Germany
Explosion of WWII bomb in Munich injures 4, disrupts trains
A World War II bomb exploded at a construction site next to a busy railway line in Munich on Wednesday, injuring four people, one of them seriously, German authorities said.
A column of smoke was seen rising from the site near the Donnersbergerbruecke station. The construction site for a new commuter train line is located on the approach to Munich's central station, which is a bit over a kilometer (about a half-mile) to the east.
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Trains to and from that station, one of Germany's busiest, were suspended but service resumed in mid-afternoon. A few local trains were evacuated. The fire service said there was no damage to the tracks.
Unexploded bombs are still found frequently in Germany, even 76 years after the end of the war, and often during work on construction sites. They are usually defused or disposed of in controlled explosions, a process that sometimes entails large-scale evacuations as a precaution.
Bavaria's state interior minister, Joachim Herrmann, said the 250-kilogram (550-pound) bomb was found during drilling work, German news agency dpa reported.
Herrmann said authorities must now investigate why it wasn't discovered earlier. He noted that such construction sites are usually scanned carefully in advance for possible unexploded bombs.
German court sentences mother to life for killing her 5 kids
A 28-year-old mother in Germany was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison Thursday for the murder of five of her six children at their home in the western city of Solingen, German news agency dpa reported.
The regional court in Wuppertal established the particular gravity of the crime in its verdict. In most cases, such a finding rules out release from prison after 15 years, the amount of time often served by people given live sentences in Germany.
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The children - Melina, Leonie, Sophie, Timo and Luca - were killed in September 2020. Prosecutors said their mother first sedated the youngsters and then either drowned or suffocated them, dpa reported. The children ranged in age from 1 to 8.
Prosecutors think a photo the woman's ex-partner sent showing him with a new companion prompted the killings. The mother had written back to the ex-partner that he would never see his children again, dpa reported.
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The woman sent a sixth child, her eldest, to stay with his grandmother before the killings. She then tried to kill herself by jumping in front of a train at the Duesseldorf railway station and suffered serious, but not life-threatening injuries.
President returns home after 18-day medical tour
President Abdul Hamid returned home Tuesday morning, wrapping up his 18-day tour of Germany and the United Kindom for a health check-up and the treatment of an eye problem.
“A flight of Biman Bangladesh Airlines carrying the President and his entourage landed at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport at 8.40am," President’s Deputy Press Secretary Munsi Jalal Uddin told UNB.
Read: President to return home Tuesday after health check-up in Germany and UK
Liberation War Affairs Minister AKM Mozammel Haque, Foreign Affairs Minister AK Abdul Momen, Dean of Diplomatic Corps Archbishop George Kocherry, British High Commissioner in Dhaka Robert Chatterton Dickson, Cabinet Secretary Khandker Anwarul Islam, Army Chief, Acting Navy Chief, Assistant Chief of Air Staff, Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister's Office, and other senior officials received the President at the airport.
President Hamid left London's Heathrow Airport for Dhaka at 5.50 pm (London time) Monday.
Bangladesh High Commissioner to the UK Saida Muna Tasneen and senior officials of the country's mission in London saw off the President at the airport.
Read: President urges world leaders to take effective steps to solve Rohingya problem
On October 9, the President, his wife Rashida Khanam and other entourage members left Dhaka for German capital Berlin. He travelled to London from Berlin on October 19.
The 77-year-old President has long been suffering from glaucoma, a group of eye conditions that damage the optical nerve.
Germany offers support to Bangladesh in climate adaptation, energy sector
Germany on Sunday said it is ready to cooperate with Bangladesh, particularly in the areas of climate change and energy sector. Newly-appointed German Ambassador to Bangladesh Achim Troester said this when he paid a courtesy call on Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina at her official residence Ganobhaban. After the meeting, Prime Minister's Press Secretary Ihsanul Karim briefed reporters.
Read:Rohingyas a huge burden for Bangladesh: PM The German envoy mentioned that the two countries are passing 50 years of their diplomatic ties and their bilateral relations are excellent. Achim Troester appreciated Bangladesh’s overall development and the Bangladesh government’s mechanisms to tackle the Covid-19 situation successfully. The death rate is relatively lower compared to many other countries, he said. In reply, the Prime Minister highlighted various measures taken by her government to check the Corona pandemic and said some six crore people have so far been vaccinated in Bangladesh with single and double doses together.
Read: Ensure fire safety in high-rise buildings: PM On the climate change issue, Hasina said Bangladesh has started the adaptation and mitigation programme with its own resources. Recalling with gratitude Germany's cooperation during Bangladesh's Liberation War in 1971, she said many German families adopted "war babies" after the Liberation War. Ambassador-at-Large Mohammad Ziauddin and Principal Secretary Dr Ahmad Kaikaus were present.
