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BBC NewsService Journaline® 

National strike by Belgium's big unions hits public transport, airports and ships

    3 hours ago Bruno BoelpaepIn Brussels and Paul KirbyEurope digital editor Reuters Demonstrators held a banner that read "social health: vital" Tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets in Brussels as part of a national strike over government reforms and spending cuts that has brought flights to a halt and severely disrupted public transport. Belgium's three big unions are protesting over pensions and other measures by Prime Minister Bart de Wever's centre-right government aimed at cutting the budget deficit. There were no services at Belgium's second biggest airport at Charleroi, and all departures and many of the arrivals were cancelled at Brussels Airport. Although trains were running, most buses, trams and underground trains in the capital ground to a halt. Shipping at Europe's second biggest port Antwerp was suspended until Wednesday because of understaffing, and more than 100 ships waited in the North Sea for permission to dock at three ports, according to Belgium's MDK maritime and coastal services. Belgium has been hit by several strikes since Flemish nationalist Bart de Wever came to office last February. By midday, police said 80,0000 protesters had joined the demonstration in the Belgian capital. Bruno Boelpaep/BBC The unions were expecting more than 100,000 Belgians to join the Brussels protest Public sector workers were protesting against austerity measures and a government increasingly perceived as leaning right. They wound through the streets of central Brussels, many wearing the red or green colours of the main unions. A key issue for the unions is the government's plan to increase the number of days Belgians work per year before they can receive their pensions, as well as the end of special schemes for several sectors including military and railway workers. De Wever's government has also announced measures including a maximum two-year limit on claiming unemployment benefit. Further cuts are planned for next year's budget, and some proposals such as reducing child benefit or raising VAT have already been floated. "It's about time we came together," said Anaïs, 29. "It's always the same part of the population that has to tighten their belts." Bruno Boelpaep/BBC Anaïs complained that the government's pension reforms would not affect wealthier Belgians Holding a placard showing the number 67 with a red line through it, she objected to the pension age going up: "65 is enough. 67 is too late. We are asked to work more, to work longer hours. It's not fair." The rise in pension age was adopted 10 years ago, well before De Wever's government came to office, but it remains deeply unpopular and the government is aiming to ringfence it and make it more expensive to retire earlier. Thierry Bodson of the ABVV union told demonstrators that "the fight against the De Wever government is not just the fight of a day or a year - it's for a whole generation", Belga news agency reported. "We need to fight for our rights," said mother-of-two Vanessa, who had travelled from Charleroi. "I'm worried about the measures that will be taken. What sort of future will my children have?" she told the BBC. It is not just the federal government under pressure to cut spending. Belgium's complex multi-level governance means regional authorities are also imposing austerity measures. The ruling coalition in Belgium's largely French-speaking Walloon region has announced that teachers in the higher tiers of secondary schools will have to work an extra two hours per week. Many of them joined the protests today. "Nothing is clear, and it's really worrying, but if higher-level teachers have to work more, many jobs will be cut," said Sandrine, 48, who works in education. Although the protests were largely peaceful, there were several incidents of vandalism and arson early in the morning and some people in masks clashed with police later on.

