World
This European city was named the world’s most liveable city – again

Vienna has retained its crown as the world’s most liveable city, according to Economist’s annual index. But other European cities have not fared well.
Have you ever visited a city and left with such a good vibe from it that you immediately begin checking property listings and job adverts once you return home?
Anyone who has visited any of the top ten cities on the Economist’s annual Global Liveability Index can perhaps relate.
The 2023 listings give an insight into where it’s preferable to live this year and include cities from every continent. In recent years, there have been recurrent entries for certain cities in the top 10, making you wonder whether they have cracked the secret to better living.
How are the best cities chosen?
Of course, when compiling the Global Liveability Index, it’s not just a good vibe that sets cities apart for the Economist’s Intelligence team.
The overall score – out of 100 – is determined by examining a plethora of factors, including the quality of healthcare, education, cultural scene, infrastructure, and so on.
Many cities out of the 173 cities studied as part of the report saw an uplift in their scores after the last COVID-19 restrictions eased and life regained some semblance of pre-pandemic normality.
In fact, the average index score across all cities (excluding Kyiv) survey has now reached 76.2 out of 100, up from 73.2 a year ago, the highest score in 15 years for the original list of 140 cities compared.
Is Europe on the slide?
Despite a shift for the better for the majority of cities post-pandemic, one of the noticeable shifts in this year’s report compared to 2022 is the number of European cities slipping further down the rankings.
This is partly due to instability scores plunging, with some cities feeling the effects of the Ukraine war.
Frankfurt and Amsterdam both crashed out of the top 10, having previously occupied 7th and 9th spots in 2022.
Cities in the UK were among the European cities with the most significant declines. Edinburgh, which broke into the top 50 for the first time last year to take the 35th spot, fell to 58th in 2023.
Likewise, London (34th in 2022) and Manchester (32nd last year) both suffered poor scores this year, dropping 12 and 16 places respectively.
On a global scale, regional scores across the board improved on those attained in 2022. Despite a number of its cities sliding, Western Europe retained its poll position, improving its score of 91.4 last year to 92.3 this year.
The biggest improvement was noted in the Asia-Pacific region which achieved a score of 73.5, making noteworthy gains on last year’s figure of 69.1. Furthermore, eight of the 10 biggest climbers in the rankings were from the region; the most notable climber Wellington in New Zealand jumped 35 places to land in 23rd position.
So, which cities made the top 10?
10. Auckland, New Zealand
As the city with the second biggest improvement in the past year, Auckland – New Zealand’s biggest city – leapfrogged an impressive 25 spots to reach joint 10th position in this year’s index.
10. Osaka, Japan
The end of COVID-19 restrictions saw a significant boost to many cities in the Asia-Pacific region. Osaka, Japan’s third most populous city and one of its most multicultural, was one of the beneficiaries of increased scores in its culture and environment ratings thanks to the withdrawal of the COVID-era measures.
9. Toronto, Canada
The lowest-ranking Canadian city in the top ten, Toronto is another consistent performer when it comes to the annual rankings. While it has slipped one spot from 8th place to 9th in 2023, its stability score increased this year after anti-vaccine protests last year had caused a dip.
7. Geneva, Switzerland
Continuing the trend of European cities falling back in the rankings, Geneva has retained a spot in the top 10 again this year. While it slipped from 6th to 7th place, the Swiss city saw a boost to its education scores this year. It is generally rated as one of the best cities to live but it is also one of the most expensive to live in, with consultancy firm Mercer rating it third in its annual global list.
7. Calgary, Canada
Europe is not the only continent to have seen a slip in the rankings. While no cities from the United States appear in the top 10, Canadian cities are usually well represented. However, in 2023, cities like Calgary have also dipped. It was joint third in 2022, but this year the biggest city in Alberta province has slid to joint 7th this year. Its culture and environment score was its biggest drawback, pulling down its overall index score in spite of perfect scores in stability, infrastructure, education, and healthcare.
6. Zurich, Switzerland
Switzerland’s largest city Zurich has slipped down from third place to sixth over the past year. While it is included in the top 10 of the Global Liveability Index, Zurich – like Geneva – was also rated as one of the world’s most expensive cities to live and work in as an expat, according to Mercer’s 2022 Cost of Living Survey. It was second only to Hong Kong in the consultancy firm’s annual report.
