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Albanian PM Accuses UK Home Secretary of “Ethnic Stereotyping” Over Asylum Remarks

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Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama has accused UK Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood of engaging in “ethnic stereotyping” after she highlighted Albanian families while outlining major reforms to the UK asylum system. Mahmood told MPs that around 700 Albanian families were staying in taxpayer-funded accommodation despite having failed asylum claims — a figure Rama dismissed as insignificant compared with the UK’s wider post-Brexit challenges. He stressed that Albania has cooperated closely with the UK, noting that more than 13,000 people have been returned under a bilateral agreement since 2022.

Rama criticised the Home Secretary for echoing “far-right rhetoric” and argued that Albanians are net contributors to the British economy with comparatively low benefit usage. He warned that repeatedly singling out Albanians amounted to demagoguery rather than policy, adding that official decisions should not be shaped by ethnic generalisations. His comments come amid long-standing tensions with UK politicians over how Albanian nationals are portrayed in immigration debates.

Mahmood made the remarks while announcing sweeping changes to what she described as the UK’s “out of control and unfair” asylum system. Under the proposed reforms, refugee status would become temporary, the wait for permanent settlement would increase from five to twenty years, and families with no right to remain could be removed. The UK would also introduce capped legal migration routes while continuing to prioritise the removal of failed asylum seekers “regardless of who they are.”

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Paris Court Halts Auction of Historic 17th-Century Pascal Calculator

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A Paris court has temporarily blocked the auction of La Pascaline, one of the world’s earliest mechanical calculators, preventing its export from France. Auction house Christie’s, which had planned to sell the 1642 device for an estimated €2–3 million, confirmed it has suspended the sale. The calculator, developed by Blaise Pascal when he was just 19, is considered one of the most significant scientific instruments in history, with only nine known examples remaining.

The decision follows a legal appeal from scientists and heritage groups who argued that the machine should be designated a French “national treasure.” The court expressed “serious doubts” about the legality of the export certificate previously issued by the culture minister, which had been approved by experts including one from the Louvre. Until a final ruling is delivered, the export authorisation remains frozen.

La Pascaline had been showcased in New York and Hong Kong as part of Christie’s auction of collector Léon Parcé’s library, which also featured Pascal’s philosophical works. Heritage advocates welcomed the court’s move, noting the calculator’s immense historic value and its place as the first known attempt to mechanise human computation.

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Italy Approves Extradition of Ukrainian Nord Stream Suspect to Germany

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Italy’s top court has approved the extradition of a Ukrainian man, identified as Serhii K., to Germany, where he faces charges related to the 2022 sabotage of the Nord Stream gas pipelines. The suspect, a former Ukrainian military officer, has been contesting his transfer since being detained in Rimini, Italy, under a European arrest warrant in August. His lawyer expressed disappointment but remains hopeful for acquittal after the trial in Germany.

German prosecutors allege that Serhii K. was involved in planting explosive devices on the Nord Stream pipelines near Denmark’s Bornholm island, in acts described as sabotage that disrupted Russian gas transit to Europe and strained energy supplies across the continent. He faces charges including collusion to cause an explosion, anti-constitutional sabotage, and destruction of critical infrastructure.

The suspect has been held in a high-security Italian prison, where he reportedly staged a hunger strike to protest prison conditions. The court’s ruling comes amid contrasting decisions in the region, with a Polish court recently rejecting the extradition of another Ukrainian linked to the explosions, ordering his release.

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Poland Shuts Last Russian Consulate, Blames Moscow for Railway Sabotage

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Poland announced on Wednesday that it will close Russia’s last remaining consulate on its territory, escalating its response to a railway explosion that Warsaw has blamed on Moscow. The blast, which occurred over the weekend on the Warsaw-Lublin line leading to the Ukrainian border, was allegedly carried out by two Ukrainians working with Russian intelligence. Polish authorities say the suspects fled to Belarus, a close ally of Russia.

