Malala Yousafzai to undergo skull repair surgery at Birmingham’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital

Pakistani schoolgirl activist Malala Yousafzai will soon undergo skull surgery to repair a missing area

Pakistani schoolgirl activist Malala Yousafzai will soon undergo skull surgery to repair a missing area. Surgeons at Birmingham’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital have been giving details about two procedures due to be carried out on the 15-year-old. Malala Yousafzai was discharged from the hospital earlier this month after being shot in the head by the Taliban… Continue reading Malala Yousafzai to undergo skull repair surgery at Birmingham’s Queen Elizabeth Hospital

Vladimir Putin and Alina Kabaeva rumored to have a second love child

President Vladimir Putin is now rumored to have a second love child with former Olympian gymnast Alina Kabaeva

Russian President Vladimir Putin is now rumored to have a second love child with former Olympian gymnast Alina Kabaeva. Vladimir Putin has long been linked to the 29-year-old rhythmic gymnast, and the two were already believed to have a 3-year-old son together. The new child, a daughter, was born in November, a source tells the… Continue reading Vladimir Putin and Alina Kabaeva rumored to have a second love child

Vladimir Zhirinovsky pelted with sour cabbage at press conference

Vladimir Zhirinovsky was pelted with sour cabbage during a news conference in the Ukrainian capital Kiev

Vladimir Zhirinovsky, leader of extreme right-wing Liberal Democratic Party of Russia (LDPR), was pelted with sour cabbage during a news conference in the Ukrainian capital Kiev. The woman who threw pickled cabbage salad at Vladimir Zhirinovsky accused him of being a “Ukrainophobe.” “Where are my bodyguards? Remove this schizophrenic woman!” Vladimir Zhirinovsky shouted, before asking… Continue reading Vladimir Zhirinovsky pelted with sour cabbage at press conference

UK sends troops to Mali to support French forces

The UK has decided to deploy about 330 military personnel to Mali and West Africa to support French forces

The UK has decided to deploy about 330 military personnel to Mali and West Africa to support French forces, No 10 has said. This includes as many as 40 military advisers who will train soldiers in Mali, and 200 British soldiers to be sent to neighboring African countries, also to help train the Malian army.… Continue reading UK sends troops to Mali to support French forces

France is bankrupt, admits Employment Minister Michel Sapin

French Employment Minister Michel Sapin made it clear that his government's tax-and-spend policies are just not working and admitted that France is bankrupt

French Employment Minister Michel Sapin made it clear that his government’s tax-and-spend policies are just not working and admitted that France is bankrupt. Just half a year since his party came to power, Michel Sapin told radio listeners: “There is a state but it is a totally bankrupt state. “That is why we had to… Continue reading France is bankrupt, admits Employment Minister Michel Sapin

Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands abdicates in favor of son Prince Willem-Alexander

Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands has announced she is abdicating in favor of her son, Prince Willem-Alexander

Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands has announced she is abdicating in favor of her son, Prince Willem-Alexander. In a pre-recorded address broadcast on TV, the Queen said she would formally stand down on April 30. Queen Beatrix, who is approaching her 75th birthday, said she had been thinking about this moment for several years and… Continue reading Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands abdicates in favor of son Prince Willem-Alexander

Seagull attacks Pope’s dove released on Holocaust Day

A seagull swooped in and attacked the dove released by Pope Benedict XVI from a balcony at the Vatican on Holocaust Day

When Pope Benedict XVI tried to release a dove as a symbolic appeal for peace on Holocaust Day, it led to quite a flap. A resident seagull swooped in and attacked the bird of peace as soon as the Pope released the dove from a balcony at the Vatican. Watched by thousands of pilgrims below… Continue reading Seagull attacks Pope’s dove released on Holocaust Day

Silvio Berlusconi praises Benito Mussolini on Holocaust Memorial Day

Silvio Berlusconi has stoked controversy by praising Benito Mussolini on Holocaust Memorial Day

Former Italian PM Silvio Berlusconi has stoked controversy by praising Benito Mussolini on Holocaust Memorial Day – despite Il Duce’s anti-Jewish laws. Benito Mussolini had been wrong to pass anti-Jewish laws but had otherwise been a good leader, said Silvio Berlusconi. He was speaking at a Milan ceremony commemorating victims of the Nazi Holocaust. Silvio… Continue reading Silvio Berlusconi praises Benito Mussolini on Holocaust Memorial Day

