The major fire in a particularly dangerous chemical plant in the northern French city of Rouen has been extinguished, as announced by the prefecture of Normandy on Friday. The fire broke out in the night to Thursday. No one was injured in the incident. The fire brigade was deployed with around 200 fire engines.

Local residents were called upon not to leave their homes. Buildings within a radius of 500 meters were evacuated, schools and kindergartens remained closed on Thursday. Additives for lubricants are produced at the chemical plant on the banks of the Seine. The factory belongs to the company Lubrizol of US billionaire Warren Buffett and is subject to the so-called Seveso Directive of the EU, which imposes particularly strict safety requirements.

Around 400 people work at the plant. The chemical factory has already made headlines in the past - for example, when the gas methanthiol escaped due to a leak in 2013 and the surrounding area smelled extensively of rotten eggs. In 2015, around 2,000 litres of mineral oil flowed into the city's sewage system after an industrial accident.

For two months, a woman from Washington searched for her missing dog - and quit her job. Seven-year-old Border Collie had run away from the hotel room during a short vacation in Montana. There was no trace of the bitch for 57 days - but Carole King did not give up.

"""It was terrible. I got sick,"" Carole King told the Daily Inter Lake. She and her husband had left bitch Katie in the hotel room while they went to dinner. When they returned to the hotel afterwards, Katie had disappeared. They were looking for the animal, but to no avail."

"Hoping Katie could still be somewhere in the hotel, Carole King went to the reception. ""The employee says,"" She left about four or four and a half hours ago, """" Carole King recalls to ""Daily Inter Lake."" When the automatic front door opened, Katie immediately ran out. Probably a loud thunder had panicked the dog."

"With flyers and calls in Facebook groups, the Kings searched for their beloved dog. But days turned into weeks. ""I never gave up. I never lost hope,"" Carole King told the Daily Inter Lake, who quit her job as a postal worker to continue her search for Katie."

"57 days after Katie's disappearance, Carole King got a phone call: A man came forward and said that Katie was in his yard. But when King got there, Katie had already disappeared. She searched the neighborhood and suddenly her bitch stood under a tree. ""I just hugged her. I didn't want to let her go,"" King recalled, according to ""Daily Inter Lake."" ""The tears flowed. People stopped in their vehicles, got out and hugged us. I think the whole neighborhood knew we had found her."""

Losses in the Bundeswehr: Machine guns disappear without a trace

"In recent years, the Bundeswehr has lost numerous weapons and tens of thousands of rounds of ammunition, including three machine guns. The whereabouts are unclear in most cases. The opposition speaks of a ""frightening"" scale."

In the Bundeswehr, weapons and ammunition repeatedly disappear - many of them so far without a trace. Since the beginning of 2014, the force has recorded the loss of 39 weapons, 39 weapon parts and almost 20,000 rounds of ammunition. This is according to a list classified as classified by the Federal Ministry of Defence, about which the editorial network Germany reports.

According to the paper from the office of Defense State Secretary Peter Tauber of the CDU, two weapons, one weapon part and 3,474 rounds of ammunition have so far reappeared. The still missing weapons and weapon parts include six MG3 machine guns, eleven G3 rifles, four G36 rifles, six signal guns and two P8 pistols. In addition, 30 weapon pipes for MG3 machine guns are missing.

"The extent of weapons and ammunition losses in the Bundeswehr was ""frightening,"" said the left-wing member of the Bundestag Martina Renner. This was all the more true since hardly anything had been found in the course of investigations. The left-wing politician spoke of a ""poor balance sheet."" Renner criticized that the list did not show whether the missing ammunition was also the one found in connection with the investigation against the Bundeswehr officer Franco A., who was suspected of terrorism. ""And this despite the fact that a supporter of Franco A. was recently convicted of possessing this ammunition,"" said Renner."

"More than two months after its detention by the Iranian authorities, the British oil tanker ""Stena Impero"" left the port of the city of Bandar Abbas this Friday. As ship observation data from Refinitiv showed, the tanker started moving and left the Iranian port. Port Rashid in the United Arab Emirates was indicated as the destination port."

The tanker had actually already been released by the Iranian government on Monday, but it initially remained in Iranian waters. The shipping company said that they wanted to wait for an official decision from Tehran.

"The ""Stena Impero"" had been raised on 19 July by the Iranian Revolutionary Guards in the Seestraße of Hormuz on charges of violating security regulations. However, it was suspected that Iran was responding to the controversial, temporary detention of an Iranian oil tanker off Gibraltar, which belongs to Great Britain."

The Strait of Hormuz is one of the most important sea roads in the world. It connects the Persian Gulf with the Indian Ocean. Much of the global oil export is shipped through the strait. Tensions in the region had intensified immensely in recent months. Merchant shipping has been drawn into the conflict between the US and Iran. Several incidents involving tankers and drones have occurred.

Merkel pays tribute to the courage of the people in the Peaceful Revolution

"German Chancellor Angela Merkel paid tribute to the commitment of the people in the GDR who took to the streets 30 years ago during the Peaceful Revolution. In the autumn of 1989, courageous citizens had shaken the then GDR regime, Merkel said at a ceremony of the Thuringian CDU faction on the upcoming Day of German Unity in Erfurt. Among other things, the Chancellor recalled the occupation of the Stasi headquarters. ""The horror was taken away from the State Security,"" she said."

