As much of the world desperately seeks COVID vaccines, there is evidence in France that millions of people are reluctant to have a jab. The most recent polls suggest around half of the adult population may refuse a vaccination – leading health professionals to worry about public safety long term. Vaccine scepticism is high in
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Britons hoping to go on holiday after lockdown eases can think about booking a getaway to Greece for mid-May. Greece is planning on welcoming foreign tourists from 14 May depending on the status of the COVID-19 pandemic. People living in England could be allowed to go on foreign holidays from 17 May under Boris Johnson’s
A French schoolgirl has admitted to lying about a teacher before he was beheaded in an Islamist terror attack last year. Samuel Paty, 47, was killed after showing images of the Prophet Muhammad to his class during a lesson on free speech last October. On Sunday, French newspaper Le Parisien revealed that the girl, known
A British-Australian academic who was convicted and imprisoned in Iran for spying has said she had suicidal thoughts while in solitary confinement. Dr Kylie Moore-Gilbert was jailed for ten years on charges of espionage in September 2018. She was released in November 2020 in exchange for three Iranians being held abroad. She had vehemently denied
A nun in Myanmar told junta forces “you’ll have to come through me” – moments before they opened fire on protesters. At least two people were confirmed dead in the city of Myitkyina on Monday following clashes with security forces. Sister Ann Roza Nu Tawng previously said she was prepared to die to save others
At least 20 people have been killed after a series of large explosions at a military base in the city of Bata in Equatorial Guinea. The cause of the blasts is not yet known but reports on the TVGE news channel suggested authorities had ruled out an attack. TVGE called on people to donate blood
Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe’s five-year sentence is over but she has not been released. Yes her electronic tag has been taken off and she can travel where she wants – within Iran. But Nazanin cannot leave the country. And it seems she must return to court next Sunday. Image: Nazanin has been held in Iran for five
The Pope has performed Mass in a Baghdad cathedral after earlier holding a historic meeting with Iraq’s top Shia cleric. Francis was greeted by enthusiastic well-wishers at the Chaldean Cathedral of Saint Joseph on the second day of his visit to the country. Only 100 or so people were allowed in because of COVID restrictions
Pope Francis has met Grand Ayatollah Ali al Sistani – Iraq’s top Shia cleric – at the Islamic scholar’s home in the Iraqi city of Najaf. The Pope arrived at the cleric’s small home in a bullet-proof vehicle. As he entered the house, white doves were released, reflecting the themes of this four-day visit to
A nun who knelt in front of armed security forces in Myanmar to stop them firing on civilians has said she was prepared to die to save protestors’ lives. In extraordinary scenes in Myitkyina, Kachin State, Sister Ann Roza Nu Tawng can be seen pleading with police and soldiers not to shoot. The intervention has
The Pope has arrived in Iraq for an historic weekend visit which carries both symbolism and risk. With a message of inter-faith tolerance, Francis will spend four days in Iraq in what is his first foreign trip in more than a year and the first-ever papal pilgrimage to the war-hit nation. The Pope will visit
Australia has hit back at the EU’s move to block a shipment of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine – suggesting the bloc was trying to “tear up the rule book”. Italy earlier said it would block the export of about 250,000 vaccine doses from its Anagni plant, a decision that was later approved by the EU, after
German health officials have U-turned on the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine and recommended it is safe for use on over-65s. The German health ministry said on Thursday that its independent vaccine committee has now formally approved the COVID-19 jab for use in that age group. It comes after disproved claims in Europe that the jab was as
Dozens of scientists and doctors are demanding the release of Kathleen Folbigg, who is serving 30 years in jail after being convicted of killing her four children. Folbigg, 53, was jailed in 2003 for the murders of her children Patrick, Sarah and Laura – aged between eight months and 19 months – between 1991 and
An “incel” who admitted using a van to kill 10 pedestrians in Toronto has been found guilty of their murder. Alek Minassian faced 10 counts of first-degree murder and 16 counts of attempted murder in connection with the attack on 23 April 2018 that drew attention to an online world of sexual loneliness, rage and
School pupils from an all-girls’ boarding school in the town of Jangebe were required to attend a different sort of assembly this morning. Instead of the classroom, they sat in a building that government officials in the Nigerian state of Zamfara use to speak to the media. They were given a little food, then filmed