Foreign Minister Radoslaw Sikorski said the closure of the Russian consulate in Gdansk is the first step, following earlier closures of Russian consulates in Krakow and Poznan in response to similar sabotage concerns. Calling the railway incident “an act of state terrorism,” Sikorski added that Poland would also pursue non-diplomatic measures. Moscow, which denies any involvement, accused Poland of “Russophobia” and indicated it would restrict Poland’s diplomatic presence in Russia.

Warsaw is now urging its EU partners to curb the movement of Russian diplomats within the Schengen zone, warning that further actions may follow. Poland and other EU states have repeatedly accused Russia and Belarus of destabilizing the region, including by fueling migration at the borders. Polish intelligence officials say several additional people have been detained in connection with the blast, amid a wider surge in sabotage, arson and cyberattacks across Europe since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

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Russian Strikes Kill 16 in Western Ukraine as Missile Barrage Hits Residential Blocks

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Russia launched one of its deadliest attacks on western Ukraine since the full-scale invasion, killing at least 16 people and injuring dozens in the city of Ternopil. Two residential blocks were hit by drones and missiles, with Ukrainian officials reporting that 14 children were among the 64 wounded. Strikes also targeted the regions of Lviv and Ivano-Frankivsk, while separate drone attacks in Kharkiv injured more than 30 people. Widespread power outages were reported across multiple regions.

President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia fired more than 470 drones and 47 missiles, causing “significant destruction” and leaving many trapped under rubble. Videos from Ternopil showed one apartment block collapsed from the third to the ninth floor, with fires and heavy smoke visible across the area. Infrastructure, including energy and transport facilities, suffered severe damage in several regions as emergency workers continued rescue efforts through the night.

The strikes came a day after Ukraine confirmed firing US-supplied ATACMS missiles at targets inside Russia for the first time. In response, Russia accused Ukraine of launching missiles at Voronezh, all of which it claimed were intercepted. Meanwhile, tensions rose across the region, with Romania reporting a Russian drone entering its airspace and Poland scrambling jets following the attacks. Diplomatic movements also intensified, with Zelensky traveling to Ankara for talks as both sides remain deeply divided on any potential peace solution.

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Klimt Portrait Sells for $236 Million, Becomes Second Most Expensive Artwork at Auction

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A rare portrait by Austrian artist Gustav Klimt has sold for $236.4 million (£179m) at Sotheby’s in New York, becoming the second most expensive artwork ever auctioned. The Portrait of Elisabeth Lederer, painted between 1914 and 1916, triggered a 20-minute bidding war among six buyers. Sotheby’s did not disclose the identity of the winning bidder.

The painting’s history is as dramatic as its price. It was looted by the Nazis, nearly destroyed in a World War Two fire, and later recovered in 1948. Returned to Lederer’s brother, Erich, it remained with the family until it was sold in 1983. The portrait, which shows Lederer in a white robe before a blue tapestry with Asian motifs, later entered the private collection of Estée Lauder heir Leonard A. Lauder in 1985, where it stayed until this week’s sale.

Tuesday’s auction far exceeded expectations, with Sotheby’s originally estimating a price of $150 million. Several other Klimt works from Lauder’s collection also sold for between $60m and $80m. The record for the most expensive artwork ever sold at auction remains Leonardo da Vinci’s Salvator Mundi, which fetched $450.3m in 2017. In a separate headline, a 101-kg functioning gold toilet by Maurizio Cattelan sold for $12.1m during the same event.

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Poland Scrambles Jets After Russian Strikes Near Border With Ukraine

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Poland activated its air defence and scrambled fighter jets early Wednesday after Russia launched a wave of airstrikes on western Ukraine, close to the Polish border. The Polish Armed Forces said quick-reaction fighter jets and an early-warning aircraft were deployed to secure national airspace.

