Tense and sometimes violent scenes played out in front of the French Embassy in Niger Sunday as thousands of people who support a military coup voiced anger over France’s influence in its former colony.

Demonstrators shouted shouted support for Russian leader Vladimir Putin despite calls from the Kremlin to release the country’s democratically elected president, Mohamed Bazoum.

Some protesters tore down a plaque identifying the Embassy, stomped on it and then replaced it with Russian and Nigerien flags. Shouts of “long live Putin,” “long live Russia” and “down with France” could be heard among the crowds.

Nigerien security forces were seen deploying tear gas in an attempt to disperse the protesters. One photograph from the scene showed people trying to start a fire outside the compound.

President Emmanuel Macron’s office said France would immediately retaliate against anyone who attacks French nationals or facilities in Niger.

Much of the international community has condemned the coup, which saw members of the Niger presidential guard overthrow Bazoum and install a military junta called the National Council for the Safeguard of the Homeland.

Niger has a long history of military coups since its independence from France in 1960, though in recent years it had been less politically unstable. When Bazoum came to office in 2021, it was the country’s first democratic transfer of power.

The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) on Sunday demanded that Bazoum be released and reinstated within a week. Should the junta remain in charge, the group said it would “take all measures necessary to restore constitutional order in the Republic of Niger,” including the use of force.

ECOWAS also announced a bevy of punitive measures, including closing land and air borders with Niger.

The group said it would reject any form of resignation that may purportedly come Bazoum, who they consider a hostage.

France and the European Union said earlier that they would support ECOWAS organizations if they decide to sanction the junta. The two had already cut off financial support for Niger.

Niger’s military leaders may have found one potential ally: the country’s eastern neighbor, Chad. Chadian President Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno was in Niamey, Niger’s capital, on Sunday, according to a source close to the Nigerien military, and photographed alongside a key figure in the putsch. Chad is not a member of the ECOWAS.

‘We’re going to get France out of Africa’

Niger was a French colony for more than 50 years before its independence in 1960. Diplomatic ties between the two countries were strong before Thursday’s putsch, but many Nigeriens believe France has continued to act as imperial power when dealing with Niger, robbing it of natural resources and dictating how its leaders steer the economy. Niger is one of the world’s poorest countries and receives hundreds of millions of dollars each year in assistance.

“Niger has suffered too much under French orders. I’ve been unemployed for 10 years because of their system,” said Karimou Sidi, one of the demonstrators. “We want freedom.”

Hadiza Kanto, a university student who had come to protest, said he supported the leaders of the coup because “they are against France who robbed us all.”

“We’re going to get France out of Africa,” Kanto said.

Russia has, in recent years, attempted to capitalize on that anti-colonial sentiment to bolster its influence across the continent.

Seventeen African heads of state traveled to St. Petersburg on Thursday for an Africa-Russia summit, though turnout was far lower this year than in previous years, likely due to the war in Ukraine.

The anti-France and pro-Russia movement isn’t new in the region. It has been observed in various countries in the Sahel in the past years, most recently in Burkina Faso where the military government demanded the departure of French troops from the country earlier this year.

Correction: This story has been updated to correct that Niger became independent in 1960.

World Cup tournaments tend to be defined by an emerging star and, this year, it’s Colombia’s 18-year-old sensation Linda Caicedo who is shining brightest.

The teenager, who signed for Real Madrid earlier this year, was highly thought of before games got underway in Australia and New Zealand but she’s exceeded almost every expectation.

In just two games, Caicedo has scored twice and inspired her team to two victories, including a famous win against two-time world champion Germany.

It was in that game, early in the second half, that she produced one of the moments of the World Cup so far.

With the scores level, the youngster picked the ball up in Germany’s box before jinking past two defenders and rifling a shot into the corner of the net.

It was a magical moment that underlined her potential to become one of the finest players in the women’s game.

“I wanted to shoot and thank God the ball went in,” Caicedo told FIFA after the game.

That jaw-dropping moment in Sunday’s match came after a worrying incident where Caicedo appeared to collapse during a training session in midweek.

Colombia coach Nelson Abadia said on Saturday that the teenager was just “tired” and that the incident, in which she grabbed her chest and fell to the floor, was linked to the stress of the tournament.

Many questioned whether Caicedo would be fit enough for Colombia’s second game. She not only turned up against the world No.2, but she also helped conquer them.

