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Tag: Western Europe

  • Finland to start building fence on Russian border next year

    Finland to start building fence on Russian border next year

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    HELSINKI — Construction of a planned barbed-wired fence along Finland’s long border with Russia will start early next year, Finnish border guard officials said Friday, amid concerns in the Nordic country over the changing security environment in Europe.

    The initial three kilometer (1.8 mile) stretch of the fence will be erected at a crossing point in the eastern town of Imatra by the summer of 2023. It will eventually extend to a a maximum of 200 kilometers (124 miles).

    Finland’s 1,340 kilometer (832 mile) border with Russia is the longest of any European Union member.

    In October, Finnish Prime Minister Sanna Marin said there was consensus among lawmakers to build a fence to cover parts of border with Russia in a project that is estimated to cost a total of 380 million euros ($393 million) and scheduled to be completed by 2026.

    According to Marin, the fence’s main purpose would be to help border guards monitor and prevent possible large-scale illegal migration seen as a hybrid threat” from Moscow.

    Her government hasn’t publicly cited Russia’s war in Ukraine or Finland’s decision to join NATO as a reason to build a fence. But Helsinki is concerned over developments both in Russia and Ukraine, as well Moscow’s threats of retaliation should Finland join the military alliance.

    Politicians and experts have said it is not sensible – or even possible – to erect a fence along the entire length of Finland’s long eastern frontier that runs mainly through thick forests. In some places the Finnish-Russian border is marked only by wooden posts with low fences meant to stop stray cattle.

    The fence, initially proposed by the Finnish Border Guard, is set to be built in stages ranging from five kilometers (3 miles) of up to 52 kilometers (32 miles).

    It would be erected mainly in southeastern Finland, where most border traffic to and from Russia takes place, but short sections would also be built in the northern Karelia region and the Lapland region in the Arctic.

    Col. Vesa Blomqvist, border guard commander in southeastern Finland, said that once completed, the fence will significantly bolster border control.

    “The fence gives border guard patrols more reaction time by revealing movement of people and preventing, slowing down and directing movement,” Blomqvist said in a statement.

    The fence will be three meters (10 feet) high with a barbed-wire extension on top. Apart from extensive patrolling, the Finnish border guard currently uses electronic and other devices to monitor border activity.

    ———

    Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine: https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

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  • Sweden: Traces of explosives found at Baltic Sea pipelines

    Sweden: Traces of explosives found at Baltic Sea pipelines

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    HELSINKI — Investigators found traces of explosives at the Baltic Sea site where two natural pipelines were damaged in an act of “gross sabotage,” the prosecutor leading Sweden’s preliminary investigation said Friday.

    Mats Ljungqvist of the Swedish Prosecution Authority said the investigators carefully documented the area where the Nord Stream 1 and 2 pipelines ruptured in September, causing significant methane leaks. The parallel undersea pipelines run from Russia to Germany.

    “Analysis carried out shows traces of explosives on several of the foreign objects that were found” at the site, Ljungqvist said in a statement.

    The prosecution authority said the preliminary investigation was “very complex and comprehensive” and further scrutiny would show whether anyone could be charged “with suspicion of crime.”

    Investigators in Sweden, Denmark and Germany are looking into what happened. Danish officials confirmed in October that there was extensive damage to the pipelines caused by “powerful explosions.”

    The leaks, which stopped after several days, occurred in international waters but within the exclusive economic zones of Denmark and Sweden. Investigators have not given indications of whom they think might be responsible but reported earlier that the blasts were likely to have involved several hundred pounds of explosives.

    Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Friday it was “very important to find those who are behind the explosion.”

    Sweden’s findings of “a sabotage act or a terrorist act — you can call it whatever you like” confirm “the information that the Russian side has had,” Peskov said. Moscow needs to wait for a full damage assessment to decide whether to repair the pipelines, he said.

    Nord Stream 1 carried Russian gas to Germany until Moscow cut off supplies at the end of August. Nord Stream 2 never entered service as Germany suspended its certification process shortly before Russia invaded Ukraine in February.

    The governments of Denmark, Germany and Sweden have refrained from speculating over who may be behind the sabotage, saying only that there’s no sufficient proof yet to identify the perpetrator.

    But some Nordic and other European media outlets have pointed a finger of blame on Moscow, hosting military experts suggesting that Russia has all the resources to carry out such a precise attack requiring careful advance planning.

    Fatih Birol, head of the International Energy Agency, said late September it was “very obvious” who was responsible of the pipeline sabotage, suggesting Russia’s involvement.

    Russian President Vladimir Putin has accused the West of blowing up the pipelines and singled out the United States as profiting from attacks on Europe’s energy infrastructure.

    Earlier this week, Germany marked the completion of port facilities for the first of five planned liquefied natural gas terminals it is scrambling to get running as it replaces the Russian pipeline gas that once accounted for more than half its supplies.

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  • Wimbledon relaxes all-white clothing rule for women

    Wimbledon relaxes all-white clothing rule for women

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    LONDON — Wimbledon is relaxing its requirement for all-white clothing to allow female players to wear colored undershorts to be more comfortable on their periods.

    Wimbledon’s strict policy about all-white attire for players is one of the best-known features of the grass-court Grand Slam tournament, but the All England Club said it decided to update the rules after discussions “with the WTA, clothing manufacturers and medical teams on how best to support women and girls competing at the championships.”

    The new rules state that women can now “wear solid, mid/dark-colored undershorts provided they are no longer than their shorts or skirt.”

    All other requirements for clothing and accessories remain unchanged, including the stipulation that “competitors must be dressed in suitable tennis attire that is almost entirely white.”

    “We are committed to supporting the players and listening to their feedback as to how they can perform at their best,” said Sally Bolton, the chief executive of the All England Club. “It is our hope that this rule adjustment will help players focus purely on their performance by relieving a potential source of anxiety.”

