Author: DW

Farmers set fire to tires and blocked roads at a protest in Brussels on Monday. The protesters threw eggs, burned tires, set off fireworks and sprayed manure, while officers responded with water cannons and tear gas in the worst-affected areas. An estimated 900 tractors were parked around the European Union institutions’ headquarters as agricultural ministers met to discuss the sector. Police in riot gear patrolled barriers set up near the headquarters. Officers fired water cannons and tear gas to disperse protesting farmers, who threw eggs, burned tires and set off firecrackers. DW’s Rosie Birchard reports from Brussels farmers’ protestsTo view this…

Lufthansa ground staff are to go on strike for three days beginning Wednesday as a wage dispute between the German flag carrier airline and trade unions continues. The announcement by the trade union Verdi comes just seven days after the last one-day ground personnel strike on February 20. Since then, Lufthansa has made another “improved” offer, according to head of human resources Michael Niggemann, which included bringing forward the first of two wage increases from December to March this year and a quicker pay-out of a €3,000 inflation compensation bonus. But Verdi has again rejected the offer as “insufficient,” repeating its demands…

A former member of a disbanded militant group linked to robberies and attempted murder has been arrested in Germany after more than 30 years on the run.Daniela Klette, 65, offered no resistance as she was detained in a Berlin flat on Monday evening, said Friedo de Vries, head of the criminal investigation department in Lower Saxony. Klette was found alone and police also seized a pistol, two magazines and cartridges in the apartment block in the Kreuzberg district of the capital. Image: Police officers search a flat in the Kreuzberg district of Berlin. Pic: AP Ms de Vries also said…

“When we learned that the sanctions against our country, Niger, had been lifted, we were all happy, and all the people of Niger are delighted to hear this good news,” said Intinicar Alassane, a former advisor to deposed President Mohamed Bazoum. The ousting of democratically elected Bazoum by a military junta in July 2023 led to West African regional bloc ECOWAS imposing stringent sanctions against Niger in an effort to have Bazoum reinstated. The dismantling of all major sanctions includes reopening land and air borders between Niger and ECOWAS member states — as well as lifting the no-fly zone for commercial flights to and…

At the G20 summit held in New Delhi in September 2023, India announced an ambitious venture called the India-Middle East-Europe Corridor (IMEC). Backed by the US, EU and Middle Eastern leaders such as Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman, IMEC is a proposed ship and rail corridor that would connect India to the Middle East and Europe. US President Joe Biden said the project would offer “endless opportunities.” European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen called it “the most direct connection to date between India, the Arabian Gulf and Europe.” Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said IMEC would form the “basis of world…

There were uneasy reactions from European allies of Ukraine on Tuesday after French President Emmanuel Macron said it could not be ruled out that Western ground troops are sent to Ukraine to help it defend itself against the Russian invasion. His remarks came as Russian troops seem to be having growing successes on the battlefield, while Ukraine’s armed forces increasingly have to contend with shortages of munitions and weapons. What did Macron say? After a conference on Ukraine he hosted on Monday in Paris, Macron said that “everything that is necessary” had to be done to avoid a Russian victory,…

A tourist helicopter in Colombia crashed into a building moments after taking off – but all six people on board survived, according to reports. The aircraft was carrying two pilots and four passengers when the incident took place amid strong winds in Medellín, Colombia, on Monday night. Within seconds of being in the air, the helicopter began spinning out of control and plummeted back down towards the helipad on top of a building below.Pictures taken after the passengers were rescued show the wreckage of the helicopter wedged between the building and a communications antenna.What remained of the aircraft was safely…

Japan and North Korea are inching towards a meeting of their two leaders, with Kim Jong Un and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida looking to achieve a breakthrough in a relationship that has been icy for decades. Kishida told Japan’s parliament earlier this month that he wants to hold a summit with North Korean leader Kim, and is personally overseeing high-level discussions with Pyongyang. A meeting would be the first between the leaders of the two nations since former Japanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi travelled to Pyongyang in May 2004 and convinced Kim Jong Il, the father of the present…

Chan Man Ping Philip, a 59-year-old businessman, was officially designated as a “politically significant person” by the Singapore state in February. Chan was born in Hong Kong but later became a naturalized Singaporean. Singapore’s Home Affairs Ministry said in a statement that Chan had “shown susceptibility to be influenced by foreign actors” and has a “willingness to advance their interests.” The Singaporean Parliament passed the Foreign Interference Countermeasure Act (FICA) in October 2021. The law aims to prohibit foreign companies and individuals from influencing the country’s political landscape. Chan is the first person to have been designated under the FICA law.…

A priest in Italy narrowly avoided possible death when he noticed a chalice was laced with bleach just as he was about to sip from it during mass.Father Felice Palamara was leading mass on Saturday at the Nicola di Pannaconi church in Cessaniti, a small town in the Calabria region, as he prepared to drink and noticed a smell. Noticing what is now believed to be a threat from the mafia, the priest told the congregation he was not feeling well and stopped the service.He has railed against crime in the region and says he has been threatened before, with…