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Expansion of the Gaza war , oil sanctions against Moscow , illegal employment and tax evasion , migration turnaround
published by Sigrid Arteaga
Wednesday, August 6 , 2025
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Bild: Get them out! / Holt sie da raus!
FAZ: Railway must bear Stuttgart 21 cost overruns alone / Bahn muss Mehrkosten für Stuttgart 21 allein tragen
Funke: Six-month closure: Next rail construction project in Berlin / Sechs Monate Sperrung: Nächstes Bauprojekt bei der Bahn in Berlin
Handelsblatt: Audi plans its own US plant / Audi plant eigenes US-Werk
RND: Russia pursues confrontation in space: Star Wars vibes as Moscow’s satellites take nuclear war course / Russland setzt im Weltall auf Konfrontation: Star Wars lässt grüßen: Moskaus Satelliten auf atomarem Kriegskurs
SZ: Israel wants to fully occupy Gaza Strip / Israel will Gazastreifen vollständig besetzen
Tagesspiegel: Rents in Berlin have risen more sharply than anywhere else in Germany — up 42 percent since 2022 / 42 Prozent mehr seit 2022: In Berlin steigen Mieten so stark wie nirgendwo sonst im Land
taz: Fossil turns up in Energy Ministry / Fossil im Energieministerium aufgetaucht
Welt: New plagiarism allegations against Brosius-Gersdorf / Neue Plagiatsvorwürfe gegen Brosius-Gersdorf

Top-News

The Foreign Office rejects the initiative by German cities to take in children from Gaza: The idea is nice for scoring points in an election campaign, but it does not help the people, said Minister of State Serap Güler to the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger. She referred, among other things, to the strain of travel. It was more important to motivate countries in the region to take in those in need. Hanover, Düsseldorf, and Leipzig, among others, had agreed to take in injured and sick minors from the Gaza Strip. In a joint appeal, the mayors called on the Interior and Foreign Ministries to create the legal and organizational conditions for this. The Interior Ministry and the Chancellery had also expressed reservations about the proposal. rnd.de

Israel’s Security Cabinet will meet on Thursday to discuss expanding the Gaza war. On Tuesday evening, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with Army Chief Eyal Zamir. Netanyahu’s office said the meeting was about various options for continuing the war. According to Channel 12, Netanyahu favors a complete military takeover of the Gaza Strip.

  • Opposition leader Yair Lapid warns against expanding the Gaza war; the plan will lead to all Hamas hostages being killed, whether through starvation, torture, or Israeli military action.
  • Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated his determination to achieve military victory over Hamas in front of soldiers at a training facility, saying it was “necessary to completely defeat the enemy in the Gaza Strip and free all our hostages.”
  • CSU foreign policy politician Stephan Mayer expressed understanding for the Israeli government’s considerations, saying he understood the desire to free the remaining hostages and Israel’s determination to eliminate Hamas.
  • Hostages held by Hamas are in acute danger to their lives, according to a medical report. The plight of the hostages “clearly indicates deliberate and intentional mistreatment by Hamas,” stated the Israeli embassy in Germany.
  • Israel has called on the international community to put more pressure on Hamas. Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said ahead of a UN Security Council meeting in New York that Israeli hostages were still being starved and tortured in the Gaza Strip. Their fate must be brought to the forefront of world attention. tagesschau.de
  • UN Deputy Secretary-General Miroslav Jenca reaffirmed the call for the unconditional release of the hostages but also criticized the humanitarian situation in Gaza and warned of the consequences of expanding the war.

A new procedure for controlled import of goods into the Gaza Strip through private providers has been introduced: the measure follows a government decision to expand humanitarian aid. Under the new mechanism, a limited number of Palestinian traders have been approved. Permitted goods include staple foods, baby formula, fruits and vegetables, and hygiene products. Critics consider the measures inadequate. tagesspiegel.de, dw.com

Trump wants to announce a decision on oil sanctions after a meeting in Moscow: U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff is expected in the Russian capital on Wednesday; according to the Kremlin, a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin is possible. The U.S. has given Russia a deadline until Friday to reach an agreement to end the war. Otherwise, sanctions could be imposed, including against states that continue to buy Russian oil. stern.de, spiegel.de

