Author: staff
Updated: 30/12/2025 – 18:00 GMT+1 Catch up with the most important stories from around Europe and beyond this December 30th, 2025 – latest news, breaking news, World, Business, Entertainment, Politics, Culture, Travel. … More
French politicians are deeply divided over how – or whether – to honour Brigitte Bardot, following her death as the screen legend’s later-life politics proved as controversial as her films were influential. Bardot died on Sunday aged 91 at her home in Saint-Tropez on the southern Mediterranean coast. News of her demise prompted an outpouring of tributes, celebrating a woman who became a symbol of French culture, sexual liberation and cinematic glamour, through films such as And God Created Woman, Le Mépris and The Night Heaven Fell. She will also be remembered for her animal rights activism. She traveled to…
Israel said on Tuesday that it will suspend the work of more than two dozen humanitarian organisations for failing to meet its new rules to vet international agencies working in Gaza. The Ministry of Diaspora Affairs said that the organisations facing bans on 1 January didn’t meet new requirements for sharing staff, funding and operations information. The ministry said that around 25 organisations, or 15%, of non-governmental organisations working in Gaza didn’t have their permits renewed. It accused Doctors Without Borders (MSF), one of the largest health organisations operating in Gaza, of failing to clarify the roles of some staff…
The document states that hybrid measures “can fundamentally serve to prepare a military confrontation.” Rather than treating cyber operations or influence campaigns as background pressure, the plan places them directly within the logic of military escalation. The assumption has concrete consequences for how Germany plans its role in a future conflict. The document frames Germany as an operational base and transit corridor for NATO troops that would come under pressure early, particularly because of its role as the alliance’s main hub for moving and sustaining forces. The 24-page document is classified as a so-called light version of the plan, which…
Afghanistan’s opium poppy cultivation fell to 10,200 hectares this year, one of the lowest levels recorded in the country’s history, the UN Office on Drugs and Crime said, but the Taliban ban has pushed farmers in northern provinces into severe economic hardship. The nationwide ban has reduced cultivation from 232,000 hectares in 2022, before the Taliban returned to power, but caused a shift in cultivation patterns from traditional southern areas to northern provinces farther from direct Taliban control, UNODC said. In Badakhshan province on the Tajikistan border, poppy production has increased since the Taliban returned to power in 2021. In…
Some Eurostar passengers have been sharing their experiences after being stranded after power problems and a stuck train interrupted rail services through the Channel Tunnel on Tuesday, ruining the New Year holiday vacation plans during the busy end-of-year holiday period.At Paris’ Gare du Nord station, Jamie and Issy Gill scrambled to find a flight back to the UK after their Eurostar train to London was cancelled, desperate to be reunited with their baby boy after enjoying a getaway together in the French capital.”We came for my 30th birthday and we were supposed to go back on the Eurostar, but everything…
By Sertac Aktan with EBU Published on 30/12/2025 – 16:48 GMT+1 Shoppers in the Netherlands have been stocking up on fireworks ahead of New Year’s Eve, most likely for the last time before a nationwide ban takes effect in 2026. A new law banning the sale of consumer fireworks from next year was approved in April by both the House of Representatives and the Senate. Enforcement of the ban and the scale of compensation for traders will be decided by the next cabinet, local media reported. The looming ban has driven a surge in demand. Industry groups said in mid-December that pre-orders were…
Published on 30/12/2025 – 15:43 GMT+1 Travel chaos has erupted across France and the UK after Eurostar warned of “major disruption” to its operations. The international rail firm announced today (Tuesday 30 December) that following a problem with the overhead power supply and a subsequent failed Le Shuttle train, the Channel Tunnel is currently closed. “Unfortunately, this means we have no choice but to suspend all services today until further notice,” Eurostar says. “We’re very sorry for the impact the situation may have on your travel plans.” My Eurostar has been cancelled. What are my rights? Travellers have been told…
Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Monday accused Ukraine of launching 91 drones on Putin’s official residence in the Novgorod region, which lies between Moscow and St. Petersburg. Lavrov added that the air defense system shot the drones down. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy denied the claim and accused Russia of derailing peace talks, following his meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump in Florida Sunday. “Russia is at it again, using dangerous statements to undermine all achievements of our shared diplomatic efforts with President Trump’s team,” Zelenskyy said on Monday, calling the accusations “a complete fabrication intended to justify additional attacks…
By Euronews Published on 30/12/2025 – 15:33 GMT+1 •Updated 15:52 Syria’s interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa unveiled the country’s new banknotes at a ceremony in Damascus on Monday, removing images of ousted leader Bashar al-Assad and his father Hafez al-Assad in a symbolic break with the past. The new currency, which enters circulation on 1 January, features denominations of 10, 25, 50, 100, 200 and 500 Syrian pounds following the removal of two zeros from existing notes. The redesigned bills display agricultural symbols including roses, wheat, olives, oranges and mulberries for which Syria is known, replacing political imagery. Al-Shara said the new…