Spanish services intercepted an explosive inside an envelope at a military base in Torrejon de Ardoz near Madrid, local media reported. This is the third letter-bomb found in Spain since yesterdaymore

Fighters of the Free Syrian Army, which opposes the Syrian regime, carried out an operation in which the leader of the so-called Islamic State, Abu al-Hasan al-Hashimi al-Quraishi, was killed, the United States Central Command (CENTCOM) reported. The jihadist was supposed to die in October.more

France will charter two ships to carry out rescue operations in the English Channel, through which migrants are trying to enter the UK en masse, the secretariat-general for the sea, an agency under the head of the French government, announced.more

US President Joe Biden, his wife Jill and rapper LL Cool J attended the festive lighting of the Christmas tree in front of the White House. Also present at the ceremony were Shania Twain and Gloria Estefan.more

The people of the Netherlands need to be prepared for a potential disaster, according to Pieter-Jaap Aalbersberg national coordinator for counter-terrorism (NCTV). Starting today, his office is launching a campaign to, among other things, advise people on how to survive at least two days without electricity, gas and water.more

Nearly 10,000 cases of illegal home occupation have been recorded in Spain since June 2021. The highest number of wild squatters occurs in the Madrid metropolitan area.more

The French baguette was yesterday inscribed on UNESCO's List of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. French bakers and the media received the news with euphoria.more

A prerequisite for Ukraine's possible accession to NATO is its victory in the war, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced today in Bucharest.more

A further tranche of €100 penalties will be sent out in Italy to almost 2 million people over the age of 50 who failed to undergo the Covid-19 vaccination, which was compulsory in the country until recently, the press reported. The new government had previously intended to suspend these penalties.more

Director Roman Polanski will stand trial on 5 March 2024 for defamation and for questioning the veracity of sexual abuse accusations made against him by actress Charlotte Lewis, a criminal court in Paris decided yesterday.more

The management of Schiphol Airport in the Dutch capital has asked airlines to reduce passenger numbers by a fifth in February and March 2023, reports the daily newspaper De Telegraaf.more

The German states confirmed after a conference in Berlin yesterday that a €49 per month ticket will be introduced from 1 April, valid on public transport and regional trains throughout Germany.more

In a referendum in Slovenia on Sunday, more than 62 per cent of voters voted in favour of a law to prevent the politicisation of public television and other media organisations, Euronews reported. Citizens also supported two other government projects.more

Spanish Agriculture Minister Luis Planas warned that olive oil could become a "luxury product" in Spain. Droughts and record-breaking heat hurt this year's harvest, while higher energy prices contributed to higher production costs.more

The number of homeless people has increased by 25 per cent in the Netherlands compared to 2021. - alarms the Salvation Army. The organisation stresses that more and more young people are ending up on the street.more

The World Health Organization (WHO) has said it will start using the new term "mpox" as the name for monkey pox and has called on other countries to follow suit. The change in terminology follows complaints that the current name of the disease is racist and stigmatizing.more

Russia's economic activity indicators are plummeting. Only the rouble exchange rate is growing - thanks to restrictions on the flow of capital, "Dziennik Gazeta Prawna" reports.more

Three stowaways were rescued by the Spanish Coast Guard in Las Palmas after surviving an 11-day voyage from Nigeria to the Canary Islands by sitting on a tanker's rudder.more

When you want to save on your electricity and gas bills, it is advisable to boil your hoofballs, avoid making chips in the deep fryer and limit your use of the electric kettle - such advice is published in the media in Italy.more

The foreign ministers of the seven Nordic and Baltic countries arrived in Kiev today, where they are due to meet with representatives of the Ukrainian authorities, Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkeviczs announced on Twitter.more

Less than 50 km north of Washington DC, a single-engine Mooney M20J aircraft became entangled in high-voltage power lines yesterday. Two passengers were rescued and taken to hospital, both suffering hypothermia and serious injuries, the Reuters news agency reported today after the local fire service.more

According to statistics from the Ministry of Justice, there were 72,809 prisoners in French prisons on 1 November out of a total of 60,698 places set aside for convicts. Density in prisons is at an average of 120 per cent, up from 115.4 per cent a year ago. - AFP reported yesterday.more

Demonstrations against the zero covid policy, harsh restrictions and lockdowns spread to more cities in China yesterday. Hundreds of people protested in Beijing and Shanghai, as well as in Wuhan, where the first cases of Covid-19 were detected almost three years ago.more

Almost one million Belgian residents own several houses or flats, while half of the country's population owns no property at all, the daily newspaper De Tijd reported yesterday.more

From 1 January 2023, around one million Belgians will receive a 12 per cent pay rise, costing employers more than €25 billion, according to media reports.more