Sunseekers on a beach in central Italy had to run from a wildfire on Sunday afternoon, as extreme heat continued to scorch parts of Europe. Beach-goers near the Adriatic city of Pescara fled from towering smoke and flames that have ‘completely destroyed’ a pine forest, which is home to a nature reserve. Some 30 people were treated for light smoke inhalation after the incident and people on the beach had to be rescued by sea to escape the wildfire. Pictures show plumes of fumes pouring over a long stretch of beach and sunbathers watching on anxiously as the fire approaches. Several people were reportedly injured nearby when they tried to put out wind-fuelled blazes that had reached their homes, the Italian news agency LaPresse reported. Local officials also told state TV that an elderly home in the city was among those to be evacuated, while Pescara Mayor Carlo Masci branded the impact on the local environmental ‘incalculable’. He said: ‘That zone of pine forest is …
Western europe
EU Drug Report 2020: Party pills out of fashion, online dealing and over-50s overdose spike
The coronavirus pandemic has had an “immediate, disruptive impact” on the use and supply of illegal drugs, as well as services used to help drug users. In the EU drugs agency’s European Drug Report 2020, the situation for users, dealers and law enforcement is shown to have changed dramatically with the lockdown measures imposed in many countries to counter the spread of COVID-19. While the aim of the report is to reveal trends from the previous year, it highlights a number of ways coronavirus is putting some vulnerable drug users at further risk. An estimated 20 million young adults in Europe are thought to have used drugs in the last year. How the pandemic changed consumption habits Due to lockdowns imposed in a number of European countries, drugs that are often taken in social or party settings saw a decline in reported usage, according to the report. These include cocaine and MDMA. However, this may have also been driven by disruptions to market supply …
Why Is Uber Begging Me to Vote?
I have recently been reminded, asked, or commanded to vote approximately 6 million times. These nudges have come from the people and places I’d expect—candidates, local officials, civic and political organizations—but also, more so than in any other election year I remember, from the places I wouldn’t. Uber, Nike, Postmates, the ticket service AXS, the New York Mets, and the fast-casual restaurant chain Dig have all reminded me to check my voter registration, at least once in the past two weeks. Others, including Amazon and the home-decor retailer Lulu and Georgia, have nestled links to voting information in their usual marketing emails. Seemingly every time I open Facebook or Instagram, I am greeted by a notification about the importance of voting. Voting advocacy from people outside of traditional politics isn’t particularly new in the United States—the nonprofit Rock the Vote first partnered with MTV in 1990, producing videos with celebrities such as Madonna and Janet Jackson that …
‘His nose was broken’: Belarusian activist who helped citizens flee regime found dead in Kyiv
A Belarusian exile who helped people flee the regime was found dead in Kyiv on Tuesday, sparking fears of an assassination by Belarus on foreign soil. Vitaly Shishov was found hanged in the woods near his home, Ukrainian police said, adding that his mobile phone and all his personal belongings were still on him. Police have opened a murder investigation. The activists’ associates say they have “no doubt” that he was killed by the Belarusian regime. Yuri Shchuchko, a friend and associate of Mr Shishov, was combing the woods on the western outskirts of Kyiv around 7am when a friend called him from another side of the park, saying he found the body. “I saw a silhouette of a person hanged on a horizontal bar. I recognised Vitaly’s jacket,” Mr Shchuchko told The Daily Telegraph . “I came closer and I identified him.” Mr Shchuchko said he heard a police officer say: “His nose is broken. Something went wrong.” Mr Shchuchko did not verify this for himself. Ihor Klymenko, head …
Revolut to shift European payments to Ireland and Lithuania post-Brexit
Fintech unicorn Revolut will shift responsibility for its European payments from London to Ireland and Lithuania after Brexit, the Telegraph can reveal. In an exclusive interview, the challenger bank’s newly-appointed banking chief executive Richard Davies also said the company will open credit offerings for the first time later this year. Revolut has rapidly grown since it was founded by chief executive Nikolay Storonsky in 2015. The neo-bank now employs more than 2,000 people and is expected to close a funding round that will value it at £5bn by mid-February . Mr Davies, who has significant traditional banking experience from the likes of HSBC and TSB, said the company’s global headquarters will remain in London and that UK payments will be managed from there. “Strategically for Europe we are moving to a three-target licensed entity model,” he said. “We have already got the UK EMI license, and that will continue to serve the UK clients. The strategy is to have our …
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Ukraine’s Loss of Status as ‘Biden’s Darling’ Doomed Fight Against Nord Stream 2, Ex-Gas Chief Says
