Author: DW

Scores of young people in Sierra Leone have become addicted to kush, a drug that threatens the lives of its users and others in their communities. The local government in Sierra Leone’s capital, Freetown, said they buried 32 young people earlier this month, most of whom died from kush-related effects. The growing problem of kush — which is also known as K2 — has led the government of the West African nation to convene a national conference, despite citizens’ calls to go a step further and declare a public emergency. At the Sierra Leone Psychiatric Hospital, previously known as Kissy Hospital, many patients admitted to being kush…

Mauro Congedo has been finding and renovating small architectural treasures with his brother and father for 25 years in Salento — a peninsula in the southeast of Italy that makes up the “heel” of the country. The apartments and houses that Congedo restores in this rather remote region are now suddenly finding buyers from Germany and England. “Things are going well again,” said the 50-year-old architect. During the coronavirus pandemic, business almost came to a standstill. But what happened afterward in Italy in the industry was “crazy” he says, dragging out the “a” for a long time. But look deeper…

At least five Iranian security members were killed in clashes with militants at two separate points in southeastern Iran, state media reported on Thursday. The official IRNA news agency said another 10 other security force members were injured and at least eight gunmen were killed during the gunfights. It said the fighting erupted overnight in Sistan and Baluchistan province when gunmen opened fire on a Revolutionary Guard post in Rask town and a coastguard station in Chahbahar city, close to the border with Pakistan and some 1,400 kilometers (870 miles) southeast of the capital, Tehran. A ‘foiled terrorist attack’ The exact extent of the gunfire…

The first patient to receive a kidney transplanted from a genetically modified pig has been discharged from hospital.Richard “Rick” Slayman received the organ in March in a world first after undergoing a four-hour surgery at the Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) in Boston. The 62-year-old suffers from end-stage renal failure, a chronic disease where the kidneys can no longer function on their own.”This moment – leaving the hospital today with one of the cleanest bills of health I’ve had in a long time – is one I wished would come for many years,” he said in a statement on Wednesday.”Now, it’s…

The annual rate of inflation in countries using the euro currency fell faster than expected in March, official data showed on Wednesday. Consumer prices in the Eurozone rose by just 2.4%, down from 2.6% in February, the EU’s statistical office Eurostat said. For its part, Germany recorded an annual rate of inflation in March of 2.2%, dropping from 2.7% in February. Predictions by analysts for the eurozone had ranged from there being no drop at all, to a smaller dip to 2.5%. Inflation in the single currency zone has significantly fallen from the peak of 10.6% reached in October 2022 following Russia’s invasion…

Mauro Congedo has been finding and renovating small architectural treasures with his brother and father for 25 years in Salento — a peninsula in the southeast of Italy that makes up the “heel” of the country. The apartments and houses that Congedo restores in this rather remote region are now suddenly finding buyers from Germany and England. “Things are going well again,” said the 50-year-old architect. During the coronavirus pandemic, business almost came to a standstill. But what happened afterward in Italy in the industry was “crazy” he says, dragging out the “a” for a long time. But look deeper…

The number of fatalities and people injured in the recent Taiwan earthquake continues to rise. Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration said the 7.2 magnitude earthquake hit around 25 kilometers (15.5 miles) southeast of Hualien county, a mountainous region on the country’s east coast, where dozens of buildings collapsed. News agencies report that strict building codes prevented an even larger catastrophe. The last time a similarly strong earthquake hit Taiwan was in 1999. Back then, more than 2,400 people died. Earthquakes aren’t rare in Taiwan. The island lies on a fault line, where two of Earth’s tectonic plates collide. How do earthquakes happen?…

The sex crimes trial of the main suspect in the Madeleine McCann case has been held up after the defence accused prosecutors of creating worldwide prejudice against him.Lawyers for Christian B, 46, told a German court that he could not get a fair trial on rape and sex assault charges because prosecutors had consistently accused him of abducting British toddler Madeleine McCann who vanished in Portugal 17 years ago. Defence lawyer Atilla Ayak asked judges to remove one of the prosecutors in the trial that is being held in the city of Braunschweig, Germany.Christian B – as he is known…

An earthquake in Taiwan has injured more than 700 people and killed at least seven, the island’s government said on Wednesday. Taiwan’s Central Weather Administration (CWA) said a 7.2 magnitude earthquake struck near the island on Wednesday morning. It said the quake hit at a depth of 15.5 kilometers (9.6 miles) with the epicenter around 25 kilometers southeast of Hualien county. The deaths all occurred in Hualien county,  Taiwanese broadcaster TVBS posted footage of a collapsed building.   The fire department was cited in reports that at least 26 buildings had collapsed with more than half of that number in the eastern county of Hualien. Footage broadcast…

The population of brown bears in the Pyrenees mountains has continued to grow, French authorities announced on Tuesday. Brown bears had nearly vanished from Pyrenees until a reintroduction program brought in three bears from a healthy population in Slovenia. Since then, the population has grown steadily. In 2022 there were at least 76 bears recorded in the region. That number has grown to 83 for 2023, the French Biodiversity Agency said. “With a minimum of 83 individuals detected in 2023, the size of the brown bear population is gradually continuing to increase in the Pyrenees,” it said. Conservation efforts continue…