EUROPE

UN REPORT ACCUSES RUSSIA OF WAR CRIMES IN DRONE WARFARE AND FORCIBLE TRANSFER OF CIVILIANS

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A new United Nations commission finds that Russian forces used drones to target civilians and undertook population transfers amounting to crimes against humanity.

SPAIN'S TORRENTIAL FLOODS TRAP MOTORISTS AS CATALONIA DECLARES RED ALERT

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Torrential rain battered Spain's northeastern Catalonia region on Sunday, unleashing flash floods that trapped motorists in cars and homes across the province of Tarragona.

KING CHARLES AND POPE LEO UNITE IN HISTORIC VATICAN PRAYER

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In a moment that seemed to bridge centuries of division, Britain's King Charles and Pope Leo prayed together inside the Vatican's Sistine Chapel on Thursday, marking the first joint worship between an English monarch and a Catholic pontiff since King Henry VIII's dramatic split from Rome in 1534. The air was filled with solemn beauty as Latin chants intertwined with English prayers beneath Michelangelo's breathtaking frescoes of the Last Judgment. Charles, the supreme governor of the Church of England, sat to Pope Leo's left as the two leaders led worship accompanied by the Sistine Chapel Choir and two royal choirs.

LÁSZLÓ KRASZNAHORKAI HONORED WITH 2025 NOBEL PRIZE IN LITERATURE

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The 2025 Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded to Hungarian novelist László Krasznahorkai, whose dark, apocalyptic, and deeply philosophical works have earned him global recognition as one of the most challenging yet rewarding voices in modern literature. Announced at a ceremony in Stockholm on Thursday, the Nobel Committee hailed Krasznahorkai "for his compelling and visionary oeuvre that, in the midst of apocalyptic terror, reaffirms the power of art."

Born in Gyula, Hungary, in 1954, Krasznahorkai's writing reflects a haunting sense of loss and existential inquiry rooted in a country that endured Soviet repression. His novels are populated by restless, despairing characters who search for meaning amid chaos. The late Susan Sontag famously described him as "the contemporary master of the apocalypse," a label that perfectly captures his artistic universe: bleak, absurd, and unrelentingly profound.

In his 1989 masterpiece The Melancholy of Resistance, a mysterious traveling circus arrives in a decaying town, bringing with it only the carcass of a giant whale. What follows is an eruption of hysteria and violence that mirrors the collapse of order itself. Critics have interpreted the novel as an allegory for the rise of fascism, though Krasznahorkai resists moral simplicity. As the Nobel Committee observed, his fiction is marked by "absurdism and grotesque excess," forcing readers to confront the madness of existence without the comfort of resolution.

Krasznahorkai's prose is equally distinctive. His famously long, winding sentences (sometimes stretching for pages) create a rhythm that his translator George Szirtes once likened to a "slow lava flow." The author himself once remarked that the full stop "belongs to God," suggesting that human experience is too complex for tidy conclusions. This stylistic daring is evident in his 1985 debut Sátántangó, later adapted into a seven-hour film by Béla Tarr, which Sontag called "enthralling for every minute."

His more recent work, Herscht 07769 (2021), written in a single sentence, has been praised for capturing the absurdities of contemporary Germany, featuring a physicist whose apocalyptic theories lead him to write desperate letters to Angela Merkel.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán congratulated the writer on X, calling the win "a moment of national pride," despite Krasznahorkai's open criticism of his government. The award, which includes 11 million Swedish kronor ($1 million), cements his place among literary greats such as Han Kang and Jon Fosse, past laureates recognized for expanding the boundaries of human expression through art.

THE GREAT LOUVRE HEIST: FRANCE'S $102 MILLION MYSTERY

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France has been left reeling after one of the most audacious daylight robberies in its history saw priceless jewels stolen from the Louvre Museum in Paris. Valued at 88 million euros ($102,443,000), the treasures included jewels once worn by royalty from the Napoleonic era, among them Queen Marie-Amélie and Queen Hortense. French prosecutor Laure Beccuau confirmed that around 100 investigators are now involved in tracking down the criminals, whose operation lasted just seven minutes.

LECORNU RESIGNS AS FRENCH PM AFTER LESS THAN A MONTH IN OFFICE

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The new French government is already in crisis as Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu resigned on Monday, less than a day after his cabinet was revealed. The Elysée Palace announced the departure after a meeting with President Emmanuel Macron. The shock move occurred just 26 days after Lecornu took office, succeeding the government of François Bayrou which had previously collapsed. Stocks fell sharply on the Paris exchange after the news of Lecornu's resignation broke on Monday morning.

KERING WORKERS IN ITALY STRIKE OVER REMOTE WORK DISPUTE

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Employees of French luxury conglomerate Kering have launched a four-hour strike across its Italian branches, protesting the company's alleged unwillingness to engage in dialogue over working conditions and remote work policies. The strike, organized by three major unions,Filctem Cgil, Femca Cisl, and Uiltec Uil,affects staff at high-end brands including Gucci, Balenciaga, and Yves Saint Laurent.

MUNICH AIRPORT RESUMES FLIGHTS AFTER CLOSURE DUE TO DRONE SIGHTINGS

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Munich airport in Germany resumed normal operations on Friday following an overnight closure due to multiple drone sightings. This marks the latest in a series of aviation disruptions across Europe attributed to similar incidents. Recently, airports in Denmark, Norway, and Poland have suspended flights because of unidentified drones. Romania and Estonia have alleged Russian involvement in these incidents, though Russia has denied the accusations. The closure of Munich's airspace on Thursday night resulted in the cancellation or diversion of over 30 flights and left nearly 3,000 passengers without accommodations.