The Dispatch

Macron maintains his position regarding dispatching troops to Ukraine

French President Emmanuel Macron said his refusal to rule out the prospect of sending Western troops to Ukraine was intentional, despite the uproar it has provoked. Macron swept aside the…

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Italy to start issuing 10,000 euros fines to students who attack teachers

Students who attack teachers in Italy risk fines ranging from 500 to 10,000 euros according to a government amendment approved by the Senate culture committee.Attacks on teachers have hit the…

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Putin allies tell Macron: Any French troops you send to Ukraine will suffer fate of Napoleon’s army

By Andrew Osborn Macron troop comments anger Russia Putin allies liken him to Napoleon Moscow portrays Macron as reckless Notes other Western countries baulked (Reuters) - Allies of Russian President…

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Pope Francis had CT scan during hospital check-up

By Alvise Armellini VATICAN CITY, (Reuters) - Pope Francis, who has been suffering from influenza, made a brief trip to a Roman hospital for medical checks on Wednesday but was…

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UPDATED: Pope Francis has hospital check-up, returns to Vatican

By Alvise Armellini VATICAN CITY, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Pope Francis, who has been suffering from influenza, made a brief trip to a Roman hospital for medical checks on Wednesday…

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Greeks strike to mark train crash anniversary, protest low wages

ATHENS, Feb 28 (Reuters) - Rail services will be halted and ships will remain docked at ports near the capital Athens on Wednesday, as workers walk off the job to…

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France’s Macron does not rule out Europeans sending troops to Ukraine

French President Emmanuel Macron opened the door on Monday to European nations sending troops to Ukraine, although he cautioned that there was no consensus at this stage as allies agreed…

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Italy’s Meloni suffers setback as centre-left claims Sardinia election win

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is set for her first regional election loss since winning power in 2022 after a centre-left candidate appeared to have won the vote for the…

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Spain’s ports see goods traffic rise as Red Sea crisis continues

The volume of goods moving through Spain's top ports rose by as much as 25% in January as attacks on shipping in the Red Sea caused companies to divert Europe-bound…

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Greece approves military participation in EU Red Sea mission

ATHENS, Feb 26 (Reuters) - The Greek government on Monday approved the country's participation in a European Union naval mission in the Red Sea to protect merchant ships from attacks…

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Pope Francis cancels appointments twice in three days as mild flu persists

VATICAN CITY, Feb 26 (Reuters) - Pope Francis canceled his appointments on Monday for the second time in three days because he has mild flu, the Vatican said. The 87-year-old…

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Pope cancels Saturday meetings because of mild flu – Vatican

VATICAN CITY, Feb 24 (Reuters) - Pope Francis cancelled his meetings on Saturday because of mild flu, the Vatican said in a statement. The 87-year-old pontiff holds regular audiences with…

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Smartphones and tablets to be banned in Italian schools

The use of smartphones and tablets is to be banned in Italian classrooms even for teaching purposes under new guidelines to be issued shortly, Education Minister Giuseppe Valditara said in…

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Four dead, up to 14 missing in Spain apartment building fire

By Antoine Demaison and Marco Trujillo VALENCIA, Spain, Feb 23 (Reuters) - At least four people were killed in a fire that engulfed an apartment building in Valencia in eastern…

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Spanish birth rate hits lowest level since records began in 1941

Spain's birth rate has dropped to its lowest level since records started in 1941, provisional data from its National Statistics Institute (INE) showed , with just 322,075 babies adding to…

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Italy arrests 12 people over speed boat migrant trips from Tunisia

ROME, (Reuters) - Italian police said they had arrested 12 suspected human traffickers for allegedly organising high-speed transfers for at least 73 illegal migrants from Tunisia to Europe. Expert pilots…

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Speed limit reduction on the way on urban roads in Cyprus

Authorities in Cyprus have provided a study to reduce speed limits from 50km/h to 30km/h in certain urban areas. The measure aims to reduce fatal collisions and emissions, as well…

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Russian emigres in Spain call for protection after pilot defector shot dead

By David Latona VILLAJOYOSA, Spain, (Reuters) - Russian emigres in Spain critical of the Kremlin called on the Spanish authorities to better protect them, after a Russian pilot who had…

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Milan residents grapple with high pollution

