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☆ U.S., EU, NATO urge restraint as Serbia-Kosovo border crossings close, dispute escalates
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-28 | by ( Fatos Bytyci | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/3] Locals walk near a roadblock in the northern part of the ethnically-divided town of Mitrovica, Kosovo, December 28, 2022. Dejan Pantic was arrested on Dec. 10 for assaulting a serving police officer, since when Serbs in northern Kosovo have exchanged fire with police and erected more than 10 roadblocks, demanding his release. Serbs in northern Kosovo, which they believe to be still part of Serbia, resist any moves they see as anti-Serb. Around 50,000 Serbs living in northern Kosovo refuse to recognise the government in Pristina or the status of Kosovo as a separate country. Albanian-majority Kosovo declared independence with the backing of the West, following a 1998-99 war in which NATO intervened to protect ethnic Albanian citizens.

☆ Tensions rise in northern Kosovo, Serbia puts army on alert
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MITROVICA, Kosovo, Dec 27 (Reuters) - Protesting Serbs in the ethnically divided city of Mitrovica in northern Kosovo erected new barricades on Tuesday, hours after Serbia said it had put its army on the highest combat alert following weeks of escalating tensions between Belgrade and Pristina. Since Dec. 10, Serbs in northern Kosovo have erected multiple roadblocks in and around Mitrovica and exchanged fire with police after the arrest of a former Serb policeman for allegedly assaulting serving police officers during a previous protest. Around 50,000 Serbs live in the northern part of Albanian-majority Kosovo and refuse to recognise the Pristina government or the state. They see Belgrade as their capital and are backed by Serbia, from which Kosovo declared independence in 2008. The local Serbs are demanding the release of the arrested officer and have other demands before they will remove the barricades.

CNN —Russian sausage magnate-turned-lawmaker Pavel Antov died in India on Saturday after falling from the third floor of his hotel, according to the Indian police. Police believe Antov died by suicide after falling from the third floor of his hotel in the Rayagada district, although the postmortem report has not been released yet, Sharma said. He was a member of the Russian parliament’s United Russia party, which was formerly headed by Vladimir Putin and is still staunchly supportive of the Russian President. Russian Consul General in Calcutta Alexey Idamkin told Russian state media RIA Novosti on Monday that the Odisha State Police and the Consulate General in Calcutta didn’t see anything suspicious in the death of two Russians in India. In mid-September, Russian businessman Ivan Pechorin, who was the top manager for the Corporation for the Development of the Far East and the Arctic, was found dead in Vladivostok, according to Russian state media.

☆ Shots fired near NATO patrol in Kosovo's volatile north, NATO says
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

PRISTINA, Dec 25 (Reuters) - Shots were fired near a NATO patrol in the northern part of Kosovo where local Serbs have set up roadblocks to bar police from Pristina from patrolling the area marred by ethnic tensions in recent months, NATO said on Sunday. No one was injured and the car was undamaged when the shots were heard in the area of Zubin Potok, NATO's mission, KFOR, said in a statement. Local Serbs, a population of around 50,000 in Kosovo's north, set up barricades after police on Dec. 10 arrested a former Serb police officer on charges of assaulting serving police officers during a previous protest. Kosovo's government has asked KFOR, which maintains a neutral role, to remove the barricades. Reporting by Fatos Bytyci in Pristina; Additional reporting by Ivana Sekularac in Belgrade; Editing by Howard GollerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ UK government eyes ban on single-use plastic plates and cutlery
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( Ivana Kottasová | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —Single-use plastic cutlery, plates and other items are set to be banned by the UK government and replaced by biodegradable items as it seeks to tackle the country’s – and the world’s – growing plastic waste problem. The Financial Times reported that the UK Environment Secretary Thérèse Coffey will announce firm plans in the coming weeks. The government said 1.1 billion single-use plates and 4.25 billion items of single-use cutlery are used in England each year, equivalent to 20 plates and 75 pieces of cutlery per person. The European Union banned single-use plastic plates, cutlery, straws, balloon sticks and cotton buds last summer. In the US, California put in place sweeping new restrictions on single-use plastic in June, requiring all single-use packaging and plastic single-use food serviceware be recyclable or compostable by 2032.

