
Ashling Murphy witness recalls seeing 'kicking legs'
A woman gives evidence at the trial of 33-year-old Jozef Puska, who denies murdering Ms Murphy.
2023-10-19 02:08

What is 'Citadel: Diana'? Amazon's spyverse franchise expands with Italian series starring Matilda De Angelis
The first look of the spin-off series was shared right after the end of the final episode of 'Citadel' Season 1
2023-05-27 18:38

Irish couple die after being hit by car in Rome
The couple, reported to be 59 and 60, were killed on the outskirts of the city on Thursday.
2023-09-08 05:16

How to watch Kansas vs. Texas Tech livestream without cable
Wondering how to watch college football this season? Here are your best options: Most affordable
2023-11-10 03:15

Green Bonds Take Big Lead Over Fossil-Fuel Debt Deals
For the first time, companies and governments are raising considerably more money in the debt markets for environmentally
2023-07-05 18:00

Gordon romps for 282 yards, 4 TDs, Oklahoma State outlasts West Virginia 48-34
Ollie Gordon II rushed for a career-high 282 yards and scored four touchdowns to lead Oklahoma State to a 48-34 victory over West Virginia
2023-10-22 07:28

For Cuban asylum seekers, options dwindle after Serbia slaps restrictions on visas to curb migration
Fernando Almeyda Rodriguez and Remy Hernandez are two friends from Cuba, bound by a joint struggle for democracy in their country. But that comes at a price. The two men — Rodriguez is 31 and Hernandez 27 — were forced to flee Cuba in the aftermath of mass protests in 2021 to avoid persecution for their activism. An unlikely migration route brought them to Serbia — on the Balkan peninsula, at Europe's southeastern edge — where they sought political asylum. Rodriguez and Hernandez chose Serbia because it was among the few countries in the world that did not require entry visas for Cubans. But Belgrade has since revoked the open travel regime, closing down a passage into Europe used by fleeing Cubans for decades. Serbia made the decision under pressure from the European Union, which it wants to join. Belgrade was also forced to impose visas for the citizens of countries such as Burundi, India or Tunisia which have become a source of migration into the 27-nation bloc. For Rodriguez, however, the decision only meant that Cubans like him will now have fewer options if they wish to flee to avoid pressure from the Communist regime or escape crippling poverty. “Cuba resembles more or less some kind of a concentration camp in which your only option is to die in silence and not complain,” he said. “A lot of these (people) are humanitarian cases or refugee cases and you close the door to them. What about these people?” Friendly relations between Cuba and Serbia date back to the era when Serbia was part of the former Communist-run Yugoslavia, resulting in a small Cuban community here. Last month, Belgrade hosted Cuba's President Miguel Diaz-Canel, at a time when Serbia's populist President Aleksandar Vucic has been facing weeks of street protests against his increasingly autocratic rule. Rodriguez said he had been forced to hide for months in Cuba to avoid arrest before he finally flew to Belgrade via Frankfurt, Germany, in Feb. 2022. It was "jail or leaving,” he told the Associated Press in an interview. “I spent more than six months playing hide and seek with the security ... the police,” said Rodriguez. “I would not stop struggling for human rights in my country.” Rodriguez has since been granted asylum in Serbia while the procedure for Hernandez’s application is still underway. Serbian lawyer Nikola Kovacevic, who represented Rodriguez in the asylum procedure, also said the changes in Serbia’s visa policies would expose many refugees from Cuba, Africa and Asia to much longer, dangerous and more complicated ways to reach Europe. “It was the safest route to protection” said Kovacevic. “And now it does not exist any more, it was cancelled. The options for these people have narrowed down.” Migration activists have repeatedly criticized EU countries over the reported illegal pushbacks of migrants and efforts to keep the borders closed even as hundreds die while traversing dangerous routes over the seas or in the hands of people smugglers. Last month, EU countries agreed on a reform of asylum laws and a shared responsibility for migrants entering Europe without authorization. Hungary and Poland opposed the deal, reflecting disunity in the bloc over migration. Both Rodriguez, who is a well-known human rights lawyer and activist in Cuba, and Hernandez, an artist and art teacher, say they had no other option but to flee the government crackdown. The protests in July 2021 were the biggest in Cuba in decades. Scores of people were jailed after the mass rallies that first erupted because of blackouts and shortages that soared during the COVID-19 pandemic. Rodriguez was a prominent member of the Archipelago group that was active on social networks. Hernandez says he lost his job as an art teacher in a Havana high school because he published cartoons in a satirical magazine critical of the Communist authorities. “They expelled me from the school where I worked, from the profession that I studied all my life,” he said. Hernandez said most his friends and family members had also fled as part of a major exodus in recent years. In Cuba, he said, “there is no food, there is no electricity, there is no medicine.” The majority of fleeing Cubans still head for the United States while Europe, primarily Spain, had been an option via Moscow or Serbia. So far, 56 Cubans expressed their intention to seek asylum in Serbia in the first half of 2023, a number that is expected to fall because of the change in the visa regime. Lawyer Kovacevic says that the numbers of Cubans who have used Serbia as a gateway to Europe represent merely a trickle compared to other nationalities migrating along the so-called Western Balkan land route. Serbia’s relaxed visa policies in the past had saved lives, he said. “Any refugee escape is not dignified,” added Kovacevic. “But at least you come directly to safety and then apply for asylum, (which) is way better than to jump over 15 borders where you are going to be beaten up 20 times, pushed back, extorted, humiliated. “This is the way people should be provided with safe routes,” he said. ”And this is not the case now.” —- Follow AP's coverage of migration at: Migration ' AP News Read More Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Kosovo to partially withdraw special police officers from northern Serb-majority municipalities Presidents of Serbia, Montenegro agree to patch up strained relations between historic allies Jews and Muslims come together at Srebrenica anniversary of Europe's only post-World War II genocide
2023-07-13 14:28

Braves: 3 trades Alex Anthopoulos will regret not making at the deadline
The Atlanta Braves ultimately were quiet at the MLB trade deadline, but Alex Anthopoulos could end up regretting not trading for these players.The MLB Trade Deadline has come and gone and, for the most part, the Atlanta Braves were quiet. When the dust all settled the three pla...
2023-08-02 08:50

Clubhouse quotes and insights to how Alek Thomas, Diamondbacks defeated Phillies in Game 4
The Arizona Diamondbacks stunningly defeated the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 4, and have positioned themselves for a stunning National League Championship Series upset.
2023-10-21 21:51

River of Wine Flows Through Streets in Portugal
We waited for months and months for meaningful professional football. Most of it was bad and for whatever reason we have yet to enjoy very much in the way of interesting content in reaction to the stimulus. It's really, really weird. Perhaps everyone is just watching for Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets to pick up the reins and lead us through another week. So that's why you're getting a clip of wine gushing through the streets of Levira, Portugal following a containment break at a distillery.
2023-09-12 02:27

Gaza journalist killed alongside 42 relatives, news agency says
Mohammad Abu Hasira's death comes as a watchdog says the past month has been the most deadly for journalists.
2023-11-08 03:23

Some 5,000 migrants set out on foot from Mexico's southern border, tired of long waits for visas
About 5,000 migrants from Central America, Venezuela, Cuba and Haiti have set out on foot to reach the U.S., walking north from Mexico's southern border
2023-10-31 05:56
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