(Last Updated On: November 2, 2020) With US elections just one day away, coronavirus cases continued to climb in America at a staggering rate while Midwestern states reported record numbers of hospitalizations.
On Saturday, almost 87,000 new cases were reported, with 909 deaths, according to a Reuters tally.
President Donald Trump, the Republican seeking re-election against Democratic challenger Joe Biden has continued to downplay the virus and accused Democrats of overblowing the pandemic that has killed more 230,000 Americans, more than any other country, Reuters reported.
Biden and fellow Democrats have stated Trump is a poor leader who failed to contain COVID-19 in the United States, which also leads the world in the daily average number of new cases.
This comes after Trump falsely accused doctors of profiting from COVID-19 deaths – a statement that drew harsh criticism from the governor of Wisconsin.
“We have a president that believes that the doctors are at fault, they’re messing with the numbers and he believes that it’s over. It ain’t over,” Democratic Governor Tony Evers told CNN’s “State of the Union” on Sunday.
“We have hospitalizations going through the roof,” he said. “We absolutely need somebody that understands that this is an issue, it’s a thing. People are dying.”
Biden campaign adviser Anita Dunn meanwhile came out in defense of doctors after Trump’s attack, saying many hospital workers have not had adequate protective gear for a long time.
“These people have been risking their lives since the beginning of this crisis,” she said on ABC’s “This Week.”
Reuters reported that Trump’s comments referred to reports on doctors’ billing practices, Trump campaign adviser Jason Miller said on the same program, without elaborating.
Scott Gottlieb, a former Food and Drug Administration commissioner appointed by Trump, told CBS’ “Face the Nation” it was “troubling” to suggest doctors were manipulating data to get higher reimbursements as the country enters a difficult phase.
“Things are getting worse around the country,” and more aggressive actions will be needed to fight the virus’ spread, he said, with December likely to be the toughest month.
Ohio is another state where the infection rate is climbing.
Republican Governor Mike DeWine said: “This thing is really, really spreading in Ohio.”
Speaking to CNN he attributed the increase to more social gatherings, people not wearing masks and letting their guard down.
Meanwhile, Stanford University economists estimated that Trump’s campaign rallies have resulted in 30,000 additional confirmed cases of COVID-19, and likely led to more than 700 deaths overall, according to a paper posted over the weekend.
Infectious disease experts have long suspected that Trump’s campaign rallies might be so-called “superspreader events” but scientists have not been able to confirm this partly due to a lack of contact tracing.
Trump has meanwhile repeatedly disdained masks, even after outbreaks affected his own family and a number of White House staffers, Reuters reports.
In contrast, Biden has stuck to federal health guidelines that discourage large, crowded gatherings during his campaign events and he has called Trump’s handling of the virus negligent and irresponsible.
This title may have caught you off-guard and made you do a double-take. After all, Europe is having a record, blowout, tremendously inspiring year for electric vehicle sales. It seems that every monthly report on European EV sales, including the one we just published, includes an exclamation mark and a ton of new sales records. So, what am I talking about with automakers “slow-walking” electric vehicle (EV) sales in the EU?
“Good article (in German) explaining why EU car manufacturers are slow-walking EV sales: 2020 will be taken as baseline for a 37.5% CO2 reduction by 2030. They don’t want to over-deliver this year and face a tougher target. Watch the numbers soar in 2021!”
If you’ve been following along, you know that EV market share has been soaring through the open roof of Camp NouAllianz Arena the European auto market because: 1) automakers have to pay steep fines or buy expensive credits from Tesla if they don’t meet certain fleet emissions standards, 2) customers actually do want to buy good electric vehicles if automakers produce and try to sell them. In fact, last month, EV sales accounted for 12% of overall auto market sales, a 166% increase over September 2019.
While automakers are certainly working harder to sell EVs in order to not pay sharp fines, it appears that they are also holding back, essentially trying to keep EV sales within an ideal little box.
Let’s add a little nuance here to make sure we tease out the point Michael made briefly above:
Additionally, CO2 emissions probably need to be cut by 37.5% by 2030, based on 2020 emissions.