Tesla's quarter may hold a record. Despite the delivery boom, there have recently been losses at the electric car company.

"New York.Tesla CEO Elon Musk has given his electric car company a strong boost on the stock market with the prospect of new record numbers. ""We have the chance to reach our first quarter with 100,000 deliveries,"" Musk wrote in an email to Tesla employees published by the industry blog ""Electrek."""

Demand is strong, so that Tesla could record 110,000 orders, Musk's circular continued. The challenge is to bring the cars to customers quickly. To do this, Tesla must offer as many resources as possible at the end of the quarter.

Investors liked this: Tesla's shares went out of trading with an increase of over six percent. The price has not gained so strongly in almost four months. In the second quarter, Tesla had delivered a good 95,000 cars, reaching its previous record.

Musk needs records to achieve his high goals. In 2019, he plans to deliver a total of 360,000 to 400,000 cars. This requires six-figure figures in the current and next quarter. Especially the cheapest Tesla Model 3 is in demand, but here the profit margins are low. Despite the boom, there have recently been losses.

A kind of brake in the cerebrum prevents people from tickling themselves. Scientists at Humboldt University in Berlin found this out with the help of experiments on rats, as they announced on Thursday evening. Progress has also been made on the question of why children defend themselves so fiercely against tickling, only to demand more.

Finally, it has also been shown why the approaching of a tickling hand alone triggers laughter even before the touch. This is due to a deep layer in the cerebrum, which already triggers laughter when expecting tickling.

"According to the data, earlier research showed that rats react with ""laughter"" in the ultrasound range when tickled by humans. This ""laughter"" is conveyed by the part of the cerebral cortex, which serves the central processing of haptic perception."

Until now, it had been assumed that the brain could distinguish between self-touch and touch by others - which is why people cannot tickle themselves. However, the Berlin researchers now found out during the experiments on the rats that laughter as well as the activity of the respective area of the cerebral cortex are suppressed during self-touch. This is also the case when living beings clean themselves. However, during the foreign touch and tickling by the scientists, the activity in the brain and the impulse to laugh were intensified.

But if self-touch and touch by others happen at the same time, laughter is also suppressed. This indicates that the rat's brain cannot distinguish between self-touch and touch by others. The new findings suggested that people cannot tickle themselves because self-touch activates a brake in the cerebrum.

The rats were also trained to tickle themselves. Accordingly, they sometimes broke off this initiation prematurely in the experiment, showed escape behaviour or rigidity of terror. This ambivalence resembles the behaviour of the children. The ambivalence of tickling is a behavioural reaction that is the same in rats and humans.

Catastrophe averted: Major fire extinguished in French chemical plant

The major fire at a particularly dangerous chemical plant in the northern French city of Rouen has been extinguished, as the prefecture of Normandy told the AFP news agency on Friday. The fire broke out on Thursday night.

According to the authorities, no hazardous substances are said to have leaked. The samples taken give no cause for concern, as Prefect Pierre-André Durand said at a press conference on Friday morning. No one was injured in the incident. The fire brigade was deployed with around 200 fire engines.

Local residents were called upon not to leave their homes. Buildings within a radius of 500 meters were evacuated, schools and kindergartens remained closed on Thursday.

Factory belongs to the company Lubrizol of US billionaire Warren Buffett

The chemical plant on the banks of the Seine produces additives for lubricants. The factory belongs to the company Lubrizol of US billionaire Warren Buffett and is subject to the so-called Seveso Directive of the EU, which prescribes particularly strict safety requirements. Around 400 people work at the plant.

The chemical factory has already made headlines in the past - for example, when the gas methanthiol escaped due to a leak in 2013 and the surrounding area smelled extensively of rotten eggs. In 2015, around 2000 litres of mineral oil flowed into the city's sewage system after an industrial accident.

The Prime Minister's sister commented on Boris Johnson's speech at the first session in Parliament after the forced recess was lifted on Wednesday evening. The Prime Minister is threatening to lead the country out of the EU on 31 October without an agreement if Brussels does not accept his demands for changes to the Brexit agreement. However, how he intends to achieve this is unclear.

"Speaking about Cox, who had campaigned for Britain to remain in the European Union, the Prime Minister said: ""The best way to honour the memory of Jo Cox and reunite this country would be to leave the EU."" Cox was murdered by a right-wing extremist during the referendum campaign in 2016."

"More than eight years after the attacks in Oslo and Utöya with 77 dead, a memorial in honour of the victims will be unveiled in Norway on Saturday. The monument ""Jernrosene"" (German: the Iron Roses) consists of around 1,000 iron rose replicas. They commemorate the roses laid down by thousands of people in the days and weeks after the attacks in front of the cathedral in Oslo."

The project of the artists Tobbe Malm and Tone Karlsrud is to be unveiled at the same location - the roses were forged by people from all over the world, including survivors and relatives of the victims. Crown Prince Haakon and Crown Princess Mette-Marit are expected to attend the opening.

