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BERLIN, Germany (AFP) — Chancellor Angela Merkel’s government is planning to deploy soldiers to Afghanistan to help with the evacuation of German nationals and Afghans in danger from the Taliban, parliamentary sources said Monday. The government will seek a mandate from parliament to allow the deployment of as many as “several hundred soldiers”, the sources told AFP, citing a briefing by Merkel to leaders of parliamentary groups late Sunday. “An ‘air bridge’ is to be […]
European powers present in Afghanistan moved Sunday to evacuate their nationals and local staff as the Taliban were on the outskirts of the Afghan capital poised to take power. Germany moved dozens of diplomatic personnel from its embassy in Kabul to the airport ahead of an evacuation planned from Monday, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said on Twitter. “We are not going to risk our people falling into the hands of the Taliban,” Foreign Minister Heiko […]
BERLIN, Germany (AFP) — Germany will end free coronavirus tests in October, regional leaders and the federal government agreed on Tuesday, in a push to incentivise more people to get vaccinated. Covid-19 tests or proof of vaccination or recovery will be required to access facilities including restaurants, cinemas and gyms, in areas where infection rates rise above a certain threshold. From October those who refuse to get jabbed will have to pay to prove they […]
BERLIN, Germany (AFP) — German train drivers voted to go on strike from Tuesday over a wage dispute, their union said, in a blow for summer vacationers and adding to logistics and supply woes already plaguing the industry. The walkout will affect cargo trains from 7 pm (1700 GMT) on Tuesday, before extending to passenger traffic at 2 am on Wednesday, said the leader of the train drivers’ GDL union, Claus Weselsky. Some 95 percent […]
BERLIN, Germany (AFP) — Germany plans to start offering Covid-19 booster shots to the elderly and at-risk from September 1, according to a draft document seen by AFP on Sunday, as concerns grow about the spread of the Delta variant. The plan also recommends promoting vaccination for those aged 12-17, which would go further than earlier guidance issued by the country’s vaccine regulator. Health Minister Jens Spahn and Germany’s 16 regional health ministers are expected […]
LEVERKUSEN, Germany (AFP) — One person died and 16 people were injured Tuesday following an explosion at a chemical park in Leverkusen, Germany, the site operator said as residents were urged to stay indoors because of black smoke rising from the area. The blast happened at around 09:40 am (0740 GMT) “for still unknown reasons”, Chempark operator Currenta said. At least two of the injured were in a serious condition, and four workers were missing, […]
FRANKFURT, Germany (AFP) — Two people were seriously injured Tuesday in an explosion at a chemical park in Leverkusen, western Germany, the site’s operator said, as police urged residents to shelter indoors. “Several employees were injured in the incident, at least two of them seriously,” Chempark operator Currenta said in a statement. “Five employees are currently missing.” The blast happened at around 09:40 am (0740 GMT) “for still unknown reasons”, it said. The explosion could […]
BERLIN, Germany (AFP) — German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Thursday she was concerned about Germany’s rising Covid-19 infections, urging Germans to get vaccinated. “The infection figures are rising again and with a clear and worrying dynamic,” Merkel told a press conference in Berlin. “We are seeing exponential growth,” she said, adding that “every vaccination… is a small step towards a return to normality”. Germany has seen low infection numbers over the summer compared to […]
by Deborah COLE BERLIN, Germany (AFP) — Chancellor Angela Merkel’s cabinet approved a huge emergency aid package Wednesday for flood-stricken regions of Germany and said billions would be needed to rebuild homes, businesses and vital infrastructure. A week into the region’s worst flooding disaster in living memory, which has killed at least 174 in Germany and 32 more Belgium, the right-left “grand coalition” government unlocked some 400 million euros ($470 million) in immediate relief. Half […]
BERLIN, Germany (AFP) — The death toll from devastating floods in Germany reached 169 on Tuesday, local officials said, bringing the total number of deaths in Europe to at least 200. A total of 121 people are now confirmed to have died in Rhineland-Palatinate, emergency services spokesman Aaron Klein told AFP, up from the previous total of 117 in the western German state. © Agence France-Presse
BAD NEUENAHR-AHRWEILER, Germany (AFP) — The death toll from Germany’s worst floods in living memory rose to 165 on Monday as emergency services continued to comb through decimated towns in search of dozens of people still missing. A deluge of rain fell over western Germany over two days last week, sending torrents of water rushing down streets, sweeping away trees, cars and sheds, and destroying swathes of housing. Many victims have been found dead […]
by Jean-Philippe LACOUR with Deborah COLE in Berlin Agence France Presse Troops and firefighters scrambled through the night Saturday to find victims of the devastation left by the worst floods to hit western Europe in decades, which have already left more than 150 people dead and dozens more missing. Western Germany has suffered the most brutal impact of the deluge that also pummelled Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands, leaving streets and homes submerged in […]
