Wednesday

29th Mar 2023

Ticker

Swedish MEP cuts hair mid-speech to support Iran women

A Swedish MEP cut off her hair during a speech in the European Parliament in solidarity with anti-government demonstrations in Iran, triggered by the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini by the morality police. "Until Iran is free, our fury will be bigger than the oppressors. Until the women of Iran are free we are going to stand with you," Iraqi-born Renew MEP Abir Al-Sahlani said Tuesday, cutting off her ponytail.

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EU approves 2035 phaseout of polluting cars and vans

The agreement will ban the sale of carbon-emitting cars after 2035. The EU Commission will present a proposal for e-fuels after pressure from German negotiators via a delegated act, which can still be rejected by the EU Parliament.

Column

What does China really want? Perhaps we could try asking

Perhaps even more surprising to the West was the fact that the Iran-Saudi Arabia deal was not brokered by the United States, or the European Union, but by the People's Republic of China. Since when was China mediating peace agreements?

Opinion

Dear EU, the science is clear: burning wood for energy is bad

The EU and the bioenergy industry claim trees cut for energy will regrow, eventually removing extra CO2 from the atmosphere. But regrowth is not certain, and takes time, decades or longer. In the meantime, burning wood makes climate change worse.

Opinion

Biden's 'democracy summit' poses questions for EU identity

From the perspective of international relations, the EU is a rare bird indeed. Theoretically speaking it cannot even exist. The charter of the United Nations, which underlies the current system of global governance, distinguishes between states and organisations of states.

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