‘I can’t go on anymore’: Mazón resigns as Valencia leader and acknowledges mistakes during deadly 2024 floods – as it happened

… and on that note, it’s a wrap!

• Carlos Mazón, the embattled president of the eastern Spanish region of Valencia, has bowed to public fury and political pressure by resigning over his botched handling of the deadly floods that killed 229 people in the area just over a year ago (9:45).

• Resigning his post, Mazón said “I can’t go on any more” as he lamented “brutal” criticism he faced, while “acknowledging” mistakes made in an “unprecedented” situation (9:50)

• But campaigners for victims of the flood criticised his speech as “painful, indignant,” and accused him of making himself out to be the victim (11:35), and called for more protests tonight (12:24).

Separately,

• Andrej Babiš, the billionaire populist whose party won last month’s Czech election, has presented his three-party, right-wing coalition today amid deepening controversy over a ministerial pick that could derail the government even before it even takes office (13:13).

• Belgium’s defence minister says its military has spotted drones over a base for the third night in a row (15:21).

• Germany’s foreign minister, Johann Wadephul of the co-ruling Christian Democrats (CDU), made waves with comments signalling a softer position on returns of Syrians who arrived during the 2015-16 influx than espoused by much of the government (13:06).

• A centuries-old tower near the Colosseum in Rome has partially collapsed this morning, injuring workers working on its restoration (15:18).

• Latvian president has sent back to parliament the draft law on withdrawing from the Council of Europe convention on violence against women (16:22).

And that’s all from me, Jakub Krupa, for today.

If you have any tips, comments or suggestions, email me at jakub.krupa@theguardian.com.

I am also on Bluesky at @jakubkrupa.bsky.social and on X at @jakubkrupa.

Shaun Walker in Warsaw and Deborah Cole in Berlin

Chunky steel pipes run through one of the exhibition rooms at Warsaw’s Museum of Contemporary Art, part of an installation that purports to show “how gas flows, propaganda and conspiracy theories intertwine”.

The exhibit is an artistic nod to Nord Stream 2, the undersea gas pipeline between Russia and Germany, which was completed in 2021 but had not entered service when mysterious underwater explosions took it out of action in September 2022.

The pipeline has caused anger and anxiety in Poland ever since construction began in 2015, serving as a symbol of Germany’s close economic cooperation with Russia, a policy that was abandoned after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

Now, three years after the blast that took Nord Stream 2 and its predecessor Nord Stream 1 out of commission, the ill-fated project is again causing sharp divisions among European allies after Poland refused to extradite a prime suspect in the explosion to Germany earlier this month.

In the aftermath of the ruling, the German government has sought to play down the affair and withheld public comment. “We have taken note of it,” said Stefan Kornelius, chancellor Friedrich Merz’s spokesperson.

Nevertheless, the rejection of the extradition request is highly unusual between EU member states, said Kai Ambos, a law professor at the University of Göttingen, who questioned the “non-legal reasoning and the almost political ingredients” of the judge’s decision.

Latvian president Edgars Rinkēvičs has sent back to parliament the draft law on withdrawing from the Council of Europe convention on violence against women.

The parliament voted to withdraw late last month, arguing the treaty introduces a definition of gender that goes beyond biological sex, framing it as a social construct, Reuters said.

The lawmakers argued that domestic protections in Latvian law were sufficiently tightly drafted, and the withdrawal would not substantially change the legal situation.

But the move was heavily criticised by the country’s prime minister Evika Siliņa, who said she “strongly opposed” the move, and joined protests against the vote.

Rinkēvičs decision will mean that the parliament will have to debate and vote on the proposal again, but it can confirm its earlier decision.

A series of public protests against the push to withdraw from the convention are planned for this Thursday.

Separately, China’s foreign minister has held phone talks with his German counterpart, Beijing’s ministry of foreign affairs has said.

A spokesperson for the German foreign minister Johann Wadephul said they spoke about security, economic policy and other topics of mutual interest.

The ministers agreed that a trip by Wadephul to China that was recently cancelled should be rescheduled soon, the spokesperson said, adding that the Chinese side also reiterated its invitation to German chancellor Friedrich Merz.

The talks come amid increasing concern in Germany that car manufacturer are being held to ransom by China which is restricting exports of chips and rare earths including magnets needed to open car windows and books.

The issue of Taiwan independence was raised by the Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi who said he hoped the Germany would oppose the country’s independence.

“China unconditionally supported German reunification and hopes that Germany, having experienced the pain of division, can fully understand and support China in safeguarding its national sovereignty and territorial integrity and opposing all acts of ‘Taiwan independence,’” the Chinese foreign ministry said.

EU member states have until Friday to report back on the impact of the chip supply crisis caused by a Chinese ban on exports by Nexperia following the controversial takeover of its Netherlands factory by the Dutch government last month.

The move comes as the EU failed to strike a breakthrough during talks between the bloc’s tech commissioner Henna Virkkunen and Nexperia’s interim boss in the Netherlands on Friday.

They were meeting as part of urgent efforts to prevent German, French, Italian, Spanish and Swedish car companies running out of supplies following stark warnings last week they had just “days” left before they would have to halt production.

Separately senior EU officials met with their Chinese counterparts in Brussels on Friday to ease supplies of rare earths which are still strongly restricted by Beijing since export controls were imposed in April.

EU trade spokesperson Olof Gill said on Monday that “engagement” continued to try and “ensure a safe supply of chips” and a “swift and effective solution: on rare earths.”

