Bild: I kidnapped the block children / Ich entführte die Block-Kinder
FAZ: At least 18 dead after Russian attack on Ukraine / Mindestens 18 Tote nach russischem Angriff auf die Ukraine
Funke: Berlin faces daycare closures / In Berlin drohen Kita-Schließungen
Handelsblatt: Identity crisis of an AI pioneer – Has ChatGPT boss Sam Altman overpromised? / Sinnkrise eines KI-Pioniers – Hat ChatGPT-Chef Sam Altman zu viel versprochen?
RND: Housing subsidy „Young buys old“ – How a flagship government program became a dud / Bauförderung „Jung kauft Alt“ – Wie ein Vorzeigeprogramm der Regierung zum Rohrkrepierer wurde
SZ: „Russia chooses killing“ / „Russland wählt das Töten“
Tagesspiegel: SPD criticizes proposal as „nonsensical“ – NRW records all nationalities in crime statistics / SPD kritisiert Vorstoß als „unsinnig” – NRW erfasst alle Nationalitäten bei Straftaten
taz: Helpless among ruins / Ratlos in Ruinen
Welt: Is Paris becoming the epicenter of a new euro crisis? / Wird Paris zum Epizentrum einer neuen Euro-Krise?
Israel announces new aid centers in the Gaza Strip: The two centers are to be completed in the southern part of the blockaded coastal area in the coming days. Operations are to be carried out by the controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation. In return, the existing distribution site in Tel al-Sultan, near the city of Rafah on the border with Egypt, will be closed. After the completion of the construction of the two new centers, there will be a total of five distribution centers for humanitarian aid.
- The UN World Food Programme warns urgently of the consequences of the catastrophic supply situation in the Gaza Strip. The coastal area is said to be „on the verge of collapse.“
- Hundreds of employees of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights are calling on their chief Volker Türk to explicitly label the war in the Gaza Strip as genocide; they say the legal criteria for genocide have been met in the nearly two-year war between Israel and the radical Islamist Hamas.
- Development Minister Reem Alabali Radovan is not ruling out further consequences for Israel if the government does not change its military approach in the Gaza Strip. Alabali Radovan stressed that the situation in the Gaza Strip is more than dramatic.
Middle East diplomat Tom Barrack apologizes after a verbal outburst in Beirut.
Israel’s air force strikes targets in Yemen: In the area of the capital Sanaa, a military target of the Iran-backed militia was „precisely attacked.“ Earlier, the Israeli armed forces reported intercepting several drones that had flown one after the other from Yemen toward Israel. „Whoever raises a hand against Israel will have that hand cut off,“ said Defense Minister Israel Katz. tagesschau.de
Israeli ground operation in Syria: Israeli soldiers rappelled down from four helicopters onto a military site south of Damascus, reported Al-Jazeera. The Syrian state agency Sana confirmed the operation. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said it was the first landing of Israeli troops from the air since the fall of ruler Bashar al-Assad in December. n-tv.de
Ukraine
Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron stress the need for cohesion in the EU: Merz no longer believes in a meeting between Russia’s President Vladimir Putin and Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky. With regard to international security policy, Merz and Macron called for stronger unity among all 27 EU states. At the meeting in southern France, Merz emphasized that only if this succeeds will Europe be „truly strong and also a factor in the world.“ It is important to become a power factor economically, politically, and also in terms of security policy. spiegel.de
- Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke by phone with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. „We also discussed security guarantees in detail. The national security advisers are currently working on each component, and the entire framework will be put in writing next week,“ said Zelensky, according to the Kyiv Independent.
- Volodymyr Zelensky criticizes China for supporting Russia. spiegel.de
- Worth 706 million euros: The U.S. announces arms sales to Ukraine; financing provided by European countries. tagesspiegel.de
International outrage over massive Russian attacks on Kyiv: Chancellor Friedrich Merz declared the attacks showed the ruthlessness of the Russian regime. French President Emmanuel Macron accused Moscow of „terror and barbarism.“ NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte spoke of a terrible attack in which innocent civilians and civilian infrastructure were hit. According to Ukrainian sources, at least 15 people were killed and about 50 injured on Thursday night. Around 100 buildings were damaged, including the EU delegation in Kyiv. tagesschau.de
- Following the rocket strike near the EU delegation in Kyiv, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen spoke with Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky and afterwards with U.S. President Donald Trump.