    The All England Club also said Wimbledon recorded its second-highest ever profit of 47.1 million ($55.5 million) in 2022, which trailed behind only 2019. Of that, 90% will be distributed to the Lawn Tennis Association “for the benefit of British tennis.”

    ———

    More AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports

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  • Official says oil tanker hit by bomb-carrying drone off Oman

    Official says oil tanker hit by bomb-carrying drone off Oman

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    DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — An oil tanker associated with an Israeli billionaire has been struck by a bomb-carrying drone off the coast of Oman amid heightened tensions with Iran, an official told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

    The attack happened Tuesday night off the coast of Oman, the Mideast-based defense official said. The official spoke on condition of anonymity as they did not have authorization to discuss the attack publicly.

    The United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations, a British military organization in the region monitoring shipping, told the AP: “We are aware of an incident and it’s being investigated at this time.”

    The official identified the vessel attacked as the Liberian-flagged oil tanker Pacific Zircon. That tanker is operated by Singapore-based Eastern Pacific Shipping, which is a company ultimately owned by Israeli billionaire Idan Ofer.

    A phone number for Eastern Pacific rang unanswered Wednesday.

    While no one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, suspicion immediately fell on Iran. Tehran and Israel have been engaged in a yearslong shadow war in the wider Middle East, with some drone attacks targeting Israeli-associated vessels traveling around the region.

    The U.S. also blamed Iran for a series of attacks occurring off the coast of the United Arab Emirates in 2019. Tehran then had begun escalating its nuclear program following the U.S.’ unilateral withdraw from its atomic deal with world powers.

    Iranian state media did not immediately acknowledge the attack on the Pacific Zircon.

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  • Strike on Kyiv as Ukraine probes reports of Russian torture

    Strike on Kyiv as Ukraine probes reports of Russian torture

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    KYIV, Ukraine — Strikes hit residential buildings in the heart of Ukraine‘s capital Tuesday, authorities said. Further south, officials announced probes of alleged Russian abuses in the newly retaken city of Kherson, including torture sites and enforced disappearances and detentions.

    Video published by a presidential aide showed a five-story, apparently residential building on fire in Kyiv. The city mayor said three residential buildings were struck and that air defense units shot down other missiles. Vitali Klitschko added on his Telegram social media channel that medics and rescuers are being scrambled to the sites of the attacks.

    The strikes followed air raid sirens in the capital and break what had been a period of comparative calm since previous waves of drone and missile attacks several weeks ago.

    The strikes also follow what have been days of euphoria in Ukraine sparked by the retaking of Kherson. The southern city, however, is without power and water and the head of the U.N. human rights office’s monitoring mission in Ukraine, Matilda Bogner, on Tuesday decried a “dire humanitarian situation” there.

    Reports of abuses are also emerging in newly liberated Kherson areas now that Russian troops have gone.

    Speaking from Kyiv, Bogner said her teams are looking to travel to Kherson to try to verify allegations of nearly 80 cases of enforced disappearances and arbitrary detention it has turned up in the area and “understand whether the scale is in fact larger than what we have documented already.”

    The head of the National Police of Ukraine, Igor Klymenko, said authorities are to start investigating reports from Kherson residents that Russian forces set up at least three alleged torture sites in now-liberated parts of the wider Kherson region and that “our people may have been detained and tortured there.”

    “Mine clearance is currently underway. After that, I think, today, investigative actions will begin,” he said on Ukrainian TV.

    The retaking of Kherson was one of Ukraine’s biggest successes in the nearly 9-month-old Russian invasion and dealt another stinging blow to the Kremlin. But large parts of eastern and southern Ukraine remain under Russian control and fighting continues. Ukrainian authorities on Tuesday reported another civilian death, from Russian shelling, in eastern Ukraine — adding to the invasion’s heavy toll of many tens of thousands killed and wounded.

    The reports of abuse came as Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday likened the recapture of the Kherson to the Allied landings in France on D-Day in World War II, saying both were watersheds on the road to eventual victory.

    Speaking via video link to a Group of 20 summit in Indonesia, Zelenskyy said Kherson’s liberation from eight months of Russian occupation was “reminiscent of many battles in the past, which became turning points in the wars.”

    “It’s like, for example, D-Day — the landing of the Allies in Normandy. It was not yet a final point in the fight against evil, but it already determined the entire further course of events. This is exactly what we are feeling now,” he said.

    The liberation of Kherson — the only provincial capital that Moscow had seized — has sparked days of celebration in Ukraine and allowed families to be reunited for the first time in months. But as winter approaches, the city’s remaining 80,000 residents are without heat, water or electricity, and short on food and medicine.

    Still, U.S. President Joe Biden called it a “significant victory” for Ukraine. Speaking on the sidelines of the G-20 summit, Biden added: “We’re going to continue to provide the capability for the Ukrainian people to defend themselves.”

    In his address to the G-20, Zelenskyy called for the creation of a special tribunal to try Russian military and political figures for the crime of aggression against Ukraine, and the creation of an international mechanism to compensate Kyiv for wartime deaths and destruction.

    Zelenskyy referred to the G-20 meeting as “the G-19 summit,” adhering to Kyiv’s line that Russia should be excluded from the grouping.

    “Everywhere, when we liberate our land, we see one thing — Russia leaves behind torture chambers and mass burials. … How many mass graves are there in the territory that still remains under the control of Russia?” Zelenskyy pointedly asked.

    Zelenskyy made a triumphant surprise visit on Monday to Kherson. He hailed the Russian retreat from the southern city as the “beginning of the end of the war,” but also acknowledged the heavy price Ukrainian soldiers are paying in their grinding effort to push back Russia’s invasion forces.

