Category: Євросоюз

Tourists at a seaside hotel on the Greek island of Rhodes snatched up pails of pool water and damp towels as flames approached, rushing to help staffers and locals extinguish one of the wildfires threatening Mediterranean locales during recent heat waves. The quick team effort meant that “by the time the fire brigade came, most of the fire actually was dealt with,” said Elena Korosteleva from Britain, who was vacationing at the Lindos Memories hotel. The next morning, some unsettled guests cut their holiday short — but most stayed on as the resort wasn’t damaged in the small brush fire …

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Slovenia has faced the worst natural disaster in its history, Prime Minister Robert Golob said Saturday, after devastating floods caused damage estimated at half a billion euros ($550 million). Devastating floods Thursday and Friday killed three people and destroyed roads, bridges and houses in the small Alpine country. Two thirds of the territory had been affected, Golob said. The floods were “the biggest natural disaster” in Slovenia’s history, Golob said Saturday after a meeting of the country’s National Security Council. “Luckily, last night was easier than the one before.” After three weather-related deaths were reported Friday, Slovenian media said Saturday …

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Pope Francis visited the Portuguese town of Fatima to pray for peace at a shrine Saturday known for apocalyptic prophesies of hell, peace and Soviet communism that have found new relevance with Russia’s war in Ukraine. But for the third time during his trip to Portugal for World Youth Day, Francis ditched his prepared remarks and didn’t even recite a prayer written for the occasion pleading for peace. The prayer had been expected to be a highlight of Francis’ visit to Fatima, given the shrine’s century-old affiliation with exhortations of peace and conversion in Russia. Francis instead “prayed silently for …

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Japan scored its 14th goal of the Women’s World Cup and conceded its first Saturday, beating Norway 3-1 to reach the quarterfinals for the fourth time. Hinata Miyazawa sealed the win with her fifth goal of the tournament in the 81st minute to remain the leading scorer. Risa Shimizu’s 50th-minute goal followed an Ingrid Syrstad Engen own goal in the first half to help give Japan its fourth straight win of the tournament. Guro Reiten headed a superb goal for Norway in the 21st minute to end Japan’s flawless defensive performance and leave the teams locked 1-1 a halftime. After …

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Saudi Arabia was set to host talks on Russia’s war on Ukraine on Saturday in the latest flexing of its diplomatic muscle, though expectations are mild for what the gathering might achieve.  The meeting of national security advisers and other officials in the Red Sea coastal city of Jeddah underscores Riyadh’s “readiness to exert its good offices to contribute to reaching a solution that will result in permanent peace,” the official Saudi Press Agency said Friday.   Invitations were sent to around 30 countries, Russia not among them, according to diplomats familiar with the preparations.  The SPA report said only …

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Latest developments: Saturday intelligence update on Ukraine from the Britain’s Ministry of Defense says strike on 113-meter-long Russian landing ship, the Olenegorsky Gornyak, was the largest naval vessel damaged since sinking of the Moskva in April of last year. Poland has detained another person suspected of being a member of a Russian spy network, bringing the total number of people detained as part of an investigation to 16, Interior Minister Mariusz Kaminski said Friday.  The direct channel between the Russian Agricultural Bank and J.P. Morgan, as part of the U.N.-brokered Black Sea grain deal, was closed on August 2, RIA …

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Tensions are high along the Poland-Belarus border after two Belarusian helicopters entered Polish air space. Poland’s army has moved additional troops and combat helicopters close to the border and there is increasing talk about the possibility of military incursion. Eastern Europe chief Myroslava Gongadze traveled to the border and has this report. Camera: Daniil Bratushchak …

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Pope Francis presided over a Way of the Cross reenactment at a Lisbon park on Friday before hundreds of thousands of flag-waving pilgrims, part of a global Catholic youth festival.  The rite commemorating Jesus Christ’s suffering and death is one of the highlights of World Youth Day festivities, a six-day international Catholic jamboree.  Pilgrims shrieked and waved as the pontiff, surrounded by bodyguards, slowly drove by in his popemobile to the stage set up at the hillside Eduardo VII park for the event.  The 86-year-old pope, wearing a white cassock, paused several times to have babies brought to him, and …

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West African defense chiefs have drawn up a plan for potential military intervention if Niger’s coup is not overturned by the weekend, a leader from the regional bloc said on Friday, after mediation failed in a crisis that is troubling global powers. The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has given Niger’s coup leaders until Sunday to step down and free elected President Mohamed Bazoum. The bloc has taken a hard stance on last week’s takeover, the seventh coup in West and Central Africa since 2020. Given its uranium and oil riches and pivotal role in the war with …

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For staff at the Turkish LGBTQ online magazine Velvele, the worry that content will be censored is constant. “That’s one of the biggest threats that we might face in the near future,” said Ilker Hepkaner, an editor at Velvele. “They might block an essay — or the whole website,” he said, referring to Turkish authorities. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made attacking the LGBTQ community a focal point of his political agenda in the run-up to his reelection this year, and Ankara has long used internet blocks and legal threats to silence critical outlets. In an environment that already has a …

