Author: DW

The Afghan embassy in London is set to close after the Taliban sacked all staff based there.Afghanistan’s ambassador to the UK, Zalmai Rassoul, said in a post on X the embassy will close on 27 September “at the official request of the host country”. The move follows the Taliban’s announcement in July it would no longer recognise embassies set up by the previous regime – including the mission in Kensington.Mr Rassoul said: “We thank and appreciate all colleagues, citizens, and related institutions who have sincerely co-operated with the Afghan Embassy in London during this period.” Image: Zalmai Rassoul meeting the…

Egypt’s former antiquities minister Zahi Hawass has launched a petition to urge Germany to return the pharaonic bust of Queen Nefertiti, which is currently housed in Berlin’s Neues Museum. Believed to have been crafted in 1345 BC, a German archaeological team discovered the painted limestone bust in 1912 and shipped it to Europe a year later. It was uncovered in the remains of the city of Amarna, the short-lived capital under Pharaoh Akhenaten, Nefertiti’s husband. The city was abandoned after he died in 1335 BC. Amarna sits on the east bank of the Nile River and is located in the province of Minya.Nefertiti bust:…

Jamal Musiala scored once and set up three more as Germany demolished Hungary 5-0 on Saturday night in Düsseldorf. The Bayern Munich midfielder scored a goal himself and assisted Niclas Füllkrug, Florian Wirtz and Aleksandar Pavlovic. Kai Havertz fired home from the penalty spot to round out scoring in the 81st minute. Germany took the lead in the Nations League Group A3 match with Füllkrug’s tapping in a Musiala assist in the 27th minute. Hungary came out of the changing room and pushed to level the score, but Musiala struck on the break in the 58th, completing a quick counter-attack…

Spanish director Pedro Almodovar won Venice’s Golden Lion award on Saturday for the film “The Room Next Door.” The film received an 18-minute standing ovation when it premiered at the Venice International Film Festival earlier in the week. What do we know about the award? Almodovar was awarded a lifetime achievement award at Venice in 2019 for his Spanish-language films. He also won an Oscar in the best foreign language category for the 1999 film “All About My Mother.” “The Room Next Door” is Almodovar’s first English-language feature touching on euthanasia and climate change. After collecting his prize, Almodovar said euthanasia…

Several people were shot by a gunman along a highway in the southern US state of Kentucky, authorities said on Saturday. There were multiple injuries but no confirmed deaths. Police continued to search for the suspect, who was considered to be “armed and dangerous.” What do we know about the shooting? The incident began shortly before 6 p.m. local time (2200 UTC) around 9 miles (14.5 kilometers) away from the town of London, Kentucky. Officers responded to reports of gunshots directed at vehicles traveling on Interstate 75 in Laurel County. The highway is a major north-south artery that cuts across…

It’s 7.30 a.m. (0200 GMT) and like most days Rohan’s* workday is starting. Working for a British multinational, throughout the day he is on phone calls with clients and stakeholders based across time zones. There are short breaks between calls, but his day only ends at 9.30 p.m. — a grueling 14 hours later. In a different Indian city at 7.30 a.m. the first thing Aditi* does upon waking up is check her work emails. Her work officially starts at 9 a.m. and will go on to 11 p.m. Every day, five days a week. Aditi works for a major…

A so-called Super Typhoon has killed at least four people in northern Vietnam, after also battering China and the Philippines, bringing the total number of dead to 22.The storm struck north Vietnam at about 1pm (7am UK time) on Saturday with winds of up to 99mph (160kph) near its centre. A day earlier, winds had been recorded at 145mph (234kph) in Hainan, south China.Vietnam’s government said four people had died and 78 had been injured while at least another dozen were missing at sea, according to state media. Image: Haikou in Hainan, south China, experienced intense winds of up to…

“You may think it’s a long way down the road to the drug store,” wrote Douglas Adams in his Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, “but that’s just peanuts to space.” Space is big. We live on one tiny planet orbiting a star that’s tucked away in the far reaches of a galaxy — just one galaxy of around 2 trillion in the known universe. Space is really really big. Planet Earth is located in one of the spiral arms of the Milky Way (called the Orion Arm) which lies about two-thirds of the way out from the center of the galaxy. We know…

US star Alex Morgan has announced her retirement from professional football, prompting many fans to ask whether she is the greatest female soccer player of all time. The word great is overused and its meaning has become warped over time. Does it mean the best technical player, the player who did the most to promote the sport, the player who won the most silverware or the most famous? The debate has raged in the men’s game, but comparing Pele to Lionel Messi has always felt uncomfortable given they played in different eras. The quick advancement of the women’s game means its biggest stars…

Brazilian Human Rights Minister Silvio Almeida was fired from his post on Friday after several women accused him of sexual harassment.  A statement from the office of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said a police investigation was opened into Almeida. “The president considers it unsustainable to keep the minister in office considering the nature of the accusations of sexual harassment,” the statement said. Who made the accusations? MeToo Brasil, an organization that defends women victims of sexual violence, had received complaints of sexual misconduct by Almeida, said local media on Thursday. One of the women who spoke up against Almeida…