The world at a glance . . . Europe

Amsterdam

New lead in Holloway case: The Dutch boyfriend of missing American teen Natalee Holloway confessed to disposing of her body, on tapes aired this week on Dutch television. Holloway, 18, disappeared in 2005 while on spring break in the Dutch Caribbean island of Aruba. At the time, Joran Van der Sloot was considered a suspect, but investigations were inconclusive. In secret recordings, made by a Dutch investigative TV journalist, Van der Sloot said that a drunken Holloway began shaking and passed out while the two were making out on the beach. He said he didn’t know whether she was alive when a friend of his dragged her body off. Prosecutors in Aruba said the tape is admissible in court, and they are seeking to have Van der Sloot arrested in the Netherlands and transferred to Aruba. “Once people see the video of Joran there are no more questions,” said Holloway’s mother, Beth Twitty. “There is no one who can walk away from this believing that he is innocent.” Van der Sloot says he was lying on the tapes.

Paris

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Rogue trader a hero: The Société Générale trader who allegedly lost his bank $7 billion has become a national hero in France. French blogs portray Jérôme Kerviel, 31, as a working-class boy from the provinces who was just trying extra-hard to succeed in the elitist world of high finance. Kerviel himself bolstered that image in his first interview since his vast losses became known, telling Agence France-Presse that he refused to let Société Générale scapegoat him. “I had no personal ambitions in this affair,” he said. “My aim was to make money for the bank.” Only 13 percent of French people surveyed think Kerviel should be held responsible for the losses.

Barcelona

Racist race fans: Spanish racing fans in blackface shouted racist insults at a black British driver this week during a Formula One race near Barcelona. The Spanish Motor Sports Federation condemned the actions of what it called a few “idiots,” but Britain is asking for a formal apology. “This is not the first time British sportsmen have been racially abused in Spain,” said British Sports Minister Gerry Sutcliffe. “This brings into question whether the Grand Prix should be held at this track.” Spanish soccer fans are notorious for making monkey noises at black soccer players, even those on Spanish teams.

Belgrade, Serbia

Pro-Westerner wins: Serbian President Boris Tadic squeaked out a re-election victory over ultranationalist Tomislav Nikolic this week, in a vote seen as a referendum on Serbia’s future. The province of Kosovo, regarded by nationalists as the core of Serbian identity, is expected to declare independence soon. Nikolic had pledged that if he won, he would retaliate for any European recognition of Kosovar secession by cutting ties with the European Union and turning toward Russia. Tadic, who won with just 50.5 percent of the vote, was one of the democratic leaders who ousted former dictator Slobodan Milosevic in 2000. He favors bringing Serbia into the European Union, presumably with or without Kosovo. “It’s good news that the Serbian people have shown they want to move toward the future, not turn back to the past,” said Kosovo’s Prime Minister Hashim Thaci.

Paris

It’s official: French President Nicolas Sarkozy married ex-supermodel Carla Bruni at the presidential residence last week, after a whirlwind and very public romance. Sarkozy, who was elected last May, has seen his poll numbers plummet since he began dating Bruni, whom he met at a party in November just a month after his divorce from his second wife, Cecilia. French critics have complained that Sarkozy has been flaunting his private life in an unseemly way. Now that he’s married, those criticisms should fade. British papers speculated that Sarkozy wanted to make the relationship legal before traveling with Bruni on an upcoming state visit to Britain, to spare Queen Elizabeth the embarrassment of hosting an unmarried couple.

Turin, Italy

Deadly sledding: A British man was killed this week while sliding down an Italian mountain at night on a rubber mat. David Monk, 46, and two friends had been drinking at Sauze d’Oulx, a ski resort popular among partiers, when they decided to take rubber matting from a safety barrier and hit the slopes. Monk was killed when he crashed into the now-matless barrier; the other two men were injured.