Two Russian men are set to stand trial in Angola, accused of running a covert campaign to sow dissent, spread false information and interfere in next year’s presidential vote.Igor Ratchin and Lev Lakshtanov were detained in August and face 11 counts including terrorism, espionage and illicit influence.Angolan prosecutors say their activities were part of a wider operation tied to a network that...

Postal staff around the UK have told the BBC that managers instructed them to remove or stash first-class letters so rounds appeared completed, a practice they say has helped mask missed delivery targets.The claims come from ten postal workers who spoke anonymously to BBC Your Voice.They described mail being put on trolleys or moved out of sight and returned the next day when inspections or...

Slovenia has announced daily limits on fuel purchases, becoming the first European Union member to introduce rationing amid regional supply worries and rising prices.The government says the move is aimed at preventing shortages and stopping motorists from filling up in Slovenia and returning home with cheaper fuel.Private drivers are now limited to 50 litres per day, while businesses and farmers...

The UN's weather agency says Earth is accumulating heat faster than ever recorded, creating an unprecedented imbalance that is already reshaping the climate.Experts point to rising greenhouse gas levels as the main driver of this extra trapped energy, which last year pushed ocean and ice measurements to new extremes.The World Meteorological Organization reports that the past 11 years are the...

A senior UK minister has dismissed claims that Iran possesses missiles capable of reaching London, saying government intelligence does not back that assertion.Housing Secretary Steve Reed told the BBC there is no official assessment showing Iran is targeting the UK or has the capacity to do so.He declined to disclose operational details about a recent missile incident. The remarks follow an...

Danish authorities reportedly prepared to disable key Greenland airstrips to stop a potential US seizure of the Arctic territory, the Danish broadcaster DR has reported.DR says its account is based on a dozen sources inside Denmark's government and military, plus officials in France and Germany, and the Financial Times later said two European diplomats corroborated parts of the story.According to...

Italy is holding a weekend referendum on changes to its constitution that would alter how judges and prosecutors are governed.What began as a technical tweak has morphed into a political showdown that could reshape Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s standing.The measure would split the career tracks of judges and prosecutors, set up separate governing bodies for each and create a new disciplinary...

A Polish court has ruled that Russian archaeologist Alexander Butyagin can be handed over to Ukraine to face charges over alleged illegal excavations and the removal of artefacts from Crimea.Butyagin has been held in a Warsaw detention centre since his arrest in December at Kyiv's request.The judge in Warsaw, Dariusz Łubowski, made the decision that could lead to extradition, though Butyagin’s...

Cyprus President Nikos Christodoulides has called for a frank review of the UK’s two sovereign military bases on the island, saying their presence is a legacy of colonial rule and needs to be discussed once tensions in the Middle East ease.The bases at Akrotiri and Dhekelia were established under the 1960 treaty that granted Cyprus independence, with Britain retaining sovereignty over roughly...

Hungary's decision to block a €90bn EU loan for Ukraine has provoked sharp criticism from fellow European leaders and exposed deep divisions ahead of next month's Hungarian elections.After a tense summit in Brussels, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán refused to lift his veto, posting on X: "No oil = no money." He linked his move to a dispute over a damaged section of the Druzhba pipeline that...