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US deportations raise serious human rights concerns
PUBLISHED: 2025-05-13 20:06:04His Office, OHCHR, has received information that over 100 Venezuelan deportees are being detained at a notorious prison in El Salvador.
OHCHR said 142,000 people were deported from the US between 20 January and 29 April, according to official data.
Harsh treatment in detention
In particular, the fate and whereabouts of at least 245 Venezuelans and some 30 Salvadorans sent to El Salvador remain unclear.
Many were deported under the US Alien Enemies Act as alleged members of criminal groups and have reportedly been detained at the Centre for Terrorism Confinement (CECOT) in the Central American country.
Detainees at the maximum-security prison are treated particularly harshly, without access to legal counsel or family members and have no contact with the outside world.
Serious rights concerns
OHCHR has received information from family members and lawyers regarding more than 100 Venezuelans believed to be held in CECOT.
The reports indicate that many were not informed of the US Governmentâs intention to deport them to be detained in a third country.
Furthermore, many had no access to a lawyer and were unable to challenge the lawfulness of their removal before being flown out.
âThis situation raises serious concerns regarding a wide array of rights that are fundamental to both US and international law,â Mr. Türk said.
They include the rights to due process, protection from arbitrary detention, equality before the law, and protection from exposure to torture or other irreparable harm in other States.
Families feel powerless
Neither the US or Salvadoran authorities have published official lists of the detainees, and their legal status in El Salvador remains unclear.
Many family members interviewed by OHCHR voiced deep distress at not knowing where, and in what circumstances, their loved ones are being held. Some only became aware when they recognized their relatives from videos on social media of them in or being taken to CECOT.
âFamilies we have spoken to have expressed a sense of complete powerlessness in the face of what has happened and their pain at seeing their relatives labelled and handled as violent criminals, even terrorists, without any court judgment as to validity of what is claimed against them,â said Mr. Türk.
âThe manner in which some of the individuals were detained and deported â' including the use of shackles on them â' as well as the demeaning rhetoric used against migrants, has also been profoundly disturbing,â he added.
The High Commissioner welcomed the essential role that the US judiciary, legal community and civil society are playing to ensure the protection of human rights in this situation.
âI have called on the US Government to take the necessary measures to ensure compliance with due process, to give prompt and full effect to the determinations of its courts, to safeguard the rights of children, and to stop the removal of any individual to any country where there is a real risk of torture or other irreparable harm,â he said.
Remarks by President António Costa at the joint press conference with Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina
PUBLISHED: 2025-05-13 22:09:07DISCLAIMER OPINIONS: The opinions of the authors or reproduced in the articles are the ones of those stating them and it is their own responsibility. Should you find any incorrections you can always contact the newsdesk to seek a correction or right of replay.
DISCLAIMER TRANSLATIONS: All articles in this site are published in English. The translated versions are done through an automated process known as neural translations. If in doubt, always refer to the original article. Thank you for understanding.
DISCLAIMER PHOTOS: We mostly used photos images that are readily available online, from free sources, or from the people promoting the news. If by any chance it happens that we have used one of your copyrighted photos, please do not hesitate to contact us and we will take it down without question. We do not make profits as this is a not for profit project to give voice to the voiceless while giving them a platform to be informed also of general news, and it is completely free.
EU sets out steps towards introducing a joint European degree
PUBLISHED: 2025-05-13 13:34:00DISCLAIMER OPINIONS: The opinions of the authors or reproduced in the articles are the ones of those stating them and it is their own responsibility. Should you find any incorrections you can always contact the newsdesk to seek a correction or right of replay.
DISCLAIMER TRANSLATIONS: All articles in this site are published in English. The translated versions are done through an automated process known as neural translations. If in doubt, always refer to the original article. Thank you for understanding.
DISCLAIMER PHOTOS: We mostly used photos images that are readily available online, from free sources, or from the people promoting the news. If by any chance it happens that we have used one of your copyrighted photos, please do not hesitate to contact us and we will take it down without question. We do not make profits as this is a not for profit project to give voice to the voiceless while giving them a platform to be informed also of general news, and it is completely free.
World News in Brief: Sudan aid update, child migrant deaths at sea, nursing shortages, invasive pest scourge
PUBLISHED: 2025-05-13 10:08:28Port Sudan â' the main entry point for humanitarian supplies and personnel into the country â' came under attack for the ninth consecutive day. As the UNâs main humanitarian hub in Sudan, drone strikes on the coastal city have gravely impacted aid delivery.
Nonetheless, UN Humanitarian Air Service (UNHAS) flights were able to resume on 8 May, providing a continuation of a key humanitarian lifeline as the war between rival militaries for control of Sudan continues, UN Spokesperson Stéphane Dujarric confirmed.
Targeting of civilian infrastructure has sparked panic and displacement. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported last week that 600 people were displaced within Port Sudan alone because of the attacks.
Catastrophic situation in North Darfur
The UN Humanitarian Coordinator for Sudan, Clementine Nkweta-Salami, warned on Sunday that the situation in the North Darfur camps of Abou Shouk âis catastrophic.â
Although the UN and its partners continue to scale up their humanitarian response, both camps remain, in effect, cut off from aid.
Ms Nkweta-Salami issued an urgent call for a ceasefire and humanitarian pauses to allow life-saving deliveries to resume.
Call for action after deaths of migrant children at sea
Two young children, aged 3 and 4, have died from dehydration aboard a rubber dinghy found adrift in the central Mediterranean, the UN Childrenâs Fund (UNICEF) said on Monday.
The vessel, which departed Libya carrying 62 migrants including several children, had reportedly been stranded for days after its engine failed.
