The main party leaders facing off in Poland’s upcoming parliamentary election called on voters to give their respective parties winning support as they held final campaign rallies Friday. Opinion polls suggested a close race.

Talking Europe hosts the newly appointed EU Commissioner for Climate Action, Wopke Hoekstra. The EU has put the Green Deal at the heart of its policy making, and Hoekstra was confirmed in the key job after somewhat fractious hearings in the European Parliament, where some MEPs drew attention to his past work for oil and gas giant Shell. We discuss his plans for implementing the green transition, and the upcoming COP28 summit in Dubai.

The EU faces what is arguably its stiffest foreign policy test since the war in Ukraine. A devastating attack on Israel by Hamas has been met with a massive Israeli response in the Gaza Strip. It is being described as the worst chapter in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict since the war of October 1973. We discuss how convincing – or otherwise – the EU’s response has been so far, as well as the EU’s messaging mess when it comes to the question of continued development aid to the Palestinians.

Teacher killed in France school stabbing A teacher has been stabbed to death in France…

Seven dead after vehicle crashes in Bavaria A crowded minivan driven by a suspected people-smuggler,…

Around 2,480 taxi drivers will embark on another round of their latest legal fight against Uber in Paris on Friday accusing the American giant of unfair competition as they seek around 455 million euros in damages.