Commission approves Carlyle’s acquisition of BASF Coatings, subject to conditions

Credit: WikimediaThis article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. The European Commission has approved, under the EU Merger Regulation, the proposed acquisition of BASF’s coatings division (‘BASF Coatings‘) by The Carlyle Group Inc. (‘Carlyle‘). The approval is conditional upon full compliance with the commitments offered by Carlyle, which entails divesting the worldwide polysulfides […]

Unequal Heat: Women’s Health in the Anthropocene

This article was exclusively written for The European Sting by Ms. Anastasia Kourti, a medical student at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens and a member of the Greek Women in STEM network. She is affiliated with the International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFMSA), cordial partner of The Sting. The opinions expressed in this piece belong strictly to the writer and do not necessarily reflect IFMSA’s view on the topic, nor The European Sting’s one.This article was exclusively written for The European Sting by Mr. André Felipe is a Brazilian medical student at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN). He is affiliated with the International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFMSA), cordial partner of The Sting. The opinions expressed in this piece belong strictly to the writer and do […]

Commission welcomes political agreement on the Return Regulation

This article is brought to you in association with the European Parliament.This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. The Commission welcomes today’s political agreement between the European Parliament and the Council on the Regulation establishing a new Common European System for Returns. Proposed by the Commission in March 2025, the new rules on returns are a key deliverable under this Commission’s political guidelines and the […]

Commission fines Temu €200 million for breaching the Digital Services Act

This article is brought to you in association with the European Parliament.This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. Today, the European Commission issued a fine of €200 million to Temu under the Digital Services Act (DSA). The company failed to diligently identify, analyse, and assess the systemic risks of illegal products being offered on its platform and the resulting harm to consumers in […]

Ebola outbreak in DR Congo collides with conflict and hunger, WHO warns

© WHO A frontline health worker in PPE (personal protective equipment) takes part in the Ebola response in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.This article is published in association with United Nations. The UN World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday warned that eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo faces a “catastrophic collision of disease and conflict” as a fast-spreading Ebola outbreak outpaces containment efforts in a region already battered by armed violence, mass displacement and acute hunger. WHO Director-General […]

From Awareness to Acceptance : Reimagining Inclusive Healthcare for Autism Spectrum Disorders

Child sexual abuse online: support for extending voluntary rules until August 2027 This article was exclusively written for The European Sting by Mr. Nzesse Yanniv, a Cameroonian, 4th year medical student at Université des Montagnes. He is affiliated with the International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFMSA), cordial partner of The Sting. The opinions expressed in this piece belong strictly to the writer and do not necessarily reflect IFMSA’s view […]

World News in Brief: Sudan and Haiti updates, Afghan women’s rights

© UNICEF/Jeremy Hartley Women gather in the shade of the high archway entrance to a mosque in the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif, Afghanistan.This article is published in association with United Nations. The United Nations is raising alarm over continued drone attacks in Sudan’s Darfur region after multiple strikes reportedly killed civilians and intensified fears for communities already trapped by the brutal conflict between rival militaries. Tweet URL The Rapid Support Forces (RSF) militia have been battling their former […]

Defending values, driving reform, delivering impact: new measures to strengthen EU humanitarian action

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission.This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. The Joint Communication on Humanitarian Aid adopted today sets out how the EU will remain a reliable and principled donor in a global aid system under severe pressure. Humanitarian needs are at an all-time high with 239 million people worldwide in need of assistance, […]

Ebola epidemic spreading rapidly and outpacing containment efforts

© WHO Supplies to bolster the response against the Ebola outbreak in Ituri province arrive in the town of Bunia.This article is published in association with United Nations. There are more than 900 suspected cases of the Bundibugyo strain of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and 220 suspected deaths, the head of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Ghebreyesus, said on Monday. The latest outbreak of the deadly disease, which WHO has declared […]

EIB Group approves €6 billion in financing for clean energy, resilient agriculture and business competitiveness

This article is brought to you in association with the European Economic and Social Committee.This article is published in association with European Investment Bank. The Boards of Directors of the European Investment Bank (EIB) Group approved €6 billion in new financing to promote clean energy, climate-resilient agriculture and European competitiveness. The EIB Board backed renewable energy in Austria, electricity grid upgrades in Germany, energy efficiency improvements for buildings in Slovakia […]

Haitian children ‘paying the highest price’ amid surge in gang recruitment

© WFP/Maria Gallar Families displaced by violence shelter in overcrowded and unsanitary conditions at a school in Port-au-Prince.This article is published in association with United Nations. As gangs continue to “terrorise” communities in Haiti, children are the ones paying the highest price, the UN Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict warned on Thursday. Children now constitute around half of the gang members who have taken de facto control of large swathes of […]