According to survivors, the children had died nearly a day before rescuers arrived.
One additional passenger is believed to have drowned earlier in the journey. Many others onboard suffered severe chemical burns caused by contact with a mixture of seawater and spilled fuel â' injuries which require urgent medical attention.
All surviving passengers were eventually rescued and transferred to Lampedusa by the Italian coast guard.
âDevastating reminderâ
Regina De Dominicis, UNICEF Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia, called the incident âanother devastating reminderâ of the deadly risks migrants face.
She stressed the need for coordinated search and rescue missions, and greater investment in support services for migrant families.
âThe central Mediterranean remains one of the most dangerous migration routes in the world,â Ms. De Dominicis said. âWithout immediate action, more lives will continue to be lost.â
UNICEF continues to call on governments to meet their obligations under international law and protect vulnerable children seeking safety.
Nursing workforce grows, but deep inequalities persist worldwide
The number of nurses around the world has increased in recent years, but a new UN report published on Monday shows that many countries and regions still face serious shortages, highlighting ongoing inequalities in access to nursing care.
Low-income countries are particularly affected, struggling with too few nurses to meet the needs of their growing populations, said the UN World Health Organization (WHO) which crunched the data.
Poor prospects at home
While these countries are training new nurses at a faster rate than wealthier nations, challenges such as rapid population growth and limited job opportunities are making it hard to close the gap, WHO added.
These imbalances in where nurses are working mean that millions still donât have access to basic health services.
This is holding back efforts to achieve universal health coverage, protect global health, and meet international development goals linked to health.
âWe cannot ignore the inequalities that mark the global nursing landscape,â said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
WHO is urging governments to create more nursing jobs and ensure they are fairly distributed, especially in communities where healthcare services are lacking.
Plant pests continue to threaten global food supplies
Protecting crops from pests is key to ensuring everyone has enough to eat, said the head of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) on Monday, who stressed that access to food is a basic human right.
Each year, around 40 per cent of the worldâs crops are lost to plant pests and diseases, causing over $220 billion in economic damage.
Invasive pests turn up the heat
Migratory pests like locusts and armyworms are among the biggest threats, especially in regions already hit hard by conflict and climate change.
Countries in the Near East and North Africa â' including Algeria, Libya and Tunisia â' are currently dealing with a serious outbreak of desert locusts that began in the Sahel.
These insects destroy crops and pastureland, putting food supplies for both people and animals at risk, and threatening the survival of farming communities.
âNo country can face these challenges alone,â said FAO Director-General QU Dongyu, at a high-level conference in Italy marking the International Day of Plant Health.
He called for greater international cooperation and more funding to tackle cross-border pests and diseases.
Press release â' Metsola calls to âre-launch Europe as a global powerâ
PUBLISHED: 2025-05-14 04:10:12DISCLAIMER OPINIONS: The opinions of the authors or reproduced in the articles are the ones of those stating them and it is their own responsibility. Should you find any incorrections you can always contact the newsdesk to seek a correction or right of replay.
DISCLAIMER TRANSLATIONS: All articles in this site are published in English. The translated versions are done through an automated process known as neural translations. If in doubt, always refer to the original article. Thank you for understanding.
DISCLAIMER PHOTOS: We mostly used photos images that are readily available online, from free sources, or from the people promoting the news. If by any chance it happens that we have used one of your copyrighted photos, please do not hesitate to contact us and we will take it down without question. We do not make profits as this is a not for profit project to give voice to the voiceless while giving them a platform to be informed also of general news, and it is completely free.
âStop the 21st century atrocityâ in Gaza, Fletcher urges UN Security Council
PUBLISHED: 2025-05-13 22:10:27Mr. Fletcher began his remarks by asking the international community to reflect on what it will tell future generations about action taken âto stop the 21st century atrocity to which we bear daily witness in Gaza.â
He wondered, for example, if âwe will use those empty words: âWe did all we could,ââ and urged the Council to act decisively to prevent genocide from happening.
Shrinking spaces, overwhelmed hospitals
In addition to the aid blockade, civilians in Gaza have again been forcibly displaced and confined into ever-shrinking spaces, he said, as 70 per cent of the territory is either within Israeli-militarized zones or under displacement orders.
Furthermore, the few remaining hospitals are overwhelmed, and medics cannot stem the trauma and the spread of disease.
âI can tell you from having visited whatâs left of Gazaâs medical system that death on this scale has a sound and a smell that does not leave you,â he said.
âAs one hospital worker described it, âchildren scream as we peel burnt fabric from their skin.ââ
We can save lives
Mr. Fletcher stressed that the UN and partners are desperate to resume humanitarian aid across Gaza, and the recent ceasefire showed that they can deliver. Meanwhile, lifesaving supplies are waiting to enter the enclave.
âWe can save hundreds of thousands of survivors. We have rigorous mechanisms to ensure our aid gets to civilians, and not to Hamas,â he insisted.
âBut Israel denies us access, placing the objective of depopulating Gaza before the lives of civilians,â he said.
âIt is bad enough that the blockade continues. How do you react when Israeli Ministers boast about it? Or when attacks on humanitarian workers and violations of the UNâs privileges and immunities continue, along with restrictions on international and non-governmental organizations.â
Reject âcynicalâ US-Israeli aid alternative
Mr. Fletcher recalled that Israel has clear obligations under international humanitarian law, and as the occupying power must agree to aid and facilitate it.
