Author: DW

Growing tourism numbers are placing popular destinations under extra pressure – due to various factors including environmental and residential concerns.Here are some locations limiting tourists – or which could be about to take action. Venice, ItalyA controversial scheme has been introduced for day trippers in Venice in an attempt to reduce the number of tourists.Signs inform visitors there is a new €5 fee (£4.28) to be paid as part of a trial phase during peak periods of the summer. Around 200 stewards have been trained to politely walk anyone unaware of the charge through the process of downloading a QR…

When journalist Toni Ferrera recently traveled around Gran Canaria, the reporter got to know Juan, a 53-year-old man who has been living in a makeshift corrugated iron shack for many years because he can’t afford an apartment on the island. He works as a pool lifeguard at a hotel complex but only earns €1,000 ($1070) a month. “His story symbolizes what is going on in the Canary Islands,” Ferrera told DW, who has been covering regional issues for years. Ferrera points out that even though “tourism creates a lot of jobs,” what kind of jobs are they, if they don’t even pay…

A dam has collapsed north of the Kenyan capital, Nairobi, in Mai Mahiu, causing numerous deaths, Nakuru County Governor Susan Kihika said on Monday. A least 42 people have died, and “there are still more in the mud,” Kihika told AFP news agency. The access for the rescue groups is complicated by washed-out roads and demolished houses blocking the way. Flooding has also blocked a major road in the region, police spokesman Stephen Kirui told the Associated Press news agency.Kenyans mourn the death of flood victimsTo view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that…

More than two years since Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, its gas is still flowing into Europe. While the European Union has greatly reduced the amount of gas it imports from Russia, the hydrocarbon is still powering some European homes and businesses and boosting Kremlin revenues as a result. When the war began, European leaders were forced to reckon with a long-established dependence on both Russian gas and oil. Gas was a particular problem, as in 2021, 34% of the EU’s gas came from Russia. Countries in Central and Eastern Europe were especially dependent. When the EU mooted a ban,…

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced on Monday that he planned to stay in his role, despite allegations against his wife Begona Gomez. The news came after five days of silence that began when a court said it was investigating his wife for corruption and other charges. What the Spanish prime minister said “I have decided to continue with even more strength, if possible, at the helm of the government of Spain,” Sanchez said in a televised speech.  The premier said an apparent campaign against him and his wife was serious, but that it was not the most important thing. Sanchez said a mass show…

An aid group is to resume its work in Gaza four weeks after suspending operations following the killing of seven workers.World Central Kitchen (WCK) says it will restart operations in the besieged strip on Monday, delivering food to “address widespread hunger”, including in the north. It comes following the killing of the WCK workers in an Israeli military strike on 1 April.Three British nationals, who were part of WCK’s security team, an Australian, a Polish national, an American-Canadian dual citizen, and a Palestinian, were killed in the strike.An Israeli investigation found that incorrect assumptions, decision-making mistakes and violations of the…

Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has described domestic violence as a  “national crisis” as thousands of people protested across the country over violence against women. “A national crisis demands a national response,” Albanese said on Monday in a statement posted on social media platform X, formerly Twitter. “That’s why I’m bringing together National Cabinet on Wednesday morning to take action on violence against women,” he added. According to reports, 27 women have died in Australia so far this year allegedly due to acts of gender-based violence. “The fact that … a woman dies every four days on average at the hand of…

The UK will not to take back asylum seekers who cross the border into Ireland “until the EU accepts that we can send them back to France”, according to a government source.The comment comes amid an escalating row between Dublin and Westminster over the Irish government’s plans for new legislation to enable asylum seekers who cross the border from Northern Ireland to be sent back to the UK. Irish justice minister Helen McEntee told a parliamentary committee last week that more than 80% of recent arrivals in Ireland came via the land border with Northern Ireland.Ireland’s deputy prime minister and…

A British tourist seriously injured in a shark attack off the coast of Trinidad and Tobago is “aware of what is happening and can communicate”, according to his wife.Peter Smith, 64, was attacked 10 metres off the shore near the Starfish Hotel in Courland Bay on the north coast of Tobago on Friday morning. He remains in intensive care at a hospital on the island, having suffered damage to his left arm and leg, puncture wounds to the abdomen, and injuries to his right hand, according to his wife, Jo Smith.She told the BBC in a statement: “As of 9am…

President Emmanuel Macron said on Sunday that France is “ready to contribute more to the defense of Europe.” In an interview published in several French newspapers Macron said France’s nuclear weapons could be part of a common European defense strategy.  It is the second time in recent days where Macron has expressed France’s readiness to get more involved. On Thursday, Macron called called for a “credible” European defense strategy. What did Macron say about nuclear weapons? France’s doctrine has been to only use nuclear weapons when the country’s vital interests are threatened. But Macron said he was open to give a more “European dimension” to these…