The UK coalition government is facing mounting criticism for failing to do enough to prevent flooding, which has crippled parts of the country since almost two months ago. The government’s response to the crisis was described as “very disorganized” by angry residents of English Thameside village of Datchet in Berkshire, who woke on Tuesday morning to witness their houses surrounded by water. As... 

A senior political analyst has suggested British Prime Minister David Cameron should resign if he really plans to retain Scotland in the UK. In an interview with Press TV on Saturday, Ian Williams, Foreign Policy in Focus, London said Cameron’s resignation “would do wonders to get pro-union sentiment in the north.” “The best thing he could do would be to resign and call another election and... 

The ‘Brest Hero-Fortress’ memorial complex in Belarus. The main sculptural composition ‘Courage’. A CNN list compiling the ‘world’s ugliest monuments’ has been decried as ‘sacrilege’ in Belarus for including the country’s most important World War II monument. CNN apologized for the offense caused by the list, which it ascribed to a “contributor.” The... 

A deluge of torrential rain and hurricane-force winds will smash into Britain. Britain is readying itself for a historic storm set to batter its coast this weekend, with warnings of strong gales and enormous waves. The center of approaching ‘Mega Storm Charlie’ is more intense than the Great Storm of 1987, meteorologists say. “Gales across England and Wales, severe across southwest and southern... 

Bosnians have continued their anti-government protests for the fourth consecutive day, calling for the resignation of the government and release of the detainees. Hundreds of people held fresh demonstrations in the capital Sarajevo on Sunday and accused the police of using brute force against protesters. The protesters were also angry with the government’s inability to address the country’s 44... 

Swiss people have voted in favor of limiting the immigration of European job seekers, prompting the European Commission to announce reassessment of relations with Switzerland. Sunday’s poll results showed that Swiss voters narrowly backed the nationalists’ call for curbing EU immigration. Voters endorsed proposals to reintroduce immigration quotas with the EU – a move which has the potential... 

Hundreds of British barristers, lawyers and law students are set to attend a protest gathering in London to express their opposition to proposed legal aid cuts. The protest gathering entitled ‘One Bar: One Voice – United for Justice’ has been organized by the Bar Council, which represents legal professions in England and Wales and will be held at Lincoln’s Inn in central London. Legal... 

First light: The young star cluster NGC1818 in the Large Magellanic Cloud, taken as part of calibration and testing before the science phase of the Gaia telescope mission begins. Europe’s billion-star surveyor Gaia is slowly being brought into focus as it begins its mission to create the most accurate map of the Milky Way begins. Launched in December, the satellite has now reached its destination... 

Bosnia and Herzegovina was bracing itself for fresh nationwide rallies on Saturday amid warnings that public anger over the dire economic situation is pushing the country to the brinks. In a TV interview late on Friday, Interior Minister Fahrudin Radoncic cautioned the government that its indifference and inaction could trigger more unrest. He called for a large-scale campaign to uproot corruption... 

State hospital workers in Greece stage a strike in central Athens to protest at the government’s austerity measures. Greek state hospital doctors, nurses and administrative staff have held a strike to protest the government’s austerity measures which allegedly aim to make the healthcare sector “more efficient.” Hundreds of hospital workers congregated outside the parliament building... 

German media outlets say that the US National Security Agency (NSA) spied on former German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder over his opposition to the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq. In 2002, Chancellor Angela Merkel’s predecessor was placed on the NSA’s list of the people who were under surveillance, Munich’s daily Sueddeutsche Zeitung and public broadcaster NDR reported on Tuesday, based... 

Citing worries about foreign surveillance efforts, the government of Switzerland has ordered tighter control methods on its own computer and phone technology systems in order to prevent Swiss communications from being monitored. The Swiss Federal Council, a seven-member committee that serves as the head of the Swiss government and is responsible for enacting federal policy, admitted concern about... 

Russia has warned that Moscow may consider quitting the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) as the United States has deployed a ballistic missile destroyer to Spain. Mikhail Ulyanov, the Russian Foreign Ministry’s top disarmament official, said Sunday that if the US continues to enhance its anti-missile capabilities through NATO’s missile defense shield in Europe, then Moscow may be forced... 

A group of Russian MPs have prepared a bill severely restricting imports of genetically modified agricultural produce, and completely banning its domestic production. The initiative is backed by Evgeny Fyodorov of the parliamentary majority United Russia and a group called Russian Sovereignty, which unites MPs from various parties and parliamentary factions. The politicians want to amend the existing... 

On Saturday 20 July 2013, in the basement of the Guardian’s office in Kings Cross, London, watched by two GCHQ technicians, Guardian editors destroyed hard drives and memory cards on which encrypted files leaked by Edward Snowden had been stored. This is the first time footage of the event has been released.  Read More »