Author: Prima News

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced on Monday the appointment of public servant Janice Charette as the next chief trade negotiator to the United States. Charette will act as a senior advisor to the Prime Minister and to Dominic LeBlanc, the minister responsible for Canada-U.S. trade on the upcoming review of the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement, a statement from the prime minister’s office said. Canada sends about 70% of its exports to the United States. CUSMA, also known as the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement, is a continental trade pact that has shielded much of Canada’s exports from U.S. tariffs. It is up for joint review…

Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama said his government would change the law to protect ministers from suspension while they are under criminal investigation, prompting the opposition to accuse him of trying to protect himself and harming judicial independence. A court suspended Rama’s deputy, Belinda Balluku, in November following her indictment by Albania’s anti-graft prosecutors, known as SPAK, over alleged meddling in a tender for infrastructure projects, which she denies. The case has sparked a dispute between SPAK, which has asked parliament to lift Balluku’s immunity to allow her arrest, and Rama, who has complained about judicial overreach, especially with pre-trial detentions. Albania…

After hundreds of Ecuadorean inmates were killed in prison riots in 2021 and 2022, President Daniel Noboa made restoring order in jails one of the central pillars of his security strategy when he took office in 2023. While the government has sharply curbed the number of riots, figures revealed in a Reuters investigation show prison deaths are reaching levels not seen since the height of the unrest. Deaths of inmates almost quadrupled year-on-year in 2025 due to both violence and natural causes, including a tuberculosis outbreak, according to the figures obtained by Reuters through a freedom-of-information request to the Interior…

French police searched the Arab World Institute in Paris on Monday as part of a probe into its former head, ex-culture minister Jack Lang, and his links to late convicted U.S. sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, prosecutors said. France’s National Financial Prosecutor (PNF) said in a statement that the Arab World Institute was among several locations being raided. Prosecutors this month opened a preliminary investigation of Lang and his daughter Caroline on suspicion of tax fraud following the release of documents on Epstein in the U.S. Lang, who was culture minister under late Socialist president Francois Mitterrand, resigned this month from the Arab…

Switzerland’s Federal Administrative Court (FAC) has ruled that Ukrainian nationals who previously obtained protection in a European Union (EU) or European Free Trade Association (EFTA) state are not entitled to temporary protection in Switzerland, known as ‘S’ status, clarifying the application of the subsidiarity principle. In a statement on Monday, the court said Ukrainians who were living in Ukraine before Feb. 24, 2022, cannot access Switzerland’s temporary protection if a valid alternative protection status exists in an EU or EFTA country. The case involved a Ukrainian woman who entered Switzerland in April 2025 and applied for temporary protection. She had…

Switzerland is considering a European alternative to the US-made Patriot air defense system after Washington postponed delivery of five missile batteries, local media reported Monday. The delay comes as the United States prioritizes supplying Ukraine, leaving uncertainty over if Switzerland will receive the Patriot systems it ordered. According to the Swissinfo report, Bern is examining the Medium Range/Land-based Surface-to-Air Defence System (SAMP/T), developed by a Franco-Italian consortium under the Organisation for Joint Armament Cooperation. The system is seen as one of the few credible European alternatives to the Patriot. Manufacturers have indicated they could deliver the SAMP/T by 2029 if…

Lloyd Manuyama was 10 years old when he first came into direct contact with the Amazon’s most enigmatic and feared predator. He was trailing behind his younger sister along a forested path when she stopped cold, then shrieked. Mere yards away, a stealthy, muscular jaguar gazed at the child. Partially obscured by the jungle’s undergrowth, the animal appeared to be tracking her movements, ready to ambush, recalls Manuyama, now 34. Reflexively, he grabbed a stick and threw it in the jaguar’s direction. “It locked eyes with me. I grabbed another stick and threw it at the jaguar. It fell back…

The UK government’s attempt to brand direct action protesters as terrorists is being considered a total collapse of credibility following a High Court ruling that said its ban on Palestine Action was “unlawful” and “disproportionate.” And the Home Office now finds itself caught between a defiant judiciary, skeptical public, and a mounting human rights crisis. Tim Crosland, a former government lawyer and co-founder of Defend Our Juries activist group who himself faced arrest under the Terrorism Act last year, spoke to Anadolu and warned that the government is currently trapped in a “moral and legal void,” holding activists in a…

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday said the UK needs to “go faster” on increasing defense spending, following reports that the government is considering a significant acceleration of its military funding targets. Responding to reports that ministers are looking at plans to raise defense spending to 3% of GDP by the end of this parliament in 2029, Starmer suggested the UK must “step up” to meet the “obvious” threat from Russia. Starmer previously said he would like to reach the 3% target at some point in the next parliament, but his latest comments imply a shift in urgency. “Over…

A Yellow weather warning for snow and ice has been issued for parts of the UK, with forecasters warning of possible disruption to transport and travel. The Met Office said the warning takes effect Monday afternoon, initially affecting central and northern Scotland. Additional Yellow warnings for ice have been issued for Northern Ireland, much of eastern and northern England, and southern Scotland. Met Office Chief Forecaster Steve Willington said a “cool pool of air” dominating the start of the week would bring blustery showers, winter hazards and the risk of disruption. Meanwhile, the Environment Agency said communities should remain vigilant…