The lower emissions are in 2020, the lower they need to be in 2030, so automakers that really want to slow-walk the transition to electric cars are aiming to barely meet 2020 requirements rather than blow past them and set a more ambitious bar for 2030.
European EV sales have been exciting and exhilarating in 2020, one of the best things about 2020 and one of the biggest cleantech wins of the year. 10% plugin vehicle market share is several times higher than 2019’s market share in Europe, and it makes the USA’s 2.3% or so plugin vehicle market share look like a joke. However, José Pontes keeps previewing that 2020 is just the appetizer and 2021 will be #Disruption ’21. This quirk or mistake in EU policy that Michael Liebreich highlighted, combined with lack of ambition and lack of leadership among automakers, explains one reason why that’s the case. It also explains the importance of policy.
The US has a simple federal tax credit for people who buy a new electric vehicle. (Though, buyers of Tesla and GM electric vehicles no longer qualify for this, since they passed 200,000 US plugin vehicle sales and then went through the incentive phaseout period.) This federal tax credit is up to $7500, which is pretty substantial, but it’s a simple policy, one that many car buyers can’t take advantage of, and one that I’m sure most people don’t even know about. More comprehensive policies that essentially force automakers to electrify more vehicles go a lot further in hastening the industry transformation to an electric era. Automakers, like other companies, like and respond to very clear signals about where they should be headed. They will follow regulations, but they will also drag their feet and use delay tactics if there aren’t strong policies persuading them to change.
This is why we need good politicians in office who are capable of paying attention to detail, who can focus enough to determine and include critical nuance and context for new legislation, who will actually try to push industries and society forward instead of trying to drag them backward, and who are just, you know, not crazy sociopaths.
For more analysis of the nuance of European auto policy and how it relates to the speed of change in 2020, look into these 4 stories:
The final piece in that list also highlights a way that automakers have been working to reach the 95 gr/km CO2 standard with minimal effort, minimal appeal to consumers, minimal pace of innovate, minimal change, and, due to faulty analysis, minimal emissions reductions. Instead of going all-in on fully electric vehicles built electric from the ground up, instead of going the full Tesla route and trying to bring low-cost mass-market electric vehicles to the table, most automakers have been rolling out lame, often misused and abused plugin hybrid electric vehicles that do not even live up to their expectations or emissions ratings.
What are solutions to this problem? Michael has an idea, which he proposed in response to the second article in that list above. Check out his brilliant suggestion:
“The EU should close this loophole by using the expected CO2 emissions in the first year(s) of usage.” No, the EU should demand aggregated telemetry data from auto manufacturers, not lab tests or estimates, and use it to set model-level emissions. Manufacturers have the data.
However, responding to my followup question about this, Michael indicated that he is unaware of any organized effort to pursue that idea. Perhaps it is a matter that some members of the CleanTechnica community should take up.
Not yet, to my knowledge. But it’s manifestly a good idea (ergo will be fiercely resisted by the incumbency).
Do you have any additional thoughts on EU electric vehicle policy, how the market is evolving, and how to improve or hasten the transition to electric vehicles in Europe?
Zachary Shahan is tryin’ to help society help itself one word at a time. He spends most of his time here on CleanTechnica as its director, chief editor, and CEO. Zach is recognized globally as an electric vehicle, solar energy, and energy storage expert. He has presented about cleantech at conferences in India, the UAE, Ukraine, Poland, Germany, the Netherlands, the USA, Canada, and Curaçao.
Zach has long-term investments in NIO [NIO], Tesla [TSLA], and Xpeng [XPEV]. But he does not offer (explicitly or implicitly) investment advice of any sort.
Pope Francis recalled the beatification on Saturday of Father Michael McGivney, a diocesan priest and founder of the Knights of Columbus.
Speaking after the Angelus prayer in St. Peter’s Square on Sunday, the Pope said McGivney was an evangelizer who went to great lengths to assist to the needs of the poor, promoting charitable works.
“May his example encourage all of us to witness to the Gospel of charity,” he said asking for applause for the new Blessed.
Pope Francis then asked for prayers for the people in the Aegean Sea area that was struck, two days ago, by a powerful earthquake.
