Day: February 20, 2016

    Welle French authorities are ordering hundreds of refugees to vacate a large swathe of a vast camp along the English Channel in Calais. Those occupying the southern sector of the camp, often referred to as the jungle because it is the most densely populated section, have until Tuesday evening to vacate the premises before it is razed by authorities. The order comes from the state authority for Calais, which adds that police are authorized to remove anyone still on the premises. Official estimates as to the number of people in the targeted area vary widely – from 800 to 4000. This section of the camp is replete with cafes, shops and houses of worship. Many of the refugees in the camp are fleeing civil war and conflict in Syria, Iraqi and Afghanistan but others, from Africa,...

    The jihadist Twitter account Al-Baraka news allegedly shows Isis vehicles driving on a newly cut road through the Syrian-Iraqi border between the Iraqi Nineveh province and Al-Hassaka in Syria. Photograph… Up to 5,000 jihadists are feared to be in Europe after returning from terrorist training camps, the head of Europol has said. Rob Wainwright, director of the EU-wide law enforcement agency, predicted further attacks by Isis following the massacres in Paris that killed 130 people in November. “Europe is currently facing its biggest terror threat in more than a decade,” he told Germany’s Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung newspaper. “One can expect Islamic State (Isis) or other religious terror groups to stage an attack somewhere in Europe with the aim of achieving many casualties a...

    Brace yourself: for the next four months, the news bulletins will be dominated by talk of the UK's referendum on whether to stay or leave the European Union. And, probably on June 23, we all get to vote. Many people's first reaction is something like this. But stay with us. The referendum is arguably more important than any general election, changing Britain’s relationship with Europe and, in turn, the rest of the world. The arguments will range from the sublime to the ridiculous. The prosaic to the poetic. You’ll hear about what it means if you’ve ever aspired to work abroad, watched Netflix on holiday in Spain or hired a Polish builder. But you’ll also hear grand talk about power, sovereignty and Britain’s place in the world. There’ll also be nonsense: scaremongering, di...