EUROPE
JUSTICE – Life for the English nurse who kills newborns London
English nurse Lucy Letby was sentenced on Monday 21 August 2023 to life imprisonment without possible release for the murders of seven newA sentence of exceptional severity to the extent of the dread caused by the crimes of the worst child killer in modern British history.
Lucy Letby, 33, was convicted on Friday in Manchester (north) court of the murder of seven premature infants and six attempted murders in the hospital where she worked. On Monday, she was sentenced to life in prison, a very rare sentence in English law, while questions remain about the real extent of her crimes. You have acted in a manner that is totally contrary to normal human instincts of caring for babies and in flagrant violation of the trust that all citizens place in health professionals,” said Judge James Goss, calling his crimes “cruel, calculated and cynical campaign”. Due to the “exceptional gravity” of the crimes, “you will spend the rest of your life in prison,” the judge added. This woman, “cold, calculating, cruel and tenacious” according to the prosecution, had claimed her innocence throughout her long and trying trial, which began in October 2022. She worked in the intensive care unit at the Countess of Chester Hospital in northwestern England. The murders took place between June 2015 and June 2016. For example, she injected air intravenously into preterm infants, used their naso-gastric tubes to send air or an overdose of milk into their stomach.
Absent
Lucy Letby attacked babies after their parents left, when the nurse in charge was walking away, or at night when she was alone. She then sometimes joined in collective efforts to save newborns, assisting even desperate parents. She wrote cards to grieving parents. At the trial, a mother said she returned to give milk to one of her premature twins in August 2015, heard him scream and found blood around his small mouth. She had been reassured by Lucy Letby. According to the prosecution, the nurse had just pushed medical equipment down the tiny baby’s throat, and had also injected air into him. He died a few hours later. Already absent from court on Friday when she was convicted, Lucy Letby refused to attend her sentencing, broadcast live on British television. This refusal caused frustration and anger among the families of victims, who wanted Lucy Letby to listen to their latest testimonies.
“When we have committed such horrible crimes, it is cowardly not to confront the victims,” Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said on Monday, adding that he plans to legislate that this will not happen again.” At least now there is no debate that, in your own words, you killed them intentionally. “You are evil,” said a bereaved mother on the stand on Monday. These remarks refer to handwritten notes found at Lucy Letby’s house on which she had written: “I am evil, I did it”. On other notes, she claimed her innocence.
Are there any other victims?
Transferred in June 2016 to an administrative service, first arrested in 2018, then in 2019, Lucy Letby had been incarcerated in November 2020. His motives remain unclear despite the ten months of trial. Since Friday, questions have multiplied, including the fact that Lucy Letby was not arrested earlier. According to the British press, doctors issued warnings as early as 2015, but the hospital management did not listen to them or did not act, concerned about the reputation of the institution. Police continue to investigate thousands of files in search of possible additional victims of Lucy Letby. On Sunday evening, The Guardian newspaper reported that police were investigating dozens of “suspicious” incidents, involving 30 babies, at the hospital where she worked.
For about fifteen years, social networks have conquered every corner of our lives, interfering as well in private conversations as in family, school or professional dynamics. What was once a communication tool has become a prism through which many teenagers—but also adults — perceive the world. Far from being mere platforms for exchange, these digital spaces influence tastes, shape opinions and model behaviours. 11-year-old children frantically scrolling videos on TikTok, while grandparents comment on political debates on Facebook. This massive penetration into all the strata of society raises new questions, particularly about the ability of the youngest to evolve without danger. Faced with this new reality, Emmanuel Macron is sounding the alarm.
President Emmanuel Macron was very clear on France 2, on June 10, 2025: he wants to ban social networks for young people under 15 years old. And if there is no quick agreement at the European level, France could decide to go it alone. For him, we must act quickly. In his eyes, these platforms—Instagram, X (formerly Twitter), TikTok — have become much more than simple communication tools: they act as amplifiers of violence, confusion, and psychological distress.
He believes that this early exposure, from the middle school age, shapes a generation facing a brutalization of exchanges and a form of permanent emotional instability. This observation, shared by a growing number of observers, fuels its desire to implement strict regulation at the European level. And if Brussels delays, Paris might well act alone.
