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TODAY IN GERMANY

Today in Germany: A roundup of the latest news on Thursday

Three people have died and two others are critically injured after a fire broke out in Düsseldorf, concerns over the funding of Berlin's €29 ticket and more news from around Germany.

Published: 15 May 2024 15:31 CEST
Updated: 16 May 2024 08:31 CEST

A U-bahn train enters Zoologischer Garten station in Berlin. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Jörg Carstensen

Three die and several injured after fire in Düsseldorf

Three people have died and several are injured following a suspected explosion and fire at a building in the city of Düsseldorf in the early hours of Thursday.

At around 2.30 am, a residential building that included a shop on the ground floor on the corner of Lichtstraße and Grafenberger Allee in the Flingern district caught fire.

Several parked cars, which had been parked in front of the shop, also caught fire.

A rescue operation was launched. According to the fire brigade, 16 people were treated by emergency services and taken to hospital – including two people with life-threatening injuries. Three people were found dead by emergency services.

The fire was extinguished during the night, police said on Thursday morning.

Investigations are continuing.

Fast food giants Taco Bell and Krispy Kreme coming to Germany

Two of the USA’s most well-known fast food chains are coming to Deutschland.

Taco Bell will start by opening ten locations in Berlin, possibly as early as July – with Krispy Kreme following later in the year.

Within the next five years, the two chains are planning to have anywhere between 100 and 150 locations all around Germany – with the first locations outside the capital slated to go up in Frankfurt.

Daily dilemmas of living in Germany: what’s the best fast food in Berlin?

German Police Union says €29 ticket risking security in capital

The Chief of the Berlin chapter of the German Police Union (GdP) is criticising the city’s government for planned cuts of about €32 million planned for the capital’s police and fire services.

GdP Berlin Chief Stephan Weh blasted the city government, saying that its search for the hundreds of millions necessary for the capital’s incoming €29 a month public transport ticket was coming at the expense of everything else – following the announcement of a list of cuts.

“This list shows it clearly to everyone. The €29 ticket is being financed at the cost of our security,” said Weh.

GdP Berlin says the cuts may mean less money to investigate organised crime or to replace aging police vehicles in the capital – to use just two examples.

German economy ‘showing signs of recovey’

The German economy is likely to pick up this year after a period of weakness but still faces significant headwinds, a group of influential experts said this week.

The assessment from the government’s council of economic advisors chimes with other recent forecasts that predict Europe’s top economy is slowly getting back on its feet.

Last year output shrank slightly due to soaring inflation, a slowdown in the crucial manufacturing sector and poor demand from key trading partners, particularly China.

Despite continued challenges, the experts expect “the German economy to gain some momentum over the course of 2024,” said council member Martin Werding in the group’s latest report.

Growing overseas shipments, boosted by recovering international trade, as well as improving consumer demand on the back of rising salaries will drive the recovery, they said.

Nevertheless the experts expect only a modest, 0.2-percent rise in gross domestic product (GDP) this year before an increase of 0.9 percent in 2025.

This is largely in line with other recent forecasts, with the government predicting 0.3-percent growth in 2024.

Scholz ‘deeply shocked’ by ‘cowardly attack’ on Slovak PM

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said he was “deeply shocked” after Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico suffered life-threatening gunshot wounds in an assassination attempt on Wednesday.

“I am deeply shocked by the news of the cowardly attack on Slovakian Prime Minister Fico,” Scholz said on X, formerly Twitter, also calling for an end to violence in European politics.

I am deeply shocked by the news of the cowardly attack on Slovakian Prime Minister Fico. Violence must not be existant in European politics. In these hours, my thoughts are with Robert Fico, his family and the citizens of Slovakia.

— Bundeskanzler Olaf Scholz (@Bundeskanzler) May 15, 2024

Passengers urged to plan ahead over holiday weekend

The ADV airport association is advising travellers in Germany to leave plenty of extra time this coming weekend, as passenger volumes are set to be higher than usual.

About 2.5 million passengers are expected to travel through German airports over the upcoming Whit Monday long weekend.

