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00:00The Social Democrats narrowly beat out the far-right AFD in regional elections in Brandenburg.
00:11French locals are frustrated over the appointment of a centre-right government despite the success
00:15of the left in recent elections.
00:20A blueprint to tackle issues like climate change and security was approved by the United
00:25Nations General Assembly.
00:35German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's Social Democrat party narrowly won an election in the eastern
00:39German state of Brandenburg.
00:41Three weeks after the far-right Alternative for Germany made gains in two other East German
00:45states, the SPD came out on top.
00:48Results published by the state electoral administration say the SPD won 30.9% while the AFD came second
00:54with 29.2%.
00:57It's an important victory for me, it's an important victory for my party and it's an
01:03important victory for the state of Brandenburg because it's one of the biggest goals for
01:13us in the beginning of our campaign was to provide stability.
01:22The SPD's victory brought a reprieve to Scholz, whose three-party governing coalition has
01:26fared poorly in elections so far this year.
01:30Scholz has expressed his desire to be his party's candidate for Chancellor in next year's
01:34federal election, with this weekend's vote also being watched for what it might signal
01:39about his political future.
01:46At a farmer's market in southern France, locals expressed their frustrations over the recent
01:50appointment of the new French government.
01:53A left-wing coalition won the most seats in June-July elections, but the government announced
01:58over the weekend is dominated by centrists and conservatives.
02:05Others are cautious, saying that it is too early to pass judgement on the work of the
02:24new government.
02:36France's new government was announced two months after elections that produced a hung
02:39parliament and deepened political divisions as the country grapples with financial and
02:44diplomatic challenges.
03:14Weeping miners stood alongside mine cars that brought up the bodies of their colleagues,
03:18all covered in coal dust.
03:21The Iranian Red Crescent Society is working on rescuing those still trapped below the
03:25surface.
03:27Authorities blamed the blast on a leak of methane gas.
03:31Such gases are common in mining, though modern safety measures call for ventilation and other
03:36measures to protect workers.
03:38It wasn't immediately clear what safety measures were in place at the mine in Tabas.
03:48The United Nations General Assembly approved a blueprint to bring the world's increasingly
03:52divided nations together to tackle 21st century challenges.
03:58Those issues range from climate change and artificial intelligence to escalating conflict
04:02and increasing inequality and poverty.
04:08The so-called Pact for the Future challenges the leaders of the 193 member nations of the
04:12UN to turn promises into real actions that make a difference in the world.
04:19Its goal is to encourage international peace and security, foster inclusive societies and
04:24ensure technology is for the common good of mankind.
04:28The pact was adopted at the opening of the two-day Summit for the Future called by UN
04:32Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.
04:36International delegations in attendance at the summit included German Chancellor Olaf
04:40Schultz and 2014 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala.
04:49Work is in full swing in Greece's capital region Attica to make it flood-proof for the
04:54winter.
04:56Local crews are cleaning streams that could threaten many areas.
05:03For the governor of Attica, Nikos Hardalias, here on a visit to get an impression of the
05:08progress being made, this is essential work.
05:12However, it is beset with problems.
05:15We are fighting the battle of self-interest.
05:18We are highlighting issues that should have been resolved.
05:21There should be regular clean-up operations.
05:24We are trying to sort all this out, to put it in order.
05:29Our biggest problem is the problem of disintegration.
05:35There are streams that we clean, there are streams that the ministry cleans, there are
05:39streams that the municipality cleans.
05:41You realize that all this creates a lot of problems and a lot of diseases.
05:50According to the Attica region, so far, cleaning of 19 streams has been completed in more than
05:5610 kilometers, while by the end of October it is estimated that cleaning of 19 more streams
06:02will have been completed, and so in total more than 30 kilometers will have been cleaned.
06:07Delays of important projects in local government due to bureaucracy or lack of resources are
06:13common, but Nikos Hardalias has submitted a detailed proposal which can be implemented
06:19step by step.
06:22Part of the proposal on how to implement these projects is still in progress, so that we
06:28don't lose a lot of precious time.
06:32Some important steps have been taken, but we need a comprehensive review of the legal
06:38tools that are given to us, and especially the financial tools, because projects without
06:42money do not exist.
06:44Governments easily send us the appropriations, but they also have to pay the necessary taxes.
06:49Without money we cannot carry out projects.
06:52The region had previously suffered severe damage from massive wildfires which reached
06:57the northern suburbs of Athens earlier this month.
07:06A biodiversity initiative launched by nature and environmental protection groups in Switzerland
07:11did not succeed in a referendum held on Sunday.
07:15Over 60% of voters rejected the idea, which aimed to increase green spaces untouched by
07:21human development.
07:23Switzerland is renowned for its pristine lakes and majestic alpine peaks, but its plant and
07:28animal life is under great threat.
07:31The initiative called for public funding to encourage farmers to set aside lands and waterways
07:36to help wild landscape develop.
07:39It also would have prohibited the construction of new railway lines through protected dry
07:43meadows.
07:46Proponents pointed to threats to Switzerland's bees, frogs, birds and other wildlife, as
07:51well as dwindling natural resources.
07:54The federal government and many rural voters opposed the plan, arguing it was too expensive.
08:00630 million euros is already spent on biodiversity protection each year.
08:07Another proposal on pension reforms was also rejected in Sunday's referendums.
08:13The plan would have required employers and workers to raise their contributions into
08:17compulsory occupational funds, an idea widely opposed by unions.
08:23Referendums take place four times a year in Switzerland, far more often than any other
08:28European country.
08:31Prisoners in Finland have been participating in AI annotation training as part of a rehabilitation
08:38programme.
08:42The aim is to reduce repeat offending by equipping inmates with modern skills.
08:47So this current AI labelling, data labelling project started in 2022, so it's been running
08:58for about two years.
09:01And it's currently done in three prisons, and one of them is a women's prison and then
09:08there are two men's prisons.
09:11And this is done in collaboration with a software company.
09:16Human input, such as data labelling, helps AI system development.
09:22And with the Finnish language only spoken by five million people, hiring native speakers
09:27can be costly in a high-wage economy like Finland.
09:31Our software tries to interpret text material and different details about construction products.
09:41So then we need to teach the language models to understand Finnish language and to understand
09:48construction context.
09:51But experts stress such programmes are limited in scope and should focus on rehabilitation.
09:58It's good to give the prisoners something to do, to have structure in the day, to help
10:04them for the adjusted eventual release back to the civilian life, so that you would have
10:12slightly more likelihood of not committing more crimes when you are released in the civilian life.
10:25And data work in general is seen as really helpful in this.
10:30The Finnish authorities say other Nordic and European countries have also now sought consultation
10:36on digital rehabilitation projects in prisons.
10:40Vibrant leopards leap out of frames and large taxidermied lionesses pounce onto zebras.
10:48A menagerie of still-life animals and self-portraits are on show at a new exhibition of Antonio
10:54Ligabue's beguiling works in Bologna.
10:57A hundred pieces by the visionary artist are on display, including some never before seen
11:02by the public.
11:03They are real rustles of colour.
11:06It's his soul that is expressed through this great ability to structure an image through
11:17the use of colour.
11:18And he does it with violence, ardour and passion, putting all his soul into it.
11:25Ligabue's life was anything but a blank canvas, as the isolated artist only enjoyed relative
11:31success at the end of his career.
11:33But his vivid vision of the human kingdom and himself continues to capture European
11:38hearts.