Unforgiving Pope Francis punishes critic Cardinal Burke by revoking right to subsidised Vatican house, salary
Burke, a 75-year-old canon lawyer whom Francis had fired as the Vatican’s high court justice in 2014, has become one of the most outspoken critics of the pope, his outreach to LGBTQ+ Catholics and his reform project to make the church more responsive to the needs of ordinary faithful.
German police raid Hamas supporters’ properties in Berlin as clamp down on lawlessness picks up
In Berlin alone, more than 300 police officers carried out searches at 11 locations in order to seize evidence and assets. Seven searches were related to Hamas and four to Samidoun. The searches mainly took place at the homes of supporters and the premises of a Palestinian association, German news agency DPA reported.
Riots erupt in Irish capital, Dublin, after children are stabbed in suspected anti-immigrant protests
A double decker bus was burned to the ground in front of the Daniel O’Connell statue at the head of the street and windows were smashed at a nearby Holiday Inn hotel and McDonalds restaurant. A Footlocker store was looted.
Barca politics is like real politics: Catalans top brass are always useless and everything that goes wrong is their fault
The club’s financial report in October 2021 was terrifying. It included £236 million in impairments and provisions – write-offs, in other words – related to bad contracts, legal fees and tax disputes. Barca’s net financial debt – its bank borrowings and bonds, minus cash in the bank – had sailed past £400 million and most of that was expensive, short-term debt. The club paid £36 million in interest that year.
Bust to back: Financial hamstringing of Spanish giants Barcelona, puffing and purring back to life
For the man himself, however, perhaps the biggest disappointment came the previous December, when he finished fifth in the voting for the Ballon d’Or, a prize given to the player a panel of international journalists believes is the best on the planet. Having been third in 2014, Neymar was going backwards, and he was beaten in 2016 by team-mates Messi and Suarez.
Central Europe’s war industry scrambles for African weapons market as Russia battles Ukraine
The Czech Republic in 2022 exported ammunition, guns, aircraft and other military supplies valued at around 32 million euros to 10 sub-Saharan African countries, many which rely on Soviet-era weapons manufactured with different standards and calibres than those used in the West. This was up from just under 2 million euros in 2011.
UK determined to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda despite Supreme Court ruling
Britain and Rwanda signed a deal in April 2022 to send migrants who arrive in the UK as stowaways or in boats to the East African country, where their asylum claims would be processed and, if successful, they would stay.
Britain’s Supreme Court set to rule on London’s plan to relocate asylum-seekers to Rwanda
In December the High Court in London ruled that the Rwanda plan is legal, but that the government must consider the individual circumstances of each case before putting anyone on a plane.
Ukrainian troops tales of exhaustion like Russians’ but the enemy has the numbers and more arsenal
The soldiers also know that Russia has a far bigger army and more weapons and ammunition, raising the uncomfortable question of how Ukraine can ever repel the invaders once and for all in Europe’s bloodiest conflict since World War Two.
London court finds woman guilty of abetting genital mutilation of a girl in Kenya 17 years later
Mr Justice Bryan thanked jurors for sitting on a case which they may have found “emotional”. He granted Noor conditional bail ahead of her sentencing at the same court on December 20.
