Author: DW

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday admonished NATO defense ministers, telling them, “the choice of whether we are indeed allies,” will be determined by whether NATO countries are willing to provide his beleaguered country with more military aid as it struggles to defend itself against a Russian onslaught that is now in its third year. Zelenskyy described the state of Western aid as “very limited,” contrasting the current lack of support for Kyiv to the aid being extended to Israel. Zelenskyy said his country needs seven further US-made Patriot air-defense systems, adding “[Russian President Vladimir] Putin must be brought down to earth and our…

A man set himself on fire on Friday outside the Manhattan courthouse in New York where former President Donald Trump is on trial in a hush-money case. New York Police Department Chief of Department Jeffrey Maddrey said the man, who is from Florida in the United States, walked into the center of the park across the street from the courthouse and set himself on fire.  An eyewitness said the man threw pamphlets into the air before dousing himself with a liquid and lighting himself on fire. Police said the pamphlets appeared to be “conspiracy-based.” The man was rushed to hospital and was in a…

India’s election has kicked off with the first day of polling taking place in 102 constituencies, across 21 states and territories.With close to a billion people registered to vote in seven phases across 44 days, co-ordinating the election is a mammoth task. In the old town of Jaipur, Rajasthan – where temperatures are this week hitting highs of 38°C – voters lined up early at a polling station to avoid queuing during the hottest hours of the day.A public holiday was declared to encourage voting and at the booths, the laborious process of checking voters’ identities against the registration data…

If you want to understand the world, you don’t necessarily have to travel it. Take one look at Immanuel Kant (1724-1804). On April 22, the world celebrates the 300th anniversary of his birth. The German philosopher never left his East Prussian home of Königsberg — now Kaliningrad and part of Russia — yet this did not stop him from trying to understand the world. His ideas have revolutionized philosophy and made him a pioneer of the Enlightenment. His most famous work, “Critique of Pure Reason,” is regarded as a turning point in intellectual history. Today, Kant is one of the most important thinkers of all time.The philosopher never left…

An Italian court on Friday dropped a case against crew members of migrant rescue ships, which has dragged on for nearly seven years. They were accused of rescuing migrants and aiding traffickers in illegal migration. “These unfounded accusations have attempted to tarnish the work of humanitarian search and rescue teams for years,” Doctors Without Borders (MSF) International President Christos Christou said. MSF operated one of the rescue ships.  “They were intended to remove vessels from the sea and to counter their efforts of saving lives and bearing witness. Now these accusations have collapsed.” What do we know about the case?…

As the United States and European Union (EU) consider new economic measures against Iran, the Islamic Republic is touting its resilience to Western boycotts. According to the government in Tehran, the country has exported more oil than ever in the last six years, despite massive sanctions imposed byformer US president Donald Trump in 2018. Last month, Iran’s Oil Minister Javad Owji said oil exports had “generated more than $35 billion [€32.8 billion]” in 2023. The British business daily Financial Times quoted him as saying that while Iran’s enemies wanted to stop its exports, “today, we can export oil anywhere we want, and with minimal discounts.”…

This week, another United Nations special envoy for Libya was frustrated enough with the political situation in the fractured country to quit his job. After 18 months in the post, the Senegalese diplomat Abdoulaye Bathily said he had done his best to get the five key political actors in Libya to resolve contested issues over electoral laws, form a unified government and set the country on a path towards long-delayed elections. “But my attempts were met with stubborn resistance, unreasonable expectations and indifference to the interests of the Libyan people,” Bathily told reporters on Tuesday. In the history of the UN Support Mission in Libya…

Israel has launched an attack against Iran in retaliation to a drone and missile strike launched against it on Saturday.The IDF has declined to comment on the retaliatory strike, but a source told Sky News’s US partner network NBC News that Israel carried out an operation last night. Iranian state media has said the country’s defence system was fired and three drones were shot down over the central city of Isfahan – home to a nuclear site and a military airbase.The country has said it has no plans for immediate retaliation and sought to downplay the military activity. A senior…

The world is currently experiencing its highest levels of violent conflict in at least 30 years. Along with the ongoing war in Ukraine and the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza, there are at least 110 armed conflicts taking place across Africa, Asia, Latin America and Europe.  Many of these wars are being fought in cities and crowded civilian areas. Indiscriminate missile and drone strikes across multiple war zones are affecting civilians, schools, hospitals and children’s shelters. Officials warn that, more than ever before in modern history, the biggest victims of these geopolitical battles are kids. UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has repeatedly warned that children are “disproportionately” bearing the brunt…

As Russia pursues its war of aggression against Ukraine in violation of international law, a charity opera gala has been organized in Germany to raise funds for the hard-hit country. “Rebuild Ukraine” takes place on April 19, 2024 at 7 p.m. local time at the Berlin Konzerthaus. DW will broadcast the event live on the YouTube channel “DW Classical Music” and on the YouTube channel of DW’s Ukrainian program. The charity event will feature top-class opera stars. The president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, and Berlin Mayor Kai Wegner are patrons of the event. Support for Ukrainian children living…