âFor anyone still pretending to be in any doubt, the Israeli-designed distribution modality is not the answer,â he stated, noting that among other things, the plan âmakes starvation a bargaining chip.â
âIt is cynical sideshow. A deliberate distraction. A fig leaf for further violence and displacement,â he told ambassadors. âIf any of that still matters, have no part in it.â
He also addressed the increasing violence in the West Bank, where the situation is the worst in decades, with entire communities destroyed and refugee camps depopulated.
Insist on accountability
Mr. Fletcher noted that international humanitarian workers have been the only international civilian presence in Gaza over the past 19 months, and they have briefed the Council on what they witness daily.
âWe have described the deliberate obstruction of aid operations and the systematic dismantling of Palestinian life, and that which sustains it, in Gaza,â he said.
The International Court of Justice (ICJ) is now considering whether a genocide is taking place there and âwill weigh the testimony we have shared. But it will be too late,â he warned.
He said the ICJ has recognized the urgency and indicated clear provisional measures that should have been acted on â' but Israel has failed to do so.
Moreover, previous reviews of the UNâs conduct in cases of large-scale violations of international human rights and humanitarian law have pointed to the collective failure to speak to the scale of violations while they were being committed.
âFor those killed and those whose voices are silenced: what more evidence do you need now?â he asked. âWill you act â' decisively â' to prevent genocide and to ensure respect for international humanitarian law? Or will you say instead, âwe did all we could?ââ.
He told the Council that the degradation of international law is corrosive and infectious, and it is undermining decades of progress on civilian protection.
âHumanity, the law, and reason must prevail,â he said. âThis Council must prevail. Demand this ends. Stop arming it. Insist on accountability.â
Fear future judgement
Mr. Fletcher called for Israel to stop killing and injuring civilians, and to lift the brutal blockade so that humanitarians can save lives.
He urged Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups to release all hostages immediately and unconditionally, and to stop putting civilians at risk during military operations.
âAnd for those who will not survive what we fear is coming â' in plain sight â' it will be no consolation to know that future generations will hold us in this chamber to account. But they will,â he said.
âAnd, if we have not seriously done âall we couldâ, we should fear that judgement.â
GAZA LIVE: âHumanity, the law and reason must prevailâ in Gaza, UN relief chief tells Security Council
PUBLISHED: 2025-05-14 04:11:37DISCLAIMER OPINIONS: The opinions of the authors or reproduced in the articles are the ones of those stating them and it is their own responsibility. Should you find any incorrections you can always contact the newsdesk to seek a correction or right of replay.
DISCLAIMER TRANSLATIONS: All articles in this site are published in English. The translated versions are done through an automated process known as neural translations. If in doubt, always refer to the original article. Thank you for understanding.
DISCLAIMER PHOTOS: We mostly used photos images that are readily available online, from free sources, or from the people promoting the news. If by any chance it happens that we have used one of your copyrighted photos, please do not hesitate to contact us and we will take it down without question. We do not make profits as this is a not for profit project to give voice to the voiceless while giving them a platform to be informed also of general news, and it is completely free.
Protests blamed for leaving Mallorca residents without cruise departures in winter
PUBLISHED: 2025-05-13 05:58:00From November and over the winter months into 2026, Palma will cease to be a departure port for many Mediterranean cruises.
The president of the Aviba travel agencies association in the Balearics, Pedro Fiol, explains that cruise operators have eliminated Palma from their itineraries and are replacing the port with the likes of Valletta (Malta) and Barcelona.
Fiol believes that this could be because of \"a certain weariness\" on the part of shipping agents in the face of protests against cruise tourism that have been led by the platform against 'mega' cruise ships and the environmentalists GOB.
He says that cruises are the most popular holiday packages for people living in the Balearic Islands, especially during the low season. \"It's the star product and offers a very competitive all-inclusive price in winter, starting at â¬600 per person. It's the type of holiday chosen by those who work in the tourism sector and who travel in the winter.\"
A typical route from Palma has included the south of France and Italy. \"Now they're switching to Malta or Tunisia. Residents won't have cruises specifically from Palma.\" He does, however, distinguish between Spanish speakers and German speakers, as TUI, who use German as the main language on board, will continue with their cruise departures from Palma. Costa Cruises and MSC will stop embarking passengers in Palma from November 5 and are expected to resume operations in April 2026.
\"People will now have to fly if they want to go on a cruise.\" And that will, for example, include flying to Barcelona, which will entail additional cost.
As Barcelona will continue to be a departure port, Fiol's argument about the impact of protests is perhaps questionable. Anti-cruise sentiment in Barcelona has been as great as in Palma, if not more.
AI just did what?! 4 mind-blowing feats you didnât know were already possible
PUBLISHED: 2025-05-13 11:42:07Hold onto your keyboards â' the AI revolution isnât coming. Itâs already here, and itâs pulling off stunts that sound more like Black Mirror episodes than real life. From reading your thoughts to chatting with animals, todayâs AI is making magic look mundane. You might think ChatGPT writing your emails is impressive â' but thatâs barely scratching the surface. Here are four absolutely mind-bending things AI is already doing while the rest of us are still asking Siri to set a timer.
1. Reading your mind and drawing your thoughts
No, this isnât clickbait. Scientists at Osaka University, working with Meta, have trained AI to reconstruct images from brain scans. Using fMRI data, the system can translate what a person is looking at â' or even imagining â' into a rough but recognisable picture.
Imagine thinking of a dog, and a computer sketching it out based on your brainwaves. Thatâs exactly whatâs happening in the lab.
The images are blurry and not always exact, but they capture shapes, colours, and key details. Itâs not perfect yet, but itâs getting close. If youâve ever wished someone could see whatâs in your head â' careful what you wish for.
