Author: DW

Munich’s bid for the 2036 Summer Olympics will be up against at least six candidates from Europe, Asia and Africa. On Tuesday, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) announced that, in addition to Germany, Hungary, Turkey, India, Qatar, South Korea and South Africa all intend to bid for the Games. All are currently engaged in the Continuous Dialogue stage of the bidding process with the IOC. However, there could be further applicants, as the deadline for interested parties to submit a bid is October 31. The candidates are to present their plans virtually to the Future Host Commission in November. In March 2027, the IOC…

There’s an uneasy mood in Finland, the country that’s ranked the world’s happiest for nine consecutive years. A colder-than-usual winter is on the way and so is the toughest austerity budget in years.  With an election due in April, the argument is no longer how much to cut, but which services, benefits and pensions will face the biggest cuts. Finland’s debt and deficit levels are in their worst state since the 1990s, when a banking crash and the collapse of the Soviet Union — a key export partner — pushed the Nordic nation into its own Great Depression.  Finland’s debt ratio climbed sharply since the COVID-19 pandemic Last month, Finland’s…

Skip next section Two killed in routine firearms check in BavariaPublished 10/09/2026Published October 9, 2026last updated 10/09/2026last updated October 9, 2026Two killed in routine firearms check in BavariaPolice launched a major operation at the site after reports of gunfireImage: Tizian Gerbing/dpa/picture allianceTwo local government employees have been shot dead during a routine firearms inspection at a home in southern Germany, police said. A 60-year-old suspect was arrested early Friday following a standoff lasting more than 12 hours in the Bavarian village of Berngau. (Scroll down for more on the man’s arrest) The victims, a 45-year-old man and a 54-year-old woman,…

The numbers are striking. Some cancer rates have doubled in the past 20 years. It’s just not yet clear whether we’re seeing a rise in actual cases or whether we’re seeing more early-stage cases because of better awareness, diagnosis and treatment in hospitals. Take, for example, colorectal (or bowel) cancer: In 2001, about one in every 26,000 people under 50 in England were diagnosed with it each year. By 2023, the rate of diagnoses was about one in 12,000. Twice what it was at the turn of the century. That’s according to the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF), an international network…

It was billed as “the most unique stadium in the world,” a key pillar of Saudi Arabia’s World Cup 2034 plans. But now Neom Stadium, part of the kingdom’s ambitious aims to build a 170-kilometer-long (111miles) city in the desert known as The Line, looks set to be scrapped, with the broader project scaled back significantly. A recent Reuters report said the stadium, which according to the country’s bid book was going to be “350 meters (1,148 feet) above ground” and have “stunning vistas, and a roof created from the city itself,” would no longer be built for the tournament, where it was to…

Home to fewer than 4,000 people and located in an isolated corner of the South Atlantic Ocean, the Falkland Islands don’t often feature in global business headlines. However, a UK-Israeli oil exploration project in the North Falkland Basin is stoking long-running tensions between Argentina and the people of the archipelago. Argentina has laid claim to the islands, which it calls Las Malvinas, for two centuries. In 1982, the dispute over the islands’ sovereignty led to a war between the UK and Argentina, though British control was quickly restored after Argentine forces invaded the islands. A 2013 sovereignty referendum on the islands returned a…

After spending 47 years abroad, Iranian musician Bijan Mortazavi returned to his homeland at the end of September. Mortazavi is one of Iran’s most renowned violinists, singers, and composers. In July 2026, he performed with his famous white violin at the closing ceremony of the FIFA World Cup alongside the New York Philharmonic Orchestra. In the videos that he and his wife have now posted on social media, the couple can be seen taking walks through the city of the Iranian capital, Tehran, while passersby greet the musician warmly and welcome him. Singer Mohsen Namjoo also recently returned to Iran…

The Nobel Prize in Chemistry on Wednesday was awarded to Henri B. Kagan and Kenso Soai “for the discovery of non-linear effects and autocatalysis in asymmetric organic synthesis.” Kagan, who is 95 years old and was born in France, is affiliated with France’s Université Paris-Sud, and Soai, who is 76 years old and was born in Japan, is based at the Tokyo University of Science. The scientists share the Nobel Prize for answering longstanding questions in chemistry about life’s origins.  Specifically, the duo solved an age-old mystery that has long puzzled chemists: some molecules, like amino acids, exist as two variants that are mirror images of one another,…

They are the two players who have defined the last two decades. As football became ever more popular, commercial and dominant in the cultural and sporting landscape, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi remained its twin peaks. Along with that has come endless social media posts, stories and discussions about who is better. Does Messi’s World Cup and two Copa America titles with Argentina trump Ronaldo’s Euro 2016 win and two Nations League titles? Or does the Portuguese’s greater number of goals mean more? How about their club honors? It is, essentially, a subjective argument and not one that can ever be resolved. It…

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron sent a joint appeal to the European Commission on Monday, calling for tougher EU measures against unfair trade practices by other states.  They said that the existing instruments at the EU’s disposal were no longer sufficient.  The appeal did not name any specific country but it seemed most clearly tied to Chinese trade policy, the EU’s vast deficit with China, and its dependence on certain key raw materials. The other apparent candidate would be the US, not least under the current unpredictable trade policy stewardship of tariff-loving President Donald Trump. It also came…