All posts tagged: Europe

Pope casts flowers in sea in tribute to drowned migrants during Canary Islands visit

Pope casts flowers in sea in tribute to drowned migrants during Canary Islands visit

Published by Sam Flores

Pope Leo XIV on Thursday condemned “indifference” towards migrants during a visit to Spain’s Canary Islands that symbolised the perils of deadly irregular routes to Europe. The pontiff cast a bouquet of flowers into the sea in tribute to the thousands who have died trying to reach the Atlantic archipelago, on day six of a trip to Spain that has repeatedly highlighted the plight of migrants. Leo visited the port of Arguineguin on Gran Canaria island, where he met migrants and those who help them before blessing a cross made from the wood of migrant boats. “Even today, monsters lurk in these seas: mafias that profit from despair, traffickers who enslave women and children, and those whose indifference allows the poor to be swallowed up by exploitation or forgetfulness,” Leo told a ceremony at the port. Migrants face a dangerous Atlantic crossing to reach the Canary Islands. © AFP (Stringer) Nearly 1,200 people died or went missing on the route from Africa to the Canary Islands last year, according to the International Organization for Migration, …

Police in Belfast use water cannon as anti-immigrant unrest continues | The Far Right News

Police in Belfast use water cannon as anti-immigrant unrest continues | The Far Right News

Published by Sam Flores

Police in the United Kingdom city of Belfast have used water cannon to disperse dozens of far-right protesters during a second night of unrest triggered by a knife attack involving a Sudanese refugee. The clashes on Wednesday came as the family of the stabbing victim appealed for calm and condemned the wave of anti-immigrant violence in the city in Northern Ireland. Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of list Police said the protesters threw “missiles” such as rocks and bottles at officers, while images from the scene showed several fires burning on the streets. Police said officers deployed “water cannon in an attempt to maintain public order”. But the unrest was markedly less severe than on Tuesday evening, when hundreds of masked men burned families out of their homes and set vehicles alight. “We want to make it absolutely clear that overnight unrest is not welcome, and peaceful protest is the only way forward,” the family of the victim, Stephen Ogilvie, said in a statement. “We have many migrants who make a deeply valuable contribution …

What the tattoos of World Cup players say about their love, life and religious beliefs

What the tattoos of World Cup players say about their love, life and religious beliefs

Published by Sam Flores

(The Conversation) — As the 2026 FIFA World Cup starts on June 11, 2026, traditional news and social media channels will be full of pictures of the players. Many of them will be showing their tattoos. Body art has become increasingly part of international soccer, although its prevalence can vary across geographical regions. A study of athletes participating in the 2018 World Cup found that Latin American players were the most heavily tattooed, followed by those from Oceania and Europe. African and Asian players are the least tattooed. I have been studying tattoos and their spiritual and religious roles since 2018. Tattoos are an investment of time and money; they tend to symbolize something important in the person’s life. For professional athletes, however, they take on another level of meaning. These athletes operate in controlled environments in which what they do and say with their bodies is highly regulated. A player cannot freely ski, ride, work out or take vacations without considering contractual obligations to companies and other investors. Most of the professionals playing in …

Has Russia given up on Kinburn Spit, its westernmost foothold in Ukraine?

Has Russia given up on Kinburn Spit, its westernmost foothold in Ukraine?

Published by Sam Flores

On June 8, two days before Russia would have celebrated its four-year anniversary of the capture of the Kinburn Spit – Moscow’s westernmost military position in Ukraine – a member of the Crimea-based Ukrainian partisan group Atesh had astonishing news to report: Russian troops seemed to have abandoned the disputed land strip between the Dnipro-Bug estuary and the Black Sea, located on the tip of the Kinburn Peninsula, northwest of Crimea. The main reason, the agent reported, was that their supplies had been “completely disrupted” by Ukrainian drone strikes. Vital deliveries of ammunition, fuel and food had come to a total standstill, said the agent, who was cited by the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) and Ukrainian media outlets, and most members of Russia’s 337th VDV Regiment had been redeployed elsewhere. A relic of Russia’s initial plans for Odesa Russia has not confirmed the reported loss of the 10-kilometre-long sandbar, which at its base measures around 4 kilometres in width, and at its peak, some 100 metres.  Yet in 2022, after Russia launched …

Sanctions on settlers not enough: Target Israeli gov’t, say campaigners | Israel-Palestine conflict News

Sanctions on settlers not enough: Target Israeli gov’t, say campaigners | Israel-Palestine conflict News

Published by Sam Flores

Israeli settlers and far-right ministers have been slapped with new Western sanctions. But human rights groups and Palestinian campaigners say the measures fail to address systemic state complicity in the occupation of Palestinian territories. While the latest actions have been framed as a decisive stand against settler violence, political analysts and legal experts argue that isolating individual actors serves to deflect from the lack of broader institutional penalties against the Israeli government itself. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list On June 9, 2026, the United Kingdom, alongside Australia, Canada, France, New Zealand, and Norway, announced coordinated sanctions against networks financing and executing settler violence. The UK targeted six entities and one individual, while France banned Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, three settler group leaders, and 21 settlers from entering the country. Smotrich and far-right National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir have been censored by several European countries previously for their rhetoric against Palestinians and support for settler violence. ‘Too little, too late’ Critics point out that the limited scope of the sanctions does not …

