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While all this is true, Columbus stands for and is a reminder of something else that is now little known if not completely (and intentionally) forgotten: he was, first and foremost, a Crusader — an avowed enemy of the jihad. His expeditions were, first and foremost, about circumventing and ultimately retaliating against the Islamic sultanates surrounding and terrorizing Europe — not just “finding spices” as we were taught in high school. … Many Europeans were convinced that if only they could reach the peoples east of Islam — who if not Christian were at least “not as yet infected by...

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MADRID (AP) — Former U.S. President Donald Trump threw his weight behind Spain’s far-right Sunday in a video shown at a rally in Madrid that also featured messages by the leading stars of Europe’s populist right like Italy’s Giorgia Meloni and Hungary’s Viktor Orban. In a recording that lasted under 40 seconds made while Trump was on a plane, Trump thanked Spain’s far-right Vox party and its leader Santiago Abascal for what he called the “great job” they do. “We have to make sure that we protect our borders and do lots of very good conservative things,” Trump said. “Spain...

More than two years into the pandemic, Europe is finally open for tourism with no restrictions – or most of it. Now that countries like The Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Germany, which once imposed the strictest entry requirements possible, have abolished them all, only one European country stands alone in requiring tests of unvaccinated Americans. Aerial View Of Ronda, Andalusia, Spain, Europe For some in certain parts of the world, it certainly feels like the virus has been beaten, especially now that a majority of countries worldwide have decided it is time to move forward, including in Europe, a continent that...

A man with a penchant for getting naked turned heads when he showed up at a courthouse in the buff. Alejandro Colomar, 29, has racked up an eye-watering €3,000 (£2,700) in fines for walking around the streets of Valencia, Spain, without clothes on multiple occasions. And the self-proclaimed nudist, who claims his naughty hobby is not illegal, even showed up at the courthouse totally disrobed to contest his many fines on Tuesday (September 27).

Recent research has demonstrated that as many as 200 million people in the Americas and Europe have Jewish ancestry who were forcibly converted. …The process for certification begins with filling out a relatively short questionnaire about a person’s background, clues about their Jewish heritage, like customs, family trees or items with a Jewish connection, and their reasons for believing they have Sephardi ancestry. This information will then be assessed by a team of experts and researchers who will determine if the applicant has enough information to be awarded the certificate... …While the certificate will have no legal status, it is...

WITH the recent death of Queen Elizabeth 2nd at the age of 96, I saw a few scattered social media posts discussing the brief "British Interlude in Manila" from 1762 to 1765. Of these, I encountered a few that imagined how the archipelago would have turned out had the British booted the Spanish out of the colony for good. Even as a counterfactual, this daydream would not pass. One thing needs to be emphasized, based on the studies of scholars on the subject: the British had no intention of seizing and taking the Philippines away from Spain. Historian Nicholas Tracy...

The Manhattan apartment and Southampton mansion of a Russian oligarch with close ties to President Vladimir Putin were raided by federal agents on Thursday, according to the FBI and a report. An FBI spokesperson confirmed agents “conducted law enforcement activity” at the Upper East Side high-rise and Long Island estate linked to billionaire Viktor Vekselberg, but declined to comment further. FBI officials and Homeland Security Investigation agents were seen carrying boxes out of Vekselberg’s 515 Park Ave. apartment building and his Southampton mansion at 19 Duck Pond Lane, according to NBC New York, which first reported the searches. The US...

The 20-month-old tot wasn’t the only one impacted by the extreme weather, which meteorological services have described as the worst hail storm in two decades. Another 50 people were reportedly injured by the falling ice with some suffering broken bones, the Independent reported. Meanwhile, one woman remains in the hospital while the local primary care center treated 28 patients for cuts and bruises. All told, firefighters reportedly fielded more than 40 calls for both “assistance to the injured,” as well as damage to buildings, wiring and other property. In addition, the humongous hail also reportedly struck branches off trees, smashed...

Gibraltar finally joined the official list of British cities on Monday (Aug 29), after 180 years in which its status, granted by Queen Victoria, had been overlooked due to an administrative error. The British overseas territory bid to become a city earlier this year as part of the celebrations for Queen Elizabeth's Platinum Jubilee, but research in the National Archives established it had in fact been granted city status in 1842. "It is excellent to see official recognition given to the City of Gibraltar, a huge accolade to its rich history and dynamism," British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said in...