- The U.S. Embassy in Ukraine condemned the recent Russian attacks on Kyiv and recalled the words of U.S. President Donald Trump about the obligation of both sides to strive for a negotiated solution.
Russian oil terminal Ust-Luga only half operational after drone attack: The reason was damage to pipeline infrastructure following attacks on the Unetscha pumping station in Russia’s Bryansk region, Reuters reported, citing two industry representatives. The missing volumes are to be redirected to the ports of Primorsk and Novorossiysk.
Russia claims to have sunk a Ukrainian warship with a sea drone. Russian drones spying on military transport routes into Ukraine: The intelligence gathered through espionage could be used to carry out sabotage operations on behalf of the Kremlin. Recent events in Europe may already be linked to Russian espionage, according to research by „Wirtschaftswoche“ and „The New York Times.“ For example, fires reportedly broke out in British military camps. In addition, a railway embankment in Norway was attacked. The various attempts to cut cables in the Baltic Sea may also be linked to Russian surveillance activities. n-tv.de
Chancellor Friedrich Merz sees a threat from the Kremlin: The Bundeswehr is carrying out an important mission in the North Atlantic region, Merz said during his inaugural visit to the German Navy in Rostock. After a confidential round of talks with Navy Inspector Jan Christian Kaack, Merz flew by helicopter to the frigate *Bayern*. In the sea area off Warnemünde, he observed a naval exercise. „We see daily actions by the Russian army. They are testing our defense readiness,“ Merz said about the importance of the navy in the Baltic Sea. zdfheute.de, sueddeutsche.de
- Parliamentary Commissioner for the Armed Forces Henning Otte doubts the new conscription law. Considering the changed security situation, he said, it was justified to oblige young people again to serve.
- CSU leader Markus Söder once again called for the rapid introduction of compulsory military service. Russia’s President Vladimir Putin will not be deterred by a „questionnaire army,“ Söder told the Augsburger Allgemeine.
- Defense Minister Boris Pistorius had expressed confidence that enough volunteers could be found.
Afghans with admission approval must undergo security checks: In the specific case before the Higher Administrative Court of Berlin-Brandenburg, it concerned an Afghan family currently living in Pakistan. They had applied for visas at the German Embassy in Islamabad. However, the Foreign Office refused these because no security check had been carried out. The Berlin Administrative Court had initially ruled in favor of the family. The federal government recently announced that it would end the admission stop for vulnerable Afghans. n-tv.de
Family Minister Karin Prien against uniform regulations for the use of smartphones in schools: Federalism is not the problem on this issue, Prien said on DLF. She said she was glad that by now all the responsible state ministers were working on sensible regulations. However, Prien pointed out that bans on mobile phones in schools alone could not solve the problem. Children and young people also needed to be protected from excessive smartphone use outside of school, especially by their parents. stern.de
Other reports:
- Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul wants to deepen security cooperation in the Baltic Sea region.
- Justice Minister Stefanie Hubig: „I used to think we didn’t need a women’s quota.“ handelsblatt.com
- SPD’s queer commissioner Falko Droßmann rejects changes to the Self-Determination Act; „No structural problem.“ tagesschau.de
- Drug commissioner Hendrik Streeck advocates state-run drug-checking. tagesspiegel.de
- Entrepreneur Theo Müller celebrates with right-wing extremists: All Weidel, or what? spiegel.de
NRW Greens criticize naming all nationalities in crime statistics:** Green Party interior policy expert Julia Höller said the measure brought no gain in knowledge for police work and played into the hands of the völkisch AfD. Interior Minister Herbert Reul argued that the decree created more transparency and improved hazard prevention. In North Rhine-Westphalia, as the only federal state, multiple nationalities of suspects and victims are recorded. n-tv.de, tagesspiegel.de
Other News:
Berlin: Medienboard switches film funding to a committee model. dwdl.de
Bremen: SPD executive backs Eva Högl and Mark Rackles for the Senate. n-tv.de
Saxony: Right-wing extremist Liebich does not necessarily have to serve time in Chemnitz women’s prison. rnd.de
Mecklenburg-Vorpommern: Now ten children and two adults are infected with EHEC. zeit.de
Thuringia: Website of Schmalkalden-Meiningen district shut down after cyber incident. n-tv.de
