List of All Articles with Tag 'europe'

A train heading to Strasburg carrying hundreds of members and staff of the European Parliament ended up at Disneyland Paris on Monday after taking the wrong turn. The special train - which costs £90million a year to run - is chartered once a month to get European officials between parliaments in Brussels and Strasbourg. However, a signalling error on Monday meant that MEPs briefly ended up with a view of Disney princesses and animated attractions. After departing from Brussels, the train left Charles de Gaulle Airport and headed towards Disneyland because of the error. Officials on the train were told that the diversion was due to an “error in the route” and were quick to make light of their predicament on social media. German MEP, Daniel Freund joked on X: “We are NOT a Mickey Mouse Parliament.” Another Dutch lawmaker, Samira Rafaela, wrote “Team Disneyland”, in a photo posted on social media. Unfortunately, the stopover at Disneyland was not long enough for the MEPs to enjoy themselves at the theme park, as the delay was only 45 minutes. SNCF Networks, the railway company who charter the train, said the cause was a signalling error at the Roissy Charles-de-Gaulle TGV station. It apologised for the inconvenience, noting that the diversion caused only a 45-minute delay. “The passengers arrived at their destination at 12.50pm,” it told AFP news. It was eventually put back on to the correct track for Strasbourg. Read More Tell us if you think price is the biggest problem with electric cars EU to investigate X’s handling of disinformation over Hamas attack on Israel Electric cars will cost drivers £6,000 more if Sunak fails to get Brexit deal with EU

By Gabriela Baczynska and Alvise Armellini BRUSSELS/ROME A deadly Islamist attack in Belgium by a rejected asylum-seeker from

The killing of two Swedish citizens in an attack ahead of a football match in Brussels has shocked the country, although the government has been warning for months that Swedes were at greater risk since a recent string of public desecrations of the Quran holy book by a handful of anti-Islam activists. Swedish prime minister Ulf Kristersson on Tuesday noted that the government in August had raised the terror alert to the second-highest level following threats against Sweden by Islamic extremists. “Now we know with chilling clarity that there were grounds for those concerns,” he said. The desecrations, primarily by an Iraqi refugee living in Sweden, have sparked angry reactions in Muslim countries. In June, demonstrators in Iraq stormed the Swedish Embassy and the Iraqi government cut off diplomatic relations with Sweden. Now Swedish nationals have been urged to remain vigilant after the gunman opened fire and killed two Swedes in Brussels, with a third victim seriously injured. Mr Kristersson said he had been told by Belgium that the perpetrator “had stayed in Sweden but was not known to the Swedish police”. The European Union’s passport-free zone allowed him to travel to Sweden. The PM has called on the EU to bolster border controls and internal security, while Swedes abroad have been encouraged to download the UD Resklar app to receive updated safety alerts. The attack unfolded at 7pm when a man, who named himself in a video as Abdesalem Lassoued, opened fire in the north of the city centre. Videos shared online showed a man on a scooter, dressed in an orange fluorescent jacket, pull up and start shooting passers-by. He then chases people into the hallway of an apartment building to gun them down while four gunshots can be heard. A major manhunt was launched, with the perpetrator eventually tracked down to a cafe in Schaerbeek, after a witness recognised him and contacted the police. He was shot and later died of his injuries, with the interior minister Annelies Verlinden posting on Twitter/X, that “The perpetrator of the terrorist attack in Brussels has been identified and has died.” The gunman, who named himself in a video as Abdesalem Lassoued, is believed to be a Tunisian man who was in Belgium illegally after his asylum application was rejected in 2020. He posted a video online saying he had killed people in the name of God, with the Belgian prosecutor’s office stating their belief he was inspired by Isis. While they initially said there did not appear to be any links between the attack and the Israel-Gaza war, they later said they could not exclude that possibility. Belgium prime minister Alexander De Croo called Monday’s shooting “a harrowing act of terrorism” in a press conference, while it is believed the victims were probably targeted because they were Swedish. The attack occurred three miles away from the stadium where Belgium was playing Sweden to qualify for the Euro 2024 football tournament. Following news of the attack, the match was abandoned at half time while 35,000 fans had to wait for hours in the King Baudouin stadium before being evacuated in groups. Sweden’s foreign ministry sent a text message to its citizens in Belgium on Tuesday morning warning them to be vigilant. It later issued a statement urging all Swedes abroad to be careful. “All indications are that this is a terror attack aimed at Sweden and Swedish citizens only due to them being Swedish,” Mr Kristersson told a news conference.“These terrorists want to scare us into obedience and silence. That will not happen.” Sweden’s terror alert was raised to its second-highest level in August after a series of public Quran burnings, with the government warning that the country had become a target for jihadis. After copies of the Quran were burnt outside Stockholm’s Royal Palace, the city’s largest mosque, and the Turkish embassy, state authorities were warned by intelligence services of a heightened risk for a terrorist attack. Swedish officials have repeatedly condemned the desecrations while saying they are allowed under freedom of speech. The government is investigating whether to give police greater authority to stop such acts on security grounds.“Not everything that is legal is appropriate,” Mr Kristersson said Tuesday. “What you do in Sweden can have consequences elsewhere.” Protests occurred in Muslim-majority countries across the world, with protestors in Iraq storming the Swedish embassy and Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan holding up Sweden’s NATO membership bid. Sweden’s embassies urged nationals to exercise increased vigilance abroad while Swedes at home voiced concerns about safety in a country lately also contending with a wave of gangland shootings. “The threat assessment against Sweden has gradually changed and the threat of attacks by above all violent Islamist extremism has increased,” security police SAPO said in a statement following the attack on Monday. “It is a serious situation and the security police estimates that it will remain for a considerable period.” Read More Climbers scale 142-metre tall tower in Barcelona city centre Ukraine Russia war: Putin’s forces suffer blow as helicopters destroyed - live Experts on what winter brings for the Ukraine war – and why Putin is banking on Trump Sweden captain Victor Lindelof ‘shocked and devastated’ by killing of two fans What we know about Isis Brussels terror suspect Abdesalem Lassoued Sweden fans given overnight police protection in Brussels after shooting during Euro 2024 qualifier

