Новости за 12.01.2022

On paper, Rome’s Quirinale is too steep a hill to climb for Italy’s ageing tycoon-politician, saddled with legal woes, health problems and a sulphurous reputation. But writing off Silvio Berlusconi is still a risky bet as he vies for the Italian presidency later this month.

NATO said on Wednesday it was willing to talk to Russia about arms control and missile deployments to avert the risk of war in Europe, but Moscow said the situation was "very dangerous" and the way forward was unclear.

Ivory Coast reminded everyone why they were favourites to win the Africa Cup of Nations when they beat Equatorial Guinea on Wednesday with a sterling Max Gradel goal in the sixth minute. Equatorial Guinea were hard to break down for the rest of the match, but Ivory Coast never looked in danger of throwing away their lead.

Libyan security forces carried out a brutal operation in the early morning hours of January 10, arresting hundreds of hundreds of migrants, asylum seekers and refugees who had been camped out in front of a UN refugee centre in the Libyan capital Tripoli since October 2021.

Three of the five detainees were from Yemen, one was from Somalia, and the fifth from Kenya. They have spent a collective 85 years in the prison opened two decades ago for so-called "war on terror" detainees in the wake of the September 11, 2001 Al Qaeda attack on the United States. Never charged, detainees now approved for release -- decided after case reviews in November and December -- total 18 of the 39 men still held in the prison facility at the US Naval Base in Cuba. Those newly approved for release are Somali Guleed Hassan Ahmed... Читать дальше...

An emaciated female tiger cub aged around four or five months and suffering from severe frostbite and injuries was found by a local fisherman on a river bank in the south of the Primorye region late last year. The fisherman reported the find to wildlife carers who evacuated the cub to a rehabilitation centre, said Amur Tiger Centre. "External examination showed that she was severely exhausted as a result of which the tip of her tail was frostbitten," the centre said, adding that the cub's lower jaw also became necrotic after an injury. Читать дальше...

Two environmental pressure groups, ClientEarth and Friends of the Earth, announced they have started separate legal proceedings at London's High Court against Prime Minister Boris Johnson's administration. The UK government, which seeks to achieve net zero emissions by 2050 to help tackle climate change, insists it has set out detailed steps to help transition to a low-carbon economy. Friends of the Earth however has filed for a judicial review to challenge the plans, arguing that they are unlawful. Читать дальше...

Tunisia on Wednesday announced a new night-time stay-at-home order for the next two weeks in order to tamp down surging coronavirus cases.

"I still have something boiling in my stomach that's why I am looking forward to it (racing in Paris)," Kipchoge said at a virtual media conference from his training ground in Kenya. Besides Kipchoge, only Abebe Bikila (1960, 1964) and Waldemar Cierpinski (1976, 1980) have won consecutive Olympic marathon titles. The 37-year-old Kenyan, who won back-to-back titles at the 2016 and 2020 Olympics in Rio and Tokyo, also Wednesday signed a new sponsorship deal with British chemicals giant Ineos to prepare for the Games. Читать дальше...

The introduction of legislation comes as the United States and its NATO allies hold talks with Russia and warn of high costs if the tens of thousands of troops on Ukraine's border advance. "We are coming together to send a clear message -- Putin need not collapse his entire economy nor does he need to sacrifice the lives of his own people in a futile attempt to rewrite the map of Europe," said Senator Bob Menendez, the chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Senate Majority Leader Chuck... Читать дальше...

A U.S. judge has rejected a bid by Britain's Prince Andrew to dismiss Virginia Giuffre's lawsuit accusing the Duke of York of sexually abusing her when she was 17 and being trafficked by the late financier Jeffrey Epstein.

Mali beat title hopefuls Tunisia 1-0 in a match that was a tale of two penalties on Wednesday (January 12) as the Africa Cup of Nations moved to Limbe in Cameroon's southwest. FRANCE 24's James Vasina tells us more.

A total of 11 countries are behind in their payments, Secretary General Antonio Guterres said Tuesday in a letter to the General Assembly. AFP obtained it on Wednesday. Under the UN charter, a member country's right to vote is suspended when its arrears equal or exceed the amount of dues it should have paid over the preceding two years. If the outstanding debt is deemed to be "due to conditions beyond the control of the member," the assembly may let that country continue to vote. For 2022 this is the case of the Comoro Islands... Читать дальше...