Bulgaria votes in Belene nuclear power plant referendum

Bulgaria votes in Belene nuclear power plant referendum

Bulgaria is set to vote in a referendum on whether a new nuclear power plant should be built. The opposition Socialist party called the vote because it wants the government to reverse its decision not to build a new plant at Belene. The first referendum in Bulgaria’s post-Communist history has polarized opinion and is seen… Continue reading Bulgaria votes in Belene nuclear power plant referendum

Milos Zeman wins Czech Republic’s presidential election

Former Czech PM Milos Zeman has won the presidential election, the first time the position has been decided by direct popular vote

Former Czech Prime Minister Milos Zeman has won the presidential election – the first time the position has been decided by direct popular vote. Milos Zeman won 55% of votes in the second-round poll, compared to Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg’s 45%. Voters had braved freezing conditions to turn out in what was being seen as… Continue reading Milos Zeman wins Czech Republic’s presidential election

Czech election: Milos Zeman faces Karel Schwarzenberg in second round of presidential run-off

Former Czech Prime Minister Milos Zeman faces Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg in the second round of presidential election

Czech voters have been casting their ballots in the presidential election, the first time the role has been elected by direct popular vote. Former Czech Prime Minister Milos Zeman faces Foreign Minister Karel Schwarzenberg in the second round. People have braved freezing conditions to vote in what is proving a nail-bitingly close election. Milos Zeman… Continue reading Czech election: Milos Zeman faces Karel Schwarzenberg in second round of presidential run-off

Riot police raid breaks up Greek metro strike

Riot police have stormed a metro train depot in Greek capital, Athens, breaking up a sit-in by striking workers

Riot police have stormed a metro train depot in Greek capital, Athens, breaking up a sit-in by striking workers. The workers had been on the ninth successive day of strike action that has crippled the underground system. The conservative-led government used an emergency law to threaten the strikers with arrest unless they went back to… Continue reading Riot police raid breaks up Greek metro strike

Annette Schavan, German education minister, faces plagiarism inquiry

University of Duesseldorf is to investigate allegations that German Education Minister Annette Schavan plagiarized parts of her doctoral thesis in 1980

University of Duesseldorf is to investigate allegations that German Education Minister Annette Schavan plagiarized parts of her doctoral thesis in 1980. The University of Duesseldorf has voted to back the inquiry into Annette Schavan’s philosophy thesis on the formation of conscience. Annette Schavan has denied the claims first raised by an anonymous blogger. But the… Continue reading Annette Schavan, German education minister, faces plagiarism inquiry

Hugo Chavez El Pais picture withdrawn as it turns out to be fake

Spanish newspaper El Pais has apologized after publishing a photo of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez which it said has turned out to be a fake

Spanish newspaper El Pais has apologized after publishing a photo of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez which it said has turned out to be a fake. The photo shows a man in hospital with a tube in his mouth and was printed on the front page with the headline: “The secret of Chavez’s illness”. The Venezuelan… Continue reading Hugo Chavez El Pais picture withdrawn as it turns out to be fake

Cardinal Jozef Glemp of Poland dies aged 83

Cardinal Jozef Glemp, who headed the Roman Catholic Church in Poland for more than two decades, has died in hospital in Warsaw at the age of 83

Cardinal Jozef Glemp, who headed the Roman Catholic Church in Poland for more than two decades, has died in hospital in Warsaw at the age of 83. He became cardinal in 1981 and held the post during most of the papacy of John Paul II, the first Polish pope. Jozef Glemp also saw the end… Continue reading Cardinal Jozef Glemp of Poland dies aged 83

David Cameron pledges in/out referendum on EU

PM David Cameron has said the British people must have their say on Europe as he pledged an in-out referendum if the Conservatives win the election

UK’s PM David Cameron has said the British people must “have their say” on Europe as he pledged an in/out referendum if the Conservatives win the election. David Cameron said he wanted to renegotiate the UK’s relationship with the EU, before asking people to vote. The British people would face a “very simple choice” either… Continue reading David Cameron pledges in/out referendum on EU

Lindsay Sandiford sentenced to death for Bali drug trafficking

Lindsay Sandiford, a 56-year-old British grandmother, has been sentenced to death by firing squad in Indonesia for drug trafficking

Lindsay Sandiford, a 56-year-old British grandmother, has been sentenced to death by firing squad in Indonesia for drug trafficking. Lindsay Sandiford was arrested at Bali’s airport in May last year after 4.8 kg (10.6 lb) of cocaine was found in the lining of her suitcase during a routine customs check. The woman, whose last UK… Continue reading Lindsay Sandiford sentenced to death for Bali drug trafficking