On 22 July 2011, right-wing terrorist Anders Behring Breivik detonated a car bomb in the government district of Oslo and then shot dozens of participants in a summer camp of the youth organization of the Social Democratic Workers' Party on the island of Utöya. A total of 77 people were killed in the attacks.

"The UN general debate brought no solution to the Iran conflict. But now there is one less problem. The British oil tanker ""Stena Impero,"" held in Iran, was able to set sail again. It could be a piece of the puzzle in Iranian President Rouhani's peace plan."

"The British oil tanker ""Stena Impero,"" which has been detained in the Strait of Hormuz in Iran since mid-July, is back in international waters. After being released by Iranian authorities, the ship is on its way to Dubai, according to the shipping company Stena Bulk."

"The ""Stena Impero"" has left the port of Bandar Abbas and the crew is now going to Dubai for medical examinations, explained shipping chief Erik Hånell. Around noon the ship left the Iranian waters. ""It's nice that it's over,"" he told the Swedish TV station SVT."

"The Foreign Ministry in London described the detention of the ship as illegal. ""This is part of a pattern of attempts to affect the freedom of the seas. We are working with our international partners to uphold shipping and international law,"" it said in a statement on Friday."

The Iranian Revolutionary Guards had detained the tanker on 19 July on charges of violating maritime law regulations in the Persian Gulf. Seven of the 23 crew members had already been released at the beginning of September. The remaining 16 crew members were doing well according to the circumstances, said Hånell. They had behaved professionally in view of the difficult and exhausting situation over the past ten weeks. The shipping company is now working to reunite them with their families as soon as possible.

"The British government suspected behind the fixing of the ""Stena Impero"" a reaction to a similar incident in British Gibraltar: At the beginning of July, a supertanker carrying oil from Iran, which is said to have been destined for Syria, had been chained there. According to the authorities, the delivery violated EU sanctions against the war country Syria. The British had received the reference to the ship from the USA."

"Iran spoke of ""piracy"" and threatened with consequences. In mid-August, the ""Adrian Darya-1"" was finally released. London vehemently rejected suspicions that it was a barter deal to free the ""Stena Impero."""

The Strait of Hormuz is one of the most important sea roads in the world. It connects the Persian Gulf with the Indian Ocean. Much of the world's oil exports are shipped through the strait. Tensions in the region have intensified immensely in recent months. Merchant shipping has been drawn into the conflict between the US and Iran. Several incidents involving tankers and drones have occurred.

Behind the tensions between Tehran and Washington is the nuclear dispute between the two countries. The Americans accuse the Iranian leadership of wanting to build nuclear weapons. Iran rejects this. In 2018, the US single-handedly withdrew from the international nuclear agreement, which was intended to prevent Iran from building a nuclear bomb and at the same time end its political and economic isolation. Since then, the US government has been pressuring the leadership in Tehran with massive economic sanctions against the country in order to force a stricter agreement extended to other areas. Iran has so far resisted the pressure.

"Because of the dispute over the ""Stena Impero"" and other incidents involving tankers in the Persian Gulf and oil facilities in Saudi Arabia, the US is working on a coalition for military protection of merchant ships in the region."

"Iranian President Hassan Rouhani presented a plan for security and peace in the Strait of Hormuz at the UN General Assembly in New York. With the initiative ""Coalition of Hope"" for the Persian Gulf, Iran wants to ensure the security of shipping in the Persian Gulf together with the Arab Gulf states and without foreign protecting powers."

India is building a better future with its protectionist economic policies.

"India would actually be predestined to be a ""war profiteer."" Given the punitive tariffs imposed by America's President Donald Trump on Chinese manufacturers, foreign producers in the People's Republic are forced to reschedule. CFOs of Asian firms considering moving their production from China to another country cite India as one of the preferred alternatives in a UBS survey. Of course, this has not only to do with the uncertainties of the Sino-American trade war. With a huge pool of young workers and a single market of 1.3 billion consumers, India seems designed to play a more significant role in the globally widespread production chain."

"But now India itself has come into Trump's focus. Pejoratively dubbed the ""Kingdom of Tariffs"" by the White House warhorse, America withdrew trade breaks for 2000 products from the emerging market at the beginning of June. The US prohibitively accuses India of high tariffs and demands better market access for agricultural goods, mobile phones, spirits, motorcycles, and more."

On the world map of trade wars, however, the friction with India is merely a sideshow. Moreover, America also looks at the world's largest democracy through security glasses. Delhi and Washington share concerns about China's claims to power in the South Indian Ocean. Against this backdrop, a volley of American punitive tariffs against India seems unlikely. India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has just taken up a second five-year term, is therefore likely to weigh himself in safety.

The problem, however, lies in another place: the empirically substantiated thesis that open markets accelerate economic development has a difficult situation in the socialist republic of India. Even under Modi. His zeal for reform is mainly aimed at the bureaucratic madness that stifled any entrepreneurial spirit in the multi-ethnic state for too long. Companies now receive building permits for buildings faster. They benefit from a better energy and transport infrastructure, and a more tangible insolvency and bankruptcy law creates the conditions for liquidating seemingly dead companies with high debts more quickly.

