Polish barber Kinga Rutkowska has struggled to make ends meet during the pandemic but for her, protecting women's rights outweighs financial losses, so she closed her shop on Wednesday (October 28) to join a national protest against further abortion restrictions.

Polish barber sacrifices pay to fight for women's rights in abortion protests

Tens of thousands of Poles blocked city streets in cars, on bicycles and on foot on Monday (October 26) on the fifth day of protests against a Constitutional Court ruling that amounts to a near-total ban on abortion in the predominantly Catholic country.

Abortion rights protests block city streets across Poland

Poles were left shaken and stirred by news that a suspected British agent called James Bond was on Her Majesty's secret service in the country in the 1960s, after the country's Institute of National Remembrance (IPN) posted about him on social media. According to the institute's archive, James Bond came to Poland on Feb. 18, 1964 and was officially employed as an archivist for the British Embassy Military Attaché.

The name's Bond, seriously: 007's namesake found in Polish archive

For Jakub Kwiecins ki and Dawid Mycek, Polish gay couple and LGBT activists, the election win of incumbent president Andrzej Duda comes with fear and disappointment.

Gay activists fear more discrimination as Poland's Duda wins second term

Tens of thousands of Poles took part in a far-right march in the capital Warsaw on Monday to mark Polish independence, an annual event that has become a focus of friction between nationalists and liberals.

Some chanted "God, honour, homeland!" and "No to the European Union!" and waved red-and-white Polish flags. Others lit red flares, blanketing sections of the parade with smoke.

"We have to return to our roots. Our world has abandoned God and Christianity," Robert Bakiewicz, head of a group organising the march, told participants in central Warsaw. "We will die as the nations of western Europe are dying."

A small group of hardline Italian far-right group Forza Nuova members also took part, waving flags.

Poland has become increasingly polarised since the nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party came to power in 2015, calling for a revival of patriotic and Roman Catholic values in public life and a rejection of Western liberalism.

Critics say PiS, which won a second term last month with 44 per cent&nbsp;of the vote, has tacitly encouraged groups with roots in the fascist and anti-Semitic movements of the 1930s that organised the march, although the party denies this.

Last year, on the centenary of Polish independence, government officials and President Andrzej Duda, an ally of the PiS, agreed to hold a joint event with the annual march organisers, but walked at a distance, away from any overt displays of nationalism.

This year, PiS held its own, separate events.

"Our nation has a mission and it has to fulfil it," PiS leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski said on Sunday. "Our mission is to sustain everything that's a foundation of our Christian civilisation.

"We will walk this path, and if it's done in a thoughtful way, it will bring us to victory."

On November&nbsp;11, Poles commemorate the establishment in 1918 of the second Polish Republic, created after World War One from parts of what was then Russia, Germany and Austria.

Two years ago, the march was dotted with racist banners, some of them reading "Pure blood, clear mind" or "Europe will be white or uninhabited".

Before PiS came to power, scuffles between participants and police were not uncommon, but in recent years, more families with children have joined.

On Monday, some wore stickers saying "Stop 447", in a protest against a US&nbsp;law on the restitution of Jewish property seized during or after World War Two, an issue increasingly featuring in public debate in Poland.

The US&nbsp;Department of State is expected to provide a nonbinding report to Congress later this year on property restitution, under legislation known as the Justice for Uncompensated Survivors Today (JUST) Act, or Act 447.

Poland was home to one of the world's biggest Jewish communities before it was almost entirely wiped out by Nazi German occupiers who set up death camps such as Auschwitz on Polish soil.

Another far-right march, in the southwestern city of Wroclaw, was ended by city authorities due to racist remarks 25 minutes after it had begun.

"The march was dissolved (...) due to hate-speech (anti-Semitism) and the use of pyrotechnics," the vice-president of the Wroclaw City Council, Bartlomiej Ciazynski, wrote on Facebook, adding that several hundred people took part in the march.

According to Poland's state news agency PAP, the police used water cannons to disperse the participants of the march.

Tens of thousands of Poles took part in a far-right march in the capital Warsaw on Monday to mark Polish independence, an annual event that has become a focus of friction between nationalists and liberals.