IAEA Board Passes Resolution Demanding Iran Report Uranium Stocks

IAEA Board Passes Resolution Demanding Iran Report Uranium Stocks

Published by Sam Flores

VIENNA, June 10 (Reuters) – The U.N. nuclear watchdog’s 35-nation Board ⁠of ⁠Governors passed a U.S.-backed resolution on Wednesday ⁠telling Iran to declare its remaining enriched uranium stocks and let inspectors verify them, which could ​complicate Washington’s talks with Tehran. The move came within hours of the U.S. and Iran trading military strikes after U.S. President Donald Trump said Iran ‌had downed a U.S. Apache helicopter near ‌the Strait of Hormuz. Israeli and U.S. attacks last June destroyed or badly damaged Iranian uranium-enrichment plants but much of the enriched uranium ⁠they produced, including ⁠material close to weapons grade, is thought to have survived.  IRAN SAYS BOARD ‘WHITEWASHING’ US ATTACKS Iran ​still has not informed the International Atomic Energy Agency of the fate of that material, or let IAEA inspectors return to the bombed sites to check. The U.S. led the push for the resolution, but Iran has called it “whitewashing military aggression,” since inspectors had access before the strikes. The resolution text ​submitted by the U.S., Britain, France and Germany was passed with 21 votes …

French sculptor Béatrice Bizot on being part of Sagrada Familia blessing – Perspective

French sculptor Béatrice Bizot on being part of Sagrada Familia blessing – Perspective

Published by Sam Flores

To display this content from YouTube, you must enable advertisement tracking and audience measurement. Accept Manage my choices One of your browser extensions seems to be blocking the video player from loading. To watch this content, you may need to disable it on this site. Try again Cover image: PERSPECTIVE © FRANCE 24 Issued on: 10/06/2026 – 14:45Modified: 10/06/2026 – 14:48 09:52 min From the show Reading time 1 min On the day that the new tower of the Sagrada Familia basilica in Barcelona is to be blessed by the pope, a sculptor whose work is to be placed inside the new parts of the famous building has told FRANCE 24 that she’s very excited to be a small part of it. French sculptor Béatrice Bizot has lived near Barcelona for over 20 years and has created a statue of the patron saint of pilgrims, Saint Roch, who was born in the French city of Montpellier. She says that seeing human beings capable of such a beautiful thing as the Sagrada Familia is incredible.  By: …

Australia’s association to Horizon Europe finalised

Australia’s association to Horizon Europe finalised

Published by skeptic

The European Commission and Australia have completed negotiations on Australia’s association to Horizon Europe, marking a significant step in strengthening research and innovation ties between the two partners. The agreement will enable Australian organisations to gain expanded access to Horizon Europe, the European Union’s €93.5bn research and innovation programme. From January 2027, Australian institutions will be eligible to participate in key funding opportunities under the scheme on the same basis as organisations from EU Member States. The outcome is expected to deepen scientific collaboration, increase access to funding for Australian researchers, and create new opportunities for joint projects tackling global challenges across technology, climate, energy, agriculture, and space. Speaking on Australia’s association to Horizon Europe, Ekaterina Zaharieva, European Commissioner for Startups, Research, and Innovation, said: “We can tackle the challenges of tomorrow only together. “That is why the future of science and technology depends on strong international partnerships, like the one between the EU and Australia. Together, we’ve already delivered breakthroughs such as the Square Kilometre Array, one of the world’s most advanced radio telescopes. “By combining …

Protesters torch cars, buildings in Belfast after knife attack | News

Protesters torch cars, buildings in Belfast after knife attack | News

Published by Sam Flores

Published On 10 Jun 202610 Jun 2026 Anti-immigrant protesters in the city of Belfast in the United Kingdom have torched vehicles and buildings after a Sudanese man was arrested over a knife attack that left one person with serious injuries. Hundreds of protesters, many of them masked, gathered at several locations across the city on Tuesday, setting fire to a bus and several cars. Recommended Stories list of 3 itemsend of list A building near the city centre was also set alight, with residents telling the AFP news agency that the protesters started a fire in the bins and went on to throw petrol bombs. Crowds also gathered in Antrim, about 25km (15 miles) west of Belfast. Michelle O’Neill, the first minister of Northern Ireland, slammed the protests and urged calm. “Groups of masked men burning families out of their homes is nothing less than disgusting cowardice,” she wrote on X. “Racism, intimidation and violence are wrong wherever they occur. There can be no excuse and no justification for these attacks tonight. No one wants …

Great White Sharks Have Been in the Mediterranean Sea for Millions of Years—but Sightings Are Incredibly Rare

Great White Sharks Have Been in the Mediterranean Sea for Millions of Years—but Sightings Are Incredibly Rare

Published by skeptic

An encounter with a great white shark is undoubtedly a “thrilling” experience, considered especially rare in the waters of the Mediterranean Sea. The latest sighting, which has attracted media attention and made headlines around the world, occurred during a dive in the Strait of Sicily carried out by volunteers from Ghost Diving and Healthy Seas, organizations dedicated to protecting marine ecosystems. The encounter was documented by diver Derk Remmers, who told the BBC that he struggled to switch on his camera because of the excitement. The footage—the first ever recorded of a great white shark in its Mediterranean Sea habitat—shows a huge adult male specimen of Carcharodon carcharias, a native species that is now considered critically endangered. The Great White Shark Carcharodon carcharias, commonly known as the great white shark, belongs to the Lamnidae family and is one of the largest predatory fish in existence. It can exceed 6 meters (20 feet) in length and weigh more than 2 tons. It feeds primarily on fish, including rays and other sharks, though adult individuals may also …