The success of these efforts can be seen and measured in the relevant rankings. From an economic perspective, much has changed for the better in India in the first five Modi years. But this does not apply in trade policy. Inspired by protecting internationally uncompetitive companies from foreign suppliers, the national conservative government even erected new barriers.

"In the West, Modi is attached to the nimbus of the energetic reformer who is radically renewing his country economically. This impression is not least due to the fact that the charismatic prime minister knows all too well what vocabulary Western managers like. At its core, however, the ""India First"" lawyer never moved away from protectionist economic policies, which prevents Indian firms from being forced to get rid of anachronistic processes and thus become fit for global competition. Businessmen who survive thanks to the isolation of their industries are among the regular voters of Modi's nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party and applaud this short-sighted policy."

According to a report, former French President Jacques Chirac will be buried in Paris next week. The former head of state will be buried on Monday in the Montparnasse cemetery in the south of the French capital, the AFP news agency reported, citing the Chiracs family. The burial will take place in a close family circle. A public funeral service was scheduled for Sunday in the Invalides Cathedral in Paris, according to media reports.

Carried to the finish line: Dabo is the first secret hero of the World Championships in Athletics

The world leaders had long since reached the finish line when heartwarming scenes took place in the cooled-down Khalifa International Stadium. In the first heat of the men's 5000 meters, Jonathan Busby from Aruba started to sway dangerously. He could hardly keep himself on his feet a good 300 meters before the finish, ran in an unhealthy stooped attitude when Braima Suncar Dabo from the West African country of Guinea-Bissau suddenly hooked him down and dragged him to the finish line supporting the last half lap of the stadium. However, the forces were still enough for both to stop the running wristwatch after the finish. As if the scene had not

"""I just wanted to help him. Everyone in this situation would have done the same,"" said Dabo after the race in Mixed Zone, when he unexpectedly attracted the attention of the assembled journalists. He evaded shyly, didn't want to talk about his feat at all. After all, he wanted to set his personal best and when he realized that this would be difficult, he only wanted to help a fellow sufferer. And anyway, he would only be proud to represent his country, which was invited to the World Cup by the World Federation. Under normal circumstances, he wouldn't even have been allowed to start. ""That's why I'm proud to run here for my country,"" he said."

He did so emphatically that evening - and much more intensively than he would have thought. Because this feat will be remembered. Especially since Dabo even let his competitor Busby take the lead at the finish and voluntarily took over the last place - by the way, a good five minutes after the Ethiopian Selemon Barega, who won this heat. In the end, everything was of no use, because Busby, who only finished with a lot of help, was disqualified by the World Athletics Federation at the end.

"Dabo, who lives in Portugal and studies there in Lisbon, competed to set a personal best at the World Championships in Doha. According to official data, this was achieved with 18: 10.87 minutes, but he himself was disappointed: ""I wanted to run 17: 55 minutes. I've been under 18 minutes before."" However, only in training, best times don't count."

In Egypt, security measures have been stepped up in the run-up to possible anti-government protests. An increased police presence was observed in central Cairo on Friday. Several subway stations remained closed and roads around central Tahrir Square were closed.

In recent days, the police had already stepped up their street checks and partly searched pedestrians' mobile phones for messages and photos related to the protests. Hundreds had been arrested, according to two NGOs.

"Last weekend there were protests in Cairo, Alexandria, Suez and Mansura with hundreds of participants, directed against the government of President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, whom critics accuse of corruption and mismanagement. There had not been such an open protest against the political leadership in Egypt for years. Egyptian contractor and actor Mohammed Ali, who lives in exile in Spain and started the demonstrations with video messages on Facebook, has called for a ""million-dollar march"" in central squares in the country this Friday. Ali calls for a ""people's revolution."" The man is not a ""good one for most young Egyptians either, because he raised milli"

According to two observer groups, the number of arrests in connection with the protests continued to rise. The Egyptian Commission for Rights and Freedoms (ECRF) counted more than 1,570 arrests by Friday. The Egyptian Center for Economic and Social Rights (ECESR) and the human rights organization Human Rights Watch (HRW) spoke of more than 2,000 arrests. These figures could not be independently confirmed at first. The government also did not confirm or comment on the figures.

"Many people were ""arbitrarily arrested"" ""just because they were 'in the wrong place at the wrong time',"" said HRW, citing lawyers. According to their lawyers, the allegations against those arrested range from ""spreading false information"" to membership in a ""terrorist association."" In Cairo, Alexandria and other cities, security forces in uniform, but also in civilian clothing, also arbitrarily interviewed and searched passers-by, according to HRW."

HRW also criticized the censorship in the North African country. According to this, the government in Cairo is blocking websites and online services to stop further protests against Sisi.

Online retailers: Mail order retailers should be able to donate returns more easily

For online retailers, many returned parcels are lost goods. Around 20 million returns end up in the garbage. But there is an alternative.

The Treasury has shown online retailers such as Amazon and Zalando a way to donate returned products instead of destroying them.

Although the companies could not be exempted from the VAT on donations in kind, the ministry explained in response to a question from the Green parliamentary group, about which the newspapers of the Funke media group reported on Friday. However, the dealers could set the market value of the unsaleable returns so low that they would have to pay no or only little VAT.