5. Vancouver, Canada
Vancouver is a non-mover in fifth spot, with its stability score up from last year after anti-vaccine protests dragged it down.
4. Sydney, Australia
COVID-19 had a very notable impact on Australian cities like Sydney, but the easing of restrictions has seen them dethrone European cities in the top 10. As well as its healthcare system getting a perfect score, the city’s education and infrastructure also received scores of 100.0.
3. Melbourne, Australia
As with Sydney, Melbourne’s ranking was dented by significant pressures on many aspects of city life caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Several waves of the virus threatened to overwhelm the city’s healthcare system but this year, this particular factor has been given a perfect score of 100.0 by the Economist, helping Melbourne to return to the top 10.
2. Copenhagen, Denmark
In second place for a consecutive year is Copenhagen. Denmark is consistently listed as one of the happiest countries in the world in which to live, and this is certainly reflected in the scores for each category in the Economist’s liveability report. It continues to have high scores across the board, including perfect scores of 100.0 for education, infrastructure, and stability.
1. Vienna, Austria
No change at the top – Vienna retains its crown as the most liveable city in the world for another year. The Austrian capital has dominated the rankings in the last 10 surveys, coming first in eight of them. It was only knocked off its perch by the COVID-19 pandemic when many of its museums and restaurants shuttered their doors.
The report noted that Vienna continues to offer “an unsurpassed combination of stability, good infrastructure, strong education, and healthcare services, and plenty of culture and entertainment”. The only flaw, it said was a lack of major sporting events.
Honourable mentions
While its ranking plummeted in last year’s list following Russia’s invasion in February 2022, Kyiv has returned to the index though with low scores. Bombardments and missile strikes on the Ukrainian capital saw its scores for infrastructure and stability plunge, but it has made a significant return to the overall rankings if only with a lowly 165th out of 173 cities.

World
EU leaders insist no decisions can be taken about Ukraine without Ukraine, or behind their backs
BRUSSELS (AP) — European Union leaders insisted on Thursday that no decisions can be taken about the future of war-ravaged Ukraine without its consent or behind the backs of its partners in Europe, barely a month before U.S. President-elect Donald Trump takes office.
Ukraine’s position is precarious more than 1,000 days into the war. Russia continues to make gains on the battlefield, pushing the front line gradually westward despite suffering heavy casualties. Ukraine’s energy network is in tatters and military recruits are hard to find.
In a show of solidarity at a summit in Brussels with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, many EU leaders repeated a variation of what has become a common mantra — nothing about Ukraine without Ukraine, nothing about security in Europe without Europeans.
Trump returns to the White House on Jan. 20 having promised to end the war in Ukraine quickly and talked up his relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Many Europeans are concerned that it might result in a poor deal for Ukraine.
The other big worry is that Putin will just use any interregnum to rearm and cause more strife.
Rumors are swirling in Europe about possible peace talks in early 2025, and whether European peacekeepers might be needed to enforce any settlement, but the leaders are trying to keep a lid on speculation about what they are prepared to do, so as not to tip their hand to Russia.
The priority now, they say, must be to strengthen Ukraine’s hand, should Zelenskyy decide it’s time to negotiate.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said that it’s important to “ensure long-term aid to Ukraine – it must be clear that we are prepared to enable support as long as it is needed.” Air defense, artillery and ammunition are high on the list, he told reporters.
Asked about Trump, Scholz said that his impression from talking to the president-elect “is that good cooperation between Europe and the U.S. is possible.” He said that “the principle is always: no decisions over Ukrainians’ heads, and that of course means over those of the European states.”
Luxembourg Prime Minister Luc Frieden had a similar message.
“We need to stand with Ukraine, and every step … needs to be taken with Ukraine and in the presence of the European Union. The future of Ukraine is decided in Europe and not elsewhere,” he said.
Dutch Prime Minister Dick Schoof underlined that Ukraine must be the country that “determines under what conditions talks can possibly take place. And it is not for us to talk about that. At the moment, Ukraine has not yet indicated that they are prepared to do so.”
It’s difficult to predict what Trump might do, and whether history might be a reliable guide.
Under his previous presidency, in 2020, the United States inked a deal on a military withdrawal from Afghanistan directly with the strongest player — the Taliban insurgents —mostly playing down the concerns of the Afghan government and president.