It’s yet another example of Caicedo’s ability to overcome obscurity.

Caicedo possesses that rare talent where the ball appears stuck to her foot. No matter the pressure from opponents, she always manages to wriggle away to the delight of spectators.

Born in Candelaria in the west of Colombia, she fell in love with soccer and attributes her exciting, slightly unorthodox, style, to playing in the streets as a child.

“From the street, from playing in my neighbourhood, from what I learned playing with boys when I was a kid,” she recently told FIFA, when asked where she learnt to play the way she does.

Cancer diagnosis

At just 14, Caicedo made her professional debut for Colombian side America de Cali and finished her first season as the league’s top scorer in her side’s title win, according to FIFA+.

Just a few months later and she earned her international call-up to the Colombian national side.

Things were progressing quickly for the youngster, but all was about to come to a halt.

At 15, Caicedo was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, shortly after making her senior debut for the national side. The youngster underwent surgery and chemotherapy treatment.

If that wasn’t enough weight for the youngster’s shoulders, it all happened during the the Covid-19 pandemic.

“There was a difficult process, thank God I could overcome it,” she said, per the BBC. “My family was always behind me and my coach beside me was always very close.”

Just two years after her diagnosis and Caicedo was back helping Colombia reach the final of Copa América Femenina where, despite finishing runner-up to Brazil, she was named the best player of the tournament.

By now her form was attracting the attention of Europe’s biggest clubs and Caicedo was eventually snapped up by Real Madrid in February.

“I’m still developing,” Caicedo told FIFA+ before the World Cup began.

“The pressure takes its toll sometimes, but mentally I’m preparing myself to keep doing what I enjoy doing and to keep having fun.”

Her Colombian teammates know they are playing with someone special when Caicedo crosses that white line.

The national team’s game-plan revolves around getting Caicedo on the ball. She’s the player who can make things happen; she’s the player who can help them go deep into this competition.

“There’s no limit for Linda, she’s a player who’s destined for great things,” Colombia midfielder Leicy Santos told FIFA on Sunday.

“She was born to be great and she will be. She needs us to be where she is, but there’s no limit for her. She’s 18 and has still got so much to give to football.”

Lofty ambitions

Caicedo’s goal against South Korea in the first game of the tournament ensured she has now scored in three separate World Cup tournaments in the space of a year, having already shone at the Under-17 and Under-20 editions in 2022.

It’s a statistic that highlights her importance to the national team setup which failed to qualify for the senior women’s World Cup in 2019.

Now, sparing an unlikely swing of goal difference, Colombia will qualify for the last 16 of the World Cup. Just a point against Morocco in its final group game on Thursday will ensure it does so as Group H winners.

The nation’s best run at the Women’s World Cup ended at the last 16 stage in 2015 but, if Caicedo gets her way, Colombia will be in Australia and New Zealand to the very end.

“Colombia is on the way to great things, it really is one step at a time,” she told FIFA Sunday. “We want to be champions.”

“They like our club for the way that we manage the club, for the kind of players that we had in the past and in the present.

“And when a player, and with all respect, prefers to go to Saudi Arabia, basically there are no sporting reasons. You know, there are other reasons that are the priority. And the football must be the priority – the sporting reasons must be the priority.”

Vast amounts of money are being spent on sports, and other interests, by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF). The PIF is a government-controlled fund that has $650 billion in assets under management, according to its most recent filing, and is aiming to top $1 trillion within a few years.

Last week, Al-Hilal, which is one of four Saudi clubs owned by the PIF, made a world-record bid of over $332 million (300 million euros) for Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) striker Kylian Mbappé.

The French star reportedly spurned a meeting and contract with the Saudi Arabian football club, but the enormity of the bid shows how determined the Saudis are to become a major player in world soccer.

Mbappé might have said no, but the likes of Ballon d’Or winner Karim Benzema, N’Golo Kanté, Kalidou Koulibaly, Edouard Mendy, Roberto Firmino, Fabinho and Jordan Henderson have all said yes to offers from SPL clubs.

Meanwhile, five-time Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo played in the SPL last season after signing a two-year contract with Al-Nassr, where he will earn an estimated $200 million a year.

Laporta was at pains to point out that, in soccer, the team is of paramount importance compared to the individual. “I respect the decisions of the Saudi government that, you know, incorporate talented players” he explained.

