2016-12-01

Europe News

The Brief from Brussels: Italy's high-stakes referendum, Tunisia's president presses EU

This is the Brief from Brussels, a round-up of the top stories from Europe’s de facto political capital.

01/12/2016

South Sudan

'Ethnic cleansing' reported in South Sudan

President Salva Kiir denies using starvation and rape as weapons of war as the UN describes the conflict as "fertile ground" for genocide.

01/12/2016

World News

Jingle Cells - Europol launches an advent calender

Every day from the 1st to the 24th of December, Europe's top crime agency is publishing the photo of a Christmas criminal on the organisation's Facebook and Twitter feeds.

01/12/2016

Germany

Europol 'Operation Avalanche' strikes at global online crime network

Europol says a giant network of hijacked computers suspected of attacking online banking customers has been dismantled.

01/12/2016

France

French MPs vote to ban 'misinformation' anti-abortion websites

After a heated debate, the French National Assembly has passed a bill to outlaw websites spreading misinformation about abortion.

01/12/2016

Ukraine

Ukraine missile tests avoid Crimea airspace and Russian showdown

Ukraine began two days of missile tests on Thursday, avoiding the air space over Crimea which could have provoked a confrontation with Russia.

01/12/2016

Cinema

Silence - a Martin Scorsese film and a premier for the Pope

It is a tale of faith under torture, of two Jesuit missionaries journeying to Japan in the seventeenth century in search of their missing mentor.

01/12/2016

Sport

Russian athletes remain suspended

The IAAF has voted to extend Russia’s ban from international athletics competitions for state-sponsored doping.

01/12/2016

Thailand

New era for Thailand as Crown Prince Maha becomes King

Fifty days after his father’s death and at the invitation of parliament, the Crown Prince of Thailand Maha Vajiralongkorn, 64, was officially proclaimed the country’s king on…

01/12/2016

France

French President Hollande won't seek re-election in 2017

François Hollande, France’s most unpopular president in polling history, said on Thursday that he would not be seeking a second term in 2017.

01/12/2016

Kazakhstan

Russia confirms ISS-bound Progress spaceship lost after launch

Russia’s space agency has confirmed that an unmanned cargo ship launched on Thursday to take supplies to the International Space Station has been lost.

01/12/2016

Economy

Oil hits high for the year

Brent goes through 54$, WTI 51$, oil hitting year highs

01/12/2016

New Zealand

Moonwalker Buzz Aldrin evacuated from South Pole

Buzz Aldrin, the second man to walk on the moon, has been evacuated from the South Pole due to a medical condition.

01/12/2016

Syria

Fresh fears for civilians as fighting rages in Aleppo

Syrian government forces say they gained more ground in Aleppo on Thursday.

01/12/2016

Europe News

Italy's referendum - what's at stake for the EU?

Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi is staking his future in Sunday’s referendum on the overhaul of the country’s constitution.

01/12/2016

Sport

Gareth Southgate: 'There is big potential in the squad but there is a lot of hard work ahead'

Gareth Southgate conducted his first press conference as full-time manager of England.

01/12/2016

Italy

Opinion: a referendum puts Italy's government to the test

Forecast If Italian voters reject a raft of proposed constitutional reforms on December 4, the government will likely resign.

01/12/2016

World

Italian constitution 'the foundation of unity'

Italy to vote on constitutional reform

01/12/2016

Cuba

Fidel Castro briefly reunited with Che Guevara: the Cuban leader's ashes make the journey to Santiago

Fidel Castro’s funeral cortege has resumed its journey to Santiago de Cuba, where the late Cuban leader will be laid to rest.

01/12/2016

Colombia

Colombia's revised peace deal with FARC comes into effect

The new accord approved by Congress gives the country's largest rebel group six months to abandon its weapons.

01/12/2016

Economy

Call for Muslim Christmas bonus cut sparks outrage in Austria

A trade union linked to the far-right FPO in Austria faces criticism for social media post targeting Christmas bonus for Muslims.

01/12/2016

Business Series

Nestle claims designer sugar cuts content by 40%, taste unchanged

Foods behemoth Nestle has says its hollowed out sugar molecule can cut sugar content in products by 40%, promises sales by 2018.

01/12/2016

Russia

Russia needs 'friends' not 'enemies' Putin addresses the nation

Russia is committed to peace and cooperation, but will defend Russian interests.

01/12/2016

Brazil

Colombia plane crash: bodies identified and prepared for repatriation to Brazil

Officials say the bodies of those killed in the plane crash over Colombia have been identified and are being prepared for transportation.

01/12/2016

Turkey

Russia and Turkey find common ground on Syria

They are on opposing sides of Syria’s civil war.

01/12/2016

Economy

Italian GDP growth revised up

Matteo Renzi gets a boost ahead of Sunday's referendum with better-than-expected GDP figures.

01/12/2016

USA

Reddit to increase speech monitoring against "most toxic" users

Social media website Reddit Inc., which hosts online community message boards, will proactively start enforcing its content policy

01/12/2016

Economy

Unemployment in Eurozone drops below 10%

Eurozone cheers as unemployment dips below 10% for first time in five years.

01/12/2016

Europe News

Tunisia's president seeks support in Brussels

Tunisia’s president has come to Brussels to meet EU officials, as he seeks to boost security and shore up the country’s fragile economy – six years after the Arab Spring…

01/12/2016

Italy

'Cultivated' mafia boss is arrested in southern Italy

A fugitive mafia boss with an apparent liking for high-brow literature was captured in southern Italy on Thursday after six years on the run.

01/12/2016