The chaotic exit in 2021, finally ordered by U.S. President Joe Biden, humiliated Washington and its allies in NATO as the Afghan security forces they had trained for years and invested billions in collapsed and the Taliban swept to power.
In Ukraine, the 27-nation EU has provided at least as much support – more than 180 billion euros ($187 billion) since Russia began its full-fledged invasion almost three years ago – as the United States.
But while the world’s biggest trading bloc can probably continue to prop up Ukraine’s ravaged economy, the EU is almost certainly unlikely to be able provide the military backing that the country’s armed forces would require to prevail.
“From the beginning of next year, we need very much unity between the United States and EU, and countries of Europe,” Zelenskyy told reporters at the summit. “Only together the United States and Europe can stop Putin and save Ukraine.”
“It’s very difficult to support Ukraine without American help,” he said.
___
Raf Casert in Brussels, and Geir Moulson in Berlin, contributed to this report.
World
Palestinian Authority under pressure amid rising resistance, popularity of Iran-backed terror groups

The Palestinian Authority (PA) is facing a growing challenge in the northern West Bank city of Jenin as it launches an ongoing operation against local terror factions supported by Iran, a crackdown that has sparked violent clashes and highlighted the deepening rift between the PA and local communities.
“Iran has been funding militants to buy weapons, and now the Palestinian Authority is acting to stop that. They’ve taken measures to block the money and crack down on the factions. The PA knows Iran will keep supporting Hamas and Islamic Jihad, and this is the challenge they face. It’s the right time to confront Iran, especially after the wars in Gaza and Lebanon- public mood is not welcoming any military confrontation with Israel after what happened,” Mohammad Daraghmeh, Asharq News bureau chief in Ramallah, told Fox News Digital.
The U.S. has reportedly requested Israel’s approval to deliver urgent military assistance to the PA as it intensifies its crackdown on terror organizations in Jenin, Axios reported. The Biden administration is seeking to provide the PA security forces with ammunition, helmets, bulletproof vests, armored cars and other essential items, but needs Israel’s consent to proceed. Historically, U.S. assistance to the PA has ranged between $200 million and $300 million annually. In recent years, especially after the Biden administration took office, there has been a resumption of aid to the PA, following a freeze during the Trump administration.
HAMAS ATTACKER OPENS FIRE AT ISRAELI BUS IN WEST BANK, INJURING AT LEAST 8: REPORT
Mourners shout during the funeral of 19-year-old Rahbi Shalabi, who was killed during clashes between Palestinian security forces and militants a day earlier, in the occupied West Bank city of Jenin on Dec. 10, 2024. (ZAIN JAAFAR/AFP via Getty Images)
“Since October 7th, there has been an increased push from Hamas and Islamic Jihad, with significant Iranian involvement,” said Dr. Michael Milshtein, head of the Forum for Palestinian Studies at Tel Aviv University who further emphasized the shift in the situation since Oct. 7, noting the influence of Iranian-backed forces. “They’re trying to push operations in the West Bank, and there have been attempts to manufacture rockets and fire them at Israeli cities from Jenin. While it’s still in the early stages and these efforts are unsuccessful, it’s a troubling development that signals how Jenin is evolving into a central hub for terrorists.”
Last weekend, PA security forces killed Yazid Jaysa, an Islamic Jihad commander, in an operation that has intensified tensions in the region. This was the third death in Jenin within a week, following the killing of 19-year-old Rahbi Shalabi during gunfights between PA forces and local militants. The deaths have further fueled the discontent in the city, particularly among residents of the Jenin refugee camp. “The entire refugee camp is now against the PA,” said Daraghmeh.
On Sunday, reports surfaced that the PA had positioned its forces outside the refugee camp, but attempts to enter were met with resistance. The terrorists inside the camp, many of whom have vowed to fight the PA’s forces, pose a significant challenge to the PA’s plans for reasserting control.
PALESTINIAN PRESIDENT ABBAS SAYS US IS THE ‘ONLY POWER’ CAPABLE OF ORDERING ISRAEL TO END THE WAR

Palestinian Authority security forces vehicles block a road amid clashes with militants in the Jenin camp in the Israel-occupied West Bank on Dec. 15, 2024. For more than a week, the northern West Bank city of Jenin has seen intense violence, after the PA, which coordinates security matters with Israel, arrested several militants. (ZAIN JAAFAR/AFP via Getty Images)
“There’s no active fighting right now, but the PA forces are stuck. They’ve tried to enter, but failed, and now they’re stuck outside,” said Daraghmeh. “They can’t leave, but they can’t continue the operation either, because there are dozens of militants ready to confront them.”
