Author: EU News

Brussels, Belgium, 19th Dec 2024 — KINGNEWSWIRE // In the heart of the city, beneath the watchful gaze of the Acropolis, a new movement is taking shape. On Sunday, December 15, 2024, 21 determined Greeks came together at Syntagma Square to declare a message loud and clear: Human rights are not just ideals—they are the foundation of a just and free society. Equipped with banners, booklets, and their unwavering voices, these volunteers walked the streets of Athens, calling for a renewed commitment to human rights. This initiative, organized by the local branch of the International NGO United for Human Rights (UHR)…

In Brussels, Olaf Scholz complains about Austria’s refugee policy in the Syria crisis. The Chancellor is warning America’s future president against going it alone. But it is not an EU summit that will decide on the Ukraine war, but rather Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin – soon.It was 10:06 p.m. in the German press room 20.4 in the Justus Lipsius building in the middle of Brussels’ European Quarter when Chancellor Olaf Scholz addressed Austria’s Prime Minister Karl Nehammer – without even mentioning his name. The demands for Syrian refugees to return to their home country at this point in time…

A European arrest warrant is being sought for a Polish former minister on suspicion of corruption. Hungary would also have to implement this – but the man received asylum there. Warsaw sees this as a “hostile act.” Former deputy minister Marcin Romanowski, wanted by Poland, receives asylum in Hungary

  As the moon rises over Avignon’s city walls, the night before the verdicts are announced, it is just high enough to illuminate the banner a small group of feminist activists has put up in a cloak-and-dagger operation. The banner reads: “Thank you, Gisele.” The next morning, it is the first thing the lawyers, journalists, family members, and the 51 men accused of raping Gisele Pelicot see as they enter the court building. It is still dark at 07 a.m., but already there is a long line of people waiting outside. Over the past four months, France and the whole world…

In a decisive move to enhance transparency and accountability within the European Union, the European Parliament has elected Teresa Anjinho as the new European Ombudsman for the 2025-2029 term. Anjinho, a distinguished Portuguese lawyer and former Deputy Ombudsman of Portugal, succeeds Emily O’Reilly, who has held the position since 2013. A Competitive Selection Process The election, held during the December plenary session in Strasbourg, followed a rigorous selection process. The Committee on Petitions (PETI) conducted public hearings on December 3, 2024, where six candidates presented their visions for the Ombudsman‘s role. The candidates included: Teresa Anjinho (Portugal): Former Deputy Portuguese…

Do the Greens know how much climate protection costs? Does Friedrich Merz know how expensive milk and butter are? For Maybrit Illner it was about “lots of ideas, little money”, but above all about the election campaign – and a peculiarity of the incumbent Chancellor.Even before Chancellor Olaf Scholz failed in the vote of confidence, the election campaign was well underway – marked by insults, denunciations and sharp accusations. Terms like “Fritze”, “Mimosa” or “Tünkram” determine the debate: it’s about people, hardly about programs. While most parties have already presented their election plans, the AfD is not expected to present…

Supermarket cashiers, salespeople and other service providers in Mexico often have to stand for long hours at a time. The “Chair Law” now states: Employers must provide seating. And with a backrest. Mexico introduces right to a chair at work

After the approval last Tuesday of the 30 million that the central government contributes to FITE, it has now been an extraordinary Government Council that has given free rein to the agreement between the Government of Aragon and the Ministry of Territorial Policy and Democratic Memory to finance projects that promote economic generation in the Teruel province. Aragón will contribute another 30 million euros which, added to the 30 from the state allocation, results in 60 million euros. Now, over the next few days the regional Executive will approve and publish the projects that will be financed – probably next…

Judges in France are set to deliver verdicts today for 51 men involved in a mass rape trial that has stunned the nation. The case centres around Dominique Pelicot, 72, who is accused of drugging his ex-wife, Gisèle, raping her, and orchestrating a series of sexual assaults by dozens of men over nearly a decade.

