Switzerland

Turkey: Cyprus talks to be held with UN, EU by early March

UN and EU will be part of talks over divided island of Cyprus in New York, Turkey's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu says, hailing EU's efforts to improve ties with Ankara.

Swiss prosecutors ditch Warner jet probe into Blatter

Meanwhile, Sepp Blatter's family disclosed the former FIFA president spent a week in an induced coma after having heart surgery in December.

Vatican sentences its former bank chief to 9 years for embezzlement

Pope Francis' ongoing efforts to clean up Vatican governance reaches a milestone with the first ever jail sentence issued by a Vatican state court in relation to financial crimes.

Swiss hotels, restaurants risk 'bankruptcy' as third wave of layoffs loom

Switzerland's tourism industry federation GastroSuisse warns new Covid-19 curbs without significant government support could see around half of hospitality businesses go belly-up by March-end.

Major Damien Hirst exhibition to open in Switzerland's St Moritz

A highlight of the exhibition will be two large-scale outdoor sculptures. A 12-foot-high sculpture The Monk will be exhibited in the centre of the frozen Lake St. Moritz, and Two Figures with a Drum installed on the north-eastern edge of the lake.

AstraZeneca aims for approval of Covid vaccine in Brazil – latest updates

Novel coronavirus has infected over 82 million people globally and has claimed nearly 1.8 million lives. Here're the updates for December 30:

IOC accused of ignoring human rights in China ahead of 2022 Winter Olympics

The letter sent by right groups to the International Olympic Committee says the IOC has “turned a blind eye to the widespread and systematic human rights violations being committed by the Chinese authorities.

Robert Lewandowski and Lucy Bronze win best of 2020 FIFA awards

The Bayern Munich forward has been named The Best FIFA Men's Player 2020, beating off competition from last year's winner Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.

Global economic losses due to disasters rise to $187B in 2020

Preliminary figures, compiled by the reinsurance giant Swiss Re, show that a full $175 billion losses were from natural catastrophes during a year characterised by unusual numbers of storms, wildfires and hurricanes.

Europe's top sides given simple qualifying routes for Qatar 2022 World Cup

The groups for qualifying stages of the 2022 Qatar World Cup were drawn in a virtual ceremony at FIFA's headquarters in Zurich.

FIFA, IFAB begin discussing changes to offside rule

Experts from FIFA and football rule-making body IFAB are currently discussing changing the offside rule.

Trial of accused Liberian war criminal to start in Switzerland

The trial of Alieu Kosiah is one of just a handful of cases brought before international courts in relation to the West African country's 1989-2003 conflict, which killed nearly a quarter of a million people, often at the hands of child soldiers.