This radical proposal highlights a growing generational divide. Today’s teenagers are, according to Macron, the first to have grown up in this digital universe saturated with images, viral content, and incessant notifications. A generation connected from the cradle, which has not known a world without smartphones or ubiquitous Wi-Fi. Where adults have seen social networks as progress, the younger ones experience them as a norm, even a social necessity.
However, this digital normality leads to deleterious effects. Online harassment, addiction, overexposure to violent or pornographic content, permanent quest for social validation… the risks are multiple and often invisible to the eyes of parents. The idea of a mandatory minimum age, already under debate in several countries, takes on a strong political dimension here. By setting this framework, the president hopes to stop a spiral that he considers uncontrollable.
For Emmanuel Macron, this initiative cannot remain isolated. He asks the European Union to reach an agreement and set clear rules together. The question is now asked: should social networks be treated as sensitive products, on a par with alcohol or cigarettes? France seems ready to take this step, even if it means shaking certain digital freedoms. The president mentions a delay of ‘a few months’ to reach an agreement with the European partners. Without a coordinated response, he claims that France will act alone.
This stance raises as much hope as controversy. How to enforce such a ban technically? What responsibility for the platforms? Will teenagers find ways to get around the measure? If the challenge is immense, the head of state seems determined to lay the foundations for a new digital contract between young citizens and their digital environment.
By setting the bar at 15 years old, Emmanuel Macron is not content with reacting to a trend. He proposes a break. In a society where digital technology continues to move forward without restraint, it wants to impose a threshold, a safeguard, a time of pause to reflect on what growing up in the connected world really involves.
Source: The new tribune
The deep sea, which covers 54% of the oceans, remains largely unknown: only 5% have been explored. Yet, since 2022, 33 states have called for a precautionary pause in the face of deep-sea mining projects. This position is based on alarming scientific studies: the abyss shelters a unique biodiversity, plays a key role in climate regulation and their destruction would have irreversible consequences.
Under international law (United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea), deep seabed resources are a heritage of mankind, managed by the International Seabed Authority (ISA). Any exploitation outside this framework would be illegal. However, the polymetallic nodules, coveted for their rare metals, take millions of years to form – their extraction would therefore be unsustainable.
Mining would generate plumes of toxic sediments, threatening abyssal wildlife and the food chain. Deep ecosystems, essential for carbon storage, could be sustainably altered. Yet, their genetic resources could revolutionize medicine, agri-food or the fight against global warming.
At the United Nations Ocean Conference (Nice, 9-13 June), the signatory States (Austria, Chile, Costa Rica, Denmark, Ecuador, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Honduras, Ireland, Latvia, Luxembourg, Malta, Monaco, Palau, Panama, Peru[1], Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Vanuatu.) request:
Strict compliance with international law;
The acceleration of scientific research;
A cautionary pause on deep-sea mining.
[1] The Republic of Peru is not a party to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).
Photo Credit: chasse-marée.com
On 9 June, the leaders of ten Mediterranean countries and the European Union met at the invitation of the French president for the summit “For a better connected Mediterranean”, on the sidelines of the UN Ocean Conference. The objective: to strengthen maritime, land and digital links between Europe, the Mediterranean and the Arabian-Persian Gulf, in response to the common challenges of the region.
The Mediterranean, which accounts for 25% of global maritime traffic, is seeing its states step up their ecological efforts. Since 1 May 2025, a SECA (low sulphur emissions) zone covers the entire Mediterranean, while ports such as Algeciras, Beirut and Marseille have committed to reducing their emissions through charging stations and alternative fuels. Croatia also announced a new green and automated terminal in Rijeka.
The European Commission recalled its financial commitment through the Global Gateway strategy, with 5.9 billion euros released for North Africa and the Middle East, capable of generating 27.2 billion in investments. The new Pact for the Mediterranean aims to consolidate economic and energy partnerships, particularly through the India-Middle East-Europe (IMEC) corridor, supported by France.
Energy projects are multiplying: Saudi Arabia, France, Italy and Greece are studying collaborations on green hydrogen, while Cyprus and Greece are advancing on interconnections such as the GREGY cable (Egypt-Greece). The TeraMED initiative could also accelerate renewable energies in North Africa.
On the digital side, the EU presented Medusa, an undersea optical fibre network linking the two Mediterranean shores, while the digital hub in Aqaba (Jordan) strengthens regional technological influence.
