Romania

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Mayor Dies of COVID, Gets Re-Elected

'None of the other contenders got the same trust from the voters'

(Newser) - In the Romanian village of Deveselu, Ion Aliman was a popular mayor—so popular that he was re-elected to a third term Sunday despite having died of COVID-19 complications 10 days earlier. Aliman, who would have turned 57 on election day, received 1,057 out of around 1,600 votes...

With Nearly 1M Dead, Protesters Hit the Streets

Demonstrators make their voices heard in Tel Aviv, London, and Bucharest

(Newser) - Demonstrators took the streets of London, Tel Aviv, and other cities on Saturday to protest coronavirus restrictions, decrying how the measures have affected daily life even with infection rates rising in many places and the global death toll approaching 1 million, the AP reports. In the UK, the latest official...

Ship With 15K Sheep Overturns
Ship With 15K Sheep Overturns 

Ship With 15K Sheep Overturns

Only 32 have been rescued, authorities say

(Newser) - After a cargo ship carrying almost 15,000 sheep overturned off the coast of Romania on Sunday, authorities said all 22 crew members had been rescued—but only 32 sheep. The Queen Hind, which was bound for Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, with a cargo of around 14,600 live sheep, overturned...

Girl's Tragic Story Rocks Nation and Its Government

3 Romanian officials have lost their jobs over Alexandra Macesanu's disappearance

(Newser) - The plight of a missing girl has rocked Romania and forced three officials—including the nation's education minister—out of their jobs. The tragic story hinges on emergency phone calls made by Alexandra Macesanu, 15, saying she had been kidnapped and raped after disappearing Wednesday while hitchhiking with a...

Pope Asks Forgiveness of an Ethnic Minority

Francis apologizes for 'discrimination, segregation, and mistreatment'

(Newser) - Pope Francis apologized Sunday to the Roma ethnic minority for a history of discrimination in Europe and paid homage to Romanian Catholics persecuted during communist rule as he wrapped up his three-day visit with a message of forgiveness. Francis reached out to the minorities of Transylvania during a deeply symbolic...

Ex-Trump Family Driver Is Behind Bars. Guess Why

Zoltan Tamas was detained by ICE on immigration charges

(Newser) - Not long ago, he was picking up Donald Trump's children at the airport. Now he's behind bars—and Zoltan Tamas' arrest is part of an immigration crackdown that's been hailed by the Trump administration, the New York Times reports. "Zoltan wasn't caught crossing the border,...

Yet Another Odd Twist in the Case of a Stolen Picasso

Writer thought she had been led to the painting. Apparently not

(Newser) - For a brief moment, there was hope that a lost Picasso—one of seven artworks stolen from the Kunsthal Museum in Rotterdam, Netherlands, in 2012—had been found. Instead, it was seemingly another odd twist in an odd story. Mira Feticu, an author who penned a novel inspired by the...

Another Weird Death Ruling Comes Out of Romania

Dead man will get his license back

(Newser) - Days after one Romanian court told a man he was officially dead despite evidence to the contrary, another court has declared that a man who was truly dead could get his driving license back. A court in the northern city of Iasi on Thursday confirmed that Valerian Vasiliu should have...

Court Says Living Man Has to Stay 'Dead'

'Deceased' Romanian man who ditched his family in 1992 has been found and deported back

(Newser) - A Romanian court has rejected a man's claim that he's alive, after he was officially registered as deceased. A court spokeswoman said Friday that 63-year-old Constantin Reliu lost his case in the northeast city of Vaslui because he appealed too late. The ruling is final, the AP reports....

65% of DC Cameras Hacked Before Inauguration

Computers used to distribute ransomware; 2 Romanians charged

(Newser) - Romanian hackers infiltrated 65% of outdoor surveillance cameras in Washington, DC, ahead of President Trump's inauguration as part of an extortion scheme only now being made public, according to a criminal complaint. The complaint, filed in DC and unsealed Thursday, accuses Romanians Mihai Alexandru Isvanca, 25, and Eveline Cismaru,...

