Frankfurt am Main, Germany | AFP | Luxury automaker Daimler on Friday said it was scrapping “thousands” of jobs to help fund the switch to electric vehicles, in the latest layoffs to hit the stuttering German car industry. The Mercedes-Benz maker said it wanted to save 1.4 billion euros ($1.5 …
Read More »Volkswagen unveils new Golf as end of era nears
Francfort, Germany | AFP | Volkswagen unveiled the newest incarnation of its iconic Golf hatchback on Thursday, counting on the bestseller to help fund a costly switch to the electric era and bridge the gap to the cars of the future. The eighth generation of the unglamourous but trusted …
Read More »No-deal Brexit would slam German growth in 2020: experts
Frankfurt am Main, Germany | AFP | Britain quitting the European Union without a deal on October 31 would deal a harsh blow to Germany’s already stuttering economy in 2020, leading think-tanks said in Berlin Wednesday. “For the coming year, we should reckon with a deduction of 0.4 percentage points” in …
Read More »Giant art project transforms East German housing blocks
Halle (Saale), Germany | AFP | An enduring reminder of the communist era, the vast, concrete “Plattenbau” tower blocks that surround cities in eastern Germany are usually considered eyesores rather than works of art. Yet, a new urban culture project in the city of Halle, 170 kilometres (around 100 miles) southwest …
Read More »Trump orders increase in Iran sanctions as Germany extends Saudi arms ban
Washington, United States | AFP | Trump has ordered government to ‘substantially increase’ Iran sanctions but in Berlin, Germany has extended Saudi arms exports ban as tensions rise in the Middle East. Trump announced what he said would be substantial new sanctions against Iran in the first response to what US …
Read More »Iraqi faces verdict in Germany’s ‘Susanna’ rape-murder trial
Wiesbaden, Germany | AFP | An Iraqi man faces his verdict in Germany Wednesday over the rape and murder of a teenage girl that fuelled far-right protests against a mass influx of mostly Muslim migrants. The Alternative for Germany (AfD) party and other extremists have seized on the brutal killing of …
Read More »Europeans on alert as heatwave intensifies
Berlin, Germany | AFP | Europe’s record-breaking heatwave was forecast to intensify Thursday, with authorities on alert as temperatures threaten to surpass 40 degrees Celsius in some regions. The stifling heat has prompted traffic restrictions in France, sparked forest fires in Spain and fanned debate in Germany over public nudity as …
Read More »‘It’s fun again’ Gundogan happy that Germany boos have stopped
Berlin, Germany | AFP | Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan says he has rediscovered his love of playing for Germany after being applauded — rather than booed — by home fans. Gundogan, 28, was treated to thunderous applause and standing ovations by home fans after he helped orchestrate Germany’s 8-0 demolition …
Read More »Germany and Spain open World Cup with tense wins as Norway cruise.
Rennes, France | AFP | The women’s World Cup moved up a gear on Saturday with three matches including a narrow German victory over China that left the winners complaining that they were roughed up, but Sunday’s three-match programme finishes with a new chapter in the oldest international football rivalry, as …
Read More »The German killer nurse who took himself for God
Berlin, Germany | AFP | The man believed to be post-war Germany’s worst serial killer was known to colleagues as a “nice guy” who did little to arouse suspicion until well into his murder spree. A court in the northern city of Oldenburg sentenced Niels Hoegel, 42, a heavy-set, second-generation caregiver, …
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