“Football is a team sport. Of course, the talented players help us to promote this sport and to make the fans happy because the talent is the talent, but … the team is the priority.”

Despite questioning the “sporting merits” of playing in Saudi Arabia, Laporta suggested that his club, one of the established powers of global soccer, “could help” the Gulf state’s teams.

“My view is that it’s more important to have the assistance of the clubs, the traditional clubs, specifically the European clubs,” added Laporta.

“There are big European clubs, including Football Club Barcelona, that could help these teams in the Saudi Pro League in order to get some associations to transfer our know-how and to help them to improve their teams.

“I think that this is the way to do it. Maybe with academies of football, but at the same time with a direct association in order to improve the quality of these teams in terms of football.”

Last season, Barcelona won its first La Liga title since 2019, though the team failed to make it out of the Champions League group stages.

“The priority of last season was the Spanish league and this new season, for us, the league is the priority as well,” said Laporta.

“But we would like to compete better in the Champions League, and we would like to be among the candidates for winning this competition. But our priority still is the Spanish League.”

Barca’s La Liga success last season had much to do with the defensive structure implemented by current coach and celebrated former player Xavi.

According to Laporta, Xavi represents a continuum of two former Barca coaches – Pep Guardiola and the late Johan Cruyff.

“They belong to the same school and they share the same philosophy; this great philosophy, the Johan Cruyff philosophy, was for Pep and now is for Xavi,” said Laporta. “And of course, both have some differences, but are coaches with a high personality and they improve this genuine style of playing football that Johan Cruyff implemented in Football Club Barcelona in the past.”

Earlier this year, before joining MLS club Inter Miami, Lionel Messi’s father and agent, Jorge Messi, said his son’s preferred move would have been a return to Barcelona during the summer transfer window.

One of the greatest footballers of all time, Messi made 778 appearances over 17 years for the Blaugrana, broke the club’s goalscoring record, and won 35 trophies during his time at the Camp Nou, including 10 La Liga titles and four Champions Leagues.

“He’s the best player in the world, but a better person,” said Laporta, adding that Messi has been “the best player in history.

“We love him. He took the decision to go to Inter Miami. Good for Inter Miami, good for MLS. And of course, we want that this decision has to be good for him as well, because we respect, of course, his decision and we wish Messi and his family the best in Inter Miami.”

On October 10, 2013, Torbjørn “Thor” Pedersen left his job, girlfriend, and family behind in Denmark to embark on an epic journey.

His goal? To visit every country in the world without flying.

Pedersen set three cardinal rules for himself. He’d spend at least 24 hours in each nation, live off a budget of roughly $20 a day and resist returning home until he finished.

On May 24, that day finally came. After nearly ten years of travel, Pedersen successfully visited his 203rd and final country, the Maldives, and began his long-awaited voyage back to Denmark.

It would have been easier to fly, of course, but Pedersen wanted to bring the project full circle.

After celebrating in the Maldives, the 44-year-old backtracked to Malaysia via Sri Lanka to board the massive MV Milan Maersk – a container ship stretching roughly 1,310 feet long, or about the size of 3.6 soccer fields – for the 33-day voyage home.

“In my cabin, I looked out the porthole in Malaysia, and it dawned on me that every day the view would gradually change until it finally became Denmark,” says Pedersen.

“Even if I broke my leg at that point, I would make it home. There are no more snakes, wild dogs, malaria, or visas to secure – I just had to avoid falling overboard!”

An emotional homecoming

On July 26, Pedersen walked down the gangway at the Port of Aarhus, on Denmark’s eastern coast, where roughly 150 people were waiting for him to celebrate.

Among the cheering crowds were his wife Le (Pedersen proposed to his girlfriend atop Mt Kenya in 2016 and they married in 2021), father, siblings, friends, project partners and many supporters who have been following his blog, Once Upon a Saga, and social media channels.

“I’ve seen many tearful eyes since I got back – people have come up to hug me sobbing,” says Pedersen. “I have also received a lot of gifts – Danish beer, milk, foods – and got to meet people who have been following my social media from Colombia, Australia, Norway… that was amazing.”

While fielding a deluge of calls, messages, and interview requests, Pedersen has been catching up with family at his father’s house.

He’s also savoring all little things – like the clean and cool Danish air, morning runs with Le, and ice-cold Danish milk at every opportunity.