    ———

    Joanna Kozlowska in London, and Jamey Keaten in Geneva, contributed to this story.

    ———

    Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine: https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine

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  • UN office urges Iran to free detained peaceful protesters

    UN office urges Iran to free detained peaceful protesters

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    GENEVA — The U.N. human rights office is calling on Iran’s government to immediately release thousands of people who have been detained for participating in peaceful protests, faulting its “increasing harshness” as Western countries seek to ratchet up scrutiny of Tehran’s crackdown against demonstrators.

    Spokesman Jeremy Laurence of the office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights said it was calling for all charges to be dropped against the demonstrators and cautioned that Iran can only mete out the death penalty for the “most serious crimes” under international law — amid concerns that some protesters could be facing capital punishment.

    “Instead of opening space for dialogue on legitimate grievances, the authorities are responding to unprecedented protests with increasing harshness,” Laurence said at a regular U.N. press briefing in Geneva.

    He said at least 10 protesters had been charged with offenses that carry the death penalty — including one found guilty of either “waging war against God” or “corruption on earth” for allegedly damaging public property.

    Separately, Germany and Iceland are leading a push led mostly by Western countries for the U.N.-backed Human Rights Council to create a special “fact-finding mission” — a team of independent rights experts — to look into alleged rights violations in the Islamic Republic linked to nationwide protests that erupted on Sept. 16.

    Iranian women — and some men — have been protesting the government’s severe restrictions on their daily life since the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, who had been arrested for allegedly violating the Islamic Republic’s strict dress code.

    The council, which is made up of 47 member states and whose composition is tweaked every year, is set to hold a special session on Nov. 24 to debate the situation in Iran and ultimately vote on the proposal that includes the call for the fact-finding mission.

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  • Uganda’s President Museveni slams ‘Western double standards’ over Germany coal mine plans | CNN

    Uganda’s President Museveni slams ‘Western double standards’ over Germany coal mine plans | CNN

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    CNN
     — 

    Uganda’s President Yoweri Museveni has slammed Western countries over what he calls a “reprehensible double standard” in their response to the energy crisis brought about by the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

    In a Twitter post on Sunday, Museveni singled out Germany for demolishing wind turbines to allow for the expansion of a coal-fueled power plant as Europe battles an energy crisis triggered by the Russia/Ukraine war.

    In September, Russia which had come under a raft of Western sanctions over its invasion of Ukraine, halted gas supplies to Europe, leaving the region that was dependent on Russian oil and gas imports scampering for alternatives.

    Germany had proposed phasing out coal-fired power plants by 2030 to reduce carbon emissions. But Europe’s largest economy has now been forced to prioritize energy security over clean energy as gas supplies from Russia froze. Just like Germany, many other European countries are reviving coal projects as alternatives to Russian energy.

    Museveni, 78, says Europe’s switch to coal-based power generation “makes a mockery” of the West’s climate targets.

    “News from Europe that a vast wind farm is being demolished to make way for a new open-pit coal mine is the reprehensible double standard we in Africa have come to expect. It makes a mockery of Western commitments to climate targets,” the Ugandan leader said, while further describing the move as “the purest hypocrisy.”

    CNN has contacted the German Embassy in Uganda for comment.

    In a statement released on his official website, Museveni stated that “Europe’s failure to meet its climate goals should not be Africa’s problem.”

    The African continent has remained the most vulnerable to climate change despite having the lowest emissions and contributing the least to global warming. While wealthy nations (who are the largest emission producers) are better equipped to manage the impacts of climate change, poorer countries like those in Africa are not.

    “We will not accept one rule for them and another rule for us,” said Museveni, who has ruled the east African nation for 36 years.

    Uganda aims to explore its oil reserves at a commercial level in the next three years but a resolution by the European Union parliament in September warned that the project will displace thousands, jeopardize water resources and endanger protected marine areas.

    Museveni reacted to the resolution at the time, insisting that “the project shall proceed,” and threatened to find new contractors if the current handlers of the oil project “choose to listen to the EU Parliament.”

    African leaders have continued to push richer nations for climate adaptation funding at the ongoing COP27 climate summit in Egypt, as many parts of the continent grapple with severe drought, flooding, and other catastrophic effects of climate change.

    Malawi’s President Lazarus Chakwera, who is attending the COP27 summit, said his country and other poorer nations “continue to carry the weight of carbon emissions from biggest polluters elsewhere.”

    Chakwera said he lobbied in Egypt for more climate funding from wealthier nations, adding: “Despite our marginal contribution to global warming, we continue to bear the brunt of worsening climate change impacts, with 10% of our economic losses being occasioned by disasters.”

    A pledge by developed countries to pay $100 billion every year from 2020 to help the developing world switch from fossil fuels to clean energy has yet to be fulfilled.

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  • France and U.K. sign agreement to curb Channel crossings

    France and U.K. sign agreement to curb Channel crossings

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    PARIS — The interior ministers of France and Britain on Monday signed a joint agreement to try to curb migration across the English channel — a regular source of friction between the two countries.

    The British government has agreed to pay up some 72.2 million euros to France in 2022-2023 in exchange for France increasing its security presence by 40% across sea access points on the coast.

    This represents 350 more gendarmes and police guarding beaches in Calais and Dunkirk.

    French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin and British Home Secretary Suella Braverman signed the agreement in Paris.

    The pact contains proposals to fight crime across the regular migration routes, with the two ministers agreeing that their countries would harvest information from intercepted migrants to help tackle smuggling networks.

    “Technological and human resources” including drones could be used on the French coast to better intercept boats, the agreement adds.

    No specific target for boat interceptions was included in the agreement.

    Britain has said that over 40,000 migrants have landed on English beaches this year alone.

