Category Archives: Germany

Germany’s first black African-born MP to stand down after racist abuse

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Karamba Diaby’s announcement he wants to spend time with family comes after bullet and arson attacks on his office

The first black African-born MP to enter the German parliament has announced he will not be standing in next year’s federal election, weeks after he revealed the hate mail, including racist slurs and death threats, he and his staff had received.

Karamba Diaby, 62, who entered the Bundestag in 2013 in a moment hailed as historic by equality campaigners, said he wanted to spend more time with his family and to make room for younger politicians.

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German parliament set to impose tougher fines on unruly politicians

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Revised rules expected to be passed that will increase financial penalties after a rise in antisocial outbursts

Germany’s parliament is set to toughen up its fines for politicians who interrupt sessions with insults and rowdy behaviour, after a rise in what have been described as antisocial outbursts in the chamber.

Under the football match “yellow card, red card” principle, “provocative MPs and notorious recidivists” will in future receive “more effective punishments”, according to Bärbel Bas, the president of the Bundestag. She said particular attention would be paid to repeat offenders.

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Protesters clash with police at start of far-right AfD congress in Essen

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Party summit expected to draw 80,000 demonstrators as German police are stretched by Euro 2024

Clashes between hooded demonstrators and police marked the start of a party congress of Germany’s far-right Alternative für Deutschland (AfD), weeks after it scored record EU election results despite multiple scandals.

About 1,000 police were deployed in the western city of Essen as about 600 delegates began a two-day meeting, with authorities expecting up to 80,000 people to join demonstrations.

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‘We cannot deny history again’: Brazil floods show how German migration silenced Black and Indigenous stories

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The promotion of European immigration was linked to the idea of ‘whitening the Brazilian population’, say historians

Dominga Menezes was only 12 years old when she danced for a dictator.

It was 25 July 1974, and São Leopoldo, a medium-sized city in Brazil’s southernmost state, Rio Grande do Sul, was celebrating both the anniversary of its founding and 150 years of German immigration to Brazil.

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Einstein letter warning FDR of threat of Nazi nuclear bomb set to fetch $4m

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Two-page letter written by physicist and fellow scientist, for sale at Christie’s, urged US government to invest in research

A two-page letter written by Albert Einstein warning Franklin D Roosevelt – then the president of the US – that Nazi Germany might harness nuclear research to invent an atomic bomb is going up for sale at Christie’s auctioneers in September with an estimate value of $4m.

Einstein’s letter – one of two the theoretical physicist drafted in a cabin on the north shore of New York’s Long Island with a fellow scientist, Leo Szilard – warned that the German government was actively supporting nuclear research and could make “extremely powerful bombs” like the kind that were eventually deployed by the US at the end of the second world war.

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Olaf Scholz welcomes Argentina’s president Javier Milei to Germany

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German chancellor holds unusually short meeting in Berlin with the controversial populist leader

The German chancellor, Olaf Scholz, has welcomed Argentina’s populist president, Javier Milei, for a controversial and unusually short meeting in Berlin after the divisive leader accepted an award from a German foundation with links to the far right.

Protesters, some holding placards reading “No trade with despots”, jeered from beyond the gates of Scholz’s chancellery as the self-described anarcho-capitalist emerged from his limousine on his first visit to Germany as president.

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Olaf Scholz questioned at Progressive Governance Summit – as it happened

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German chancellor and LSE professor Lea Ypi speak on ‘freedom, peace and progress’ at event chaired by Guardian’s editor-in-chief, Katharine Viner

Olaf Scholz, the German chancellor, said at the Progressive Governance Summit that globalisation is a benefit for world development.

There must be an answer to the question why the most lucky countries in the world have “right-populist movements and unrest,” he said.

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Trial opens of ‘esoteric’ wing of alleged German coup plotters

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GP, celebrity chef and astrologer among defendants in third trial linked to far-right Reichsbürger

Eight alleged members of the German far-right Reichsbürger have gone on trial accused of a plot to violently overthrow the state, in the third in a row of similar court cases being held across the country.

The defendants, including a GP, a celebrity chef and an astrologer, are accused of serving as the plot’s leadership council and, prosecutors say, were set to become a cabinet in waiting if the group’s plan to storm the parliament building and overthrow the government had succeeded.

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From LED bulbs to living plants: German theatre tackles climate crisis on and off stage

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With tickets doubling as public transport passes and recycled props, Hans Otto Theater is embracing a €3m federal project to make culture climate neutral

A handful of Spanish conquistadors fight through thick undergrowth to emerge in the ivy-clad ruins of a fallen civilisation during a rehearsal of Austrian playwright Thomas Köck’s Your Palaces Are Empty.

Premiered last month at the Hans Otto Theater in Potsdam, south-west of Berlin, the bleak and unforgiving drama probes the wounds of a shattered capitalist world that has exploited its people and the planet’s resources.

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German police admit to ‘blind spot’ over possible violence at England v Serbia

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2016 Euros was last tournament where people could travel freely, making it hard to judge how current fans will behave

German police have spoken of concerns about an intelligence gap in the level of aggression of the latest generation of England football fan, as supporters gather in Germany for the first post-Covid Euros.

England’s Sunday evening tie against Serbia in their first game of Euro 2024 has been designated as “high risk” due to a heightened threat of violence between two groups of supporters with a history of thuggery.