“My family is really proud. There’s a lot of love,” he says. “Coming home is something I’ve been focusing on – something I’ve wanted to materialize for the longest time. But I am still processing that the journey is over and figuring out what comes next.”

Ten years of travel

Before taking off in 2013, Pedersen worked in shipping and logistics, which turned out to be invaluable expertise when planning the complex route and adapting on the road.

In fact, he didn’t veer much from his original plan, aside from a few surprises. For instance, he overlooked Equatorial Guinea, one of the world’s most difficult countries to access. After four months and many failed attempts, Pedersen finally acquired a visa. Even though land borders were closed at the time, he was able to cross thanks to a serendipitous encounter with a stranger who worked in Equatorial Guinea and offered him a ride.

Later, Pedersen thought he could acquire a Chinese visa at the border with Mongolia and then travel to Pakistan. But due to the long processing time, he had to backtrack nearly 7,500 miles through several countries to get to Pakistan before his visa expired.

All the while, time started to add up. He had originally anticipated it would take four years to reach 203 countries (the UN recognizes 195 sovereign states, but Pedersen included partially recognized states, too), but the world had other plans.

During his years on the road, Pedersen endured months-long visa delays in places like Syria, Iran, Nauru, and Angola.

He also overcame a severe bout of cerebral malaria in Ghana, survived an intense four-day storm while crossing the Atlantic from Iceland to Canada, navigated shuttered land borders in conflict zones, and had to reschedule many sailings due to broken-down ships or exhausting bureaucracy.

The most significant delay was the COVID-19 pandemic.

In early 2020, the intrepid traveler suddenly found himself stuck in Hong Kong for two years with just nine countries left.

“I look back at Hong Kong, and it’s a bit of a paradox. It was the worst time of my life and the best time of my life, somehow. I had to cope with the situation – it was such a struggle to work out if I should abandon this project nine countries short of completion,” Pedersen recalls.

“I had to ask myself: how much of my life will I give to this? But while waiting for the world to open, I made a life in Hong Kong and forged so many special relationships.”

Pedersen stayed sane by cooking dinner with friends, hiking the city’s many trails, working with the Red Cross, giving motivational speeches, and working at the Danish Seamen’s Church.

Having acquired an employment visa and Hong Kong residency, Pedersen married his fiancé, Le, who was back in Denmark, via a US-based virtual wedding service.

It wasn’t how the couple envisioned their big day, but the decision enabled Le to become a resident and visit Pedersen (Hong Kong prohibited foreign travelers at the time).

“We spent 100 days together, which was wonderful,” he recalls, adding that it was their longest stretch of time together since Pedersen left Denmark in 2013. “She got to meet my friends and understand my life. We love hiking in Hong Kong and did the MacLehose Trail, which is 62 miles long at more than half the elevation of Mount Everest, side by side in one go.”

The journey resumes

On January 5, 2022, Pedersen was finally able to leave Hong Kong and continue across the Pacific.

His first stop was Palau. Behind the scenes, it took six months of negotiation with the Palau government to let him arrive via container ship, he says.

After 15 days at sea, Pedersen spent eight of his 14 days in Palau in hotel quarantine due to an outbreak on the island.

Next came a 16-day journey back to Hong Kong, where he returned to hotel quarantine for another two weeks.

About a month later, he continued on to Australia, then New Zealand, Samoa, and Tonga – but not without immense effort.

“I had to plead with almost every government. For Tonga, we were in touch with the health ministry, navy, and military. No one wanted to say yes and go against the prime minister [because the country was in a state of emergency due to COVID],” says Pedersen.

“Finally, one night, I got an email from the prime minister that simply said, ‘It’s okay, let him in.’”

After Tonga, Pedersen went to Vanuatu, where Le joined him again so they could marry in person.

Their wedding planner invited all the resort guests and staff, who made incredible decorations from palm leaves and drew huge hearts adorned with seashells in the sand.

“It was just beautiful – the staff was sweet and giddy, and they made it really special,” says Pedersen.

The final three

Pedersen set off for the last country in the Pacific, Tuvalu, wary of the logistics.

Home to nine islands and just 11,600 people, Tuvalu is one of the world’s smallest and most remote nations, so it can be tough to get spare parts for boats.

“It is gorgeous. The surf is amazing, the sky is beautiful, and the people were so kind and helpful,” he says. “But I didn’t expect to be there for two months.”

“The ships kept breaking down. One of them had a leaking hole in the hull. I tried to get on another ship, but it just never set off.”

