Bild: Schumi blackmailers laugh in court | Schumi-Erpresser lachen vor Gericht
FAZ: Israel launches major attack on targets in Syria | Israel fliegt schwere Angriffe auf Ziele in Syrien
Funke: Berlin facilitates promotions | Berlin erleichtert Beförderungen
Handelsblatt: Germany’s research dilemma | Deutschlands Forschungsdilemma
RND: Salami tactics from Beijing: How China is getting the world used to the escalation | Salami-Taktik aus Peking: Wie China die Welt an die Eskalation gewöhnt
SZ: Israel launches massive attack in Syria | Israel greift in Syrien massiv an
Tagesspiegel: Black-green coalition in Germany? The CDU is trying to capture Söder in the election campaign | Schwarz-Grün im Bund? Union versucht Söder im Wahlkampf einzufangen
taz: The horror of Sednaya | Der Horror von Sednaya
Welt: Two days after Assad’s fall, Israel attacks targets in Syria | Zwei Tage nach Assads Sturz greift Israel Ziele in Syrien an
USA sets conditions for recognition of new Syrian leadership: A leadership in Damascus that renounces terrorism, destroys chemical weapons and protects the rights of minorities and women will be recognized and supported, Foreign Minister Antony Blinken announced. Washington is ready to work with groups in Syria and regional partners to ensure a smooth transition after the fall of President Bashar al-Assad. The former head of the rebel government in Idlib, Mohamed al-Baschir, has been appointed head of a transitional government, which he is to lead until March 1. zdf.de, n-tv.de
No more detainees in Saydnaya prison: The aid organization White Helmets has announced that the systematic search of the huge complex north of Damascus for secret underground cells has been completed. Saydnaya prison is known as a „slaughterhouse“ because of the brutal treatment meted out by the guards and the notorious torture methods used there. The Islamist HTS militia announced that it would publish a list of former officials who were involved in torture. zdf.de, haz.de
Israel plans defense zone in southern Syria: Defense Minister Israel Katz said in Haifa that he had ordered this to prevent any terrorist threat to his country. Until further notice, the armed forces will also remain stationed in the buffer zone between Syria and the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. n-tv.de
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu calls corruption probe charges „absurd“: He welcomes the opportunity to refute the allegations. He has waited eight years for the moment to tell the truth, as he remembers it. Netanyahu is the first incumbent Israeli head of government to face criminal charges. He is accused of fraud, breach of trust and corruption. He is said to have accepted expensive gifts and tried to influence media coverage of himself. spiegel.de, zdf.de
RTL/ntv Trendbarometer by Forsa: CDU/CSU 31 percent (-1), SPD 17 percent (+1), Greens 13 percent (+1), FDP 4 percent (+1), AfD 18 percent, Left Party 3 percent (-1), BSW 4 percent, others 10 percent. n-tv.de
- Chancellor preference: Olaf Scholz 18 percent (+2), Friedrich Merz 26 percent (-2), Robert Habeck 25 percent (+1). n-tv.de
RBB-BrandenburgTrend by Infratest-Dimap: CDU 15 percent (+2.9), SPD 28 percent (-2.9), Greens 5 percent (+0.9), AfD 30 percent (+0.8), Left Party 4 percent (+1), BSW 12 percent (-1.5), Free Voters percent, others percent (compared to the state election result). rbb24.de
- Coalition of SPD and BSW: Good 30 percent, bad 61 percent.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk believes a peaceful solution for Ukraine can still be found this winter: He will hold numerous meetings with political leaders before Poland’s upcoming EU Council presidency, including with French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer. Tusk emphasized that he was in constant contact with the Scandinavian and Baltic allies. n- tv.de, tagesschau.de
Chancellor Olaf Scholz wants to submit a motion of confidence: There must be at least 48 hours between the submission of the motion to express confidence in him and the vote; the vote is planned for December 16. If, as expected, the Chancellor does not receive a majority, he can propose to Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier that the Bundestag be dissolved. Steinmeier must decide on this within 21 days. If he agrees, new parliamentary elections must be scheduled within 60 days. February 23 has already been agreed as the election date. stern.de
Chancellor Olaf Scholz emphasizes the importance of lithium mining: If the switch to e-mobility is to succeed, there must also be sufficient lithium for German industry. We need this and other critical raw materials, said Scholz during a visit to Freiberg in Saxony together with Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic. Scholz also called for acceptance of domestic mining. To achieve this, high standards of environmental protection and sustainability are important. Vucic was impressed by the participation processes for the project. He had discussed with Scholz how German experts could support his government. Serbia is home to Europe’s largest lithium deposit. faz.net, n-tv.de
