Author: DW

The European Environmental Agency (EEA) warned on Monday that Europe could suffer “catastrophic” consequences of  climate change if it fails to take urgent action. In its first Europe-wide analysis of climate-related risks, the EEA listed 36 threats related to climate in Europe, 21 of which demand immediate action, while eight were described as “particularly urgent.” The dangers include fires, water shortages and their effects on agricultural production, while low-lying coastal regions face threats of flooding, erosion and saltwater intrusion, the report said. Why should Europe worry? Europe is the world’s fastest-warming continent, heating up at twice the global rate, the EEA said. Even if…

Fears are on the rise over a looming military conflict in the Taiwan Strait. The People’s Republic of China wants reunification with self-ruled Taiwan, which Beijing sees as a Chinese province, even by force, if necessary. Presenting his government’s work report to the National People’s Congress (NPC), China’s rubber-stamp parliament, Premier Li Qiang reaffirmed Beijing’s firm resolve to “resolutely advance the cause of China’s reunification.” This is part of the government’s “overall strategy,” he emphasized. The statement itself is not new, but the word “peaceful” — a term that was present in the declarations of previous years — was missing before “reunification.”…

It should be one of the great moments in the Islamic calendar. When a month of prayer, fasting and ultimately celebration begins. But Ramadan has started this year in an atmosphere of resentment, fear and anger for Palestinian Muslims, thanks to the war in Gaza.Outside Jerusalem’s Al Aqsa Mosque, Islam’s third most holy shrine, there was tension during Tarawih prayers that launch the holy month. Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had promised freedom of worship opposed by his far-right extremist national security minister Itamar Ben Gvir, who had wanted restrictions imposed on worshippers.We witnessed police pick and choose who was…

When there are disputes in sport, the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) often decides. But how does it work? Source link

Skip next section Sweden’s NATO membership shows Putin ‘failed’ — Stoltenberg03/11/2024March 11, 2024Sweden’s NATO membership shows Putin ‘failed’ — StoltenbergThe flag of Sweden has been raised at NATO’sheadquarters in Brussels, symbolizing the country’s entry into the military alliance. NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg said that Stockholm’s accession showed Russian President Vladimir Putin had “failed” in his strategy in Ukraine. He said that not only were Sweden and Finland now members of the alliance due to the war in Ukraine, but also that “Ukraine is closer to NATO membership than ever before.” Putin cited the threat of Kyiv joining NATO in justifying…

Japan on Monday marked the anniversary of the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami that destroyed three of the six reactors at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant. Shortly after the magnitude-9 earthquake struck on March 11, a series of tsunamis inundated four of the reactor buildings and set off a chain reaction in three reactors that resulted in the release of significant amounts of radioactivity into the environment. Tens of thousands of locals were quickly evacuated and, over the following years, the reactors were stabilized. The challenge in recent years has been to gather the large amounts of nuclear fuel…

Sweden has cemented its place as a new member of NATO with a flag-raising ceremony.Two soldiers raised the blue banner emblazoned with a yellow cross among the official circle of national flags at the headquarters of the alliance in Brussels, Belgium. The ceremony came two years after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine persuaded Sweden’s reluctant public to seek safety under NATO’s security umbrella.The Nordic country becomes the 32nd member of the alliance.Under a steady rain, Swedish prime minister, Ulf Kristersson, and NATO secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, attended the ceremony. Image: The ceremony was held at the NATO headquarters in Belgium. Pic:…

A distant, dull roar accompanies a family as they go to sleep. It booms, hisses, fizzles and bangs: the sounds of a factory running day and night. Only this factory doesn’t produce goods — it produces corpses. The family whose life these noises accompany is that of Rudolf Höss, the commandant of the Auschwitz concentration and extermination camp complex. The family’s house is directly next to the walls of the camp. The idyllic garden is flanked by chimneys spewing thick smoke. Flames rise into the sky at night. As the children play in the garden, the sounds of barking dogs, shouting…

French President Emmanuel Macron has announced plans for a bill to legalize medical assistance in dying for adults diagnosed with an incurable disease and facing imminent death. Macron told newspapers La Croix and Liberation that the new legislation to legalize “aid in dying” under certain conditions would only apply to those above 18 years of age. Prime Minister Gabriel Attal wrote on X on Monday that the bill would be put forward in parliament on May 27. “Death can no longer be a taboo issue and subject to silence,” he wrote in French. Proposed law to give people humane options in death The legislation is meant to offer “a…

Rescue workers have found the bodies of five cross-country skiers in southeastern Switzerland, on the border with Italy, local police said on Monday. Police in the Swiss canton of Valais launched a search on Sunday for six people who were reported missing after setting out on a ski tour from the Alpine town of Zermatt..  Bad weather conditions and the risk of avalanches made the search difficult, but a team of rescuers eventually found five bodies, police said. The sixth missing person is still being sought.The search for the skiers has been hampered by bad weatherImage: Angelika Warmuth/dpa/picture alliance Who were the skiers found in the…