By Claudia Greco And Alessandro Parodi Pietro De Luca lives in Italy's finance and fashion capital Milan but often thinks of moving to a cleaner city with his wife and…

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Strike closes Eiffel Tower in blow to tourists ahead of Paris Olympics

The Eiffel Tower, one of the most visited tourist sites in the world, closed on Monday as staff went on strike in protest against the way the Paris monument is…

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Former Frontex chief joins French far-right RN party

The former director of the European Union's border agency Frontex said he will run in the June European elections on the list of French far-right party Rassemblement National (RN). Fabrice…

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Spanish conservatives retain majority in Galicia regional vote

MADRID, Feb 18 (Reuters) - Spain's opposition conservative People's Party (PP) is set to retain its absolute majority in its stronghold in the northwest region of Galicia on Sunday in…

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Italian Supreme Court declares handing over of migrants to Tripoli is a crime

It is a crime to hand over refugees and migrants rescued in the Central Mediterranean to the Libyan coast guard because the north African country is not a safe port,…

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30 kph limit in Bologna leads to fewer accidents

Road accidents have dropped by 15.8% in Bologna after a 30 kph speed limit was imposed a month ago, the city council in the Emilian capital said. "The hoped-for decrease…

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Greece to suspend flights at Crete airport for six days due to maintenance

ATHENS, (Reuters) - Flights at the Greek airport of Heraklion on the island of Crete will be suspended for six days from Feb. 19 due to maintenance work, the country's…

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Deaths and injuries after Florence structural collapse

Two workers are dead, two more are dying and two others are missing feared dead after a structural collapse in a Florence supermarket construction site on Friday, local officials said.…

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Greece becomes first Orthodox nation to legalise same-sex civil marriage

Greece's parliament approved a bill allowing same-sex civil marriage on Thursday, a landmark victory for supporters of LGBT rights that was greeted with cheers by onlookers in parliament and dozens…

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Properties worth EUR 48 million frozen after cocaine sweep in Ecuador and Spain

A Spanish-led investigation involving Ecuador and supported by Europol, resulted in a major hit on a high-risk drug trafficking network supplying cocaine to the EU. To support the field activities…

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Anti-dengue fever measures introduced at Fiumicino airport

Authorities at Rome's Fiumicino airport have lifted the level of alert for planes and goods arriving from countries where the risk of contracting dengue fever is "frequent and ongoing". The…

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Italy launches COVID inquiry over opposition protest

By Angelo Amante Italy's parliament approved on Wednesday the creation of an official inquiry into the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, angering opposition parties who were in power at the…

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Cyprus could produce first natural gas as soon as 2026, minister says

Cyprus could start producing its first natural gas as soon as 2026, and plans to participate in a high-powered electricity cable project linking the eastern Mediterranean to continental Europe, its…

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Private sector should foot climate bill, French finance minister says

Funding to combat climate change needs to come from the private sector as there is no more public financing available from France or other European Union countries, French Finance Minister…

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Italian far-right leader Salvini fights to escape Meloni’s shadow

Five years ago, Matteo Salvini confirmed his status as a rising star of European far-right politics when his League party swept a third of the vote in Italian EU parliamentary…

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Holistic approach needed on migration, Cyprus says, not just cash

Throwing money at irregular migration will not make it go away, Cyprus said , saying the EU needed to take a holistic approach and rethink a ban on deportations to…

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Shooting incident at Greek shipping company leaves one dead, wounds two

ATHENS, Feb 12 (Reuters) - At least one man was killed and two wounded during a rare shooting incident at a Greek shipping company in Athens on Monday, police sources…

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Eva Kaili won’t run for reelection as MEP

Greek member of European Parliament Eva Kaili won’t run in the upcoming EU election, one of her lawyers said. “Unfortunately, she will not be a candidate,” her Greek lawyer Michalis…

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Meredith Kercher killer Guede put under special surveillance

Rome court this week ruled that Rudy Guede, the 36-year-old Ivorian national convicted of murdering British exchange student Meredith Kercher in Perugia in 2007, must spend the next 12 months…

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Italian Carabinieri and Malta Police in joint operation against ID forgers

On 7 February, Europol supported the Italian Carabinieri Corps (Arma dei Carabinieri) and the Malta Police Force (Pulizija) in an operation against a criminal network involved in the facilitation of…

