Bild: Murdered by terrorists (Hamas) | Ermordet von Terroristen (Hamas)
FAZ: America and Russia organize negotiations on Ukraine | Amerika und Russland vereinbaren Verhandlungen über Ukraine
Funke: Berlin Senate plans significant cuts to 2026 budget | Berliner Senat will Haushalt für 2026 noch einmal erheblich kürzen
Handelsblatt: ZF is considering splitting up | ZF prüft Aufspaltung
RND: U18 Bundestag election: “A mood that says it all” | U18-Bundestagswahl: „Stimmungsbild, das es in sich hat“
SZ: USA and Russia are drawing closer | USA und Russland nähern sich an
Tagesspiegel: Negotiations over war in Ukraine: US Secretary of State calls for European participation | Verhandlungen über Krieg in der Ukraine: US-Außenminister fordert Teilnahme der Europäer
taz: Scholz has reason to celebrate on Sunday | Scholz hat am Sonntag Grund zum Feiern
Welt: Meeting in Riyadh: Russia and USA seek detente | Treffen in Riad: Russland und USA setzen auf Entspannung
France to hold hybrid summit on the war in Ukraine on Wednesday. This time, Canada and several European states that were not present at the first meeting on Monday have also been invited; including Norway, Lithuania, Estonia, Latvia, the Czech Republic, Greece, Finland, Romania, Sweden and Belgium. t-online.de, tagesspiegel.de
AfD party donation scandal deepens: According to research by Spiegel and Standard, the donor of the million-dollar AfD advertising campaign was a strawman. Former FPÖ official Gerhard Dingler is said to have received a donation in the millions from Duisburg-born real estate billionaire Henning Conle. The authorities in Austria are now investigating money laundering charges, among other things. derstandard.de, stern.de
- Family Business Association launches election appeal against AfD. deutschlandfunk.de
- AfD Berlin makes a fool of itself by misspelling the word “Germany” on a poster. n-tv.de
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy criticizes meeting between the US and Russia in Riyadh: Ukraine was once again discussed without Ukraine in Saudi Arabia, Zelenskyy said during a visit to Turkey. He postponed his own visit to Riyadh, which was planned for Wednesday, by a good three weeks. The delegations there could discuss whatever they wanted, but no decisions could be made about ending the war without Ukraine. Zelenskyy called for fair peace negotiations for Russia-occupied Ukraine. The talks should also include negotiators from his country, the EU, Turkey and the UK. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan offered his country as a venue for possible meetings. faz.net, sueddeutsche.de
Hamas to release six living hostages on Saturday: Two of them have been in Hamas custody for years, reports AP, citing hostage families. The other four were abducted during the attacks on October 7, 2023. They are the last living prisoners to be released in the first phase of the ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas. In addition, Hamas wants to hand over the bodies of four hostages as early as Thursday; among them are said to be members of a family with German citizenship. tagesschau.de, n-tv.de
RTL/ntv trend barometer by Forsa: CDU/CSU 30 percent (+1), SPD 16 percent, Greens 13 percent (-1), FDP 5 percent (+1), AfD 20 percent, Left Party 7 percent (+1), BSW 4 percent, others 5 percent. n-tv.de
- Chancellor preferences: Olaf Scholz 17 percent, Friedrich Merz 25 percent (+1), Robert Habeck 23 percent, Alice Weidel 14 percent (-1). n-tv.de
Federal President Frank-Walter Steinmeier pays tribute to his predecessor Horst Köhler: Köhler had decisively changed the way we look at Africa, Steinmeier said at the state ceremony in Berlin. Through his work, he had transformed the continent from an object to a subject of geopolitical discourse. In Africa, Köhler had become not only a highly esteemed but also a credible representative of Europe. The funeral service in Berlin Cathedral was attended by, among others, Chancellor Olaf Scholz, former German Presidents Joachim Gauck and Christian Wulff, and former Chancellor Angela Merkel, as well as Steinmeier. augsburger-allgemeine.de, zdf.de, tagesschau.de
Investigations committee criticizes lack of cooperation in Afghanistan: The final report states that sluggish administrative procedures and a lack of will to act prevented the government from taking effective action at an early stage. Committee chairman Ralf Stegner said that during the intensifying crisis, a joint analysis of the situation by the federal government departments involved was lacking. Nevertheless, the withdrawal of the Bundeswehr went according to plan. faz.net, zdf.de