German court convicts stateless man over train rampage killings

A German court on Wednesday sentenced a stateless man of Palestinian origin to life in prison over a knife attack on a train that claimed two teenagers’ lives.

The accused, named by the court only as Ibrahim A., 34, had gone on a stabbing spree in January 2023 on a train travelling between the northern cities of Kiel and Hamburg.

A 17-year-old girl and a 19-year-old man who were acquainted with each other were killed in the attack and five people wounded.

Given the severity of the crime, the court, in its verdict also ruled out any early release usually offered after 15 years’ imprisonment for life sentences.

As well as being convicted for the two killings, the accused was convicted of three counts of attempted murder.

The man had arrived in Germany in 2014 and had several previous convictions, including for violent crimes, dating back to 2015.

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Today in Germany: A roundup of the latest news on Friday

German satellite to board 2025 mission to the moon

As NASA prepares to send astronauts to the moon for the first time since Apollo 17 in 1972, a tiny German satellite is preparing to join the crew.

As part of the so-called Artemis project, NASA astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover and Christina Koch and Canadian Space Agency (CSA) astronaut Jeremy Hansen will orbit the Moon several times to scope out the techniques and technology needed for landing.

This mission – known as Artemis II – will take place in September 2025, ahead of the full mission in 2026.

A small German satellite, the Tacheles CubeSat from the Berlin-based company Neurospace GmbH, will be on board the Artemis II mission. Its aim is to conduct important tests that will aid the development of rover – or small robot – that can land on the moon’s surface.

“German companies from the space sector are already making a key contribution to Artemis – and thus to humankind’s return to the Moon,” said Walther Pelzer, DLR Executive Board Member and Director General of the German Space Agency at DLR.

“We are delighted to be able to pass on the opportunity to fly on Artemis II to a German start-up. This will strengthen Germany’s position as a centre for space travel in the long term.”

State leaders to debate hikes in broadcast licence fees

A sweeping reform of Germany’s public broadcasters is set to move ahead next week as state premiers meet to discuss ways to streamline operations and avoid job cuts.

Alongside plans to reduce radio programmes and cut niche TV channels from the schedule, one key topic on the table is whether to increase the Rundfunkbetrag, or licence fee, by around 60 cents per month.

Currently, the fee, which households and businesses pay to fund ARD, ZDF, and Deutschlandradio, is set to rise from €18.36 to €18.94 per month, following a recommendation by the Commission for Determining the Financial Needs of Broadcasters (KEF).

While states are expected to follow KEF’s recommendations, some leaders have expressed reluctance, citing insufficient public support.

If the state premiers and regional parliaments approve the reform, there will be further consultations over funding and potential fee hikes in the coming months.

Volkswagen ‘could cut up to 30,000 jobs’ in Germany

According to media reports, Germany’s ailing Volkswagen Group could cut up to 30,000 jobs in the coming months as it struggles to gain control of its finances.

The crisis-hit car manufacturer could also cut its investment plans from €170 billion to €160 billion over the next five years, Manager Magazin reports.

Citing high costs in its core brand VW Passenger Cars, Volkswagen cancelled a decades-old job security agreement with the trade unions this month and raised the spectre of plant closures.

German car maker Volkswagen (VW) company's headquarters are pictured in Wolfsburg, northern Germany,

German car maker Volkswagen (VW) company’s headquarters are pictured in Wolfsburg, northern Germany, on September 3rd, 2024. Photo: Ronny HARTMANN / AFP

Though the company has remained tight-lipped on potential job losses, the move has set it at loggerheads with Germany’s largest union: steelworkers’ union IG Metall.

Negotiations to thrash out a new collective agreement are set to begin on September 25th.

Lufthansa extends suspension of Mideast flights

German airline group Lufthansa has extended a suspension of flights to Tel Aviv, Tehran and Beirut, as regional tensions soared following deadly explosions in Lebanon this week.

“Flights to Tel Aviv and Tehran will be cancelled until September 24,” Lufthansa said, citing “the current situation”.

Flights to Beirut will be suspended until October 26th, it added.