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  • Turkey arrests 1, suspects Kurdish militants behind bombing

    Turkey arrests 1, suspects Kurdish militants behind bombing

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    ISTANBUL — Police have arrested a suspect who is believed to have planted the bomb that exploded on a bustling pedestrian avenue in Istanbul, Turkey’s interior minister said Monday, adding that initial findings indicate that Kurdish militants were responsible for the deadly attack.

    Six people were killed and several dozen others were wounded in Sunday’s explosion on Istiklal Avenue, a popular thoroughfare lined with shops and restaurants that leads to the iconic Taksim Square.

    “A little while ago, the person who left the bomb was detained by our Istanbul Police Department teams,” the Anadolu Agency quoted Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu as saying. He did not identify the suspect but said 21 other people were also detained for questioning.

    Sunday’s explosion was a shocking reminder of the anxiety and safety concerns that stalked the Turkish population during years when such attacks were common. The country was hit by a string of deadly bombings between 2015 and 2017, some by the Islamic State group, others by Kurdish militants who seek increased autonomy or independence.

    The minister said evidence obtained pointed to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, or PKK, and to its Syrian extension, the Democratic Union Party, or PYD. He said the attack would be avenged.

    “We know what message those who carried out this action want to give us. We got this message,” Soylu said. “Don’t worry, we will pay them back heavily in return.”

    Soylu also blamed the United States, saying a condolence message from the White House was akin to a “killer being first to show up at a crime scene.” Turkey has been infuriated by U.S. support to Syrian Kurdish groups.

    He said security forces believe that instructions for the attack came from Kobani, the majority Kurdish city in northern Syria that borders Turkey.

    In its condolence message, the White House said it strongly condemned the “act of violence” in Istanbul, adding: “We stand shoulder-to-shoulder with out NATO ally (Turkey) in countering terrorism.”

    Soylu said of the 81 people who were hospitalized, 50 were discharged. Five of the wounded were receiving emergency care and two of them were in life-threatening condition, he said.

    The PKK has fought an insurgency in Turkey since 1984. The conflict has killed tens of thousands of people since then.

    Ankara and Washington consider the PKK a terrorist group but they diverge on the issue of the Syrian Kurdish groups, which have fought against the Islamic State group in Syria.

    In recent years, Turkish President Erdogan has led a broad crackdown on the militants as well as on Kurdish lawmakers and activists. Amid skyrocketing inflation and other economic troubles, Erdogan’s anti-terrorism campaign is a key rallying point for him ahead of presidential and parliamentary elections next year.

    Following the attacks between 2015 and 2017 that left more than 500 civilians and security personnel dead, Turkey launched cross-border military operations into Syria and northern Iraq against Kurdish militants, while also cracking down on Kurdish politicians, journalists and activists at home.

    “In nearly six years, we have not experienced a serious terrorist incident like the one we experienced yesterday evening in Istanbul. We are ashamed in front of our nation in this regard,” Soylu said.

    On Sunday, Justice Minister Bekir Bozdag told pro-government broadcaster A Haber that investigators were focusing on a woman who sat on a bench by the scene of the blast for about 40 minutes. The explosion took place just minutes after she left.

    ——

    Fraser reported from Ankara, Turkey.

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  • Taylor Swift wins big in Germany at the MTV EMAs

    Taylor Swift wins big in Germany at the MTV EMAs

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    DUSSELDORF, Germany — Taylor Swift won big at Sunday’s MTV EMAs. Swift who led the nominations along with Harry Styles with seven a piece, walked away with four wins for ‘Best Artist,’ ‘Best Video,’ ‘Best Pop’ and ‘Best Longform Video.’

    Currently topping the charts with ‘Anti-Hero’ from her record breaking new album ‘Midnights,’ Swift made a surprise appearance at the awards in Dusseldorf to collect her haul, the latest in a long line of accolades for the singer-songwriter. Accepting her first award of the night she said “the fans are the only reason any of this happens for me.”

    David Guetta and Bebe Rexha opened the show with their hit collaboration ‘I’m Good (Blue),’ a track that nearly didn’t get released.

    Rexha explained on the carpet “we had no idea that it was gonna blow up and be so viral on TikTok. And here we are performing it and nominated for ‘Best Collab.’”

    Hot on their toes were Muse who returned to the EMAs for a fiery performance of ‘Will of the People,’ later winning ‘Best Rock’ act. They dedicated their award to the people of Ukraine and the women of Iran.

    This year’s show was hosted by newlyweds Rita Ora and Taika Waititi. Ora didn’t disappoint with a host of outfit changes and Waititi joked he was channeling his inner popstar.

    An absent Nicki Minaj also came out on top with a trio of prizes for ‘Best Song,’ ‘Super Freaky Girl’ and ‘Best Hip Hop’. Styles, who is currently touring in the US, won ‘Best Live’.

    Following their Eurovision win in May, Ukrainian band Kalush Orchestra gave one of the most powerful and moving performances of the night, turning the auditorium blue and yellow in support of Ukraine. Talking on the red carpet frontman Oleg Psyuk explained that with their new found fame they could support and spread awareness of the plight of the Ukrainian people

    “It’s important for us to be a voice of Ukraine, to have opportunity to be all over the world, to perform and to say about Ukraine, to say about war, to say about our culture, culture that fights against war.”

    British rapper Stormzy performed ballad ‘Fire Babe,’ released this week from his highly anticipated third album ‘This is What I Mean.’

    OneRepublic performed their ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ tune ‘I Ain’t Worried,’ with a special video intro from the man himself, Tom Cruise, which they said wasn’t easy to get.

    Other performers on the night included Ava Max who sparkled in a giant diamond singing ‘Million Dollar Baby’ and Tate McRae who performed a medley of her hits, ‘she’s all i wanna be’ and ‘uh oh.’

