Germany's news in English

Change edition:
Austria ·
Denmark ·
France ·
Italy ·
Norway ·
Spain ·
Sweden ·
Switzerland

Treason affair

"No democracy without a free press" reads a banner at a pro-Netzpolitik demo on Saturday August 1st. Photo: DPA

Lawmakers also named in treason probe

UPDATE: Germany's domestic spy agency named not just bloggers, but also lawmakers in a criminal complaint that sparked a controversial treason investigation, news weekly Der Spiegel said on Friday. READ

No mere gun can harm a Wonderbra! Photos: DPA

Bra stops bullet in hunting mishap miracle

A woman in Mecklenberg-Western Pomerania survived being accidentally shot in a hunting accident, Gadebusch-Rehnaer Zeitung reported on Friday – because her bra somehow stopped the bullet.READ 2 comments

Soldiers from the German armed forces,(Bundeswehr) participate in an excercise. Photo: DPA.

Army to spend €6bn on fixing shoddy kit

The German Defence Ministry said on Friday that it plans to invest up to €6 billion over the coming years to improve deficient army equipment after a series of embarrassing incidents last year revealed the parlous state of the armed forces' weapons and vehicles. READ 4 comments

Are vibrators ready to come out of the bedroom and into public space? Photo: DPA

Two-metre tall vibrators appear on Berlin streets

Sex toy brand Amorelie is aiming to spread the love with a new billboard campaign across the capital, reports Tagesspiegel. READ 10 comments

A photo of a B-26C Marauder, the type of plane Stephen Biezis flew in the Second World War. Photo: US Air Force.

US WWII pilot's remains found after 70 years

Second Lieutenant Stephen Biezis is finally going home to the United States, 70 years after he died battling German fighter planes in the Second World War. READ 3 comments

Britain's 'naked rambler' went to prison over his freestyle walking Photo: DPA

Nudist walkers told to keep their clothes on

Would-be naked ramblers faced disappointment in Brandenburg this week – as plans for a nudist walking route were put on hold. READ

10/07 Discover Berlin Mitte's nooks and crannies »
06/05 A hitchhiker's guide to Germany »
09/04 Munich unveils nudist bathing spots »

People cool off in the Bodensee in Friedrichshafen, Baden-Württemberg, on Wednesday. Photo: DPA

South Germany may top 40C on Friday

Weather forecasters said on Friday that temperatures in some parts of the country may rival national records as Germany continues to sweat under a heatwave. READ

Emergency services arrive to evacuate people after gas leak in Hamburg. Photo: DPA.

Gas leak interrupts stay for Hamburg hotel guests

A gas leak at a chemical company forced more than 100 hotel guests and others living in the area in a Hamburg neighbourhood to be evacuated on Thursday night. READ

Albanians at an asylum registration centre in Ingelheim. Photo: DPA.

Germany tries to deter Balkan asylum seekers

Germany, overwhelmed by people fleeing war and poverty, is trying to stem the tide of asylum seekers from the Balkans, a region now considered safe at least from armed conflict. READ

A video game fan dressed as Cammy from Super Street Fighter playing the combat game at Gamescom in Cologne. Photo: DPA.

Thousands flock to Cologne's gaming mecca

Gamescom, the world's largest gaming industry event, opened to the public on Thursday in Cologne with thousands of fans excited to get a glimpse of the future of gaming. READ

Features

In the center, Nazi lawyer Roland Freisler, who wrote laws that are partially still in existence today. Photo: German Federal Archive / Wikimedia Commons.

Minister seeks to rid laws of 'Nazi language'

Germany has made great efforts to purge legal system of remnants of Adolf Hitler's regime, but some laws still bear traces of the Nazi past. The Justice Minister wants to change this. READ

Regulations for women's parking spaces differ from state to state across Germany. Photo: JG-NF / Wikimedia Commons.

'Women-only' parking: sensible or sexist?

Frankfurt Airport is one of many places in Germany to offer women their own 'bigger and nicer' parking areas. Is this sensible practice or plain sexist? READ 30 comments

The Local List

Photo: DPA

Six odd ways Germans talk about the weather

Is it absolutely roasting, or raining cats and dogs? Neither if you live in Germany. Here are six wonderfully weird expressions Germans use to talk about the weather - some more literal than others. READ 2 comments

The Local List

Covering the important parts of your body. Germans on holiday. Photo: DPA.

Six odd things Germans do in the summer

These summer pastimes show that Germans' reputation for being uptight and straight-laced sticklers for punctuality couldn't be further from the truth. Many like nothing better than getting naked and drunk, and blocking up public traffic routes on the way. READ 17 comments

Police officers lay a wreath at the Plötzensee memorial. Photo: Jörg Luyken.

