Goya's hill saved from developers

Environmentalists battling to save a popular green ridge in old Madrid depicted in Francisco de Goya's painting La Pradera de San Isidro have won a reprieve from development.

The slope, known as the San Francisco cornisa, looked about to join the concrete jungle last year, when Madrid's city hall gave permission to the Catholic Church to build a vast complex there. The regional high court has ruled that the plan violates land-use laws for historic properties. The deputy mayor, Manuel Cobo, has vowed to appeal.