    Voted for by the fans 17 gender-neutral categories were announced during the evening. The show, broadcast from the PSD Bank Dome will be shown in more than 170 countries.

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  • Taylor Swift wins big in Germany at the MTV EMAs

    Taylor Swift wins big in Germany at the MTV EMAs

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    DUSSELDORF, Germany — Taylor Swift won big at Sunday’s MTV EMAs. Swift who led the nominations along with Harry Styles with seven a piece, walked away with four wins for ‘Best Artist,’ ‘Best Video,’ ‘Best Pop’ and ‘Best Longform Video.’

    Currently topping the charts with ‘Anti-Hero’ from her record breaking new album ‘Midnights,’ Swift made a surprise appearance at the awards in Dusseldorf to collect her haul, the latest in a long line of accolades for the singer-songwriter. Accepting her first award of the night she said “the fans are the only reason any of this happens for me.”

    David Guetta and Bebe Rexha opened the show with their hit collaboration ‘I’m Good (Blue),’ a track that nearly didn’t get released.

    Rexha explained on the carpet “we had no idea that it was gonna blow up and be so viral on TikTok. And here we are performing it and nominated for ‘Best Collab.’”

    Hot on their toes were Muse who returned to the EMAs for a fiery performance of ‘Will of the People,’ later winning ‘Best Rock’ act. They dedicated their award to the people of Ukraine and the women of Iran.

    This year’s show was hosted by newlyweds Rita Ora and Taika Waititi. Ora didn’t disappoint with a host of outfit changes and Waititi joked he was channeling his inner popstar.

    An absent Nicki Minaj also came out on top with a trio of prizes for ‘Best Song,’ ‘Super Freaky Girl’ and ‘Best Hip Hop’. Styles, who is currently touring in the US, won ‘Best Live’.

    Following their Eurovision win in May, Ukrainian band Kalush Orchestra gave one of the most powerful and moving performances of the night, turning the auditorium blue and yellow in support of Ukraine. Talking on the red carpet frontman Oleg Psyuk explained that with their new found fame they could support and spread awareness of the plight of the Ukrainian people

    “It’s important for us to be a voice of Ukraine, to have opportunity to be all over the world, to perform and to say about Ukraine, to say about war, to say about our culture, culture that fights against war.”

    British rapper Stormzy performed ballad ‘Fire Babe,’ released this week from his highly anticipated third album ‘This is What I Mean.’

    OneRepublic performed their ‘Top Gun: Maverick’ tune ‘I Ain’t Worried,’ with a special video intro from the man himself, Tom Cruise, which they said wasn’t easy to get.

    Other performers on the night included Ava Max who sparkled in a giant diamond singing ‘Million Dollar Baby’ and Tate McRae who performed a medley of her hits, ‘she’s all i wanna be’ and ‘uh oh.’

    Voted for by the fans 17 gender-neutral categories were announced during the evening. The show, broadcast from the PSD Bank Dome will be shown in more than 170 countries.

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  • French border checks in force over Italy’s migrant policy

    French border checks in force over Italy’s migrant policy

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    ROME — Lines formed Sunday at Italy’s northern border crossings with France following Paris’ decision to reinforce border controls over a diplomatic row with Italy about migration policy and humanitarian rescue ships that shows no end in sight.

    The Ventimiglia-Menton crossing along the picturesque Mediterranean coast has often been a flashpoint of the migrant debate, with makeshift camps giving shelter to migrants who try to cross into France after arriving in Italy. On Sunday morning, several dozen migrants were sleeping on mattresses under a highway overpass — numbers that could swell as France cracks down on crossings.

    France announced this week it was sending 500 extra officers to beef up its frontiers with Italy in retaliation for Italy’s delays in helping humanitarian ships that rescue migrants in the Mediterranean.

    Police patrolled trains and roads across the border Sunday, stopping migrants. Along the winding coastal road that connects the two neighbors, traffic flowed freely from France to Italy but barely crawled in the other direction. An Associated Press reporter saw French border police stopping nearly every car, making drivers open their trunks and boarding large vehicles like camper vans.

    Behind them stood a border sign with the word “ITALY” on a blue background and surrounded by the gold stars of the EU flag, symbol of a bloc whose principles of cross-border cooperation are being put to the test by the current France-Italy tensions.

    After a weekslong-standoff, Italy allowed three aid groups to disembark their passengers in Italian ports because doctors determined they were all vulnerable, but refused entry to a fourth. The Ocean Viking charity rescue ship, which had been at sea for nearly three weeks, eventually docked in Toulon, France after Paris reluctantly took it in.

    Italy’s new far-right-led government headed by Premier Giorgia Meloni has vowed that Italy will no longer be the primary port of entry for migrants leaving on smugglers’ boats from Libya and is demanding Europe do more to shoulder the burden and regulate the aid groups that operate rescue ships in the Mediterranean.

    France strongly criticized Italy’s handling of the Ocean Viking, which was accompanied by triumphant social media posts by right-wing League party leader Matteo Salvini that “the air has changed” before France had publicly agreed to take it in.

    In retaliation, France announced it was withdrawing from a European Union “solidarity” mechanism approved in June to relocate 3,000 migrants from Italy.

    Italy called France’s response “disproportionate” and “aggressive” and won the support of other front-line Mediterranean countries, including Greece, Malta and Cyprus. The four countries penned a joint statement Saturday calling for a new, obligatory solidarity mechanism to take in migrants.

    In addition, the four countries called on the European Commission to initiate talks on better regulating private rescue ships.

    “Fines, seizures and more controls in sight,” Salvini tweeted Sunday about threatened new measures against charity rescue ships. “The government is ready to get tough.”

    On Sunday, Germany’s ambassador to Italy, Viktor Elbling, defended the aid groups, saying they help save lives and that “their humanitarian commitment warrants our recognition and our support.”

