Author: DW

Arabic-language social media has been flooded this week with shocking images from Saudi Arabia. The pictures and videos show people who were undertaking their once-in-a-lifetime Muslim pilgrimage to Mecca collapsed on the side of the road or slumped in wheelchairs, apparently close to death or dead. They are dressed in traditional pilgrim’s white, their faces covered with cloths. In several pictures, corpses appear to have been left where they presumably collapsed. What started as a rumor on social media was confirmed as the weeklong Hajj pilgrimage ended: Hundreds of pilgrims have died in Saudi Arabia, evidently due to extremely high temperatures and lack…

Serbia have threatened to pull its football team out of Euro 2024 if UEFA doesn’t punish Croatia and Albania for alleged hateful chants.Jovan Surbatovic, general secretary of the Serbian football association, said they have made a formal complaint about “kill, kill, kill the Serb” chants during the 2-2 draw between Croatia and Albania on Wednesday. He warned the team could pull out entirely if the European football governing body UEFA doesn’t act on their complaint.”What happened is scandalous and we will ask UEFA for sanctions, even if it means not continuing the competition,” Mr Surbatovic said, according to Serbian broadcaster…

In the mountains near gambler’s paradise in the US, Las Vegas, people have discovered another “alien” monolith. It’s sparked a fresh wave of monolithic hype, even though there’s a perfectly earthly explanation.  The monolith, a stele, was found 30 kilometers from Las Vegas in a barren rocky landscape, near the summit of Gass Peak, reported local police. And — perhaps — to ensure the rectangular mirror structure was quickly discovered, it was conveniently placed next to a hiking trail. You can’t drive directly up to it by car, but it wouldn’t be so mysterious then, would it? Worldwide imitation There’s been “monolith hype” on social media and…

The tall 56-year-old and former chief of Florence’s revered Uffizi gallery could soon be calling the shots at City Hall. In the first round of the Italian mayoral elections, challenger Schmidt, supported by the right-wing governing coalition led by prime minister Giorgia Meloni, won just under 33% of the vote. He finished in second place — some 10% behind the center-left candidate, Sara Funaro. Now Schmidt will unexpectedly contest the mayoral run-off on June 23 and 24. The art historian from Freiburg im Breisgau — who is half Italian and has an Italian passport — is a world-renowned museum manager. It all…

Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a series of deal in Vietnam on Thursday after talks with President To Lam . Hanoi is Putin’s final stop on the two-nation tour, during which he first visited North Korea and signed a defense deal with leader Kim Jong Un. Vietnam is the third country Putin has visited since being sworn in for his fifth term in May, after China and North Korea. It is his first visit to Vietnam since 2017, though he visited four times before that. Putin, Lam hail ties during visit During the visit, Lam congratulated Putin on his March re-election and praised him for…

A court in Stockholm on Thursday acquitted a former general charged with war crimes during Syria’s civil war. Brigadier General Mohammed Hamo was accused of “aiding and abetting” war crimes in the first half of 2012. Hamo had the highest rank of any Syrian military official to go on trial in Europe, although other countries have sought to press charges against more senior soldiers and officials. Evidence presented deemed insufficient The charges relate to attacks “on several towns or places in the area in and around the towns of Hama and Homs” in a period from January 1 to July 20, 2012.…

Today is a “key day” in the search for a British teenager who has been missing in Tenerife since Monday morning, with search and rescue teams hoping “to have good news”, a journalist on the island has said.Jay Slater, from Lancashire, who was holidaying with friends, was last seen on a night out in Tenerife on Sunday evening, having been to the NRG music festival. Tenerife-based reporter Clio O’Flynn said Thursday “is a key day, the day they [the rescuers] want to have good news and say they’ve found Jay”. Image: The search resumed on Thursday. Pic: Bomberos Voluntarios de…

One of the largest art museums in Switzerland is selling a painting by Claude Monet in order to pay back the family of the Jewish art collector who was forced to sell it during World War II. Monet painted “L’Homme à l’ombrelle” (“Man with a Parasol”) in the late 19th century.  The Kunsthaus Zürich acquired the painting from Carl Sachs, a Jewish entrepreneur who fled to Switzerland with his wife in 1939 to escape the Nazis. Sachs was forced to sell the painting and several others in order to make a living. He died shortly afterward in 1943. “A swift sale was needed…

England have Wembley, France have Stade de France, but the German national team does not have a stadium that can be considered their true home, even when hosting Euro 2024. Ask any fan of the team which stadium they prefer, and the responses will vary widely. But this evening, Stuttgart made a strong case for itself in Germany’s 2-0 victory against Hungary. The win, which followed an opening day thrashing of Scotland, assures German passage to the knockouts, with a match against Switzerland on Sunday to spare. Starting with the national anthem, the German fans provided a deafening noise from the get-go on…

Storm Alberto hit the coast of northeastern Mexico near the US border, bringing heavy rains late on Wednesday and killing at least three people.  The US National Hurricane Center (NHC) said the storm was located about 135 miles (217 kilometers) east of the Mexican port of Tampico, with maximum sustained winds of 50 mph (80 kph) — below hurricane strength. “Heavy rains, coastal flooding, and gusty winds forecast to continue through the morning along the coasts of Texas and Northeastern Mexico,” the NHC said on X. The agency added that the storm could strengthen slightly overnight. Mexico’s national water commission Conagua has issued…