Tens of thousands of Poles took part in a far-right march in the capital Warsaw on Monday to mark Polish independence, an annual event that has become a focus of friction between nationalists and liberals. Some chanted "God, honour, homeland!" and "No to the European Union!" and waved red-and-white Polish flags. Others lit red flares, blanketing sections of the parade with smoke. "We have to return to our roots. Our world has abandoned God and Christianity," Robert Bakiewicz, head of a group organising the march, told participants in central Warsaw. "We will die as the nations of western Europe are dying." A small group of hardline Italian far-right group Forza Nuova members also took part, waving flags. Poland has become increasingly polarised since the nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party came to power in 2015, calling for a revival of patriotic and Roman Catholic values in public life and a rejection of Western liberalism. Critics say PiS, which won a second term last month with 44 per cent of the vote, has tacitly encouraged groups with roots in the fascist and anti-Semitic movements of the 1930s that organised the march, although the party denies this. Last year, on the centenary of Polish independence, government officials and President Andrzej Duda, an ally of the PiS, agreed to hold a joint event with the annual march organisers, but walked at a distance, away from any overt displays of nationalism. This year, PiS held its own, separate events. "Our nation has a mission and it has to fulfil it," PiS leader Jaroslaw Kaczynski said on Sunday. "Our mission is to sustain everything that's a foundation of our Christian civilisation. "We will walk this path, and if it's done in a thoughtful way, it will bring us to victory." On November 11, Poles commemorate the establishment in 1918 of the second Polish Republic, created after World War One from parts of what was then Russia, Germany and Austria. Two years ago, the march was dotted with racist banners, some of them reading "Pure blood, clear mind" or "Europe will be white or uninhabited". Before PiS came to power, scuffles between participants and police were not uncommon, but in recent years, more families with children have joined. On Monday, some wore stickers saying "Stop 447", in a protest against a US law on the restitution of Jewish property seized during or after World War Two, an issue increasingly featuring in public debate in Poland. The US Department of State is expected to provide a nonbinding report to Congress later this year on property restitution, under legislation known as the Justice for Uncompensated Survivors Today (JUST) Act, or Act 447. Poland was home to one of the world's biggest Jewish communities before it was almost entirely wiped out by Nazi German occupiers who set up death camps such as Auschwitz on Polish soil. Another far-right march, in the southwestern city of Wroclaw, was ended by city authorities due to racist remarks 25 minutes after it had begun. "The march was dissolved (...) due to hate-speech (anti-Semitism) and the use of pyrotechnics," the vice-president of the Wroclaw City Council, Bartlomiej Ciazynski, wrote on Facebook, adding that several hundred people took part in the march. According to Poland's state news agency PAP, the police used water cannons to disperse the participants of the march.

Polish far-right groups march on independence anniversary

Warsaw and Washington have agreed on six locations for new US troops to be stationed in Poland, the country's Defence Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said on Friday, a day after Donald Trump cancelled a trip to the eastern European nation.

Trump called off his weekend trip due to a <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/hurricane-dorian-gains-strength-as-florida-braces-for-direct-hit-246598">hurricane bearing down on Florida</a>, with US&nbsp;Vice President Mike Pence to take his place at events in Poland to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the start of World War Two.

"We have agreed on six locations, we talked about a seventh location," Blaszczak said later at a joint news conference with US&nbsp;National Security Adviser John Bolton, who has come to Poland for the anniversary.

In June, Poland signed a deal to increase the American military presence on its soil to counter Russia's growing assertiveness since its 2014 annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.

Poland has a border in the northeast with the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad, where Moscow has deployed advanced nuclear-capable Iskander missiles.

The military deal signed in June will increase the number of non-permanent US&nbsp;troops in Poland by 1,000. There are on average about 4,500 US&nbsp;troops in Poland on rotation as part of NATO forces.

"Poland has been an outstanding partner of the US&nbsp;and NATO, spending more than 2% of GDP on defence," Bolton told the conference. He added that Trump's visit will be rescheduled as soon as possible.

Apart from declarations about military cooperation, some analysts had expected Trump to comment on energy and technology cooperation, and possibly on easing US&nbsp;visa requirements for Poles.

An aide to Polish President Andrzej Duda said on Thursday that Trump may visit in the coming months.

"Probably some part of the declarations, which only the US&nbsp;president can make, will be delayed (...) and probably some of the declarations will wait for his visit to Warsaw," minister at Polish president's chancellery Krzysztof Szczerski told public radio.

He did not reply directly to questions about relaxing the visa regime, saying only that there are talks about Polish-US "cooperation".

Warsaw and Washington have agreed on six locations for new US troops to be stationed in Poland, the country's Defence Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said on Friday, a day after Donald Trump cancelled a trip to the eastern European nation.