That’s it.”Chibrin is a former soldier from the Russian city of Yakutsk who says he served in the 64th Separate Guards Motor Rifle Brigade, the notorious Russian military unit accused of committing war crimes during their offensive in Bucha, Borodianka and other towns and villages north of Kyiv. He deserted from the Russian military in September and fled to Europe via Belarus and Kazakhstan. They saw the war, they saw defeat, saw their [fellow] combatants being murdered, saw corpses. On February 24 they just said everyone will go to war,” Chibrin said, adding that he initially refused to go. Once back in Russia, Chibrin said he spent nearly a month in hospital, most of that being bedridden with terrible back pain.

☆ Ilya Yashin: Moscow court sentences Kremlin critic to eight and a half years for spreading 'false information'
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-09 | by ( Anna Chernova Uliana Pavlova Sugam Pokharel Ivana Kottasová | Anna Chernova | Uliana Pavlova | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

CNN —A Moscow court on Friday sentenced Kremlin critic Ilya Yashin to eight years and six months imprisonment, according to Russian state media RIA Novosti, in a blow to what’s left of the country’s opposition. It is unclear if Yashin’s prison sentence for spreading “false information” about the Russian army includes the time he has already spent in jail during court hearings. Yashin, pictured in a Moscow courtroom Friday, has been sentenced to eight years and six months behind bars. In closing remarks to the court on Monday, ahead of the verdict, Yashin made a statement addressing the judge, President Vladimir Putin and the Russian public. Navalny concluded by saying that he is proud of Yashin and that he and Russia will be free.

Sacoolas pleaded guilty in October to causing death by careless driving, punishable by up to five years in prison. Speaking thought tears, Charles added: “There is an intense feeling of emptiness in the pit of my stomach without Harry around. “I didn’t lose just one son when Harry died, I lost Niall too. Sacoolas had diplomatic immunity claimed on her behalf and was able to leave the United Kingdom weeks after the accident. Cooper added that Sacoolas’ family was forced to relocate following Harry Dunn’s death after she received death threats via email and telephone.

☆ UK government greenlights first new coal mine in three decades
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-07 | by ( Ivana Kottasová | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

CNN —The UK has greenlit a controversial plan to open the country’s first new coal mine in three decades, a little more than a year after the nation tried to convince the world to ditch coal at the COP26 climate talks in Glasgow. Committee chairman Lord Deben said in a statement: “Phasing out coal use is the clearest requirement of the global effort towards Net Zero. We condemn, therefore, the Secretary of State’s decision to consent to a new deep coal mine in Cumbria, contrary to our previous advice. This decision grows global emissions and undermines UK efforts to achieve Net Zero.”The mine’s approval was also met with fierce criticism from scientists and environmentalists. Its opponents argue these jobs may not be secure, given the huge momentum in Europe to phase out coal.

CNN —A series of attacks deep inside Russia this week have raised the stakes for Moscow at a time when its war on Ukraine is faltering. Russia has said that Ukrainian drones carried out three strikes on its air bases, yet two of the targets are hundreds of miles inside Russian territory and beyond the reach of Ukraine’s declared drone arsenal. Russia said it was targeted in three separate drone attacks on Monday and Tuesday. Russia said a second drone flew to the city of Engels, around 500 miles southeast of the capital, before attacking an air base with the same name. However, they have so far refused to provide Kyiv with long-range attack drones, fearing that strikes inside Russian territory would escalate the war and draw them directly into a conflict with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

☆ Albanian opposition leader punched in face as he marches to protest
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/3] Albania's opposition Democratic Party leader Sali Berisha reacts after being punched in the face by a protestor, as the EU-Western Balkans summit takes place in Tirana, Albania, December 6, 2022. We will save Albania," Berisha told the crowd, pledging to halt the crime and poverty which are driving people to leave the country. The attacker was beaten by Berisha supporters and arrested by the police. The attack was condemned by Prime Minister Edi Rama. Berisha, a former president and prime minister, is banned from entering the United States over alleged corruption.

The new laws significantly broaden the scope of a 2013 law which banned the dissemination of LGBTQ-related information to minors. The new iteration extends the ban on promoting such information to adults as well. Under the new law, it will be banned across the internet, media, books, audiovisual services, cinema, and advertising. The European Court of Human Rights ruled in 2017 that the 2013 law is discriminatory, promotes homophobia and violates the European Convention on Human Rights. A new, expanded version of the 2012 law on foreign agents came into effect last week.