At least 27 people were killed in Turkey and Greece when the quake struck on Friday afternoon, causing buildings to collapse and triggering a mini-tsunami. Over 800 people were injured and a total of 470 aftershocks have been recorded in the area.
Mass for the feast of All Souls inside the Vatican
The Pope concluded his address to the pilgrims in the square reminding them that tomorrow, 2 November feast of All Souls he will celebrate Holy Mass for the deceased in the Vatican’s Teutonic Cemetery in the absence of faithful because of Coronavirus restrictions.
“Thus I join spiritually with all those who, in respect of sanitary precautions that must be observed, in these days will be praying on the tombs of their beloved deceased in every part of the world,” he said.
Pope Francis observed the solemn Feast of All Saints inviting the faithful to reflect on the great hope that is based on Christ’s resurrection.
Speaking during the Sunday Angelus, the Pope upheld the Saints and Blesseds as the most authoritative witnesses of Christian hope. He also invited us all to choose purity, meekness and mercy while entrusting ourselves to the Lord and dedicating ourselves to justice and peace.
He reflected on two Beatitudes – the second and the third – that, he said, Jesus preached and which resound in the Liturgy (see Mt 5:1-12a), and described them as the path to holiness.
The Pope said the second one is “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted”. These words, he explained, seem contradictory because mourning is not a sign of joy and happiness. But Jesus, he continued, proclaims blessed those who mourn because of suffering, sins and the difficulties of everyday life, but “who trust in the Lord despite everything and put themselves under His shadow.”
“They are not indifferent, nor do they harden their hearts when they are in pain, but they patiently hope for God’s comfort. And they experience this comfort even in this life,” he said.
The third Beatitude
In the third Beatitude, Pope Francis said, Jesus states: “Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth”. Meekness, he noted, is characteristic of Jesus, who said of Himself: “Learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart” (Mt 11:29).
The meek, the Pope continued, are those “who know how to control themselves, who leave space for the other, they listen to the other, respect the other’s way of living, his or her needs and requests.”
They do not intend to overwhelm or diminish the other, he said, they do not want to dominate or impose their ideas or interests to the detriment of others.
Go against the current: Be meek, work for justice and peace
People like this, he said, may not be appreciated by the world and its mentality, but they are precious in God’s eyes: “God gives them the promised land as an inheritance, that is, life eternal. This beatitude also begins here below and is fulfilled in Heaven.”
Especially at a time like this, with so much aggressivity in the world, he continued, meekness is the way to go forward with humility and mercy.
Thus the Pope invited the faithful to choose a life of purity, meekness and mercy; to entrust themselves to God in poverty of spirit and in affliction: “This means going against the current in respect to this world’s mentality, in respect to the culture of possessing, of meaningless fun, of arrogance against the weakest.”
A personal and universal vocation to holiness
Pope Francis concluded saying that this evangelical path was trodden by the Saints and Blesseds and that today’s solemnity, that honours All Saints, reminds us of “the personal and universal vocation to holiness, and proposes sure models for this journey that each person walks in a unique and unrepeatable way, according to the “imagination” of the Holy Spirit.”
Holy Mass dedicated to the three victims of the horrific terrorist attack perpetrated on Thursday morning in the Basilica of Notre-Dame de Nice is to be celebrated on the solemnity of All Saints’ at 6pm local time in the Basilica itself.
The ceremony will be presided over by André Marceau, Bishop of Nice, in the presence of all the priests of the southern French city. The Mass, open only to parishioners, will be broadcast live on the KTO Catholic television in compliance with anti-Covid regulations.
A statement released by the parish explains that the Eucharist will be preceded by the “penitential rite” of reparation that is celebrated “when a seriously harmful act, such as murder, is committed in a church. Therefore, it is fundamental for the resumption of religious celebrations in the building in question”.
The Diocese of Nice has published a special prayer for the victims and for their families on its website.
Meanwhile, investigations continue in France that have led to the arrest of three other people suspected of having had contact with the perpetrator of the attack.
An enquiry is underway to establish whether there is an organization behind the terrorist act.
The attacker, 21-year-old Brahim Aoussaoui, who was injured by the police during the attack and is currently in the hospital in Nice, claims he acted alone.
