Belgium and Germany have joined Austria, Greece and Malta in allowing 16 and 17-year-old to vote in the European elections.

Canada and the Netherlands have taken Damascus to the International Court of Justice over allegations of torture, the tribunal said Monday, in the first case at the UN’s top court over Syria’s brutal civil war.

Former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, a billionaire businessman who dominated Italy’s political landscape for decades, died on Monday aged 86, drawing tributes from leaders across the world. Italy has declared Wednesday a national day of mourning for Berlusconi, when a state funeral will be held for him in Milan’s Duomo cathedral.

Former Italian PM and media tycoon Silvio Berlusconi dies at 86 Former Italian Prime Minister…

Silvio Berlusconi, the billionaire media tycoon and four-time prime minister who brushed off a litany of legal battles and sex scandals to dominate Italian public life for more than two decades, has died in Milan aged 86.

In this week’s Focus, we turn to the tense frontier between Russia and Finland. The rapport between these neighbouring nations has soured significantly in the wake of Russia’s large-scale invasion of Ukraine. Historically, their mutual border has been a theatre of confrontation and conflict. Currently, Finland is taking drastic measures by erecting a formidable barbed wire fence along this boundary. According to authorities in Helsinki, the intention behind this undertaking is twofold: ensuring the nation’s protection and enhancing scrutiny over entries from Russia.