Issues

Elon Musk’s SpaceX postpones debut flight of Starship rocket system

Elon Musk's SpaceX ha scalled off a highly anticipated launch of its powerful new Starship rocket, delaying the first uncrewed test flight of the vehicle into space. The two-stage rocketship,…

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WATCH: NASA names woman, Black astronauts to Artemis II crew in lunar first

NASA on Monday named the first woman and the first African American ever assigned as astronauts to a lunar mission, introducing them as part of the four-member team chosen to…

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Italy rescues 32 migrants near Lampedusa

Italy's Coast Guard said on Monday it was forced to use a helicopter to rescue 32 migrants, including a child, who had been stranded on a desert island in the…

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Libyan migrants are victims of crimes against humanity – UN mission

A U.N. fact-finding mission on Libya said on Monday that it had reasonable grounds to believe war crimes and crimes against humanity had been committed, including against migrants, and that…

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Cocaine use has risen across Europe, study shows

Cocaine use has increased across Europe, an EU-wide wastewater study showed on Wednesday, with the highest levels of residues found in Belgium, Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands. The study, the…

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Germany sees progress in EU talks for ban on fossil fuel cars

Talks between Germany's Transport Ministry and the European Commission about the planned end of new combustion engines from 2035 are moving forward, the ministry said on Monday, but added it…

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U.N. chief urges faster shift to ‘net zero’ after report highlights climate threat

U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres called on rich nations to accelerate their shift to "net zero" emissions on Monday after a new assessment from scientists warned there was little time…

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Italy’s Meloni says her ‘conscience is clear’ after migrant shipwrecks

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni said on Monday that her government had faced "atrocious" accusations but that her conscience was clear, after Rome's ability to rescue migrants at sea came under…

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UK interior minister attacks ‘naive do-gooders’ amid criticism of small boats strategy

Britain's interior minister Suella Braverman defended her policy to remove almost all migrants who arrive without permission, saying her political opponents were "naive do-gooders" and there had has been "too…

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Shipwreck grief must translate into action – Mattarella

Italian President Sergio Mattarella said that action must be taken after yet another migrant tragedy hit Italy last week following a shipwreck off the Calabrian coast. 70 individuals, including 16…

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WATCH: Japan’s new rocket fails after engine issue, in blow to space ambitions

Japan's new medium-lift rocket failed on its debut flight in space on Tuesday after the launcher's second-stage engine did not ignite as planned, in a blow to its efforts to…

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COP28 president-designate says world needs climate ‘course correction’

The United Arab Emirates climate envoy and designated president of the COP28 climate summit said on Tuesday the world needed a "course correction" to limit global warming, adding that he…

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Three drown, dozens feared missing in migrant shipwreck off Greece

Three people drowned and two dozen are believed to be missing in the second migrant shipwreck off Greece this week, authorities said on Tuesday. The coast guard said 16 people…

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Mafia boss asks judge to order seizure of Roberto Saviano book

Giuseppe Graviano, a Sicilian Mafia boss who is serving a life sentence in a maximum security prison has asked a court to seize a book by Roberto Saviano, claiming inaccuracies…

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WATCH: 95 migrants disembark in Carrara after Med journey

95 migrants have been disembarked in the Marina di Carrara port after being rescued close to Libyan waters, TGCOM has reported. 15 women and 38 minors are reportedly on board…

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Europe had second-warmest year on record in 2022, EU scientists say

Europe experienced its second-warmest year on record in 2022, European Union scientists said on Tuesday, as climate change unleashed record-breaking weather extremes that slashed crop yields, dried up rivers and…

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Britain’s groundbreaking satellite launch ends in failure

Britain's attempt to become the first European nation to launch satellites into space ended in bitter disappointment early on Tuesday when Virgin Orbit said its rocket had suffered an anomaly that…

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U.N. chief to convene ‘no-nonsense’ climate summit in 2023

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will convene a "no-nonsense" climate ambition summit in September next year and warned on Monday that there will be "no room for back-sliders, greenwashers, blame-shifters"…

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EU sets out Mediterranean migrant plan ahead of emergency meeting

The European Commission set out a 20-point action plan designed to address surging migration in the central Mediterranean ahead of an emergency meeting of interior ministers. Over 90,000 migrants and…

