Brigitte Macron takes legal action against rumours she was born a man
The wife of French President Emmanuel Macron, Brigitte, is launching legal proceedings over the spread of false claims that she is a transgender woman who was born a man, her ...
Spain’s ‘Fat One’ Christmas lottery leaves winners elated, sellers frustrated
Lucky lottery players popped champagne corks across Spain on Wednesday afternoon as the winning numbers in a multi-billion euro Christmas draw were revealed, even as some ticket sellers protested to ...
US bars Maltese ex-officials from entering over suspected corruption
The United States on Wednesday barred two former Malta government officials and their immediate families from entry, citing suspicions of involvement in significant corruption.
The move targets Maltese ex-premier Joseph ...
Fourth Covid-19 shot needed, says German health minister
German Health Minister Karl Lauterbach said on Wednesday that a fourth vaccination will be necessary in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic due to the more contagious Omicron variant.
He ...
Finland aims to tackle rising Covid-19 cases by curbing bars’ opening hours
Finland will restrict restaurants’ opening hours to curb rising Covid-19 infections and the spread of the new Omicron variant, the government said on Wednesday.
Starting on Christmas eve, bars will ...
Three dead, dozens feared missing after migrant boat sinks in Greece
Three asylum-seekers drowned and dozens more were feared missing after a boat believed to be carrying as many as 50 people sank off Greece’s Folegandros island, the coast guard said ...
Europe braces for Omicron ‘storm’ as Biden calls up military medics
Countries across Europe considered new curbs on movement on Tuesday while U.S. President Joe Biden called on military medics to support hospitals and fight the Omicron variant sweeping the ...
Portugal imposes post-Christmas Covid curbs as Omicron cases surge
Portugal on Tuesday ordered nightclubs and bars to close and told people to work from home for at least two weeks starting on Saturday to control the spread of COVID-19 ...
Putin says Russia has ‘nowhere to retreat’ over Ukraine
President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday that Russia had no room to retreat in a standoff with the United States over Ukraine and would be forced into a tough response ...
Domestic violence against women ‘almost satanic,’ Pope Francis says
Pope Francis has said that men who commit violence against women engage in something that is “almost satanic”.
He made the comment, some of the strongest language he has used ...
Germany to limit private gatherings to 10 people – draft document
Germany plans to limit private gatherings from Dec. 28 to a maximum of 10 people who have been vaccinated or recovered from COVID-19, according to a draft of proposed measures seen by ...
EU regulator backs Novavax as region’s fifth Covid-19 vaccine
The European Union’s drug regulator on Monday approved use of the COVID-19 vaccine from U.S.-based Novavax in people 18 years and older, paving the way for a fifth ...
Europe weighs Christmas curbs as Omicron sweeps continent
Britain refused to rule out curbs on gatherings on Monday, a day after the Netherlands imposed a fourth lockdown prompted by the fast-spreading Omicron variant of the coronavirus and as ...
PM’s wine and cheese gathering was not a party – deputy PM
A photograph of Prime Minister Boris Johnson and more than a dozen other people drinking wine in the garden of his Downing Street residence during a lockdown last year does ...
EU commissioner warns UK against picking Brexit hardliner to replace Frost
By Conor Humphries
A European Commissioner said on Sunday that British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s refusal to compromise on Brexit was “untenable” and called on him not to let ...
UK health minister doesn’t rule out new restrictions before Christmas
By Kylie MacLellan
Britain’s health minister Sajid Javid declined on Sunday to rule out the chance of further COVID-19 restrictions before Christmas, saying the spread of the Omicron variant ...
Netherlands starts ‘painful’ Christmas coronavirus lockdown
Shopping streets in the Netherlands were closed and people’s Christmas plans were in disarray as the country began a lockdown on Sunday aimed at limiting an expected COVID-19 surge ...
Netherlands to go into strict Christmas lockdown
The Netherlands will go into a strict lockdown over the Christmas and New Year period to try to contain the highly- contagious Omicron coronavirus variant, Prime Minister Mark Rutte said ...
Ireland orders bars, restaurants to close at 8 p.m. to curb Omicron
The Irish government has ordered bars and restaurants to close at 8 p.m. and reduced the capacity in all public events in a bid to curb the spread of the ...
Southern Greece rattled by tremor, no injuries, damage reported
A strong earthquake rattled parts of southern Greece on Saturday, with no immediate reports of damage or injuries.
A tremor with a magnitude of 5.4 and a depth of almost 58 km (36 ...
Giant Swedish Yule goat torched again after 5-year respite
A giant straw Yule goat in the Swedish town of Gavle was set ablaze on Friday for the first time in five years, reviving a long-running tradition of locals illegally ...
Moderna Covid shot more likely to cause heart inflammation than Pfizer
Moderna’s COVID-19 vaccine is up to four times more likely to cause inflammation of the heart muscle, a very rare side effect, than its rival vaccine from Pfizer-BioNTech , according ...
EU to place order with Pfizer for shots adapted to Omicron
European Union governments have agreed to exercise an option to buy more than 180 million doses of a version of the COVID-19 vaccine adapted for the Omicron variant developed by BioNTech ...
Austria offers seasonal lockdown reprieve for unvaccinated
Austria said on Friday it was temporarily loosening its lockdown on those not fully vaccinated against COVID-19 over Christmas and New Year’s Eve thanks to a drop in infections.
“...