LONDON, Nov 11 (Reuters) – A British man who worked in the UK embassy in Berlin has pleaded guilty to eight offences under the Official Secrets Act related to passing on information useful to Russia.
David Ballantyne Smith, who was living in Potsdam, Germany and was employed as a security guard at the embassy, was extradited to Britain from Germany following his arrest by German police in August 2021.
The 58-year-old pleaded guilty to eight offences on Nov. 4. Judge Mark Wall lifted restrictions on reporting Smith’s pleas on Friday after the prosecution indicated it will not seek a trial on a ninth charge to which Smith pleaded not guilty.
(Reporting by Sam Tobin, editing by Kate Holton)
The European Union and South American bloc Mercosur will implement on Friday a contentious free trade agreement that the EU in particular hopes will benefit exporters and calm critics, ...
Some 287 candidates will be considered for the 2026 Nobel Peace Prize,, the secretary of the Norwegian Nobel Committee said on Thursday, with U.S. President Donald Trump likely to be a...
Labour pitches stability, subsidies and broad social support
Prime Minister Robert Abela used the third day of the campaign to reinforce Labour’s message of continuity, positioning th...
Morning Briefing
Gozo in focus for Labour on second day of campaign: Day two of the 2026 general election campaign saw the Labour Party focused heavily on Gozo, where Prime Minister R...
The European Parliament has thrown its weight behind demands for a bigger long-term EU budget, approving its position for negotiations on the bloc’s next seven-year financial framework f...
Disinformation is no longer spreading only through fringe actors or political agitators, but through a digital system that rewards outrage, sensationalism and engagement above accuracy, ...
Unilever said on Thursday it would raise prices to soften the hit from higher-than-expected costs driven by the Iran war, even as it reported first-quarter underlying sales growth ahead...
Brent oil prices rose as much as 7% on Thursday on a report the U.S. is considering potential military action against Iran to break the deadlock in negotiations to end the war, increasi...
“A company’s workplace culture praised by management, needs to be taken with caution. But when the recognition comes directly from employees, that carries greater weight,” says JONATHAN ...
EU lawmakers have approved new rules aimed at strengthening how failing banks are managed, extending protections to a wider range of institutions and depositors across the bloc.
The p...
Malta Public Transport will be operating extended late-night services on the final night of the Malta International Fireworks Festival, scheduled for Thursday 30th April, ensuring specta...
Malta Public Transport announces that it will be operating two additional evening trips between Mġarr and Nadur in Gozo on Saturday 18 April 2026 to facilitate passenger travel following...
Shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remained at a virtual standstill on Monday with just three crossings in the space of 12 hours, according to shipping data.
The oil prod...
Rights groups, including Amnesty International, say Iran carries out more executions per capita than any other country, and more in total than any nation except China, where reliable fig...
Thousands of Cuban security personnel have begun leaving Caracas after nearly two decades in Venezuela, as Washington ramps up efforts to dismantle the long standing alliance between the...
María Corina Machado is a prominent figure in Venezuela’s opposition. She has reported that one of her closest associates, Juan Pablo Guanipa, was abducted. This occurred mere hours afte...
Ukraine struck Russia’s oil infrastructure in the Black Sea port city of Tuapse for the third time in a month, local authorities said Tuesday.
The city, which declared an environmenta...
Russian forces have taken 1,700 square km (656 square miles) of territory in Ukraine this year and are advancing on its so-called fortress belt in Donbas, Moscow's top general said whil...
