Belarus Strengthens Ties with Russia in Bid to Ease Isolation

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko is seeking to strengthen his alliance with Russia’s Vladimir Putin to ease his government’s international isolation following a brutal crackdown on political opponents in the wake of last year’s rigged elections. One sign of this alliance: joint military maneuvers on Belarus territory.Elizabeth Cherneff narrates this report by Ricardo Marquina in Minsk. …

Russia’s Daily COVID-19 Death Toll Hits New High

Russia reported its highest one-day coronavirus death toll since the pandemic began. According to Russia’s national coronavirus task force, there were 890 deaths on Sunday. It was the fifth day in a row that it reported a new daily record for coronavirus deaths.  The task force also said the number of new coronavirus infections reported Sunday was the second highest of …

Threatened Swedish Artist Dies in Road Accident

The Swedish artist Lars Vilks, who had lived under police protection since his 2007 sketch of the Prophet Muhammad with a dog’s body brought death threats, died from a traffic accident Sunday, Swedish news media reported. The accident reportedly involved a truck colliding with a civilian police car in which Lars Vilks and his police …

Georgia Ruling Party Wins Local Election After Arrest of Former President

Georgia’s ruling party won a commanding lead in a municipal election held a day after the arrest of former President Mikheil Saakashvili, who had returned from exile to support the opposition. The ruling Georgian Dream party won 46.7% of the votes to 30.7% for the United National Movement (UNM), founded by Saakashvili, according to results …

Trove of Documents Shows Hidden Wealth of World Leaders

Current and former leaders from throughout the world have amassed vast wealth and secret real estate holdings across the globe, hundreds of investigative journalists reported on Sunday after months of combing through millions of previously undisclosed documents. The documents, dubbed the Pandora Papers, exposed the offshore holdings of 35 current and former country leaders, including …

Spain’s Prime Minister Vows to Rebuild Island Once Eruption Ends

Spain will help rebuild La Palma, where a volcanic eruption has destroyed hundreds of buildings and forced thousands to evacuate their homes, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said on Sunday, adding that the island was safe for tourists to visit. Making his third visit to La Palma, one of the Atlantic Canary Islands, since the eruption …

Small Plane Crashes into Empty Building outside Milan, All 8 Onboard Die

A small private plane crashed into an empty building on the outskirts of Milan, northern Italy, on Sunday, killing all eight people onboard, police said. The plane, which took off from Milan’s Linate city airport, was headed for the island of Sardinia, officials said. The crash occurred just outside a suburban metro station. People in …

Greece, France Seal Strategic Defense Deal, Angering Turkey 

Greece has agreed to buy three state-of-the-art warships from France, boosting its military capabilities after a decade-long economic recession that cut its defense spending alone by nearly one-half. The deal boosts Greece’s military capabilities but critics fear it may stoke further tensions between Greece and age-old foe Turkey, both of them NATO members. The $5 …

No More Immigration: PM says Britain in Period of Adjustment 

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Sunday he would not return to “uncontrolled immigration” to solve fuel, gas and Christmas food crises, suggesting such strains were part of a period of post-Brexit adjustment.  At the start of his Conservative Party’s conference, Johnson was again forced to defend his government against complaints from those unable …

Exiled from Crimea, Tatars Struggle to Start Over in Ukraine

Born in exile, Rustem Skybin returned to his ancestral homeland Crimea in the mid-1990s only to be uprooted — just like his family before him — nearly 20 years later. The 45-year-old ceramics artist is among thousands of ethnic Tatars to have fled Crimea for mainland Ukraine since 2014, when Moscow captured the peninsula and …

Blinken Heads to France to Revitalize Transatlantic Alliance

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken is heading to Paris, his first trip to France following an enhanced trilateral security partnership known as AUKUS (Australia, U.K., and the U.S.) that heightened tensions between the transatlantic allies. Experts said they expect Blinken, who has strong personal ties to France, to use the upcoming trip to try …

