Berlin, Germany | AFP | Berlin could shut out diesel drivers from major arterial roads next year, after a court Tuesday ordered the German capital to follow in the footsteps of Hamburg, Frankfurt and Stuttgart with exclusion zones. A renewed focus on air quality in the wake of Volkswagen’s 2015 …
Read More »Gunmen kidnap German nurse in Somalia capital
Mogadishu, Somalia | AFP | Armed men abducted a German nurse working for the International Committee of the Red Cross on Wednesday evening from a compound in Somalia’s capital Mogadishu, the aid group said Thursday. “We are deeply concerned about the safety of our colleague,” said Daniel O’Malley, ICRC’s deputy …
Read More »Marx at 200: Germany torn over revolutionary’s legacy
Trier, Germany | AFP | As Germany prepares to mark Karl Marx’s 200th birth anniversary, the revolutionary philosopher’s legacy remains divisive more than a quarter century after the fall of the Berlin Wall. With scars from the Cold War still fresh, people from capitalist former West Germany and the once …
Read More »STUDY: Dogs do resemble their owners
Dogs really do resemble their owners – but not in the way you’d expect Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | It turns out that dogs really do resemble their owners. Genes from the dog gut ‘microbiome’ – the community of vital bacteria that support digestion and metabolism – show many …
Read More »Merkel heads for tough Trump talks on trade, Iran nuclear deal
Berlin, Germany | AFP | German Chancellor Angela Merkel visits US President Donald Trump on Friday for a last-ditch European effort to prevent a transatlantic trade war and save the Iran nuclear deal. Merkel’s working trip is expected to be far more business-like than this week’s pomp-filled state visit by French …
Read More »Merkel denounces new anti-Semitism from Arab refugees
Jerusalem, Undefined | AFP | German Chancellor Angela Merkel denounced the emergence of “another form of anti-Semitism” from refugees of Arab origin in Germany, in an interview with Israeli television broadcast on Sunday. “We have a new phenomenon, as we have many refugees among whom there are, for example, people …
Read More »First Azulato Children’s Festival set for May
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | The Ugandan German Cultural Society has organised a children’s festival May 6th, one of several educational projects aimed at strengthening and promoting the growth of local art and the bilateral co-operation between the people of Uganda and Germany. The Azulato Children’s Festival takes place for the first …
Read More »Facebook takes out ads to tout new EU data protection law
2447, Germany | AFP | Facebook took out full-page ads in European newspapers Monday to trumpet tough new EU legislation that promises “more data protection for you”, as the company seeks to win back trust following a damaging privacy scandal. The new law, set to come into effect on May …
Read More »World Cup hopefuls Spain crush Argentina, Brazil edge Germany
Paris, France | AFP | Isco scored a hat-trick as Spain hammered an Argentina side without Lionel Messi 6-1 in a friendly on Tuesday, while Brazil defeated Germany 1-0 in their first meeting since the 2014 World Cup. Gareth Southgate’s England were denied victory over Italy at Wembley after the …
Read More »Hosting Merkel, Macron gets chance to push EU business
Paris, France | AFP | Having finally secured her fourth term as Germany’s chancellor, Angela Merkel heads to France on Friday for talks with President Emmanuel Macron, who is eager to push ahead with EU overhauls. Macron has called for a major reform drive to reinvigorate the European Union at …
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