Author: DW

Stand back, Cannes, because Venice will be taking your crown this year. The 81st Venice Film Festival, which runs from August 28 to September 7, can lay claim to being the biggest, most important, and just plain coolest film festival of 2024.  Here’s why Venice will be the can’t-miss movie event of the year.  Movie stars are back, baby. Last year’s actors strike left red carpet gawkers starved of celebrity spottings, but Venice 2024 will be a VIP feast. The long list of A-list stars includes Brad Pitt and George Clooney, in town for Jon Watts’s action comedy “Wolfs” in…

Paris is hosting the Paralympic Games from August 28 to September 8, and in the run-up to the event, the sense of anticipation among the athletes is growing. “We are at a higher level than a few years ago,” German Paralympian Johannes Floors told DW. With the Summer Olympics having wrapped up just a few weeks ago, organizers are now looking forward to hosting the Paralympic Games. “We are excited to find the same ingredients of Olympic magic, but in Paralympic mode, at the same iconic venues, to showcase the best athletes in the world,” said Tony Estanguet, head of…

The first rioter to breach the US Capitol in January 2021 has been sentenced to 53 months in prison, prosecutors said Tuesday. Michael Sparks, 47, was “the very first rioter to enter the US Capitol building on January 6, 2021,” according to evidence presented during the trial, prosecutors said in a press release. US District Judge Timothy Kelly sentenced Sparks to 53 months in prison, 36 months of supervised release and ordered him to pay $2,000 (€1,789) on a felony offense of civil disorder and misdemeanor offenses, including entering a restricted building and disruptive conduct in a restricted building, the press release continued. Video surveillance…

Dresden prides itself on its rich history, a huge baroque palace, spectacular views and a singular art collection. But something else is on the horizon around the capital of Saxony and it is not so pretty in the eyes of some investors. Saxony, along with Thuringia, are two regional states in former communist East German, and will hold state assembly elections on September 1. Three weeks later Brandenburg — another state in the ex-communist East — will head to the polls. The region is at an important crossroad and businesses are holding their breath waiting to see what happens. The elephant in…

The population of Chongqing, in southwestern China, has exploded over the last 30 years: Now, some 32 million people live here. Approximately the size of Austria, Chongqing is now one of the largest cities in the world in terms of surface area.  Image: ZDFIn China, the megacity has become a tourist magnet. It’s known for its unique spots for snapping photos, like the train that runs right through the eighth floor of a high-rise building. Social media influencers have contributed to popularizing the city, once known mainly as an arrival or departure point for cruise tourists.  Image: ZDFThe people of…

Diet is well known to impact the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, but a new study has found that eating lots of processed meats carries a particularly high risk of causing the disease. Eating the equivalent of just two slices of ham a day was associated with a 15% greater chance of developing the disease, according to a study published in Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology. The studyof nearly 2 million people across 20 countries investigated diabetes risks associated with eating unprocessed red meat, processed meat and poultry. When age, sex and body mass were accounted for, the research found 50g of…

French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday dismissed the idea of naming a left-wing government to end the country’s political deadlock, in a move that sparked anger among the country’s leftist alliance. Macron said that having a left-wing government would be a threat to “institutional stability,” in comments that riled the New Popular Front (NFP). The front is made up of the hard-left France Unbowed (LFI), the Socialists, the Communists and the Greens. It secured the highest number of seats in the country’s parliamentary election earlier this summer. Green Party leader Marine Tondelier said Macron’s announcement was a disgrace, adding that he was ignoring…

Malaysia has brought sedition charges against opposition leader and former Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin for allegedly insulting the country’s former king in a political speech on August 15. Muhydiddin, who governed the country between 2020 and 2021 and leads Malaysia’s conservative, Malay-centric opposition bloc, has pleaded not guilty to the charges. Remarks seen as denigrating the country’s largely ceremonial and highly revered royalty can be prosecuted under a Sedition Act stemming from the colonial era. Under Malaysia’s unique form of monarchy, nine sultans take turns on the royal throne every five years.  Muhyiddin is already facing corruption and money laundering charges in…

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has vowed to step up deportations of rejected asylum seekers after it emerged the suspect in Friday’s knife attack was a Syrian who was due to be removed. Mr Scholz made the remarks while visiting a makeshift memorial site for the victims of the attack in Solingen, which saw a suspected Islamic extremist stab three people to death and injure eight more. The man, who turned himself in on Saturday night, was supposed to be deported to Bulgaria last year, as that was the first EU country in which he set foot. But according to German…

Telegram Messenger, better known as Telegram, is a social media and instant messaging service. For millions of users it is simply a daily tool for communication. For others it is much more than that. At its most basic level Telegram enables users to chat, and share photos and files for free. It offers end-to-end encryption for voice and video calls. It also lets users post things, use cryptocurrency, have unlimited cloud storage, create groups for up to 200,000 members or start channels with an unlimited number of subscribers — and untold influence. As of 2022, it offers a paid subscription version…