Trump says he may send Tomahawk missiles to Ukraine

    US President Donald Trump is considering sending long-range Tomahawk cruise missiles to Ukraine. Asked by reporters on Air Force One on Sunday whether he would provide Kyiv with Tomahawks, Trump replied: "We'll see... I may". The missiles would be "a new step of aggression" in Ukraine's war with Russia, he said. The comments follow a phone call at the weekend between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who pushed for stronger military support to launch counter-attacks against Russia. Zelensky has said he will meet Trump in Washington on Friday for talks that will focus on air defence and long-range capabilities. Trump confirmed the Ukrainian leader's visit to the White House when a reporter asked if he plans to host Zelensky on Friday. "I think so, yeah," the US president said during a brief fuel stop as he travelled back to Washington from the Middle East. It will be Zelensky's third visit to Washington since January. Moscow has previously warned Washington against providing long-range missiles to Kyiv, saying it would cause a major escalation in the conflict and strain US-Russian relations. Tomahawk missiles have a range of 2,500 km (1,500 miles), which would put Moscow within reach of Ukraine. Trump's attitude to Russia has hardened in recent months as he has become impatient with Vladimir Putin's lack of cooperation in reaching a ceasefire deal with Kyiv. "I might tell them [Russia] that if the war is not settled, that we may very well, [send Tomahawks to Kyiv] we may not, but we may do it," he said. "Do they [Russia] want Tomahawks going in their direction? I don't think so," the US president added. On Sunday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said the topic of Tomahawks was of "extreme concern" to Russia. "Now is really a very dramatic moment in terms of the fact that tensions are escalating from all sides," he said. In September Peskov had dismissed the threat of Tomahawks, saying they would not be able to "change the dynamic" of the war. But in his comments on Sunday he noted that if Tomahawks were launched at Russia Moscow would not be able to tell whether they were carrying nuclear warheads. "What should the Russian Federation think? Just how should Russia react?", he said. Former Russian President Dmitry Medvedev then doubled down on Peskov's comments. "How should Russia respond? Exactly!" Medvedev said on social media. "The delivery of these missiles could end badly for everyone. And first of all – for Trump himself," he wrote. Medvedev, who over the last few years has grown into an increasingly hawkish figure, frequently posts on social media espousing more extreme positions than the Kremlin's. He and Trump have sparred online before. Comments by Medvedev in August led Trump to say he had ordered two nuclear submarines to move closer to Russia. Since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion in 2022, Kyiv has made multiple requests for long-range missiles, as it weighs up striking Russian cities far from the front lines of the grinding conflict. In their recent phone calls, Zelensky and Trump discussed Ukraine's bid to strengthen its military capabilities, including boosting its air defences and long-range arms. Ukrainian cities including Kyiv have repeatedly come under heavy Russian bombardment with drones and missiles. Russia has particularly targeted Ukraine's energy infrastructure as winter approaches, causing widespread power cuts. Last month, Trump's special envoy to Ukraine Keith Kellogg suggested the US president had authorised strikes deep into Russian territory, telling Fox News "there are no such things as sanctuaries" from attacks in the Russia-Ukraine war.

Nato chief jokes about 'limping' Russian submarine

    Nato chief Mark Rutte joked about the condition of Russia's naval fleet on Monday as Moscow denied one of its submarines had to surface because of technical problems. Russia's Black Sea Fleet said the diesel-powered submarine Novorossiysk had surfaced off France to comply with navigation rules in the English Channel, through which it was shadowed by a UK warship and helicopter. Dutch authorities had said on Saturday the submarine was under tow in the North Sea. "What a change from the 1984 Tom Clancy novel The Hunt for Red October. Today, it seems more like the hunt for the nearest mechanic," Rutte said in a speech in Slovenia, saying the "broken" vessel was "limping" home. Rutte said there was "hardly any Russian naval presence in the Mediterranean left". VChK-OGPU, a Telegram channel that publishes purported Russian security leaks, reported on 27 September that fuel was leaking into the hold of the Novorossiysk in the Strait of ­Gibraltar, raising the risk of an explosion. As it was returning from its deployment in the Mediterranean, the Royal Navy said it tracked the vessel over three days, from 7 to 9 October. Taking part in joint Nato efforts, the Navy said HMS Iron Duke monitored the surfaced Russian Kilo-class submarine and its support tug as they passed through the Channel and into the North Sea. On Saturday, the Dutch defence ministry said the Dutch navy had then escorted the Novorossiysk and the accompanying towing vessel. The Russian Black Sea Fleet said on Monday that the submarine, part of a group of submarines that carry Kalibr cruise missiles, was conducting a "scheduled inter-fleet transit". "Information disseminated by a number of media outlets about an alleged malfunction and, as a result, the emergency surfacing of the diesel-electric submarine Novorossiysk off the coast of France does not correspond to reality," the Russian Black Sea Fleet's press service said, as quoted by news agency Interfax. "In accordance with international navigation regulations, submarines are to navigate the English Channel only while on the surface," it added. The incident comes two weeks after the Royal Navy tracked a Russian frigate and cargo vessel through the Channel. Armed forces minister Al Carns said the Navy's latest operation was "a clear sign of how the UK stands strong with our Nato allies to push back against Russian aggression". In June, a Russian warship disguised itself using a fake ID signal while travelling through the English Channel with two sanctioned oil tankers, a BBC Verify investigation found. It travelled alongside two vessels known to be part of Russia's "shadow fleet" - a network of tankers whose ownership can be obscured and are used to transport sanctioned oil products.

