Author: DW

With his angular features and ice-blue eyes, German actor Udo Kier’s face was unmistakable. In over 200 films, he played everything from Adolf Hitler to monsters and vampires. With a repertoire ranging from high-end pulp to art house films and blockbusters, he frequently starred alongside Hollywood greats. Kier enjoyed widespread acclaim for his leading role in the 2021 film “Swan Song,” in which he played Pat, a gay hairdresser living in a nursing home who gives his all for one last important job. Friendship with Lars von Trier Kier had a close working relationship with Danish director Lars von Trier. They…

Large language models like ChatGPT infringe on German authors’ rights laws if they use song lyrics in their responses without having paid license fees for them, a Munich court ruled on Tuesday.  Judge Elke Schwager at the Munich District Court I said that OpenAI, the US company that owns ChatGPT, would be charged damages for the unauthorized usage. She did not specify a sum.  The claimant and a German journalists’ trade union both claimed the case could have far-reaching implications for AI or large language models and intellectual property and copyright laws. The verdict can be appealed. “We do not agree with the verdict and…

Chemical poisoning — not foodborne disease — is now being investigated as the probable cause of the deaths of a German-Turkish family in Istanbul last week. It has again brought the role of phosphine-producing pesticides into focus, and follows several similar incidents in Turkey and around the world. Local newspaper Cumhuriyet has now reported the initial findings from forensic analyses performed on samples taken from the bodies of the mother and her two children who died between 13 and 14 November. The father and husband of the deceased passed away on 17 November. Excerpts from the initial report said “primarily, it is believed that they…

A star Russian athlete will compete in Germany’s gymnastics Bundesliga, despite being designated as a “champion of terror” by Ukraine. 2020 Olympic champion Angelina Melnikova, one of the world’s best gymnasts, has signed for TSV Tittmoning-Chemnitz for the last two rounds of the Bundesliga season. However, the move is controversial, with the 25-year-old accused of siding with Russian President Vladimir Putin and backing his war in Ukraine, having also dabbled in politics with the ruling United Russia party. Other Bundesliga clubs have queried the wisdom of bringing Melnikova in to help Chemnitz’s title push. “There were only sporting reasons,” club coach…

Skip next section Ex-South African president’s daughter probed for recruiting men for Ukraine War11/24/2025November 24, 2025Ex-South African president’s daughter probed for recruiting men for Ukraine WarSouth African police are investigating allegations that a daughter of former president Jacob Zuma helped recruit men to fight in Ukraine. Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, who is also a Parliamentarian for her father’s MK party, was named in an affidavit filed by her stepsister.  The document claims she and two others recruited a group of South Africans under false pretenses.  The men have asked the South African government to help them get home from Ukraine’s Donbas region.…

South African police on Sunday confirmed they are investigating claims that Duduzile Zuma-Sambudla, daughter of former President Jacob Zuma, and two others conned 17 men into fighting for Russia in Ukraine. Another of Zuma’s daughters, Nkosazana Bongamini Zuma-Mncube, accused her stepsister of sending the men to Russia before they were ordered to the front lines. “These men were lured to Russia under false pretenses and handed to a Russian mercenary group to fight in the Ukraine war without their knowledge or consent. Among these 17 men are eight of my family members,” Zuma-Mncube said in a public statement. Earlier this…

On the internet, the offer looks attractive: a new kidney, and a dialysis-free life in just a few weeks. For people who’ve spent years waiting for a donor organ, it’s a glimmer of hope. But behind it lies a global network of organ traffickers with links to Kenya.   Image: Christian Dransfeld/DWHow the kush dens of Monrovia are trapping Liberia’s youth A toxic synthetic drug is sweeping through Liberia. Known as kush, it appeared around 2018 but has already devastated the lives of many youths in the country’s cities. The 77 Percent gained rare access to one of Monrovia’s kush…

Securing a conversation with Leonidas Askianakis requires foresight. His schedule is carved into 30-minute slots from 5 a.m. until 11 p.m. Meetings are online only, and every one of them revolves around space. Despite the long hours, his calendar is booked weeks ahead. When does he sleep? The 22-year-old student from the Technical University of Munich in Germany shrugs when confronted with the question during a recent interview with DW, saying that he’s “on the home stretch” and just can’t “set the project aside.” Even at night, the mission weighs on him, he said, and he often lies awake scrolling through…

NASA “very much wants to find signs of life in the universe,” said associate administrator Amit Kshatriya, but the interstellar object called 3I/ATLAS was not it. The US space agency released fresh images on Wednesday of the object, which zipped past Mars last month. “I think it’s important that we talk about that. This object is a comet,” Kshatriya said. “It looks and behaves like a comet. And all evidence points to it being a comet.” Alien speculation fueled by the US government shutdown The speculation that it was not a comet came during the US government shutdown, which prevented NASA…

On November 18, Cristiano Ronaldo attended a White House dinner alongside Saudi Arabian Crowned Prince Mohammad bin Salman and US President Donald Trump. Ronaldo, who has played club football in Saudi Arabia since 2023, had not seemingly been in the USA in nearly a decade following a legal case from 2009 in which Ronaldo faced allegations of rape. The charges were dropped in 2019 and the lawsuit was dismissed in 2022, clearing the way for his return. But what does the timing of his reappearance mean? “President Trump is keenly aware of the symbolism of hosting the World Cup during the celebrations of…