Latest Estonia News
news | ERR
Former RKIK chief or the minister — who made contact with Datasel?
Former Estonian Center for Defense Investment (RKIK) chief Magnus-Valdemar Saar says the link to Indian‑owned Datasel for shell procurement came through the defense minister, a claim both the minister and the intermediary deny.
news | ERR
Defense scandal dominates as Riigikogu parties debate restoring trust
Representatives of all six Riigikogu parties debated the fallout from the defense procurement scandal which led to a ministerial resignation last week.
Politics | ERR
Defense scandal dominates as Riigikogu parties debate restoring trust
Representatives of all six Riigikogu parties debated the fallout from the defense procurement scandal which led to a ministerial resignation last week.
Politics | ERR
Reform MP Kristo Enn Vaga taken to hospital after becoming unwell on live TV
Reform Party Riigikogu member Kristo Enn Vaga suffered a medical emergency live on TV and was taken to hospital Wednesday evening. He has since been discharged.
Society | ERR
Parents sue Estonian school over early start time
A dispute over the start time of the school day in Kõrveküla became so heated that a group of parents took the school operator to court.
Society | ERR
Number of higher education students receiving needs-based support up by a quarter
The number of bachelor's students in Estonia receiving need‑based support has risen nearly a quarter in four years, while more students work to cover rising costs.
Postimees
ARVO KRUUSEMENT 1928–2026 ⟩ «Suve» uhked hobused, sitsid ja pitsid tekitasid Moskvas ideoloogilise skandaali
Eile, 9. septembril meie seast lahkunud legendaarne režissöör Arvo Kruusement meenutas sel suvel filmi «Suvi» 50. juubeli puhul, kuidas filmimise tegid keeruliseks ja aeganõudvaks praakfilmilindid ning omaette probleemiks kujunesid kulaklikkuses süüdistamine, mistõttu tuli kogu filmitud materjali ette näitama Moskva kinokomitee kuraatorile. Vaatamaks tagasi Kruusementi ajatule filmiloomingule, avaldame uuesti juulis ilmunud loo.
Postimees
LOE UUESTI ⟩ Režissöör Arvo Kruusement kipub mõttes «Kevadet» ikka ümber tegema
Täna saabus kurb uudis, et 98 aasta vanuselt on lahkunud Eesti filmi suurkuju Arvo Kruusement. Mälestamaks armastatud filmitegijat avaldame uuesti mullu augustis Tartu Postimehes ilmunud intervjuu, kus Kruusement vaatas tagasi oma elule, loomingule ja «Kevade» sünniloole. Intervjuu ilmus 15. augustil 2025. aastal.
BBC News
Russia's new jet-powered drones outpacing Ukraine's air defences with daily launches
The new models can travel at speeds of up to 300mph, faster than Ukraine's air defence interceptors.
BBC News
Spanish intelligence warned of Ceuta mass crossing plans before surge
Declassified documents show Spanish and Moroccan authorities were alerted to social media calls for a mass migrant crossing the day before tens of thousands entered Ceuta.
BBC News
Primark finally set to launch home deliveries
The retailer launches the service four years after making its first foray into internet shopping.
BBC News
The one thing you need to do to succeed - according to top bosses
What makes someone stand out in a crowded workplace? Six business leaders tell us what they look for.
POLITICO
Why Burnham is making holidays more expensive
Listen on Spotify Apple Music Amazon Music Sky News Having spent the summer trying to ease the cost of living, is a new tourist tax about to hit domestic holiday makers in the pocket? The government is giving mayors additional powers to introduce a levy on hotel stays, with no cap on how much they can charge. With the tourism industry already angry, Sam Coates and Anne McElvoy examine the move and why the timing maybe a little uncomfortable for the government. Elsewhere, Sky News has uncovered more turmoil in Reform-run local councils. With the Metropolitan Police also widening their investigation into allegations of illegal foreign donations, how much trouble is Reform and leader Nigel Farage really in? Plus, the Assisted Dying Bill returns to parliament tomorrow – can it clear its first major hurdle for a second time? And Anne assesses the international fallout from the UK’s action over Israel. You can watch Cathy Newman’s full investigation into Durham’s Reform-led Council here.
