La Biélorussie libère la figure de l’opposition Maria Kolesnikova et une centaine de prisonniers
A drone attack in Russia's Saratov region has killed at least two people, reports suggest

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Here’s how to enjoy the best of the warm temperatures, volcanic peaks and Atlantic shallows that the cluster of Canaries has to offer

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Teenager who first scrawled messages on pavement in protest at rightwing government did not expect so many others to follow suit
Scrawled in chalk on the pavement near a secondary school in eastern Slovakia, the messages were short and to the point: “Enough Fico,” read one, echoing a popular anti-government slogan, while the other joked about the Slovakian prime minister providing sexual favours to Vladimir Putin.
Appearing hours before the prime minister, Robert Fico, was due to speak at the school, the messages struck a nerve. Similar comments swiftly began sprouting up across Slovakian pavements in what was labelled the “Chalk Revolution” by some and “November Chalk Wave” by others.
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© Photograph: Joe Klamar/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Joe Klamar/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Joe Klamar/AFP/Getty Images
Veja doesn’t do surveys or freebies, hates greenwashing and Black Friday, and as demand for trainers wanes, it continues to go its own way
In the grand hierarchy of Paris fashion, it’s tricky for a brand to stand out. Especially one whose coup de maître is a goes-with-everything white sneaker. Yet 20 years after Veja first began selling sustainable footwear, it has become the ultimate affordable It brand for scooter-wielding mums, sustainably minded millennials and A-list bigwigs who want to wear their values on their ethical leather-clad feet.
Veja’s co-founder Sébastien Kopp says he doesn’t know if people buy his trainers because of how they are made or because of how they look. The company is fastidious about social and fairtrade practices, “but because we don’t do surveys, we don’t do marketing, we simply don’t know this information”, he says, speaking from Veja’s Paris headquarters.
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© Photograph: VEJA

© Photograph: VEJA

© Photograph: VEJA


Choice to send Steve Witkoff highlights Washington's growing urgency to bridge remaining gaps with Kyiv over plan's terms

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As 27 European countries urge changes to laws forged after second world war, human rights chief says politicians are playing into hands of populists
The battle had been brewing for months. But this week it came to a head in a flurry of meetings, calls and one heady statement. Twenty-seven European countries urged a rethink of the human rights laws forged after the second world war, describing them as an impediment when it came to addressing migration.
Amnesty International has called it “a moral retreat”. Europe’s most senior human rights official said the approach risked creating a “hierarchy of people” where some are seen as more deserving of protection than others.
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© Photograph: Santi Palacios/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Santi Palacios/AFP/Getty Images
Leader praises his soldiers for turning ‘danger zone into a safe one’ during ceremony in Pyongyang welcoming them back from Ukraine war
North Korea sent troops to clear mines in Russia’s Kursk region earlier this year, leader Kim Jong-un said in a speech carried on Saturday by state media, a rare acknowledgement by Pyongyang of the deadly tasks assigned to its deployed soldiers.
According to South Korean and western intelligence agencies, North Korea has sent thousands of troops to support Russia’s nearly four-year invasion of Ukraine.
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© Photograph: KCNA VIA KNS/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: KCNA VIA KNS/AFP/Getty Images
Several European nations are already planning similar moves while Britain has said ‘nothing is off the table’
Australia is taking on powerful tech companies with its under-16 social media ban, but will the rest of the world follow? The country’s enactment of the policy is being watched closely by politicians, safety campaigners and parents. A number of other countries are not far behind, with Europe in particular hoping to replicate Australia, while the UK is keeping more of a watchful interest.
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© Photograph: Saeed Khan/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Saeed Khan/AFP/Getty Images
The decision is a significant step towards using the cash to aid Ukraine’s defence – but Moscow is threatening to retaliate
The EU has agreed to indefinitely freeze Russia’s sovereign assets in the bloc, as Moscow stepped up its threats to retaliate against Euroclear, the keeper of most of the Kremlin’s immobilised money.
The decision by the EU to use emergency powers to immobilise €210bn (£185bn) of Russia’s central bank’s assets marks a significant step towards using the cash to aid Ukraine’s defence.
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© Photograph: Sergei Ilnitsky/EPA

© Photograph: Sergei Ilnitsky/EPA

© Photograph: Sergei Ilnitsky/EPA
Russian airstrikes on Kyiv, floods in Indonesia, the IDF in Gaza and the Nutcracker in Nairobi: the past seven days as captured by the world’s leading photojournalists
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© Photograph: Eyad Baba/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Eyad Baba/AFP/Getty Images
The US is also listed as a threat due to its interest in Greenland, which the Trump administration has claimed is vital to America’s national security
Danish intelligence services have accused the US of using its economic power to “assert its will” and threatening military force against its allies.
The comments, made in its annual assessment released this week, mark the first time that the Danish Defence Intelligence Service (DDIS) has listed the US as a threat to the country. Denmark, the report warns, is “facing more and more serious threats and security policy challenges than in many years”.
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© Photograph: Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images

© Photograph: Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images

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The capital of Latvia is undergoing a cultural renaissance, says Elise Morton. Here’s how to soak in its vibrant art scene, inspiring architecture and chic cafe culture

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