EU, UK and US place new sanctions against Belarus.
A fresh round of sanctions has been placed against Belarusian individuals and entities, including the state owned air carrier Belavia in a co-ordinated effort by the US, EU, the UK and Canada. EU governments have blacklisted 17 individuals and 11 entities, targeting judges and top Belarusian officials, and the sanctions are in the form of asset freezes and travel bans, according to Reuters. The national carrier, Belavia, has been accused of flying in migrants as a tactic to destabilise European countries, and the sanctions came into effect on Thursday after publication in the EU’s official journal, the Reuters news agency reported. The new punitive measures also target travel agents and hotels that have been accused of helping lure in migrants to Belarus.
Source – Polskie Radio
Polish president calls for „wise” energy transition
Polish President Andrzej Duda has said that the country’s move away from coal power to cleaner forms of energy must be carried out „wisely”. The president was speaking to mining communities ahead of the Saint Barbara’s Day – the patron saint of miners. During the speech he also thanked miners and their families for their hard work and dedication. He voiced hope that the energy transition in his country would be „just so that we protect the climate but also the people and their standard of living, helping them find and maintain employment”. Saint Barbara’s Day is celebrated today.
Source – Polskie Radio
Driver who ran over and killed 6 year old girl at crossing is charged
A motorist who ran over and killed a 6 year old girl in the northern town of Wejherowo near Gdańsk on Thursday has been charged over her death as it emerged that he ran through a red light at a pedestrian crossing while distracted. The girl, her brother and her grandmother were correctly crossing the road at the crossing when the driver failed to stop at the red light. The 23-year-old driver works for a courier company. He could face up to 8 years in prison if convicted.
Source – Polish Associated Press
Polish figure skating championship this weekend in Gdańsk
And finally, new census information gathered has shown that the population of Gdańsk and the Three Cities has grown considerably in recent times, while the overall population of the Pomeranian Voivodeship has reduced slightly. The population of the Three Cities has swelled to 1.1 million residents from the last count of 750,000, while the Pomeranian Voivodeship has shrunk by 100,000 people to 2.24 million.
Source – Radio Gdańsk
Weather
Today will be a cloudy day with chances of sleet showers throughout the day in a moderate breeze and temperatures of 2 degrees centigrade (36 degrees Fahrenheit) during the day, dropping to -2 degrees overnight. Tomorrow will remain cloudy but mostly dry and temperatures reaching 2 degrees during the day and -1 degrees overnight.
Martin Caren/aka