Closing the gender care gap: better support for formal and informal carers  

This article is brought to you in association with the European Parliament.This article is brought to you in association with the European Parliament. On Thursday, Parliament presented recommendations to move towards a society that promotes equality between men and women in formal and informal care. In a report adopted in plenary by 263 votes to 83 and with 154 abstentions, MEPs state that access to care is […]

EIB Group approves €6 billion in financing for clean energy, resilient agriculture and business competitiveness

This article is published in association with European Investment Bank.This article is published in association with European Investment Bank. The Boards of Directors of the European Investment Bank (EIB) Group approved €6 billion in new financing to promote clean energy, climate-resilient agriculture and European competitiveness. The EIB Board backed renewable energy in Austria, electricity grid upgrades in Germany, energy efficiency improvements for buildings in Slovakia […]

Ebola outbreak: ‘Every epidemic begins in a community and ends in a community’

© UNICEF/Carmel Ndomba A child washes her hands at a school in Ituri Province in the DR Congo.This article is published in association with United Nations. Facing a fast-moving Ebola outbreak caused by a rare strain of the virus, the World Health Organization (WHO) is relying on a rapid, community-centred response to halt transmission in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and Uganda, a senior official has told UN News. The UN […]

Romanian social enterprises to get financing boost as EIF teams up with domestic lender AFIN IFN

This article is published in association with European Investment Bank.This article is published in association with European Investment Bank. Versiunea în limba română aici Romanian lender AFIN IFN SA will strengthen its capacity to finance social enterprises, cooperatives and non-governmental organisations across the country with European Investment Fund (EIF) backing of 2.5 million Romanian lei (about €480,000). The EIF support takes the form of a […]

Commission approves €288 million German State aid for first-of-a-kind facilities in semiconductor value chain

This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission.This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. The European Commission has approved €288 million in German State aid to support the setting up two new facilities in the semiconductor supply chain. The aid consists of a €222 million measure for Carl Zeiss to build a facility for the manufacturing of semiconductor […]

Ebola outbreak follows hunger and displacement crisis in DR Congo

© UNICEF/Thomas Nybo This image from 2020 shows a mother from her son separated by plastic sheeting at an Ebola treatment centre in Beni, North Kivu province, Democratic Republic of the Congo.This article is published in association with United Nations. A day after the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the new Ebola outbreak in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo an international emergency, top global disease transmission experts stressed that the chances of another global pandemic similar to the 2019 coronavirus emergency are increasing all the time. “The […]

LGBTIQ+ face mounting violence and discrimination, warns UN rights chief

UNDP/RNP The UN Legal Identity project in Honduras has a special focus on Indigenous Peoples, LGBTQI+, minority population and persons with disabilities.This article is published in association with United Nations. Violence and discrimination against LGBTIQ+ people are widespread, including at school, where 45 per cent of LGBT youth report being bullied. That’s the worrying message from UN human rights chief, Volker Türk, who says that more than one in three countries still criminalize consensual same-sex conduct and […]

Extreme heat, floods and drought threaten lives across Latin America and Caribbean

© UNICEF/Claudio Pelaez Hurricane Melissa struck Cuba in late October 2025, causing massive devastation across the island nation (file)This article is published in association with United Nations. Record-breaking temperatures, deadly floods, worsening drought and intensifying hurricanes are placing millions of people across Latin America and the Caribbean at growing risk of hunger, displacement and water shortages, according to a new report from the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).  Launching the regional State of the Climate report […]

UN underscores protection of nuclear sites following drone strike on Emirati plant

© Unsplash/Karthik B K The skyline of Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.This article is published in association with United Nations. The head of the UN atomic watchdog on Monday underscored the need to safeguard nuclear security in wartime, a day after a drone strike near a nuclear power plant in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).  The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) was informed that the UAE has restored off-site power to Unit 3 […]

From floods to wildfires, new ideas are helping Europe adapt to climate extremes

This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine.This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. Many people expect a raging wildfire to leave a blackened, lifeless landscape in its wake. But after a blaze swept through Las Hurdes in Extremadura, Spain, in 2009, the scene was quite different. In the midst of the scorched earth […]

Every last drop: the race to secure Africa’s water future

This article is published in association with European Investment Bank.This article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. In Ranerou, north-east Senegal, locals and environmental experts are working side by side to improve livelihoods and farming conditions, and protect the region’s biodiversity. They are planting and managing trees to improve soil quality and excavating and reinforcing a local […]

Commission proposes €144 million from the European Union Solidarity Fund to help Spain, Romania, and Cyprus recover from climate disasters