Milshtein, the former head of Palestinian affairs in Israeli Defense Forces military intelligence, told Fox News Digital, “The PA does not have the ability to enforce control in northern Samaria and the surrounding areas. The PA has lost control of these regions, and for years, Israel has treated Jenin and the surrounding areas like Gaza- without PA control mechanisms, and essentially, there’s a real vacuum.”

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, right, and President Biden shake hands in the West Bank town of Bethlehem on Friday, July 15, 2022. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)
The timing of the PA’s operation is significant, with many observers noting that it coincides with the broader regional context, including the ongoing war in Gaza and the fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Milshtein believes that the events in Syria played a role in the PA’s decision to act. “People in the West Bank say that when one dictator (PA President Mahmoud Abbas) saw what happened to the other (Bashar al-Assad), he decided he would not follow the same fate,” Milshtein explained. “Mahmoud Abbas likely felt that he needed to act before the PA’s authority in the West Bank completely erodes.”
The operation, which is part of a larger crackdown in the northern West Bank, also reflects the PA’s desire to assert itself as a capable authority ahead of potential political developments in Gaza. The PA has long struggled with its ability to govern Gaza, which it lost to Hamas in 2007. Now, with the region in turmoil, it is hoping to prove that it can restore order in the West Bank, which it argues will bolster its legitimacy in any postwar political scenario for Gaza.

A Palestinian security man fires tear gas at protesters in the center of the West Bank city of Jenin and its camp on Dec. 16, 2024. (Nasser Ishtayeh/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images)
“I don’t see a possibility that the PA will control Gaza,” Milshtein said, “There are two million people there. For 17 years, they have been ruled by Hamas, and 60% were born after Hamas took control. They were educated to view the PA as collaborators with Israel and enemies. Giving the PA two hours in Gaza is a known failure from the outset.”
Despite the violence in Jenin, Daraghmeh does not foresee the conflict spreading beyond. “People in Ramallah, Hebron and other cities don’t want the West Bank to turn into another Gaza,” Daraghmeh said. “The situation in Jenin is contained, but it remains a test for the PA’s ability to control its own territory.”
World
Can toppled Syrian president Bashar al-Assad be brought to justice?

Despite the legal and political barriers to prosecution, human rights experts are optimistic that al-Assad and regime officials could one day be held accountable for their crimes in a court of law.
In Syria, celebrations of the fall of Bashar al-Assad have been mingled with a sense of horror, as gruesome evidence of the atrocities committed by his regime emerge.
Mass graveyards and the infamous prisons that were central to the deposed dictator’s coercive rule have been uncovered.
They bear traces of the brutal suffering inflicted by the regime.
Chaotic scenes of former detainees, their relatives and journalists trawling through paperwork in the detention centres have sparked international pleas on Syria’s new de facto leaders to ensure evidence is preserved for future criminal prosecutions.
Al-Assad and his father, Hafez, have been accused of a litany of crimes and abuses over the past 54 years, including torture, rape, mass executions, enforced disappearances and chemical attacks.
The Syrian Network for Human Rights (SNHR) estimates that at least 15,000 Syrians have been tortured to death since the civil war broke out in 2011.
But with al-Assad in exile in Russia and many of his entourage suspected to be in Iran, there are several legal and political obstacles that stand in the way of criminal accountability.
The Hague-based International Criminal Court (ICC) is the most obvious international court of law for prosecuting individuals for such serious crimes. But the ICC does not have jurisdiction over Syria as the country is not a state party to the court’s treaty, the Treaty of Rome.
The UN Security Council can in principle refer a case to the ICC, granting it jurisdiction. But that would certainly be vetoed by the Kremlin, given its alliance with al-Assad and its own complicity in the crimes.
Both Russia and China blocked such a referral ten years ago.
Speaking to Euronews, Balkees Jarrah, associate director for international justice at Human Rights Watch (HRW) called on Syria’s new de facto authorities to consider granting jurisdiction to the ICC: “We believe Syria’s new leadership should immediately make clear its commitment to justice and accountability,” she said.
