Author: staff
Published on 21/07/2026 – 15:16 GMT+2 At least 144 refugees and migrants have been reported dead or missing after a series of maritime incidents off the coast of Mauritania, in the latest tragedy on the increasingly dangerous Atlantic migration route from West Africa to Europe’s Atlantic islands. The UN refugee agency (UNHCR) said three rescue operations were carried out from the Mauritanian port city of Nouadhibou between 14 and 18 July, bringing 387 people of various nationalities safely ashore. The deadliest incident involved a boat that left Bufuloto in The Gambia bound for Spain’s Canary Islands, 905 nautical miles (1,677…
Published on 21/07/2026 – 14:19 GMT+2 Air France has confirmed that it has suspended flights to Riyadh, Dubai and Beirut due to the current security situation in the Middle East. In a statement posted on its website on 20 July, Air France said it is “monitoring the situation” in the near and Middle East “in real time” and has suspended the routes because of “restrictions that may affect certain airspaces”. The airline has now suspended flights to and from Riyadh in Saudi Arabia until 24 July inclusive, while flights to and from Dubai, UAE, are suspended until 27 July. It…
Unlike his predecessor, who was based solely in the Cabinet Office, Falconer’s new job will be a joint role shared between that department and the FDCO. He will attend Cabinet meetings. One Whitehall official, granted anonymity to discuss the changes, suggested the appointment was a sign that the EU reset would be brought back within the grip of the FCDO and away from the Cabinet Office. Falconer has a long history in the U.K.’s foreign affairs department, having worked as a diplomat before becoming an MP. The son of Labour grandee Charlie Falconer, he takes over at a crucial time…
In four days, four tankers meant to transport crude oil produced in Kazakhstan were attacked by drones while loading at the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) marine terminal in the Black Sea. The foreign and energy ministries of Kazakhstan condemned the attacks, stating that they undermined global energy security and the economic interests of CPC member countries. “We regard such attacks as an unacceptable infringement upon the economic interests of the Republic of Kazakhstan, as well as deliberate acts aimed at destabilising lawful international trade and global energy markets and undermining the security of global transport and logistics supply chains,” the…
“A multidimensional phenomenon encompassing income inadequacy, employment insecurity and lack of workplace rights,” is how Eurofound defines employment vulnerability for living and working conditions. In its latest report, the tripartite EU agency providing knowledge to assist in the development of better social, employment and work-related policies, found that 18.8% of jobs across the EU, close to one in five, fell below the bar on at least one of those definitional dimensions in 2021, the most recent year with comparable income data. However, the direction of the trend is encouraging. Vulnerability climbed from 21.4% in 2009 to 23.8% in 2014 in…
Straddling West Asia and Southeastern Europe, Türkiye offers no shortage of unforgettable experiences for travellers. While destinations such as Istanbul, Ankara or Bodrum often steal the spotlight, the central region of Cappadocia, adorned with fairy chimneys, is a sight to be seen. With valleys sculpted by millions of years of volcanic activity and cave dwellings, Cappadocia is also a gateway to Türkiye’s rich history, with attractions such as the Kayseri Archaeology Museum, where 14 exhibition halls trace civilisations from the Chalcolithic Age to the Late Ottoman period. Now, Cappadocia has a new luxury address with the opening of Fortuna of…
Tuesday’s prices represent a 50 percent increase from the previous month. They also reflect concern that gas supplies will be further squeezed by the combination of depleted European reserves and high summer temperatures in Asia, which analysts expect will drive up demand for air conditioning. The latest price spikes have fueled concern that unrest in the Middle East is going to be priced in as a permanent feature of energy markets — especially with Washington and Tehran threatening tolls or “service fees” on maritime traffic and the announcement by the Iran-backed Houthi paramilitary group in Yemen that it would embargo the…
Published on 21/07/2026 – 12:36 GMT+2 A US federal judge has approved a $1.5 billion (€1.3bn) settlement between Anthropic and a group of authors, closing the largest copyright class action in US history and marking the first major resolution of a wave of lawsuits against AI companies over the use of copyrighted books in model training. US District Judge Araceli Martínez-Olguín approved the deal on 20 July in San Francisco, rejecting objections from some authors who argued the payout was too small. The settlement, first proposed last September, resolves a class action filed by writers Andrea Bartz, Charles Graeber and…
Barbut was against the pesticide and water storage proposals, both of which were added late in the legislative process to ensure the bill’s passage in the conservative-majority Senate. She made her opposition clear over the weekend in an interview published by Sunday newspaper La Tribune Dimanche. “This government bill, which was intended to address an emergency situation facing our farmers, has — since the Senate’s amendments — significantly altered the policy governing the allocation of water resources in our country,” she said. Annie Genevard, France’s conservative agriculture minister, directly opposed her colleague at the Ministry of Ecological Transition, warning that…
Published on 21/07/2026 – 9:16 GMT+2 A lawyer representing Andrew and Tristan Tate said the brothers will fight extradition to the United Kingdom, where they are accused by British authorities of rape, sex trafficking, assault and other offences relating to indecent images of a child and extreme pornography. The pair, who were arrested in Miami on Saturday, appeared in a United States federal court on Monday wearing jail uniforms and handcuffs. They remained silent during the brief hearing as a judge scheduled a further hearing for 27 July. A district judge will decide whether the legal conditions for extradition have…