The Pigeon Express
Scientists in Belgium are investigating a farmer’s claim that different styles of music affect the behaviour of his pigs. Piet Paesmans first noticed the phenomenon when his son started singing a tune in the barn during a sluggish insemination session his sows seemed excited and started wagging their tails. “I thought this is too good […]
Britain paid the highest price on record for electricity in London last week as the capital narrowly avoided a power blackout, it has emerged. National Grid paid £9,724 per megawatt hour, more than 5,000% than the typical price, to Belgium on Wednesday to prevent south-east London losing power. The hottest UK days on record led […]
A pilot has been charged for flying illegal immigrants into the UK in a light aircraft. A 52-year-old-man was detained by the National Crime Agency (NCA) at Deenethorpe Airfield near Corby, Northamptonshire. He had flown a twin-engine plane from Belgium. Four Albanian nationals were found in a taxi in Corby having just left the airfield […]
Multiple oil transport and storage companies across Europe are dealing with cyber-attacks. IT systems have been disrupted at Oiltanking in Germany, SEA-Invest in Belgium and Evos in the Netherlands. In total dozens of terminals with oil storage and transport around the world have been affected, with firms reporting that the attacks occurred over the weekend. […]
The body of a four-year-old Belgian boy who disappeared last week has been found in the Netherlands, Dutch police have announced. Hours earlier, police had issued an alert that Dean Verberckmoes had been abducted. He had been reported missing by his family after his babysitter failed to drop him off at his grandparents’ house. Dutch […]
A Belgian scientific research station in Antarctica is dealing with an outbreak of Covid-19, despite workers being fully vaccinated and based in one of the world’s remotest regions. Since 14 December, at least 16 of the 25 workers at the Princess Elisabeth Polar Station have caught the virus. Officials say cases remain mild so far. […]
Belgium will close seven aging nuclear reactors by 2025, the government announced. The reactors, housed at two plants in Doel and Tihange, have long been controversial. They have been shut down repeatedly for safety checks and have sparked fear in neighbouring countries. A compromise was reached after years of debate and overnight talks by government […]
Belgian death metal band Omicron will not be changing its name, despite sharing it with the new Covid-19 variant. The group’s founder and lead guitarist, Philippe Delhaute said things were “really crazy” when the latest coronavirus strain hit the headlines and that his colleagues had considered a switch. But he said they’d decided against it, […]
Protesters opposing compulsory health measures against the coronavirus pandemic in Belgium were dispersed by police water cannons. Some 8,000 people marched through Brussels towards the headquarters of the European Union, chanting “Freedom!” and letting off fireworks. The crowd was smaller than the 35,000 vaccine and lockdown sceptics who marched last month. Protesters were blocked from […]
Two hippopotamuses in a Belgian zoo have been quarantined after they tested for the novel coronavirus. It is unclear how Imani, aged 14, and Hermien, 41, caught the virus, Antwerp Zoo said, adding the animals were doing well apart from having runny nose. Restrictions have been tightened at the zoo until the animals test negative. […]
A Chinese intelligence officer was convicted by a US jury of plotting to steal secrets from aviation companies, according to the US justice department. Xu Yanjun was found guilty of five counts relating to economic espionage and trade secret theft. He faces up to 60 years in prison and fines of more than $5 million. […]
A love story between a woman and a chimpanzee has taken Belgium by storm after zoo managers ruled it had to end. Weekly meetings between Chita, a 38-year-old chimpanzee, and Adie Timmermans, a long-standing visitor to Antwerp Zoo, will no longer be allowed. Ms Timmermans, who has been visiting Chita for four years, pleaded for […]