International

• Friday, October 16th 2020 - 09:01 UTC

  Critical Friday for post-Brexit talks: EU insists Johnson must make concessions

  

  The negotiations between Britain and the European Union over their future relationship are lurching toward a crisis after European Union leaders told Boris Johnson he must make concessions only hours before the prime minister is due to decide whether to walk away.

• Friday, October 16th 2020 - 08:56 UTC

  Brazilian exports of animal protein booming, with China the leading client

  

  Brazilian exports of chicken, pork, and beef continue to be in high demand in 2020, according to data from the Brazilian Animal Protein Association (ABPA) and the Brazilian Meat Packers Association (ABRAFRIGO). In September, however, while exports of beef and pork registered a positive performance in relation to the same month of 2019, chicken exports fell 2.3%.

• Friday, October 16th 2020 - 07:22 UTC

  Queen Elizabeth II in her first major engagement since UK's coronavirus lockdown

  

  Queen Elizabeth II carried out her first major engagement since the United Kingdom's coronavirus lockdown began in March, visiting the Porton Down military research facility on Thursday. The lab in south-west England was involved in dealing with the 2018 Novichok nerve agent attack on a Russian ex-spy in the nearby city of Salisbury.

• Friday, October 16th 2020 - 06:07 UTC

  New Zealand Ardern ready to step down if she loses Saturday general election

  

  New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Thursday that she will step down as leader of the center-left Labour Party if opinion polls prove to be wrong and she loses Saturday's general election.

• Thursday, October 15th 2020 - 09:49 UTC

  Pandemic restrictions reflected an unprecedented fall in greenhouse gas emissions

  

  Covid-19 pandemic restrictions saw an unprecedented fall in greenhouse gas emissions in the first half of 2020 – larger than during the 2008 financial crisis and even World War II – experts said on Wednesday.

• Thursday, October 15th 2020 - 09:34 UTC

  Macron orders night curfew for Paris and eight other cities, a third of French population

  

  President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday ordered a nighttime curfew for Paris and eight other French cities to contain the spread of COVID-19 after daily new infection rates reached alarming record levels.

• Thursday, October 15th 2020 - 09:30 UTC

  Support for Scottish independence rises to record high, 58%

  

  Support for Scottish independence from the United Kingdom has risen to a record high of 58%, an Ipsos Mori poll released on Wednesday suggested. The poll of 1,045 adults aged over 16 across Scotland, conducted from Oct 2 to 9, saw only 42% back staying in the union once undecided voters were stripped out.

• Thursday, October 15th 2020 - 09:22 UTC

  Johnson waiting for the EU summit before taking any decision on post-Brexit talks

  

  Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson declared himself disappointed in the progress of post-Brexit trade talks on Wednesday, but he will wait for news from an EU summit before deciding whether to pull the plug.

• Thursday, October 15th 2020 - 08:58 UTC

  Germany pledges half billion Euros to aid Holocaust survivors, exposed to Covid-19

  

  Germany has agreed to provide more than a half-billion Euros to aid Holocaust survivors struggling under the burdens of the coronavirus pandemic, the organization that negotiates compensation with the German government said on Wednesday.

• Thursday, October 15th 2020 - 08:38 UTC

  Rape and sexual abuse of altar boys who serve Mass in St Peter's Basilica

  

  A Vatican court heard graphic descriptions of sexual abuse on Wednesday as two priests went on trial, one charged with repeatedly raping an altar boy in a youth seminary and the other of covering up the attacks.