The French Directorate General of Foreign Intelligence (DGSE) announced on Thursday the release of four French officials detained for a year in Burkina Faso. Paris has thanked Morocco for its role as mediator in this case. Following the mediation of His Majesty King Mohammed VI, His Excellency Mr. Ibrahim Traoré, President of the Republic of…
Year: 2024
Citizens’ Rights in the UK
The UK All-Party Parliamentary Group on Citizens’ Rights, which looks at issues facing EU citizens in the UK and Britons abroad, will relaunch in the new year. New Europeans UK, which acts as the secretariat of the APPG, will hold the inaugural meeting at the House of Commons on 15 January, which will be hosted…
Strengthen Ukraine Now
Avian Flu Increase Reported in Europe
Photo by Vitalii Khodzinskyi on Unsplash New outbreaks of avian influenza in wild and domestic birds have been reported in Europe, it has emerged. However, there continues to be no evidence of human-to-human spread of the disease. These are the main findings of an avian influenza monitoring report, produced by the European Centre for Disease…
€4.1 bn Approved For Ukraine Facility
Photo by Glib Albovsky on Unsplash The EU Commission says it is allocating a further €4.1 billion under its Ukraine Facility to support the functioning of Ukraine’s public administration during the ongoing bitter war with Russia. This will bring to €16.1 billion the total funds disbursed in 2024 in support of the EU’s Ukraine Plan….
Shoe-Box Appeal to Help Needy in Brussels
‘Tis the season of goodwill so you might be feeling like spreading some. If so, there is a Belgian charity appeal that would welcome some support this Christmas. The idea is to fill shoe boxes with about 10 food items and beverages (non-alcoholic, non-perishable, easy to open and ready to eat) and a season’s greetings…
Manipulating Reality
Photo by Julius Drost on Unsplash Russia is waging war against Ukraine in the forests of Kharkiv, the steppes of Kherson, and the coal dumps of Donbass. However, the battlefield extends beyond Ukraine’s east and south. Russia’s use of rockets, guided bombs, tanks, and artillery is matched by its strategic war on the information front,…
Majority Want Closer EU-UK Ties
Photo by Matt Brown on Unsplash A major new poll of public attitudes towards UK-EU relations since 2016 has just been published. It was compiled by the European Council on Foreign Relations (ECFR). The study surveyed over 9,000 respondents and was commissioned through pollsters YouGov and Datapraxis after November’s US election. People in six European…
EU Citizens Locked Out of Rights in UK
Some EU citizens in the UK are being locked out of exercising their rights, a conference was told. The Civil Society EUSS Alliance, which comprises over 200 organisations working with communities across the UK, raised their concerns at a meeting in the UK Parliament. The event heard that many applicants face hurdles in trying to…
Hundreds of UNHWRA Staff are Hamas Members
Israel clearly believes that there is an alternative to UNWRA. “Only 13 of the humanitarian aid trucks to Gaza enter through UNWRA. It is false to say that UNWRA is the backbone of humanitarian assistance to Gaza. The majority of aid is going through other agencies and NGOs,” says a senior Israeli official who met…