Author: DW

Georgians continue to take to the streets to demonstrate against draft legislation that they say would infringe on their rights and lessen the chances of Georgia being able to join the EU. Source link

President Joe Biden has spoken out for the first time following violence and arrests during demonstrations at multiple US universities, saying: “There is a right to protest but not a right to cause chaos.”Tension at universities across America have been building for days as demonstrators have refused to remove encampments and administrators have called in law enforcement to break them up. There have been clashes between pro-Palestinian activists and counter-protesters, as well as between demonstrators and police.Speaking at the White House today, Mr Biden said events at the universities “put to the test two fundamental American principles, the first is…

Durga was devastated last year when she learned that she had developed a tuberculosis (TB) infection for the third time. Now, almost four months after completing another course of anti-TB treatment, the 28-year-old was still short of breath when we spoke. “The doctors say I am cured, but I don’t feel like I am the same person anymore,” said Durga, who requested we protect her identity by not using her full name. Beating a tuberculosis infection is only the first milestone in a long journey of recovery for many patients. Emerging data shows that TB survivors often go on to develop long-term breathing…

The Philippines on Thursday summoned a senior Chinese diplomat over Beijing’s use of water cannon against Filipino vessels at a contested shoal in the South China Sea. “The Philippines protested the harassment, ramming, swarming, shadowing and blocking, dangerous maneuvers, use of water cannons, and other aggressive actions of China Coast Guard and Chinese Maritime Militia vessels against” Filipino government vessels, the Philippines’ Department of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. The Foreign Ministry said that the deputy chief of the Chinese Embassy, Zhou Zhiyong, was summoned to hear Manila’s 20th protest against Beijing this year, one of 153 under the current administration. China:…

The number of births and weddings in Germany last year fell to its lowest level in years, according to preliminary figures released Thursday by the Federal Statistics Office, known as Destatis. Around 693,000 children were born in Germany in 2023, the lowest level since 2013, according to the figures. The number fell by 6.2% compared to the previous year, when 738,819 births were counted. In eastern Germany, the number of births in 2023 fell by 9.2% compared to the previous year, from 86,227 to about 78,300 — a much sharper decline than in western Germany, where the number of newborns…

Universal Music and TikTok have ended a dispute over royalties after the label pulled millions of songs from the social media platform.The new licensing agreement means songs by some of the biggest artists in the world, including Drake, Adele and Billie Eilish will return to the site for use within the next two weeks. TikTok, a short video app, is a valuable marketing and promotional tool for music stars. But in January, Universal claimed it paid artists and songwriters “a fraction” of the rate offered by similar social media platforms, and announced it was pulling its catalogue. Image: Billie Eilish…

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen traveled to Lebanon to announce an economic aid package of €1 billion for the country on Thursday. The visit comes with EU member state Cyprus increasingly anxious about a sharp rise in Syrian migrant numbers from Lebanon, just 185 kilometers (100 miles) from the Mediterranean island. For months, Cyprus has lobbied the bloc, urging it to extend aid to Lebanon in a way similar to EU deals with Turkey, Tunisia, and, more recently, Egypt. Cyprus has told Brussels the number of migrants is no longer sustainable, and it has suspended the processing of asylum applications by Syrian…

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is visiting Lebanon, where she was expected to announce aid for the country on Thursday. The visit comes with EU member state Cyprus increasingly anxious about a sharp rise in Syrian migrant numbers from Lebanon, just 185 kilometers (100 miles) from the Mediterranean island. For months, Cyprus has lobbied the bloc, urging it to extend aid to Lebanon in a way similar to EU deals with Turkey, Tunisia, and, more recently, Egypt. Cyprus has told Brussels the number of migrants is no longer sustainable, and it has suspended the processing of asylum applications by Syrian…

Iran is willing to “expend every Arab life” in its efforts to end Western influence in the Middle East and destroy Israel, a former US national security adviser has said.HR McMaster, who held the position between 2017 and 2018 during the Trump presidency, told Sky News that there is still a risk of escalation between Iran and Israel after the two nations carried out attacks on each other in April. Iran said its attack on Saturday 13 April was a retaliation after two of its generals were killed in a strike Tehran blames on Israel.Israel responded to the Iranian attack…

A two-week lull in attacks by Yemen’s Houthi rebels have ended with the resumption of missile strikes targeting Red Sea ships linked to Israel, the United States or nations supporting the international anti-Houthi naval coalition in those waters. The attacks, which the Houthis have been carrying out since November 2023, are a bid to show solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza. However, while the Iran-backed group has not managed to influence the course of the war between Israel and Hamas, its ongoing attacks have increased the group’s popularity to an unprecedented level. And now, some five months into the attacks, the Houthis are starting to leverage this power boost across Yemen. The US-led international naval coalition has been…