Federal Court of Justice wants to wait for European judgment regarding false allegations on Facebook: A corresponding procedure in Karlsruhe has been suspended pending the decision of the European Court of Justice. The matter concerns a dispute between Green Party politician Renate Künast and the US company Meta. The case concerns a photo of Künast with a false quote that was intended to discredit her and her party in integration policy. Among other things, Künast wants Facebook to delete all variants of the false quote on its own initiative. She has already been vindicated in the lower courts. lto.de, faz.net
A study by the ifo Institute shows that an increase in the number of foreigners does not lead to a higher crime rate: According to the study, an evaluation of police crime statistics by district shows that there is no correlation between an increase in the number of foreigners and the crime rate. This also applies to refugees. Particularly serious crimes such as murders or sexual assaults were also examined. Here, too, the study found no statistical correlation with an increasing proportion of foreigners or the proportion of people seeking protection. The researchers cited integration into the labor market as an important means of preventing crime. Useful measures would be to simplify the recognition of foreign qualifications and to distribute asylum seekers according to regional labor demand. n-tv.de, echo-online.de
More news:
- Thuringia: Blackberry government plans its own deportation centers in Arnstadt. faz.net
- Bavaria: Significantly fewer regulations and laws in the Free State. sueddeutsche.de
- NRW: Düsseldorf Airport is demanding almost €49,000 from climate activists. n-tv.de
- NRW: Playground in the district of Herford closed indefinitely due to swastikas and Nazi slogans. nw.de
- Saarland: Sulzbach Mosque smeared with swastikas and slogans. sr.de
- Hessen: Young people attack AfD election campaigners while they are putting up posters. n-tv.de
- Thuringia: Case of tuberculosis detected at school in Kyffhäuserkreis district. mdr.de
- Baden-Württemberg: New center for state security proceedings. lto.de
- Saxony: Remains of the Carola Bridge move on construction site; demolition interrupted. n-tv.de
- Rhineland-Palatinate: Total aid for Ahr Valley municipalities breaks the billion mark. saarbruecker-zeitung.de
- Saarland: 40 million euros for start-up funding. n-tv.de
- Lower Saxony: Minister for Economic Affairs Olaf Lies presents digitization offensive. noz.de
EU Parliament calls for swift decisions on EU defense: In view of the US talks with Russia on normalizing relations, it is necessary “that Europe strengthen its own security,” the leaders of the four major political groups EPP, S&D, Liberals and Greens demanded in Brussels. Europe can no longer fully rely on the US to defend common values and interests. In view of the “new geopolitical reality”, Europe must urgently provide the necessary financial resources to expand its own defense and strengthen its defense industry. n-tv.de
Turkey arrests 280 suspected PKK members: Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya announced that anti-terrorism raids had been carried out in 51 provinces, as well as in the capital Ankara and the largest city, Istanbul. The suspects are accused of distributing PKK propaganda, financing the group, recruiting members and participating in street protests. Recently, hopes had been raised that the PKK’s armed struggle against the Turkish state might come to an end; the imprisoned PKK leader Abdullah Öcalan had indicated his willingness to end the conflict in December. faz.net
280,000 Syrians have returned from abroad since Assad’s ouster: According to UN estimates, more than 800,000 Syrian internally displaced persons have also returned to their original place of residence. The head of the UN refugee agency, Filippo Grandi, linked the announcement of the new figures to the call for help in rebuilding Syria. The measures would have to be “bolder and faster”. Since the beginning of the Syrian civil war, millions of people have fled to neighboring and other countries. Around 2.9 million Syrian refugees are living in Turkey alone. handelsblatt.com