2. Discovering drugs and decoding disease
While Big Pharma takes years to develop treatments, AI is doing it in months. DeepMindâs AlphaFold shocked the scientific world by solving the protein folding problem â' predicting the shape of nearly every protein known to science. Meanwhile, Insilico Medicine has used AI to design brand-new drug compounds from scratch.
These arenât just computer models â' some are already entering clinical trials. A machine could end up curing cancer before a human even fully understands it. The bottom line? AI might just become your future pharmacist.
3. Seeing through walls using Wi-Fi
Forget spy cams â' researchers at MIT have created RF-Pose, a system that uses Wi-Fi signals to âseeâ people through walls.
Itâs not just motion sensing. This tech can detect your heartbeat, breathing patterns, and even recognise who you are based on how you move â' all without a camera in sight.
Itâs so sensitive it can tell when youâre anxious or calm just from the way your chest moves. So the next time your Wi-Fiâs acting weird⦠maybe itâs watching you. Reach for the tin foil hat.
4. Learning to speak dolphin (and bee)
If you thought Finding Nemo was a fantasy, think again. The Earth Species Project is training AI to decode animal languages â' from whale song to bee dances.
By analysing hours of audio using machine learning, researchers have found patterns that look a lot like human language: repeated âwords,â sentence-like structures, even turn-taking in conversation.
âWeâre starting to see the building blocks of non-human languageâ, according to researchers like co-founder Aza Raskin. âItâs not science fiction anymore.â One day soon, you might be able to ask a whale how its day went. Just donât expect it to be brief.
Final thought: Welcome to the weird new normal
These breakthroughs arenât decades away. Theyâre happening now, quietly reshaping science, medicine, and even what it means to be human. AI has gone from novelty to necessity â' and itâs only getting started.
So next time you use ChatGPT to fix your grammar, just remember: out there, somewhere, a machine is painting someoneâs thoughts, building new medicine, watching people through walls, and whispering to bees.
Still think itâs just a calculator with a good memory?
Stay tuned for more UK news.
Get more news about technology and AI.
Legendary rock with New Tricks at The Cazbah Live Lounge
PUBLISHED: 2025-05-13 10:47:26Get ready for a night of legendary rock at The Cazbah Live Lounge in Mijas Costa. The stage will come alive on Saturday night at 9pm as New Tricks deliver a powerful set packed with classic hits. This local four-piece band is known for its energy, passion and crowd-pleasing performances.
Formed in 2018 by Pete Carter and Stephen âToalzâ Toal, New Tricks was born from a shared love of timeless tunes. Joined by bassist Mark Hopkins and drummer Mark Bailey, they have created a sound that mixes nostalgia with fresh energy. Their setlist is a crowd favourite, featuring anthems by The Rolling Stones, The Beatles, Oasis, The Eagles, Stereophonics, Status Quo, Prince and Led Zeppelin.
The Cazbah Live Lounge is a cosy venue with a reputation for hosting top-quality live music. Its friendly vibe and great drinks make it a popular spot for locals and visitors. If you want secure a good seat, arrive early.
Whether you are a Brit pop, blues rock or classic guitar riffs fan, this is one night you will not want to miss. Bring your friends, wear your dancing shoes and enjoy the music as New Tricks turn up the volume and light up the Costa del Sol.
Mallorca one of the places most hit by \"overtourism\" according to research from Which?
PUBLISHED: 2025-05-12 14:20:00Zante, Mallorca and Paris are among the European holiday destinations most hit by overtourism, new research from Which? has found.
Issues with tourists are now so prevalent that some countries and cities are bringing in measures to limit visitors, including tourist taxes or limiting the number of holiday lets available. The Balearic government is looking at ways to limit the number of tourists and introduced a tourist tax more than eight years ago.
The European Commission defines overtourism in three ways: the number of visitors compared to residents, the most overnight stays overall and the most overnight stays per square kilometre.
Zante, which does not have the most visitors in absolute terms, is the capital of overtourism when considering how many residents call the island home.
Only around 40,000 people live there, but it had a staggering six million stays in 2023, equivalent to approximately 150 overnight stays for every person who lives there.
When looking at the most number of overnight stays overall, Mallorca is top of the list, with 51 million in 2023, compared to an island population of just under one million.
Europe braces for worst with Russian troop buildup on Finland border
PUBLISHED: 2025-05-12 21:02:45Russiaâs buildup of troops and military hardware along Finlandâs border has sent shockwaves through NATO, as satellite imagery has revealed troop camps, refurbished airbases, and new warehouses for armoured vehicles just a few kilometres from Finnish territory.
The buildup has brought back the nightmare of the prelude to the Ukraine war and comes as Finland marks its second year as a NATO member after joining the alliance in 2023. This has extended NATOâs border with Russia by over 1300 kilometres, prompting what analysts describe as a âdeliberate Russian responseâ.
Satellite images from Planet Labs, reported by Swedish broadcaster SVT, show significant activity at four key sites. At Kamenka, 50 kilometres from Finland, over 130 military tents have appeared since February, potentially housing 2,000 troops. In Petrozavodsk, 160 kilometres from the border, three large warehouses for armoured vehicles have been built, with a fourth under construction. Severomorsk-2, an airfield 180 kilometres from Finland, now has helicopters parked up after being reactivated. At Olenya airbase, 140 kilometres from Finland, long-range bombers used in Ukraine strikes are stationed. The rapid expansion follows Finlandâs NATO accession, which Russian officials had warned would trigger a âmilitary-technical responseâ.
