Catch up with the most important stories from around Europe and beyond - latest news, breaking news, World, Business, Entertainment, Politics, Culture, Travel.
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00Italy's foreign minister condemns a rocket attack on UNIFIL base in Lebanon that injured
00:07four Italian soldiers.
00:12The French and British foreign ministers warn of the risks of the Putinization of the world
00:17ahead of talks in London.
00:22Romanian citizens living overseas begin casting their ballots ahead of Sunday's presidential
00:27election.
00:35Italy's foreign minister has condemned an attack on a UNIFIL base in Lebanon after it
00:39was hit by rockets allegedly fired by the militant group Hezbollah or its affiliates.
00:45Four Italian soldiers were injured when two rockets hit the mission base in Sharma.
00:50Antonio Tejani said the strikes were unacceptable and advised groups like Hezbollah not to play
00:55with weapons they don't know how to operate.
00:59UNIFIL is the UN peacekeeping mission to southern Lebanon and has operated in the country since
01:041978.
01:05It consists of more than 10,000 peacekeepers from 48 countries.
01:10Lebanon-based Hezbollah began firing into Israel the day after the war in Gaza started,
01:15with both sides exchanging almost daily cross-border fire.
01:19That's displaced tens of thousands on both sides of the border.
01:23Israel launched a ground offensive into Lebanon in October with up to 15,000 Israeli troops
01:28believed to be in the country.
01:34France's foreign minister Jean-Noel Barrault has met his British counterpart David Lammy
01:38in London against a backdrop of what Lammy called tough geopolitical times.
01:44An article written by the two foreign ministers and published in both the UK's iNewspaper and
01:49France's Le Figaro gave some indication of the topics they were expected to cover in
01:53Friday's talks.
01:55They warned of the consequences of what they called the attempted Putinization of the world
01:59as the war in Ukraine spreads beyond Europe.
02:02They criticized Putin's illegal and intolerable invasion of Ukraine and accused the Russian
02:07leader of attempting to rewrite the international order.
02:11Both France and the UK have been staunch supporters of Ukraine since Russia's 2022 invasion, providing
02:17billions of euros in both military and humanitarian assistance to Kiev.
02:21Lammy and Barrault also repeated their condemnation of the 7th October Hamas incursion into Israel
02:27last year, which sparked the war in Gaza.
02:35Romanians living overseas have begun casting their ballots ahead of Sunday's presidential
02:40election.
02:41147 polling stations have been set up at locations across Spain, which opened at noon
02:46on Friday.
02:48Meanwhile, 67 polling stations will be open across France, including one in Monaco.
02:54The Permanent Electoral Authority said there would be a record number of polling stations
02:58abroad for the presidential election, totaling more than 950.
03:04Sunday's election has 13 candidates vying for the presidency and is widely expected
03:09to go to a December runoff.
03:12Leading in the polls is Prime Minister Marcel Ceaulacu, who's backed by Romania's largest
03:16party, the Social Democratic Party.
03:20But far-right nationalist George Simeon is also in with a chance of winning.
03:24Recently, he praised Donald Trump and denied allegations that he's a Russian spy.
03:32Austria lifts its veto, allowing Romania and Bulgaria to join the European Schengen Free
03:39Movement area.
03:41The agreement was signed in Budapest between the three countries and will be formalized
03:45at the next Home Affairs Council in Brussels in December.
03:52European Commissioner for Home Affairs Jilva Johansson explained from Hungary.
03:57This is a great day to achieve the full freedom for all the citizens of Bulgaria and Romania
04:05into the Schengen area and I'm very happy today.
04:09Johansson expects it to be operational by January 2025.
04:14The European Commission recommended back in 2011 that both Romania and Bulgaria should
04:18be allowed access to Schengen.
04:21A final decision depended on the EU countries that vetoed their entry for years.
04:27Free movement by air and sea was finally allowed a year ago and came into force last March.
04:35Austria, however, continued to block land movement.
04:40And in a few weeks, free movement for Romanians and Bulgarians will finally become a reality.