Month: June 2022

A high-profile fraud trial of soccer’s once most powerful men was delayed Wednesday in Switzerland after one of the accused, Sepp Blatter, said he was too ill to testify. “The pain will come back, and I am having difficulty breathing,” said the 86-year-old in a whisper. Blatter, the former head of soccer’s world governing body, FIFA, along with Michel Platini, former star player and former head of UEFA, are charged with fraud over an alleged 2011 payment of $2 million from Blatter to Platini. UEFA is soccer’s governing body in Europe. Blatter’s 17 years as FIFA president came to an …

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A man drove a car into pedestrians in a popular Berlin shopping district on Wednesday, killing at at least one person and injuring at least eight others, rescue services said. The man drove into people on a street corner at around 10:30 a.m. before getting the car back on the road and then crashing into a shop window around a block further on, police spokesman Thilo Cablitz said. Fire service spokesman Stefan Salzwedel put the number of injured at eight. Police said more than a dozen were injured. Police said several of them were in serious condition. The driver was …

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For full coverage of the crisis in Ukraine, visit Flashpoint Ukraine. The latest developments in the conflict between Russia and Ukraine. All times EDT. 3:45 a.m.: In his nightly video address, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy says “whatever the occupiers plan for themselves, we must prepare for the next winter, in our state, on our land, for all citizens.”     2:30 a.m.: Norway has shipped 22 M109 self-propelled howitzers to Ukraine along with spare parts and ammunition. The Norwegian defense ministry said it conducted training sessions in Germany with Ukrainian soldiers on using the weapons. 1:30 a.m.: Britain’s defense ministry said …

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Zelenskyy Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy praised the work of his troops in the eastern Donbas region and said Russia had not expected to meet much resistance, while Russia claimed to have assumed control of almost all of one of the provinces that makes up the Donbas.  After weeks of focusing its attacks on eastern Ukraine, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu said Tuesday Russian forces now control 97% of Luhansk province.  Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address Tuesday that “the absolutely heroic defense of the Donbas continues.” He added that Russia had made no significant advances in the region during …

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The European Union’s chief executive vowed Tuesday that Poland would get no money from the bloc’s vast pandemic relief fund until the right-wing government rolls back measures deemed to limit the independence of the country’s judiciary. Poland is line to receive nearly 36 billion euros ($38.5 billion) to help its economy recover from the impact of measures introduced to limit the spread of the coronavirus. But the EU has frozen Poland’s access to the funds amid concern about political interference with the judiciary. The European Commission, which proposes EU laws and supervises the way they are enacted, insists that a …

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 It was a moment Pablo González’s family had been longing for: a letter from the Spanish journalist imprisoned in Poland for 100 days on accusations of spying for Russia. “It was a thrill and a present for me and our three children,” González’s wife, Oihana Goiriena, told VOA. The four-page letter, which arrived last week, was the first contact the family has had with González since his arrest in February. Poland’s secret service alleges he used his role as a journalist as a cover for espionage, but officials have not publicly disclosed any supporting evidence. González denies the accusation. The …

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British Prime Minister Boris Johnson survived a no-confidence vote by his own party Monday evening — but the threats to his leadership haven’t gone away, as Henry Ridgwell reports from London. Videographer: Henry Ridgwell …

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