Rescuers in Germany abandoned an elaborate operation on Thursday to save a sick humpback whale that has been repeatedly stranded off the Baltic Sea coast and has stirred up attention across the country for weeks. ADVERTISING ADVERTISING The whale, which has been nicknamed Timmy by local media, is lying in shallow waters near the eastern […]
Continue ReadingIn France, where deaths outpaced births in 2025 for the first time since the end of World War II, President Emmanuel Macron has called for “demographic rearmament,” warning that falling birth rates are tied to rising infertility and people having children later in life. In February Paris urged 29-year-olds to have children while they still […]
Continue ReadingPope Leo XIV criticized the “tyrants” ransacking the world on Thursday, on a high-security visit to a “bloodstained” region of Cameroon following a war of words with US President Donald Trump. ADVERTISING ADVERTISING Since his landmark four-nation African tour started earlier this week, the pope has abandoned his previous restraint in speaking out in favor […]
Continue ReadingFrench president Emmanuel Macron said Europe must come up with a cohesive approach to protecting children online as the bloc grapples with how to regulate social networks. Macron spoke with the leaders of Germany, Spain, Italy, Greece and Ireland and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Thursday. He said coordination would “strengthen both […]
Continue ReadingPublished on 04/16/2026 – 18:22 GMT+2 Chancellor Friedrich Merz plans to present a concrete offer for German participation in a possible military mission to secure the Strait of Hormuz at talks in Paris on Friday. ADVERTISING ADVERTISING According to the proposal, the Bundeswehr is to provide minehunting boats, an escort ship and reconnaissance aircraft after […]
Continue ReadingOn The Ground newsletter: Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents Get a weekly dispatch from our international correspondents Get a weekly international news dispatch A Polish national has been sentenced to 13 years in a maximum-security penal colony by a court in Russian-controlled Luhansk for allegedly fighting for Ukraine. The Russian Prosecutor General’s […]
Continue ReadingPublished on 16/04/2026 – 17:15 GMT+2 European Commission officials will meet Péter Magyar’s incoming team on Friday, as Brussels races against time to release EU funds that have been frozen during the current Orbán administration. ADVERTISING ADVERTISING Magyar secured a sweeping victory in last Sunday’s election, ending Viktor Orbán’s 16-year rule. A key campaign pledge […]
Continue ReadingApril 16, 2026, 4:31 p.mApril 16, 2026, 4:31 p.m German Chancellor Friedrich Merz does not see a return to nuclear energy as a short-term path to better and cheaper energy supplies in Germany. Friedrich Merz currently does not see nuclear power as a solution.Image: keystone With regard to the shutdown of the last German nuclear […]
Continue Reading“Who’s your daddy?” is a question that will follow Mark Rutte around for a long time. The former Dutch prime minister has really had one job since taking over as Nato secretary general: Keep Donald Trump onside and the western military alliance intact. Trump has publicly wondered about the usefulness of the Nato alliance since […]
Continue ReadingApril 16, 2026, 3:48 p.mApril 16, 2026, 3:48 p.m Syria’s government has announced the complete withdrawal of US troops previously stationed in the country. The “military facilities where United States troops were previously present in Syria” have been “completely handed over to the Syrian government,” the State Department in Damascus said. Syria announces withdrawal of […]
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