Author: DW

Euro 2024 tournament organizer UEFA on Wednesday said it was investigating Turkish national football player Merih Demiral for “inappropriate behavior” during his side’s knockout game against Austria in Leipzig. After scoring a goal on Tuesday evening in the knockout match, the 26-year-old defender made the so-called wolf salute — a symbol of Turkey’s far-right “Gray Wolves” — with both hands. Demiral put his side ahead less than a minute after the match began and scored a second just before the hour mark. After netting the second, he made the gesture — with index and little finger raised — associated with the violent ultra-nationalist organization. Turkey’s Foreign Ministry…

Russian President Vladimir Putin hailed relations with China, saying they were “at their best period in history,” during a meeting with Chinese President Xi Jinping. The two leaders met in the Kazakh capital of Astana on Wednesday, where they were attending a summit of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO). The Eurasian security and defense club is seen by Moscow and Beijing as an instrument to counter the influence of the US and its allies in international affairs. Alongside Russia and China, four Central Asian states, India, Iran and Pakistan are members of the SCO. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres was also…

On Sunday, an angry mob burned cars and destroyed stores belonging to Syrian refugees in the central Turkish city of Kayseri, chanting that they “don’t want any more Syrians.” In response, demonstrators in the Turkish-controlled area of northwestern Syria launched anti-Turkish protests of their own in the following days, saying they were acting in solidarity with their Syrian compatriots in Turkey. Several people have died in the unrest. The mob’s rage in Turkey wasn’t just directed at Syrian refugees, but also against the Syria policy of Recep Tayyip Erdogan, with calls for the Turkish president to “step down!” They said they no longer accepted Erdogan’s long-standing open-door policy…

Many myths and legends have circled around the Titanic up to this day, contributing to an ongoing fascination for the wreck. For decades, it has also drawn wealthy tourists to travel to the remains of the liner for themselves — an expedition that is not only expensive, but also dangerous, and now a submersible vessel carrying five people has gone missing. Titanic tour submersible goes missing in AtlanticTo view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 videoThe RMS Titanic was supposed to be a triumph of engineering. Built in Belfast, the ship was the largest in the world in its day. In…

More and more women are being turned away by the justice system in Iraqi Kurdistan, Amnesty International said in a report released on Wednesday.  “[Authorities] are failing to ensure that perpetrators of domestic violence, including harrowing cases of murder, rape, beatings and burning, are held to account,” Amnesty’s report said of officials in Iraqi Kurdistan. “Survivors of domestic violence in the Kurdistan region of Iraq are being failed at every turn,” said Aya Majzoub, Amnesty’s deputy regional director for the Middle East and North Africa. Domestic violence a problem across Iraq The effects of domestic violence are felt not just in the Kurdistan region, but…

For nearly five months, around 40 farmers have been living in reinforced tents on a highway in northern India, 212 kilometers (132 miles) from Delhi. These farmers have been protesting against Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, despite their dwindling numbers from earlier this year. In February, their numbers were significantly larger. Tens of thousands of farmers had gathered at the Shambhu border, a key interstate checkpoint, expressing anger towards the government for not fulfilling its promise to guarantee a minimum support price (MSP) for crops. The proposed MSP, which would be at least 50% higher than the cost of production,…

UEFA has launched an investigation into Turkey’s Merih Demiral for allegedly making a political gesture as he celebrated his country’s Euro 2024 victory over Austria.The 26-year-old defender was the match-winner as he scored both of his side’s goals in a 2-1 win to secure his nation a place in the quarter-finals of the tournament in Germany. But officials at European football’s governing body are understood to be investigating whether Demiral gave a so-called ‘wolf’s salute’ with each hand in a gesture linked to the Turkish nationalist movement.After scoring the second goal, he appeared to make a sign associated with the…

Reading the news about the recent stampede in India, where 121 people died on Tuesday at a Hindu religious gathering in Uttar Pradesh in northern India, you may wonder: How does something like that happen? What was going through the minds of the people in the crowd? How should you react if you find yourself in a similar situation? Officials have said little about any specific factors that caused the crush on Tuesday 2nd July. But crowd control experts have shared insights from studies on past stampede events.People mourns next to the body of a relative outside the Sikandrarao hospital in Hathras district.Image: Manoj Aligadi/AP/picture alliance Probably not mass panic…

A norovirus outbreak hit the picturesque village of Torri del Benaco on the shores of Lake Garda, Italy, last week. More than 300 people have sought medical treatment for the highly contagious stomach bug. The virus is known for its sudden onset of gastrointestinal symptoms such as diarrhea, vomiting, stomach cramps and fever. The rapid spread of the illness led to an immediate investigation by health authorities, who confirmed the presence of the highly contagious norovirus in stool samples of affected individuals. It’s not yet clear what caused the sudden norovirus outbreak, but local health experts suspect the local water supply.…

German and Swedish authorities on Wednesday said they arrested eight men suspected of committing crimes against humanity in Syria. Germany’s  Federal Public Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement that four stateless Syrian Palestinians and a Syrian national are “strongly suspected of killing and attempting to kill civilians, qualified as crimes against humanity and war crimes.” Swedish authorities said three people were arrested for alleged crimes against humanity. What German authorities said Prosecutors said three men, Jihad A., Mazhar J. and Sameer S., were arrested in Berlin. Mahmoud A. was arrested in Frankenthal, Rhineland-Palatinate, and Wael S. was taken into custody near Boizenburg in Mecklenburg-West…