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Climate justice gets harder as world population passes 8 billion

Bank of Japan Governor Haruhiko Kuroda on Tuesday highlighted the importance of sustainable finance to address climate change and achieve decarbonisation. "Sustainable finance has a crucial role to play in…

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EU to tell U.N. summit it plans to raise climate target in 2023

The European Union is expected to announce plans at the COP27 summit on Tuesday to update its emissions-cutting target under the Paris climate change accord before next year's U.N. summit, a…

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UK has not set a timeline for migration deal with France

Britain has not set a deadline for agreeing a deal with France to curb the number of migrants illegally crossing the English Channel, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's spokesman said on…

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Richard Branson must face lawsuit in U.S. over Virgin Galactic space travel problems

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A U.S. judge on Monday said British billionaire entrepreneur Richard Branson must face shareholder claims he concealed problems in Virgin Galactic Holdings Inc's spaceship program, and…

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Brazil’s Lula hopes to unite rainforest nations, tap funding at COP27

A new alliance of rainforest nations - sought by Brazil's President-elect Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva - could be key to unlocking conservation funding and bolstering a flagging global forest…

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We’re on a highway to climate hell, U.N. boss warns

SHARM EL-SHEIKH, EGYPT (Reuters) - United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres told countries gathered at the start of the COP27 summit in Egypt on Monday they face a stark choice:…

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COP26 a year later: Where do last year’s climate pledges stand?

(Reuters) - A year ago at the U.N. climate talks in Glasgow, Scotland, countries, banks and business leaders announced a slew of climate plans and pledges. Here is an update…

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EU countries agree to hike climate change target next year

European Union countries agreed on Monday to raise their target to curb greenhouse gas emissions under the Paris climate agreement next year, as the bloc attempts to rally ambition among…

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MEPs block Frontex budget after serious misconduct revealed

The European Parliament has refused to give its approval for the budget of Frontex, the border and coast guard agency. 345 MEPs voted in favour of the committee recommendation to…

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Hurricane Ian rips into western Cuba, with Florida in its sights

Hurricane Ian slammed into western Cuba on Tuesday, forcing evacuations, cutting power to hundreds of thousands of people and swamping fishing villages as it tracked northward toward Florida, where residents…

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Asylum applicants in Europe up 4% in June 2022, largest group are Syrians

In June 2022, 65 645 first-time asylum applicants (non-EU citizens) applied for international protection in the EU Member States, up 66% compared with June 2021 (39 515) and 4% compared…

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Farm and food investors face $150 billion loss on climate change – report

Top farming and food firms could lose up to a quarter of their value by 2030 if they do not adapt to new government policies and consumer behavior tied to…

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Australia braces for more pain from rain after La Nina confirmed

Much of Australia will face unusually heavy rains in coming months, the country's weather forecaster said on Tuesday, after confirming that a La Nina weather event is under way for…

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Six Syrian refugees found dead on boat reaching Sicily

Six Syrian refugees, including three children, were found dead on a migrant boat that arrived on Monday in the Sicilian port of Pozzallo, the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) said.…

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EU plans to build firefighting fleet faster after summer of climate crises

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union and its member states agreed on Monday to speed up plans to establish an EU fleet of firefighting aircraft, after rampaging wildfires across Europe…

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G7 company emissions falling short of global climate goal, study shows

Companies in the Group of Seven (G7) economies are failing to meet Paris Climate Agreement objectives, non-profit disclosure platform CDP and global management consultancy Oliver Wyman said on Tuesday, based…

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Floods, other water-related disasters could cost global economy $5.6 trillion by 2050 -report

Worsening droughts, storms and torrential rain in some of the world's largest economies could cause $5.6 trillion in losses to the global economy by 2050, according to a report released…

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WATCH: NASA’s next-generation megarocket set for debut test launch to moon

NASA's colossal next-generation rocketship was set for its long-awaited debut launch on Monday on an uncrewed, six-week test flight around the moon and back, marking the first mission of the space agency's…

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Satellite imagery shows Antarctic ice shelf crumbling faster than thought

LOS ANGELES, (Reuters) - Antarctica's coastal glaciers are shedding icebergs more rapidly than nature can replenish the crumbling ice, doubling previous estimates of losses from the world's largest ice sheet…