Finland watching Russian troop buildup
Finns, living in the shadow of their 1300-kilometre border with Russia, are getting concerned but remain resolute. Finnish officials, while urging calm, have increased border patrols. Prime Minister Petteri Orpo stated, âWe are prepared and vigilant. Russiaâs actions wonât intimidate us.â Many Finns, with a historical culture of resilience from the 1939 Winter War, see NATO as a shield against Russian aggression.
The European Commission has condemned Russiaâs actions, warning of heightened tensions after âthis buildup threatens stability in the regionâ, said EC spokesperson Peter Stano. âWe stand in full solidarity with Finland and support NATOâs efforts to ensure collective defence.â The EC has called for Russia to de-escalate and respect international borders while urging member states to strengthen support for NATOâs eastern flank.
Europe sabre-rattling in response to Russian military buildup
A collective of European nations and the UK have been discussing military operations in defence against a possible Russian attack. Referred to as the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF), this coalition includes the UK, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Norway, and Sweden, with recent agreements to invite Ukraine to form a greater partnership with the JEF. As well, there are discussions about a potential UK-France-led coalition or a âmini-NATOâ involving countries like Germany, Ukraine, and Baltic and Scandinavian nations, aimed at backing up European defence independently of US support.
Various European states, particularly in Scandinavia and the Baltics, have already reinstated or expanded their conscription programmes as a response to recent Russian actions. Latvia brought back compulsory military service for adult males in 2023, following Lithuania (2015) and Sweden (2017), in response to Russiaâs annexation of Crimea and continuing aggression in Ukraine. Croatia has plans to reinstate conscription in 2025, while in Poland is there is talk of military training for 100,000 civilians.
While Russia flexes the muscles of its military infrastructure, Europe is on high alert, with concerns that Moscowâs actions suggest more than just sabre-rattling. For now, Finland and its allies are bracing for an uncertain future along this tense new frontline.
Speaking European with Ivanildo Kembel
PUBLISHED: 2025-05-12 20:00:37Ivanildo Kembel, from the Netherlands, is a singer living on the Costa del Sol who made the transition to live permanently in the sun. Euro Weekly News caught up with Ivando just as he was returning from the studio.
What brings you to Spain?
âOriginally I travelled back and forth a lot between Holland and Spain and each time I went back I found myself missing the outdoor living and long daylight hours we enjoy in Spain.â
Was it an easy move?
âOnce here you quickly realise itâs not all sun and sangria and the process of really settling is an interesting one. I couldnât shake the feeling that I was on holiday and didnât properly unpack for a while. As an artist you quickly build a social life of course so that was easy. Making Spanish friends is more of a challenge but I have built some fantastic friendships along the way. The Dutch tend to plan ahead a lot more and the Spanish embrace a more day by day approach that allows them to live the moment. A healthy mix of both ingredients has become my new lifestyle and I have grown to appreciate a slower pace. Thatâs a challenge when you need a car mechanic or to send a package at the local correos, but I find a warm smile and putting in some effort with the language goes a long way.â
What do you love about Spain?
âI believe you build your own happiness but I would have to say the breathtaking views and the sea at your doorstep still impacts me every day. Another day at the office takes on a whole new meaning.â
What would you change in Spain if you could?
I could write a list but then I would be changing the very dynamic that drew me to Spain.
Will you ever go back?
I love Holland and still spend a lot of time there for work and family. Home is where the heart is, so for now, Marbella it is.
Ivanildo gets invited to perform all over, but you can often catch him playing at venues and events in the Marbella area.
Surprise baby news: Amber Heard reveals sheâs now a mum of three
PUBLISHED: 2025-05-12 20:53:51There was no magazine deal. No exclusive photo shoot. Just a calm Instagram post on a Sunday, and a message that was easy to miss if you scrolled too fast.
Amber Heard welcomes twins and becomes a mum of three
Yes, you read that right. In a low-key post that felt more like a note to friends than an announcement to fans, Amber shared that sheâs welcomed twins, a boy and a girl named Ocean and Agnes.
She posted a photo, smiled gently at the camera, and wrote:âThis year, Iâm more than excited to celebrate that the family Iâve worked so hard to build has grown.â
No drama. No headlines. Just a woman, clearly overjoyed, talking about her growing family.
Amber Heard expands her family again â But this time feels different
Amber already has a daughter, Oonagh, born in 2021 via surrogacy. That, too, was something she kept private at firstâshe waited three months before sharing the news with the world.
And even when she did, she explained herself plainly. She said she wanted to become a mum on her own terms, without needing a partner or anyoneâs approval. And she did.
This time, sheâs done it againâquietly, thoughtfully, and in her own time.
âBecoming a single mum despite my fertility challenges has been the most humbling experience of my life,â she wrote. âI didnât think I could be this full of joyâbut here I am, overflowing.â The names Ocean and Agnes felt personal, simple, grounded. No Hollywood fussâjust names for two little people who now fill her life.
Amber Heard steps away from the spotlight to focus on family life
If youâre wondering why this feels like a new chapter for herâit is.
Amberâs been living in Madrid for a while now, keeping her life quiet since the messy legal war with Johnny Depp came to an end in 2022. Back then, her life was on every front page, every gossip site, every screen.
But since then, sheâs faded from view. No red carpets. No interviews. Just a few quiet posts, the occasional candid photo, andânowâthis.
âI can be a mum full-time now,â she told Today back in 2022. âNo more lawyers calling me every day.â
Itâs hard not to feel the peace in her words now. This wasnât a stunt or a spectacle. It was just herâsharing something that mattered.
Amber Heard shares heartfelt Motherâs day message to Mums everywhere
She ended her post with a message to other mothers, and honestly, it landed.