Warsaw and Washington have agreed on six locations for new US troops to be stationed in Poland, the country's Defence Minister Mariusz Blaszczak said on Friday, a day after Donald Trump cancelled a trip to the eastern European nation. Trump called off his weekend trip due to a hurricane bearing down on Florida, with US Vice President Mike Pence to take his place at events in Poland to commemorate the 80th anniversary of the start of World War Two. "We have agreed on six locations, we talked about a seventh location," Blaszczak said later at a joint news conference with US National Security Adviser John Bolton, who has come to Poland for the anniversary. In June, Poland signed a deal to increase the American military presence on its soil to counter Russia's growing assertiveness since its 2014 annexation of Crimea from Ukraine. Poland has a border in the northeast with the Russian enclave of Kaliningrad, where Moscow has deployed advanced nuclear-capable Iskander missiles. The military deal signed in June will increase the number of non-permanent US troops in Poland by 1,000. There are on average about 4,500 US troops in Poland on rotation as part of NATO forces. "Poland has been an outstanding partner of the US and NATO, spending more than 2% of GDP on defence," Bolton told the conference. He added that Trump's visit will be rescheduled as soon as possible. Apart from declarations about military cooperation, some analysts had expected Trump to comment on energy and technology cooperation, and possibly on easing US visa requirements for Poles. An aide to Polish President Andrzej Duda said on Thursday that Trump may visit in the coming months. "Probably some part of the declarations, which only the US president can make, will be delayed (...) and probably some of the declarations will wait for his visit to Warsaw," minister at Polish president's chancellery Krzysztof Szczerski told public radio. He did not reply directly to questions about relaxing the visa regime, saying only that there are talks about Polish-US "cooperation".

Warsaw, Washington agree on locations for new US troops in Poland: Defence minister

Poland's&nbsp;parliament&nbsp;speaker, Marek Kuchcinski, said on Thursday he would resign after it was revealed that he used government aircraft for&nbsp;private&nbsp;trips by family members.

With elections set for October, the&nbsp;scandal&nbsp;has embarrassed the ruling right-wing nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party, which has said it is cleaning up an alleged legacy of graft and communist influence tolerated by previous governments.

"I plan to submit my resignation tomorrow," Kuchcinski told a news conference, three days after he apologized for using government Gulfstream jet for 23&nbsp;flights&nbsp;with his family.

Political analysts said that until Thursday the PiS had adopted a wait and see approach, hoping the&nbsp;scandal&nbsp;would die off&nbsp;amidst the summer holiday lull.

But after the Polish media published further details of the&nbsp;flights&nbsp;and pointed to discrepancies in explanations by Kuchcinski and the government, the potential damage became too serious to gloss over. 
A poll published by Super Express tabloid on Thursday showed that almost two-third of Poles wanted Kuchcinski to resign.

A survey taken by IBRiS pollster before the&nbsp;scandal&nbsp;broke gave PiS 41.7per cent if elections were held now, with the main opposition bloc, the centrist Civic Platform, at 25 per cent and a group of leftist parties at 10.2per cent.

Poland's parliament speaker, Marek Kuchcinski, said on Thursday he would resign after it was revealed that he used government aircraft for private trips by family members.

Poland's parliament speaker, Marek Kuchcinski, said on Thursday he would resign after it was revealed that he used government aircraft for private trips by family members. With elections set for October, the scandal has embarrassed the ruling right-wing nationalist Law and Justice (PiS) party, which has said it is cleaning up an alleged legacy of graft and communist influence tolerated by previous governments. "I plan to submit my resignation tomorrow," Kuchcinski told a news conference, three days after he apologized for using government Gulfstream jet for 23 flights with his family. Political analysts said that until Thursday the PiS had adopted a wait and see approach, hoping the scandal would die off amidst the summer holiday lull. But after the Polish media published further details of the flights and pointed to discrepancies in explanations by Kuchcinski and the government, the potential damage became too serious to gloss over. A poll published by Super Express tabloid on Thursday showed that almost two-third of Poles wanted Kuchcinski to resign. A survey taken by IBRiS pollster before the scandal broke gave PiS 41.7per cent if elections were held now, with the main opposition bloc, the centrist Civic Platform, at 25 per cent and a group of leftist parties at 10.2per cent.

Poland's parliament speaker resigns amid private flights scandal

Polish firefighters have worked overnight to put out a huge blaze that broke out on the upper floors of a high-rise building under construction in downtown Warsaw.

Blaze engulfs upper floors of Warsaw high-rise

The German, French and Polish foreign ministers vowed today to increase ties between their countries when Britain leaves the EU to secure a safer and more effective union. 
 
