Vladimir Putin to be pressed by EU officials to take a stronger line on Syria crisis at St Petersburg summit

Vladimir Putin will hold talks with Jose Manuel Barroso and Herman Van Rompuy

Russian President Vladimir Putin is expected to be pressed by EU officials to take a stronger line on the crisis in Syria during a summit in St Petersburg. EU member states want Russia to put pressure on its ally to withdraw heavy weapons from cities and comply fully with UN envoy Kofi Annan’s peace plan.… Continue reading Vladimir Putin to be pressed by EU officials to take a stronger line on Syria crisis at St Petersburg summit

George Soros warns European leaders over a three-month window to save the euro

George Soros warns European leaders they have a "three-month window" to save the euro

George Soros warns European leaders they have a “three-month window” to save the euro. The billionaire investor said he believed Greece would elect a government willing to abide by loan conditions imposed by the EU in this month’s elections. But George Soros said the German economy would begin in weaken in the autumn, making it… Continue reading George Soros warns European leaders over a three-month window to save the euro

Queen’s Diamond Jubilee: A-list pop stars will play for Queen Elizabeth II in front of Buckingham Palace

An A-list concert, which will be held in front of Buckingham Palace later today, will mark the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee

An A-list concert, which will be held in front of Buckingham Palace later today, will mark the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. Sir Paul McCartney, Stevie Wonder and Sir Elton John are among the artists, and Madness will perform on the roof. The audience will comprise of people who got tickets in a public ballot and those… Continue reading Queen’s Diamond Jubilee: A-list pop stars will play for Queen Elizabeth II in front of Buckingham Palace

Thames flotilla for the Diamond jubilee: magnificent nautical event in London

LONDON — Under the rainy skies of London, the crowds acclaim for  the monarch marking 60 years on the throne, a flotilla of 1,000 boats set off down the Thames on Sunday in an extravagant royal pageant. Thousands of Londoners are lining the Thames in London for the Jubilee river pageant despite the dank weather, as street… Continue reading Thames flotilla for the Diamond jubilee: magnificent nautical event in London

The Diamond Jubilee – The Queen

Early life Her Majesty the Queen was born on 21 April 1926 in London, the first child of Prince Albert, The Duke of York, and his wife, formerly Lady Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon. Third in line to the throne, it seemed unlikely that Princess Elizabeth would be Queen. However, shortly after the death of George V, the… Continue reading The Diamond Jubilee – The Queen

Hubble Space Telescope works out on when Milky Way will crash into Andromeda

Milky Way and Andromeda are being pulled together by their mutual gravity and the scientists expect them to begin to merge in about four billion years' time

Hubble Space Telescope has been used to work out on when precisely our Milky Way Galaxy will crash into its neighbor, Andromeda, astronomers announce. Milky Way and Andromeda are being pulled together by their mutual gravity and the scientists expect them to begin to merge in about four billion years’ time. A further two billion… Continue reading Hubble Space Telescope works out on when Milky Way will crash into Andromeda

Spain denies IMF bailout rumors

Spanish Economy Minister Luis de Guindos has dismissed talk of it seeking a bailout from the IMF as senseless

Spanish Economy Minister Luis de Guindos has dismissed talk of it seeking a bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as “senseless”. And the IMF denied that Spain had asked to discuss rescue loans. The IMF has contributed to bailouts of all the other eurozone nations, such as Greece, that needed help. Meanwhile, the European… Continue reading Spain denies IMF bailout rumors

Hillary Clinton accuses Russia over Syria

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says Russian policy will contribute to a potential civil war in Syria

US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton says Russian policy will contribute to a potential civil war in Syria. Hillary Clinton’s comments came after Russia and China renewed opposition to tougher UN Security Council action. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has repeated a warning that Syria could be moving towards “catastrophic” civil war, in the wake… Continue reading Hillary Clinton accuses Russia over Syria

Supervolcanoes may form and erupt in just hundreds of years

Supervolcanoes were thought to exist for as much as 200,000 years before releasing their vast underground pools of molten rock

Supervolcanoes, the largest volcanoes on Earth, may take as little as a few hundred years to form and erupt. Supervolcanoes were thought to exist for as much as 200,000 years before releasing their vast underground pools of molten rock. Researchers reporting in Plos One have sampled the rock at the supervolcano site of Long Valley… Continue reading Supervolcanoes may form and erupt in just hundreds of years