Finally, Pedersen managed to return to Fiji on a tugboat. From there, a 24-day journey on a container ship took him to Singapore, where Le joined him to devour food at hawker centers, explore the National Museum, hike the MacRitchie Nature Trail, and run along the Singapore River.

After she returned to Denmark, Pedersen crossed the land border to Malaysia and caught a ship to Sri Lanka before setting sail to the final country: the Maldives.

When Pedersen arrived at the port in Malé, the capital, he spotted a group of people waving waving small Danish flags alongside one of his sponsors, Ross Energy, and friends like record-setting Norwegian traveler Gunnar Garfors (the first person to visit every country in the world twice), who came to help him celebrate.

“When I was in the Maldives, it was enormously hectic, and I had no real time for reflection,” he says. “I was mentally exhausted – it has been a roller-coaster of emotions.

“There’s uncertainty while I am traveling, but I have been in operational mode for so long now that it feels somewhat safe to me. There’s a different kind of uncertainty when I get home. I will be free to do whatever I want, go anywhere, or go nowhere.”

Traveling with purpose

From start to finish, Pedersen tallied up some incredible statistics during his travels:  3,576 days, 379 container ships, 158 trains, 351 buses, 219 taxis, 33 boats, and 43 rickshaws.

He crossed 223,000 miles, or the equivalent of nine journeys around the Earth – and that’s not including the long voyage home.

But it’s not about the numbers, says Pedersen.

It’s about celebrating the kindness of people and sharing a positive outlook on the world.

“I set out on this journey with a motto, ‘A stranger is a friend you’ve never met before,’ and I have been shown time and time again that this is true,” he says. “If you engage with people, they’re usually all in.”

Pedersen says he’s met warm, friendly, helpful people all around the world, many of whom offered him tea, meals, introductions, translation support, or simply provided directions.

“I stayed in the homes of many, many strangers during my travelson my trip, and I made it through every country in the world – the ones with armed conflict, the ones with virus outbreaks – unharmed,” he exclaims.

“Either I’m the luckiest man on the planet, or the world is in a much better place than most people are led to believe by the scary, dramatic news on social media and news channels.”

The journey is also a testament to Pedersen’s perseverance. He came close to quitting a few times but refused to throw in the towel.

“Someone wrote me today that I won first, second and third prize in stubbornness,” laughs Pedersen. “There’s always been a solution. I just had to look really hard for it sometimes.”

His dogged determination mentality comes from a desire to show supporters they can do anything they put their minds to.

“I had the craziest of goals. And if I could do this, you can lose weight or learn to play an instrument, learn a language, get an education, get a job… whatever you want.”

What’s next?

His final sail aboard the MV Milan Maersk journeyed across the Indian Ocean to the Red Sea, across the Suez Canal, into the Mediterranean, up the English Channel, over to Germany, and finally, to Denmark.

“I haven’t processed that this project has ended yet. They say that if you want to incorporate a new habit in life, you must repeat it for 30 days. I’ve been doing this for more than 3,500 days. So, this is very much who I am now,” says Pedersen.

After he’s had time to rest and regain his footing, Pedersen plans to trade in his life of perpetual travel and move forward in other ways.

For starters, he looks forward to spending more time with his wife and starting a family together.

“We have a lot of things to celebrate. While I was traveling, she accomplished so many things – she completed a medical degree, finished her PhD, started working at a pharmaceutical company, got a promotion, completed two full Ironman [triathlons]… she’s a superwoman.”

As he embarks on a new chapter, Pedersen is also working with Canadian filmmaker Mike Douglas to wrap up “The Impossible Journey,” a documentary on the project, and plans to write a book about the journey.

Looking ahead, he hopes to channel his experiences into speaking engagements – a skill he’s honed over the past 10 years.

“It dawned on me that I wasn’t comfortable going on the stage when I left home. But now, I can walk on a stage in front of 300 people smiling,” he says.

“The journey helped me identify my strengths – and engaging with people is one of them. Hopefully, through speaking engagements, I can make a living by out of making people laugh, learn, and inspiring them to never give up.”

France and the EU have cut off financial support to Niger after a coup toppled the West African country’s democratically elected president.

In a statement, France – Niger’s former colonial power – called for the “immediate return to the Nigerien constitutional order” adding to the mounting international pressure on the coup plotters.

