World
Brussels, my love? Fossil fuel phase-out absent from EU 2040 climate
In this edition, we look at the EU plan to cut carbon emissions by 2040 and a deal to protect women across Europe.
This week, we are joined by Heather Grabbe from Bruegel, Silvia Pastorelli from Greenpeace and Tomi Huhtanen from the Wilfried Martens Centre for European Studies.
Panelists discussed the European Commission’s recommendation, presented this week in Strasbourg, to cut carbon emissions 90% by 2040. A proper legislative proposal will be penned by the next commission, after the European elections.
For Greenpeace, the documents make no sense unless they address one of the main drivers of climate change.
“The big elephant in the room still is the absence of a fossil fuel phase-out date”, said Silvia Pastorelli. “Until the commission is willing to put pen to paper and say that, there’s not going to be any certainty for people, or for investors and businesses”, she added.
Heather Grabbe told the panel that a target without a real plan was just a “wish”.
“If you have a 2050 target, you then need a 2040 target to show how far you need to get by 2040, in order to reach net zero by 2050,” she said.
But with a backlash against environmental rules across Europe and some leaders even calling for a pause, the commission has found itself stuck between a rock and a hard place. This week, a number of EU countries including France and Germany wrote to Brussels to say all targets must be fair, and not abandon the most vulnerable.
Tomi Huhtanen said the major challenge for Europe will be to reach the targets while keeping people and industry happy.
“I would say the commission recommendation is quite ambitious, especially for 2030. We don’t know exactly if we are going to achieve those goals,” said Huhtanen.
The panel also reacted to a deal struck in Strasbourg on a law to protect women in Europe against gender-based violence, forced marriages, female genital mutilation and online harassment. But the deal did not manage to find a common European definition of rape.
“The debate, I have to say, was a little bit depressing and frustrating because, looking at what should be something so obvious, that sex without consent is rape, and that should be part of the law”, said Silvia Pastorelli.
Watch “Brussels, my love?” in the player above.
new video loaded: Moscow Tanker Blast Most Likely Russian Missile, Video Shows
By James McManagan, Paul Sonne, Malachy Browne and Jackeline Luna
June 19, 2026
World
Man charged with attempted murder, released after allegedly forcing toddler into crocodile enclosure at zoo
Man FORCES child into crocodile enclosure
A British man has been arrested after allegedly forcing a 3-year-old boy into a crocodile enclosure at a zoo. The child suffered critical injuries, and authorities say the suspect did not know the boy as the investigation continues.
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A man was released from custody on Friday after he was charged with attempted murder for allegedly forcing a 3-year-old boy into a crocodile enclosure at a zoo.
Cambridgeshire police said that the man, who remains unidentified, wasn’t fit to be interviewed.
The boy suffered critical injuries in the incident at Johnsons of Old Hurst, a farm and zoo in Huntingdon, England, north of London.
The 30-year-old man will remain on bail until Sept. 30, pending further inquiries.
GEORGIA MOM’S WALMART TRIP DEVOLVES INTO ‘TUG-OF-WARRING’ IN DESPERATE ATTEMPT TO SAVE HER SON
A crocodile rests inside an enclosure at Johnsons of Old Hurst, a farm and zoo in Old Hurst, Cambridgeshire, Britain, on April 14, 2026. (Dorota Dee Trajdos/Reuters)
“The man, who is not known to the victim, was assessed as not being fit for interview,” police said in a statement.
The boy is in stable condition, after reportedly suffering a broken arm and pelvis.
He was saved from the crocodile by Tracey Johnson, the wife of the zoo’s owner.
MOTHER JUMPS INTO WATER TO SAVE 4-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER WHO FELL BETWEEN CRUISE SHIP AND DOCK
“I know Tracey very well and she’s a lovely lady and it’s nothing more than I’d expect from her,” a local told BBC News. “She’d always put her own life at risk to save someone else. She’s an extraordinary lady and very brave.
The villager added that Johnson put herself in “immense danger” during the rescue.
The owners said their tropical house would remain closed until further notice.
Crocodiles rest inside an enclosure at Johnsons of Old Hurst farm and zoo in Old Hurst, Cambridgeshire, Britain, on April 14, 2026. (Dorota Dee Trajdos/Reuters)
“Our thoughts and prayers are with the boy and his family following the incident that occurred today,” the owners wrote on social media.
Johnsons of Old Hurst is a farm and zoo north of London in Huntingdon, England. (Google Maps)
Huntingdonshire district councillor Charlotte Lowe said she couldn’t “fathom how it’s happened because they’ve got all the right protection and safety equipment, for want of a better word, in there,” The Guardian reported.
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Fox News Digital has reached out to the Cambridgeshire Constabulary for comment.
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US President Donald Trump has doubled down on his comments on Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, saying she asked him “over and over” for a photo when the pair met at the G7 summit in France earlier this week.
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Following the summit, Trump told an Italian journalist that he “felt sorry for Meloni” after she “begged me to take a picture with her”.
Meloni hit back in a video posted to social media, branding Trump’s claims as “completely made up” and insisting that neither she nor Italy begs anyone for anything.
The once close pair’s relationship has grown increasingly fractious in recent months, particularly since Rome refused to provide the US support for its operations in Iran and after Meloni defended Pope Leo XIV, who was criticised by the Trump administration over his remarks on the war and the US’s immigration policies.
“Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni asked, over and over, for a picture with me during the G-7 meeting in France,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social account on Saturday. “She is doing poorly in Italy with her level of popularity, possibly because she turned down the United States of America, a Country that truly loves and protects Italy, when it came to denying Iran from obtaining or developing a Nuclear Weapon”.
“Now, after the United States defeated Iran militarily, she wants to be friends again in order to get her “numbers up.” No thanks!!!” Trump added.
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