EU ambassadors will be briefed on Wednesday on the outcome of meetings on Friday.

Belgium’s defence minister says its military has spotted drones over a base for the third night in a row.

In response, authorities deployed a helicopter to the Kleine-Brogel base, which sent the drones flying off towards the Netherlands.

Minister Theo Francken says an investigation has been launched into what he called “a clear mission targeting Kleine Broge”.

Francken told local radio it looked like espionage but he wouldn’t speculate on who might be behind it. “I have some ideas but I’m going to be cautious,” he said.

Drones were also spotted around other military bases – including the Leopoldsburg, in central Limburg province, and Marche-en-Famenne in the south-east, while national broadcaster VRT reported there had been sightings of drones along the coast and at Antwerp’s Deurne airport.

A centuries-old tower near the Colosseum in Rome has partially collapsed this morning, injuring workers working on its restoration.

One worker is believed to still be inside the nearly 100ft Torre dei Conti, local media reported a short while ago, with emergency responders working on getting them out.

Parts of the medieval structure’s facade collapsed just after 11:30am local time, showering rubble onto the street and sending out billowing clouds of dust.

There were at least two collapses, witnesses said, with a second taking place as firefighters sought to retrieve trapped workers.

At least three workers have been evacuated – with one taken to hospital in a critical condition, the firefighters’s service told AFP news agency. He was struck in the head by falling stones.

The 13th century Torre dei Conti, located halfway along the Via del Fori, is in Rome’s historic ancient quarter- near the Imperial Forum.

Both the Rome mayor and Italian culture minister have rushed to the site, which has been cordoned off from the public.

The Dutch GreenLeft-Labor alliance has elected Jesse Klaver as its new leader to succeed Frans Timmermans, the former European Commission vice-president who stepped down after disappointing results in last week’s election.

Klaver, 39, was formerly leader of the left-wing Green party GroenLinks and was Timmermans’ second-in-command.

“Sometimes, leadership means taking a step back,” Klaver was quoted as having said after his appointment earlier today.

“But sometimes you also have to take a step forward when the situation calls for it. That’s what I did today,” he added.

The Dutch liberal-progressive party D66 narrowly won the most votes in Wednesday’s general election, and is set to take the lead in a first round of talks to form a coalition government.

Hundreds of riot police separated opponents and loyalists of Serbia’s autocratic president, Aleksandar Vučić, in central Belgrade on Sunday as political tensions boiled after a year of anti-government protests.

Several thousand people faced off on both sides of the police cordons, with officers in riot gear standing in rows between shouting crowds who threw bottles and flares at each other.

Tensions in Belgrade soared a day after tens of thousands of people joined a huge rally in the northern city of Novi Sad which marked the first anniversary of a train station disaster there that killed 16 people and triggered a youth-led movement demanding political changes, challenging Vučić’s firm grip on power.

The commemoration rally on Saturday in Novi Sad also reflected severe discontent with Vučić’s increasingly authoritarian 13-year rule. Youth-led protesters are demanding an early election they hope will oust the populist government from power.

Protesters believe rampant government corruption and nepotism during renovation work on the Novi Sad station building led to negligence and disregard for construction safety rules, leading to the collapse of the concrete canopy on to the people standing below.

Europe correspondent

Elsewhere, Andrej Babiš, the billionaire populist whose party won last month’s Czech election, presents his three-party, right-wing coalition today amid deepening controversy over a ministerial pick that could derail the government even before it even takes office.

The Czech president, Petr Pavel, last week officially tasked Babiš, whose ANO (Yes) party topped the 3-4 October vote with 34.5% and has 80 MPs in the 200-member parliament, with leading talks to form the new government.

The former prime minister, a polarising figure whose previous 2017-2021 premiership sparked mass protests, has formally signed a coalition agreement with the right-wing Motorists for Themselves and far-right, EU-sceptic SPD just moments ago.

However, a deepening controversy over Babiš’s planned pick for foreign minister, Filip Turek of the Motorists party, could yet throw a spanner in the works, with opposition parties appealing to the president not to confirm the nomination.

Czech media have uncovered a number of openly racist, sexist and homophobic social media posts – since deleted – allegedly made by Turek, an MEP and former racing driver, before he entered politics. The posts are being investigated by police.

He has also been investigated over an image appearing to show him making a Nazi salute, and over allegations by his former partner, who has accused him of abuse. Turek says the allegations are part of a smear campaign and denies all wrongdoing.

The Motorists party leader, Petr Macinka, has threatened to walk away from the coalition government – which would deprive Babiš of his parliamentary majority – if Turek is not appointed foreign minister.

But Pavel, who must confirm all ministerial appointments, has said that if the social media posts are proved to be authentic, Turek would be disqualified from holding a any ministerial office.

The coalition agreement, published in the Czech media on Sunday, anchors the country in Nato and makes no mention of a potential “Czexit”, as proposed by the SPD, but promises a nation-first agenda likely to spark clashes with Brussels.

The document stipulates that the EU “has limits” and should not impose decisions affecting “national sovereignty”. It also envisages closer cooperation with EU disruptors Slovakia and Hungary, and rules out adoption of the euro.

Migration and the environment seem set to be major bones of contention: the new cabinet rejects the EU’s migration and asylum pact, dismisses the Green Deal as “unsustainable”, and calls the planned 2035 phase-out of thermal cars “unattainable”.

Security policy, though, looks more or less unchanged: the incoming cabinet says it will maintain alignment with Nato, take part fully in European air-defence initiatives, and support diplomatic efforts to end the war in Ukraine.