The move came shortly after the European Union suspended all security cooperation to Niger earlier Saturday, and announced it would no longer provide financial support. Niger is one of the world’s poorest countries and receives hundreds of millions of dollars each year in assistance.

Abdourahamane Tiani, a general who leads the country’s presidential guard, was declared the country’s new leader after President Mohamed Bazoum was detained earlier this week.

“This unacceptable attack on the integrity of Niger’s republican institutions will not remain without consequences for the partnership and cooperation between the European Union and Niger, in all its various aspects,” said Josep Borell, the EU’s foreign policy chief.

“President Bazoum was democratically elected; he is and remains the only legitimate President of Niger. He must be released unconditionally and without delay.”

Leaders from Washington to Moscow have called for Bazoum’s release, so far to no avail.

The African Union on Saturday demanded that Nigerien military personnel “immediately and unconditionally return to their barracks and restore constitutional authority,” within 15 days. The AU warned it would “take necessary action, including punitive measures against the perpetrators, should the rights of political detainees not be respected.”

Borell and French President Emmanuel Macron both said they would be willing to support regional organizations, including the Economic Community of West African States, should they decide to bring sanctions against Niger.

It is unclear to what extent international pressure would impact the decision of those attempting to seize power.

Niger lies at the heart of Africa’s Sahel region, which has seen numerous power grabs in recent years including in Mali and Burkina Faso.

A key ally of the United States, France and other Western governments, Niger had been one of the few democracies in a region fraught with Islamist insurgencies.

As the human-induced climate crisis continues, one European country is looking to make train travel not just the sustainable option – but the most fun one, too.

Ferrovie dello Stato Italiane (FS), Italy’s state-owned railway operator, has announced a new program of tourist-focused trains, using vintage locomotives on popular vacation routes.

There are three wings to the new project. “Lusso” (luxury) trains will be spearheaded by the long-distance, super-luxury Orient Express Dolce Vita train, which will now launch in 2024, instead of this year as previously anticipated.

The legendary Venice Simplon-Orient-Express, now owned by hotel company Belmond, will also come under this category, since FS already provides rolling stock and staff, as it does for other luxury charters including Golden Eagle trains.

Next up are “Espressi” (Express) and “treni storici” – vintage trains – plying new medium and long routes from major cities to tourist areas, such as Milan to the Ligurian and Tuscan coasts, and a night train looping the south, leaving from Rome and stopping at Otranto in Puglia and Metaponto in Basilicata, before heading around the Ionian coast (the toe of Italy’s boot) to Reggio Calabria. These new routes will include night trains.

Espresso trains will use rolling stock from the 1980s and 1990s, refurbished to offer 21st-century details such as restaurant cars, sleeping cabins, meeting rooms and storage areas for bicycles and skis. Services will follow seasonal tourism trends, backing up existing Trenitalia routes.

Cruising on the rails

There will even be “cruise trains” – routes conceived with the idea of shuttling vacationers back and forth from short breaks. For instance, one leaving Rome on a Friday night will allow guests to dine and sleep as the train heads north towards the Dolomites, reaching the station of Calalzo-Pieve (for the famous ski destination Cortina d’Ampezzo) in the morning. From there, bus transfers can take passengers to Cortina, 45 minutes away, and the train will be waiting for them to return to Rome on Sunday night. Another mooted route will be a five- or six-day trip from central to southern Italy, passing through five regions from Umbria to Puglia.

Meanwhile, FS Treni Turistici Italiani will take over the running of the vintage trains which the Fondazione FS currently runs across the country. It currently has a fleet of 400 trains.

Finally, the “omnibus-regionali” category will be slower, weekend services on regional trains at lower prices. These routes will be chosen to include landscapes of interest, and places with strong food and drink traditions. The stops and timings will be chosen to maximize the visitor experience.

Combating mass tourism

Speaking at the launch beside a train composed of prototype carriages to be used in the project, FS CEO Luigi Ferraris, said in a statement that the new program aims to “relaunch and develop high-quality and sustainable tourism which is ready to appreciate the richness of our country, and discover lesser known places.”

He added that the aim was “to make the train journey an integral part of the client’s experience, creating synergies with other tourist activities, from guided tours of archeological sites to hiking, as well as tastings of typical products, thereby focusing on the traditions and the economies of the areas [the routes] will cover.”

