Author: DW

How did Ovaherero and Germans come into contact? After the borders of German South West Africa were established in 1890, German authorities promoted the area as a settler colony, as opposed to other German possessions in Africa. Settlers began arriving in desert coastal towns like Lüderitz and Swakopmund and trekked inland. Colonial authorities deemed the land suitable for stock farming, and very soon German settlers encountered Nama people — and the Ovaherero.   How were relations initially? At first, relations between German and Herero people were relatively cordial, with Hereros converting to Christianity, and accepting the German presence. They also signed protection…

The Israeli military withdrew from the Shifa Hospital in Gaza City on Monday after a two-week raid. The Health Ministry in Hamas-ruled Gaza said the operation left most of the medical complex, the main hospital in the territory, in ruins. “Dozens of bodies, some of them decomposed, have been recovered from, in and around the Shifa medical complex,” the ministry said, adding that the hospital was now “completely out of service.” The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed the withdrawal on social media after “completing the operation.” “Troops have completed precise operational activity in the area of the Shifa Hospital and exited the area of…

A temporary alternate channel has been opened into the port of Baltimore to help with the clean-up operation following the collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge.The structure collapsed into the water last Tuesday after being struck by the Dali, a 300m (985ft) cargo ship, which had lost power. Maryland governor Wes Moore said the temporary channel, to the northeast side of the collapsed bridge, would “help get more vessels in the water around the site of the collapse”.He added that recovery teams were working on opening a second temporary channel.City officials said the temporary channel would open only to…

Last week, China’s coast guard shot a water cannon at a Philippine boat on a supply mission to an outpost on Second Thomas Shoal, injuring crew members and damaging the small vessel. Large Chinese vessels frequently harass Filipino boats near the shoal, which has become a flashpoint in a long-running maritime dispute in the South China Sea between Beijing and Manila. Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. has warned his government would take “proportionate, deliberate” action against “dangerous attacks by agents of the China coast guard and Chinese maritime militia.” On March 25, after the water cannon assault, Manila lodged its “strongest…

Less than two weeks ahead of South Korea’s April 10 parliamentary elections, authorities have vowed to take firm measures against anyone attempting to influence the outcome by peddling disinformation using artificial intelligence-driven deepfakes or carrying out cyberattacks against the electoral process.   An assault by “bad actors” could further overshadow an election that is already fractious due to the two main parties’ deep ideological differences. Shortly before the official start of campaigning on March 28, the National Police Agency (NPA) warned that it was stepping up monitoring of actions that could constitute unfair efforts to undermine the legitimacy of the polls.…

A British volunteer is among five aid workers who have died after an airstrike in the Gaza Strip, according to a Hamas-run government office.Nationals from Poland and Australia were also killed, as well as one Palestinian. They were employees for World Central Kitchen, which provides food for displaced Palestinians.Ismail al Thawabta, a spokesperson for the Gaza government’s media office, said Israel was responsible for their deaths.He added: “It is time for this war to stop immediately. It is time for the killing against civilians, against children, and against women to stop.” Mr al Thawabta went on to urge “all countries…

Syria and Iran said Monday that a building adjacent to the Iranian Embassy in Damascus was hit by an Israeli airstrike that killed a top commander in the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC). “At least five people were killed in the attack which was carried out by F-35 fighter jets,” Hossein Akbari, Iran’s ambassador to Damascus, said in an interview broadcast on state TV.  The IRGC said two generals and five officers were killed in the attack.  Emergency responders were still searching for bodies under the rubble. Iran vows ‘harsh’ response Iranian and Syrian officials strongly condemned the strike on Iran’s…

Swiss police said Monday that three people were killed and another one injured following an avalanche at the popular ski resort town of Zermatt.  The victims were swept away earlier in the day amid avalanche warnings in the southern Alps of Switzerland and Austria. What do we know so far?  Authorities launched a rescue operation and had discovered the bodies of the victims. Swiss police did not divulge the identities of the victims or say if more people could be missing after the disaster.  Police for the southwestern Swiss canton of Valais where the avalanche occurred say the search operations will be put on…

Adidas has said it will “block” Germany’s football kits featuring the number 44 over concerns it resembles the Nazi ‘SS’ symbol.The new kits were launched last month as Germany beat France 2-0 in a friendly and will be worn at Euro 2024, taking place in Germany this summer. However, similarities were flagged with the font of the number four, specifically when the figures are side by side where they resemble the lightning bolt style rune designed for the Schutzstaffel (SS) by Walter Heck in the 1930s.The SS was responsible for numerous crimes against humanity under Hitler’s Nazi regime, including the…

A Russian court extended the pre-trial detention of US-Russian journalist Alsu Kurmasheva for a second time on Monday. Her lawyers had previously asked for her to be put under house arrest until she faces trial, but she will now be held until at least June 5. Kurmasheva smiled in court in Kazan on Monday but complained about the poor state of the cell where she was being kept, according to an AFP reporter at the hearing. What was Alsu Kurmasheva charged with? Kurmasheva lived in Prague and worked as a journalist for the US-funded Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. In 2022, Kurmasheva also edited a book called…