The failure of the anti-Nord Stream 2 pressure campaign is related to Kiev’s loss of its once-held special status for US President Joe Biden, suggests Andriy Kobolyev, the former CEO of Ukrainian state energy giant Naftogaz. “Why did America help us so actively after the Revolution of Dignity? Because we were Biden’s darling,” Kobolyev wrote , referring to the events of February 2014 – during which Ukraine’s unpopular but democratically-elected government was overthrown in a US and EU-backed coup. Kobolyev suggested that Ukrainians had won their “special status” in the US through their commitment to the West and the implementation of “painful but critical reforms.” “What has happened now? The answer is obvious: we have lost our special status in the White House. And not just from the current president, but from his inner circle,” the former executive, who was stripped of his post as Naftogaz CEO in April, added. He suggested that the direction the country was headed in …
Svetlana Tikhanovskaya: Belarus opposition leader hopeful after Boris Johnson meeting
Published 2 minutes ago Share close Share page Copy link About sharing The exiled Belarus opposition leader says she is sure the UK will offer further help to the country's people, amid a crackdown on dissent. Svetlana Tikhanovskaya said Boris Johnson had assured her the UK would put pressure on the Belarus government, at a meeting in Downing Street. It comes amid mass arrests following the disputed re-election of President Lukashenko in August 2020. The prime minister said the UK was "very much" on Ms Tikhanovskaya's side. The exiled opposition leader claimed victory in last year's Belarusian presidential election, after standing in place of her politician husband, who was detained in March 2020. Belarus jails top Lukashenko critic for 14 years Missing Belarus activist found dead in park Why wearing the wrong socks is risky in Belarus Forced to flee the country …
Chipmunks test positive for plague near Lake Tahoe, leading to closures
You may have learned about the Black Death in history class—but as it turns out, the plague that caused the medieval pandemic is still with us and prompting occasional outbreaks of the disease centuries later. Over the weekend, areas of South Lake Tahoe were closed to the public, after a number of chipmunks tested positive for the plague. El Dorado County spokesperson Carla Hass clarified that the chipmunks had not been in contact with any humans, according to the Tahoe Daily Tribune . The Taylor Creek Visitor Center, Kiva Beach and their respective parking lots are said to be closed through August 6. While the incident may sound alarming, El Dorado County Public Health officials noted that "plague is naturally present in many parts of California, including higher elevations." In August 2020, a South Lake Tahoe resident became the first person in five years to catch the plague in California, highlighting exactly how rare human cases of the plague truly are. The infected …
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Models who posed naked on Dubai balcony could face jail for brazen nude stunt
The women who posed naked on a balcony in Dubai have been arrested after videos of the photoshoot went viral on social media across the United Arab Emirates. Dubai police said they have arrested a “group of people who appeared in an indecent video” on charges of public debauchery. All are understood to be from the former Soviet Union including Belarus, Ukraine and Moldova. A statement issued by the Dubai police says that "a criminal case has been registered against the arrested and they have been referred to the Public Prosecution for further legal action". The incident could potentially lead to substantial fines and even jail time for those taking part. The statement adds that “such unacceptable behaviours do not reflect the values and ethics of Emirati society”. The group of at least 20 women, all thought to be professional models from Eastern Europe, had lined up for the photoshoot on the balcony of an apartment block in the exclusive Dubai …
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Belarus extends crackdown to human rights and news groups
Belarus authorities raided at least 14 human rights group and closed down independent media groups on Wednesday as President Alexander Lukashenko continued to tighten his grip on dissenters in his beleaguered regime. Police searched the Minsk offices of the country's main human rights group, Viasna-96, that has been keeping a close record of Lukashenkoꞌs political prisoners. Who was targeted? State security forces swooped on Viasna-96 headquarters and the homes of several of its members across Belarus. The group also sad it could not contact its leader Ales Byalyatski, fearing he could have become one of the country's nearly 600 political prisoners. Viasna-96 literally means "spring 96" in reference to the group's foundation in 1996, two years after Lukashenko came to office on a pro-Russian, anti-corruption ticket. Human Rights Watch has said it "condemns" the arrest of the former head of Viasna-96, Andrei Aliaksandrau "who is facing up to 15 years in prison on …
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