World
Will European agriculture convert to new genomic techniques?
The European Union has just taken a step towards deregulating New Genomic Techniques used for the improvement of agricultural plants. The agrichemical sector argues that they are essential to ensuring the future of food production, but many remain sceptical.
In the late 20th century, genes from different species were introduced into seeds, creating Genetically Modified Organisms, known as GMOs. The aim of the technology is to develop more resilient plant lines and increase productivity.
About two decades ago, the European Union implemented strict rules to cover authorisation, labelling and risk assessment; but now it has proposed deregulation of New Genomic Techniques, which modify the plants’ own genes.
“The European Commission has decided to create two categories: one for products from these new techniques and one for the old ones, which will continue to be subject to the existing rules. However, some people think that these new types of GMOs carry the same risks as the old ones, with unpredictable impacts on the environment,” explains Robert Hodgson, who covers the issue for Euronews.
The controversy is likely to flare up again because this month the governments of the 27 member states reached an agreement on the proposal, and ministers will now have to reach a consensus with the European Parliament, which has a different position on thorny issues such as patents and labelling.
On a short tour of several cities, Euronews collected some European opinions. “I’m not totally against it. It would be important to do thorough research to determine if it has any side effects,” said a Berlin resident.
“In recent decades there has been a huge development of this technology and we still do not have full control over it,” said another from Warsaw (Poland).
“They need to be labelled, it’s absolutely necessary so that the consumer can have a choice. Personally, I wouldn’t buy them,” was the opinion of a passer-by in Lyon (France).
Biotechnology experts argue that these plant varieties will be more resistant to drought, pests and require less fertilizer. Health issues such as allergies are also being targeted, through low-gluten grains for example.
Detractors point to the risks: disruption of pollinating insects, contamination of organic agricultural products, reduced access to seeds for small farmers and unforeseen effects on human health.
Will patents lead to small farmers exclusion?
The European Council was divided on whether to allow patents, weighing arguments that this could restrict the choices available to farmers and create monopolies. It took almost a year for them to decide to allow patents, as long as their specific reporting requirements were met.
The European Parliament’s position is to completely ban patents, explained one of the shadow rapporteurs for the legislative review.
“If a few big international agrichemical groups have a monopoly on seeds, farmers will pay more, they won’t be able to choose and, above all, we will no longer be able to openly innovate on varieties,” said Christophe Clergeau, a French centre-left MEP.
Few member states have actually shown much interest in GM crops, Spain being the exception. In many countries, these techniques have even been banned, with governments exercising their right to opt-out, but this option may no longer exist for all categories.
“It was about ten years ago when this issue really became a political hot potato and there was a lot of public opposition in Europe. Governments demanded an opt-out and they granted it,” explains Hodgson, adding: “As plants in the new category will be largely equivalent to common natural plants, governments will no longer have the option of banning their cultivation.”
Parliamentarian Clergeau stresses that “we are at the beginning of this new technology”, arguing that the EU must be very careful because “when we intervene in nature, we trigger cascades of changes that can pose dangers to biodiversity”.
ADVERTISEMENTA new world of possibilities is rapidly opening up for food production, with researchers already exploring how generative artificial intelligence can be applied to the technology. Not without controversy!
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Journalist: Isabel Marques da Silva
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World
Venezuela releases all known American detainees after Maduro’s capture and government takeover
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All known American citizens being held in Venezuela have been released, the U.S. Embassy said Friday evening.
“We are pleased to confirm the release by the interim authorities of all known U.S. citizens held in Venezuela,” the embassy wrote on X. “Should you have information regarding any other U.S. citizens still detained, please contact American Citizen Services.”
No other details about the detainees were disclosed. Fox News Digital has reached out to the State Department.
VENEZUELA’S DELCY RODRÍGUEZ SNAPS AT WASHINGTON, DECLARES ‘ENOUGH’ OF US INFLUENCE
Venezuelans burn a U.S. flag after the announcement of the U.S. attacks and the capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro. The U.S. government on Friday said all known Americans being detained in the country had been released. (Stringer/picture alliance via Getty Images)
Interim authorities have slowly released American detainees in the weeks since the U.S. capture of former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro and his wife.
Both are being held in New York City on federal narco-terrorism charges.
Earlier this month, Venezuela’s interim government reported that 116 prisoners had been released, although only about 70 have been verified by the non-governmental organization Justicia, Encuentro y Perdón, according to Bloomberg.
STATE DEPT CONFIRMS ‘LIMITED NUMBER’ OF PERSONNEL IN CARACAS WORKING TO RESUME VENEZUELA DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS
Venezuela’s President Nicolás Maduro and first lady Cilia Flores parade in a military vehicle during celebrations for Independence Day in Caracas July 5, 2025. (Juan Barreto/AFP via Getty Images)
Earlier this month, the U.S. government announced a travel alert advising against travel to the country. Americans in the country were advised to depart immediately.
“The security situation in Venezuela remains fluid. The U.S. Embassy in Bogotá, Colombia, warns U.S. citizens not to travel to Venezuela, reiterating warnings against travel to Venezuela dating to 2019. As international flights have resumed, U.S. citizens in Venezuela should leave the country immediately.”
The country is being run by Venezuela’s acting President Delcy Rodriguez, Maduro’s former lieutenant.
This week, Rodriguez signed a law overhauling the nation’s oil sector, opening it to privatization and reversing a core policy of the socialist government that has ruled Venezuela for more than two decades.
The State Department told Fox News a “limited number” of people are working on the ground in Venezuela. (Reuters)
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On Jan. 10, President Donald Trump said American energy companies will invest $100 billion to rebuild Venezuela’s “rotting” oil infrastructure and push production to record levels.
Multiple attacks across the besieged enclave a day before Israel is expected to reopen the Rafah border crossing.
Published On 31 Jan 2026
At least 12 Palestinians, half of them children, have been killed in the Gaza Strip since dawn, a day before the Rafah crossing is due to reopen.
An Israeli air strike on Saturday on a tent sheltering displaced people in the al-Mawasi area to the northwest of Khan Younis city killed at least seven Palestinians, including three children, medical sources told Al Jazeera.
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Their bodies were taken to the Nasser Medical Complex in Khan Younis.
In Gaza City, emergency services reported that at least five Palestinians, including three children, were killed in an Israeli air strike on an apartment building in the Remal neighbourhood to the west of the city.
Eight Palestinians were also injured in an Israeli bombing of an apartment building in the Daraj neighbourhood of Gaza City.
Gaza’s Government Media Office says at least 524 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since a United States-brokered ceasefire in Gaza came into effect on October 10.
Rafah reopening
Residents in the border town of Rafah also reported several air attacks in areas under Israeli control. Israel is due to reopen the Rafah crossing, which links Gaza with Egypt, on Sunday for the first time since May 2024.
The opening of the key entry point is part of the ceasefire agreement with Hamas. It was meant to open during the first phase of the ceasefire, but Israel refused to do so until the body of its last remaining captive was found.
Israel on Saturday said it would only allow a “limited movement of people” who have received security clearance by Israel to enter and exit. No aid or humanitarian supplies will be allowed to enter.
“Only those who fled during the past two years are allowed to come back,” Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud explained. “Those who are born outside the Gaza Strip are not going to be allowed to come back.”
Hamas responded to the Rafah announcement by calling for Israel to allow movement in and out of Gaza “without restrictions”, and urged it to adhere to all aspects of the ceasefire agreement.
Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza has killed more than 71,600 Palestinians since October 7, 2023.
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