☆ ‘I wanted to resume my transition at all costs.’ Trans Ukrainians uprooted by war struggle to continue treatment
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-03 | by ( Ivana Kottasová | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +17 min

But for Eric and many other trans people, the war has also made it much more difficult to be who they are. HRT can be used by trans women, trans men and non-binary people to make their physical appearance more aligned with their gender identity. Anastasiia Yeva Domani is the co-founder of Cohort, a Ukrainian trans rights group. While trans Ukrainians still experience negative attitudes in some spaces, for example in shelters housing families, according to COHORT, the discriminatory Russian rhetoric has pushed more Ukrainians to speak up. The group launched a hotline for LGBTQ+ Ukrainians and opened an LGBTQ+ friendly shelter.

☆ Ivana Trump’s ‘Whimsical’ Townhouse on the Market for $26.5 Million
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-20 | by ( Katherine Clarke | Photos Evan Joseph | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Ms. Trump purchased the townhouse for about $2.5 million in 1992, the same year her divorce from Mr. Trump was finalized, records show. Eric Trump said the property was especially important to her. “It was the last possession in the world she would ever have gotten rid of.”Ms. Trump with her daughter, Ivanka. M. Von Holden/WireImage/Getty

Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt CNN —Delegates from nearly 200 counties at the COP27 climate summit have agreed to set up a “loss and damage” fund meant to help vulnerable countries cope with climate disasters, in a landmark deal early Sunday morning in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt. And in previous public remarks, US Climate Envoy John Kerry had said loss and damage was not the same thing as climate reparations. “This loss and damage fund will be a lifeline for poor families whose houses are destroyed, farmers whose fields are ruined, and islanders forced from their ancestral homes,” World Resources Institute CEO Ani Dasgupta said. Beyond 1.5 degrees, the risk of extreme drought, wildfires, floods and food shortages will increase dramatically, scientists said in the latest UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report. On Saturday, EU officials threatened to walk out of the meeting if the final agreement failed to endorse the goal to limit warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels.

☆ Ivana Trump's townhome that just hit the market for $26.5M was purchased on the heels of a messy divorce and reflects the opulence of Trump's 'The Art of the Deal' era
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Lloyd Lee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Ivana Trump's Upper East Side townhome has an asking price of $26.5 million. She purchased the home in 1992, the same year she finalized her divorce from Donald Trump. The interior reflects a bygone era of Donald Trump's celebrity and one of his favorite colors: gold. Ivana Trump finalizes her tumultuous and very public divorce from Donald Trump that followed two years of finger-pointing and accusations of "fraudulent" prenuptial agreements and slander. Ivana Trump reaped the rewards of auxiliary fame as well when she was married to Donald Trump.

☆ COP27: Activists hoped Egypt would bring a focus on Africa. They were disappointed
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-17 | by ( Ivana Kottasová | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +10 min

Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt CNN —The crowd was loving what Bhekumuzi Bhebhe had to say, cheering loudly as he yelled “don’t gas Africa!” into the megaphone. Bhekumuzi Bhebhe speaks at a protest against the development of new fossil fuel projects in Africa. Experts and activists are stressing that many African countries are getting locked in fossil fuel investments that are polluting and will likely prove uneconomical in a few years. “Africa has contributed very little to the climate problem, but the fossil fuel companies are using that to their advantage. What Elmaawi, Adow and other activists want is for the COP27 conference to help African countries foster more investment into renewable energy.

☆ Ivana Trump’s NYC Townhouse, Decked Out in Gold and Animal Print, Asks $26.5 Million
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( Katherine Clarke | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Be the first to know about the biggest and best luxury home sales and listings by signing up for our Mansion Deals email alert. Stepping into Ivana Trump ‘s Manhattan townhouse, with its limestone facade and embellished gold entryway, is like stepping back in time to the 1980s, when the late socialite and her ex-husband, former President Donald Trump, were the ultimate power couple. The home’s décor—leopard print, pink marble, crystal chandeliers and lots and lots of gold—is reflective of the glamorous, over-the-top aesthetic that helped define that era and the Trump real-estate portfolio.