POLITICO
Why the US is staying so measured about allies’ sanctions on Israeli settlements
The White House’s approach to U.S. allies hitting Israeli settlers with sanctions comes down to this: Say as little as possible and let it happen. President Donald Trump engaged on the issue Wednesday only to say he was looking into it. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Tuesday that the U.S. didn’t plan to issue its own sanctions, but did not condemn the actions by the U.K. and a number of other countries. He even added that the U.S. shared its allies’ goal of “stability” in the West Bank and preventing further violence there. An administration official familiar with Israeli policy said such vague statements are indicative of the administration’s strategy. “We don’t need to get into every spat between allies. Israel can defend itself and they will,” said the official, who was granted anonymity to discuss sensitive diplomatic efforts. Washington is “staying out of it,” the official added. It’s a reflection of the delicate line the Trump administration is walking on Israel right now. The White House is open to some actions that push Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to get in line with Trump’s peace efforts in the region. It’s also wary of making any moves that suggest a break with Israel — a longtime U.S. partner with which it is waging a war against Iran and which still has significant backing in the Republican Party. Rubio’s comments on Tuesday, which alluded to the administration’s frustration with Israel’s current government, show the White House staking out that middle ground, said Curt Mills, executive director of the anti-interventionist American Conservative magazine, who speaks regularly with administration officials. “It squares a lot of circles for them,” he said. “If the relationship with the Brits is reasonably good, and it’s a way to sort of clip Bibi’s wings, I think they’re prepared to do it,” he explained, referring to Netanyahu by his nickname. The White House and the State Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Washington has watched from the wings as the U.K., France and Canada move forward with sanctions against Israeli settlements, saying they will halt trade with the areas widely considered illegally seized under international law. U.K. officials have stressed that they informed the U.S. of their plans ahead of time and implied that they didn’t get significant pushback. Asked about the American response to the plan on Wednesday on Sky News, British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said: “I’ll let them say what they feel. But I think there is real concern about what is happening” in the West Bank. Israeli settlers have ratcheted up violent attacks on local Palestinians in the West Bank in recent weeks, drawing rare condemnation from both U.S. officials and the Israeli government. Netanyahu’s government has supported the expansion of these settlements, including in the so-called E1 area, which Israel had previously refrained from allowing due to international pressure. Israeli settlement in E1 would essentially bisect Palestinian territory, effectively cutting off the potential for a two-state solution. In unveiling the sanctions plan on Tuesday, Miliband said the British government “agrees that there is ethnic cleansing of Palestinians in areas of the West Bank,” saying the U.K. planned to take action against companies and individuals providing services in support of settlement expansion. But that plan likely won’t take effect for a while, as it’ll take between six and nine months to implement. Trump, notorious for his barrages of social media posts, has yet to write a single line in defense of Israel and only addressed the issue when pressed by reporters Wednesday. Trump avoided giving any detail about his response, saying that he’d “just seen” the decision and planned to speak to Israel to figure out “their thinking.” “I understand exactly what’s going on, but I want to find out, why all of a sudden has that happened?” Trump added. Trump’s equivocation — and the wider administration response — is an indication of how eager the White House is to avoid another kerfuffle ahead of a number of high-stakes moments coming up, said Victoria Coates, who served as a senior national security official dealing with the Middle East in Trump’s first term. “I don’t know that they want another big distraction right now, going into the midterms, going into the Xi summit,” Coates said, referring to Trump’s meeting later this month with China’s President Xi Jinping. She also argued that the sanctions announcements by allies were “for shock value, not for actual impact” and therefore didn’t require U.S. engagement. Coates, who is now at the Heritage Foundation and was in Jerusalem when news of the sanctions broke, said Israeli officials, while not pleased by the move, were not panicked over it. Still, Israel responded with a raft of countermeasures — including the closure of the British consulate in Jerusalem. The move comes at a politically precarious time for Netanyahu, whose government faces an uphill battle in the country’s October elections. The Israeli Embassy in Washington didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment. The administration official familiar with Israel policy also said that early comments from U.S. Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee condemning the U.K.’s plans for sanctions did not reflect U.S. policy. “Huckabee is totally out on his own on this. He does this all the time. He just freelances and doesn’t check with anyone,” the person said. Axios previously reported that Huckabee’s statements weren’t coordinated with the White House or the State Department. Mills said that Rubio’s comments on Tuesday were a “striking” departure from his usual approach to Israel, given that — unlike Vice President JD Vance — the secretary of State has thus far avoided much criticism of the U.S. ally. “We don’t want to see anything destabilizing right now in the West Bank with so much going on in the region,” Rubio said in those remarks. “We think it has implications as well on our ability to make progress with regards to Gaza and the 20-point plan and Board of Peace that we’re very committed to.” It’s already an awkward time in the U.S.-Israel relationship. “We’re working through some political issues in Israel,” Trump’s son-in-law and envoy Jared Kushner said on Sunday. “They just have a crazy election, and that makes them a little irrational in certain regards.” Choosing not to engage on the sanctions issue could allow the administration to sidestep a risky flareup with allies as it tries to tamp down trade disputes ahead of midterms. The GOP is already suffering from high energy prices as it faces the November elections. The situation is not resolving as the Middle East conflict widens: global oil prices climbed over $100 per barrel Wednesday, for the first time in six weeks. “It’s a question for the president who’s got inflation out of control, high gas prices, people upset about affordability, tariffs on Canada, trade war with Canada, tariffs on other nations,” said Dan Shapiro, former U.S. ambassador to Israel under the Obama administration. “Does he want to add additional economic disruption with major trading partners two months before the midterms?” But it’s a fine line to walk. The administration also can’t be seen to publicly split with Israel, after embarking on a now deeply unpopular Middle East war alongside its ally. “It would seem sort of farcical and unbelievable for an administration that has invaded Iran at the alleged behest of Israel,” Mills said, referring to Rubio’s early justification for the Iran war in March, “for them to have any sort of distance from Israelis at all.” Israel’s image has taken a beating among both Republicans and Democrats in recent years. But the Trump administration is also wary of alienating the many GOP voters who remain supportive of the U.S. ally. The Trump administration has a history of opposing sanctions against Israeli settlers. In one of his first acts in the White House this term, Trump terminated Biden-era sanctions on Israeli settlers in the West Bank. At least some Republicans want to see that trend continue. Already, a handful of GOP lawmakers are voicing their concern over the allies’ move to penalize settlements. Rep. Randy Fine (R-Fla.) warned on social media over the weekend that sanctions would mean Florida could “ban any British company forced to comply from doing business with any state or local government” under state law. And Rep. Claudia Tenney (R-N.Y.) on Wednesday penned a letter to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent urging him to launch a review into the announcement of trade restrictions.
Al Jazeera – Breaking News, World News and Video from Al Jazeera
‘Gone in a blink’: Nepal floods sweep away Indian workers who built hotels
The migrants were at work, building homes and hotels, when the floods hit, sweeping three of them away.
Al Jazeera – Breaking News, World News and Video from Al Jazeera
Enrique hails Dembele, praises Toure after PSG’s win over Bratislava
PSG coach hails 'marvellous' Dembele after the French forward scored two goals in PSG's 6–1 win over Toure's side.
Europe | The Guardian
Russian drones kill at least nine in strikes targeting warehouses and ports in Ukraine – Europe live
The strikes come after it was revealed that Ukraine’s president Volodomyr Zelenskyy’s plane was almost hit by a drone when leaving Moldova this weekMeanwhile, Russia said it had detained a Russian security guard working at Britain’s embassy in Moscow, alleging he was hired by Ukraine for a false flag attack on the UK ambassador, AFP reported.The FSB security service said the individual had been recruited by a Ukrainian blogger working with that country’s SBU security agency to track events and people at the British embassy and take note of their security system. Continue reading...
Europe | The Guardian
Primark to launch home delivery service in Britain
Retailer says trading in Europe ‘challenging’ but customers are responding well to its price-cutting campaignBusiness live – latest updatesPrimark will offer home delivery in Britain for the first time, as the fast-fashion retailer prepares to spin off from its owner Associated British Foods (ABF).The clothing chain, which already offers a click and collect service in the UK, has long avoided home delivery, arguing that its low prices made it too difficult to absorb the cost of packing and shipping orders. Continue reading...
Europe
Germany holds the line against a larger EU budget
Also in this newsletter: Vučić rolls the electoral dice
Europe
Debate over Swedish school model rages ahead of elections
Left blames private sector-run operations for falling standards of education