“The safety of our passengers and crews is always our top priority,” Lufthansa said, adding that it would reassess the situation “in the coming days”.

Affected passengers can rebook for free or ask for a refund.

Hundreds of pagers and walkie-talkies used by Iran-backed Hezbollah exploded across Lebanon in unprecedented attacks this week, killing 37 people and wounding more than 2,900 others.

The Lufthansa group, whose carriers also include SWISS, Austrian Airlines and Brussels Airlines, has repeatedly modified its flight schedule in recent months due to heightened tensions in the Middle East, as have other airlines.

Munich to rename stadium street after Beckenbauer

A street next to Bayern Munich’s Allianz Arena stadium will be renamed to honour German football great Franz Beckenbauer who died earlier this year, the city council announced Thursday.

Part of the street, currently called Werner Heisenberg Allee, which runs alongside the stadium in the north of the city will be renamed Franz Beckenbauer Platz.

The change means the stadium, which is set to host the Champions League final in May 2025, will officially be situated at Franz Beckenbauer Platz 5 – the midfielder’s shirt number.

Franz Beckenbauer attends a ceremony during a match in 2018.

Franz Beckenbauer attends a ceremony during a match in 2018. Photo: Christof STACHE/ AFP.

Beckenbauer, nicknamed ‘Der Kaiser’ for his dominant style on the field, was one of the greatest players of all time.

He died in January aged 78 and the Munich City Council announced the change will take effect on the first anniversary of his death, on January 7th, 2025.

“Naming a street is the highest honour that the city of Munich can bestow posthumously and a sign of the deep respect and appreciation that we have for Franz Beckenbauer,” mayor Dieter Reiter said in a statement.

Greece says German border controls will not result in return of ‘thousands’ of migrants

Athens has denied that tighter German border controls would result in “thousands” of migrants and asylum seekers being sent back to Greece.

Berlin has heightened security measures on its borders with several EU neighbours and said it could significantly increase the number of migrants who are denied entry into the country.

Greece is wary of accommodating additional asylum seekers, having seen large numbers of migrants flowing into the country over the last decade, mainly from neighbouring Turkey.

“There never was and still is no issue of mass returns,” Migration Minister Nikos Panagiotopoulos told state TV channel ERT.

He denied that “thousands” of migrants and refugees would be deported to Greece as a result of the new German policy.

He said EU agreements outlined “a very limited number” of people being sent back to Greece, the first point of arrival for many trying to enter the European Union’s visa-free Schengen Area.

Germany earlier this month tightened border controls with five of its EU neighbours – France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Belgium and Denmark – to curb the flow of irregular migrants.

It had already rolled out similar measures at its borders with Poland, the Czech Republic, Austria and Switzerland.

German media giant Springer to sell classified ads business

German media giant Axel Springer said Thursday it will break up its business by selling off its digital classifieds arm to US and Canadian investors, and focus on its core news outlets.

Under the deal, Springer’s billionaire CEO Mathias Doepfner and Friede Springer – widow of the group’s founder – will assume greater control over the media business.

Its publications include Politico, mass-circulation tabloid Bild, Business Insider and Die Welt daily.

Axel Springer will “become a privately owned and operated news media and media marketing company,” Springer said in a statement announcing the deal.

The entrance of the Axel Springer building in Berlin.

The entrance of the Axel Springer building in Berlin. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Kay Nietfeld

The classifieds business will become separate entities under US private equity firm KKR and CPP Investments, a Canadian pension fund, Springer said.

It includes the job portal StepStone and the Aviv Group with real estate portals such as Seloger in France and Immowelt in Germany.

The transaction is expected to close in the second quarter of 2025, subject to regulatory approval.

The group did not say how much the businesses were worth. But the Financial Times said under the break-up deal, they were valued at €13.5 billion: €3.5 billion for the media business, and €10 billion for the classified ads.

Friede Springer said her vision had been for Axel Springer to be a “privately owned and operated company. The realisation of this vision now fills me with great joy”.

With reporting by Imogen Goodman and DPA

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