Scientists at the University of Bamberg had determined that German citizens send back every sixth parcel when ordering on the Internet. Around four percent of the goods - around 20 million products - subsequently ended up in the garbage. According to the current legal situation, donating them would cost companies additional money, because the tax authorities evaluate donations in kind such as a turnover on which VAT is then incurred.

Green Party leader Katrin Göring-Eckardt called on Finance Minister Olaf Scholz (SPD) to clarify with a decree that companies can evaluate non-saleable products accordingly and donate free of charge to non-profit organisations. Companies must be able to rely on not being punished for donations. This applies not only to online retail, but also to other shops from fashion stores to hardware stores.

Banksy art at auction: There has never been a better time to sell this painting

"The well-known work of street art star Banksy, ""Devolved Parliament,"" is to be auctioned soon."

"For Branczik, Banksy's work underlines ""the regression of the oldest parliamentary democracy in the world into the basic attitude shaped by animals and tribes."" Starting on Saturday, the painting will be exhibited at Sotheby's in the British capital until it is to be auctioned on 3 October. It is estimated at 1.5 to two million euros."

"The work was first exhibited in 2009 at the Museum of Bristol in the southwest of Great Britain, where Banksy lives. This year, the artist exhibited the painting again - coinciding with the original Brexit date on 29 March. On this occasion, the work, formerly called ""Question Time,"" was renamed ""Devolved Parliament."""

Most recently, Prime Minister Boris Johnson engaged in a tough battle with the opposition at the first session of the House of Commons on Wednesday following the lifting of a forced break imposed by Johnson by the Supreme Court. Johnson wants to carry out the Brexit, which has already been postponed twice, on 31 October without an agreement with the EU if necessary.

This is not the first time that Banksy, whose identity is still unknown, has interfered in the Brexit debate. In Dover in the south-east of England, he painted a picture depicting a man breaking a star of the European flag with a chisel. Thousands of truck drivers and other visitors see the plant entering the United Kingdom every day.

"British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's fierce verbal attacks on Brexit opponents in parliament do not contribute to a climate of hatred, according to his top adviser. Compared to the election campaign before the 2016 Brexit referendum, the current controversy is a ""walk in the park,"" Dominic Cummings said at a book launch on Friday. ""We enjoy it. We will leave (the EU) and we will win."""

"Johnson had harshly attacked opponents of Brexit in parliament in recent days, accusing them, among other things, of ""betraying"" the people. He dismissed accusations that he could put MPs in danger because they could become the target of death threats, for example, as a ""humbug."""

Cummings said the only way to restore calm was if MPs finally respected the British decision to leave the EU. It was not surprising that people were upset that Britain had still not left the EU three years after the referendum.

"In view of the charged mood, even the bishops of the Anglican Church called for restraint on Friday. ""We should speak to each other with respect,"" it said in a statement. ""And we should also listen."""

Pakistan's Prime Minister Khan calls for UN intervention in Kashmir

With an emotional appeal, Pakistan's Prime Minister Imran Khan, in his first appearance before the UN General Assembly, once again called on the United Nations to intervene in the Kashmir conflict.

"Otherwise, another war between the nuclear powers Pakistan and India is likely, Khan said at the UN general debate in New York on Friday. ""If this goes badly, one hopes for the best, but be prepared for the worst."" The United Nations has a responsibility for Kashmir. ""You should have prevented this."""

India and Pakistan have fought three wars since their independence from British colonial rule in 1947, two of them over the divided region of Kashmir. Both nuclear powers each dominate part of Kashmir, another part belongs to China. At the beginning of August, India had withdrawn autonomy status from the Indian Kashmir region, thereby suddenly increasing tensions in relation to Pakistan.

The demonstrators in Cairo demand the overthrow of Egyptian President al-Sisi.

The government is reacting with a hard hand against the current protests in Egypt. It is shooting at the population with live ammunition, and more than 2,000 detainees are joining the 60,000 political prisoners already imprisoned in the prisons. Protesting has never been harmless in Egypt. But since General Abdel Fattah el-Sisi came to power in 2013, the state apparatus has been doing everything possible to avoid a scenario like the one in the Arab Spring.

But one of the triggers for the 2011 protests was the poor economic situation. Poverty, lack of prospects and the feeling of being suffocated by their own government drove millions onto the streets. And this is a problem that the el-Sisi regime does not get to grips with, no matter how hard it is against opponents. The situation has even deteriorated.

Today, one in three people in Egypt lives below the poverty line. Since 2016, the currency has lost more than half of its value, the inflation rate is ten percent. Anyone who wants to buy a bottle of water in the supermarket has to decide who to finance: Nestlé, Coca-Cola or the military. The latter is not only responsible for the oppression but also the biggest economic player. The military builds roads, houses, football stadiums, produces food and much more. This was already the case before el-Sisi. The Egyptian people have a lot of experience with authoritarian regimes, and the dilemma in the supermarket is also an old one.

"Tüv tests in the terminal: BER boss: No more ""showstoppers"" for capital airport"

It was checked for two months whether the complicated system network for BER fire protection works together. The operators are satisfied with the progress. However, the Tüv is not yet finished at BER.