Sustainability is at the centre stage of this European Commission’s programming period. The EU Green Deal is its flagship initiative which promises to set out the path to make Europe the first climate-neutral continent by the year 2050. One of the instruments at the heart of this deal is the EU Farm to Fork Strategy – a comprehensive strategy which addresses externalities and inefficiencies all along the food supply chain, from food producers and manufacturers, all the way up to retailers and consumers.
The strategy recognises that farmers, sellers, or consumers acting in isolation will not bring about a real change. Rather, the Commission aims to facilitate the transition for all involved, suggesting that this will ultimately make the EU food system fairer, healthier and more environmentally friendly.
The topics covered range from reducing pesticide use in farming, promoting healthier food options, better nutritional information, and a code of conduct for EU businesses working in the food system, among other proposals.
First and foremost, such a strategy should be welcomed as something that would help boost sustainability practices in EU member states. All actors within the EU food system must understand the important role they play in creating a sustainable market which also ensures healthy lifestyles for consumers. Businesses must in turn take aboard this social responsibility and look towards adapting their usual business models to account for a new green reality.
Nonetheless, there are certain points within the Farm to Fork strategy which need to be considered more carefully. Proposals such as nutritional information being inserted into restaurant menus, for instance, risk going beyond the actual scope of the strategy, by harming the restaurant experience.
The Farm to Fork strategy is being framed in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and the need to ensure reliable food supplies across Europe. What the strategy fails to recognise, however, is the severe economic hardship that the pandemic has created for businesses in the hospitality industry. This is especially so in southern Europe, where countries depend on this industry proportionally more to provide jobs and growth. Requirements such as the above will not only harm the restaurant experience, but will actually introduce additional costs for businesses, most of which are small or micro enterprises.
If food waste were a country, it would be third highest emitter of greenhouse gases
Concerns on potentially higher costs for businesses can be found all along the supply chain. For instance, the strategy pushes for a greater focus on organic farming but assumes that the typically more expensive organic products will be sold at conventional prices. With space at a premium in our country the same weights cannot be placed on such focuses on all member states. Unless the necessary financial support is provided, as well as the differing situations in each member, such an expectation is unrealistic, especially for EU businesses competing with non-EU imports.
If farmers are not able to meet the sustainability targets set by the Farm to Fork strategy, this may result in a reduction in supply of quality and sustainable produce due to lower yields, which would impact the affordability of primary products available to food and drink manufacturers, who would have to increase imports, thereby negating some of the environmental achievements this strategy envisions. This potentially raises operational costs and subsequently, consumer prices.
The Farm to Fork strategy also addresses an important issue, which is food waste reduction and prevention within the supply chain. This is especially important if the strategy is to properly tie into the EU’s circular economy action plan and the wider United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
We have become increasingly aware of the impact that food loss and waste have on the environment. Staggering statistics indicate that if food waste were a country, it would be third highest emitter of greenhouse gases, right after the United States and China. According to the UN, food waste and loss contributes to around eight per cent of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions.
Any meaningful strategy that seeks to improve the sustainability of Europe’s food system and reduce its impact on our climate needs to adopt food waste reduction and prevention as key priorities. This should include a review of existing EU food policies such as the Common Agricultural Policy, which is known to generate excess supply of certain food products, leading to waste, as well as common EU rules on food donations.
Aside from this environmental impact, there are serious economic concerns surrounding food waste. It is estimated that around 88 million tonnes of food is wasted in Europe every year, costing member states €143 billion – money that could have been used for much more productive practices than simply throwing away food.
One also must consider how this strategy relates to other aspects of food production, such as packaging. The Commission has promised to revise legislation to improve food safety while increasing the use of new and greener packaging solutions made of reusable and recyclable materials. It will also work on similar policies to help cut down on single-use materials in the food service sector.
It is crucial that these changes have no significant negative impact on food quality and the shelf-life of our products, and are introduced in a gradual approach to allow businesses to move to alternative products that are commercially available and cost-effective.
The EU Farm to Fork strategy can be considered an important step in the right direction, yet any measures must be properly assessed in advance and taken in consultation with interested stakeholders to avoid unnecessary burdens being placed on businesses, especially smaller ones that might not be able to cope with excessive bureaucratic and financial obligations. It is only by taking into consideration the needs of all actors involved, including businesses, that we can really foster a fair and sustainable EU food system.
