Europe – Page 12 – Zoom News

The First Trial in Italy Against Captain for Returning Migrants to Libya

20Jul

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Europe, Italy, News

The First Trial in Italy Against Captain for Returning Migrants to Libya

A captain of an Italian flagship that has returned rescued migrants to Libya will be brought to trial in an Italian court. This is evident from documents that the French news agency AFP has had access to. It is the first time that such a process takes place in Italy. The ship "Asso 28" rescued a total of 101 migrants near an oil platform in international waters at the end of July 2018. Still, it subsequently returned the migrants to the port of Tripoli where they were handed over to the Coast Guard, according to the Naples Public Prosecutor's Office. The ship's captain and company representative Augusta Offshore is accused of violating international law. It states that people should not be driven back to countries where their rights are threatened. Among the rescued people, the...

Germany Wants to Fight Corona Outbreaks With Targeted Lockdowns

16Jul

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Europe, Germany, News

Germany Wants to Fight Corona Outbreaks With Targeted Lockdowns

Outbreaks of the coronavirus must combat Germany with small, targeted lockdowns. The health ministers of the federal states and the federal minister have agreed that according to the documents of their consultation on Thursday morning. Ministers recommend that the heads of state governments introduce small local restrictions in the event of an outbreak. They cite a local curfew as an "appropriate way" to contain an epidemic. "It is not possible to close entire neighbourhoods in, for example, Hamburg or Berlin," the documents state. "Decisions must be taken flexibly by the authorities on the spot." A German court broke the lockdown in the Gütersloh region early last week after a corona outbreak in a slaughterhouse. The judges found that exceptional lockdown for the tens of thou...

Macron Wants A Referendum on the Revision of the Constitution With Climate Goals

29Jun

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Europe, France, News, Politics

Macron Wants A Referendum on the Revision of the Constitution With Climate Goals

French President Emmanuel Macron wants to hold a referendum on a revision of the climate change constitution if parliament allows it. He wants to be able to switch faster in the field of climate and environmentally friendly policymaking, he said on Monday. He also pledged EUR 15 billion in additional funding to accelerate the transition to a greener economy. Macron thus responded to proposals from a Climate Council, which he had instituted to set a new course for France's ecological agenda. However, Macron said he disagrees with the Council's proposal for a 4 percent dividend tax to help fund new environmental policies. That would only discourage investment, he said. He also supported a proposal for a moratorium on new commercial zones on the city's fringes, saying he would con...

French President Macron Says It is Uncompromising Against Racism

15Jun

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Europe, France, News

French President Macron Says It is Uncompromising Against Racism

French President Emmanuel Macron recognizes that a person's skin colour can determine his or her chances in French society and promises to act "determinedly" against racism, anti-Semitism and discrimination. But removing statues of controversial figures from the colonial period will not do his country. "We will not erase names from our history." The French president addressed the nation in a televised speech yesterday. In it, he mainly announced a whole series of relaxations of the corona measures that take effect today. But the president also spoke of the global protest against racism after the death of black American George Floyd from police brutality three weeks ago. Macron recognized that in his country, too, someone's "address, name, colour, or skin" can diminish his or he...

France is Forging A Broad Alliance Against Jihadists in the Sahel

12Jun

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Europe, France, News

France is Forging A Broad Alliance Against Jihadists in the Sahel

France has launched a new partnership between European, West African and Arab countries to fight jihadist groups in the Sahel. More extensive political cooperation and increased deployment of elite forces should boost the difficult military mission against armed Muslim extremists in sub-Saharan Arabia. The renewed coalition means that there will be more support from other European countries and that countries in the Sahel region will start to cooperate more. European countries will provide more elite troops to support the armies of African countries. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, among others, will provide financial aid. France has had soldiers in the region since 2013. The French army is currently present with a troop strength of 5100 men. However, the situation ...

Norwegian Mosque Attacker Gets 21 Years in Prison

11Jun

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Europe, News, Norway

Norwegian Mosque Attacker Gets 21 Years in Prison

A man who wanted to carry out an attack on a mosque in Norway has been sentenced to 21 years in prison there. The court ruled that 22-year-old Philip Manshaus was guilty of murder and terrorism. The Norwegian armed with firearms attacked the mosque in Bærum in August last year, about 20 kilometres west of the capital Oslo. The twenties were unable to kill or seriously injure anyone there. He did start shooting, but a 65-year-old believer was then able to take his weapons. Police later found the body of his seventeen-year-old stepsister Johanne Zhangjia Ihle-Hansen in Manshaus's house. He had shot her with a shotgun. Manshaus repeatedly demonstrated extreme right-wing and Islamophobic views during his trial.

WHO: 160,000 More European Deaths Than Normal in Two Months

28May

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Europe, News

WHO: 160,000 More European Deaths Than Normal in Two Months

In 24 European countries, between the beginning of March and the end of May, about 159,000 more people died than usual during that time frame. A "significant portion" of that number is linked to the new coronavirus, the World Health Organization (WHO) said Thursday. "What we have seen very clearly is that the spike in deaths has to do with the transmission of Covid-19," said Katie Smallwood of WHO. She stressed that countries that are currently easing corona measures should primarily be able to "trace and test" the coronavirus to keep a second wave at bay. For example, the WHO states that opening bars, companies and discos can bring new risks. To cope with that, a country's health care system must have "robust capability". In Europe, more than 2 million people have been infect...

Direct Flights From Italy Welcome Back to Spain

19May

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Europe, Italy, News, Spain

Direct Flights From Italy Welcome Back to Spain

Spain allows direct flights from Italy again. Ships from Italy are also welcome again in Spanish ports, according to a government magazine Tuesday. The direct lines were discontinued due to the outbreak of the new coronavirus. People arriving in Spain, like other visitors from abroad, must be in isolation for two weeks as long as the state of emergency remains in force. The Spanish Minister of Transport announced on Monday that tourism to Spain will be restarted from the end of June. The tourism sector accounts for 12 percent of the Spanish economy. In Italy, the strict corona measures were relaxed on Monday. Spain and Italy are among the most affected countries by the corona pandemic.

Restaurants and Cafes in Denmark Open Again

18May

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Denmark, Europe, News

Restaurants and Cafes in Denmark Open Again

The Danes have been able to go to cafes and restaurants since Monday. The businesses closed about two months ago by the corona crisis were allowed to reopen at the beginning of the week, but must ensure sufficient distance between the guests. The same applies to churches, mosques and synagogues, which were also allowed to open again. Pupils from sixth to tenth grade resume their classes in Denmark on Monday. Gyms, night clubs and concert halls remain closed until early August. Denmark has made great strides in the fight against the spread of the coronavirus and is currently in the second phase of the relaxation of the corona measures. In phase one, the nurseries, kindergartens and schools up to and including the fifth grade were open in mid-April, in phase two, the entire retai...

Relatively Few Additional Deaths From Corona in Germany

15May

By Alan LorenzNo Comments

Europe, Germany, News

Relatively Few Additional Deaths From Corona in Germany

The number of additional deaths from the coronavirus is relatively small in Germany. According to figures, an average of 8 percent more people died than usual in a given period. The researchers compared a week in April with death rates from the past four years. At least 18,693 people died in the Federal Republic between April 13 and 19, 8 percent more than in the years 2016 to 2019. Because the latest flu wave has ended since mid-March, the scientists blame the increase on the corona epidemic. By comparison, Italy reported nearly 50 percent more deaths in March than average in the years 2015 to 2019. In the Swedish capital Stockholm and the surrounding region, doubling of the normal death rate was reported in early April. In France, the number of deaths from March 1 to May 4 ...