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Queen Camilla Celebrates Anniversary with Italian Pizza and Ice Cream

Britain's Queen Camilla receives an ice cream as she leaves the Italian Lower House, where King Charles III addressed a joint session of the Italian Parliament during a special ceremony in front of both Chambers of the Italian Parliament, during their state visit to Italy, in Rome, Italy, 09 April 2025. (EPA)
Britain's Queen Camilla receives an ice cream as she leaves the Italian Lower House, where King Charles III addressed a joint session of the Italian Parliament during a special ceremony in front of both Chambers of the Italian Parliament, during their state visit to Italy, in Rome, Italy, 09 April 2025. (EPA)
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Queen Camilla Celebrates Anniversary with Italian Pizza and Ice Cream

Britain's Queen Camilla receives an ice cream as she leaves the Italian Lower House, where King Charles III addressed a joint session of the Italian Parliament during a special ceremony in front of both Chambers of the Italian Parliament, during their state visit to Italy, in Rome, Italy, 09 April 2025. (EPA)
Britain's Queen Camilla receives an ice cream as she leaves the Italian Lower House, where King Charles III addressed a joint session of the Italian Parliament during a special ceremony in front of both Chambers of the Italian Parliament, during their state visit to Italy, in Rome, Italy, 09 April 2025. (EPA)

Italians offered pizza and ice cream to Britain's Queen Camilla to help celebrate the 20th anniversary of her wedding to King Charles during a state visit to Italy on Wednesday.

Camilla and Charles walked to the renowned Giolitti cafe in central Rome where the queen sampled an ice cream from a paper cup after the king had made a historic speech to the nearby Italian parliament.

Camilla had earlier been presented with a boxed pizza after attending an event at a school in Rome.

More formal dining will be on the agenda on Wednesday evening when Italian President Sergio Mattarella hosts a banquet for the royal couple at the Quirinale Palace.

Charles told parliament that Britain had been heavily influenced by Italian cooking. "I can only hope you will forgive us for occasionally corrupting your wonderful cuisine. We do so with the greatest possible affection," he said, to loud laughter.

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Varieties

Saudi Arabia: King Abdulaziz Royal Reserve Plants 10,000 Native Trees to Combat Desertification

The project engaged 300 volunteers from government agencies and educational institutions to rehabilitate local ecosystems. SPA
The project engaged 300 volunteers from government agencies and educational institutions to rehabilitate local ecosystems. SPA
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Saudi Arabia: King Abdulaziz Royal Reserve Plants 10,000 Native Trees to Combat Desertification

The project engaged 300 volunteers from government agencies and educational institutions to rehabilitate local ecosystems. SPA
The project engaged 300 volunteers from government agencies and educational institutions to rehabilitate local ecosystems. SPA

The King Abdulaziz Royal Reserve Development Authority, in partnership with the Green Dahna Association, has launched an initiative to plant 10,000 Arta trees in the Al-Dahna sands.

The project engaged 300 volunteers from government agencies and educational institutions to rehabilitate local ecosystems and promote a culture of environmental stewardship.

Chosen for its high adaptability to harsh desert climates and its effectiveness in soil stabilization, the Arta tree serves as a strategic investment in biodiversity and desertification control.

Authority CEO Maher AlGothmi‏ highlighted that this collaboration exemplifies the institutional integration required to meet Saudi Green Initiative and Vision 2030 goals, ensuring the sustainability of natural resources for future generations through research and community engagement.

Varieties

Hello Kitty Designer Bows Out After 40 Years in Charge 

A participant dressed as Hello Kitty throws beans during the annual Setsubun ceremony to celebrate the upcoming arrival of spring. (Reuters)
A participant dressed as Hello Kitty throws beans during the annual Setsubun ceremony to celebrate the upcoming arrival of spring. (Reuters)
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Hello Kitty Designer Bows Out After 40 Years in Charge 

A participant dressed as Hello Kitty throws beans during the annual Setsubun ceremony to celebrate the upcoming arrival of spring. (Reuters)
A participant dressed as Hello Kitty throws beans during the annual Setsubun ceremony to celebrate the upcoming arrival of spring. (Reuters)

The flamboyant designer behind Hello Kitty -- the cute Japanese character that became a global mega brand -- is stepping down after more than four decades in charge of her look.

Yuko Yamaguchi has been responsible since 1980 for the design of Kitty, who is officially not a cat but a little girl from London, overseeing her rise to the epitome of Japan's "kawaii" -- cute -- soft power.

But now Yamaguchi, who often wore Kitty-style dresses in public and piled her hair in buns -- has "passed the baton to the next generation", Sanrio, the company behind the character, said on its website Tuesday.

The company said new designer "Aya" -- a pseudonym -- was due to start by the end of 2026.

Yamaguchi "listened to the voices of fans, actively collaborated with artists and designers from Japan and abroad and has grown Hello Kitty into a character loved by everyone", Sanrio said, as it thanked her for her work.

Hello Kitty started life as an illustration on a vinyl coin purse.

It has since appeared on tens of thousands of products -- everything from handbags to rice cookers -- and has secured lucrative tie-ups with Adidas, Balenciaga and other top brands.

The phenomenon shows no sign of slowing, with a Warner Bros movie in the pipeline and a new Hello Kitty theme park due to open next year on China's tropical Hainan island.

Unlike other Japanese cultural exports such as Pokemon or Dragon Ball, there is minimal narrative around the character, whose full name is Kitty White.

She has a twin sister Mimmy, a boyfriend called Dear Daniel, and a pet cat of her own, Sanrio says. She loves her mother's apple pie and dreams of becoming a pianist or poet.

Varieties

Storm Aftermath Leaves 2 Dead in France; Flood Alerts to Remain Saturday 

A man walks along a flooded street of Saint-Germain de Confolens as severe flooding hits western France amid storm Nils, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026. (AP)
A man walks along a flooded street of Saint-Germain de Confolens as severe flooding hits western France amid storm Nils, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026. (AP)
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Storm Aftermath Leaves 2 Dead in France; Flood Alerts to Remain Saturday 

A man walks along a flooded street of Saint-Germain de Confolens as severe flooding hits western France amid storm Nils, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026. (AP)
A man walks along a flooded street of Saint-Germain de Confolens as severe flooding hits western France amid storm Nils, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026. (AP)

The aftermath of a deadly storm continued to disrupt parts of France on Friday, with flooding concerns persisting in the southwest even as wind alerts were lifted, according to weather service Météo-France. 

Government spokesperson Maud Bregeon said on TF1 that France had recorded two deaths linked to Storm Nils: one on Thursday in the Landes department and a second “in the last hours” in Tarn-et-Garonne. 

She said the second victim was a man who was found in his garden. 

Network operator Enedis said the storm left up to 900,000 customers without power at its peak; by Friday morning it had restored service to about half of those affected and mobilized 3,000 personnel, including 2,100 technicians. 

Flood vigilance remained high. Météo-France maintained red flood alerts for Gironde and Lot-et-Garonne — to remain in place Saturday — due to a significant Garonne River flood episode. 

Météo-France said the storm had “uncommon strength” and swept in from France’s western seaboard overnight Wednesday into Thursday and has now moved on tracking east into Europe.