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UPDATE – U.S. kills al Qaeda leader Zawahiri in Kabul drone missile strike

KABUL/WASHINGTON, Aug 2 (Reuters) - The United States killed al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri with a drone missile while he stood on a balcony at his home in Kabul, U.S. officials said,…

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Officials can detain migrant rescue ships if they pose risk – EU Court

The EU's top court said on Monday that officials can detain migrant rescue ships, but only if they can prove there is a real risk to health, safety or the environment,…

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How the CIA identified and killed Al-Qaeda leader Zawahiri

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Al Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri was killed in a U.S. strike in Afghanistan over the weekend, the biggest blow to the militant group since its founder Osama…

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Russia has not signaled space station withdrawal to NASA, U.S. official says

Russia's new space chief on Tuesday signaled his country's intent to withdraw from the International Space Station after 2024, but a senior NASA official told Reuters Moscow has not communicated…

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Study finds adding salt to food at table can cut years off your life

Adding salt to meals at the table is linked to an earlier death, according to a study of 500,000 middle-aged Britons. Researchers found that always adding salt to food knocks…

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EU warns of rising narcotics production in Europe as new drugs hit market

Narcotics production is growing in Europe, according to an estimate published on Tuesday by the EU drugs agency, which warned of a proliferation of new psychoactive substances being sold and…

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Electric vehicles not the only way to meet CO2 targets, Italy car lobby says

lectric vehicles are not the only effective route to reducing carbon emissions produced by the car industry, the head of Italy's automotive lobby said on Tuesday. Other technologies could help…

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G7 scrambles to keep climate agenda on track as Ukraine war roils energy supplies

Climate ministers of the G7 met in Berlin on Thursday to discuss globally spiraling energy costs sparked by the war in Ukraine. The conflict triggered a scramble among some countries to…

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Bank of England tells banks to take climate action now or face profit hit

Banks and insurers that fail to manage climate risks as a "first-order" issue could face a 10% to 15% hit to annual profits and higher capital requirements, the Bank of England (BoE)…

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WATCH: First all-private astronaut team aboard space station heads for splashdown

The first all-private astronaut crew to fly aboard the International Space Station (ISS) headed for splashdown Monday off the coast of Florida, wrapping up a two-week mission that NASA has…

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Only severe emissions cuts will avoid climate extremes -U.N. report

Drastic cuts to fossil fuel use. Growing forests and eating less meat. These are just some of the actions needed in this decade to contain global warming to 1.5 degrees…

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Russia receives Western weather data that some fear could aid attack planning

Russian agencies are continuing to receive nearly instantaneous meteorological data from Western and other governments, which some weapons experts say could be used to plan a chemical or biological attack…

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A balanced distribution of migrants should be legally binding, CoFoE told

The creation of a legally-binding treaty ensuring the balanced and proportionate distribution of asylum seekers in the EU on the basis of solidarity and justice was one of the main…

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Watch – The Pianist of Lviv playing Armstrong’s What A Wonderful World at Train Station

A video of an accomplished pianist playing Louis Armstrong's song “What a Wonderful World” outside Lviv station has gone viral on social media. Thousands of people fleeing the Russian invasion…

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EU lays out $6.8 billion satellite communication plan in space race

The European Commission on Tuesday set out a 6 billion-euro ($6.8 billion) satellite communications plan, part of a push to cut the European Union's dependence on foreign companies and protect key communications…

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Seven migrants on boat bound for Lampedusa die of hypothermia

At least seven migrants who were on a boat heading for the Mediterranean island of Lampedusa have died of hypothermia, Italy's ANSA news agency reported on Tuesday. The coastguard sighted the boat…

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WATCH: NASA’s new space telescope reaches destination in solar orbit

NASA's James Webb Space Telescope, designed to give the world an unprecedented glimpse of infant galaxies in the early stages of the universe, arrived at its gravitational parking spot in…

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WEF says increased global divide will make fight against climate change harder

The Covid-19 pandemic have deepened the global divide between rich and poor countries and will make it harder to find common cause in the fight against climate change, according to…

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4,400 migrants lost at sea bound for Spain in 2021, double previous year

More than 4,400 migrants, including at least 205 children, were lost at sea trying to reach Spain in 2021, a monitoring group said on Monday - more than double the figure from…

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