After days of dismal headlines and collapsing poll ratings, Johnson said he regarded the newly revealed boozy get-together in May 2020 as a work event for Downing Street staff. He conceded he did not appreciate how the event would look to millions of Britons who were respecting Covid rules, even missing out on farewells to dying relatives. "And to them and to this House I offer my heartfelt apologies," Johnson told a stormy session of questions in the House of Commons. "With hindsight I should have sent everyone back inside. Читать дальше...

EDF said that the Flamanville plant on the Channel coast would not be loaded with fuel until the "second quarter of 2023", instead of late 2022. The statement came after Macron announced plans for new reactors to provide low-carbon energy and as France backs classing nuclear as a "green" technology under future EU rules. Projected costs had increased by another 300 million euros ($340 million) to 12.7 billion euros, EDF said -- around four times more than the initial forecast of 3.3 billion euros. Читать дальше...

Prime Minister Boris Johnson apologized Wednesday for attending a garden party during Britain’s first coronavirus lockdown, but brushed aside opposition demands that he resign for breaching the rules his own government had imposed on the nation.

Nearly 70 percent of the roads, pipelines, cities and industry -- mostly in Russia -- built on the region's softening ground are highly vulnerable to acute damage by mid-century, according to one of half-a-dozen studies on permafrost published this week by Nature. Another study warns that methane and CO2 escaping from long-frozen soil could accelerate warming and overwhelm global efforts to cap the rise in Earth's temperature at livable levels. Exposure of highly combustible organic matter no... Читать дальше...

The Canadian province of Quebec, struggling to control the Omicron variant, will impose a new health tax in the coming weeks on those who are not vaccinated against Covid-19.

Armenia said Wednesday that the number of its soldiers killed in border clashes with Azerbaijan had risen to three, in the most serious outbreak of fighting between the ex-Soviet adversaries in months.

With Covid-19 cases skyrocketing among children in France, Prime Minister Jean Castex took to the airwaves Monday night to relax the school protocol, once again. Teachers across the country were already livid over the government's pandemic response and have planned a massive strike for Thursday. The new instructions – the third set since children returned to school January 3 after the holidays – have not calmed the teachers' ire. Au contraire.

Here's a rundown of the measures in place in key areas of the world's most populous nation. Tianjin Fears are growing about China's largest domestic Omicron cluster to date in the northern port city of Tianjin, where two confirmed cases of the highly transmissible variant were discovered over the weekend. Local virus prevention official Zhang Ying said Saturday that the strain of virus identified had been transmitting for "at least three generations" -- indicating weeks of earlier spread -- with the source unclear. Читать дальше...

Russia and China blocked the U.N. Security Council on Tuesday from supporting new sanctions on Mali for its military leaders’ decision to delay next month’s elections until 2026, a blow to the restoration of democracy in the troubled West African nation.

But the bride, who comes from Bulgaria's Pomak minority, can see none of it. Her eyes must remain tightly closed until a Muslim priest blesses the couple. The pair are following an age-old traditional winter wedding rite that their tiny community nestled in the southern Rhodope mountains was forced to abandon during communism but has revived since the fall of the regime in 1989. The ritual spans two whole days, starting with a lavish display of the bride's dowry. It comprises "everything you can think of" that a new family might need... Читать дальше...

The tourists staved off Australia's victory push on Sunday with Jimmy Anderson and Stuart Broad batting out two tense final overs to deny Australia a fourth straight Test win in the lopsided series. Root said the way his men clung on to avoid defeat had given them a platform for the day-night Test at Hobart starting Friday. "On the back of three very difficult games where we underperformed ... to come back and get something from the last game showed a great amount of character and something definitely... Читать дальше...

The world number one's decision not to get vaccinated against Covid-19 blew up when he was detained trying to enter Australia on a medical exemption last week. The vaccine-sceptic Serb won a court battle to remain and has been training at Melbourne Park, but he still might not play in the tournament with Australia's immigration minister mulling whether to quash his visa. Known as the 'Happy Slam' because of its bumper crowds, good weather and party atmosphere, the Australian Open -- which starts... Читать дальше...