Europe

Twenty-two killed in fire at nursing home in Russia

  Moscow, Russia (AFP) A fire erupted overnight in a private illegal nursing home in the Siberian city of Kemerovo, killing 22 people, Russia’s investigative committee said Saturday. In a video released by the emergency services, a long row of emergency vehicles lined up outside the burning building, as firefighters tackled flames which sent plumes of smoke into the night sky. Images released by emergency services showed the building later completely burned out. Russia’s investigative […]

Paris shooter who killed three admits being ‘racist’

  Paris, France (AFP) by Alexandre HIELARD / Murielle KASPRZAK A 69-year-old white French gunman who opened fire at a Kurdish cultural centre in Paris killing three people told investigators he was racist, a source close to the case said Saturday. The shots at the centre and a nearby hairdressing salon shortly before midday on Friday caused panic in the bustling 10th district of the French capital, home to several shops and restaurants and a […]

Three dead after shooting at Kurdish centre in Paris

  Paris, France (AFP) by Alexandre HIELARD / Murielle KASPRZAK / Daphne ROUSSEAU A 69-year-old gunman opened fire at a Kurdish cultural centre and a hairdressing salon in Paris on Friday, killing three people and injuring three others, witnesses and prosecutors said. The shots shortly before midday (1100 GMT) caused panic in rue d’Enghien in the trendy 10th district of the capital, a bustling area of shops and restaurants that is home to a large […]

Paris shooter was ‘clearly targeting foreigners’: minister

  Paris, France (AFP)    A 69-year-old gunman who opened fire at a Kurdish cultural centre and a hairdressing salon in Paris on Friday was deliberately seeking out foreigners, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said. The man, a retired train driver, “was clearly targeting foreigners”, Darmanin told reporters, adding however that it was “not certain” that the man was aiming to kill “Kurds in particular”. Darmanin said: “We yet don’t know his exact motives.” There was also […]

Israel spy agency warns of deeper Iran-Russia arms ties

JERUSALEM, Undefined (AFP) — Iran is seeking to expand the supply of advanced weapons to Russia, the head of Israel’s Mossad spy agency said Thursday, according to local media. The warning from David Barnea comes after the United States earlier this month expressed alarm over a “full-scale defense partnership” between Tehran and Moscow, which invaded Ukraine last February. Tehran in November admitted it had sent drones to Russia, but insisted they were supplied before the […]

In retaken Ukraine village, ruins, hungry cats and few residents

BOGORODYCHNE, Ukraine (AFP) – When Yuri Ponomarenko first came back to his home village in eastern Ukraine several weeks ago, he found it almost completely deserted, its silence broken only by the meowing of famished cats. Little has changed since then in Bogorodychne, highlighting the rough road ahead for front-line villages looking to make a full recovery now that the Russians have been pushed out. “I think I’m the first one to come back and live […]

France fines Microsoft 60 million euros over advertising cookies

PARIS, France (AFP) – France’s privacy watchdog said Thursday it has fined  US tech giant Microsoft 60 million euros ($64 million) for foisting advertising cookies on users. In the largest fine imposed in 2022, the National Commission for Technology and Freedoms (CNIL) said Microsoft’s search engine Bing had not set up a system allowing users to refuse cookies as simply as accepting them. The French regulator said that after investigations it found that “when users visited […]

URGENT: Zelensky to US Congress: Ukraine ‘will never surrender’

  Washington, United States (AFP) Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky vowed his country would never surrender to Russia as he addressed a joint session of the US Congress on Wednesday night. “Ukraine holds its lines and will never surrender,” Zelensky said. Zelensky was in Washington for his first overseas trip since Russian leader Vladimir Putin launched the full-scale invasion on February 24, upending the global economy and leading to thousands of deaths.

US to provide Patriot missile system to Ukraine

  Washington, United States (AFP) by W.G. Dunlop The United States said Wednesday it would provide Ukraine with the advanced Patriot air defense system to help counter Moscow’s relentless aerial attacks. The system is part of $1.85 billion in security assistance unveiled in parallel with a visit to Washington by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, his first trip outside the country since Russia invaded in February. The announcement is a significant victory for Kyiv, which had […]

King Charles to make birthday parade debut in June 2023

LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) – King Charles will participate in his first Trooping the Colour ceremony, which has marked the British sovereign’s official birthday for over 260 years, as monarch on June 17, Buckingham Palace said Thursday. Charles, 74, took over as sovereign in September following the death of his mother Queen Elizabeth II. “This impressive display of pageantry will take place on Saturday 17th June… with His Majesty The King attending and taking the salute,” […]

Ukraine’s Zelensky to meet Pres. Biden, address Congress in Washington

Washington, United States  (AFP) by Paul HANDLEY Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky will meet US leader Joe Biden and address Congress in Washington on Wednesday, a visit the White House said will send Russia a strong message of Western unity. The secretly arranged trip comes on the same day Russian President Vladimir Putin plans to meet his top military officials to assess the conflict in Ukraine and set goals for next year in what the Kremlin […]

UK ambulance workers ready to join widening strikes

by Helen ROWE / Joe JACKSON Agence France-Presse LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — UK ambulance workers readied to walk out on Wednesday, a day after nurses staged their second stoppage, in a widening dispute with the government which is refusing to cede to above-inflation demands on pay. The series of walkouts has intensified, with industrial action by railway workers and passport control officers threatening to ruin festive holiday getaways. On Wednesday, ambulance staff including paramedics […]