Europe

Senior officials within the European Union are now demanding deportations increase amid a spike in illegal migrant arrivals into the bloc. The European Commission is looking for the EU and its member states to increase the number of deportations enforced against illegal migrants. Having seen a massive spike in illegal immigration back in 2015 and 2016, the union has once again seen a large spike in what it calls “irregular” border crossings, with hundreds of thousands of individuals entering the bloc in an uncontrolled manner last year. Such a spike in arrivals also saw a spike in deportation orders, though, according to POLITICO , the EU has a problem with effectively removing illegal migrants from its territory, with only 24 per cent of the 342,100 people requested to be removed by European authorities actually being sent to a non-EU member nation in 2021. It now appears Brussels wants to at least be seen as taking steps to remedy this situation, with the EU’s Home … [Read more...] about Eurocrats Demand More Deportations As Illegal Migrant Crossings Spike

Germany’s decision to keep sending weapons to Ukraine has left the country’s own armoury “bare”, the country’s army chief has warned. Lieutenant General Alfons Mais, the chief of Germany’s army, has warned that government decisions to keep sending weapons and munitions abroad to Ukraine have left military stockpiles “bare”, a report on Wednesday has claimed. It comes as the country’s government finally agreed to give a number of its Leopard 2 main battle tanks to the Ukrainian military in the face of mounting political pressure both at home and abroad. However, according to a report by Bild , such a decision may yet have a negative effect on the country’s combat preparedness. Having previously warned that his force had been left with a more-or-less “bare” armoury, Mais warned that — despite the German government committing to pumping over $100 billion into the country’s military — things have not gotten much better. In fact, according to the publication, the army … [Read more...] about German Military Left with ‘Bare’ Armory As Weapons Sent to Ukraine

As I said a heartfelt goodbye to my 2014 Subaru Impreza Sport 5-Door last September, there was something I wondered as I walked off the used car lot: where are all the station wagons? As it turns out, in the year 2023, there aren’t that many station wagons on the road, period. “The standard data provider for new vehicle sales doesn’t even break down wagons anymore,” says Kevin Roberts, director of industry insights and analytics at CarGurus. “Most of the time, they’ll probably end up classified as a crossover or a hatchback.” Some data aggregators have “station wagon” as a trim or body variant, but you’ll be hard-pressed to find any meaningful separation of the category. It speaks to the bigger problem of coming up with an exact definition for the term “station wagon” — a term that hasn’t kept up with the times. CHECK CAR PRICES: Station wagons, in the most traditional sense, are clearly in decline. American auto tastes have shifted, but many of the features that … [Read more...] about Where Have All the Station Wagons Gone?

Nearly 400 illegal migrants crossed the English Channel in small boats from the beaches of France on Wednesday, marking the second highest daily total so far this year as the government has admitted that it’s chief deterrence policy will likely be delayed until later this year. According to the data published by the Ministry of Defence, there had been 592 illegal migrants brought ashore at Dover this year so far. But that number jumped considerably again this week with smugglers taking advantage of calm weather in the morning on Wednesday. Eight smugglers’ boats carried another 373 migrants across the cold and dangerous waterway on Wednesday morning. A further 31 migrants were brought back to France after their boat required rescuing, according to French authorities. The pace is roughly on par with that of last year, when a record 45,728 crossed the English Channel, however, depending on weather conditions, January could once again see a record number make the illegal … [Read more...] about Nearly 400 Migrants Land in Britain as Rwanda Scheme Is Delayed Again

A 16-year-old has been charged with the death of local politician Frederik Andersson outside a gym in Stockholm last year after the politician attempted to stop a gang shooting. The 16-year-old has been charged with murdering 55-year-old Frederik Anderson, who was not the intended target in the attack, as well as a count of attempted murder, while three others have been charged with aiding and abetting murder and attempted murder. District Attorney Daniel Suneson, who brought the charges, spoke about the case, telling broadcaster SVT, “The investigation has shown nothing more than that the person who died was not the actual target but only intervened against the perpetrator.” The fatal shooting is said to also be linked to another case involving the bombing of a restaurant in the Södermalm area of Stockholm that saw a suspect throw a hand grenade inside the restaurant in March of last year. Swedish Poltician Dies After Trying to Stop Deadly Gang Shooting … [Read more...] about Teen Charged for Shooting Death of Local Politician in Stockholm

Hussain Chehab, a London police officer who was posted to a school in the city, has pleaded guilty to a number of child sex abuse offences, reports have claimed. Hussain Chehab, who is a serving officer within London’s Metropolitan Police, pleaded guilty to four counts of sexual activity with a girl aged 13 to 15, three counts of making indecent photographs of a child, as well as to having sexual communication with a child during a sitting of Wood Green crown court on Tuesday. It is the second instance of a high-profile case of a London police officer pleading guilty to sexual offences hitting the papers this month, with another officer admitting that he raped a number of women over many years while serving with the force. According to a report by The Guardian , Chehab was serving as a “safer schools” officer in a borough of London when alarm bells were first raised by the family of one 16-year-old girl, who reportedly believed that the officer had been in a sexual … [Read more...] about UK Police Officer Hussain Chehab Admits to Child Sex Abuse