“This includes ratifying the Rome Treaty and giving the International Criminal Court retroactive jurisdiction so that the prosecutor can examine crimes committed over the last years.”
All eyes on de facto Syrian leaders
A more viable option in the current political climate is for trials to be held in criminal courts both within and outside Syria.
Experts say it’s too soon to tell whether the new de facto rulers will be able to ensure any Syrian criminal proceedings are carried out safely and in line with international standards.
“We don’t know what the future state of Syria will look like, how the different institutions will work and how well they will cooperate with each other. So this is just something we cannot predict,” according to Elisabeth Hoffberger-Pippan of the Leibniz Peace Research Institute Frankfurt (PRIF).
“The ideal option is to have criminal proceedings in Syria itself that meet fair trial standards, without use of the death penalty. And there is a need to ensure the safety for witnesses and victims to come forward with testimonies,” Vito Todeschini, legal advisor for Amnesty International, told Euronews.
The main rebel group in the new administration is the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), designated a terrorist group by the UN Security Council and formerly linked to al-Qaeda.
Its leader, Ahmed al-Sharaa, formerly known as Abu Mohammed al-Jolan, has vowed to “pursue” the regime’s henchmen in Syria and has called on countries to “hand over those who fled” so that justice can be served.
The rebel fighters have also spoken of an amnesty for all military personnel conscripted into service under al-Assad.
But it is currently inconceivable for al-Assad himself to be extradited to stand trial in either a Syrian or non-Syrian court, as there is no political appetite or motive for Moscow to hand him over. Iran is also unlikely to extradite regime officials who have fled there.
Yet, experts consulted by Euronews have expressed hope that al-Assad and the regime’s high-level torturers can one day be held accountable, if the geopolitical conditions change.
“If the sudden fall of the al-Assad regime has shown us anything it is that things can change quite rapidly,” Human Rights Watch’s Jarrah said. “We can’t predict what happens in the future nor preclude the possibility of Assad answering for his crimes one day in a court of law.”
“What we also need to consider right now is how intense and how strong the bond is between Vladimir Putin and Bashar al-Assad,” Hoffberger-Pippan of PRIF said. “I do think that there is a chance Russia might not be as interested in al-Assad in the future because the geopolitical environment is changing in a way that makes it less important for Russia to protect him.”
Calls for international collaboration and preservation of evidence
Universal jurisdiction also allows non-Syrian courts to prosecute Syrians for crimes against humanity, war crimes, and torture.
Criminal cases against regime officials have already been filed in Austrian, French, German, Norwegian, Swedish and US courts, many of which have already successfully pressed charges.
The first international trial on torture in Syria was heard before the Koblenz Higher Regional Court in Germany in 2020. Two former high-level officials of the al-Assad regime were charged, one of whom was found guilty of crimes against humanity and handed a life-long sentence.
In November 2023, a French court issued international arrest warrants for Bashar al-Assad, his brother and two officials over an attack against civilians using chemical weapons in 2013.
According to the Berlin-based European Center for Constitutional and Human Rights (ECCHR), universal jurisdiction carries promise but should be a “fall-back option” if processes within Syria fail.
The push towards justice should be “Syrian-led”, it says.
For any trials, well-preserved evidence is crucial.
During the decades-long regime, offenses were documented by international organisations and Syrian civil society with the help of whistleblowers. The so-called ‘Caesar’ photos, taken by a Syrian military police officer who defected a decade ago, are perhaps the most well-known evidence of torture which has led to criminal proceedings in European courts.
The UN’s International, Impartial and Independent Mechanism (IIIM) has a mandate to collect, preserve and analyse evidence to be used in criminal proceedings and supports Syrian civil society in judicial processes.
Its lead investigator Robert Petit has described “papers strewn all over the floor, people leaving with computers, hard drives burned and smashed” in regime centres during the rebels’ offensive.
“Those in control of these prisons need to safeguard materials in these facilities so that the truth can be told and so that those responsible are held accountable,” HRW’s Jarrah explained.
Euronews reached out to the UN to ask whether its investigators have yet been authorised by Syria’s de facto leaders to gain access to the ground, but has not yet received a reply.
According to the ECHHR, there is also real risk that evidence can be confiscated “to be used as political or commercial capital” or be compromised by secret services agents from countries “interested in destroying evidence and archives.”
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