EU

EU leaders to debate Macron’s grand plan

by Alex Pigman Agence France-Presse TALLINN, Estonia (AFP) — European Union leaders will meet over dinner in Estonia on Thursday for a frank debate on the future of Europe, featuring first impressions of French President Emmanuel Macron’s new vision for the bloc.Most of the EU 28’s leaders are coming to Tallinn, including British Prime Minister Theresa May, although Brexit negotiations are not expected to be on the menu. The discussion on the EU’s future will take place over […]

Catalan police warn of public disorder if polling stations closed

by Daniel Bosque with Antonio Rodriguez in Madrid Agence France-Presse BARCELONA, Spain – Catalan police warned Wednesday that public disorder may erupt as Spain orders the authorities to seal polling stations and stop the region holding a referendum on independence. The Catalan government has vowed to press ahead with Sunday’s plebiscite despite a crackdown by Madrid which wants to prevent a vote deemed unconstitutional by the courts. The referendum has deeply divided the wealthy northeastern region which is […]

UPDATED: Merkel wins fourth term; hard right gains foothold in parliament

by Deborah Cole and Hui Min Neo Agence France Presse BERLIN, Germany (AFP) – Chancellor Angela Merkel clinched a fourth term in Germany’s general election on Sunday, but her victory was clouded by the hard-right AfD party winning its first seats in parliament. Merkel, who after 12 years in power held a double-digit lead for most of the campaign, scored around 33 percent of the vote with her conservative Christian Union (CDU/CSU) bloc, according to […]

No need to renegotiate Iran nuclear deal: EU

UNITED NATIONS, United States (AFP) – European Union foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said Wednesday that there was no need to renegotiate the Iranian nuclear deal, insisting it was “delivering” despite the US demands to re-open the agreement. “There is no need to renegotiate parts of the agreement because the agreement is concerning a nuclear program and as such is delivering,” Mogherini told reporters following a UN meeting of the six powers that negotiated the […]

Germany, France, Italy seek tougher EU sanctions on N. Korea

BERLIN, Germany (AFP) — Germany, Italy and France on Sunday urged tougher European Union sanctions against North Korea, after Pyongyang “reached a new dimension of provocation” with its latest nuclear test. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron agreed during a phone call “that North Korea has trampled on international law and that the international community must therefore react with determination against this new escalation,” the chancellery said in a statement. Both leaders […]

EU warns Romania over judicial reforms

BUCHAREST, Romania (AFP) – Romania’s bid to overhaul its justice system could undermine the country’s efforts to stamp out rampant corruption, the European Commission’s representative in Bucharest said Wednesday. The reforms set out by Justice Minister Tudorel Toader last week would mean the president could no longer name senior prosecutors — including those attached to the anti-corruption directorate (DNA). They would also reduce the powers of the DNA itself, preventing it from investigating magistrates. “We are […]

German nurse murdered ‘at least 90 patients’: police

by Frank Zeller Agence France Presse BERLIN, Germany (AFP) — A male nurse jailed for life two years ago for killing two hospital patients with lethal drug overdoses murdered at least 90 patients in total, and possibly twice as many, police said Monday, calling it post-war Germany’s worst killing spree. Niels Hoegel, 40, was jailed in February 2015 for two murders and four counts of attempted murder or causing bodily harm on intensive-care patients at […]

France’s Macron sets sights on EU cheap labour rule

by Laurence BENHAMOU with Nina LAMPARSKI in Vienna Agence France-Presse SALZBURG, Austria  –  The EU is a “real step” closer to overhauling a controversial rule on detached workers, after talks with leaders from eastern and central Europe, French President Emmanuel Macron said Wednesday. The so-called Posted Workers Directive allows firms to send temporary workers from low-wage countries to other member states without paying local social charges. The regulation has come under fire from rich nations like […]

One dead after van hits people at Marseille bus stops

by Catherine Rama  and Andrea Palasciano Agence France-Presse MARSEILLE, France – One person was killed and another seriously injured in the southern French city of Marseille on Monday after a convicted criminal with psychiatric problems drove a van into people waiting at two bus stops, police said. The incident comes with Europe on high alert following last week’s car ramming attacks in northeastern Spain. But Marseille’s prosecutor Xavier Tarabeux said there was no evidence of a […]

Spain attack cell ‘neutralized’: Catalan government

BARCELONA, Spain (AFP) — The cell which carried out twin vehicle attacks in Barcelona and a seaside town has been “neutralized” even though one of the attackers remains on the run, the Catalan government said Sunday. “The capacity of this cell to act has been neutralized thanks to the work of the police,” regional interior minister Joaquim Forn told a news conference.

120 gas canisters found for ‘one or more’ attacks in Barcelona: police

BARCELONA, Spain (AFP) — Police said Sunday they have found more than 120 gas canisters in a house in Alcanar, where suspects of this week’s twin assaults in Spain were believed to be building bombs for “one or more” attacks in Barcelona. “We’re starting to see clearly that (the Alcanar house) was the place where they were preparing explosives for one or more attacks in the city of Barcelona,” police chief of Catalonia region Josep […]

Spain seaside city attacks: What we know

At least 13 people were killed and more than 100 others injured after drivers slammed into pedestrians in two quick-succession, separate attacks on Barcelona’s most popular street and in another busy Spanish seaside city. What happened?  Around 4:50 pm (1450 GMT) on Thursday, a vehicle ploughed into a crowd of pedestrians on the famous Las Ramblas boulevard in Barcelona. The promenade in the heart of the city centre is one of Barcelona’s busiest streets, normally […]