Cyprus is boosting funding for tourism, boosting wages in hotels and accomodation to encourage the sector to open up early, despite the Middle East conflict. The government is going to cover 30% of staff wages in hotels and tourist accommodation in April as an incentive for properties to open their doors.

"For a brief instant, I simply stood there, stunned. Then instinct took over".

A humpback whale stranded on Germany's Baltic Sea coast freed itself overnight after days of rescue efforts, biologist Robert Marc Lehmann said on Friday. The whale had been stuck in shallow waters off Timmendorfer Strand since early on Monday, drawing heavy media attention.