  • Russia’s oil and gas revenues fell by almost 30 percent in July compared to the previous year, reports the independent newspaper Moscow Times, citing the Russian Finance Ministry.
Polls

RTL/ntv trend barometer from Forsa: CDU/CSU 25 percent (-1), AfD 25 percent, SPD 13 percent, Greens 12 percent, Left Party 12 percent, BSW 4 percent (+1), FDP 3 percent, Others 6 percent. n-tv.de

  • Satisfied with Chancellor Friedrich Merz? Yes 32 percent (-1), No 64 percent (+2).
  • Raise the statutory retirement age to 70? Yes 18 percent, No 81 percent.
  • Politician ranking: Boris Pistorius, Hendrik Wüst, and Thorsten Frei in the lead.. n-tv.de
Politics

The federal government aims to combat illegal work and tax evasion. Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil seeks to generate significant additional revenue for the state. Tax evasion and illegal work should be combated “with the utmost severity.” To strengthen financial control of illegal work, the cabinet plans to introduce a bill. Measures include better digital networking and improved data exchange between authorities.handelsblatt.com

Frauke Brosius-Gersdorf defends herself in plagiarism debate: Legal action is being prepared against the allegations made by plagiarism investigator Stefan Weber, said Brosius-Gersdorf’s lawyer, Gernot Lehr. In an 86-page document, Weber accused her of “ghostwriting.” There is no “factual basis” for this, Lehr said. faz.net

Berlin’s Governing Mayor Kai Wegner praises migration policy shift: The government’s tightened migration policy is showing initial effects. “We are now seeing a noticeable relief in the number of refugees arriving,” Wegner said. This is a positive development, as states and municipalities had reached their limits in integration. “At the same time, the number of deportations and voluntary departures is increasing,” Wegner added. Berlin currently has around 6,000 free beds for refugees. tagesspiegel.de

NRW Interior Minister Herbert Reul calls for stricter prosecution of online hostility: Regarding hate speech on the internet, Reul urged the judiciary to rethink its approach. He would not mind if awareness changed slightly and people became more sensitive, Reul told SWR. Nowadays, one has to tolerate a lot because the right to free expression is valued more highly. Communication, however, has little to do with normal human conversation anymore. ardmediathek.de

Chancellor Friedrich Merz honors the achievements of displaced persons: Despite adverse conditions, millions contributed to Germany’s economic miracle in the 1950s and 1960s, Merz said at a ceremony marking the 75th anniversary of the signing of the “Charter of the German Expellees.” Often, expellees and ethnic German repatriates were treated as second-class citizens. Against this backdrop, the commitment to peace, freedom, and reconciliation in the Charter was far from a given. zdfheute.de

 

Convicted right-wing terrorist Beate Zschäpe joins neo-Nazi exit program: Her lawyer, Mathias Grasel, did not say which program it was or when she joined. Victims’ lawyer Basay-Yildiz called Zschäpe’s participation a purely tactical move. Her behavior during the five-year trial was not marked by remorse. tagesspiegel.de

Former employee of AfD politician Maximilian Krah rejects espionage allegations: The defendant’s lawyer stated on the first day of the trial that his client had neither exchanged nor passed on intelligence information during his time as an assistant to the MEP, nor outside of it. Prosecutors accuse the man of spying for China for years and of gathering information on senior AfD politicians. A suspected accomplice is also on trial. Krah himself is under investigation for alleged money laundering and bribery. spiegel.de, zdfheute.de

More News:
Berlin: Neukölln Left Party invites Hamas supporters to summer festival. welt.de
Berlin: SPD parliamentary group leader Raed Saleh demands that states be allowed to introduce rent caps. zeit.de

Around the World

Pro-Russian governor Evghenia Guțul sentenced to seven years in prison in Moldova: The verdict against the governor of the autonomous region of Gagauzia was handed down for illegal party financing, according to the state news agency Moldpress. Moscow criticizes the action against Gutul as politically motivated and accuses the pro-European government of deliberately stirring up sentiment against pro-Russian forces. n-tv.de

Europe News:

  • Poland: New President Karol Nawrocki against Germany, the EU, and Ukraine. sueddeutsche.de
  • Switzerland: US tariffs against Switzerland – pills, gold and the strong franc. zeit.de
  • Turkey: Parliament to draft bills for peace process with PKK. faz.net
  • Austria: Ending the brown stories; Hitler’s birthplace in Braunau to become a police station, cities want to rename streets. taz.de
  • Italy: German rescue ship “Aurora” freed. zeit.de

USA News

US President Donald Trump has described the EU’s promised investment of $600 billion as a “gift.” Trump told CNBC that he could invest the EU’s money in whatever he wanted. If the EU fails to keep its promise, he will impose tariffs of 35 percent. Trump’s comments contradict statements made by the EU Commission. According to the Commission, the investments are expressions of interest by companies. As an authority, the Commission cannot guarantee them. In addition to the $600 billion, Brussels promised Trump to purchase $750 billion worth of American liquefied natural gas, oil, and nuclear energy products within three years. With its commitments, the EU persuaded Trump to reduce the proposed tariff on imports of European products into the US from 30 to 15 percent. zeit.de, n-tv.de, spiegel.de

  • The House Oversight Committee in the US House of Representatives is demanding the release of investigation files in the Epstein affair; former high-ranking officials such as former President Bill Clinton and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton are to be summoned. rnd.de
  • US President Donald Trump: Migrants do farm work “by nature”; accusations of racism. rnd.de
  • Rwanda takes in rejected asylum seekers from the US. sueddeutsche.de
  • None of the 252 Venezuelans brought from the US to El Salvador were gang members; only 20 of those deported had any kind of criminal record.
Business

Proportion of purely electric cars in Germany rises: According to data from the Federal Motor Transport Authority, over 48,000 purely electric cars were newly registered in July, more than twice as many as in the same month last year. With a share of 18.4 percent, almost one in five new cars was a battery-powered vehicle. Vehicles with hybrid drives are added to this figure. rnd.de

More from Business, Tech and Science:

  • Germany is an international “home office stronghold.” faz.net
  • Shortages: 550 medications unavailable in pharmacies. zdfheute.de
  • Verdict in the Spezi trial: Paulaner wins against Berentzen. rnd.de
  • Despite economic downturn: Deutsche Post increases profits tagesschau.de
  • BMW and Continental go to court over allegedly faulty brakes heise.de
  • Labor disputes in many cities: Why Lieferando employees are striking tagesschau.de
  • Digital hate speech: How right-wing extremist influencers stir up hatred online tagesschau.de
  • Google mocks Apple’s AI – and sets it to music with Snoop Dogg businessinsider.de
  • After the Big Bang: German researchers recreate the very first molecule t3n.de
Lifestyle
  • Over 1,500 stations affected: Public broadcasting in the US to be shut down golem.de
  • Pamela Anderson: Did Duchess Meghan steal her idea for a cooking show? gala.de
  • “kicker” wants to use AI algorithm to determine market value of players kress.de
  • Russian law censors films that do not conform to Russian values deutschlandkultur.de
  • Award: German Culture Policy Prize goes to Monika Grütters zeit.de
  • The rock world mourns: Junkyard singer David Roach dies shortly after his wedding web.de
  • 50 million bail denied: Rapper Sean “Diddy” Combs remains in custody tagesschau.de
  • DJ Calvin Harris has become a father: “Baby” photo causes outrage – he also posted a photo of his wife’s placenta and pictures of placenta pills made from it. stern.de
Sports
  • Cease-and-desist order: BVB successfully takes action against AfD over stickers sportschau.de
  • Transfer deal falls through at HSV: Among the top three transfer dramas in Hamburg – Ransford Königsdörffer was supposed to move to Nice, but failed the medical examination. sueddeutsche.de
  • At 67: Bundesliga legend Frank Mill has died sportschau.de
  • Due to injury report: Barça confirms disciplinary proceedings against ter Stegen – money needed for García registration transfermarkt.de
  • Impressive performance in F1 Academy: Ferrari signs 16-year-old Danish driver motorsport-total.com
Gedöns

Berlin’s mysterious bridge to nowhere. In Kreuzberg, the „Bösebrücke“ extension leads straight into… a wall. It’s a leftover from Cold War times, when infrastructure was planned but never completed after the Berlin Wall went up. Locals still call it the „bridge to nowhere.“

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