ACTA back under scrutiny as European Parliament prepares to carry out key votes

The controversial Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) is back under scrutiny as the European Parliament prepares to carry out a series of key votes

The controversial Anti-Counterfeiting Trade Agreement (ACTA) is back under scrutiny as the European Parliament prepares to carry out a series of key votes. ACTA seeks to curb the spread of illegally downloaded copyrighted material online. However, critics say it is a potential threat to freedom of speech online. To date 22 member states have signed… Continue reading ACTA back under scrutiny as European Parliament prepares to carry out key votes

SpaceX Dragon capsule returns to Earth after one week attached to ISS

SpaceX cargo capsule Dragon returns to Earth on Thursday having spent a week attached to the International Space Station

SpaceX cargo capsule Dragon returns to Earth on Thursday having spent a week attached to the International Space Station. The unmanned vehicle will fall through the atmosphere to make a splashdown in the Pacific off the California coast. Dragon mission made history last Friday by becoming the first privately produced craft to visit the orbiting… Continue reading SpaceX Dragon capsule returns to Earth after one week attached to ISS

Barack Obama causes outcry in Poland after referring to a Nazi death camp as “Polish”

Barack Obama has caused an outcry in Poland after referring to a Nazi death camp as "Polish"

Barack Obama has caused an outcry in Poland after referring to a Nazi death camp as “Polish”. President Barack Obama made the remark at a ceremony in which he posthumously awarded Polish resistance fighter Jan Karski with the Presidential Medal of Freedom. The White House says Barack Obama “misspoke” and regrets the comment but prominent… Continue reading Barack Obama causes outcry in Poland after referring to a Nazi death camp as “Polish”

Vatileaks: Pope Benedict XVI speaks for the first time on the scandal and denounces media coverage

Paolo Gabriele, the Pope's butler, has been charged with illegally obtaining private papal documents and memos

Pope Benedict XVI has broken his silence on the Vatileaks scandal, expressing his anger at the way some parts of the media are covering the story. Pope Benedict said “exaggerated” and “gratuitous” reports were painting a false image of the Holy See. A series of leaks has revealed allegations of corruption, mismanagement and internal conflicts.… Continue reading Vatileaks: Pope Benedict XVI speaks for the first time on the scandal and denounces media coverage

Julian Assange has lost extradition appeal at UK Supreme Court

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has lost his extradition appeal at UK Supreme Court

Wikileaks founder Julian Assange has lost his extradition appeal at UK Supreme Court. Julian Assange, 40, fights against extradition to Sweden to face accusations of sex offences. Lord Phillips, the court’s president said he had lost by a majority of five justices to two. The court ruled the extradition request had been “lawfully made”. However,… Continue reading Julian Assange has lost extradition appeal at UK Supreme Court

Charles Taylor, Liberia’s ex-president, sentenced to 50 years in jail

Charles Taylor, the former president of Liberia, has been sentenced to 50 years in jail by a UN-backed war crimes court

Charles Taylor, the former president of Liberia, has been sentenced to 50 years in jail by a UN-backed war crimes court. Last month Charles Taylor was found guilty of aiding and abetting rebels in Sierra Leone during the 1991-2002 civil war. Special Court for Sierra Leone judges said the sentence reflected his status as head… Continue reading Charles Taylor, Liberia’s ex-president, sentenced to 50 years in jail

Mitt Romney secures his Republican nomination following Texas primary

Republican Mitt Romney has secured his place as the challenger to Barack Obama in November's US presidential election, following a primary in Texas

Republican Mitt Romney has secured his place as the challenger to Barack Obama in November’s US presidential election, following a primary in Texas. Projections show Mitt Romney easily won enough votes to pass the threshold of 1,144 delegates needed for the nomination. Mitt Romney said he was “humbled”. He is the first Mormon from a… Continue reading Mitt Romney secures his Republican nomination following Texas primary

Italy earthquake UPDATE: death toll rises to 17 and 350 people have been injured

Seventeen people are now known to have died and another 350 were hurt in the 5.8 magnitude earthquake that hit northern Italy yesterday

Seventeen people are now known to have died and another 350 were hurt in the 5.8 magnitude earthquake that hit northern Italy yesterday. The tremor was the second in just over a week. Dozens of aftershocks have shuddered through Italy’s northern Emilia Romagna region overnight. The latest victim has been pulled from the rubble in… Continue reading Italy earthquake UPDATE: death toll rises to 17 and 350 people have been injured