☆ Ivana Trump’s N.Y.C. Townhouse, Decked Out in Gold and Animal Print, Asks $26.5 Million
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Katherine Clarke | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

☆ Ivana Trump's lavish NYC townhouse is on the market for $26.5 million. The 1980s time capsule has a gold-encrusted library and a pink marble bathroom — take a look inside.
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( Robert Davis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Ivana's children — Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump and Ivanka Trump — spent their teenage years there. The property is located between Fifth and Madison avenues and is listed for sale for $26.5 million. All proceeds from the estate sale are slated to go to Ivana's three children: Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump and, Ivanka Trump. "My mom absolutely loved that house," son Eric told The Journal, adding that the property "embodied Ivana Trump." In her 2017 book "Raising Trump," Trump noted that the property needed "significant work" after it had sat empty for nearly 12 years.

☆ Slovenia's election may produce first woman president
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-13 | by ( Katja Lihtenvalner | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LJUBLJANA, Nov 13 (Reuters) - Slovenians were voting on Sunday in a presidential election runoff, with former TV presenter Natasa Pirc Musar hoping to beat right-wing politician Andze Logar and become the country's first woman president. Although the role is mostly ceremonial, the president heads the army and also nominates several top officials, including the central bank governor. An opinion poll conducted by the Ninamedia agency published in the daily Dnevnik on Friday showed Pirc Musar winning 51.2% of the votes, with Logar taking 48.8%. "I expect the next president to care about us, the citizens, to represent Slovenia in a good manner," Uros Pinter said after casting his ballot in Ljubljana. Pirc Musar, 54, a former TV presenter who is now an influential lawyer, campaigned on human rights, the rule of law and social welfare issues.

☆ Here's what Donald Trump's late ex-wife Ivana Trump thought about him as a husband, father, and former president
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-12 | by ( Taiyler Simone Mitchell | Hannah Getahun | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Donald Trump's first wife, Ivana Trump, died on Thursday. "She was a wonderful, beautiful, and amazing woman, who led a great and inspirational life," Donald Trump said in a post on Truth Social. "We speak before and after the appearances and he asks me what I thought," Ivana Trump said in the interview with The Post. In 1993, following his divorce from Ivana, Trump married his now ex-wife Marla Maples, with whom he had his fourth child, Tiffany Trump, with. Ivanka and her husband, Jared Kushner, became advisors in the White House, while Donald Trump Jr. and Eric worked for the Trump Organization.

☆ Meet Donald Trump's children with Ivana Trump, Marla Maples, and Melania Trump
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Business Insider | Lloyd Lee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +12 min

Donald Trump has five children between two of his former wives and his current wife Melania Trump. Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump, and Ivanka Trump are children with his first wife, Ivana Trump, who died on July 14. Getty Images/Joe CorriganNow a father of five, Donald Trump Jr. was 12 when Ivana Trump and Donald Trump Sr. divorced. In 2001, a year after he graduated from college, Donald Trump Jr. went to work for his dad for the second time. He told New York magazine that Donald Trump Jr. is like his mentor and Ivanka Trump is like his second mother.

☆ Serb policemen quit jobs in anti-Kosovo protest
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NORTH MITROVICA, Kosovo, Nov 6 (Reuters) - Kosovo Serb policemen who work in the Jarinje and Brnjak border posts in the north of the country resigned on Sunday in protest over Pristina's order to use Kosovo vehicle licence plates instead of those issued by Serbia. In North Mitrovica, several thousand Serbs gathered at noon to protest against obligatory Kosovo licence plates. Kosovo police said in a statement it was aware Serb police officers had abandoned their posts and some have handed over police equipment. Prime Minister Albin Kurti blamed Belgrade for seeking to destabilise Kosovo by supporting the Serbs in their boycott of state institutions. "The withdrawal of Kosovo Serbs from Kosovo institutions is not a solution to the current disputes.

☆ North Kosovo Serbs quit state jobs in licence plate protest
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MITROVICA, Kosovo, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Minority Serbs in the north of Kosovo said on Saturday they were quitting their posts in state institutions including the government, police and courts to protest Pristina's order for them to start using Kosovo vehicle licence plates. The long-running licence plate row has stoked tensions between Serbia and its former province of Kosovo, which gained independence in 2008 and is home to a small ethnic Serb minority in the north that is backed by Belgrade. Blerim Vela, chief-of-staff to Kosovo President Vjosa Osmani, accused Belgrade of seeking to destabilise Kosovo by backing Serbs in the north. "Serbia is coercing and inciting Kosovo Serbs to abandon their jobs in Kosovo institutions," Vela tweeted. Another roughly 40,000 ethnic Serbs, who live in parts of Kosovo that are majority ethnic Albanian, use licence plates issued by Pristina.

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