Author: DW

Most people who watch sport had barely given Rwanda a second thought until recently. The sponsorship deals the country’s tourist board has with Bayern Munich, Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain were fairly low- key and, for many, quickly became just another logo. Mohamed Keita sees real danger in that. “People have become so used so seeing ‘Visit Rwanda’ that they don’t even see it anymore – it’s like McDonald’s. Nobody thinks about what ‘Visit Rwanda’ is, what’s behind it.” For Keita, the Africa director at the non-profit Human Rights Foundation, the discourse over the clubs’ Rwanda deals, sparked by a letter…

All ten on board a passenger plane that went missing over Alaska are believed to be dead, the US Coast Guard said after locating the wreckage on sea ice. The US Coast Guard initially reported that three bodies had been found inside the wreckage and then said the remaining seven were also believed to be inside the aircraft but were “inaccessible die to the condition of the plane.” The plane, which was carrying nine passengers and a pilot, was flying from the remote community of Unalakleet to Nome when it was reported missing at around 4 p.m. local time (0100 UTC). The airline, Bering Air,…

A Canadiantask force, which tracks suspected foreign interference, on Friday said it had detected “coordinated and malicious activity” originating from China, targeting Chrystia Freeland — a leadership candidate from the country’s Liberal Party. Freeland is currently in the running to replace Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, come March 9. Campaign targeting Freeland traced to WeChat account The activity has allegedly been traced to a WeChat account linked to the Chinese government, Global Affairs Canada’s Rapid Response Mechanism said in a press release. The department is mandated to monitor the digital information ecosystem under the Security and Intelligence Threats to Elections (SITE)…

January 8, 2025 was a notable day for the heirs of Jewish art collectors whose collections were expropriated or sold against their will by  the Nazis. On that day, Germany’s federal cabinet cleared the way for a change in the country’s restitution process. It marks the end of the expert panel officially called the “Advisory Commission on the return of cultural property seized as a result of Nazi persecution, especially Jewish property.” It has become known as the Limbach Commission, named for its first chairperson, the late former German chief justice Jutta Limbach. Now the panel will be replaced by arbitration tribunals.…

One hundred and two venomous snakes have been removed from a suburban back garden in Sydney.David Stein called experts after seeing six snakes moving around in a pile of mulch and discovered that red-belly blacks pile on top of each other before giving birth. Snake catcher Dylan Cooper was drafted in the same afternoon and bagged up five adults and 97 babies. Image: Pic: Cory Kerewaro/AP Reptile Relocation Sydney said two of the adults gave birth to 29 snakes in the bag while the clean-up was still taking place.Company owner Cory Kerewaro said the highest number he’d heard about in…

The European Commission has come up with a plan aimed at slashing the bloc’s overburdening regulation, digging into Europeans’ savings to raise money and investing it in European companies to lead in future technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and clean technology.  EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen unveiled the policy roadmap called Competitive Compass on Wednesday, warning that the 27-nation EU risks to be “stuck on a low-growth path, with less income for the employed, less welfare for the disadvantaged, and less opportunities for all.” “The convergence between the EU and the US on innovation has slowed down, while China has caught…

What you need to know: Ebola damages blood vessels and causes severe internal bleeding It spreads from other animals to humans and among humans through close contact with blood, organs, secretions and other bodily fluids Some forms of Ebola can be prevented with vaccines and treated with medicines Ebola remains an ongoing challenge for people and authorities in affected regions. Vaccine development could help lessen the burden. Most often, Ebola outbreaks have been caused by the Zaire type of the Ebola virus (Zaire ebolavirus) and the Sudan type (Sudan ebolavirus). During the most recent outbreaks, which have had high numbers of…

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday night signed an executive order banning transgender athletes from competing in girls’ and women’s sports, the latest in a string of executive actions that aim at LGBTQ+ rights. The move comes as the right wing in the US, and globally, has taken an increasingly aggressive stance against transgender people.  What does the new ban on transgender women and girls say? The order, titled “Keeping Men Out of Women’s Sports,” gives government agencies authority to penalize schools that allow transgender athletes to compete on women’s teams. Any school that violates the order would risk losing…

Authorities in Greece on Thursday moved to declare a state of emergency on the island of Santorini as persistent tremors continued hiking fears of a possible bigger earthquake. The region has been rattled by thousands of tremors and more than a hundred earthquakes since January 26. Emergency measures in effect until March 3 The Greek Civil Protection Ministry issued the declaration that allows authorities to quickly mobilize heavy equipment and emergency personnel. The ministry said the declaration would be in force from February 1 and would remain in effect until March 3. Government spokesman Pavlos Marinakis on Thursday said Greece’s “entire state mechanism…

Israeli forces said late Thursday it had struck two sites that allegedly contained weapons belonging to the Hezbollah group, a Hamas ally, despite a separate ceasefire deal in that country. Israel’s forces “conducted a precise strike in Lebanese territory on two military sites that contained Hezbollah weapons, which were in violation of the ceasefire agreement,” the Israeli army said in a statement on social media platform X. Previously-sporadic fighting between Israel and Hezbollah escalated on 8 October 2023, following Hamas’ unprecedented attack on Israel.  Ceasefire agreement extended until mid-February Israel and Hezbollah agreed to a truce in November 2024, after 13 months of conflict between Israeli…