Two died and one person was injured in the Monday attack coinciding with a Sweden football match.

By Angelo Amante ROME It is essential for the European Union to help Tunisia stop migrant boat departures,

A passenger on a rubber boat adrift in the Mediterranean Sea called a rescue hotline on June 23

Anti fossil-fuel protesters led by Greta Thunberg are blocking oil executives from entering the annual Energy Intelligence Forum

A deal between the European Union’s two biggest countries will lay the foundations for updated fiscal rules, French

Russia has lost 127 tanks, 239 armoured personnel vehicles (APVs) and 161 artillery systems in a week, Kyiv has said as Vladimir Putin launches a sustained assault in the east of Ukraine. Moscow’s forces lost eight tanks, 25 APVs and 33 artillery systems in the past day, Ukraine’s General Staff said on Sunday. The Independent cannot independently confirm Kyiv’s numbers which come after Putin claimed Ukraine‘s counteroffensive “completely failed”. “As for the counteroffensive, which is allegedly stalling, it has failed completely,” Putin said in video remarks posted to social media by a Kremlin journalist Pavel Zarubin. Russia currently controls about 17.5% of Ukrainian territory and a four-month-old Ukrainian counteroffensive this year has resulted in almost no net territorial gains. Read More Russian attacks kill six in Ukraine as Kyiv ramps up drone counter strikes Russian governor reported to police for speaking out over Putin’s ‘unnecessary’ war against Ukraine Ukrainian forces release video of downed Russian Mi-8 helicopter: ‘It burns beautifully’

Belgian police are searching Tuesday for a Tunisian man who killed two Swedish football fans as they investigate

Russian leader Vladimir Putin arrived in Beijing as China kicks off its Belt and Road Forum in a

Two Swedes were killed in Brussels after a gunman opened fire in the city centre, police have said. Footage shared online showed a man dressed in an orange jacket unloading several shots, using a large weapon. The bearded man was reportedly seen leaving the crime scene on a scooter. The violent incident came ahead of a qualifier game for the UEFA Euros between Sweden and Belgium at the Heysel Stadium, some three miles away. The second half of the match was later called off after players reportedly refused to return to the field. A message from the Swedish FA, sent to supporters advised fans to remain inside the stadium. Belgian prime minister Alexander De Croo told reporters that “the perpetrator is said to be a man of Tunisian origin who was staying illegally in our country”. “Two lives were cut short, mown down by the most extreme cruelty. Our thoughts go out to the victims, their loved ones, their relatives. We offer our condolences,” he added. Read More Gunman at large after fatally shooting two people in Brussels Belgium stadium on lockdown with thousands of fans held inside after Brussels shooting Soccer match between Belgium and Sweden suspended after deadly shooting in Brussels