First German state visit to UK for 27 years announced

    The president of Germany will visit the UK later this year, Buckingham Palace has announced. The visit by President Frank-Walter Steinmeier, from 3 to 5 December, will be the first German state visit to the UK in 27 years. King Charles and Queen Camilla will host the visit at Windsor Castle as Buckingham Palace is undergoing renovations. Such state visits are used to reinforce alliances and to encourage trade, with the German trip following last month's state visit by US President Donald Trump. State visits are a mix of political and business meetings, alongside royal pageantry and a diplomatic red-carpet welcome, with a banquet, military parade and carriage rides. The visit follows a treaty between Germany and the UK signed in the summer, known as the Kensington Treaty, which agreed to create a direct rail link between London and Berlin, as part of measures bringing the countries closer together. There are plans for more cultural ties such as school exchanges, stronger military links, business investments and joint efforts to tackle illegal migration and people smuggling. The King and Queen will be returning the hospitality to President Steinmeier and his wife Elke Büdenbender for their own visit to Germany in March 2023, in what was the first overseas state visit of the new reign. That first visit as King proved to be a diplomatic success, with the King making a well-received speech to the German Bundestag in Berlin, where he spoke about the importance of Germany's efforts in supporting Ukraine after the invasion by Russia. In a symbolic moment of reconciliation, he also went to Hamburg where he laid a wreath remembering those who had died in the Allied bombing of the city during the Second World War. The last German state visit to the UK was in December 1998, by President Roman Herzog, where he became the first head of state to visit Windsor Castle after the fire of 1992. Queen Elizabeth II hosted the visit and her state banquet speech spoke of the importance of both countries belonging to international organisations, "headed by the European Union and the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation", which helped "to extend our reach and achieve goals which would be impossible on our own". In that 1998 speech, which would have been written with the advice of the government, she also expressed the hope that Germany would become a permanent member of the UN Security Council - which so far has not happened The announcement of the 2025 German state visit adds to what is already a busy autumn schedule for the King, who is still undergoing cancer treatment. The King and Queen will be travelling to meet Pope Leo next week, for a rearranged state visit to the Vatican. A previously planned visit was postponed because of the ill-health of the late Pope Francis.

