France in huge coronavirus recovery plan focusing on green energy

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Image caption Prime Minister Jean Castex, flanked by education minister Jean-Michel Blanquer (L) and economy minister Bruno Le Maire (R)

France has unveiled a 100bn-euro (£89bn) economic stimulus package to help repair the economic damage caused by coronavirus.

President Emmanuel Macron's government said the investment would include big spending on green energy and transport.

Dubbed "France re-launch", it is aimed at reversing rising unemployment, and includes tax cuts for


Alexei Navalny: Germany urges EU action over Novichok poisoning

It comes after specialists said a Novichok nerve agent was used on the Russian opposition figure.


Mystery of 'magnificent palace' found in Jerusalem

Ornate remains were neatly buried about 2,500 years ago, but it is not known why.


US election: Trump tells North Carolina voters to vote twice

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Media caption Trump suggests voters should submit ballot twice

US President Donald Trump has told people in the state of North Carolina to vote twice in November's election, despite this being illegal.

Mr Trump suggested voters send a postal vote and then vote in person in order to test the system.

The president has frequently made false claims that postal votes are vulnerable to significant electoral fraud.

"Let them send it in and let them go vote," he told North Carolina broadcaster WECT-


Facebook to freeze political ads before US presidential election

Its chief Mark Zuckerberg says he is worried about "the risk of civil unrest across the country".


Zombie fires spark record Arctic CO2 emissions

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Image caption Fire has destroyed areas in the Kamchatka Territory in the far east of Russia

This summer’s carbon emissions from Arctic wildfires were a third higher than last year’s previous record levels, research suggests.

The atmospheric monitoring service Copernicus says the fires which blazed during summer’s heatwaves are a cause for concern.

They say some so-called zombie fires are smouldering through the winter in peat below the frozen surface.

These underground fires then re-ignite surface vegetation in the Spring.

This

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Slovak tycoon Kocner cleared of murder of journalist and fiancée

Marian Kocner was accused of ordering the killings of journalist Jan Kuciak and his fiancée in 2018.


Trump suggests voters should submit ballot twice

The president appeared to suggest that people should test the system by voting both by postal ballot and in person.


Portland: How a 'hyper-liberal' city's racist past is resurfacing

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"Portland is a city where young people go to retire."

Fred Armisen declared this - in song form - in the opening scene of the sketch comedy show Portlandia in January 2011. The show satirised the city on the US West Coast for its "hipster" culture - a city that gave unicyclists the right of way, where people brewed kombucha before it became mainstream, and whose slogan was literally "Keep Portland Weird" .

Four years later, with the city in the throes of


Daniel Prude: New York police used 'spit hood' on man who died of asphyxiation

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Image caption Daniel Prude died a week after he was restrained by police

An unarmed black man died in New York state after he was hooded by police and held face down to the road for two minutes, body camera footage shows.

Daniel Prude, 41, was suffering from mental health issues when police restrained him in March.

He died in hospital a week later. His story has only now been made public by his family, who held a news conference.

Mr Prude's

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