    “In 2022, 1,300 people have already died or gone missing in the Mediterranean. NGOs have saved 12% of the survivors,” he tweeted.

    The German groups Mission Lifeline and SOS Humanity were able to disembark all their passengers in Italy last week, and the budget committee of the Bundestag decided to provide another group, United4Rescue, with 2 million euros for civil sea rescue in 2023, with similar funding through 2026.

    Italy has justified its hard line by noting that it has already welcomed nearly 90,000 migrants this year, far more than any other European country. However, only a fraction of them stay in Italy and apply for asylum, with most continuing their journeys north in hopes of reaching relatives and better established migrant communities in France, Germany, Sweden and elsewhere.

    France far outranks Italy in terms of processing asylum applications. Data from January to August shows that Germany received the most applications this year, topping 100,000, followed by France with 82,535. Italy trailed Spain and Austria in fifth place with 43,750 applications.

    French government spokesman Olivier Veran reaffirmed Sunday that France would no longer welcome the “just over 3,000 people from Italy, including 500 by the end of the year” as part of the European solidarity mechanism. He called Italy the “loser” in the scenario.

    “We will not maintain the proposal that was planned,” Veran said on BFM TV.

    ———

    Daniel Cole contributed from Menton and Thomas Adamson contributed from Paris.

    ———

    Follow all AP stories on global migration at https://apnews.com/hub/migration.

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  • Bomb rocks avenue in heart of Istanbul; 6 dead, dozens hurt

    Bomb rocks avenue in heart of Istanbul; 6 dead, dozens hurt

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    ISTANBUL — A bomb rocked a major pedestrian avenue in the heart of Istanbul on Sunday, killing six people, wounding several dozen and sending people fleeing the fiery explosion.

    Emergency vehicles rushed to the scene on Istiklal Avenue, a popular thoroughfare lined with shops and restaurants that leads to the iconic Taksim Square. In one video posted online, a loud bang could be heard and a flash seen as pedestrians turned and ran away.

    Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan called the blast a “treacherous attack” and said its perpetrators would be punished.

    He did not say who was behind the attack but said it had the “smell of terror” without offering details and also adding that was not certain yet. The president said investigations were ongoing by the police and the governor’s office, including reviewing footage of the area.

    Erdogan said six people were killed. Vice President Fuat Oktay later updated the wounded toll to 81, with two in serious condition, and also said it appeared to be a terrorist attack.

    Numerous foreign governments offered their condolences, including neighboring Greece with which relations are tense. Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said he was “shocked and saddened by the news of the heinous attack.”

    Turkey was hit by a string of bombings between 2015 and 2017 that left more than 500 civilians and security personnel dead. Some of the attacks were perpetrated by the Islamic State group, while others were executed by Kurdish militants who have led a decadeslong insurgency against the Turkish state for increased autonomy or independence.

    Turkey has been fighting the militants — known as the PKK and considered a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States and the European Union — in the country’s southeast for years.

    Following the string of attacks, Turkey launched cross-border military operations into Syria and northern Iraq against Kurdish militants, while also cracking down on Kurdish politicians, journalists and activists at home through broad terror laws that critics say are a way to silence dissent.

    Turkey’s media watchdog imposed temporary restrictions on reporting on Sunday’s explosion — a move that bans the use of close-up videos and photos of the blast and its aftermath. The Supreme Council of Radio and Television has imposed similar bans in the past, following attacks and accidents.

    Access to some content on Twitter and other social media sites, such as videos, was limited.

    ———

    Associated Press reporter Cavit Ozgul contributed to this report.

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  • Artemisia Gentileschi’s 1616 nude to be digitally unveiled

    Artemisia Gentileschi’s 1616 nude to be digitally unveiled

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    FLORENCE, Italy — Art restorers in the Italian city of Florence have begun a six-month project to clean and virtually “unveil” a long-censored nude painting by Artemisia Gentileschi, one of the most prominent women in the history of Italian art.

    Swirling veils and drapery were added to the “Allegory of Inclination” some 70 years after Gentileschi painted the life-size female nude, believed to be a self-portrait, in 1616.

    The work to reveal the image as originally painted comes as Gentileschi’s contribution to Italian Baroque art is getting renewed attention in the #MeToo era, both for her artistic achievements but also for breaking into the male-dominated art world after being raped by one of her art teachers.

    Her work was featured in a 2020 exhibit at the National Gallery in London.

    “Through her, we can talk about how important it is to restore artwork, how important it is to restore the stories of women to the forefront,’’ said Linda Falcone, coordinator of the Artemisia Up Close project.

    “Allegory of Inclination” originally was commissioned for the family home of Michelangelo Buonarroti the Younger, the great-nephew of the famed artist. The building later became the Casa Buonarotti museum, and the painting was displayed until recently on the ceiling in a gilded frame. When lead conservator Elizabeth Wick removed the painting in late September, a shower of 400-year-old dust was released.

    Wick’s team of restorers is using ultraviolet light, diagnostic imaging and X-rays to differentiate Gentileschi’s brush strokes from those of the artist that covered the nudity. The public can watch the project underway at the museum through April 23.

    Restorers won’t be able remove the veils because the cover-up was done too soon after the original, raising the risk that Gentileschi’s painting would be damaged in the process.

    Instead, the restoration team plans to create a digital image of the original version that will be displayed in an exhibition on the project opening in September 2023.

    Gentileschi arrived in Florence shortly after the trial in Rome of her rapist, during which the then-17-year-old was forced to testify with ropes tied around her fingers that were progressively tightened in a test of her honesty.

    She also had to endure a physical examination in the courtroom behind a curtain to confirm that she was no longer a virgin. Eventually, her rapist was convicted and sentenced to eight months in prison.

