Author: DW

In 1985, musician and activist Bob Geldof organized the now-legendary Live Aid benefit concerts in London and Philadelphia to raise money in response to the devastating two-year famine in Ethiopia. Nearly four decades later, Geldof might need to come out of retirement to plan another event of such proportions if the latest predictions and calculations by experts specializing in hunger in Ethiopia become a reality. According to the United Nations World Food Program (WFP), some 20 million people in Ethiopia urgently need food assistance. A former head of the WFP, who doesn’t want to be named, told The Associated Press that the Horn…

Tyson Fury has said he is “absolutely devastated” after a “freak” sparring injury forced him to postpone his fight against Oleksandr Usyk, the winner of which will be crowned undisputed heavyweight champion.The British boxer, the WBC champion, was scheduled to meet his Ukrainian opponent, who holds the WBO, WBA and IBF belts, in Riyadh, later this month. Fight promoters, Queensberry Promotions, published a picture of Fury showing a cut over his right eye. Image: Tyson Fury suffered a ‘freak cut’ during a sparring session. File pic: PA X This content is provided by X, which may be using cookies and…

Hamas officials said on Friday that the group was studying a proposed cease-fire deal that would include prolonged pauses in fighting in Gaza and swaps of Israeli hostages taken by Hamas for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.  However, the group also appeared to rule out some key components of the proposal.  Hamas’ top political leader, Ismail Haniyeh, has been in Cairo for the past two days to evaluate the offer.  Haniyeh said in a statement on Friday that negotiations must “completely end” Israeli military operations in Gaza and bring about the withdrawal of Israeli forces — terms Israel has rejected. …

The European Union says it wants to deepen ties with the Indo-Pacific, the region stretching from the west coast of Africa to the South Pacific, often seen as a geopolitical battleground between the world’s big powers. As delegations from 70 countries crammed into meeting rooms in Brussels on Friday, the bloc reiterated its thinly veiled pitch to rival China and become the Global South’s partner of choice. “The European Union has a lot to offer; we are a transparent and reliable partner,” EU top diplomat Josep Borrell said, listing off commitments to work more closely to combat climate change, boost trade,…

Punxsutawney Phil has revealed his annual weather prediction on Groundhog Day in a tongue-in-cheek ritual in Pennsylvania.As the sun rose in Gobbler’s Knob, the furry forecaster emerged from his burrow, with his handlers from the Punxsutawney Groundhog Club announcing he had not seen his shadow. The group says this means America can expect an early spring.Gobbler’s Knob is the scene of the largest and best known Groundhog Day celebration in the US.Some 10,000 people made their way to Punxsutawney in recent years for the festivities, which begin at night and culminate in the midwinter forecast. Tradition dating back to 1887…

02/02/2024February 2, 2024Ukraine says Russia is refusing to return bodies of plane crash victimsRussia has repeatedly refused Ukrainian requests to hand over the bodies of 65 Ukrainian prisoners of war (POW) allegedly killed when a Russian military transport plane was downed by a missile, according to a Ukrainian intelligence official. Moscow and Kyiv have traded accusations over the January 24 crash, with the Kremlin accusing Ukraine of killing its own men, suggestions which Ukraine has dismissed as “rampant Russian propaganda.” Ukraine has neither confirmed nor denied that its forces downed the Il-76 transport plane, and Russia’s claim that the crash killed Ukrainian…

For days, certain pictures of small children lying huddled together on muddy ground or in front of tents have been shared on social media platforms such as TikTok, Instagram and X, formerly known as Twitter. They are often accompanied by a Palestinian flag or comments suggesting the children are located in the Gaza Strip.  That people in Gaza — and children in particular — are suffering in dire conditions without sufficient access to food, clean water and medical care has been well documented by the United Nations, human rights organizations, international media and the people themselves. DW contacted several aid organizations with…

Guests on board a floating sauna helped rescue two people after their car plunged off a quay into a fjord in Oslo.The vehicle shot into the water at speed on Thursday near the Akershusstranda, an area where ships dock close to the Norwegian capital’s medieval fortress and castle. A witness told Norway’s VG newspaper that the car was stationary before it suddenly accelerated and ended up in the water.The driver is reported to have hit the accelerator by mistake.As the car sank, the motorist and their passenger climbed onto its roof – as the sauna raft sped over to help.…

Gertrude Stein definitely lived a storied life: Remembered as a language innovator, lesbian role model, feminist pioneer and literary anarchist, she hosted in her Paris apartment avant-garde authors and artists such as Hemingway, Fitzgerald and Picasso.  But along with her progressive lifestyle, the Jewish-American experimental writer and art collector also developed ties with a powerful Vichy government official and Nazi collaborator during World War II — a close friendship which presumably saved her life and her exceptional art collection. That darker part of her biography was long overlooked in her legacy.  Early explorations in psychology and medicine The youngest of five children, Stein was born on February 3, 1874, in Allegheny, Pennsylvania,…

The German lower house of parliament, or Bundestag, approved the controversial rolling back of tax relief for diesel use by the German agricultural industry on Friday as part of the government’s spending plans.  Later on Friday, the Bundestag also voted in favor of a 2024 budget after much delay.  The budget of around €477 billion ($519 billion) will include €39 billion in new borrowing. What’s the significance of rolling back the diesel subsidies?  This proposal has angered German farmers, leading to nationwide protests in recent weeks. In Berlin, for example, some 10,000 farmers recently clogged the streets with their tractors, urging the…