Author: DW

The burden of heat-related death could shift from the elderly to young people by century’s end, according to a new study. In a future scenario that sees average global temperatures go at least 2.8 degrees Celsius (5 Fahrenheit) beyond pre-industrial levels by 2100, people under 35 would likely suffer the effects of a warming world more than older adults. The analysis, published in the journal Science Advances, inspected mortality data from Mexico. The data enabled the researchers to take age and dates of death, compare it with environmental conditions and calculate how often humid heat exposure resulted in premature death. Scientists have long thought that…

For migrants heading to northwestern Europe on the Balkan route, Croatia is the first EU member state they encounter. Most enter the country via Bosnia-Herzegovina or Serbia. Croatia has been part of the Schengen Area — a group of 29 European countries that have abolished border controls between them — since January 2023. “A total of 26,534 illegal border crossings were recorded in the first 10 months of this year,” the press office of Croatia’s Interior Ministry told DW, adding that most of these migrants were citizens of Afghanistan, Syria, Turkey, the Russian Federation and Egypt. Migrants now less ‘visible’ in Croatia…

Bloodthirsty terrorists or Syria’s best hope? Syrians are divided about the rebel group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS), which led the offensive that resulted in the fall of Syrian dictator Bashar Assad last week. “They are also sons of the country,” Ghaith Mahmoud, 36, who fought against the Syrian government forces but has lived in Germany since 2016, told DW. “I don’t know if they can run the country. But I do know that all the young men who fought as part of these groups now only want to go home.” Other ex-pats are less understanding and are wary of trusting HTS, which is…

The head of NATO has warned the alliance is not ready for the threats it will face from Russia in the coming years and that it is time to shift to a wartime mindset.Mark Rutte, the secretary general of the organisation, said NATO members had spent more than 3% of GDP on defence during the Cold War and argued future spending would have to be much higher than the alliance’s current target of 2%. “Russia is preparing for long-term confrontation, with Ukraine and with us,” Mr Rutte said during a speech in Brussels.”We are not ready for what is coming…

On a cold December evening, scores of Christmas market revelers, bundled up in coats, scarves and hats, are crowding around a stall that reflects Cologne’s landmark cathedral in its glass panels. A sweet aroma fills the air and people are speaking German, French, English and Dutch. Behind the counter, cashews and dried fruits are piled high. Most visitors’ eyes, however, are drawn to the centerpiece of the display: stacks of handcrafted milk chocolate bars that have been hand-painted green and are known as “Dubai chocolate.” Initially a social media phenomenon, the crunchy delicacy has now made its way to traditional German Christmas markets like the one…

Throughout his life, Albert Einstein (1879-1955) was a pop star of science. He had his “Annus mirabilis” (Latin for “miracle year”) in 1905 when, at age 26, he’d published several groundbreaking works. One of these, the special theory of relativity, made him world-famous. Just 12 years later, Einstein was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics. But where did he find the strength, inspiration and time to achieve all this? “Making Science, Love and Coffee”: This could have very well been Einstein’s motto posits Jürgen Renn, science historian and professor at the Max Planck Institute for Geoanthropology in Jena. In 2005, Renn co-published “Am…

The burden of heat-related death could shift from the elderly to young people by century’s end, according to a new study. In a future scenario that sees average global temperatures go at least 2.8 degrees Celsius beyond pre-industrial levels by 2100, people under 35 years would likely suffer the effects of a warming world more than older adults. The analysis, published in the journal Science Advances, inspected mortality data from Mexico. The data enabled the researchers to take age and dates of death, compare it to the environmental conditions, and calculate how often humid heat exposure resulted in premature death. Scientists have long…

In 2030, Morocco, Portugal and Spain – with Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay hosting the three opening matches – will host the world’s biggest football tournament. It will be the first time that a World Cup will be held across three continents. Despite calls from Amnesty International to make the awarding of the tournament conditional upon the development of a more credible human rights strategy, FIFA has pressed on. Scrutiny on Qatar when they hosted the 2022 World Cup has helped move the needle on human rights at major sports eventsImage: Hassan Ammar/AP/dpa/picture alliance Complacency from bidding nations Each of the nations…

South Korea’s President Yoon Suk Yeol on Thursday defended his decision to declare short-lived martial law saying it was a measure to protect the country’s democracy. The beleaguered president, who is under criminal investigation for alleged insurrection, declared martial law last week, saying he wanted to rid the country of “pro-North Korean forces,” in a move that plunged the country into political turmoil. South Koreans’ frustration with President Yoon persistsTo view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Yoon prepared to ‘fight to the end’ Yoon accused the opposition of trying to remove him from…

The United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly passed on Wednesday a resolution demanding an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire in the devastated Gaza Strip. The ongoing war in the enclave has dragged on for over a year and has so far killed over 44,000 people, according to local officials. Resolution urges ‘immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire’ One hundred and fifty-eight members voted in favor of the resolution, nine voted against, with 13 abstentions. The text urged “an immediate, unconditional and permanent ceasefire,” and “the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages” — wording similar to a text vetoed by Washington in the Security…