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Greece to raise investment price for ‘golden visas’, PM says

Greece is planning to further raise the investment threshold for "golden visas" to foreigners to 800,000 euros ($861,520) for real estate in cities and islands where demand is high, Prime…

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Pope says to be shocked by gay blessings is hypocritical

To be shocked by the recent decision by the Catholic Church to authorize the blessing of gay couples is "hypocritical", Pope Francis said in an interview published Wednesday."No one is…

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Britain, France lead 35 nation agreement on controlling spyware, mercenary hackers

Countries led by Britain, France and the United States and tech firms including Google, Microsoft and Meta on Tuesday signed a joint statement recognising the need for more action to…

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Portugal wants EU Recovery Fund to become permanent investment tool

The European Union must transform its pandemic recovery fund into a permanent instrument for structural investments to face competitiveness challenges that can only be overcome on an EU scale, Portugal's…

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Bike-friendly Paris votes to triple parking fees for SUVs

By Michel Rose PARIS (Reuters) - Parisians voted in a referendum on Sunday in favour of subjecting large SUVs to a threefold increase in parking charges as the French capital…

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Italy tops new European ranking for tourism reputation

Italy is top of a new ranking for overall reputation as a European tourist destination but it needs to improve on its institutional use of social media, the market research…

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Stop human trafficking says pope

Pope Francis on Sunday urged the world community to stop human trafficking saying at his weekly Angelus prayer that "too many people are being exploited".Francis also said that tolerance and…

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UK, Italy seek ‘innovative partnerships’ to deal with illegal migration

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni agreed to keep working together to deal with illegal migration by developing "innovative partnerships" along migration routes, Sunak's office…

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Pope condemns anti-Judaism, anti-Semitism amid new wave of attacks against Jews

Pope Francis condemned all forms of anti-Judaism and anti-Semitism, labelling them as a "sin against God", after noticing an increase in attacks against Jews around the world. "(The Church) rejects…

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Bike-friendly Paris votes on raising parking fees for SUVs

PARIS, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Paris holds a referendum on Sunday asking Parisians whether the city should impose a parking surcharge on large SUVs, as the French capital pushes on…

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Italy’s junior culture minister quits after stolen painting scandal

Italian junior culture minister and art critic Vittorio Sgarbi, under investigation over possession of a stolen painting, announced he was quitting because Rome's antitrust body was trying to curb his…

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Portugal’s far-right closes in on mainstream parties before March election

LISBON, (Reuters) - Portugal's far-right Chega party jumped to 21% of voting intentions in a new opinion poll ahead of a March 10 snap election, closing in on the mainstream…

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Vittorio Emanuele of Savoy, son of Italy’s last king, dies aged 86

Vittorio Emanuele of Savoy, the only son of Italy's last king, who lived in exile in neighbouring Switzerland for most of his life, has died aged 86 at his home…

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Nearly 100 dead or missing migrants in Mediterranean so far in 2024 – IOM

Nearly 100 migrants have died or disappeared in the central and eastern Mediterranean since the beginning of 2024, more than double the toll recorded last year during the same period,…

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Migrant arrivals to Spain’s Canaries jump by over 1,000% in January

The number of migrants from West Africa who braved the sea in fragile boats to reach Spain's Canary Islands jumped more than 1,000% in January from a year ago, data…

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15 arrested for arranging sham marriages in Cyprus

Europol’s Operational Task Force (OTF) Limassol, at the end of the month of January, carried out an action day led by Cyprus, involving Latvia and Portugal, supported by Eurojust. The…

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French food industry lobby sees 0-1% price cuts after talks with retailers

PARIS, Feb 1 (Reuters) - The head of French food industry lobby ANIA said on Thursday that the latest round of negotiations between retailers and large consumer goods companies was…

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Italy’s government clashes with Fiat-owner Stellantis

ROME, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni's rightist government is set to unveil new subsidies on Thursday for buyers of electric, hybrid and low-emission internal combustion cars.…

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Italy plans $1 bln of subsidies this year to boost car industry, ready to buy stake in Stellantis

By Giuseppe Fonte ROME, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Italy will provide 950 million euros ($1 billion) in subsidies this year to help drivers make the switch to cleaner cars and…

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