In the US, the debate over freedom of expression in Germany continues, triggered by a CBS report on police raids against individuals alleged to have posted criminal content online, including against politicians. The “Internet Hate Crimes Unit” defended the action against discriminatory and racist postings. At the Munich Security Conference, US Vice President J.D. Vance had caused outrage by criticizing restrictions on freedom of expression in Europe. noz.de, sueddeutsche.de
More news:
- Austria: According to the Ministry of the Interior, a planned law banning the carrying of knives has been on ice for months. derstandard.de
- Belgium: Digital pamphlets call for attacks in Antwerp and Brussels. grenzecho.net
- Great Britain: There is great concern about the espionage charges against a British couple arrested in Iran at the beginning of the year. n-tv.de
- Spain: Debate on nuclear phase-out. faz.net
- Netherlands: Intensified fight against exploitation of temporary workers. rp-online.de
- Poland: Mixed mood a year after the change of government. mdr.de
- Romania: US government wants to help Andrew Tate flee the country. derstandard.at
- Vatican: Pope Francis suffering from pneumonia. faz.net
- Sudan: UN report describes serious human rights violations and alleged war crimes; around 3.5 million have fled the country. spiegel.de
- Congo: Violence against the population is increasing; militia M23 has murdered children during the conquest of the city of Bukavu, while cases of abuse, sexual violence and forced recruitment have also been documented. faz.net
- Afghanistan: Taliban delegation arrive in Japan. apnews.com
Unions announce warning strikes and protests “across the country”: The second round of collective bargaining for more than 2.5 million federal and municipal employees failed to achieve any common ground, with the employers not presenting an offer. Verdi leader Frank Werneke said in Potsdam that the industrial action would be expanded this week. This means that there is a possibility of action in daycare centers, local public transport, airports or garbage collection before the federal election. faz.net, zdf.de, n-tv.de
Planning approvals for new buildings fall to their lowest level since 2010: Around 216,000 apartments in new or existing buildings were approved. This was almost 17 percent less than in the previous year, according to the Federal Statistical Office. This is the third year in a row that the number has fallen, although the decline has slowed somewhat recently. Not only the construction of apartments but also the construction of houses is in crisis. This has been attributed to increased interest rates, higher material costs, as well as high standards and bureaucracy. zdf.de, faz.net, tagesschau.de
More news:
- East German Savings Banks Association: Strong demand for property loans in the new federal states. handelsblatt.com
- Continental to cut a further 3,000 jobs by the end of 2026. zdf.de
- Car delivery business: ZF is considering spinning off its second-largest division. handelsblatt.com
- German carmakers are investing primarily abroad. handelsblatt.com
- Develey is moving Löwensenf production from Düsseldorf to Thuringia. spiegel.de
- Jeff Bezos: Washington Post cancels anti-Musk ad. golem.de
- “Great concern”: European news agencies criticize Trump’s exclusion of the AP. kress.de
- Final sprint in the election campaign: ARD’s “Wahlarena” also attracts a great deal of interest. dwdl.de
- State security investigates after speech: Director chants controversial slogan at Berlinale. n-tv.de
- Pop star is doing better: Shakira continues tour after hospital stay. rnd.de
- Oil painting by legendary street artist Banksy to be auctioned at Sotheby’s in London in early March. www1.wdr.de
- Dr. Dre: HipHop legend celebrates his 60th birthday. web.de
- Travis Scott dismisses lawsuit after security incident – A man named Omar Muhanna claims he was attacked and seriously injured by one of the rapper’s security guards. promiflash.de
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- Milan/Cortina d’Ampezzo – Run on Olympic tickets: 300,000 sold. sportschau.de
- Successor to Popp: Giulia Gwinn is the new captain of the DFB team. faz.net
- Basketball: Germany enters European Championship qualifiers with seven world champions. sueddeutsche.de
- Second-round duel with Japan: German Davis Cup team to play in Tokyo. sportschau.de
- UAE tour in cycling: Pogacar third in Tarling’s time trial victory. sportschau.de
Oberpfalz: Mishap during toilet cleaning – fecal fountain pours over car. t-online.de