Author: DW

A German high-level business delegation visited Bangladesh this month to explore the possibility of expanding commercial relations between the two countries. The delegation — including representatives from the German Foreign and Economic ministries, as well as officials from the nation’s export credit agency and the international development agency — participated in the Bangladesh Investment Summit 2025 in Dhaka and held talks with the South Asian country’s interim government. The mission was coordinated by the German Asia-Pacific Business Association (OAV), a network that promotes German business interests across Asia. “Bangladesh’s resilience as an emerging market is impressive,” said Thomas Köning, CEO…

As the clash between the world’s richest university and the world’s most powerful man escalates, Harvard University remains, so far, the most prominent institution to stand up to US President Donald Trump and his administration. On April 11, the Trump administration sent Harvard a list of demands, including “shuttering all diversity, equity, and inclusion” programs and having a government-approved external body audit the student and staff for “viewpoint diversity.” Some demands were particularly targeted at Harvard’s handling of international students. They included reforming the admissions process to “prevent admitting students hostile to the American values” and having Harvard report foreign students who commit a…

Spotify is suffering a widespread outage – with the popular music app failing to load for many users.On X, the streaming service confirmed the disruption and said: “We’re aware of some issues right now and are checking them out!” Downdetector showed more than 48,000 outage reports for Spotify worldwide at 3pm.Many of those users reported having problems loading the app or playing songs. “Definitely a gremlin in the works,” one wrote.Another calm user added: “I NEED MY BACKGROUND MUSIC NOW!!!!!!!” Read more from science and technology:Is this the end of 4Chan?Millions tune in to see Sweden’s annual moose migrationCould Meta…

Trade protectionism is nothing new in human history — not even in export-driven Germany, where in the 19th century, then-Chancellor Otto von Bismarck attempted to introduce protective tariffs on wheat imports. Pushed by a strong farmers’ lobby in the parliament, Bismarck’s tariffs were intended to curb growing imports of cheap wheat from other European countries — a goal which eventually failed. Since US President Donald Trump is known for his own, very unique take on history, he didn’t hesitate to usher in a new era of protectionism, aiming to shield and isolate the world’s largest economy through an aggressive tariff policy.Will…

Iran’s Revolutionary Court has sentenced filmmakers Behtash Sanaeeha and Maryam Moghaddam and producer Gholamreza Mousavi to 14 months behind bars on charges of propaganda against the Islamic Republic, as well as to one year of imprisonment on charges of “producing obscene content” with their award-winning film “Keyke mahboobe man” (or “My Favorite Cake”), which premiered at the Berlinale in 2024. The court has ordered the confiscation of all film equipment, but both sentences will be suspended for five years, according to Iranian media outlets. The film violates many taboos of the Iranian theocracy. “My Favorite Cake” tells the story of a 70-year-old widow living alone who…

Synthetic hair products are in the spotlight after a study found some materials sold to US consumers contain cancer-causing chemicals.  For African women, braiding has for decades helped them maintain their natural hair — keeping it protected from breakage and damage. Many women use “synthetic hair” to make braiding easier. The materials most used for synthetic braids are Kanekalon and Toyokalon, which were developed by Japanese chemical manufacturers in the fifties. Unlike real hair, synthetic weaves retain their shape longer and require little maintenance, making them a convenient option for those who want to keep a particular hairstyle for a…

Cricket’s governing body (ICC) has announced it will form a dedicated task force to support Afghanistan’s women cricketers who have been displaced by the Taliban. The news is a joyful surprise to many of the women battling to represent their nation over the last three years. “I can’t describe my feelings when I heard the news,” Firooza Afghan told DW. “I cannot say that it’s just three years. I think it’s more than 20 years.” “When we were in Afghanistan, other women before us … were fighting for this team since 2010. They were fighting to have a team so…

Former US President Joe Biden spoke out against Donald Trump’s policies, especially regarding Social Security, during a speech in Chicago on Tuesday — his first major public appearance since leaving office in January. Addressing disability advocates, the 82-year-old Democrat said Trump had “taken a hatchet” to Social Security. Millions of US citizens are reliant on Social Security to cover their basic needs, but there is a fear that Trump’s cost-cutting policies and the efforts by his advisor Elon Musk to shrink the government will cripple the system. Some 73 million elderly and disabled citizens are provided annually with around $1.4 trillion (roughly €1.15…

Member states of the World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday finalized a historic agreement to prepare the world forfuture pandemics following negotiations that spanned over three years. The proposal will now be considered before the World Health Assembly — the decision-making forum of the global health body — in May. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said the draft agreement “demonstrated that multilateralism is alive and well, and that in our divided world, nations can still work together to find common ground, and a shared response to shared threats.” What’s in the draft WHO pandemic agreement? The Pandemic Agreement maps out measures to thwart pandemics…

Meta could be forced to sell Instagram and WhatsApp if it loses a landmark trial that just started in the US. So, what is the social media giant accused of, and what could the court case mean for all of us? What is Meta accused of?The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is accusing Meta of buying Instagram and WhatsApp over a decade ago to neutralise its competition, in line with Mark Zuckerberg’s alleged 2008 directive that “it is better to buy than compete”.When Facebook bought Instagram in 2012, emails read out in court show that Zuckerberg was worried about Facebook’s performance…