&quot;Confronted by unparallelled challenges in Europe (we must) intensify cooperation and create a new drive,&quot; Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Jean-Marc Ayrault and Witold Waszczykowski said in a joint statement. 
 
They were gathered in the eastern German town of Weimar to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the &quot;Weimar Triangle&quot; political forum. 
 
They vowed to &quot;reinforce the foundations of European integration for a more flexible EU that reflects the different ambitions of member states regarding increased integration&quot; once Britain had left the bloc. 
 
Talks between the 27 EU nations remaining in the bloc are likely to be challenging, as Berlin&#39;s preferred vision of a centralised, federal Europe clashes with proposals for a confederation of nation states popular among leaders of eastern EU members. 
 
The three foreign ministers gathered in Weimar also called for the bloc&#39;s combined foreign and security policies to be strengthened with the creation of an annual European Security Council meeting of EU heads of government. 
 
Their comments came as German Chancellor Angela Merkel said today that the refusal of some EU countries to accept Muslim refugees is &quot;unacceptable&quot; and called for quotas to divide the influx throughout the bloc. 
 
&quot;We know that there is no simple answer to these challenges, but we are determined to confront them together in a spirit of renewed mutual confidence,&quot; said the ministers&#39; statement. 
 
The Weimar Triangle, created in 1991, is a consultative body that promotes cooperation and common interests between the three EU states.&nbsp; 
 
(AFP)

The countries vowed to 'reinforce the foundations of European integration' for a more flexible EU

The German, French and Polish foreign ministers vowed today to increase ties between their countries when Britain leaves the EU to secure a safer and more effective union. "Confronted by unparallelled challenges in Europe (we must) intensify cooperation and create a new drive," Frank-Walter Steinmeier, Jean-Marc Ayrault and Witold Waszczykowski said in a joint statement. They were gathered in the eastern German town of Weimar to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the "Weimar Triangle" political forum. They vowed to "reinforce the foundations of European integration for a more flexible EU that reflects the different ambitions of member states regarding increased integration" once Britain had left the bloc. Talks between the 27 EU nations remaining in the bloc are likely to be challenging, as Berlin's preferred vision of a centralised, federal Europe clashes with proposals for a confederation of nation states popular among leaders of eastern EU members. The three foreign ministers gathered in Weimar also called for the bloc's combined foreign and security policies to be strengthened with the creation of an annual European Security Council meeting of EU heads of government. Their comments came as German Chancellor Angela Merkel said today that the refusal of some EU countries to accept Muslim refugees is "unacceptable" and called for quotas to divide the influx throughout the bloc. "We know that there is no simple answer to these challenges, but we are determined to confront them together in a spirit of renewed mutual confidence," said the ministers' statement. The Weimar Triangle, created in 1991, is a consultative body that promotes cooperation and common interests between the three EU states. (AFP)

Germany, Paris, Warsaw call for closer ties post-Brexit

Australia will pay an extra $300 million to help develop Afghanistan&#39;s security forces, the government said on Friday ahead of a NATO leaders&#39; summit in Warsaw, where tenuous security in Afghanistan will be a central discussion topic. 
 
Australia, a firm US ally in its wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, had originally pledged $500 million from 2010-2017 but will now provide an extra $100 million annually until 2020. 
 
The announcement of extra funding came two days after US President Barack Obama said he had decided to postpone plans to cut the number of US forces in Afghanistan almost in half by the end of the year, instead keeping 8,400 troops there from January. 
 
There are also another 3,000 international troops serving in the NATO-led mission in Afghanistan. 
 
Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull visited Kabul in January, and the Australian Defence Force announced two months later its troops would remain there for at least another three years. About 270 Australian troops are serving in the NATO-led force. 
 
No senior Australian government members will attend the Warsaw summit, with a cliffhanger nation election a week ago still without a clear result. 
 
The $100 million annual commitment comprises an $80 million contribution to the Afghan National Army and $20 million for the Afghan police. 
 