âTo all the mums out thereâhowever you got hereâmy little ideal family and I celebrate you.â
No big statement. No glossy campaign. Just a woman marking Motherâs Day by telling the world what sheâs been holding close to her chest.
She didnât need anyoneâs permission. She didnât need the spotlight. Just her, her kids, and a quiet moment to say: this is my life now.
And honestly? Good for her.
Stay tuned with Euro weekly news for more celebrity news
In conversation with Cristian of Top Secret â' party all night long
PUBLISHED: 2025-05-12 21:40:11If you come across a party on the Costa del Sol where everyone is dancing and laughing, thereâs a good chance Top Secret are on stage playing everything from Abba to Rage Against the Machine.
Top Secret is not just another covers band on the Costa del Sol trying to emulate the greats; the sound is absolutely theirs. With Gaetano on bass, Alex on drums, and Cristian on lead vocals and guitar, Euro Weekly News caught up with Cristian to discover what drives one of the most fun and energetic bands on the coast.
EWN: How long has Top Secret been going?
Cristian: Around ten years. Because I was bored with the music I was playing before. I just wanted to have fun. And Iâm having fun; so is the audience.
EWN: What were you listening to this morning?
Cristian: Erm. In my free time⦠I donât have free time. I donât choose our songs because I like them. I choose the songs depending on the moment; itâs a perfect âfit-inâ.
ABBA, Metallica, Michael Jackson, Prodigy . . . all with that unmistakable Top Secret sound
EWN: It wasnât Rage Against the Machine, then?
Cristian: We play Rage Against the Machine, we play ABBA, we play Queen, Michael Jackson, and Metallica. Whatever we play, itâs in reaction to the audience. It depends on them. I say to the band, âDo, re, so, la ⦠just follow me.â I just want to bring the emotion out of the people. Iâm just so tired of going to gigs where everything is so predictable. I need more. I need to play Prodigy; I need to play Faithless. Who cares about the music? We all know the songs. Letâs dance!
Cristian: For us the challenge is to go to a place where they donât know us and create the magic. The others in the band, Gaetano and Alex, say, âDo what you want, man. Weâll just follow youâ because no two gigs are the same. I never know what Iâm going to play or how much Iâm going to play. It depends on the crowd. No oneâs interested anymore in the old-style rock heroes. Since the pandemic, they just want to have fun. Make jokes; make them laugh. If I get the lyrics wrong, the people laugh. Iâm not here to educate but to play music not everyone hears. If someone usually listens to Spanish pop, they donât usually hear ABBA. I want to make the pop fans like rock and the rock fans like pop.
Father of one, Cristian leads a tightly scheduled life. He looks after himself, sleeps as much as he can, does voice exercises every day, and stays organised in every moment. What drives him is that he loves his job. He loves his life and lives it to the full.
Cristian: If you hear us play various artists that you have heard at a distance, and we link it to the style you like, for me itâs really fun. As well, if I can deliberately sing the lyrics badly, better. I change the order, and the people look at me. So I look at the person whoâs singing along with a look on their face like âthatâs not rightâ. And I say, âIâm singing it wrong, arenât I?â And we start laughing together. Then the guy buys another beer.
Watch out for Top Secret, the most party band on the Costa del Sol. They are currently travelling all over, including Seville, and are back on the Costa del Sol on Friday, June 6 at Louie Louie, Estepona, and at Premiere Club, Marbella on June 13.
New colour discovered? Researchers say âOloâ breaks all the rules
PUBLISHED: 2025-05-12 21:48:00A laser to the eye, a flash of something never seen before, and one simple name: olo
Scientists in the US say theyâve managed to do something no one thought possibleâsee a colour that doesnât exist in the natural world. And if that sounds like science fiction, well⦠itâs not far off.
It all happened thanks to a strange and precise experiment involving laser beams aimed directly into peopleâs eyes, triggering cone cells in a way that never happens in nature. The result? A vibrant blue-green shade the researchers have dubbed âoloââa colour that, they say, exists beyond anything the average eye can perceive on its own.
What is the colour âOloâ and why humans canât see it naturally
Scientists used laser beams to isolate one type of cone cell in the eye
Hereâs how it worked. The researchers, from UC Berkeley and the University of Washington, used a custom-built deviceâcalled Ozâto shine lasers into a single eye of each participant. This device is packed with mirrors, lasers, and optical tech designed to isolate one type of cone cell, specifically the M cone, which is sensitive to green light.
Normally, when light enters your eye, it activates several types of cone cells at once. But in this experiment, the laser was so precise that it triggered just one cone type at a time. Thatâs something the human brain simply isnât used to, which is why the result was so unusual.
âIt was more saturated than any colour you can see in the real world,â said co-author Professor Ren Ng, one of five participants in the study and a researcher at the University of California.
To describe the effect, he offered a simple analogy: âLetâs say youâve only ever seen baby pinks your entire life. One day, someone walks in wearing the boldest, most intense version of that pinkâand tells you itâs a brand new colour. Thatâs what olo felt like.â
Is âOloâ truly a new colour? Why some experts remain skeptical
Some experts say itâs all about how we interpret what we see
As exciting as the discovery sounds, not everyone is convinced that this qualifies as a truly new colour.
Professor John Barbur, a vision scientist from City St Georgeâs, University of London, praised the precision of the research but was cautious about the bold claims.
âItâs a technological feat,â he said, âbut whether itâs a new colour is up for debate.â
He explained that changes in how the eyeâs cone cells respondâespecially when one type is isolatedâcan lead to unusual visual effects. That doesnât necessarily mean new colours are being created, but rather that our brains are seeing familiar colours in unfamiliar ways.