Finally, the Farm to Fork strategy should not just be about policy and legislation, but should also include proactive voluntary initiatives to address the issue. From a local perspective, the Malta Business Bureau is already taking this issue very seriously.
It is implementing several initiatives on this front, from collaborations with educational institutions to deliver sustainable food service, to general awareness raising campaigns among employees on the value of food and the importance of food waste reduction. We have already kickstarted the discussions on the Farm to Fork strategy and we look forward to further reaching out to key actors in this important area.
Simon De Cesare, president, Malta Business Bureau
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Myanmar has been preparing for the return of hundreds of thousands of workers – some 650,000 are in Thailand alone – and one of the key tasks was to set up quarantine facilities for those returning migrants. Sandi Swe, who has been working in a quarantine facility since March 2020, shared her experience with UN News.
April should have been a month of festivities, celebrating Thingyan – the Burmese New Year – but this year has been unlike any other, because of the measures Myanmar has taken to curb COVID-19. As the news of the global pandemic spread, Myanmar’s migrant workers began to return home, and the country has prepared for mass returns by providing safe quarantine facilities.
Many were established in the border town of Myawaddy, in Kayin State; men and women sheltered in different facilities, and I volunteered to support women migrant returnees.
I work for a local Myawaddy-based organization, Migrant Monitoring Group (MMG) and, before the pandemic, I had provided awareness-raising training to migrants. I decided to volunteer, even though I was worried, because it didn’t feel right to let fear get in the way. It was simple: everyone needed help, and I could provide that help.
I started working in the quarantine facility in March and at the beginning, I admit, I took this pandemic very lighly. But day by day, month by month, it is still here. The protective measures are becoming part of our daily routine and we can’t even guess when it will be over.
The number of migrants decreased significantly in the last few months, so aside from cleaning the facilities, we were not that busy and I thought this pandemic was almost over: until now, that is. The rate of return is increasing again, and 100 to 200 migrants are arriving every day.
In the minds of many people, the issue of migration and returning migrants has been linked to COVID-19. This job has allowed me to understand the migrants at a deeper level, the challenges they face currently, their anxieties about the present and the future. I believe I understand their situation more clearly and I certainly feel empathy for them. I want to support these people.
It feels good when they ask me for my help, when people need me, especially since I know I can be of assistance and make a difference.
Migrant Monitoring Group (MMG)
Masks are distributed in a quarantine facility during an awareness raising activity about the dangers of COVID-19.
Empowered by helping others
Before the pandemic, I didn’t have any experience of this type of work, but the fact remains that nothing could have prepared me or anyone else for this global emergency.
I have found time to contemplate how the job empowered me and enriched my life, emotionally, physically and mentally. I have more energy now, and I have to learn to take care of myself and my health, especially if I am to provide more help to others. Before COVID-19, I stayed home most of the time, but working in this environment has shown me that I like to work with other people.
I pray every day for the pandemic to end quickly. I know I am okay, and it has not affected me too much, but there are others who have lost income and opportunities. I pray for them as well.
Two years after the EU launched its landmark GDPR data rights charter, there are signs Ireland is faltering in its outsized role as regulator of many of the most powerful digital giants.
Hailed as a potent weapon to bring tech titans to heel, the General Data Protection Regulation endowed national watchdogs with cross-border powers and the possibility to impose sizeable fines for data misuse.
Ireland hosts the regional headquarters of Facebook, Apple, Google and Twitter, and is therefore largely responsible for policing their European activities.
But its Data Protection Commission has yet to issue a major decision against any of the giants in Dublin’s glimmering “Silicon Docks”.
“It’s a blessing for Ireland economically to be the seat of these big digital companies for Europe, and that brings a lot of revenue,” one EU Commission official with deep knowledge of the area told AFP.
“With this, of course, comes an obligation. With the role as a lead regulator it has a duty to the citizens all over Europe.
“The patience of the other authorities will fade if Ireland doesn’t get its act together. It’s as simple as that.”
‘Tax haven’ –
Government and business leaders are coy but it is generally understood that multinational tech companies chose Ireland because of its low 12.5 percent corporate tax rate.