After large-scale Tüv tests in the terminal of the future capital airport, the operators have confirmed the planned opening in October next year. This is certain, said Supervisory Board Chairman Rainer Bretschneider after a meeting of the Supervisory Board.

"Airport CEO Engelbert Lütke Daldrup spoke of a successfully completed audit, but also said there were still shortcomings in the terminal to work through. ""We have many detailed topics, but we don't have a real showstopper."" He assured that the schedule until commissioning still contains buffers."

However, there are indications that the time reserve is no longer likely to be too large. The construction completion notice is now to be submitted to the building authority in the course of the first quarter of 2020, which was scheduled for this autumn at the beginning of the year.

"Hundreds of defects in power cables are still to be remedied; the Tüv wants to examine them by February. ""In order to create the conditions for the start of flight operations, intensive work must continue to be done on the processing of the defects,"" it said in a written statement."

Lütke Daldrup said that in many cases it is about missing evidence, less about new cables. There is also no release for all dowels on which the cable lines hang. The airport manager expects this to be available by the end of the year.

In addition, the fire protection at the crossing to the station under the terminal does not yet work satisfactorily. The problems had already led the project into another crisis three years ago. This time it is about smoke aprons that shut down like a screen in a fire so that the smoke does not spread. They drive down too far. 36 engines therefore have to be replaced. Then there will be new tests with hot gas smoke at the beginning of the year.

Problems with fire protection and other construction defects as well as planning errors have delayed the opening of the airport for years. Originally, it was scheduled to go into operation in 2011. Since construction began in 2006, costs have risen from two billion euros to around 6.5 billion euros at the opening next year.

Because passenger numbers in Berlin have risen significantly since then, those responsible are planning the expansion of the airport. This is why a special meeting of the Supervisory Board on 18 October will take place, as Chairman Bretschneider announced.

The airport company is now looking for two new managing directors. CFO Heike Fölster will join Deutsche Bahn at the end of the year, Head of Human Resources Manfred Bobke-von Camen will retire next year, as Bretschneider said. He thanked Fölster. She had put the airport finances on firm footing.

Chemnitz: Vending machines for drugs blown up - police arrest man

He needed money for drugs - and chased several vending machines into the air in the city of Chemnitz! Now the perpetrator is finally in custody!

In the past two years, the number of blasted cigarette and parking ticket machines in Chemnitz and the region had risen sharply, causing millions in damage!

"Police spokesman Andrzej Rydzik: ""In the course of the investigation into the induction of explosives explosions in conjunction with a particularly serious case of theft, which were led by the Chemnitz criminal police, not only this suspicion against the 33-year-old was confirmed."""

Confronted with the new evidence, the 33-year-old from Chemnitz now confessed to a total of eight acts.

"The police spokesman: ""With the loot he apparently financed his dependence on narcotics."" The bomber had blown up parking ticket machines on Bürgerstraße four times between 20 August 2018 and 31 May 2019 alone."

The vending machine bomber is now in custody and the police investigation against him continues.

It is conceivable that he was also responsible for further vending machine blasts in Chemnitz and neighbouring districts.

"The Lufthansa Group is reversing its strategy for Vienna Airport. In the midst of the price war with low-cost airlines such as Lauda, Wizz Air, EasyJet and Level, the Lufthansa subsidiary AUA is taking over ""the commercial management of all Eurowings flights from Vienna,"" a press spokesman for Austrian Airlines confirmed to APA on Friday. ""AviationNetOnline"" had previously reported on this."

"The Vienna base of Lufthansa's low-cost airline Eurowings will thus be de facto dissolved. Of the current seven Eurowings aircraft, four will remain in Vienna. From January 2020, the AUA will take over this in the ""wet lease,"" i.e. including Eurowings personnel. In the future, three Eurowings jets will be stationed in Salzburg, which will fly from Salzburg and Innsbruck as charter aircraft to holiday destinations. Routes from Vienna to Germany will be taken over by Eurowings Germany."

The Eurowings base in Vienna will be integrated into the AUA hub and network planning, explained the spokesman. Flight times are to be coordinated with connecting flights. The aim is on the one hand to strengthen the Vienna hub and on the other hand to expand decentralised traffic from the federal states.

"As AviationNetOnline writes, Eurowings in Vienna only serves as a ""production company"" for its sister company AUA. Among other things, Barcelona and Rome would be operated with an AUA flight number, but primarily with a Eurowings device. Although the on-board product should be adapted to that of Austrian Airlines, the pilots and flight attendants come from Eurowings. According to the report, the Eurowings flights starting under AUA flight number will no longer be handled in Terminal 1, but like the AUA in Terminal 3."

"A price war broke out at Vienna Airport after the Niki bankruptcy. Ryanair subsidiary Laudamotion only announced on Thursday that it would increase its fleet in Vienna to 16 aircraft next summer. The Irish low-cost airline is sending four Ryanair aircraft and crews to Vienna, also in the so-called ""wet lease,"" which the union criticized as a bypass construct to the collective agreement."

"Ryanair CEO Michael O'Leary's challenge that Lauda will have overtaken the AUA in five years, AUA CEO Andreas Otto replied on Friday: ""We will remain number one at the site, in five, six or ten years."""