Venezuela shuts embassy in Norway following opposition leader's Nobel award

    Venezuela announced on Monday it would close its embassy in Oslo, days after opposition leader María Corina Machado was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. In a statement, the Venezuelan government did not comment on Machado's prize, saying that the closure was part of a restructuring of its foreign service. Norway's foreign ministry confirmed that Caracas had closed its embassy in Oslo without providing a reason. The Nobel Committee in Oslo awarded her the prize on Friday in recognition of what it called "her tireless work promoting democratic rights for the people of Venezuela", while Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro referred to the 58-year-old laureate as a "demonic witch". The Norwegian foreign ministry called the decision "regrettable". "Despite our differences on several issues, Norway wishes to keep the dialogue open with Venezuela and will continue to work in this direction," a ministry spokeswoman said. She added that the Nobel Prize "is independent of the Norwegian government". Machado has for years been campaigning against Maduro, whose 12-year rule is viewed by many nations as illegitimate. She has been forced to live in hiding for much of the past year. In honouring her achievement, Nobel chairman Jørgen Watne Frydnes called Machado a "key, unifying figure in a political opposition that was once deeply divided... in a brutal authoritarian state that is now suffering a humanitarian and economic crisis." Machado told BBC Mundo her award was "like an injection" for her political movement. "It infuses energy, hope, strength on the Venezuelan people because we realise that we are not alone," she said. Caracas also closed its embassy in Australia while opening new outposts in Zimbabwe and Burkina Faso, which it called "strategic partners in the fight" against "hegemonic pressures". Venezuela's closure of embassies in two close US allies comes after weeks of heightened tension between Caracas and Washington. The US military has destroyed at least four boats that it said were carrying narcotics from Venezuela to the US, killing at least 21 people on board, in what the Trump administration calls a war on drugs. The strikes have attracted condemnation in countries including Venezuela and Colombia, with some international lawyers describing the strikes as a breach of international law. The last time Norway suffered a diplomatic blow over the Nobel Peace Prize was with China in 2010, when it was awarded to political dissident Liu Xiaobo. Beijing suspended trade and other relations, and only normalised ties with Oslo six years later.

Eurovision organisers postpone vote on Israel's inclusion in contest next year

    The organisers of the Eurovision Song Contest have postponed a vote on whether Israel should be allowed to perform in next year's competition. The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) said "recent developments in the Middle East" had prompted it to cancel the virtual meeting to vote on the matter, which was scheduled to take place in November. It said Israel's participation would instead be discussed at an in-person meeting in December, though it did not make clear whether a vote would still take place. Israel's participation in Eurovision has faced opposition from some other participating countries due to the war in Gaza. On Monday, all 20 living Israeli hostages were freed by Hamas in exchange for the return of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails. It comes after a ceasefire came into force on Friday. In a statement, the EBU said: "In the light of recent developments in the Middle East, the EBU's executive board (meeting on October 13) agreed there was a clear need to organise an open and in-person discussion among its members on the issue of participation in the Eurovision Song Contest 2026." "Consequently, the board agreed to put the issue on the agenda of its ordinary winter general assembly, which will be taking place in December, rather than organising an extraordinary session in advance," it added. The EBU announced last month it would invite 68 member countries to give their view on whether Israel should take part at a general assembly meeting in November. Austrian national broadcaster ORF, which will host the contest in 2026, said it welcomed the EBU's decision. It had previously urged countries not to boycott the contest next year in Vienna, with its Foreign Minister Beate Meinl-Reisinger saying Eurovision and the arts in general are "not the appropriate arenas for sanctions". Spain, Ireland, Slovenia, Iceland and the Netherlands have all said they would consider boycotting next year's contest if Israel were to take part. Dutch broadcaster AvroTros said last month it would not change its position if a ceasefire in Gaza was reached. "If a ceasefire is reached in the near future or the conflict develops differently, that will not change our position for 2026. We will reassess participation in subsequent years, depending on the circumstances at that time," it said in a statement. The BBC has asked Israel's national broadcaster, Kan, for comment. In September it said it should be allowed to take part, saying it was "one of the contest's longstanding, popular and successful participants". Israel came second in the the most recent Eurovision Song Contest in May, with its act Yuval Raphael receiving the largest combined public vote. However, the inclusion of jury votes led to Austria being declared the overall winner.

Floods trap people in cars in Spain's Catalonia region

    Floods caused by torrential rain have left a number of people trapped in vehicles in Spain's north-eastern Catalonia region, officials say. Videos on social media have emerged showing torrents of muddy water sweeping through the towns of La Ràpita and Santa Bàrbara in the Tarragona province, and moving everything in their path. The highest red alert has been declared in the coastal province by Spain's national weather agency AEMET. So far there have been no reports of any deaths or injuries. Catalonia's Civil Protection agency urged residents in Tarragona's Ebro Delta to stay indoors, as AEMET warned of 180mm (7in) of rain in 12 hours in the area. "The situation is complicated, and more rain is forecast," Cristina Vicente, a senior official at the agency, was quoted as saying by the La Vanguardia newspaper. Train departures from the cities of Barcelona and Valencia, in the neighbouring Valencia region, have been suspended until further notice along the mainly coastal Mediterranean Corridor. Several regions in south-eastern Spain - including the Balearic Islands - have in recent days been battered by heavy rains and flooding. The severe weather has been driven by Storm Alice in the western Mediterranean.