This article is published in association with European Investment Bank.This article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. The European Commission has proposed the mobilisation of €144 million from the European Union Solidarity Fund (EUSF) to aid Spain, Romania and Cyprus in their recovery from devastating climate-related disasters in 2025. This financial support underscores the EU’s commitment to standing by its Member States in times of crisis, […]

As war displaces millions in DR Congo, new schools offer children hope beyond violence

©UNICEF /Carmel Ndomba Mbikayi Shadrac Anyazaka in his classroom in Ituri Province, Democratic Republic of the Congo.This article is published in association with United Nations. Ten-year-old Shadrac Anyazaka does not hesitate when asked about his future. “After finishing my studies, I would like to become President of the Republic one day,” he tells visitors to his school in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). For another student, Jérémie, dreams are shaped […]

Are parents sharing too much online? The hidden risks for children

This article was originally published in Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazineThis article was published in association with the Horizon, the EU Research and Innovation magazine. The internet is now woven into everyday family life, shaping how children learn, play and connect with others from an early age. But alongside these opportunities, new risks are emerging, sometimes from an unexpected source: parents themselves. Every day, parents […]

HIV prevention and treatment services faltering, warns UNAIDS

This article is published in association with United Nations.This article is published in association with United Nations. Decades of gains in the fight against AIDS are under growing threat as donor funding declines and community-based health services collapse in some of the world’s most vulnerable countries, the head of the joint UN programme on HIV/AIDS warned on Thursday. The sudden funding decline is hitting […]

Afghan mothers and children face worsening hunger crisis, WFP warns

This article is published in association with United Nations. Afghanistan’s deepening malnutrition crisis is pushing mothers and children to the brink, the UN World Food Programme has warned, as mass returns from neighbouring countries and severe funding shortfalls overwhelm already strained humanitarian operations. “WFP has been sounding alarm bells for months,” Carl Skau, WFP Deputy Executive […]

Budget Credibility as an Anchor for Better Economic Outcomes for Africa

This article is published in association with European Investment Bank.This article is published in association with IMF. Policy priorities include more realistic forecasting, stronger expenditure controls, improved cash management, and institutional reforms to better align budgets with outcomes Budgets people can trust—because spending and revenues stay close to what was promised—are critical to delivering better economic outcomes. Yet across sub-Saharan Africa, it has become increasingly […]

Shaping Global Health Equity: Students Driving Awareness, Early Detection, and Inclusive Autism Care

This article was exclusively written for The European Sting by Ms. Georgia Maria Vardalachaki, a medical student from the Medical University of Crete, Greece. She is affiliated with the International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFMSA), cordial partner of The Sting. The opinions expressed in this piece belong strictly to the writer and do not necessarily reflect IFMSA’s view on the topic, nor The European Sting’s one.This article was exclusively written for The European Sting by Ms. Nayrouz Lagoune, born on June 27, 2002, a fifth-year medical student in Algeria. She is affiliated with the International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFMSA), cordial partner of The Sting. The opinions expressed in this piece belong strictly to the writer and do not necessarily reflect IFMSA’s […]

Autism Spectrum Disorders in Global Health: Awareness, Early Diagnosis, and Inclusive Care

Hijran Pirmammadova is a third-year medical student at Azerbaijan Medical UniversityThis article was exclusively written for The European Sting by Ms. Hijran Pirmammadova, a third-year medical student at Azerbaijan Medical University. She is affiliated with the International Federation of Medical Students Associations (IFMSA), cordial partner of The Sting. The opinions expressed in this piece belong strictly to the writer and do not necessarily reflect IFMSA’s view on the […]

Commission strengthens global health security with new Global Health Resilience Initiative

Cecilia Petio is a medical student at Alma Mater Studiorum – University of BolognaThis article is brought to you in association with the European Commission. Today, the European Commission adopted a Global Health Resilience Initiative.This strategy positions the EU as a reliable and frontline actor in global health by scaling up global prevention, preparedness and response to future health threats and addressing resilience gaps in health systems. It sets […]

EESC urges tougher EU action to curb single market fragmentation

This article is brought to you in association with the European Economic and Social Committee.This article is brought to you in association with the European Economic and Social Committee. Europe’s single market is facing ongoing challenges due to fragmentation, unfair commercial practices and the accelerating pace of technological change.  In a series of recent opinions, the European Economic and Social Committee has called for stronger EU action to modernise the […]

EESC: The EU bioeconomy requires robust safeguards and clear direction

European Commission issues €11 billion in its 2nd syndicated transaction of 2026This article is brought to you in association with the European Economic and Social Committee. The EU needs a strong and coherent bioeconomy strategy grounded in strict sustainability safeguards, circular design, and reduced resource use, ensuring competitiveness and climate goals remain within planetary boundaries. It must also clearly define the societal value of the bioeconomy. In […]
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