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At first sight, Tiembe studies his frozen breakfast with hesitation: Chunks of red meat and bone packed in a foot-long block of ice.  The 15-year-old Angolan lion eventually licks the ice before gnawing free pieces of meat.  Animals at the Attica Zoological Park outside the Greek capital were being fed frozen meals Friday as temperatures around the country reached 40 C (107.5 F) and were set to rise further, in the fourth heat wave in less than a month.  The extreme temperatures and wildfires — a growing concern for biodiversity in southern Europe — have had an impact on Greek …

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AUCKLAND, Australia — As the Women’s World Cup enters the business stage when the round of 16 kicks off Saturday, the surprises and shocks in the group stage have thrown up some stunning fixtures, starting with the clash of former champions Norway and Japan. There is a sense that the expanded 32-team format has improved the tournament after heavyweights Germany, Canada, Brazil and China were knocked out while minnows like Morocco and Jamaica advanced for the first time. While Japan came through their group unscathed, Norway lost to co-hosts New Zealand in the tournament opener, while a public spat threatened …

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U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken called out Russia Thursday at a meeting of the U.N. Security Council for the effect its invasion of Ukraine is having on global hunger. VOA’s Senior Diplomatic Correspondent Cindy Saine reports. …

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The Biden administration says they don’t expect “tangible deliverables” from upcoming Ukraine peace plan talks hosted by Saudi Arabia but rather a continuing discussion on President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s “peace formula” for ending the brutal conflict. John Kirby, director of strategic communications for the National Security Council, also told VOA on Thursday that the administration continues to work with Saudi Arabia on a process of eventual normalization with Israel, and that the administration believes that normalization is “better for our national security interests.” The following interview has been edited for brevity and clarity. VOA: I’d like to start with Ukraine peace …

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A Syrian national accused of committing crimes against humanity and war crimes during the early stages of the Syrian Civil War has been arrested in Germany, prosecutors announced Thursday. The federal prosecutor’s office said the suspect was detained on July 26 in the northern city of Bremen. He was remanded in custody on Thursday. Named only as Ahmad H., the suspect is accused of perpetrating the atrocity crimes of torture and enslavement between 2012 and 2015 as a local leader of pro-government “shabiha” militiamen in Damascus. The militiamen were tasked with helping crush local dissent. The militia allegedly operated checkpoints …

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Canada is publicly acknowledging for the first time that families, including Canadians, who lost loved ones when Iran shot down a Ukrainian passenger jet in 2020, have asked the International Criminal Court to take action. The Association of Families of Flight PS752 Victims announced last September that it had made a legal submission to the ICC prosecutor’s office to expand an investigation of alleged war crimes in Ukraine to include the Iranian missile strike that downed the Ukraine International Airlines plane. The incident happened as the jet took off from Tehran on January 8, 2020. The strike killed all 176 people …

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FRANKFURT, Germany — Adidas brought in $437 million from the first release of Yeezy sneakers left over after breaking ties with Ye, the rapper formerly known as Kanye West, as the German sportswear maker tries to offload the unsold shoes and donate part of the proceeds to groups fighting antisemitism and other forms of hate. The first batch of shoes released in June, which sold out, helped the company reach an operating profit of $192 million in the second quarter, better than it originally planned, Adidas said Thursday. A second sale started Wednesday. After Ye’s antisemitic and other offensive comments …

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Visits to the Acropolis of Athens, Greece’s most popular archaeological site, will be capped starting next month at a maximum 20,000 daily and subject to varying hourly entry limits, the Greek government said Wednesday.  Culture Minister Lina Mendoni said the controls are needed to prevent bottlenecks and overcrowding at the UNESCO World Heritage site. As many as 23,000 people a day have been squeezing into the monument complex, mostly large groups visiting before noon.  “That’s a huge number,” Mendoni said in an interview with the Real FM radio network. “Obviously, tourism is desirable for the country, for all of us. …

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Pope Francis on Wednesday said the Catholic Church needs a “humble and ongoing purification” to deal with the “anguished cries” of victims of clerical sexual abuse, who he met privately on the first day of his visit to Portugal. Francis was speaking in Lisbon at the start of a five-day visit to the country in which he hopes to energize young Catholics during World Youth Day, the world’s largest Catholic festival. Six months ago, a report by a Portuguese commission said at least 4,815 minors were sexually abused by clergy — mostly priests — over seven decades. The crisis “calls …

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A decision by Kosovo’s government to revoke the business license of one of the country’s leading media outlets has sparked criticism and protests. The dispute centers on the business registration documents of  broadcaster Klan Kosova, which authorities say are in violation of the constitution. But analysts say the move to revoke a business license is at odds with laws regulating corporate activities, and they expressed concerns about action against a media outlet seen as critical of the government. The decision can be appealed in court. As of Wednesday, Klan Kosova, one of the largest privately owned broadcasters in the country, …

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