In 2018, Facebook Ireland generated 25.5 billion euros ($29 billion) in revenue and paid 63.2 million euros ($73.8 million) in tax, according to the Companies Registration Office.
Meanwhile the government coffers of Ireland — a nation of just five million people — are regularly padded with receipts from multinationals.
Last year, 77 percent of Irish corporation tax receipts came from foreign multinationals and 40 percent were from just 10 companies.
Tax Justice Network chief executive Alex Cobham said his campaign group generally avoids the term “tax haven” because “every jurisdiction has a lot of work to do to improve”.
“With that caveat, yes, Ireland is a tax haven,” he said.
“Ireland is probably the most exposed to a small number of fairly similar US multinationals in pharma and in tech and it really can’t afford to cross them.”
‘Regulatory austerity’ –
GDPR stipulates that data protection commissions should be separate from outside interference and there is no suggestion of government influence in the Irish process.
But little of the tax bonanza from tech companies is funnelled into Ireland’s Data Protection Commission, which acts as the EU’s regulator for firms like Facebook and their services such as Whatsapp and Instagram.
GDPR requires that countries ensure their data protection commission has the “human, technical and financial resources… necessary for the effective performance of its tasks and exercise of its powers”.
Ireland’s Data Protection Commissioner, Helen Dixon, said the organisation was “disappointed” by the 2020 government allocation of 16.9 million euros ($19.7 million).
Additional funding was “less than one third” of the figure requested which “reflected a year of experience of regulating under the GDPR”, she added.
For Cobham, this suggests “regulatory austerity”, where high regulatory standards are set “but then you refuse to provide the resources to allow any type of effective enforcement”.
“You achieve the effect of not having the regulations while being able to say, ‘but look, we have the regulation’, he added.
Ireland’s 2021 budget raised DPC funding to 19.1 million euros ($22.3 million) — the same amount Facebook Ireland generated in revenue in about six and a half hours in 2018.
A government spokesman insisted the DPC “has received ongoing and positive funding support which has more than met its actual resourcing requirements”.
DPC Deputy Commissioner Graham Doyle added the “considerable” increases in government funding had allowed it to go from 29 staff in 2014 to 150.
But the EU Commission insider said: “It’s a good step forward but more is necessary.”
The first case –
The DPC’s first major decision is expected against Twitter in November, making it the first European authority to complete a cross-border case against a tech giant under GDPR.
It is a relatively straightforward test of whether Twitter informed the data protection authority of a breach within 72 hours and properly documented the event.
Nonetheless, the investigation was started in January last year and the DPC made a draft decision in May.
The case has since been tied up in regulatory mechanisms seeking input and consensus from data watchdogs in other EU states.
The drawn-out process is a reminder that the complexities of pan-European regulation still sprawl across the bloc.
But under the stiff GDPR regime Twitter could be fined up to four percent of its annual global turnover — a $140 million wedge of the firm’s reported $3.5 billion 2019 revenue.
If Ireland’s DPC becomes the first watchdog to impose such a stinging penalty accusations its bark is worse than its bite may begin to fade.
(Last Updated On: October 31, 2020)Four key recommendations were presented to the European Parliament in a meeting with Afghan civil society members under the umbrella of Afghanistan Mechanism for Inclusive Peace (AMIP) this week.
In its role as a “transfer mechanism for the peace talks”, AMIP facilitated the meeting that was aimed at highlighting the role of civil society in the Afghan peace process and called on the European Union and its member states to encourage the parties to the conflict to “immediately implement a comprehensive, nationwide and unconditional ceasefire.”
AMIP also asked the EU to call on all regional actors to “support a ceasefire agreement unequivocally, and to refrain from interference in the Afghan conflict.”
“We ask the European Union and its member states to continue their commitment and active support to an inclusive, Afghan peace process, that preserves and builds on the political, economic and social accomplishments of the citizens of Afghanistan.
“All Afghans have suffered from the consequences of conflict, and deserve to live in a peaceful and prosperous country.
AMIP also called on the EU to “continue their commitment and support of Afghan civil society and especially that of women groups, and their participation in all processes that lead to stability and peace in Afghanistan.”