French PM backs freezing Macron's pension reform to save government

    French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has told parliament he backs suspending controversial 2023 pension reforms, in the face of crucial votes of no-confidence later this week. The changes, which raised the retirement age from 62 to 64, were seen as signature reforms in Emmanuel Macron's presidency. "This autumn I will propose to parliament that we suspend the 2023 pension reform until the [2027] presidential election," Lecornu said to applause from left-wing parties. Lecornu was reappointed prime minister last week only four days after he resigned, and needs the support of Socialist MPs in parliament if his government is to survive. Opposition parties on the far right and far left have called confidence votes, known as "censure" votes on Lecornu's government, for Thursday morning and are demanding parliamentary elections. The Socialists said they would be prepared to support the new government, but only if it promises a complete suspension of Macron's pension changes. "If he does not explicitly say the words 'immediate and complete suspension of the pension reform', it will be censure," Socialist MP Laurent Baumel said earlier on French TV. "He is holding his destiny in his own hands. He knows what he has do if he doesn't want to be the prime minister who resigns every week." The reforms were finally pushed through parliament in March 2023, less than a year after Macron was voted in for a second presidential term. There had been months of political debate, strikes and street protests, and in the end the bill had to go through without a vote in parliament using a constitutional mechanism known as 49:3. Last week, Lecornu said it was something many French people remembered as a "wound on democracy" . On Tuesday he made it plain to MPs that suspending the pension reform would cost €400m (£350m) in 2026 and a further €1.8bn (£1.57bn) in 2027. This will have to be "compensated by other savings," Lecornu said. Lecornu is France's third prime minister in the past year but even if he does survive he needs to get a budget through parliament that brings down a budget deficit heading for 5.4¨f economic output (GDP) this year. France's public debt earlier this year stood at €3.4tn, or almost 114¨f GDP, the third highest in the eurozone after Greece and Italy. Lecornu has been one of Macron's most loyal allies, so his decision to row back on such a contested reform shows how keen the president is to avoid further turmoil. Philippe Aghion, who was jointly awarded the 2025 Nobel economics prize on Monday, said earlier that he also backed a suspension of the pension reform, because it would still come at a smaller cost than the instability that would follow another government collapse.

Blast kills three police officers trying to evict siblings from house in Italy

    Three police officers have been killed and at least 15 other people injured in an apparently deliberate gas explosion at a farmhouse in northern Italy. The blast was triggered as police and firefighters went into the house near Verona to carry out an eviction order for two brothers and a sister in their late 50s and mid-60s. The three victims who died were members of the Carabinieri military police. A man and a woman were arrested at the scene and another man who fled after the explosion was located soon after. All three have been taken to hospital. The blast could be heard some 5km (3 miles) away and images from the scene showed the building reduced to a pile of rubble. The head of the Veneto region, Luca Zaia, said the farmhouse was subject to an eviction order due to debts accrued by the three owners. "This is a time for grieving," said Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi, who added that attempts had been made to evict the three siblings in the past. "It was clear we were dealing with people who would resist in some way," he said. Mediators had been sent to speak to the siblings who had barricaded themselves into the house. When the Carabinieri arrived shortly after 03:00 (01:00 GMT), officials believe one of the siblings triggered the blast. "Upon entering the house, we were confronted with an act of absolute madness," provincial police commander Claudio Papagno told the Ansa news agency. "A gas cylinder had been ignited, and the explosion directly hit our officers," he said. Petrol bombs were also found at the property, the interior minister said. Those injured by the blast included 11 other members of the Carabinieri and well as three members of Italy's state police and a firefighter, Ansa reported. According to the Verona prosecutor, Raffaele Tito, the farmhouse was in a derelict state and had no electricity. The prosecutor believed the blast had taken place on a floor above the entrance and told reporters it was a "premeditated and voluntary homicide". Shortly before the explosion, he said officers had "heard a whistle, probably the gas cylinders being opened". "We all knew the situation was dire," neighbours told Italian media, adding that the three had previously threatened to "blow themselves up" rather than leave the house. Piantedosi said the explosion had left a "terrible, very painful and dramatic toll". Defence Minister Guido Crosetto joined other political leaders in paying tribute to the three men who had lost their lives in the service of their country.