(Reuters)&nbsp;

The announcement came two days after US President said he had decided to postpone plans to cut the number of US forces in Afghanistan

Australia will pay an extra $300 million to help develop Afghanistan's security forces, the government said on Friday ahead of a NATO leaders' summit in Warsaw, where tenuous security in Afghanistan will be a central discussion topic. Australia, a firm US ally in its wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, had originally pledged $500 million from 2010-2017 but will now provide an extra $100 million annually until 2020. The announcement of extra funding came two days after US President Barack Obama said he had decided to postpone plans to cut the number of US forces in Afghanistan almost in half by the end of the year, instead keeping 8,400 troops there from January. There are also another 3,000 international troops serving in the NATO-led mission in Afghanistan. Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull visited Kabul in January, and the Australian Defence Force announced two months later its troops would remain there for at least another three years. About 270 Australian troops are serving in the NATO-led force. No senior Australian government members will attend the Warsaw summit, with a cliffhanger nation election a week ago still without a clear result. The $100 million annual commitment comprises an $80 million contribution to the Afghan National Army and $20 million for the Afghan police. (Reuters)

Ahead of NATO summit, Australia pledges extra $300 million for Afghan security forces

Future gravitational wave detectors are going to be busy as a beaver, if a team of astronomers engaged in a latest study are to be believed.&nbsp; 
 
Presenting one of the most complete models of matter in the universe, the new study, led by Krzysztof Belczynski from the Warsaw University, predicts hundreds of massive black hole mergers each year observable with the second generation of gravitational wave detectors.The model anticipated the massive black holes observed by the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory.&nbsp; 
 
The two colliding masses created the first directly detected gravitational waves and confirmed Einstein`s general theory of relativity. 
 
&quot;The universe isn`t the same everywhere,&quot; points out co-author Richard O`Shaughnessy, adding &quot;Some places produce many more binary black holes than others. Our study takes these differences into careful account.&quot; Massive stars that collapse upon themselves and end their lives as black holes, like the pair LIGO detected, are extremely rare, O`Shaughnessy said.&nbsp; 
 
These are less evolved, &quot;more primitive stars,&quot; that occur in special configurations in the universe. These stars from the early universe are made of more pristine hydrogen, a gas which makes them &quot;Titans among stars,&quot; at 40 to 100 solar masses. In contrast, younger generations of stars consumed the corpses of their predecessors containing heavy elements, which stunted their growth.&quot;Because LIGO is so much more sensitive to these heavy black holes, these regions of pristine gas that make heavy black holes are extremely important,&quot; O`Shaughnessy notes.&nbsp; 
 
O`Shaughnessy and his colleagues predict that massive black holes like these spin in a stable way, with orbits that remain in the same plane.&quot;These rare regions act like factories for building identifiable pairs of black holes,&rdquo; he asserts.&nbsp; 
 
The model shows that the alignment of these massive black holes is impervious to the tiny kick that follows the stars` core collapse. The same kick can change the alignment of smaller black holes and rock their orbital plane.The calculations are the most detailed calculations of its kind ever performed, O`Shaughnessy said. He likens the model to a laboratory for assessing future prospects for gravitational wave astronomy. Other gravitational wave astronomers are now using the model in their own investigations as well.&nbsp; 
 
(ANI)

These are less evolved, 'more primitive stars', that occur in special configurations in the universe.

Future gravitational wave detectors are going to be busy as a beaver, if a team of astronomers engaged in a latest study are to be believed. Presenting one of the most complete models of matter in the universe, the new study, led by Krzysztof Belczynski from the Warsaw University, predicts hundreds of massive black hole mergers each year observable with the second generation of gravitational wave detectors.The model anticipated the massive black holes observed by the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory. The two colliding masses created the first directly detected gravitational waves and confirmed Einstein`s general theory of relativity. "The universe isn`t the same everywhere," points out co-author Richard O`Shaughnessy, adding "Some places produce many more binary black holes than others. Our study takes these differences into careful account." Massive stars that collapse upon themselves and end their lives as black holes, like the pair LIGO detected, are extremely rare, O`Shaughnessy said. These are less evolved, "more primitive stars," that occur in special configurations in the universe. These stars from the early universe are made of more pristine hydrogen, a gas which makes them "Titans among stars," at 40 to 100 solar masses. In contrast, younger generations of stars consumed the corpses of their predecessors containing heavy elements, which stunted their growth."Because LIGO is so much more sensitive to these heavy black holes, these regions of pristine gas that make heavy black holes are extremely important," O`Shaughnessy notes. O`Shaughnessy and his colleagues predict that massive black holes like these spin in a stable way, with orbits that remain in the same plane."These rare regions act like factories for building identifiable pairs of black holes,” he asserts. The model shows that the alignment of these massive black holes is impervious to the tiny kick that follows the stars` core collapse. The same kick can change the alignment of smaller black holes and rock their orbital plane.The calculations are the most detailed calculations of its kind ever performed, O`Shaughnessy said. He likens the model to a laboratory for assessing future prospects for gravitational wave astronomy. Other gravitational wave astronomers are now using the model in their own investigations as well. (ANI)

Massive stars that end their lives as black holes are extremely rare: Study

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