Romanians, Royals Turn Out in Big Numbers for King's Funeral

King Michael died at 96 earlier this month

(Newser) - Tens of thousands of Romanians joined European royals to pay their respects to late King Michael who was given a state funeral on Saturday, the AP reports. Michael, who ruled Romania twice before being forced to abdicate by the communists in 1947, died at age 96 in Switzerland on Dec....

King Who Famously Switched to the Allied Cause Dies at 96

Romanian King Michael I 'bravely' arrested country's pro-Hitler dictator on Aug. 23, 1944

(Newser) - Former Romanian King Michael I, who was forced to abdicate by the communists in the aftermath of World War II, died on Tuesday. He was 96. Michael, who played a pivotal role in Romania's switch to the Allied cause following a coup in 1944, spent decades in exile working...

Disinherited Grandson Causing Drama for Romania's Royals

Nicholas Medforth-Mills says he just wants to see his dying grandfather

(Newser) - Three generations of Romania's royal family were embroiled in a very public row Thursday as a disinherited prince's attempts to see his ailing grandfather led his own mother to renounce him. Princess Elena accused her son, Nicholas Medforth-Mills, of disregarding "the privacy, suffering, and dignity" of her...

Nazi 'Death Train' Survivors Get 'Small Measure of Justice'

Roughly 1K Iasi survivors to receive pensions from Germany

(Newser) - After years of fighting for it, about 1,000 living survivors of Nazi persecution in Romania are now eligible for compensation from the German government. The New York-based Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany on Wednesday said Jews who survived the 1941 pogrom in the Romanian city of Iasi...

Think Ducks Are Cute? This Might Change Your Mind

Mallards spotted eating birds in Romania

(Newser) - You probably thought ducks were cute waddlers who liked to eat your stale bread. Poof, your bubble has been burst. The BBC reports wild mallard ducks have been spotted eating other birds, swallowing one nearly whole, an "extraordinary" behavior that has never been observed before. Zoologist Silviu Petrovan of...

Dracula's Castle Now Being Guarded by Bears

And tourists are being kept away

(Newser) - After 600 or so years, it's once again wise to give Dracula's castle a wide berth. The AP reports the historic Poenari Castle in Romania was closed to tourists late last month "for the safety of visitors." Apparently tourists climbing the nearly 1,500 steps to...

It's Known as Dracula's Castle, to Its Owner's Dismay

Dominic Habsburg aims to educate tourists about its true history

(Newser) - Just about everyone associates Bran Castle with Dracula—except its owner. For Archduke Dominic Habsburg, the Romanian fortress is the former home of his grandparents, Queen Marie and King Ferdinand I, who made it "a happy place of light and flowers." Today, however, few know anything about the...

You Can Spend Halloween in a Coffin at Dracula's Castle

Don't let the vampire bite

(Newser) - You could spend a night in Dracula’s Transylvanian castle—but sleep is no guarantee. Airbnb is offering two guests an overnight stay at Bran Castle in the mountains of Transylvania, fittingly, on Halloween night. The great grandnephew of Bram Stoker, who based his 19th-century novel on the very place,...

Russia: US Missile Defense Site in Romania a 'Direct Threat'

The US says defense site is meant to stifle threats from Iran, not Russia

(Newser) - A US missile defense site in Romania aimed at protecting Europe from ballistic missile threats went live Thursday, angering Russia, which opposes its presence in its former area of influence, the AP reports. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg tried to reassure Russia as he spoke at a ceremony attended by...

'Shocking Downfall' for the Country That Gave Us Nadia

Romanian women's team fails to qualify for Rio

(Newser) - The Romanian women's gymnastics team has scored a medal in every Olympics since 1976, making it the longest Olympic medal streak in the sport—and one that has now been broken, reports NPR . The team failed to nab a spot at the Rio Olympics during a qualifying "test...

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