Chancellor Olaf Scholz calls for Europe-wide purchase incentives for e-cars: During a visit to the Ford plant in Cologne, Scholz called for greater support for electric mobility in order to boost the market. This would have to be accompanied by an expansion of the charging infrastructure. The Ford works council advocated reintroducing a purchase incentive for electric vehicles. faz.net
Finance Minister Jörg Kukies believes Germany has its finances well under control despite the lack of a supplementary budget. Speaking on German television channel ZDF, Kukies said that revenues are currently more than sufficient to meet all obligations. The government is preparing a preliminary budget for 2025. This will enable the federal government to meet all its obligations next year as well. faz.net
Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier warns against austerity measures in the social sector: If entire population groups feel marginalized or left behind, they will turn away from the state and democracy, said Steinmeier at the ceremony marking the 100th anniversary of the Free Welfare Care. This applies especially in times when the distribution struggles for state budgets are becoming tougher. Steinmeier thanked the many full-time and voluntary workers who were involved in welfare work. He said that society still did not value them enough. tagesspiegel.de
Bavaria’s interior minister Joachim Herrmann calls for a differentiated approach to dealing with migrants from Syria: Well-integrated people from Syria could remain in Germany even after the fall of the regime there; there are many Syrians who have a job and are urgently needed, Herrmann said on Deutschlandfunk. Nobody would think of expelling these people from the country. But if there are Syrians who want to return home, then they should be helped to do so – for example, with financial support. deutschlandfunk.de
Predominantly positive assessment of integration: However, approval is no longer as high as it was two years ago, reports the Expert Council for Integration and Migration. In particular, people without a foreign background were more skeptical about integration in the integration barometer, especially in the area of education. Overall, the respondents apparently distinguished between abstract debates about immigration and personal experiences in the environment. The integration barometer is based on a representative survey of around 15,000 people, about half of whom have no migration background. tagesschau.de
Three suspected IS supporters arrested on suspicion of planning a terrorist attack in Baden-Württemberg and Hesse: According to the state criminal police offices together with the public prosecutor’s office in Karlsruhe, the suspects are a German-Lebanese pair of brothers from Mannheim and a German Turk from the Hochtaunus district. According to the investigators, the suspects, who are between the ages of 15 and 22, had a „profound sympathy“ for the terrorist organization Islamic State. zdf.de, handelsblatt.com
More than 200 people temporarily arrested during protest against gas conference: Berlin police reported that numerous charges had been filed for breach of the peace, coercion and property damage. Ten officers were slightly injured. The „Last Generation“ had called for protests against the gas industry meeting. Activists poured green paint at a side entrance of the Adlon Hotel, where the conference was held. tagesschau.de
Lower Saxony’s Prime Minister Stephan Weil is pushing for the collective bargaining at Volkswagen to be concluded before Christmas. The topic is wearing on the nerves of the citizens. The state of Lower Saxony holds 20 percent of the voting rights in the VW Group. The state has a veto right in important decisions. The collective bargaining talks are to continue next Monday. ndr.de
More Regional:
- Brandenburg: SPD and BSW sign coalition agreement. tagesschau.de
- Thuringia: CDU, BSW and SPD make the Left Party an offer of an official, monthly discussion format before the election of the prime minister. n-tv.de
- Berlin: Senate wants to simplify path to civil service career by changing civil service law. rbb24.de
- Hessen: Clemens Christmann is to become the new managing director of the Frankfurt Chamber of Commerce and Industry. faz.net
- Saxony: Carolabrücke must be completely demolished. mdr.de
Italian court sentences smugglers to long prison sentences: The background to this is the sinking of a refugee boat in February 2023 with 94 fatalities. Two men from Pakistan and Turkey have each been sentenced to 16 years in prison for aiding and abetting illegal immigration resulting in death. Another smuggler received more than 11 years in prison. The public prosecutor blames the disaster mainly on the financial police for abandoning the search for the sunken ship without informing the coast guard. Six officers from the coast guard and financial police are therefore to be brought to trial for failure to provide assistance.