Their fourth recommendation was on the EU’s support in a post-war scenario.
“We are grateful for the European Union’s consistent support to Afghanistan, and urge the EU and its member states to maintain its support for stability and development in the post-peace phase.”
In a tweet after the meeting, the Head of EU Delegation in Kabul ambassador Andreas von Brandt said he stated at the meeting that there was a “need to bring all Afghan voices to the negotiating table but also seek societal consensus for compromise.”
The discussion was held between the Chair of the EU Parliament Delegation for relations with Afghanistan Petras Austrevicus; the Head of EU Delegation in Kabul ambassador Andreas von Brandt; and Afghan civil society members. Also attending the meeting was representatives from the Afghanistan Research and Evaluation Unit, Afghanistan Justice Organization, Afghanistan Policy Group and the Afghanistan Human Rights and Democracy Organizations.
On Saturday, Charles Michel wrote in a tweet that freedom of conscience in Europe must be respected.
“We condemn this new heinous act in Lyon. All our thoughts for the priest who is between life and death. In Europe freedom of conscience is guaranteed for all and must be respected, violence is intolerable and condemnable,” Charles Michel wrote on Twitter.
Toutes nos pensées pour le prêtre qui est entre la vie et la mort
En Europe la liberté de conscience est garantie pour tous et doit être respectée, la violence est intolérable et condamnable #democratie#France@EmmanuelMacron
— Charles Michel (@eucopresident) October 31, 2020
David Sassoli issued a similar statement via Twitter, stressing that Europe will stand firm against violence and terrorism.
“We are shocked and saddened by another brutal attack in Lyon. All our thoughts are with the victim who is fighting for his life. Europe will never bow to violence and terrorism. We will always defend freedom of conscience,” Sassoli said.
Nous sommes choqués et attristés par un nouvel attentat brutal à #Lyon. Toutes nos pensées vont à la victime qui se bat pour sa vie.
L’Europe ne se pliera jamais à la violence et au terrorisme. Nous défendrons toujours la liberté de conscience.
— David Sassoli (@EP_President) October 31, 2020
The Turkish Foreign Ministry issued a statement on Saturday condemning the Lyon attack and wishing a swift recovery to the victim. According to the statement, Turkey has been fighting against various forms of terrorism for years and stands in solidarity with the French people and the Orthodox community in France.
On Saturday, an attacker armed with a hunting rifle with a sawed-off barrel wounded a Greek Orthodox priest in Lyon and then fled the scene of the shooting.
The priest, identified as 52-year-old Nikolaos Kakavelaki, was shot in the 7th district of Lyon near a Greek church on Saturday afternoon. He is now in serious condition at the hospital, according to France 24.
Lyon Mayor Gregory Doucet told reporters on Saturday that the motives behind the attack remain unknown. Lyon public prosecutor’s office said it had opened an investigation for attempted murder.
Lyon’s public prosecutor, Nicolas Jacquet, announced late on Saturday that a suspect had been arrested as part of the investigation into the attack.
On Thursday, a 21-year-old man from Tunisia killed three people in a knife attack in the Notre-Dame de Nice Basilica. The French government has designated it a terrorist attack.
The Lyon and Nice attacks occurred as France is experiencing national unease in the wake of an increasing Islamic threat following the brutal murder of French history teacher Samuel Paty by a radicalized teenager in mid-October.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has called on Turkish citizens to boycott French goods amid bilateral tensions over French President Emmanuel Macron’s statements against radical Islam.
On October 21, Macron delivered a speech during a commemoration ceremony for Samuel Paty. The president urged to “free Islam in France from the foreign influence and strengthen control on the mosques’ funding,” and stressed that France would continue to defend freedom of expression and step up its battle against radical Islam.
In response to these comments from Macron, Erdogan said that the French president disrespected millions of French Muslim citizens and “needed mental treatment.” He added that the “manifestation of hostility to Islam means hostility to Turkey.”
Macron said later on Twitter that “we will not give in, ever,” adding, nonetheless, that France respected “all differences in a spirit of peace” but hate speech was unacceptable.
Turkey has been joined by other Muslim countries in condemnation of Macron’s recent comments on radical Islam.
