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A medieval manuscript unseen for 60 years, hand-painted by the renowned French illuminator Jean Pichore and his workshop, is one of the most spectacular exhibits at the 38th annual edition of the TEFAF Maastricht fair, which previewed to invited guests on Thursday. “This is world history,” said Dr. Jörn Günther, an illuminated manuscript dealer in … Read more
Carl Lundstrom, the heir to a Swedish crisp bread fortune who financed the Pirate Bay, a notorious file-sharing service that was popular in the mid-2000s, was killed on Monday in a small plane crash in Slovenia, according to Alternative for Sweden, the far-right party that he supported. Mr. Lundstrom, 64, was the pilot and sole … Read more
Syria’s new government has adopted a temporary constitution that concentrates much power in the hands of the interim president and retains Islamic law as the foundation of the legal system. The interim president, Ahmed al-Shara, signed the constitutional declaration on Thursday following the dissolution in January of the previous constitution under the authoritarian president, Bashar … Read more
One of the longest-running Nazi restitution cases, fiercely debated within the courts for two decades, seemed to have met its end last year when the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit in California ruled against the plaintiffs. But on Monday, the Supreme Court revived it, vacating the 2024 ruling and remanding the case … Read more
A court in Finland found a Russian paramilitary fighter guilty of war crimes committed during Russia’s first invasion of Ukraine, sentencing him to life in prison on Friday. Voislav Torden, a Russian citizen who also goes by the name Yan Petrovskiy, was charged with committing war crimes for leading an ambush on Ukrainian soldiers in … Read more
In a scenario once considered unthinkable for a head of state who presided over the public and brutal killings of thousands of civilians, Rodrigo Duterte, the former president of the Philippines, appeared at an International Criminal Court hearing via a video link on Friday. Mr. Duterte’s arrest this week on charges of crimes against humanity, … Read more
Friedrich Merz, the likely next chancellor of Germany, announced on Friday that he had cut a deal with the Green Party to allow extensive new government spending for defense, infrastructure and projects related to climate change, appearing to seal the votes for a stunning turnabout in German fiscal policy before he even takes office. The … Read more
By working with Russia to hold talks with Iran, China is conveying a contrast with the United States in its approach to resolving the nuclear issue, said Shen Dingli, a professor of international relations at Fudan University in Shanghai. Beijing wants to show that “while the United States irresponsibly pulls out of the Iran Nuclear … Read more
President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia met with Steve Witkoff, the U.S. special envoy, in Moscow late Thursday and now expects to talk to President Trump about a possible cease-fire in Ukraine, the Kremlin said. Dmitri S. Peskov, the Kremlin’s spokesman, told reporters on Friday that there was “certainly” reason to feel “cautious optimism” about … Read more
When Pope Francis first appeared to the world on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica, he humbly requested that the faithful “pray for me.” Those simple words became the punctuation marks of his pontificate, as he ended practically all his speeches, greetings, weekly benedictions and casual conversations with the appeal. Now, 12 years since his … Read more