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The Israeli Air Force said it bombed militia military facilities in response to a repelled rocket attack by Houthi rebels in Yemen. The Israeli army announced early this morning that, among other things, ports and energy infrastructure on the west coast and inland of Yemen were attacked. They were used by the rebels for military purposes. Attacks were also reported in the capital.Shortly before, the Israeli Air Force said it had intercepted a rocket fired from Yemen outside its own borders that night. Warning sirens sounded in several areas in central Israel, including the coastal metropolis of Tel Aviv. The…

Sand, gravel or potash products: Such raw materials are the basis for industrial production. The economic crisis is causing the need for this to fall sharply. This means that local production is at a historic low. Industry’s demand for raw materials is falling sharply

Nam (name changed) had to wait 12 years before he could return from Europe to his parents in Vietnam. He couldn’t return earlier because he had lived illegally in Germany and lacked the necessary papers to travel freely.    As a young man in search of a better life, he had decided to try his luck in Europe in 2012. The then 20-year-old and his family borrowed money to pay human traffickers. Nam was smuggled into Germany via Russia and lived the life of a “naked person,” a term used in Vietnamese chat groups on Facebook like Luật Pháp Đức (German law)…

Despite an agenda packed with hot-button topics, the summit of EU leaders is not expected to yield any breakthrough. The 27 leaders of the European Union are on Thursday meeting in Brussels for a one-day summit with a remarkably busy agenda that will touch upon Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Syria’s transition of power, continued protests in Georgia, new ways to reinvent migration policy and the survival guide for the upcoming Donald Trump administration. It marks the first summit chaired by António Costa since he assumed the presidency of the European Council on 1 December as part of the bloc’s new…

The 27 EU heads of state and government are meeting in Brussels for the EU summit. They will discuss, among other things, further aid for the country invaded by Russia with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Watch this and other news on WELT TV.© Axel Springer Germany GmbH. All rights reserved. Now live: Meeting of the 27 EU heads of state and government at the EU summit – Zelenskyj’s participation – video

“Calculated policy of deprivation”: According to Human Rights Watch, Israel is deliberately blocking Palestinians in the Gaza Strip from access to drinking water. The organization sees this as evidence of genocide. Gaza war: Human Rights Watch accuses Israel of genocide

The number of homeless families is rising sharply this year, federal government figures show. The left sees a “social catastrophe”. But does this mainly have to do with the fact that many families can no longer afford the rent? A differentiation according to nationality provides information. Around 220,000 people in single-parent and couple households were homeless in Germany as of January 31, 2024. This emerges from the federal government’s response to a request from the Left group in the Bundestag. The letter is available to WELT. “Homeless” are not homeless people who live on the streets, but rather all those…

The key task for the new European Commission is to advance the green energy transition in a way that fosters unity and reduces social inequalities, especially in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) – a region particularly exposed to polarization and climate disinformation. Written by Dana Marekova*, (Klimatická koalícia, Slovakia) and Genady Kondarev*, Bulgaria-based expert working on the energy transition of CEE. One year ago, tens of thousands of European farmers took to the streets to protest EU climate policies. Eurosceptic, far-right voices have gained ground, including in the European Parliament. At the same time, rising energy prices and deteriorating housing…

The radical “Last Generation” is giving up its name and would soon like to continue under a new name. Carla Hinrichs, co-founder and spokeswoman for the group, explains this in a “Spiegel” interview with the rapid progression of global warming.“The situation is escalating before our eyes. And because we are no longer definitely the last generation before the tipping points, we will no longer call ourselves that. We leave the name behind us. We are no longer the last generation,” says Hinrichs. But the movement will not be dissolved. “Something new, something big will emerge from the structures of the…

Shortly before an impending shutdown in the USA, Democrats and Republicans reached an agreement in the budget debate. But now Donald Trump and his partner Elon Musk are getting involved: They want to stop the plan. “Republicans must become SMART and STRONG,” said a statement from the Trump team. He blamed the party of US President Joe Biden for the responsibility if a so-called shutdown occurs. In order to prevent a standstill in government business on Saturday night (local time), Biden must sign the bill by Friday at the latest. If this does not happen, some state institutions will have to…

The Government and the unions have sealed this Wednesday the agreement by which the right to partial retirement of public employees is recovered so that they can make part-time work compatible with the collection of part of the pension, linkable with a relief performed by another worker. The pact signed by the Minister for Digital Transformation and Public Service, Óscar López, the Secretary General of UGT Public Services, Julio Lacuerda, and the Public Area Coordinator of CCOO, Luciano Palazzo, arrives after weeks of negotiations and complies with a historic claim of the collective as well as of both unions as…

In a shocking incident at the Gudauri ski resort in Georgia, 11 Indian nationals and one Georgian were found dead in a commercial building on Monday. Preliminary investigations suggest carbon monoxide poisoning as the likely cause.

Russia’s security service (FSB) has detained a 29-year-old man from Uzbekistan in connection with the assassination of Lt. Gen. Igor Kirillov, the head of Russia’s Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical Defence Forces.