Author: DW

Spain’s High Court on Tuesday ordered the reopening of an investigation into the alleged hacking of Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and other Spanish politicians’ phones with Pegasus spyware. The investigation was launched in 2022 when the government said software from the Israeli firm NSO Group was used to spy on ministers, triggering a political crisis in Spain. The probe was shelved last year over “the complete lack of legal cooperation” from Israel. After receiving new information from French judicial authorities, Judge Jose Luis Calama decided to reopen Spain’s investigation. What is the Pegasus software? Pegasus is a software that can be used on…

At least 16 people have died after a boat they were traveling in from Yemen capsized off the coast of Djibouti, the United Nations’ International Organization for Migration said on Tuesday. In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, the IOM wrote that “Tragedy as boat capsizes off Djibouti coast with 77 migrants on board including children,” adding that at least 28 people were missing. The Ethiopian Ambassador to Djibouti Berhanu Tsegaye, wrote, on X that 33 people survived the disaster. Local authorities were assisting IOM with search and rescue operations. Tsegaye wrote the boat was carrying Ethiopian migrants from Yemen and…

More than 100 students and staff were arrested at New York University (NYU) last night as protests around the Israel-Hamas war reached a boiling point. Recent days have seen an escalation of long-running largely pro-Palestinian protests in some of the country’s most prestigious educational establishments. Protesters at NYU, Columbia and Yale have made various demands of their universities, including that they end their relationships with universities in Israel, take stronger action over the war and divest from military weapons manufacturers who have links to Israel.It has led to growing tensions on campus which have become hotbeds for protest, as some…

A Moscow court on Tuesday rejected the latest appeal by US reporter Evan Gershkovich against his pre-trial detention, more than a year after he was arrested on spying charges. The Wall Street Journal reporter was arrested on March 29, 2023 in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg. He was charged with espionage shortly after — an accusation denied by Gershkovich, his employer and the US government. “It continues to be outrageous that Evan has been wrongfully detained by the Russian government for more than a year,” the WSJ said.  No trial date has been set. Russia’s FSB security agency said he was accused of gathering information on “the activities…

What are the reactions to the Rwanda bill? With the final passing of the Safety of Rwanda (Asylum and Immigration) Act after a long marathon between the two houses of parliament in the UK, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said that deportation flights of asylum seekers to the small African nation would start in the coming weeks. “We are ready, plans are in place and these flights will go, come what may,” Sunak said at a press conference. Rwandan government spokesperson Yolande Makolo meanwhile said on Tuesday that Kigali was also “pleased” to learn about the UK decision to pass a bill allowing…

The Irish premier has apologised on behalf of the state over the 1981 Stardust nightclub fire in which 48 people died.A decades-long fight for justice culminated last week in an inquest finding that they had all been unlawfully killed in the Dublin tragedy.Taoiseach Simon Harris said the state had failed families when “you needed us most” – and politicians stood in applause in parliament to acknowledge family members in the public gallery.”I know you were forced to endure a living nightmare which began when your loved ones were snatched from you in a devastating fire,” Mr Harris said.”I am deeply…

It’s not often that a German federal president writes a book while still in office but Frank-Walter Steinmeier, who’s been Germany’s head of state for over seven years, has done just that.  He says the decision was prompted by the approach this year of major anniversaries for two significant events in German history: the 75th anniversary of the Proclamation of the Constitution [Germany’s Basic Law] on May 23; and the 35th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall on November 9. Steinmeier fears rise of the right, speaks of politcal despondency  Looking ahead to those milestones, the president — who plays a…

Australia’s prime minister said Elon Musk is an “arrogant billionaire who thinks he is above the law” over his reluctance to remove footage of last week’s Church stabbing from X.In response, Elon Musk thanked him “for informing the public that this platform is the only truthful one”. The spat comes after a week of legal battles and public arguments between X and the Australian government.So what’s going on?Last week, two clerics at Sydney’s Assyrian Christ the Good Shepherd church were stabbed while live streaming a service. Soon after, videos of the stabbing began circulating on social media. The Australian eSafety…

Tino Chrupalla, co-chair of Germany’s far-right populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, was the main guest in an evening political TV show on public channel ARD on Sunday. He got plenty of space to present himself as friendly and well-meaning, denying any knowledge of leading AfD politicians being on Russia’s payroll, of racism and misogyny in his own party. Political commentators for other traditional media were outraged. As the far right continues to poll as the second-strongest party in Germany well ahead of the center-left Social Democrats (SPD)led by Chancellor Olaf Scholz, how to deal with far-right politicians is posing…

Another possible major doping scandal is shaking world sport less than 100 days before the start of the Olympic Games in Paris on July 26. What happened? According to research by the doping investigations team at German broadcaster ARD and the US newspaper, The New York Times, 23 Chinese swimmers tested positive for the banned substance trimetazidine at a swimming competition in January, 2021 in Shijiazhuang, the capital of the northern Chinese province of Hebei. However, the Chinese anti-doping agency, CHINADA, did not classify the results as specific suspected cases and the participants were allowed to continue competing. The reason, according to CHINADA, was that there were low concentrations…