Beatrice, Eugenie, William and Harry: As children the cousins were the best friends. Now the last of the four is getting married. Beatrice is engaged!

Wonderful news from the British Royals: During the Italian holidays at the beginning of the month, Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi (34) allegedly stopped for the hand of his girlfriend Princess Beatrice (31), the palace announced on Thursday.

"""We are delighted to announce our engagement. We are both so excited to start this adventure together and can't wait to actually be married,"" the couple, who have been together since October 2018, according to British media reports, said in the official statement."

"He continued: ""We share so many similar interests and values and we know that this will help us a lot in the coming years full of love and happiness."""

Her sister, Princess Eugenie (29), took the official engagement photos - and immediately posted them on her Instagram account.

The wedding is scheduled to take place in 2020. More information on the date, location and everything else will be announced by the palace in the coming months.

What is certain, however, is that the marriage of the number nine in line to the British throne and the real estate mogul will be a similar celebration as the wedding of Eugenie on 12 October 2018 to Jack Brooksbank (33).

Smoking, obesity, an unhealthy diet - there are risk factors for cardiovascular diseases. But what really triggers heart failure or infarction? Hamburg researchers now want to take a close look at the genetic material of 9,000 healthy and sick people.

By analysing the genetic material of 9,000 people, Hamburg and Swiss scientists want to track down the causes of cardiovascular diseases in more detail.

The research project is the largest of its kind in German-speaking countries, the University Hospital Hamburg-Eppendorf (UKE) announced on Friday. The Kühne Foundation is funding the project with 12.5 million euros. From Switzerland, the Hochgebirgsklinik Davos, which belongs to the foundation, and the University Hospital Zurich are involved.

Overweight, smoking and an unhealthy diet are among the main influenceable risk factors for cardiovascular diseases. Genetic factors determine the risk. However, the interaction between genes and external influences is only insufficiently known, they said. Now the scientists want to compare the complete genetic material of 8000 healthy people with that of 1000 former patients of the University Heart and Vascular Center at the UKE.

According to the hospital, possible disease-causing changes in DNA - so-called mutations - are currently known in more than 4000 of the approximately 20,000 relevant human genes. About 200 are added each year.

According to the initiators, the aim of the five-year project is to develop new options for the prevention, detection and treatment of cardiac arrhythmias, heart failure and heart attacks. The data could also be used in research into other widespread diseases, says Stefan Blankenberg, head of the University Heart and Vascular Center. New insights into the interaction between heart and brain, heart and kidney as well as cancer are possible.

The chairman of the Kühne Foundation, Klaus-Michael Kühne (82), also emphasized that there is a firm will to use the data to research other diseases. So far, the foundation's clinic in Davos has primarily treated allergies. Now a Center for Cardiovascular Precision Medicine is to be established on the local medical campus and a professorship for bioinformatics is to be created. To justify his commitment, the logistics entrepreneur, who lives in Switzerland, said that he had undergone open heart surgery in Hamburg three years ago and was very grateful.

"The biosamples of the healthy participants come from hamburgers who also participate in the ""Hamburg City Health Study."" With 45,000 test subjects, this is the largest local health study in the world, according to the hospital. Genetic decryption pays strict attention to the protection of anonymised data, the scientists assured. It is about one petabyte (1000 terabytes) of data, said Holger Moch from the University Hospital Zurich."

According to UKE, the genetic material of a human being can now be decoded within 24 hours. The pure material costs for this would be 1300 euros. The first gene sequencing worldwide, the results of which were published in 2001, has cost several hundred million euros. The study is scheduled to begin on 1 October, and all 9000 samples are expected to be analysed by the end of 2020. Initial results are expected the following year.

"In Nigeria, the police have freed more than 300 tortured and abused boys from a Koranic school. According to information from local residents, security forces searched the school in the northern Nigerian city of Kaduna and discovered the victims, some of whom were still underage, according to police spokesman Yakubu Sabo. ""The victims were abused, some of whom claimed to have been raped by their teachers,"" Sabo said."

"The boys were detained under the pretext of being taught and ""improved"" in the Koran. In fact, the protégés were detained by their teachers in ""the most degrading and inhumane conditions,"" Sabo said. About a hundred students, including children aged nine, were chained in a small room."

According to the information, the Koranic school had existed for about ten years. Local residents had alerted the authorities to repeated irregularities in the facility. The parents were shocked when they were taught about the conditions in the Koranic school, said Sabo. They had no idea of the suffering of their children. According to the police, the operator and six employees were arrested.

There are many private Koranic schools in the predominantly Muslim north of Nigeria. They replace the often inadequate state institutions. People in the region suffer from frequent attacks by armed gangs. According to the UN refugee agency, more than 40,000 people have therefore fled across the border to the neighbouring state of Niger in the past ten months.

Chained and tortured: Nigeria's police free 400 children from school

"Police officers have freed nearly 400 students from appalling circumstances in a school in northern Nigeria. ""Many of them were chained and some had visible injuries indicating torture,"" said police spokesman Yakubu Sabo in the city of Kaduna."

"There the children were discovered on Thursday after a tip-off in an Islamic school. The conditions there were ""inhumane."" The officials arrested the headmaster and six teachers after the liberation operation."