In a statement on X, Poland’s operational command confirmed that ground-based air defence units and radar systems were raised to their highest state of readiness amid heightened tensions along NATO’s eastern flank.

The response followed widespread air raid alerts across Ukraine around 0400 GMT, as the Ukrainian Air Force warned of incoming Russian missile and drone attacks.

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France Nears First Food Trade Deficit in Nearly 50 Years Amid Export Pressures

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France is on the verge of recording its first annual food and agricultural trade deficit in almost five decades, driven by new foreign tariffs on wine exports and soaring global prices for cocoa and coffee. The country, long considered an agri-food export powerhouse thanks to the EU’s largest farming base, has seen its competitiveness steadily erode amid intensifying global and intra-EU competition. The decline has fueled strong opposition among farmers toward trade agreements like the proposed pact with the Mercosur bloc.

Customs data from the French Agriculture Ministry shows a cumulative deficit of 351 million euros for January to September 2025, following last year’s sharp surplus drop to its lowest level since the 1980s. Despite a significantly stronger harvest this year boosting cereal exports, the sector still posted a trade deficit in September. Analysts warn that temporary challenges, including tariffs from the U.S. and China and a spike in import costs for cocoa and coffee, are only part of the picture.

Industry leaders say deeper structural issues—such as high production costs, regulatory burdens, and slower global marketing efforts compared to competitors like Spain and Italy—have further weakened France’s trade position. As France grapples with these pressures, agricultural organisations argue for urgent reforms to revive competitiveness and rebuild the country’s historic strength in global food trade.

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Greece Marks 1973 Student Revolt with Mass Marches and Memorials

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Thousands of people marched through Athens on Monday to commemorate the 1973 Athens Polytechnic uprising, the student-led revolt that played a key role in ending Greece’s military dictatorship. The annual march, which traditionally heads to the U.S. embassy — a symbolic location due to perceptions of American support for the junta — once again became a platform for wider political expression and dissent. At the front of the procession, students carried the iconic blood-stained Greek flag from the original uprising.

Participants paused outside the Greek Parliament to sing the national anthem in tribute to the victims of the 2023 train disaster, a tragedy that continues to fuel public anger over state failures. Demonstrators later reached the U.S. embassy, heavily guarded by police buses, where many carried carnations and banners reading “Resistance,” and some voiced solidarity with Palestinians. Authorities deployed nearly 5,000 officers across the city, detaining more than 30 people ahead of the march and arresting 11.

Earlier in the day, crowds gathered at the Athens Polytechnic to lay wreaths and carnations at the historic site where army tanks crushed the student revolt on November 17, 1973, killing dozens. The uprising is widely seen as the turning point that hastened the fall of the military regime. Many young participants said the message of the revolt — defending democracy and rights — remains deeply relevant today amid debates over new labour laws and government policies.

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Lost Bach Organ Works Performed After 320 Years, Confirmed as Authentic

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Two previously unknown organ compositions by Johann Sebastian Bach have been performed publicly in Germany for the first time in 320 years, marking a major milestone in classical music history. Germany’s Culture Minister Wolfram Weimer described the discovery as a “great moment for the world of music.” Musicologist Peter Wollny first encountered the manuscripts in 1992 while cataloguing Bach materials at the Royal Library of Belgium and spent three decades authenticating them.

The two works, Chaconne in D minor (BWV 1178) and Chaconne in G minor (BWV 1179), were unveiled at Leipzig’s St Thomas Church—Bach’s workplace for 27 years and his final resting place. They were performed by Dutch organist Ton Koopman, who said he was honoured to debut the long-lost compositions, praising their high quality and suitability even for smaller organs.

Researchers believe Bach composed the pieces early in his career while working in Arnstadt, with one of his pupils, Salomon Günther John, likely having written them down in 1705. Wollny, now director of the Bach Archive, said he is “99.99% sure” of their authenticity, noting stylistic features that are unmistakably Bach. The works have since been added to the official catalogue of his compositions.

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