Germany honours anti-Nazi resistance fighters

Seventy-one years after a failed military assassination attempt against Adolf Hitler, Berlin Mayor Michael Müller led a memorial service on Monday at Plötzensee Prison commemorating the German resistance against the Nazi regime. READ 2 comments

More News

This week in history

Photo: DPA

When the first stone was laid: Berlin TV tower

In August 1965, Berlin's iconic TV Tower wasn't yet part of the city skyline. But east of the Wall, plans were underway to create a spectacular monument for the German Democratic Republic (GDR).READ 8 comments

Ai WeiWei (r) with son Ai Lao and mother of Ai Lao, Wang Fen (l). Photo: DPA

Ai Weiwei 'loves Berlin', plans long stay

Chinese dissident artist Ai Weiwei, in Germany after being barred from overseas travel out of China for four years, says he is interested in teaching for a while in Berlin. READ 4 comments

Presented by EU Business School

EU Online MBA students listen to guest lecturer Kumar Barua at the on-campus week in Munich in March 2015. Photo: EU Business School

The online MBA with campus and community

Can there really be an 'online campus'? And can you make a top-notch MBA accessible anywhere in the world? The Local speaks with Dr. James Mulli, Director of Online Programmes at EU Business School, for answers. READ

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. Photo: DPA

Greece deal 'may not be reached this month'

Germany is growing increasingly dubious that a deal on a third bailout for Greece can be sealed this month, the daily Bild reported Thursday citing a government source. READ 8 comments

No love lost: Angela Merkel and Vladimir Putin meet in Moscow. Photo: DPA

Germans, Russians trust each other less and less

Despite so-called Putin-sympathizers and eastern Germany's historic link to Mother Russia, a new poll shows that German and Russian opinions of one another have soured dramatically in recent years.READ 11 comments

Refugee children housed in a gym in Bavaria. Photo: DPA

TV anchor urges public to fight online racism

Public television journalist Anja Reschke sparked a massive online discussion on Wednesday evening with a heartfelt plea to ordinary people to speak out against those calling for violence and hatred against refugees. READ

The start of the trial in Celle on Monday. Photo: DPA

Trial in Celle gives new insights into Isis terror

A trial began in Lower Saxony on Monday of two young men who went to Syria to fight for Isis. The willingness of the defendants to speak openly about what they did and saw is shedding fresh light on how the terrorist organisation works. READ

Markus Beckedahl and Andre Meister of digital rights blog Netzpolitik.org with a prize they were awarded on Wednesday. Photo: DPA

Critics hunt fresh scalps in 'treason' scandal

Politicians, the media and ordinary citizens were pointing fingers in all directions on Wednesday, seeking a fresh target to take the blame for a treason investigation against blog Netzpolitik (net politics) after the government forced Germany's chief prosecutor to step down. READ

Photo: DPA.

Health insurer offers smart watch discount

Health insurance company AOK Northeast has become the first in the country to help foot the bill for devices like the Apple Watch with fitness apps, in the hopes that wearers will use the gadgets to improve their health. READ

Emergency services responded to an explosion at a chemical plant in Krefeld. Photo: DPA.

Several injured in chemical plant blast

An explosion at a German chemical plant on Wednesday left several people injured, some of them seriously, authorities said as they tried to determine the cause. READ

Read older articles »

From our other editions:

The Local List

Can you guess the German word for slug? Photo: Wikimedia/Prashanthns

Ten wonderfully literal German words

One of the best things about the German language is undoubtedly its logic. The wonderful compound nouns which German is famous for can sometimes be notoriously complex, but also make perfect sense.READ

Image of pigs at 'factory farm' that animal group alleges shows mistreatment. Photo: VgT

Pigs gassed to death by own excrement

A total of 135 pigs died after inhaling gas produced from their own excrement on a farm in the canton of Aargau, a TV report has revealed. READ

Photo: Lego Group

'Offensive' Lego set angers disability group

The group argues that the inclusion of an old man in a wheelchair in a new Lego toy set creates the misleading impression that disability that only affects the elderly. READ

Video

The Real Madrid attempted to earn some pennies with his footwork Photo: Screenshot Ronaldo - ROC Live Life Loud / Youtube

Cristiano Ronaldo pranks Madrid as homeless man

It’s Cristiano Ronaldo as you have never seen him before, disguised as a homeless man loitering in Madrid’s busy shopping area of Plaza de Callao with his begging tin and scruffy dog. READ

Screengrab from the Facebook page where the shocking images of the dog was published. Photo: AFP

Dog buried alive sparks French social media fury

Photos of a dog buried alive up to its head in France sparked an outpouring of anger on social media Wednesday and police said the owner was taken into custody. READ

Matera, the European Capital of Culture for 2019. Photo: Maryn Ve

Why Italy's south is far better than the north

Following a report last week warning that southern Italy risked "permanent under-development”, we came up with ways in which the long-suffering south is far better than the north. READ

A Viking longship burning at the end of Edinburgh's Torchlight Procession. Photo: viking2

Norway starts school for Vikings

A Norwegian further education college is starting a programme for want-to-be Vikings where students will learn essential Viking crafts, such as sword forging, jewellery making, and roof thatching. READ