Muted New Year’s Eve celebrations were expected in Italy, where tight restrictions are in place to curb the spread of COVID-19. The government has deployed thousands of police officers to ensure that rules are adhered to and that Italians do not hold large gatherings to celebrate the start of 2021. Adding to an abnormal end …
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The father of British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Thursday he was in the process of applying for a French passport to maintain his ties with the European Union after Brexit. Stanley Johnson, a former member of the European Parliament who voted Remain in Britain’s 2016 referendum, told RTL radio he wanted to become …
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Pope Francis will not lead New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day services because of a flare up of his sciatica condition, which produces pain in his right leg, the Vatican said Thursday. It was the first time in years that Francis, who turned 84 this month, has had to skip a papal event for …
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With Istanbul facing further COVID restrictions at the start of the New Year, scores of public spaces across the city have become venues for light installations as part of a major art exhibition. Dorian Jones reports the aim is to lift people’s spirits in these dark times.Producer: Marcus Harton. …
U.S. prosecutors on Wednesday accused Ukrainian tycoon Ihor Kolomoisky and another Ukrainian businessman of using misappropriated funds to buy real estate in Ohio, following earlier similar U.S. allegations involving property in Kentucky and Texas.Kolomoisky, one of the most prominent tycoons in Ukraine and regarded as a key political backer of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, had …
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For Russians, the past year saw a national vote to approve changes to their constitution … including an amendment granting longtime leader Vladimir Putin the right to remain president through the year 2036. And as Charles Maynes reports from Moscow, the question now is … will he?Camera: Ricardo Marquina Montanana Producer: Henry Hernandez …
Britain’s House of Commons voted overwhelmingly Wednesday to approve a trade deal with the European Union, the last major step in London’s yearslong split from the continent’s 27-member governing body. With a day to spare, lawmakers voted 521-73 in favor of the Brexit deal that Britain reached with the EU last week. It will become British …
Russian President Vladimir Putin has signed into law legislation that human rights watchdogs and opposition politicians have said will undermine democratic processes.The legislation, which came into force on December 30, included a series of amendments to the controversial law on “foreign agents” to allow individuals and public entities to be recognized as “foreign agents” if …
The year 2020 is ending with good news about two more potential vaccines that could slowly bring an end to the global COVID-19 pandemic that has killed nearly 1.8 million people out of a total of nearly 82 million infections. Britain’s medical regulatory agency announced Wednesday that it has granted emergency authorization of a coronavirus …
Read more “Britain Drug Regulatory Agency Approves Second COVID-19 Vaccine for Emergency Use”
Five people, including a 12-year-old girl, died after a magnitude-6.4 earthquake swept through central Croatia Tuesday, destroying several buildings, injuring at least 20 people and causing tremors in neighboring countries, according to officials. The epicenter of the quake, Petrinja, a town of about 25,000 people, sustained the worst damage. On Monday it was hit …
Britain and Vietnam signed a free trade agreement on Tuesday, Vietnam’s trade ministry said, days before Britain completes its transition out of the European Union.The deal, which will for Britain replace the existing EU-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement (EVFTA), will take effect on Dec. 31, the ministry said in a statement.Trade between Vietnam and Britain has …
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An earthquake of magnitude 6.4 struck a town in Croatia on Tuesday, with the emergency services saying many people had been injured and video footage showing people being rescued from rubble near the epicenter.The GFZ German Research Center for Geosciences said the quake hit at a depth of 10 km (6 miles).The N1 news channel …
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French couturier Pierre Cardin, who made his name by selling designer clothes to the masses, and his fortune by being the first to exploit that name as a brand for selling everything from cars to perfume, died on Tuesday aged 98. In a career spanning more than 60 years, Cardin drew scorn and admiration from fellow …
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Britain must vaccinate 2 million people a week to avoid a third wave of the coronavirus outbreak, a study by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) has concluded. Britain has had more than 71,000 deaths from the coronavirus and has recorded more than 2.3 million cases of COVID-19 infections as of late Monday, …
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A roadside bomb killed three French soldiers Monday, according to the French government, which said their armored vehicle struck the explosive device in the Hombori region of Mali. The soldiers were part of France’s Operation Barkhane mission, which is fighting an Islamist extremist insurgency in Africa’s Sahel region. They were working as part of a 5,000-troop mission “in …
Earlier this year, Russia claimed victory in the global race for a vaccine against the coronavirus. But as Charles Maynes reports from Moscow, the Kremlin’s new challenge is the vaccine’s rollout, and convincing Russians the drug is both safe and effective. Camera: Ricardo Marquina …
The European Union has endorsed the post-Brexit trade deal with Britain set to go into effect on January 1.“Green light. EU ambassadors have unanimously approved the provisional application of the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement,” said spokesman Sebastian Fischer of Germany, which currently holds the EU presidency.The deal, announced last Thursday, still must be retrospectively …
Seventeen people are missing and presumed dead after a Russian fishing boat sank in the northern Barents Sea Monday morning, authorities said in a statement carried by local media. “The crew consisted of 19 people. Two people were rescued,” the Russian Emergency Ministry said. Officials believe that ice accumulation on the trawler caused the accident. The privately owned …
About 200 British holidaymakers forced to respect a 10-day quarantine in the Swiss ski resort of Verbier fled secretly in the night, the municipality said Sunday.About 200 out of an estimated 420 British holidaymakers stricken in Verbier by the quarantine measures imposed by the Swiss government on travelers coming from Britain since December 14, left …
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Turkey’s defense minister said that any attack by eastern Libyan strongman Khalifa Haftar on its personnel in the North African country would be met with force.”A war criminal, murderer Haftar and his supporters must know that they will be seen as a legitimate target in case of any attack on Turkish forces” by his troops, …
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Several European Union countries began vaccinating against COVID-19 Sunday.In Italy, a nurse, a university professor and a doctor were the first people to receive the initial vaccine dose at Rome’s Lazzaro Spallanzani hospital.In Spain, the vaccination began at Los Olmos nursing home in Guadalajara.In the Czech Republic, Prime Minister Andrej Babis was among the first …
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Italians began to receive COVID-19 vaccines Sunday after the first batch of nearly 10,000 doses arrived. Italians hope that the massive vaccination campaign will soon bring an end to lockdowns and return them to their normal lives.A 29-year-old nurse was the first to receive the vaccine at Rome’s Lazzaro Spallanzani National Institute for Infectious Diseases. …
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A fast-food eatery at Pompeii has been excavated, helping to reveal dishes that were popular for the citizens of the ancient Roman city who were partial to eating out.Pompeii Archaeological Park’s longtime chief, Massimo Osanna, said Saturday that while about 80 such fast-foods spots have been found at Pompeii, it is the first time such …
The coronavirus pandemic has dominated the news this year, and it’s no different this holiday season. Despite public health warnings not to travel, many Americans boarded planes to celebrate Christmas with loved ones in other cities. Meanwhile, Europe is receiving its first shipments of a vaccine against the virus and the disease it causes, COVID-19. …