Dutch government takes control of China-owned chip firm

    12 hours ago Osmond ChiaBusiness reporter Getty Images Nexperia is based in the Netherlands and operates factories worldwide, including in the UK The Dutch government has taken control of Nexperia, a Chinese-owned chipmaker based in the Netherlands, in a bid to safeguard the European supply of semiconductors for cars and other electronic goods and protect Europe's economic security. The Hague said it took the decision due to "serious governance shortcomings" and to prevent the chips from becoming unavailable in an emergency. Nexperia's owner Wingtech said on Monday that it would take actions to protect its rights and would seek government support. The development threatens to raise tensions between the European Union and China, which have increased in recent months over trade and Beijing's relationship with Russia. In December 2024, the US government placed Wingtech on its so-called "entity list", identifying the company as a national security concern. Under the regulations, US companies are barred from exporting American-made goods to businesses on the list unless they have special approval. In the UK, Nexperia was forced to sell its silicon chip plant in Newport, after MPs and ministers expressed national security concerns. It currently owns a UK facility in Stockport. The Dutch Economic Ministry said it made the "highly exceptional" decision to invoke the Goods Availability Act over "acute signals of serious governance shortcomings" within Nexperia. "These signals posed a threat to the continuity and safeguarding on Dutch and European soil of crucial technological knowledge and capabilities," the ministry said in a statement. "Losing these capabilities could pose a risk to Dutch and European economic security." The statement did not detail why it thought the firm's operations were risky. A spokesperson for the minister of economic affairs told the BBC there was no further information to share. The measures are aimed to keep European chip supplies flowing and protect Dutch intellectual property, said EU-China researcher Sacha Courtial. In a crisis, a Chinese-owned company could come under pressure from Beijing to halt supplies or prioritise sales to China, crippling European industries like carmakers and electronics manufacturers, he said. The Hague's move puts economic security "over free-market investment principles", in what could pave the way for other governments to follow, said Mr Courtial from the Jacques Delors Institute. The China Semiconductor Industry Association said on Tuesday that it is "seriously concerned" about the Dutch government taking control of Nexperia. The group described the measures as "selective and discriminatory" against overseas branches of Chinese enterprises and undermine open trade. 'Mitigating risk' The Goods Availability Act is designed to allow the Hague to intervene in companies under exceptional circumstances. These include threats to the country's economic security and to ensure the supply of critical goods. Under the order, the Dutch Minister of Economic Affairs, Vincent Karremans, could reverse or block Nexperia's decisions if they were potentially harmful to the company's interests, to its future as a business in the Netherlands or Europe, or to ensure supply remains available in an emergency. The Dutch government added the company's production can continue as normal. "This measure is intended to mitigate that risk," the ministry said. Shanghai-listed shares in Nexperia's parent company Wingtech fell by 10¨n Monday morning. A Nexperia spokesperson said the company "complies with all existing laws and regulations, export controls and sanctions regimes," and had no further comment. In a statement in Mandarin, Wingtech said its operations were continuing uninterrupted and it remained in close communication with its suppliers and customers. Wingtech said in a stock filing that the company's chairman, Zhang Xuezheng, was suspended from Nexperia's boards by an Amsterdam court order earlier this month. The company was also in talks with lawyers about potential legal remedies, it added. The BBC has also contacted the Chinese embassies in the Netherlands and Brussels.

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