President urges world leaders to take effective steps to solve Rohingya problem
President Abdul Hamid on Thursday called upon the world leaders including from Germany to take effective initiatives to have a permanent solution to the Rohingya problem.
Visiting President Hamid made the call during a meeting with German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier at his official residence Bellevue Palace.
During the meeting, the President thanked the German government for providing humanitarian assistance to the Rohingya who were forcibly displaced from Myanmar and for raising the issue at the United Nations, President’s Press Secretary Joynal Abedin told UNB.
The Bangladeshi President also called for effective measures to repatriate Rohingyas to their homeland.
Mentioning Germany as a reliable development partner of Bangladesh, the President highlighted the issue of German co-operation in the development of Bangladesh since independence.
He thanked the German government for sending the corona vaccine and medical equipment to Bangladesh as a grant.
Stating that the existing trade relations between Bangladesh and Germany are very good and are expanding day by day, Abdul Hamid called for more German investment in various sectors, including Bangladesh's high-tech parks and special economic zones.
The President praised the new steps taken by Germany and the European Union to address the adverse effects of climate change.
He hoped that Germany and the European Union would be more liberal in their trade and investment with developing countries, including Bangladesh.
Expressing gratitude for launching the Bangabandhu Professional Fellowship at the University of Heidelberg in Germany, the President called for visa facilitation for Bangladeshi students.
The President said Bangladesh is moving ahead economically because of the government's zero-tolerance policy against terrorism and extremism.
Alongside, Hamid thanked the German President for his speech on the occasion of the golden jubilee of Bangladesh's independence and the birth centenary of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman.
Expressing satisfaction over Germany's bilateral trade with Bangladesh, the German President emphasized exchanging visits at the public-private level to increase trade between the two countries.
Appreciating Bangladesh's initiative in controlling the Corona epidemic, the German President said that his country would continue its cooperation in this regard.
During the meeting, they also discussed various issues including international politics.
Secretary to the President's Office Sampad Barua, Military Secretary Major General SM Salah Uddin Islam, President's son Rasel Ahmed Tuhin and Bangladesh Ambassador to Germany Mosharraf Hossain Bhuiyan were present during the meeting.
President to leave for Europe Saturday for eye treatment
Bangladesh President Abdul Hamid will Saturday leave for Europe on a 14-day medical tour for a health check-up and the treatment of an eye problem.
President’s press secretary Joynal Abedin told UNB that the head-of-state will leave for London and Germany on a VVIP flight of Qatar Airways from Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport early in the morning.
Read: PM briefs President Hamid about her UNGA visit
The press secretary also said that the President is expected to return home on an aircraft of Biman Bangladesh Airlines on October 22.
The 77-year-old President has long been suffering from glaucoma, a group of eye conditions that damage the optical nerve.
BGMEA seeks Germany’s support to continue duty benefits in EU
The Bangladesh Garment Manufacturers and Exporters Association (BGMEA) has sought Germany’s support for the continuation of duty- and quota-free access for Bangladeshi goods to the European Union for a period of 12 years, following the country's graduation from LDC status in 2026.
The continuation of the benefits is essential to ensure a smooth transition out of the LDC status for Bangladesh. At present it is able to avail the benefits under the EU's Everything But Arms initiative for LDCs.
BGMEA President Faruque Hassan made the request during a meeting with the newly appointed Ambassador of Germany Achim Troster on Monday.
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BGMEA Vice President Shahidullah Azim, Vice President Miran Ali and Caren Blume, Head of Development Section at the German Embassy, were also present.
The BGMEA President welcomed the new German Ambassador and apprised him of the present situation of Bangladesh’s apparel industry, its challenges, opportunities and future priorities.
Highlighting the progress made by the industry in the areas of workplace safety, environmental sustainability and workers' welfare, Faruque Hassan requested the envoy to promote the RMG industry positively to his government, buyers and other relevant stakeholders.
BGMEA President Faruque Hassan thanked Ambassador Achim Troster for the German government’s friendly support to the betterment of the Bangladesh RMG industry.
READ: EU market: BGMEA optimistic about GSP+ benefits after Bangladesh's graduation
They expressed willingness about more collaboration for further development of Bangladesh garment industry, especially in the area of sustainability.
Dhaka to receive 7.90 lakh AstraZeneca vaccine doses Saturday
Bangladesh will receive 7.90 lakh more doses of AstraZeneca vaccine from Germany on Saturday.
A cargo flight of Qatar Airlines carrying the vaccine doses will land at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport around 5 pm on Saturday, said officials at the Health Ministry.
