Author: OnlyBob

Migrant Boat
Eleven migrants who were stranded on a Spanish fishing boat for more than a week after being rescued off Libya were brought to Malta yesterday ending an international stand-off, but Valletta said they would later be taken to Spain.
The vessel was initially refused entry by Italy, Malta and Spain.
The fishing boat, Santa Madre de Loreto, rescued 12 migrants in international waters off the coast of Libya 10 days ago. Spanish NGO Proactiva Open Arms, which has been assisting the boat and migrants aboard, said it would not have been safe if they were returned to Libya.… Read all the news

Spain Chine Relations
Chinese and Spanish enterprises have signed ten deals worth 17.6 billion dollars during President Xi Jinping’s visit to Spain this week.
The deals cover finance, telecommunication, environment, machine, vehicle and medicine, hitting a new record of China-Spain trade and economic cooperation.
China and Spain also signed intergovernmental cooperation documents to cover the Avoidance of Double Taxation and the Prevention of Fiscal Fraud and Inspection and Quarantine of Imported Pork Products.
During the visit, the China-Spain Business Advisory Council was formally established and the first meeting was successfully held, becoming another platform for deepening bilateral economic and trade relations.… Read all the news

Catalan Strikes
Thousands of Catalan civil servants joined strikes and ongoing protests by students and health workers yesterday to demand more funding and better working conditions.
Barcelona police say that 8,000 joined a downtown march to the regional parliament. The strike paralyzed many public services leaving some schools and universities empty.
Workers and student unions say that austerity measures implemented at the height of the 2008 financial crisis haven’t been reverted despite five years of continued economic growth.
A similar protest on Wednesday by fire and health workers ended in clashes with anti-riot police.… Read all the news

Electric Scooter Manslaughter
A 90-year-old Spanish woman has died after a collision with an electric scooter.
Two men had been riding the same scooter when they smashed into the woman in Barcelona in August.
She hit her head on the ground and died in hospital a few days later in what is thought to be the first incident of its kind.
The men are now facing manslaughter charges.
The two men, who have not been named, were traveling at more than 18 miles an hour along a street shared by pedestrians and traffic.… Read all the news

Migrant Boat
The government says is holding “intense diplomatic talks” to resolve the stranding of a Spanish fishing vessel for nearly a week after it took 12 migrants on board, including two children, north of the Libyan coast.
The rescue by the crew aboard the Nuestra Senora de Loreto took place on Nov. 22 in waters under Libyan jurisdiction.
According to Spain, Libya has not responded to requests to take in the migrants and bad weather has forced the trawler to sail away closer to Lampedusa island half way between Tunisia and Malta.… Read all the news

Abseiling Death
A British man has died while abseiling at a mountain on the Costa Blanca known as the ‘Sleeping Lion’.
A woman who was with the unnamed 36-year-old man was rescued by helicopter and taken to hospital with a broken left leg.
The dead Brit is understood to have lost his life after falling 80ft while abseiling at the mountain near Polop .. inland from Calpe.
It is one of the most emblematic mountains in the province of Alicante and is a popular spot for walkers as well as rock climbers.… Read all the news

State Visit
China’s President Xi Jinping arrived in Spain yesterday for a business-focused state visit as Beijing seeks to strengthen ties with Europe.
Xi, who landed in Madrid was scheduled to meet King Felipe last night and Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez today.
No press conference is scheduled during his three-day visit, which is a stop-off on his trip to a meeting of G20 leaders in Argentina.
It is the first state visit to Spain by a Chinese president in 13 years.… Read all the news

Illegal Passengers
Two men have been detained after they landed at a British airport without passports this morning.
The men, who claimed to be Iranian nationals, were onboard a Flybe flight from Alicante which landed at Exeter Airport in Devon.
When they landed the two men were said to have ‘pretended to faint’ as they went through Border Control and admitted not having passports.
A Home Office spokesperson said: ‘Two passengers presented themselves to Border Force officers.
‘Their cases will be dealt with in line with the UK’s immigration rules.’… Read all the news

Brexit Victims
EU judges have dismissed a case brought by a 97-year-old war veteran and 12 other ex Pats objecting to the UK’s Brexit negotiations.
Harry Shindler and the others argued that it was wrong for the EU to open the Brexit talks because they and many other British expats had been deprived of a vote in the June 2016 referendum.
The 13 plaintiffs have been living outside the UK for more than 15 years.
The opening of Brexit talks did not infringe their rights, the ruling said.… Read all the news

Rape Case
A court’s decision to clear two men of rape despite the victim begging them to stop has prompted outrage across Spain.
The court in Lleida jailed the uncle and nephew for four-and-a-half years for sexual abuse, rather than the graver offence.
A similar verdict in a gang rape case this year prompted large demonstrations against “patriarchal” justice.
Five men were cleared of raping a teenage woman during the San Fermín bull-running festival in Pamplona.
In the latest verdict, the court ruled that the two men had not committed a sexual assault, the equivalent to rape in Spain, because they were deemed not to have used intimidation or violence.… Read all the news