Pallade Veneta - News from Venice, Veneto, Venetia and Italy, as well as from around the world

Coca-Cola, under pressure from environmentalists over its packaging policies, has pledged to use reusable containers for at least 25 percent of its beverages by 2030.

Sahith Theegala stumbled with a bogey-bogey finish to his opening round Friday morning at the US PGA Tour Phoenix Open, handing South Korean Lee Kyoung-hoon a one-stroke lead after 18 holes.

The drug scandal embroiling Russian figure skater Kamila Valieva at the Winter Olympics marks a "catastrophic failure" for the fight against doping, United States Anti-Doping Agency chief Travis Tygart said Friday.

New York City was poised to sack roughly 3,000 municipal workers on Friday for failing to meet a deadline to get vaccinated against Covid-19.

Christian Eriksen is "bubbling" and training well after arriving at Brentford, but manager Thomas Frank said he would not set a date for the Danish playmaker's debut.

The United States on Friday shipped nearly 1.9 million Covid-19 vaccine doses to Mozambique and four other African countries in the latest surge of donations, a US official told AFP.

Austrian director Ulrich Seidl has shocked arthouse audiences for two decades with hard looks at society's seedy underbelly and said Friday Europeans must be willing to confront the continent's "ugly" side.

Pep Guardiola has warned his Manchester City players they will need an "incredible" points total to retain the Premier League title.

A US court has struck down a Trump-era decision to remove federal protections for gray wolves across much of the country, in a move hailed by conservationists who said the listing was vital for the species' recovery.

Ralf Rangnick admits Manchester United need to show a sharper cutting edge as the interim boss urged Cristiano Ronaldo to end his barren run in front of goal.

Yan Wengang won China's first-ever medal in a Winter Olympics sliding event Friday as Germany continued their domination of the high-speed disciplines with Christopher Grotheer winning the men's skeleton gold.

President Joe Biden seized $7 billion in assets belonging to the previous Afghan government on Friday with the aim of splitting the funds between victims of the 9/11 attacks and desperately needed aid for post-war Afghanistan.

Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant hit half-centuries to set up a thumping 96-run victory for India in the third one-day international against the West Indies and sweep the series on Friday.

Western leaders are to hold talks on Friday over the Ukraine crisis, German sources said, as the United States warned that a Russian invasion of its ex-Soviet neighbour could be days away.

Yan Wengang won China's first-ever medal in a Winter Games sliding event Friday as Germany continued their domination of the Olympic high-speed disciplines with Christopher Grotheer winning the men's skeleton gold.

Argentine great Juan Martin del Potro has pulled out of the Rio Open, organizers said on Friday a decision that could signal the end of his career.

England cricket chiefs lifted a ban on Yorkshire staging international matches on Friday following the club's handling of a racism scandal that rocked the game.

European and Asian stock markets fell Friday on fears the Federal Reserve will move more aggressively to tighten monetary policy to tame decades-high inflation.

A police raid on a Rio de Janeiro slum erupted into an intense firefight Friday, leaving eight alleged drug traffickers dead, authorities said.

As a pioneer in so-called attribution science -- establishing a link between extreme weather and climate change -- Friederike Otto is adamant that the rising toll of heatwaves and hurricanes cannot be explained by global warming alone.

Nearly 200 nations kick off a virtual meeting Monday to finalise what promises to be a harrowing scientific overview of accelerating climate impacts that will highlight the urgent need to cut emissions -- and prepare for the challenges ahead.

The conservative right-wing challenger to Emmanuel Macron in the looming French presidential vote grappled Friday with a wave of defections, while hoping former president Nicolas Sarkozy would finally offer his full-throated support.

West Ham manager David Moyes says Kurt Zouma will be available for Sunday's Premier League match at Leicester despite the controversy over the defender's cruel treatment of his cat.

England cricket chiefs on Friday lifted a ban on staging international matches imposed on Yorkshire after a racism scandal that rocked the game.

One of the pioneering Jamaican bobsleigh team which first competed at the 1988 Winter Games and inspired the movie "Cool Runnings" has big plans for racers from the Caribbean island at future Olympics.

Chelsea midfielder Jorginho says it would be the "greatest mistake" to underestimate Palmeiras in the Club World Cup final as they bid to become the third English winners of the trophy.

England coach Eddie Jones is adamant that Italy are making "rapid progress" even though his much-changed side will be overwhelming favourites to inflict more Six Nations misery on the Azzurri.

Italy head coach Kieran Crowley has made three changes for this weekend's Six Nations game with Italy, the Italian Rugby Federation (FIR) announced on Friday.

European Commissioner Ylva Johansson on Friday offered to deploy the EU's border agency to Senegal to help combat migrant smuggling, following a surge in perilous crossings to Spain's Canary Islands.

Thousands of protesters in convoys were heading to Paris from across France on Friday, with some hoping to blockade the capital in opposition to Covid restrictions despite police warnings to back off.

In Europe, the minister overseeing migration is one of the hardest jobs in politics. In Belgium, the job is held by Sammy Mahdi, the son of an Iraqi political refugee.

Ireland fans can take heart for this weekend's Six Nations clash with France that Johnny Sexton's replacement as captain James Ryan "grows as a person when things get tough", scrum coach John Fogarty said on Friday.

Italy took another step towards normality Friday with the reopening of nightclubs and the end of a requirement to wear masks outside, as the number of coronavirus cases eases.

Bahrain will host Formula One until at least 2036 after signing a 10-year contract extension, officials said on Friday.

Ben Youngs has been kept waiting to equal the England cap record after coach Eddie Jones named him among the replacements for Sunday's Six Nations match away to Italy.

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has hailed Luis Diaz's dynamic Premier League debut as one of the best he has seen from a new player.

World stock markets fell Friday on fears the Federal Reserve will move more aggressively to tighten monetary policy to tame decades-high inflation.

Thousands of Iranians drove through Tehran on Friday to mark the 43rd anniversary of the country's Islamic Revolution, staying in vehicles rather than marching on foot amid Covid restrictions.

Britain on Friday said it had accepted changes proposed by Google to address competition and customer privacy concerns linked to online advertising, with the US tech giant vowing to apply them globally.