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Germany’s top climate envoy says ‘this is the critical decade’ after Dutton ditches 2030 target

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Representative from Europe’s biggest economy and key player in global climate talks says deep emissions cuts by 2030 ‘essential’ to limit climate heating to 1.5C

Germany’s climate envoy has dismissed claims the Paris agreement is only about reaching net zero emissions by 2050, warning that deep cuts by 2030 are “essential” and scientific evidence shows “this is the critical decade” to act on global heating.

Australia’s opposition leader, Peter Dutton, has refused to commit to a 2030 emissions reduction target prior to the next national election, prompting claims from Labor, the Greens and independents that the Coalition isn’t serious about acting on the climate crisis.

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Conflicts drive number of forcibly displaced people to record high

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Sharp rise, equivalent to population of London, means nearly 120 million have been driven from their homes

The number of people forced out of their homes around the world last year was the equivalent of the population of London, according to the UN’s refugee agency.

The latest annual assessment from the United Nations high commissioner for refugees (UNHCR) said a sharp rise in the number of people forcibly displaced during 2023 had brought the total to a record high of more than 117 million. Conflicts were largely to blame with many, such as those in Ukraine and Sudan, showing little sign of ending.

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G7 leaders head to Italy for summit as Ukraine and Russia top the agenda

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US wants show of strength with planned sanctions for helping Russia, but group will also discuss migration, Middle East and AI

A dramatic expansion of entities exposed to US sanctions for helping the Russian economy and an EU-led $50bn loan to ease the financial burden on Ukraine will be at the centre of discussions at a summit of the leaders of wealthy G7 nations in Puglia, Italy, starting on Thursday.

The leaders, facing unprecedented challenges from discontented electorates, will be under heightened pressure to provide concrete results as their three days of discussion range across an interlinked agenda encompassing the war in Ukraine, migration, Africa, the Middle East, the climate crisis and harnessing artificial intelligence (AI).

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Zelenskiy lobbies for support and investment to reconstruct Ukraine

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Ukrainian president appeals in Berlin for funding to repair and rebuild energy infrastructure and for defence

The Ukrainian president and his allies have used a major conference in Berlin to lobby international business for support in the country’s reconstruction and recovery efforts even as it continues to be bombarded by Russia.

Speaking at the Ukraine recovery conference, hosted by the German government, at which the topic of Ukraine’s survival was centre stage, Volodymyr Zelenskiy warned that Europe’s peace was also at stake if his country was not able to protect and rebuild itself as it stood up to Russia.

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‘Conservative values will impact EU policymaking like never before,’ says rightwing group

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European Conservatives and Reformists party includes members such as Giorgia Meloni’s Brothers of Italy and Poland’s Law and Justice

Reaction to Emmanuel Macron’s shock election announcement continues to roll in.

Celine Bracq, director general of the Odoxa polling agency, told the AFP news agency it was a “poker move” at a time when there is a “strong desire on the part of the French to punish the president”.

It’s something extremely risky. In all likelihood, the National Rally, in the wake of the European elections, could have a majority in the National Assembly and why not an absolute majority?”

The most likely outcome is more fragmentation, more deadlock and chaos. A complete paralysis.”

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European elections’ main impact likely to be felt in national capitals

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Mainstream groups hold on to majority in European parliament but far right gains weaken governments in France and Germany

So in the end, with a couple of alarming wobbles, the centre held. As polls predicted, the mainstream pro-EU alliance of centre-right, centre-left, liberal and Green parties in the European parliament hung on, quite comfortably, to its majority.

Europe’s national conservative and far-right forces made big gains, ending up with just under a quarter of MEPs in the 720-seat assembly – their highest tally ever. But they did not do uniformly well, and in some places fared worse than forecast.

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EU elections 2024 live: Macron dissolves French parliament and calls snap election; Meloni’s party leading in Italy, poll says

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Emmanuel Macron makes shock decision as far-right make huge gains in France and across continent

Ursula von der Leyen, who is seeking a second five-year term as head of the European Commission, has cast her vote and is urging others to do the same.

Much is at stake for the German centre-right politician, as the European parliament, which sits in Brussels and Strasbourg, will also have the final say on whether she gets a coveted second-term as European Commission president, one of the most powerful positions in European politics.

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Ukraine recovery conference urged to focus on preventing energy blackouts

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NGOs fear discussion at Berlin event about long-term reconstruction may seem irrelevant amid power cuts

Russian damage to Ukraine’s power grid has led to calls for a recovery conference starting in Berlin on Tuesday to pivot away from long-term reconstruction and focus on preventing prolonged energy blackouts this winter.

Lengthy summer power cuts, as well as domestic price increases, are already afflicting Ukraine, with state agencies forced to cut energy use, adding urgency to the calls to boost air defences.

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Hundreds of millions head to polls on final day of European elections

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Voters in most EU member states called to polls on Sunday, as far-right parties expected to gain record number of seats

Hundreds of millions of voters go to the polls on Sunday in European parliament elections that are expected to tilt the assembly further to the radical and far right, shaping the continent’s future course.

Voters in most EU member states, including France, Germany, Italy, Spain and Poland, are called to the polls on Sunday, the final day of a four-day election cycle that began in the Netherlands on Thursday.

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German naturists fear for future of lifestyle amid falling interest

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Celebrations cancelled due to low uptake as people go off public nudity in country known for liberal attitudes

An organisation promoting nudity and a self-confident approach towards the body in Germany has sounded the alarm over the future of naturism in the country.

The German Association for Free Body Culture (DFK), an umbrella organisation for myriad naturist interest groups, has told its members that celebrations in August marking the anniversary of its creation will no longer go ahead owing to a lack of interest.

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