Author: staff
The annual World Naked Bike Ride returned to the streets of London on 14 June, aiming to promote cycle safety and environmental awareness. Participants travelled past landmarks including the Victoria Monument and the Houses of Parliament, many using body paint and slogans to draw attention to their message. Organisers said the event sought to remind motorists that cyclists are legitimate road users who deserve adequate space and protection. The ride attracted crowds of onlookers and tourists across the capital. Alongside its colourful atmosphere, the event highlighted concerns about road safety in the UK. Serena, a 23-year-old participant, said she and…
Published on 15/06/2026 – 10:09 GMT+2 Crude prices retreated on Monday as US President Donald Trump confirmed a peace agreement with Iran and both sides announced a lifting of their respective blockades of the Strait of Hormuz. At the time of writing, the front month contract on US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude was down almost 6% from Friday’s close to roughly $80 per barrel, while Brent crude, the international standard, dropped around 5% to about $83 per barrel. The specific concessions made by each side are still unclear and there are questions surrounding whether the Prime Minister of Israel…
There is something unexpectedly refreshing about flying a route that still feels relatively undiscovered. On Air Serbia’s direct service between Baku and Belgrade, the atmosphere is noticeably different from the crowded, over-familiar corridors connecting Europe’s largest hubs. The passengers boarding in Azerbaijan’s capital seem to know they are part of a quieter but increasingly important travel link between the Caucasus and the Balkans. Since launching the route earlier this year, Air Serbia’s Baku-Belgrade connection has started to open a far easier gateway between two regions that, despite growing political and economic ties, have long remained awkwardly connected for travellers. “Launching…
Oscar-winning actress Gwyneth Paltrow has found herself at the heart of an epic backlash, with critics calling her “tone deaf”, “stupid”, and referring to her recent shameless stunt as “Gwynocide”. The 53-year-old actress turned lifestyle entrepreneur with her brand Goop has appeared in a promotional video for 51 Park, a 51-storey luxury residential development in Herzliya, just north of Tel Aviv. In the cringeworthy spot, Paltrow narrates a morning routine and praises the appeal of park‑side buildings. “There’s a reason the world’s most iconic buildings are by a park,” she says. When asked if the luxury building is in New…
“The Deal with the Islamic Republic of Iran is now complete,” Trump wrote on Truth Social late on Sunday. Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif — whose country has helped mediate talks — confirmed the announcement shortly after, writing on social media that “both sides have declared the immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon.” Sharif added that a signing ceremony was scheduled to take place in Switzerland on Friday and thanked the leaders of Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey for their “mediation effort.” The conflict between Iran and the United States and Israel began…
Published on 15/06/2026 – 9:00 GMT+2 Last Friday, one of the AI race leaders, Anthropic, pressed the “kill switch” on its most advanced models, Fable 5 and Mythos 5. Following a surprise directive from the Trump administration citing national security, the company was forced to ban all non-US citizens from its frontier technology. Across the continent, research labs, tech firms, and even some hospitals have spent the last year piloting these US-made systems for core operations. Now, they have learned that their digital infrastructure can be unplugged overnight. European leaders across the spectrum—from France’s far-right presidential candidate Jordan Bardella to…
Published on 15/06/2026 – 9:33 GMT+2 Senior EU officials welcomed a deal between the United States and Iran to end the war on Monday, saying Europe was ready to contribute to “a lasting peace.” “I look forward to an end to this costly war and to the full restoration of freedom of navigation in the Strait of Hormuz,” António Costa, the president of the European Council representing member states, wrote in a post on X. “Weapons must now fall silent,” Costa urged, saying the “European Union is ready to contribute to advancing a comprehensive strategy for lasting peace across the…
The next French executive, whoever it may be, must have a say. In practical terms, how does that work? If you’re elected, do you go to Brussels, bang your fist on the table and say, no, we’re not going to pay? The European Union is like a big co-op, and France has one of the largest apartments with some of the most spacious terraces and the most parking spaces. But France is no longer capable today of defending its interests on the European stage. We saw this with energy. Thanks to nuclear power, France should be able to benefit from the cheapest and most carbon-free electricity. Germany allows its major industrial firms to benefit from electricity at 50 euros…
Technology and geopolitics will dominate the G7 summit in Évian, where host Emmanuel Macron will seek to paper over divisions between the group and the United States. Leaders will gather for a three-day summit in Évian-les-Bains, a resort town on the shores of Lake Geneva, aiming to forge common positions on how to end the war in Ukraine, the conflict in the Middle East and the development of safer technologies. Many on the sidelines of the summit had hoped the three-day gathering would help pave the way for an end to the Iran war, but those expectations were upended late…
By Hannah Brown & Mared Gwyn Published on 15/06/2026 – 6:47 GMT+2 In what may now seem like distant memories, Moderna was one of the heroes of the Covid era, bringing their mRNA based Spikevax vaccine to Europe less than a year after lockdowns were first implemented. The US-based company had gone public on the NASDAQ just a few years earlier in 2018 and broke records as the biggest biotech IPO at the time. This record has since been broken by Sana Biotechnology in 2021, Kailera Therapeutics in early 2026 and most recently by Parabilis Medicines who raised a whopping $670 million on…