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Scientists turned art detectives date van Gogh's 'Starry Night' to actual night sky in 1889

A team of South Korean researchers has put forward a new date for the night sky depicted in Dutch painter Vincent van Gogh's famed masterpiece "The Starry Night". Art historians have long assumed the stars were a product of the artist's fantasy or dated the scene to June 1889 based on the artist's known location and other factors, but astronomical details like the sliver crescent moon didn't line up. 

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‘No change’ in Russia’s attitude on war shown by deadly attacks, Zelensky says

Russia’s latest attacks on Ukraine show there has been “no real change” in Moscow’s attitude towards the war, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said Thursday. The deadly strikes came just hours after Russian President Vladimir Putin told US envoy Steve Witkoff his country was ready to resume trilateral talks with Washington and Kyiv.

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France bans or curbs protests in bid to prevent new weekend unrest

French authorities have banned or curbed protests across the country ahead of the weekend in a bid to prevent another wave of the violence and looting that plagued last week’s demonstrations. In Paris alone, hundreds of shops and other small businesses were destroyed on the sidelines of the protests over the cost of living and education funding shortfalls. 

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France reports first human case of Shamonda virus, but says there's no public health risk

France has reported the first-ever recorded case of a human contracting the Shamonda livestock virus, which is most commonly found in cattle. Public health authorities stressed that there did not appear to be any health risk to the public, adding that the infection had been "an exceptional case" involving a person with a severely compromised immune system.

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Russia and Ukraine trade strikes overnight as Moscow signals readiness for peace talks

Russia and Ukraine traded major drone and missile strikes on each other's capitals overnight, hours after Moscow signalled readiness to resume US-mediated peace talks. President Donald Trump said negotiations were closer than ever to ending the war, though the Kremlin expressed doubts over Ukrainian and European proposals.

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Ireland votes to end UN approval requirement for overseas peacekeeping missions

Irish lawmakers voted Wednesday to scrap a requirement for UN approval before deploying military peacekeepers overseas, approving the controversial legislation by 79 votes to 71. Opposition lawmakers warned the move threatened Ireland’s longstanding military neutrality. Ireland is not a NATO member but has traditionally participated in international peacekeeping missions.

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Real Madrid thrash RB Leipzig as Mbappé scores in Champions League win

Real Madrid thrashed RB Leipzig 4-1 on Wednesday to secure their third consecutive Champions League victory. Bernardo Silva, Arda Guler, Kylian Mbappé and Yan Diomande scored for Jose Mourinho’s side, while Tidiam Gomis replied for Leipzig. Mbappé has scored in all three European matches this season, taking his tally to 12 goals.

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