,000 copies sold in Spain, is leading a booming genre that many associate with digital detox. It used to be the newsstand crossword, the one you took on the metro or to the dentist’s waiting room. Now it’s a purple-covered notebook with the outline of a house drawn as a sudoku grid, or a hardback packed with questions about Rosalía and Netflix series. Adult activity books, the latest mutation of the classic puzzle book, have become a publishing…

One day before the influx, Spain’s National Intelligence Service warned the Civil Guard and the Government Delegation in Ceuta — the office representing the Sánchez government in the city — that it had detected messages calling for a mass crossing the following day. “There is a call on social media for an assault by fence and sea tomorrow,” an intelligence agent wrote in a WhatsApp message to the delegation’s chief of staff, adding that the groups discussing the surge had 180,000 followers. Hours later, the intelligence service sent an urgent message to its Moroccan counterparts warning of the planned incursion…

The investigation into the sudden death of Giorgos Mazonakis, one of the most popular Greek singers of the past three decades, is at the centre of public debate in Greece and Cyprus. The death of the 54-year-old artist remains the leading story in the news in both countries, where Mazonakis enjoyed huge popularity, while media outlets across the Balkans are also following the case. Attention has now shifted to the circumstances that preceded his death. Giorgos Mazonakis had gone to a private medical practice in central Athens for a scheduled plasmapheresis, a specialised therapeutic procedure to remove blood plasma, before…

Yemen’s Houthis seized control of the strategic Red Sea port city of Mokha on Thursday and were advancing towards the Bab al-Mandeb strait, a Yemeni military source said. Witnesses said they saw Houthi forces entering the city while chanting “death to America, death to Israel”. The city which has been held by Yemen’s internationally recognised government has been under sustained attack since early August, when more than 25 missiles struck it in a matter of days and forced port operations to halt. The Yemeni government is yet to publicly confirm Mokha has fallen. The same military source said the Houthis…

Frankfurt has tightened again. The European Central Bank’s governing council lifted the deposit facility rate from 2.25% to 2.5% on Thursday. It is the second hike since 11 June, when the ECB moved for the first time in three years. The ECB sets monetary policy for the eurozone through three key interest rates, with the deposit facility rate serving as its main policy benchmark. The main refinancing rate was lifted to 2.65% and the marginal lending facility to 2.9%. In its statement, the central bank noted that “the conflict in the Middle East continues to generate inflation pressures, and inflation…

Portuguese football star Cristiano Ronaldo has hinted that this year could be his last as a professional footballer, bringing to a close to one of the most successful careers in the history of the sport. In an interview with Vogue magazine that was largely about his wedding, Ronaldo said “this is probably my last year of football, and I want to leave a spectacular legacy,” adding that his future after football was “all mapped out”. “I have so many things to keep me busy that to tell you just one thing is hard,” he said, listing travel and padel among…

None of the 16 satellites Russia launched on 19 July as part of its Rassvet programme, Moscow’s attempt to build its own version of Starlink to guide the drones and missiles it has used against Ukraine for more than four years, have reached their planned orbit, according to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), citing data from live satellite tracker N2YO. Most of the satellites are sitting at altitudes of 300 to 400 kilometres, “well short of the intended 870-kilometer operational altitude for the Rassvet satellites,” the report said. At least two satellites appear to be heading for…

Some countries are places you simply visit; others urge you to travel through them. On foot, by bicycle, paddling across a lake, following a river downstream or heading beneath the surface of the earth. Slovenia clearly belongs to the second group. This small country of just over 20,000 square kilometres and barely two million inhabitants concentrates an extraordinary variety of landscapes. Around 60% of its area is covered by forest and more than a third of its territory is protected or forms part of the Natura 2000 network. It is the green lung of the Balkans and also a vast…

I confess that I wasn’t exactly madferit when heading into Oasis: Don’t Look Back In Anger. Ever since Oasis’ headline-dominating reunion, followed by their 41 stadium shows in 14 countries last year, I’ve reached my Gallagher limit. Beyond the fan worship which makes me think that people have lost all sense of perspective when it comes to Oasis, the release of a documentary chronicling the whole shebang reeked of a prolonged promotional campaign – the next step in a continuing cash-in coup about two gobby and freshly reunited siblings who haven’t released any new material in 18 years. Still, you…

Cameron was chosen by Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband over Karen Pierce, the former U.S. ambassador with ties to Donald Trump, and Deputy National Security Adviser Barbara Woodward. Miliband said in a statement: “Lindy brings enormous experience across the fields of diplomacy, development and national security, and a reputation for dynamic leadership in postings across the world.” The outgoing high commissioner previously served as chief executive of the National Cyber Security Centre, and has held senior roles in the Northern Ireland Office and the Department for International Development (DfID).  One U.K. diplomat, granted anonymity because they were not authorized to speak…