    “Somebody else would have been crushed by this experience,’’ Wick said. “But Artemisia bounces back. She comes up to Florence. She gets this wonderful commission to paint a full-length nude figure for the ceiling of Casa Buonarroti. So, I think she’s showing people, ‘This is what I can do.’”

    While in Florence, Gentileschi also won commissions from the Medici family. Her distinctive, dramatic and energetic style emerged, taking inspiration from the most renowned Baroque painter of the time, Caravaggio. Many of her paintings featured female heroines, often in violent scenes and often nude.

    She was 22 when she painted “Allegory of Inclination,” which was commissioned by Michelangelo Buonarroti the Younger. Another member of the family, Leonardo Buonarroti, decided to have it embellished to protect the sensibilities of his wife and children.

    “This is one of her first paintings. In the Florentine context, it was her debut painting, the same year she was then accepted into the Academy of Drawing, which was the first drawing academy in Europe at the time,” Falcone said.

    With the younger Michelangelo as her patron, Gentileschi gained entry to the cultural milieu of the time.

    “She was able to hobnob with Galileo and with other great thinkers. So this almost illiterate woman was suddenly at the university level, producing works of art that were then, you know, appreciated by the Grand Duke,” Falcone said. “And she became a courtly painter from then on.”

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  • US Rhodes scholars chosen to begin Oxford studies in 2023

    US Rhodes scholars chosen to begin Oxford studies in 2023

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    WASHINGTON — A new group of Rhodes scholars from the U.S. has been selected for the prestigious academic program in a selection process that was conducted online for the third consecutive year.

    The class of 32 scholars for 2023 was “elected entirely virtually, with both candidates and selectors participating remotely, safely, and independently,” American Secretary of the Rhodes Trust Elliot F. Gerson said in a statement early Sunday. “As successful as the process was, we of course hope to return to in-person interviews and selection next year in cities across the country, as had been done for over a century.”

    Interviews for the 2021 and 2022 scholarship classes were conducted virtually because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

    The 2023 class is expected to begin studies at the University of Oxford in England in October in pursuit of graduate degrees in social sciences, humanities and biological and physical sciences, the trust said.

    The U.S. scholars, who are among students selected from more than 60 countries, were vetted by 16 independent district committees from a pool of more than 2,500 applications. From those applicants, 840 were endorsed by 244 U.S. colleges and universities.

    After receiving the endorsements of their schools, most of the district committees chose 14 or more applicants for online interviews. The committees met separately between Nov. 10 and 12 through a virtual platform and promoted 235 finalists from 73 colleges and universities, including nine schools that have not previously had a student win the scholarship, the trust said.

    The scholars’ financial expenses for two to three years of study – averaging about $75,000 per year – are covered by the Rhodes Trust, a British charity established to fulfill the bequest of Cecil Rhodes, a founder of diamond mining and manufacturing company De Beers.

    The scholarships were created in 1902, with the inaugural class entering Oxford in 1903 and the first U.S. Rhodes scholars arriving in 1904, according to the website of the trust’s American secretary.

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  • Germany blocks sale of chip factory to China over security fears | CNN Business

    Germany blocks sale of chip factory to China over security fears | CNN Business

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    London/Berlin
    CNN Business
     — 

    The German government has blocked the sale of one of its semiconductor factories to a Chinese-owned tech company because of security concerns.

    Germany’s economic ministry said in a statement that it had prohibited Elmos Semiconductor, which makes chips for the automotive industry, from selling its factory in Dortmund to Silex, a Swedish subsidiary of China’s Sai Microelectronics.

    The decision had been taken “because the acquisition would have endangered the public order and safety of Germany,” the ministry said in a statement.

    Silex announced in December that it had signed an agreement with Elmos to buy the factory for €85 million ($85.4 million).

    Silex did not immediately respond to CNN Business’ request for comment. Elmos said in a statement that both companies regretted the government’s decision.

    “The transfer of new micromechanics technologies … from Sweden and significant investments in the Dortmund location would have strengthened semiconductor production in Germany,” Elmos said, adding that it was considering whether to take legal action.

    Sia Microelectronics said in a statement Thursday that it “deeply regretted” the decision by the German government. Its shares fell more than 9% in Shenzhen.

    “We have to take a close look at company acquisitions when important infrastructure is involved or when there is a risk of technology flowing to acquirers from non-EU countries,” German economy minister Robert Habeck said at a press conference.

    He added that the semiconductor industry in Europe, in particular, needed to guard its “technological and economic sovereignty.”

    The planned deal had rattled German authorities concerned that Chinese investment in its critical infrastructure could compromise its intellectual property and leave it exposed to political pressure from Beijing.

    Similar concerns motivated the German government to intervene in plans by Chinese shipping giant Cosco to buy a 35% stake in the operator of a Hamburg port terminal last month.

    Officials limited the planned investment in Hamburger Hafen und Logistik to 24.9%. Several government ministers, including Habeck, has pushed for the deal to be blocked entirely.

    The tensions have arisen at a difficult time for the German economy, which is sliding into a recession triggered by the crisis over Russian energy. Germany’s manufacturers and exporters are eager to maintain their close relationship with China.

    Only last week, Chancellor Olaf Scholz met with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in the first visit by a G7 leader to Beijing in roughly three years, a trip designed to shore up export markets as Germany’s ties with Russia — once its biggest supplier of natural gas — continue to unravel.

    A delegation of top industry CEOs, including the bosses of Volkswagen

    (VLKAF)    , Siemens

    (SIEGY)     and chemicals giant BASF

    (BASFY)    , traveled with Scholz to Beijing to meet with Chinese business executives.

    But Habeck struck a note of caution on Wednesday. Addressing the blocked chip deal, he stressed that “Germany is and will remain an open investment location” but that it was not “naive”.

