Europe warming at twice the global average
Temperatures in Europe have increased at more than twice the global average over the past three decades, showing the fastest rise of any continent on earth, the UN said Wednesday. A new report, released ahead of the UN’s 27th conference on climate set to open in Egypt on Sunday, says the European region has on average seen temperatures rise 0.5OC each decade since 1991. And the report cautioned that regardless of future levels of global warming, temperatures would likely continue to rise across Europe at a rate exceeding global mean temperature changes.
Meloni to meet EU chiefs
Italy’s new far-right Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni meets European Union chiefs in Brussels Thursday for the first time since her election, with the energy crisis expected to dominate the agenda. Meloni has vowed to put Italy’s interests first, and the trip will be closely watched amid fears of turbulent relations ahead between the government in Rome and the bloc’s powerhouses. “Brussels should not do what Rome can do best,” Meloni was quoted as saying, slamming “a Europe that is invasive in small things and absent in big matters”. In her first international trip since taking office, Meloni meets European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Council chief Charles Michel and European Parliament speaker Roberta Metsola.
UN rejects Russian call for biological weapons probe
The UN Security Council has overwhelmingly rejected Russia’s attempt to establish a commission to investigate its unfounded claims that Ukraine and the United States are carrying out “military biological” activities that violate the convention prohibiting the use of biological weapons. Russia got support only from China in the vote, with the US, Britain and France opposing the Russian resolution and the 10 other council nations abstaining. Russia’s UN Ambassador Vassily Nebenzia accused the US of conducting work in Ukraine with deadly pathogens – including cholera, plague, anthrax and influenza.
Russia rejoins Ukraine grain export deal
Russia will resume its participation in a deal freeing up grain exports from Ukraine, reversing a move that world leaders warned would increase hunger globally. Russia announced the reversal after Turkey and the United Nations helped keep Ukrainian grain flowing for several days without a Russian role in inspections. The Defence Ministry justified the change by saying it had received guarantees from Ukraine that it would not to use the Black Sea grain corridor for military operations against Russia.
North Korea launches new ballistic missiles
A day after it fired at least 23 missiles, the Japanese and South Koreasn governments said North Korea fired another round of ballistic missiles on Thursday, including one that triggered an alert to residents in parts of central and northern Japan to seek shelter. Seoul announcesd North Korea had launched a new “unidentified ballistic missile” towards the Sea of Japan. North and South Korea have fired a number of missiles into waters near each other’s coasts in a marked escalation of hostilities.
Bolsonaro ‘authorises’ transition
Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro yesterday “authorised” the transition to a new government, without acknowledging his defeat to leftist rival Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. Bolsonaro, 67, broke two days of silence after his razor-thin loss to Lula on Sunday, which sparked protests from his supporters across the country and fanned fears he would not accept the outcome. In a speech that lasted just over two minutes, the far-right incumbent neither acknowledged defeat, nor congratulated Lula on his victory. Bolsonaro supporters on Wednesday held rallies to call for an armed forces intervention following the electio – a move that military experts said was out of the question. Meanwhile, 16 people were injured as a car hit Bolsonaro supporters who were demonstrating on the Washington Luís highway, in Mirassol, in the interior of the state of Sao Paulo The injured incluse two girls, aged 10 and 11, and military police officers, according to initial information released by ‘Globo’.
Pope to start visit Bahrain
Pope Francis will today start a visit to Bahrain, home to the biggest Catholic church in the Arabian Peninsula. His 39th Apostolic journey abroad brings him to his 58th country visited as Pope. The 85-year-old Pontiff will be the first pope ever to visit the majority-Muslim Persian Gulf country, according to Vatican News. Now, swollen by foreign workers mostly from India and the Philippines, the community is preparing to welcome the pope, the leader of the world’s 1.3 billion Catholics. Francis will visit the capital of Manama and city of Awali during the November 3 to 6 trip, and will attend the “Bahrain Forum for Dialogue: East and West for Human Coexistence.”
Majority of Britons think Brexit was a mistake
Euronews reports the tide in Britain appears to have turned since the 2016 Brexit referendum. According to a new poll, only 43% of the British population consider that the UK’s departure from the European Union was a good decision, while 57% believe it was a mistake. The numbers, revealed on Wednesday by John Curtice, president of the British Polling Council, represent a significant shift from the 2016 results, when almost 52% of the British electorate voted to leave the EU. The pollster noted that the pro-EU trend became more noticeable after Autumn 2021 when a shortage of around 100,000 lorry drivers left many British companies and consumers unable to purchase imported goods.
UK census reveals dramatic scial shift
The ‘Daily Mail’ leads with the news that one in six UK residents are now born overseas, according to the results of last year’s census. More than 10 million people living in Britain were born abroad, the paper says, with more than half of the residents of some London boroughs born elsewhere. The paper notes that the growth has been driven in part by an increase in the number of Romanian citizens moving to the UK. There were also increases due to migrantion from India, Pakistann and Poland, as well as souther European countries such as Italy. The census logged 59.6 million residents in England and Wales last year – up from 56 million a decade earlier.
Australian food prices jump 7.3%
Inflation accelerated 7.3% for Australian food prices in the last quarter, Woolworths said on Thursday. The supermarket giant said its first-quarter sales were up 1.8% to $16.4 billion, compared to a year ago, thanks to a strong contribution from Big W (the Australian chain of discount department stores) and its wholesale food business. Australian food sales were down 0.5% to $12.2b, but Big W sales were up 30.1% to $1.2b and business-to-business sales were up 26%, also to $1.2b. Some customers who shop to a weekly food budget are substituting cheaper items.
Taylor Swift announces US tour
Singer-songwriter Taylor Swift has announced her first stadium tour in more than five years. Spanning March to August 2023, Swift’s tour will only take place in the US. Pop sensation Swift wrote on Instagram, “I can’t wait to see your gorgeous faces out there. It’s been a long time coming.”Last mpnth, she made music history by taking all the top 10 spots on the Billboard Hot 100.
Italy investigates pressures on young women gymnasts
Italy’s sports authorities are studying reports of undue psychological pressure being placed on young women gymnasts over their eating habits. The issue was brought into focus by a complaint filed to a prosecutor in the northern city of Brescia by the mother of two rhythmic gymnasts.
Football: Scotland to host England in 150th anniversary match
England and Scotland will mark the 150th anniversary of their first meeting with a match at Glasgow’s Hampden Park on September 12, 2023. The two sides first met in November 1872 in the Partick area of Glasgow. They played out a 0-0 draw in a game that is officially recognised by Fifa as the sport’s first-ever international.