Italian Vessel Rescues 65 From Migrant Boat Fleeing Libya

An Italian offshore supply vessel on Saturday rescued 65 migrants, including women and children, fleeing Libya to Europe on a crowded, wooden boat. The migrant boat was drifting after its engine stopped working and was spotted by the Seabird, an NGO monitoring aircraft flying over the central Mediterranean. Those on board were not wearing life …

Migrants on New Route to Europe Get Trapped Between Borders

After enduring a decade of war in Syria, Boshra al-Moallem and her two sisters seized their chance to flee. Her brother, who escaped years earlier to Belgium, had saved enough money for their trip, and word was spreading online that a new migration route into Europe had opened through Belarus. But the journey proved terrifying …

Thousands Protest COVID-19 Restrictions in Romania

Thousands marched Saturday in Bucharest to protest restrictions that begin Sunday to combat a jump in coronavirus infections. The European nation of 19 million is seeing a shocking rise in the daily number of coronavirus cases. A month ago, the number was about 1,000 new cases a day. On Saturday, Romania reported more than 12,500 …

Georgia Polls Close in Election After Ex-President’s Arrest 

Polls closed Saturday in Georgian municipal elections, a day after the dramatic arrest of ex-President Mikheil Saakashvili, who called from police custody for the country’s “peaceful transition to a genuine democracy.”  The detention on Friday of Georgia’s foremost opposition figure upon his return from exile raised the stakes in the polls seen as a key …

Stay-Home Order Lifted for Residents Near La Palma Volcano Eruption

Authorities advised people to limit time outdoors Saturday in parts of La Palma as the erupting volcano on the Spanish island spewed red-hot lava and thick clouds of black smoke.   Emergency services lifted a stay-home order, however, that had been in effect in Los Llanos de Aridane, El Paso, and areas of Tazacorte — …

Greece Rejects EU Proposal for Border Monitors

Greece has rejected a request by the European Union to set up an independent process to monitor border controls and illegal migration.     The Greek snub is said to have infuriated Brussels, which has been extremely critical of Athens for its alleged illegal practice of migrant pushbacks. The rejection could imperil millions of dollars …

Serbs Lift Roadblocks in Kosovo as NATO Moves to End License Plate Row

Kosovo’s border crossing with Serbia was reopened on Saturday as Serbs removed trucks and cars and NATO troops moved in under a European Union-mediated deal to end a dispute between the neighboring countries over car license plates.   Kosovo special police forces withdrew from the border crossing in the north of the country nearly two …

French, US Top Diplomats to Hold Talks October 5

French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian will hold talks with United States’ Secretary of State Antony Blinken on October 5. The two will aim to work on restoring confidence between the two countries, said a statement issued by Le Drian’s office.   Diplomatic relations between the United States and France hit a low point last …

Twitter Appeals French Court Ruling on Anti-Hate Speech

Twitter has appealed a French court decision that ordered it to give activists full access to all of its relevant documents on efforts to fight hate speech, lawyers and a judicial source said on Saturday.   In July, a French court ordered Twitter to grant six French anti-discrimination groups full access to all documents relating …

With Gas Pumps Still Dry, Britain Brings in Army

Starting Monday, Britain will deploy military tanker drivers to deliver fuel to gas stations, many of which were still dry on Friday after a chaotic week that saw panic-buying, fights at the pumps and drivers hoarding gas in water bottles.  With an acute shortage of truck drivers straining supply chains to the breaking point, the …

Exiled Ex-President Saakashvili Says He’s Back in Georgia

Ex-president Mikheil Saakashvili said Friday he had returned from exile to Georgia, despite the threat of arrest and ahead of local elections in the Caucasus country gripped by a protracted political crisis. “I risked my life and freedom to be back,” Saakashvili said in a video on Facebook, adding that he was in Georgia’s western …

Pro-EU Dobrev Wins First Round of Primary to Take on Hungary’s Orban

A 49-year-old lawyer who favors closer ties with the European Union pledged to unseat Viktor Orban as Hungary’s prime minister, after she won the first round of a contest that will produce his challenger in an election next year. Klara Dobrev, the leftist Democratic Coalition’s candidate, won the first round of primary vote ahead of …