2023-12-20

Culture news

Scottish government to increase culture budget by €18 million in 2024

Scotland's government will increase culture funding by £15.8 million (€18.2 million) next year as part of a five-year plan. Industry leaders say it falls short.

20/12/2023

World News

Talks on Gaza cease-fire and freeing more hostages as Hamas leader is in Egypt

The top leader of Hamas was in Egypt for talks Wednesday on halting the war in Gaza and securing the release of at least some of the estimated 129 Israeli captives held by Palestinian militants.

20/12/2023

Poland

Poland's new government moves to free state media

Poland’s new pro-European Union government has begun to wrestle control of the country’s state media and some other state agencies from the conservative party that consolidated its grip on them during their eight years in power.

20/12/2023

Russia

Pro-peace candidate applies to run against Putin in election

A Russian politician calling for peace in Ukraine presented documents to register as a candidate for the Russian 2024 presidential election on Wednesday.

20/12/2023

Tunisia

Euroviews. Tunisia must break free from reliance on short-term economic fixes

Tunis' political decision to mobilise resources for escalating expenditures without addressing the need to curb spending, downsize the government, and reduce the state's economic footprint is a looming disaster, Sadok Rouai writes.

20/12/2023

Cyprus

Israeli foreign minister wants to fast-track aid to Gaza via Cyprus

Israel wants to fast-track the delivery of humanitarian aid to Gaza through a maritime corridor from Cyprus, the country's foreign minister said on Wednesday.

20/12/2023

Culture news

LOTR fanfiction author loses copyright case to Tolkien estate & Amazon

Author Demetrious Polychron accused Amazon and the Tolkien estate of copyright infringement of his Lord of the Rings-inspired book. His lawsuit backfired and now he owes $134,000 (€122,000).

20/12/2023

Tech News

AI image-generators being trained on explicit photos of children

In a new study, the Stanford Internet Observatory found more than 3,200 images of suspected child sexual abuse in the giant AI database LAION.

20/12/2023

Top News Stories Today

Latest news bulletin | December 20th – Evening

Catch up with the most important stories from around Europe and beyond - latest news, breaking news, World, Business, Entertainment, Politics, Culture, Travel.

20/12/2023

Europe News

Franco-German compromise prompts EU deal to reform fiscal rules

Economic and finance ministers of the European Union sealed on Wednesday a deal to reform the bloc's fiscal rules, a breakthrough made only possible after Germany and France found a middle ground.

20/12/2023

wellbeing

Scientists pinpoint cause of morning sickness in new hope for a cure

A protein released by the foetus is thought to be linked to severe morning sickness. The discovery could lead to better treatment of the condition.

20/12/2023

Green News

Brussels seeks to lower protection for Europe’s 20,000 wolves

The European Commission has proposed downgrading the protection status of wolves, potentially paving the way for hunting and localised culls.

20/12/2023

Green News

Positive news as US fines polluters and protects old-growth forests

Old-growth forests store large amounts of carbon that can be released during wildfires adding to climate change.

20/12/2023

France

Former doctor jailed for 24 years for role in Rwandan genocide

Former Rwandan gynecologist Sosthene Munyemana has been jailed for 24 years by a French court for his involvement in the 1994 genocide of ethnic Tutsis.

20/12/2023

World News

Antisemitic and islamophobic sentiment on the rise in Europe

Europe is fearing a “huge risk of terrorist attacks" over the Christmas period, due to the fallout from the Israel-Hamas war. In recent weeks, a disturbing surge of islamophobic and antisemitic incidents has gripped the continent.

20/12/2023

The Exchange

Africa: A Continent with huge economic potential

In partnership with Media City

Start-up businesses and innovation are soaring across Africa. With the world's second-largest continent looking towards the future, countries across the region are setting their sights on economic prosperity.

20/12/2023

Belgium

Russia threatens Moldova and Baltics, warns Belgian army chief

The Chief of Defence used an interview to emphasise that Europe needs to be prepared and vigilant.

20/12/2023

Economy

New risk to inflation? Cost of the Red Sea attacks on global trade

Higher shipping costs and longer delivery times bring a new risk to global inflation.

20/12/2023

Economy

German consumers upbeat for 2024 but geopolitical concerns weigh heavy

German consumers feel more optimistic about the new year, but some worries about ongoing geopolitical events continue to dampen sentiment.

20/12/2023

Living

See inside the Dutch repair cafe saving electricals from landfill

As many struggle with the cost of living, keeping your existing electricals working is an easy way to save money.

20/12/2023

Culture news

German cultural institutions turn on pro-Palestinian voices

Since the 7 October Hamas attacks on Israel, which sparked the current Gaza offensive by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), pro-Palestine voices in Germany’s culture sector have been silenced.

20/12/2023

Slovakia

Protests continue in Slovakia against proposed penal code changes

Slovakia’s streets were again sites of protest on Tuesday, with thousands of people mobilising across major cities to oppose plans by populist Prime Minister Robert Fico’s new government to amend the country’s penal code.

20/12/2023

Europe News

Euroviews. The EU has to seek answers that go beyond short-term energy subsidies

Brussels wants to extend regulations that permit EU member states to subsidise energy prices. While the sentiment behind this is to be lauded, the reality is that interventionism will ultimately distort the natural behaviour of the EU market and undermine its very future, Szymon Kardaś writes.

20/12/2023

Europe News

Pornhub among porn sites to be policed by strict EU digital rules

Pornhub, Stripchat and XVideos will need to abide by the European Union's strictest digital regulations after they were designated "very large online platforms" (VLOPs) by the EU executive on Wednesday.

20/12/2023

Sport

Court ruling in Super League case puts sports status in play

Much-anticipated final verdicts from the EU’s highest court this week involving the abortive bid to establish a Super League are expected to shed light on the future of European football as well as the ‘constitutional’ position of sports in the EU Treaties.

20/12/2023

Poland

Polish populist nationalists occupy state television premises

The sit-in comes as Prime Minister Donald Tusk continues his mission to reform state television and radio in the country.

20/12/2023

Business

Chocolate maker Ferrero rakes in €1.76 billion for 2023

Ferrero's yearly earnings saw it make profits of €53.2 million, up from €32.6 million the previous year in the Italian market.

20/12/2023

Tech News

These AI-powered headphones let you choose which noises to filter out

Deep learning technology could help you filter out unwanted background noises while keeping the ones you like.

20/12/2023

Culture news

Calls intensify for Iran to drop charges against celebrated directors

Filmmakers are calling on Iranian authorities to drop charges against directors Behtash Sanaeeha and Maryam Moghadam, who have been banned from travel.

20/12/2023

Europe News

Ex-Ukrainian President Yanukovych removed from sanctions list

The news comes as EU courts upheld measures taken against Roman Abramovich as retaliation for Russia’s war

20/12/2023