Still, the participants in the study were all able to adjust a colour dial until it matched what they had seen during the laser stimulationâand none of the matches were colours that exist in standard colour ranges.
Can the discovery of âOloâ lead to new treatments for colour blindness?
Researchers say it could pave the way for new vision tech
While olo itself may be hard to reproduce outside a lab, the team behind the study say this research could have very real-world applications. Most notably, in helping people with colour vision deficienciesâor colour blindnessâsee more clearly by understanding how colour is processed at the cellular level.
âWeâre still studying what this means,â said Prof Ng. âBut it opens a door to something newânot just in how we see colour, but how we might help others see it better.â
So, can you expect to start seeing olo on paint charts or fashion runways any time soon? Probably not. It only exists with the help of precise laser stimulation, and itâs currently impossible to reproduce it on a screen or in physical form.
But for a few researchers in a darkened lab, itâs now a colour theyâll never forgetâeven if they never see it again.
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Caught by a speed camera in Spain? Hereâs how to handle the fine and save money
PUBLISHED: 2025-05-12 21:36:57Getting nabbed by a speed camera in Spain can sour your holiday or hit your wallet hard if youâre a resident. With 2,941 roadside radarsâ372 in Andalucia aloneâSpainâs traffic enforcement is no joke, issuing over 217 fines daily at hotspots like the A-381 in Cadiz Whether youâre driving a rental or your own car, hereâs the lowdown on dealing with that dreaded fine, dodging pitfalls, and maybe saving a few euros.
But before we dive into that, a great nugget of information is that by law, the radars allow for certain tolerance levels.
For example, the Guardia Civil has confirmed the âRule of 7â, which essentially allows exceeding by 7 km/h on highways with speed limits of under 100km/h. And if the limit is greater than 100 km/h, itâs 7 per cent, so letâs say, on a 120 km/h motorway, you can go as fast as 128km/h no problem. If the speed limit is 50 km/h, you must not exceed 57 km/h or expect a fine. You may not exceed 34 km/h in urban or town areas if the sign has 30 encircled in red.
How to deal with fines
Step 1: Understand the Fine Spainâs speeding fines start at 100 euros for minor infractions up to 20 km/h over the limit and can climb to 600 euros for serious ones, like 30 km/h over.
Extreme casesâexceeding the limit by 60 km/h in cities or 80 km/h on highwaysâcan turn criminal, risking prison, community service, or license suspension Youâll get a boletÃn de denuncia by mail, detailing the offense, fine amount, and a photo of your license plate as proof. Non-residents often face on-the-spot payment demands, and refusing can lead to your car being impounded.
Step 2: Check the Timeline. Fines must be paid within 60 days, but hereâs the money-saver: pay within 20 calendar days, and youâll get a 50% discount. A 100 fine drops to 50 euros, for example. If the fine arrives after 60 working days from the offence, itâs invalid, so check the dates. For rental cars, expect a delay since the rental company forwards your details to the authorities, often slapping on a 30-40-euro admin fee.
Step 3: Paying the Fine. Youâve got options to settle up:
Online: Visit the Dirección General de Tráfico (DGT) website, mainly in Spanish. Youâll need the fineâs reference number and your passport or ID. Payment is by credit or debit card, and itâs secure, but can be tricky to navigate.
In Person: Head to a post office with a giro postal (money order), select Santander bank branches, or your local traffic department. Cash is king at banks, as cards might not be accepted.
By Phone: Call 060 to pay, though English support is spotty in Spain. Always keep the receipt. If youâre abroad, the EU Directive 2015/413 means Spain can chase you across borders, so donât ignore it.
Step 4: Should You Appeal? Got grounds to fight? You have 20 days to appeal in writing via the DGT, but youâll lose the 50 per cent discount if you do. Valid reasons include incorrect vehicle details or a fine issued too late. One driver on Tripadvisor reported a mistaken fine for a car rented a year prior, which was worth contesting. Appeals are a gamble, as the process is slow and mostly in Spanish.
Step 5: Avoid Future Fines Spainâs speed camerasâfixed, mobile, and even helicopter-mounted Pegasus unitsâallow a small buffer: 5-7 km/h or 5-7% over the limit, depending on the camera type.
Stick to limits (50 km/h urban, 90 km/h country roads, 120 km/h motorways) and watch for variable signs. Using radar detectors is illegal, with hefty fines, so turn off GPS camera alerts.
If renting, double-check speed limit signs, as sudden drops (90 km/h to 60 km/h on the A-384) catch tourists.
Final Tip: Pay fast to save cash, and drive smart to avoid the hassle altogether. Spainâs roads are unforgiving, but your bank account doesnât have to be.
UK police investigate fire at PM Keir Starmerâs homes as terrorism
PUBLISHED: 2025-05-12 22:28:01Counterterrorism police are investigating a series of arson attacks at homes linked to Prime Minister Keir Starmer, treating them as potential acts of terrorism.
Three separate firesâone at a former address, another at a property Starmer still owns, and a third involving a vehicleâerupted in the early hours of Sunday in North London. The incidents happened within minutes of each other. Fire crews received instructions to rush to the scenes of the blazes at just before 1 am. Officials reported no casualties.
What began as routine fire service callouts has escalated fast. Detectives now believe the Prime Minister may have been deliberately targeted. The Met Police handed the case to its Counter Terrorism Command, confirming the decision was made âdue to the links to a high-profile individual.â
Starmer rents out to tenants
Starmer no longer lives at either of the homes affectedâboth are said to be occupied by tenantsâbut the connection is clear. Fire crews and police forensic teams spent much of Sunday combing the scenes for evidence, and surveillance footage from nearby roads is now under review.