Antonio Tajani, Italy’s deputy prime minister and minister of foreign affairs, said in a message delivered at the launch that the new project was part of a “modern tourism strategy” for the country, which is suffering from the effects of overtourism.

The new outfit will acquire its fleet from Trenitalia’s regular rolling stock, and will overhaul trains to make them “specifically designed for the needs of tourists” – including charter trains for religious pilgrimages and secular ones to Italy’s cities of art.

They also aim to construct new hi-tech carriages, including Swiss-style panoramic decks, and build a fleet of restaurant cars showcasing the best of Italian cuisine.

Italy is becomingly increasingly crowded as tourists from around the world flock for a taste of dolce vita. In 2022 the country saw around 56 million arrivals. That figure is predicted to hit 75 million for 2023.

A fire broke out on a ship off the Dutch coast with around 3,000 cars on board on Wednesday, killing one person and injuring several others, the coastguard said.

Pictures show gray smoke emitting from the ship amid fears the vessel could sink 27 kilometers north of the Dutch island, Ameland, off the Wadden Sea – a UNESCO World Heritage Site that is considered one of the most important regions for migratory birds in the world.

Around midnight local time on Wednesday, the Coast Guard received a report from the ship signaling a fire on board.

The crew tried to extinguish the fire themselves but were unsuccessful, according to the coast guard.

As the fire continued to spread, several crew members jumped overboard.

“The people had to get off,” skipper Willard Molenaar from the Ameland rescue ship told NOS. “One after another they jumped and we fished them out of the water.” The ship with the cars is around 30 meters high, according to Molenaar. “They were really in need and that’s why they had to jump. You don’t just do that,” he added.

All 23 crew members disembarked via helicopters and rescue boats, but one of them died and several got injured, the coast guard said.

The rest of the sailors were pulled from the ship by helicopter and no one remains on the ship, according to NOS.

“The ship is still on fire. The recovery vessel Hunter has an emergency connection to the ship and is holding the ship in a controlled position. Multiple parties are working on an action plan to limit the damage as much as possible,” the coast guard said in a post on Twitter.

The coast guard added that the crew members were taken to the nearby coastal village of Lauwersoog and others to Groningen airport in Eelde and were taken care of by paramedics.

Oscar-winning actor Kevin Spacey has been cleared of all charges after a four-week trial in London on claims of sexual assault.

The Hollywood star, 64, had tears in his eyes as the jury at Southwark Crown Court found him not guilty of seven counts of sexual assault and two counts of other serious sexual offenses.

The allegations covered a period between 2004 and 2013, when Spacey served as artistic director at the Old Vic theater in the British capital. He pleaded not guilty to all of the charges.

Spacey thanked the jury after it cleared him following 12 hours and 26 minutes of deliberation across three days. Today also marks his 64th birthday.

In a brief statement to reporters outside the court shortly after the verdict, Spacey said he was “humbled.”

“I imagine that many of you can understand that there’s a lot for me to process after what has just happened today. But I would like to say that I’m enormously grateful to the jury for having taken the time to examine all of the evidence and all of the facts carefully, before they reached their decision. And I am humbled by the outcome today,” he said.

The actor finished his statement by thanking court staff and his legal team.

Spacey has won two Academy Awards for his roles in “The Usual Suspects” and “American Beauty.” He has returned to acting in recent years after leaving “House of Cards.” The actor starred in the Netflix series for five seasons before being fired in 2017 over allegations of misconduct on and off the set.

During the trial, prosecutor Christine Agnew told jurors that Spacey was “a sexual bully” and a man who “delights in making others feel powerless and uncomfortable,” the PA Media news agency reported. The actor said the charges were “madness” and a “stab in the back.”

One complainant alleged that Spacey sat in the front of a car next to him while he was driving and grabbed the man’s hand to put it on his crotch. The complainant said that one time, Spacey acted so forcefully it “took his breath away.” Spacey denied this ever happened.

The second complainant alleged that Spacey assaulted him at a charity event, putting his hand on his leg, and grabbing his crotch with “such force it was painful.” Spacey said this never happened.

The third said he met Spacey while working at a pub in the English countryside. Later that night, at a party at the actor’s holiday home, he said Spacey “approached him and gave him a hug,” kissed his neck, grabbed his crotch and “squeezed,” while telling the man to “be cool, be cool.” The complainant said he pushed Spacey away and left quickly, calling his dad to collect him.