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German Ambassador to Bangladesh Achim Troster and Senior Secretary of the Director General of Health Services (DGHS) Lokman Hossain Miah will be present at the airport to receive the vaccine jabs.
After close vote, Germany on tricky path to form government
The party that narrowly beat outgoing German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s bloc pushed Monday for a quick agreement on a coalition government amid concerns that Europe’s biggest economy could be in for weeks of uncertainty after an election that failed to set a clear direction.
Olaf Scholz, the candidate of the center-left Social Democrats, called for Merkel’s center-right Union bloc to go into opposition after it saw its worst-ever result in a national election. Both finished with well under 30% of the vote, and that appeared to put the keys to power in the hands of two opposition parties — raising questions over the stability of a future government.
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During her 16 years in office, Merkel was seen abroad not just as Germany’s leader but in many ways as the leader of Europe, helping steer the European Union through a series of financial and political crises.
READ: Germany embarks on tricky search for post-Merkel government
The unclear result combined with an upcoming French presidential election in April creates uncertainty — at least for now — in the two economic and political powers at the center of the EU, just as the bloc faces a resurgent Russia and increasing questions about its future from populist leaders in eastern countries.
Germany embarks on tricky search for post-Merkel government
Germany is embarking on a potentially lengthy search for its next government after the center-left Social Democrats narrowly beat outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel's center-right bloc in an election that failed to set a clear direction for Europe's biggest economy under a new leader.
Leaders of the parties in the newly elected parliament were meeting Monday to digest a result that saw Merkel's Union bloc slump to its worst-ever result in a national election, and appeared to put the keys to power in the hands of two opposition parties.
Read:Social Democrats narrowly beat Merkel’s bloc in German vote
Both Social Democrat Olaf Scholz, who pulled his party out of a years-long slump, and Armin Laschet, the candidate of Merkel's party who saw his party's fortunes decline in a troubled campaign, laid a claim to leading the next government. Scholz is the outgoing vice chancellor and finance minister and Laschet is the governor of Germany's most populous state, North Rhine-Westphalia.
Whichever of them becomes chancellor will do so with his party having won a smaller share of the vote than any of his predecessors. Who gets the job looks likely to depend on the decision of the prospective junior partners, the environmentalist Greens and the business-friendly Free Democrats — parties that traditionally belong to rival ideological camps.
“Voters have spoken very clearly,” Scholz said Monday. “They strengthened three parties — the Social Democrats, the Greens and the Free Democrats — so this is the visible mandate the citizens of this country have given: these three parties should lead the next government.”
The only other option that would have a parliamentary majority is a repeat of the “grand coalition” of the Union and Social Democrats. That is the grouping that has run Germany for 12 years of Merkel's 16-year tenure and has often been marred by squabbling, but this time it would be under Scholz's leadership with Merkel's bloc as junior partner. There is little appetite for that, however.
Scholz said the Union “received the message from citizens that they should no longer be in government, but go into opposition.”
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Merkel's outgoing government will remain in office until a successor is sworn in, a process that can take weeks or months. Merkel announced in 2018 that she wouldn't seek a fifth term.
The Greens traditionally lean toward the Social Democrats and the Free Democrats toward the Union, but neither ruled out going the other way on Sunday night. The Greens made significant gains in the election to finish third but fell far short of their original aim of taking the chancellery, while the Free Democrats improved slightly on a good result from 2017.
Julia Reuschenbach, a political analyst at the University of Bonn, told ARD television that a Laschet-led government “isn't excluded in principle,” though the Social Democrats will push the argument that the result shows Germans want them to lead the new administration. “Ultimately, the parties will of course have to agree on matters of substance,” she said.
Final official results gave the Social Democrats 25.7% of the vote and the Union 24.1%. Four years ago, they won 20.5% and 32.9% respectively. The Union — made up of Laschet's Christian Democratic Union and its Bavarian sister, the Christian Social Union — had never previously polled below 31% in a national parliamentary election.
The Greens took 14.8%, the Free Democrats 11.5% and the far-right Alternative for Germany 10.3% — a decline from the 12.6% it took to enter parliament for the first time in 2017. The smallest party in the new parliament is the Left Party, which won just 4.9% of the vote.
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The new Bundestag, or lower house of parliament, will have a record 735 lawmakers. The parliament varies in size because of a peculiarity of Germany's electoral system, which means that it can be considerably bigger than the minimum 598 seats.
The Social Democrats took 206 seats, the Union 196, the Greens 118, the Free Democrats 92, Alternative for Germany 83 and the Left Party 39. One seat went to the Danish minority party SSW, which will be represented for the first time in decades.