Tag Archives: Europe

Apocalyptic-looking scenes were aplenty on Friday in the Ukrainian capital when smoke from wildfires and dust borne by strong winds briefly lent Kiev the label of the world’s most polluted city. Kiev’s skies remained grey in the morning, and residents had to shut their windows to keep out the nauseous …

The weekly tradition of applauding Britain’s National Health Service workers who are fighting the coronavirus outbreak has brought the nation closer together – though perhaps too close, as eyewitness video shows. Firefighters and police gathered on Westminster Bridge to send well wishes to their colleagues on the frontline in a …

Some European countries have announced plans to ease restrictions on social life, transport and cross-border travel imposed since mid-March to battle the spread of the novel coronavirus. AUSTRIA Austria allowed thousands of shops to reopen on April 14, becoming one of the first countries in Europe to loosen the lockdown. …

A third of the sailors on France’s aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle – 668 out of nearly 2,000 – are infected with coronavirus, the navy says. The ship returned to the French port of Toulon early from Atlantic exercises. Twenty sailors are in hospital, one of them in intensive care. …

Germany wants to extend social distancing rules by an additional two weeks until May 3, according to a draft proposal agreed between Chancellor Angela Merkel and the governors of the country’s 16 states seen by Reuters. The proposals include reopening schools gradually starting May 4, with priority given to primary …

Thousands of shops have reopened in Austria, as it seeks to ease restrictions brought in to stem the spread of the coronavirus. Garden centers, DIY stores, and small shops can open but with strict rules on social distancing. In Italy, where over 20,000 people have died in the pandemic, a …

A fire that threatened the abandoned Chernobyl nuclear plant has been contained, Ukrainian authorities said. Emergency services said on Tuesday there were still some “smoldering” parts of the forest floor, but there was “no open fire” left. There had been fears the blaze could threaten the site of the 1986 …

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson tested negative for the deadly COVID-19 coronavirus before his discharge from hospital, a spokesman has said. The PM will only return to work when cleared by his medical team. Johnson, 55, was discharged from hospital on Sunday, a week after he was admitted with a …

Spain, one of the countries worst hit by the coronavirus, is beginning to ease strict lockdown measures that have brought its economy to a standstill. People in manufacturing, construction and some services are being allowed to return to work, but must stick to strict safety guidelines. The rest of the …

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he owes his life to the National Health Service staff who treated him for COVID-19, ahead of figures Sunday in which the U.K. is expected to surpass 10,000 coronavirus-related deaths. “I can’t thank them enough,” Johnson said in his first public statement since he …

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani says Iran has handled the novel coronavirus outbreak better than Europe and the United States, assuring that the country’s stocks of basic commodities are replenished better than ever. “We had a sanctions virus, to which the coronavirus was added, but you did not have the sanctions …

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Saturday was making “very good progress” in his recovery in hospital from coronavirus, officials said, two days after leaving intensive care. The 55-year-old leader was hospitalized on Sunday over concerns he still had a cough and high temperature after spending 10 days in self-isolation. …

Several 5G broadcasting masts across the Netherlands were damaged in what authorities have described as “a worrying development.” Similar acts of sabotage have previously been seen in the UK. The Netherlands has experienced a string of arson attacks in the past fortnight, with the latest one happening on Friday in …

An inmate was found dead Saturday after a riot and a blaze swept through a Russian prison under a coronavirus lockdown in eastern Siberia, authorities said. Trouble erupted at penal colony No. 15 in Angarsk on Thursday with authorities blaming prisoners, while human rights activists said inmates self-harmed en masse …

Boris Johnson “must rest up” after he was moved from intensive care with coronavirus, his father has said. “He almost took one for the team and we’ve got to make sure we play properly now,” Stanley Johnson said. Scientific adviser Prof Neil Ferguson, who was asked about coming out of …

Italian prime minister Giuseppe Conte has warned that the EU could fail over the response to coronavirus. He said that the union has to work in a more co-ordinated way to fight the outbreak, or risks collapsing altogether. With the Italian economy set to contract and debt set to inevitably …

Maddalena Ferrari lets herself cry when she takes off the surgical mask she wears even at home to protect her elderly parents from the coronavirus that surrounds her at work in one of Italy’s hardest-hit intensive care units. In the privacy of her own bedroom, where no one can see, …

The coronavirus pandemic has exposed deep divides in Europe, with EU member states arguing over how to tackle the economic fallout. Italy and Spain have accused northern nations – led by Germany and the Netherlands – of not doing enough. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has even warned that if …

World Health Organization Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus has condemned controversial comments made by French doctors about testing a COVID-19 potential treatment first in Africa, calling the remarks a “hangover from a colonial mentality.” “To be honest, I was so appalled. And it was a time when I said when we …

Angela Merkel’s chief of staff said on Monday that he did not think the chancellor’s plans not to run for a fifth term in office had changed. Bild newspaper last week raised the question of whether she might. “I don’t think this is any time to discuss something like that,” …