WHO finds evidence of malaria in the Democratic Republic of Congo: The deaths are not due to a new disease. The WHO announced that malaria had been detected in 10 of 12 patient samples examined so far. Contrary to initial assumptions, the number of cases of the disease has not increased exponentially. Many patients are also malnourished. spiegel.de
More News:
- EU: Violence in Georgia: Sanctions will be discussed at EU meeting. handelsblatt.com
- EU: EU Environment Agency: Almost 240,000 deaths from particulate matter in the EU. t-online.de
- EU: EU Commission: Fewer rules to ease the burden on business. dw.com
- EU: Biofuels as a solution? EPP challenges ban on combustion engines. n-tv.de
- EU: Several countries want a reform of the EU Tobacco Products Directive. handelsblatt.com
- France: President Emmanuel Macron wants to appoint a new prime minister within two days. zeit.de
- Romania: Parties agreed on pro-European coalition in the parliament of Bucharest. derstandard.at
- Poland: Plans for Council presidency presented. orf.at
- Netherlands: Government wants population limit; it should not exceed 20 million inhabitants. rp-online.de
- Netherlands: Arrests after explosions in The Hague. stuttgarter-zeitung.de
- Chad: France begins withdrawal of troops. tagesschau.de
- South Korea: Ex-defense minister Kim Yeon Chul apparently wants to take responsibility. spiegel.de
- Brazil: President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva doing well after brain haemorrhage operation. tagesschau.de
- USA: US President Joe Biden sees „catastrophe“ looming for the USA as a result of Donald Trump. n-tv.de
- USA: US President-elect Donald Trump makes fun of Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. n-tv.de
Adults in Germany in the upper midfield in reading, arithmetic and solving everyday problems: The OECD study compared the skills of 16- to 65-year-olds in 31 countries. The results in Germany hardly changed compared to those of a decade ago. However, the gap between the best and worst performing adults has widened. One fifth of adults read poorly or very poorly. In terms of reading skills, German adults rank 12th out of 31, in math 11th, and in solving everyday problems 9th. Finland, Japan and Sweden are the top performers in all three areas. faz.net, n-tv.de
More from Business, Tech and Science:
- VDMA sees no growth despite expected recovery. n-tv.de
- Frank-Jürgen Weise is joining the supervisory board of Thyssenkrupp Steel. handelsblatt.com
- Ex-state secretary Katrin Suder is to become head auditor at DHL. handelsblatt.com
- Searches at Engel & Völkers on suspicion of bogus self-employment. n-tv.de
- General Motors is discontinuing its robotaxi service. handelsblatt.com
- Former „Stern“ reporter Gerd Heidemann is dead. faz.net
- Thomas Präkelt new head of RTL’s Berlin studio. turi2.de
- Contradictory and tricky: the CDU, Reichelt & Nius. kress.de
- Cash injections, raw materials, gold: China is making its economy trade-war ready. n-tv.de
- Critical minerals: How China is playing to its strategic advantages. table.media
- Supply chain law: the benefits as seen by the DIMR and various companies. table.media
- Heat pumps: The number of funding applications has recently risen sharply. table.media
- IBM is only a shadow of its former self – why does the German economy remain loyal to the company? wiwo.de
- Boom through Trump: Bitcoin – a hope for the greater fool. n-tv.de
- Middle East most dangerous region for journalists. www1.wdr.de
- Media mogul suffers setback: Lachlan Murdoch is supposed to take control of the media empire – siblings resist. tagesspiegel.de
- Broadcasting license fee – court rejects lawsuit: There is no way to avoid the compulsory license fee. faz.net
- Contradictory and tricky: the CDU, Reichelt & Nius. kress.de
- Apple Music is expanding its live radio offering with three stations. stadt-bremerhaven.de
- The ESC will have a Fair Play oath. tagesspiegel.de
- Robert Smith: Next two Cure albums are „ready“! musikexpress.de
- Taylor Swift sets sales record with „Eras“ tour. musikexpress.de
- The end of the Caspar David Friedrich year: the crowning finale with Goethe’s blessing. heise.de
- Liam Gallagher honored with PETA Award. musikexpress.de
- FIFA World Cup award: Much support for Saudi Arabia – criticism from Norway. sportschau.de
- Politics and the World Cup: How FIFA repeatedly offers a stage to fascists and dictators. spiegel.de
- Fractured rib: Bayern will probably be without Neuer until the end of the year. sportschau.de
- SGE provides the best offense and best defense in the league: „Nice snapshot“ – Frankfurt is being rewarded for a strong first half of the season. kicker.de
- After the change of power: Syria’s football changes colors. sportschau.de
- Ex-referee considers 48,500 euros compensation too little: Gräfe’s lawsuit against the DFB begins before Christmas. kicker.de
- A fresh start in Germany: The youth team of Metalist Kharkiv play in the Rhineland. sportschau.de
Justice: A court in the Czech Republic has ruled that No smiling allowed – a man wants to raise the corners of his mouth in his ID photo because he belongs to the „Church of Smiles“. tagesspiegel.de