Facebook shares go below $29 as they plunge to lowest point yet

Facebook shares have fallen below $29 for the first time since their flotation to a new low

Facebook shares have fallen below $29 for the first time since their flotation to a new low. The shares were launched at $38 less than two weeks ago during its high-profile flotation, which valued the firm at $104 billion. Since then, Facebook’s shares have lost almost a quarter of their value. Russia’s biggest social network,… Continue reading Facebook shares go below $29 as they plunge to lowest point yet

Major Western states are expelling senior Syrian diplomats over Houla killings

Major Western countries have decided to expel senior Syrian diplomats following the killing of 108 people in the Houla region of Syria on Friday

Major Western countries have decided to expel senior Syrian diplomats following the killing of 108 people in the Houla region of Syria on Friday. France, the U.S., UK, Germany, Italy, Spain, Canada, Australia and the Netherlands all took action against Syria’s envoys. Most of the victims in Houla were summarily executed, the UN says. Residents… Continue reading Major Western states are expelling senior Syrian diplomats over Houla killings

Emilia earthquake UPDATE: 10 people dead and several others buried under rubble

A new earthquake of 5.8-magnitude has struck the Emilia region in northern Italy, killing at least 10 people and burying several others under rubble

A new earthquake of 5.8-magnitude has struck the Emilia region in northern Italy, killing at least 10 people and burying several others under rubble, local media say. All the deaths were in the Modena area. Three were killed when an industrial shed collapsed in Medolla. Three also died in San Felice, two in Mirandola and… Continue reading Emilia earthquake UPDATE: 10 people dead and several others buried under rubble

Tudor era is a historical myth, claims Oxford historian Cliff Davies

"Tudor era" in history is a misleading invention, claims Cliff Davies, an Oxford University historian

“Tudor era” in history is a misleading invention, claims Cliff Davies, an Oxford University historian. Cliff Davies says his research shows the term “Tudor” was barely ever used during the time of Tudor monarchs. There are also suggestions the name was downplayed by Tudor royals because of its associations with Wales. Dr. Cliff Davies says… Continue reading Tudor era is a historical myth, claims Oxford historian Cliff Davies

Spanish retail sales in record fall in April

Spain’s retail sales dived in April, showing the biggest fall since the figures started being collected in 2003

Spain’s retail sales dived in April, showing the biggest fall since the figures started being collected in 2003. Sales fell 9.8% last month compared with the same month last year, after adjusting for calendar differences, according to official figures from the National Statistics Institute. The fall was much worse than had been expected, and marked… Continue reading Spanish retail sales in record fall in April

New 5.8 magnitude earthquake strikes northern Italy in Emilia region

A new earthquake has shaken northern Italy, centred on the Emilia region, where a quake on May 20 killed seven people and damaged many buildings

A new earthquake has shaken northern Italy, centred on the Emilia region, where a quake on May 20 killed seven people and damaged many buildings. Tuesday’s tremor was estimated at 5.8 and was felt in Milan and Bologna, where office workers were evacuated. The quake struck 40 km north of Bologna and 60 km east… Continue reading New 5.8 magnitude earthquake strikes northern Italy in Emilia region

Bluefin tuna at record radioactive contamination from Fukushima nuclear accident

A record radioactive contamination from last year's Fukushima nuclear accident has been detected in Pacific Bluefin tuna caught off the coast of California

A record radioactive contamination from last year’s Fukushima nuclear accident has been detected in Pacific Bluefin tuna caught off the coast of California. Bluefin tuna would have picked up the pollution while swimming in Japanese waters, before then moving to the far side of the ocean. Scientists stress that the fish are still perfectly safe… Continue reading Bluefin tuna at record radioactive contamination from Fukushima nuclear accident

Memorial Day: Chris Hayes sparks outrage saying he feels uncomfortable branding fallen soldiers “heroes”

Chris Hayes has caused outrage on Memorial Day by saying he feels “uncomfortable” branding soldiers who have died in battle “heroes

MSNBC broadcaster Chris Hayes has caused outrage on Memorial Day by saying he feels “uncomfortable” branding soldiers who have died in battle “heroes”. Chris Hayes, a liberal commentator who hosts Up with Chris Hayes, said the word “heroes” is used to justify further war. His stuttered comments have sparked outrage among veterans organizations and across… Continue reading Memorial Day: Chris Hayes sparks outrage saying he feels uncomfortable branding fallen soldiers “heroes”