Details remain sparse. Investigators say they are âkeeping an open mind,â but the security services treat this as serious behind closed doors. One senior Whitehall source reportedly described it as âdeeply troubling.â
Electoral time has not gone unnoticed
The Prime Minister and his family live at Downing Street. His office has declined to confirm that Starmer is receiving regular briefings.
The timing and coordination of the attacks, just weeks before a likely general election announcement, havenât gone unnoticed. Nor has the wider backdropârising geopolitical tension, foreign interference warnings, and an increasingly toxic public discourse.
What remains unclear is whether this was intended as a political message, an act of intimidation, or something else entirely. What is clear: someone lit the matchâliterally. Now itâs down to the counterterror teams to figure out who, and why.
Eyebrows raised in Spain as UK sets strict English requirements for new immigrants to Britain
PUBLISHED: 2025-05-12 17:30:00THE BRITISH government has announced plans to tighten immigration restrictions â' including increasing the minimum level of English required to obtain visas.
Itâs a move that has raised eyebrows among Spanish communities, with many noting a lack of effort from British expats in their own learning of Spanish.
Spain has no strict legal requirements on Spanish language proficiency to live and work, other than an A2 level requirement when becoming a citizen.
It stands in contrast to Prime Minister Keir Starmer long-awaited migration rules, published on Monday, which he claims will âcreate a system that is controlled, selective and fair.â
âWhen people come to our country, they should also commit to integration and to learning our language,â Starmer said in a speech to media.
Among the rules in the white paper titled Restoring control over the Immigration System, Labour has signalled a plan to raise English language requirements for every visa.
Until now, visa applicants only needed an English level similar to the British GCSE; the equivalent of a basic knowledge of English, and there were no English proficiency requirements for adult dependents.
In the new rules, Skilled workers and those wishing to permanently settle in the UK will have to prove a B2 level of English. This means individuals must be able to express themselves fluently and handle both professional and social conversations confidently.
All adult dependents of workers and students will have to show a level of at least A1. Individuals will also have to show their progression of learning English once they are living and working in the country.
The new rules have been met with heated debate as, while many in the UK agree that âimmigrants who come to our should learn our languageâ, others have been quick to point out that many Brits abroad do not
Social media user James Coverdale came out in support of the new rules on X, writing that it should be the case no matter where you live.
âIf youâre a Brit living in Spain, guess what? You should learn Spanish. You should respect their laws, integrate into their culture, and not expect the locals to bend over backwards to accommodate you. Simple as that,â he wrote.
âItâs called basic manners and national self-respect.â
However, some people are calling the move hypocritical. Social Media user Lorraine King shared her thoughts on X (formerly Twitter): âSo I guess all the Brits living in Benidorm are fluent in Spanish, and those in Dubai fluent in Arabic.â
Benidorm is a tourist hotspot, with many visitors eventually choosing to make the Costa Blanca seaside town their home, including more than 3,000 British expats who live there today.
Hundreds of British holidaymakers took part in an Orange March there in 2024 and years prior, parading through Benidormâs streets, waving the UK flag.
The march was held in remembrance of the 1860 Battle of the Boyne between King William III and King James II. It had many wondering why a Spanish townâs streets have become a backdrop for a sectarian British event.
It draws upon the wider issue, not just of immigration, but of how much language holidaymakers should learn when travelling and exploring new cultures.
Social media user Hina Khan pointed out that, unlike many European countries where English is taught in school, resulting in bilingual adults, âtypically our education system doesnât really promote multilingual speaking.â
Although English is widely spoken, and thus an excellent lingua franca â' adopted language between speakers whose native tongues are different â' it can become too easy for native English speakers to expect others to learn English, rather than the other way around.
Learning a new language can open doors both for meeting new people and standing out for job opportunities. An Oxford University Migration Observatory study in 2021, found nine out of 10 migrants to the UK reported speaking English well, which helped them to settle and build a life for themselves and their families. In comparison, those with poor English skills were less likely to be employed.
Lonely Planet writer Caterina Hrysomallis advises travellers, whether you are just passing through a country as a visitor or choosing to make it your new home, to ask themselves: âWhy is the onus on someone else to learn your language and not the other way around?â
Bogus couple scam busted: Foreigners paid thousands to get residency permits in Spain
PUBLISHED: 2025-05-12 14:00:00FOREIGN migrants were charged up to â¬4,000 to hood-wink authorities into believing they were in a common-law relationship with a Spanish woman.
The Costa Blanca-based scam used an Alfaz del Pi address for all registrations.
The Policia Nacional have arrested eight people including three non-Spaniards who shelled out cash for a civil union certificate.
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Police bust âarrangedâ wedding scheme for non-Spaniards to get residency status in the Valencian Community
Proof of such a union meant they were in line for a temporary residence visa, even though the relationships were bogus.
The ruse involved payers using addresses of Spanish citizens to get a certificate of registration.
That was then submitted to authorities for inclusion on their civil union listings as a âcommon-lawâ couple.
The criminal operation came unstuck because they kept using the same Alfaz del Pi address.
Investigators discovered that two people registered there had submitted papers to get the civil union document.
Officers also found two other âcouplesâ had also used the same address.
Despite so many people apparently piling into the Alfaz property, just one person actually lived there.
The probe focused on three people led by the man who rented the house and a female recruiter who looked for women to become a bogus partner.
The third person was the one who contacted foreigners wanting residency.
The trio were arrested in Alicante, plus two of the fake Spanish âwivesâ.
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