UN Security Council ends mandate of peacekeeping force in Lebanon: Blue helmet soldiers are to leave the country by the end of next year. The mission has been ongoing for almost 50 years. The UNIFIL mission was established after Israel’s invasion of Lebanon in 1978 to monitor the withdrawal of soldiers from the neighboring country and the border region. According to the resolution, the withdrawal of the nearly 11,000 military and civilian forces is to begin immediately in consultation with the Lebanese government and be carried out in stages. The goal is to make the army the sole military actor in Lebanon. zdfheute.de
EU initiates tariff reduction in trade conflict with the US: The responsible EU Commission has started the legislative process for import facilitation in favor of certain US products. This process is intended to completely abolish tariffs on US industrial goods and remove barriers to the import of certain foods. In addition, the tariff exemption for lobsters from the US is to be extended. handelsblatt.com, faz.net
More News
- Chancellor Friedrich Merz and French President Emmanuel Macron want to work together to strengthen Europe. handelsblatt.com
- NATO defense spending is rising less sharply. handelsblatt.com
- Hungary’s foreign policy hardliner remains on a collision course with the EU. derstandard.at
- Eastern Mediterranean: New dispute between the EU and Turkey looms. diepresse.com
- Illegal products flood Europe; EU rejects record number of Chinese goods. n-tv.de
USA News
- Operations against migrants? Trump administration reportedly commissioned military base outside Chicago. tagesspiegel.de
- Trump’s “Alligator Alcatraz” is likely to be completely cleared out soon. n-tv.de
- Wikipedia Foundation: Republicans launch investigation into alleged manipulation of content. heise.de
- US government wants to reduce the validity period of visas for students and journalists. rnd.de
More foreigners are starting vocational training: Young people from abroad are increasingly starting dual vocational training in Germany. While the number of new trainees from Germany fell by 4 percent in 2024, the number of new contracts for young foreigners rose by 17 percent. They now account for 15 percent of all new trainees. Last year, the Federal Statistical Office registered a total of 475,100 newly concluded training contracts, around one percent less than in 2023. Among women, training as a medical assistant was particularly popular, while among men it was automotive mechatronics technician. n-tv.de
More from Business, Tech and Science:
- German industry loses significant share of global market zeit.de
- Solar energy: First signs of an African boom table.media/africa
- Several liters soon possible: Several German airports make it easier to carry liquids n-tv.de
- Europe’s car market picks up – Tesla sales continue to slump handelsblatt.com
- Auto industry: End of combustion engines by 2030/35 hardly feasible heise.de
- Liver inflammation in children: Hepatitis identified as a long-term effect of COVID in children medical-tribune.de
- Why a higher BMI can help in old age t-online.de
- New feature – WhatsApp: AI helps with texting – security experts found serious gaps in data protection. t-online.de
- Nominations for German Television Award: “KRANK Berlin” is the favorite deutschlandfunkkultur.de
- Amsterdam’s Vincent van Gogh Museum is running out of money lessentiel.lu
- German director Tobias Eckerlin wins Student Oscar deutschlandfunkkultur.de
- Free and on the beach: Marteria gives concert in Warnemünde ndr.de
- Prince Harry travels to London on the anniversary of the Queen’s death gn-online.de
- Vacation memories: For Matthias Schweighöfer, nudism was the “most embarrassing” thing spiegel.de
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- Striker swap involving Isak & Wissa? – “Bild”: Brentford wants to make BVB striker Beier the third most expensive German soccer player – 70 million euros transfermarkt.de
- At 35: Struff surprises again at the US Open – wins against Denmark’s Holger Rune, ranked 11th in the world welt.de
- US Open – Back problems: Eva Lys has to give up and is out t-online.de
- War of words at the net – Scandal at the US Open: Latvian Jelena Ostapenko defends herself against accusations of racism kicker.de
- Record deal with Mastercard: McLaren is the last Formula 1 team to secure a title sponsor motorsport-magazin.com
- Pro-Palestinian protests along the route: Team Israel-PremierTech has spoken out after protests against its main sponsor during the early stages of the team time trial at the Vuelta a Espana around Figueres. The team condemned the action. eurosport.de
- European Championships – Dressage European Championships: Gold for the German team sueddeutsche.de
Germans are renowned for their efficiency—but did you know there’s actually a word for being early on purpose? It’s called „vorauseilender Gehorsam“ (literally „anticipatory obedience“). It describes when someone does something before being asked, often to avoid trouble. The phrase has a serious historical background, but in everyday life, it’s also used jokingly—like showing up to a party 30 minutes early with potato salad because you just knew the host would run out of food.