Spacey claimed that this was a “clumsy pass,” but denied sexually assaulting him.

The most serious accusation, made by the fourth complainant, an aspiring actor, said he contacted Spacey after having a brief interaction with him at a theater production, and asking Spacey for career advice. Spacey invited him to his London apartment two weeks later and sexually assaulted him, the man alleged. The complainant alleged that he had been drugged by the actor, and said he woke up to Spacey performing a sexual act on him.

Spacey told the court that the two had shared “a consensual, a very nice and lovely evening.”

Under questioning from Spacey’s lawyer, Patrick Gibbs KC, the complainants all denied either seeking financial gain, attempting to further their career or giving false accounts to the jury, according to PA Media.

Last year, a New York jury found Spacey not liable for battery on allegations he picked up actor Anthony Rapp and laid on top of him after a party in 1986.

China’s highly secretive civilian spy agency has launched a public account on a major social media platform to call on “all members of society” to join its fight against espionage, offering rewards and protection for those who provide information.

The Ministry of State Security oversees intelligence and counterintelligence both within China and overseas. Its remit has encouraged analogies to a combined CIA and FBI, but is far more secretive about its work – without even a public website describing its activities.

But on Monday it launched an account on WeChat, the hugely popular social messaging app that boasts more than 1 billion users. A day later, the account published its first post.

Titled “Countering espionage requires the mobilization of all members of society,” the ministry said national security bodies should keep reporting channels, such as hotlines and online platforms, open to handle reports of suspected espionage within China in a timely manner.

“Enhance the mechanism for reporting espionage by legally commending, rewarding and protecting individuals and organizations who report espionage,” it added, “so as to normalize the mechanism for the people to participate in counter-espionage work.”

It also said it is the mission of “national bodies, civic groups and commercial enterprises” to implement anti-espionage measures, adding that the government and “heads of industries” should take responsibility.

For years, Chinese authorities have encouraged the public to inform on suspected foreign spies and their Chinese collaborators through propaganda and incentive campaigns.

But those efforts have gathered pace under Xi Jinping, China’s most assertive and authoritarian leader in a generation who has made state security his top priority.

Officials and state media have long pushed the narrative that China is under grave, constant threat from “hostile foreign forces,” who are supposedly seeking to infiltrate and undermine the country, a message that has been further turbocharged as relations with Western powers have soured.

Counter-espionage law expansion

The security ministry’s debut WeChat post cited new amendments to a counter-espionage law passed by China’s rubber-stamp legislature earlier this year, which came into effect on July 1.

It said news outlets, broadcasters, television stations, the culture sector and internet providers should also take part in anti-espionage education.

China passed a sweeping counter-espionage law in 2014, which some experts said was already “ambiguous and powerful”. But it updated the law in April to cast a wider net.

The latest amendments expanded the definition of espionage from covering state secrets and intelligence to any “documents, data, materials or items related to national security and interests,” without specifying specific parameters for how these terms are defined.

Cyber attacks targeting China’s key information infrastructure in connection with spy agencies are also categorized as espionage under the new changes.

The move has sparked worries among analysts over its potential impact on foreign companies, journalists and academics, which could face further legal risks and uncertainty for their work.

Before the law came into effect earlier this year, Chinese authorities closed the Beijing office of Mintz Group, an American corporate due diligence firm, and detained five local staff.

US consultancy Bain & Company also said in April that Chinese police had questioned staff at its Shanghai office.

Meanwhile, Japan has demanded the release of a Japanese employee of Astellas Pharma who was detained in Beijing in March for suspected espionage.

Previous anti-spying drive

There have been multiple previous calls by China for the public to look for potential spies.

In June last year, China announced “material rewards” of up to and above 100,000 yuan ($15,000) for tip-offs about people who endanger national security.

For those who came forward with less significant intelligence, authorities will present them with “spiritual rewards” in certificates instead.

A campaign in 2016 famously used a 16-panel comic book-style poster found all over the capital of Beijing.

The poster told the fictional tale of a young female civil servant – Xiao Li or Little Li – who was wooed by a red-haired foreigner posing as a visiting scholar.

The scholar, named Dawei or David, showered her with compliments, roses, fancy dinners and romantic walks in the park, and convinced the woman to provide him with internal documents from her government propaganda workplace.

The story ended with Xiao Li being taken away by security officials and discovering that her boyfriend was a foreign spy.