    The visit came just a month after the United States introduced stringent controls on chip exports to China, a move designed to protect its national security and bolster its domestic semiconductor industry.

    In early October, the Biden administration banned Chinese firms from buying advanced chips and chip-making equipment without a license.

    The rules threaten to strike a huge blow to China’s ambitions to become a tech superpower as they not only bar exports of chips made anywhere in the world using US technology, but also the export of the tools used to make them.

    — Laura He contributed reporting.

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  • King Charles leads Remembrance Sunday service for first time

    King Charles leads Remembrance Sunday service for first time

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    LONDON — Britain will pause for a two-minute silence Sunday to remember the nation’s war dead as King Charles III leads a Remembrance Day service for the first time as monarch.

    Charles and other royals and senior politicians will lay wreaths at the Cenotaph, the national war memorial in central London, to pay tribute to the sacrifices made by fallen servicemen and women. Remembrance Sunday is marked every year in the U.K. on the closest Sunday to Armistice Day on Nov. 11 with the wearing of poppies and a national two-minute silence observed at 11 a.m.

    Big Ben, which has undergone five years of repairs, will be struck 11 times to mark the start of the silence.

    Around 10,000 veterans — including 100-year-old World War II veterans and those who served in recent conflicts including in Afghanistan — will take part in a solemn march, and thousands of people are expected to line the streets to watch the service.

    This year’s ceremony is especially poignant for Britain’s royal family because it marks the first Remembrance Day since the death of Queen Elizabeth II, who considered the day one of the most important engagements in her royal calendar.

    Elizabeth, who died on Sept. 8 at 96 years old, lived through World War II and only missed seven Cenotaph services during her long reign. Beginning in 2017, Charles began laying a wreath on his mother’s behalf as she watched from a nearby balcony, in a subtle shift of head-of-state duties as Elizabeth entered her twilight years.

    Officials said this year’s service is dedicated both to fallen soldiers in wars past and to Ukrainians fighting against Russia’s invasion.

    “We must never forget those who gave their lives in defence of our values and our great nation,” said Defense Secretary Ben Wallace. “All of us will also be thinking of those brave Ukrainians who are fighting for their very own survival to defend freedom and democracy for all, just as the U.K. and Commonwealth soldiers did in both world wars.”

    Charles will lay a newly designed poppy wreath incorporating a ribbon of his racing colours. Wreath designers say it also pays tribute to the racing colors used by both Elizabeth and his grandfather King George VI.

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  • Iranian who inspired “The Terminal” dies at Paris airport

    Iranian who inspired “The Terminal” dies at Paris airport

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    PARIS — An Iranian man who lived for 18 years in Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport and inspired the Steven Spielberg film “The Terminal” died Saturday in the airport, officials said.

    Merhan Karimi Nasseri died after a heart attack in the airport’s Terminal 2F around midday, according an official with the Paris airport authority. Police and a medical team treated him but were not able to save him, the official said. The official was not authorized to be publicly named.

    Karimi Nasseri, believed to have been born in 1945, lived in the airport’s Terminal 1 from 1988 until 2006, first in legal limbo because he lacked residency papers and later by choice, according to French media reports.

    He had been living in the airport again in recent weeks, the airport official said.

    His saga inspired “The Terminal” starring Tom Hanks, and a French film.

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  • Holiday arrival: Rockefeller tree ushers in Christmas season

    Holiday arrival: Rockefeller tree ushers in Christmas season

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    NEW YORK — An iconic sign of Christmas arrived in New York City on Saturday as a crane hoisted an 82-foot (25-meter) Norway spruce into place at Rockefeller Plaza, where the 14-ton tree will be festooned with thousands of lights and topped with a star encrusted with millions of crystals.

    The Christmas tree will be officially lit on Nov. 30.

    The approximately 90-year-old tree was cut Thursday then lifted onto a flatbed truck for its 200-mile (322-kilometer) trip from Queensbury, New York, to New York City.

    “We gave it with the expectation that everybody would enjoy it,” said Neil Lebowitz, whose family donated the tree.

    “For me, it was just a nice tree,” Lebowitz was quoted as saying by the New York Post. “Now it’s a special tree. Everybody around the world can enjoy it.”

    The tree, whose lower branches extend 50 feet (15 meters) in diameter, will be aglow with 50,000 multicolored lights and topped with a 900-pound (408-kilogram) star covered in 3 million crystals.

    After the holidays, the tree will be milled into lumber for donation to Habitat for Humanity, officials said.

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  • Austria: 9 injured as hot air balloon crashes twice in Alps

    Austria: 9 injured as hot air balloon crashes twice in Alps

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    KIRCHSCHLAG IN DER BUCKLIGEN WELT, Austria — A hot air balloon crashed twice Saturday on the eastern edge of the Alps in Austria, injuring nine people as a hard landing apparently bounced the pilot and the co-pilot out of the basket and sent several passengers back into the sky on their own, authorities said.

    Sonja Kellner of the Lower Austrian Red Cross told news agency APA that two of the occupants were seriously injured in the crash in the Bucklige Welt region, an area named for its hilly landscape. They were found with two other slightly injured passengers at Untereck.

    The other five passengers were found with minor injuries near Stang, about 5 kilometers (3 miles) away.

    The Kurier daily newspaper reported that the accident occurred as the balloon was about to land on a meadow. It apparently descended too quickly and bounced off the ground, knocking four people out of the basket, including the pilot and co-pilot. They were dragged along for a few meters (yards) before the balloon took off again with its five remaining passengers.

    Still, the pilot was able to instruct the passengers in the sky by phone on how to make an emergency landing. The balloon eventually came to a halt in a forest, Kurier reported.

    The two seriously injured passengers were taken by helicopter to local hospitals.

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