The military in New Zealand says 94 of its members are on leave without pay right now and it's checking to see if any of them are fighting in Ukraine... We still don't know the final results from Alaska's primary elections and the Special Election for the state's US House seat on Tuesday August 16th... Wall Street with a big dive today... The Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz in the United States amidst an expected nuclear deal bringing the US back into the JCPOA agreement with Iran... Russia says that Syrian crews used Russian anti-aircraft missiles during yesterday evening's Israeli...

A crude drawing spray-painted onto a lamppost or scribbled inside a school textbook may cause an eye roll, but wouldn't be too surprising.However archaeologists were taken aback when they discovered an 18-inch (half-metre) phallic carving in an ancient Roman settlement known as El Higuerón.Excavations by the Museo Histórico Local de Nueva Carteya uncovered the bas-relief penis, which was unveiled on the museum's social media channels last Friday.El Higuerón, a municipality of Nueva Carteya in Spain, was occupied by Iberians in the 4th century BC until the Roman conquest of the region around 206 BC.They erected a tower-shaped building on its...

Palestinian campaign being distributed on the networks is against the Christian tourist, who was photographed in "bare" clothing. Hamas media claimed "Zionist extremism defiled Al-Aqsa Square" A tourist from Spain took a picture on the Temple Mount, Hamas was outraged A Palestinian campaign that is being distributed on the networks is against the Christian tourist, who was photographed in "bare" clothing. Hamas media claimed "Zionist extremism defiled Al-Aqsa Square" Omari Haim and Gal Aharonovich, August 24, 2022 A Palestinian campaign circulating on the networks today (Wednesday) is against a Christian tourist from Spain who went up to the Temple...

MADRID (Reuters) - A former drummer for 1970s Swedish pop group ABBA, Ola Brunkert, has been found dead after an apparent accident in his house in Mallorca, Spanish police said on Monday. Brunkert bled to death from a throat wound which police suspect was caused after he accidentally smashed a pane of glass, a spokeswoman for the Civil Guard police said, adding that authorities were awaiting the result of an autopsy.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez appeared with an open collar at a press conference to personally model his proposed solution for Europes's looming gas crisis. "I would like you to see that I am not wearing a tie," Sanchez said. He explained that wearing open collars would make white-collar work more comfortable, and lead to reduced air conditioning usage. "This way, we can all save energy." Deutsche Welle reports that Sanchez has asked all government employees, including ministers, to avoid neckties, and hopes that the private sector will make similar changes to its dress code. Spain has worked to limit...

(Translation) MADRID - Spanish prosecutors said on Friday that they will ask a court to sentence Colombian pop star Shakira to 8 years and 2 months in prison if found guilty in the upcoming trial for alleged tax evasion. Shakira, whose full name is Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll, is accused of not paying the Spanish government 14.5 million euros (15 million dollars) in taxes between 2012 and 2014. The prosecutors said that they will also ask for a 24 million euro (24 million dollar) fine. The accusation details six charges against Shakira. This week, the singer rejected an agreement the...

We are not slaves!.. Farmers in Italy, Spain and Poland have joined Dutch farmers in protest of 'green' government regulations that will decimate the industry by forcing them to reduce their use of nitrogen fertilizer compounds. "We are not slaves, we are farmers," said Italian farmers, who drove tractors through the streets of Milan and blocked city traffic.

Is he really kidding though? President Biden joked Tuesday that he may not return from Spain as his average approval rating hit an all-time low amid the worst inflation since 1981 and record-high gas prices. Biden made the remark to Spanish King Philip VI in an apparent bid to compliment the beauty of the royal palace in Madrid. “There’s an old expression in a little town in Delaware called Claymont, Del, a little steel town. And they say, ‘We’re like poor relatives. We show up when we’re invited and we stay longer than we should.’ So be careful. We may...

The body of software entrepreneur John McAfee remains in a Spanish morgue a year after his death as a legal case lodged by his family to demand further checks is yet to be resolved, authorities and his lawyer said. McAfee, who launched the world's first commercial anti-virus software in 1987, was found dead, aged 75, on June 23 last year in his prison cell a few hours after Spain's high court authorised his extradition to the United States on tax evasion charges.

<p>Eighteen African migrants are dead and 76 injured after a mass storming of the Spanish exclave of Melilla in North Africa.</p><p>A Spanish government spokesperson said about 2,000 migrants attempted to cross, and 133 managed to breach the border of the Spanish territory, according to Associated Press. Those who made it through proceeded to a local migrant center where Spanish authorities are evaluating their cases.</p>