World
Corruption scandal: MEPs lift Cozzolino and Tarabella’s immunities
Andrea Cozzolino and Marc Tarabella, two MEPs caught up within the corruption scandal rocking Brussels, had their parliamentary immunities lifted on Thursday.
The vote within the plenary in Brussels follows a request by the Belgian Federal Public Prosecutor’s Workplace on 16 January and comes two days after the European Parliament’s authorized affairs committee backed the movement.
Each MEPs deny any involvement within the illicit lobbying allegedly performed by Qatar by Morocco.
Italian MEP Cozzolino was not current for the vote however Tarabella, from Belgium, voted to have his immunity waived.
“I’ve been asking for the lifting of this immunity for the reason that very first days of this affair so as to have the ability to reply the questions of the investigators and to assist the justice system to make clear this case,” he advised reporters after the vote.
“Out of respect for the judicial authorities and for the work of the investigation, I avoided commenting on the accusations within the press. It was very tempting to reply to them, particularly as I’m harmless, however I’ve not but expressed myself and I cannot accomplish that once more in the present day as a way to reserve the primary a part of my explanations to the choose. In any case, you must know that I’ve nothing to reproach myself for,” he added.
4 individuals have been arrested and charged for taking part in a legal organisation as a part of the investigation into the alleged cash-for-favours scheme within the European Parliament.
These embody Greek MEP Eva Kaili, her life associate Francesco Giorgi, former MEP Pier Antonio Panzeri, and NGO director Niccolò Figà-Talamanca.
Panzeri, who preceded Cozzolino on the helm of the EU-Morocco parliamentary committee, implicated each males throughout his hearings with Belgian authorities since his arrest in early December, in response to a confidential doc seen by Euronews.
He advised a choose, the doc states, that Cozzolino agreed to attempt to squash resolutions towards Morroco in alternate for cash and that Tarabella — the vice chair of the European Parliament’s delegation for relations with the Arab peninsula — obtained between €120,000 and €140,000 in money to help sure positions in favour of Qatar.
French MEP Manon Aubry, co-leader of the Left group and the rapporteur on the votes, welcomed the outcomes of the ballots.
“With this investigation, justice is doing its half. However politics is not. The President of Parliament and the primary teams have betrayed the promise of formidable reforms made within the decision adopted in December and the “14-point motion plan” introduced as an alternative by Roberta Metsola is a sham,” she added.
World
Christmas in Puerto Rico is a 45-day celebration with caroling, festive decorations, family feasts and more
Christmas, Navidad in Puerto Rico, extends far beyond Dec. 25.
The island proudly proclaims itself as having the “longest holiday season in the world,” according to the website Discover Puerto Rico.
On average, the holiday festivities in Puerto Rico last about 45 days, per the source, commencing right after Thanksgiving, and stretching all the way through mid-January.
The Christmas season in Puerto Rico typically lasts around 45 days. (iStock)
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The holiday season in Puerto Rico is full of rich traditions beloved by families.
One tradition those who visit Puerto Rico will immediately notice during the holiday season is decorations.
In Puerto Rico, decorations are typically put up by Thanksgiving, and kept up until the season concludes in mid-January, with opportune picture moments at every corner.
Parrandas, Christmas caroling, is a holiday staple.
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Carolers choose houses of family and friends to visit, typically starting around 10 p.m., performing aguinaldos (traditional Christmas songs), with not only their voices, but often with instruments as well, according to Discover Puerto Rico.
The group you begin caroling with is likely not the same group you end with.
In Puerto Rico, when carolers visit a house, they’ll often stop inside for conversation, food and drink before moving to the next residence.
Coquito is a popular beverage enjoyed during the holiday season in Puerto Rico. Coconut, vanilla and rum are among the ingredients. (Mayra Beltran/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)
Usually, the residences of the house visited will join the group for the next house, according to Discover Puerto Rico.
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A night of serenading loved ones can last quite a while, often stretching into the early morning hours of the following day, according to the source.
The biggest day of the holiday season in Puerto Rico actually isn’t Christmas, but instead, the night before.
In Puerto Rico, Dec. 24 is Nochebuena. On that day, loved ones gather for the exchange of gifts, caroling and a large feast.
Many families will also attend a midnight Mass on the day, known as Misa de Gallo.
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After Christmas passes, the festivities go on in Puerto Rico.
Another big event in the holiday lineup is Three Kings Day on Jan. 6, a holiday that “commemorates the visit that the Three Wise Men paid to Jesus after his birth,” according to Discover Puerto Rico.
On the eve of the day, children fill up a shoebox with grass to be left for camels to munch on while the Three Kings leave behind gifts for them, according to PuertoRico.com.
For a particularly festive Three Kings Day, Juana Díaz is the place to go, as it hosts the largest celebration in Puerto Rico for the holiday. In Juana Díaz, there is an annual festival and parade in honor of Three Kings Day that brings together over 25,000 people every year, according to Discover Puerto Rico.
Gifts are primarily exchanged between loved ones on Christmas Eve in Puerto Rico. (iStock)
Then, eight days later is Octavitas, a post-holiday celebration where families get together and celebrate one last time for the season.
The end of the holiday season is marked with the San Sebastián Street Festival.
This festival, spanning over multiple days, takes place in Old San Juan, and is filled with live music, dancing, shopping and parades.
Twin-engine plane crashed in largely residential neighborhood of Gramado shortly after takeoff, authorities say.
A small plane has crashed into a tourist hotspot in southern Brazil, killing all 10 people on board and injuring more than a dozen people on the ground, officials have said.
The twin-engine Piper PA-42-1000 hit the chimney of a home and the second floor of a different house before crashing into a shop in a largely residential neighbourhood of Gramado shortly after takeoff from Canela, Brazil’s Civil Defense agency said on Sunday.
Rio Grande do Sul Governor Eduardo Leite told a news conference that the aircraft’s owner and pilot, Luiz Claudio Galeazzi, was killed along with nine members of his family.
Leite said that 17 people on the ground were injured, 12 of whom were still receiving treatment in hospital.
Galeazzi’s company, Galeazzi & Associados, confirmed that its CEO and Galeazzi’s wife and three daughters had died in the crash.
“Luiz Galeazzi will be forever remembered for his dedication to his family and for his remarkable career as a leader of Galeazzi & Associados,” the company said in a post on LinkedIn.
“In this moment of immense pain, Galeazzi & Associados is deeply grateful for the expressions of solidarity and affection received from friends, colleagues and the community. We also sympathize with all those affected by the accident in the region.”
Gramado, located in the Serra Gaucha mountains, is a popular destination for vacationers, especially during the Christmas season.
The crash comes a little more than a year after Brazil suffered its worst air disaster in nearly two decades when a twin-engine plane crashed in the southeastern city of Vinhedo, killing all 62 people on board.
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