Elysee Treaty 50th anniversary celebrations in France and Germany

France and Germany are marking the 50th anniversary of Elysee Treaty that helped to reconcile the two former foes

France and Germany are marking the 50th anniversary of Elysee Treaty that helped to reconcile the two former foes. The German and French leaders have been holding talks in Berlin and there will also be a joint session of the two countries’ parliaments. The Elysee Treaty was signed by Charles de Gaulle of France and… Continue reading Elysee Treaty 50th anniversary celebrations in France and Germany

Angela Merkel’s coalition loses Lower Saxony election

Germany’s SPD, Chancellor Angela Merkel's centre-left opponents, has won a narrow victory in elections in the state of Lower Saxony

Germany’s SPD, Chancellor Angela Merkel’s centre-left opponents, has won a narrow victory in elections in the state of Lower Saxony. The Social Democrats and the Greens won a single-seat majority in the state legislature, a region of 8 million people in north-western Germany. The election is seen as a bellwether for national elections in September.… Continue reading Angela Merkel’s coalition loses Lower Saxony election

Austria votes mandatory conscription in nationwide referendum

Austrians have voted by a wide margin to retain compulsory military service in nationwide referendum

According to preliminary results from a nationwide referendum, Austrians have voted by a wide margin to retain compulsory military service. Some 60% voted to keep the draft with 40% in favor of setting up a purely professional army, in early results. The issue has divided politicians in the coalition government, and voters. Supporters of change… Continue reading Austria votes mandatory conscription in nationwide referendum

Lower Saxony election: CDU’s David McAllister hoping for re-election

David McAllister, the current leader of Lower Saxony's government and close ally of Chancellor Merkel, will be hoping for re-election

Voters in the German state of Lower Saxony are going to the polls in a regional election seen as a bellwether for national elections later this year. The state is currently controlled by German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democrats (CDU) in coalition with the pro-market Free Democrats. But opposition parties are hoping to make gains… Continue reading Lower Saxony election: CDU’s David McAllister hoping for re-election

Athens rally against neo-fascist party Golden Dawn

Some 3,000 people have taken part in a rally in Athens to protest against the rise of Greece’s neo-fascist party Golden Dawn

Some 3,000 people have taken part in a rally in Athens to protest against the rise of Greece’s neo-fascist party Golden Dawn. The protest, which brought together Greeks and immigrants, was part of a day of anti-racism events. Golden Dawn, exploiting public anger over the financial crisis, won 18 seats in parliament last June. One… Continue reading Athens rally against neo-fascist party Golden Dawn

Ahmed Dogan attacked by gunman during televised conference in Sofia

A man put a gun to the head of Ahmed Dogan, the leader of Bulgaria's ethnic Turkish party, during a televised conference in Sofia

A man put a gun to the head of Ahmed Dogan, the leader of Bulgaria’s ethnic Turkish party, during a televised conference in Sofia. Ahmed Dogan, leader of the Movement for Rights and Freedoms (MRF), was unharmed and the unidentified man was wrestled to the ground by security guards. The incident happened on Saturday at… Continue reading Ahmed Dogan attacked by gunman during televised conference in Sofia

Horse at Tesco prank in contaminated meat scandal goes viral

Two pranksters dressed up as a pantomime horse were thrown out of a UK Tesco supermarket after trotting around the frozen beef burger aisle

Two pranksters dressed up as a pantomime horse were thrown out of a UK Tesco supermarket after trotting around the frozen beef burger aisle shouting “murderers”. A video of the incident, believed to have taken place in a Welsh store, has already racked up over 200,000 hits on YouTube in less than two days. The… Continue reading Horse at Tesco prank in contaminated meat scandal goes viral

PKK activists funerals attended by tens of thousands of Kurds

Tens of thousands of Kurds have attended the funerals in Diyarbakir, Turkey, of three female Kurdish activists shot dead in Paris last week

Tens of thousands of Kurds have attended the funerals in Diyarbakir, Turkey, of three female Kurdish activists shot dead in Paris last week. Crowds chanted as the coffins of the PKK (Kurdistan Workers’ Party) members Sakine Cansiz, Fidan Dogan and Leyla Saylemez were carried through the city streets to a parade ground where the funerals… Continue reading PKK activists funerals attended by tens of thousands of Kurds