The children, all boys, were kept like slaves at their school and put on chains. Some were sexually abused. Television pictures showed emaciated and injured pupils in a noticeably poor state of health.

World football election: Further allegations after Messis and Klopp's freestyle

With a gala in Milan, the world football federation Fifa honours the best player, the best player and the best coach of the year. For Lionel Messi, this is the sixth honour and thus a record.

After Nicaragua's captain declared that he had never voted in the world football election, accusations come to Fifa from other countries. Egypt was not evaluated at all - with a curious justification.

Much at FIFA has proved disreputable in recent years: the World Cup awards, dubious plans of its president Gianni Infantino, the general behaviour of various corrupt officials. However, the FIFA world football election has so far not been suspected of being unclean - apart from the fact that the voting national coaches and national team captains of the member associations often vote according to sympathy rather than objective assessment.

But after Nicaragua's captain had already complained that he had not voted at all, further inconsistencies are now emerging: Egypt complains that the votes of national coach Hossam El-Badry and captain Mohamed Salah were not taken into account. Indeed, they do not appear in the official and publicly visible voting overview.

"FIFA apologises to the extent that ""the signatures on the election forms were in capital letters and therefore not valid."" The Egyptian federation had been contacted several times to clarify the situation - without answer."

There is also an outcry from Sudan regarding the election. While the situation in the case of Egypt is understandable, the Sudanese federation states that coach Zdravko Lugarisic did not vote as it was finally judged: with Lionel Messi in first place, Virgil van Dijk in two and Sadio Mané in three. According to Fifa, however, the vote was received in the same way, with signatures and official stamp of the Sudanese federation.

"Nicaragua's captain Juan Barrera had also raised allegations: ""Didn't vote for the # TheBest2019 Awards. All information about my vote is wrong, thank you,"" he wrote. In his case, it was suspected that the Nicaraguan Football Federation simply voted on his behalf."

"The federation reported on Friday: True, but of course there was no intention. The completed election documents were ""mistakenly"" provided with the name and signature of Juan Barrera, the captain of the Nicaraguan selection, according to a statement from the federation. However, the second captain Manuel Rosas had actually chosen. ""We take responsibility for the administrative error,"" the statement said. However, both Rosas and team coach Henry Duarte had voted for Messi, ""just as it says in the official list of FIFA."""

Fifa has now examined the other cases in an investigation, but stresses that the election process was supervised externally by the consulting firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers. As long as Lionel Messi remains the undisputed winner of the world football election - and Jürgen Klopp World Coach of the Year.

Ukraine affair: Senior Republicans call for official investigation

"Two senior Republicans have openly called for an official investigation into US President and party friend Donald Trump. ""I think the investigation is important,"" said Vermont Republican Governor Phil Scott. ""Where this leads from here is determined by the facts that are determined."" He wants to know more about the whistleblower affair before action is taken. An impeachment process can lead to the removal of the president."

"Scott said he was not surprised by the revelations, which showed that Trump had repeatedly called on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in a telephone call to investigate the activities of Democratic presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden in Ukraine. According to Scott, Trump has been watching Biden ""for years."""

Republicans have so far refrained from criticizing Trump over the whistleblower affair, and few have shown unease about it. Scott's remarks are now a first sign of this in Trump's party. The moderate governor of Virginia had already repeatedly opposed Trump's policies, such as relaxing environmental regulations and tightening immigration regulations.

"Another senior Republican, Charlie Baker, Governor of Massachusetts, also spoke out in favour of the investigation. ""It's a deeply disturbing situation,"" Baker said. ""The right course of action and responsibility for Congress now is to investigate the matter and get to the bottom of it."""

"As governors of US states, Scott and Baker have no formal say in the case against Trump, which is being decided in Congress. Their statements are therefore above all symbolically important. Nevertheless, the first Republican senators have also been critical of the situation. Mitt Romney, for example, who represents the state of Utah in the second chamber of parliament, said the case was ""extremely disturbing, deeply disturbing."" US media also report that the first cracks were opening up internally among Republicans."

The affair could result in impeachment proceedings against Trump, and House Democrats have announced an investigation into it, accusing him of abuse of power for the purpose of foreign influence for his own political benefit.

There is no precise timetable for impeachment. With their majority in the House of Representatives, the Democrats could seek so-called impeachment, but the decision on actual impeachment would be made in the Senate, where Trump's Republicans have a majority. Therefore, the prospects of success of such a trial are slim. So far, no US president has been removed from office by impeachment proceedings.

Three men have been arrested in Sicily and allegedly raped and murdered in Libyan refugee camps.

"The German captain Carola Rackete (31) was arrested in June after she had illegally headed for the port of Lampedusa with the rescue ship ""Sea Watch 3"" and 53 Libyan refugees on board. After fierce protests and international criticism - also from Austria's Federal President Alexander van der Bellen - her house arrest was lifted after a few days by an Italian judge."

"Now new serious allegations are being raised against Rackete. Three men accused of torture in Libyan refugee camps may have arrived in Italy with the ""Sea-Watch 3."" The suspects were caught in a reception camp in Messina (Sicily) after migrants recognised their tormentors in Italy. ""We cannot rule this out, but we have no reliable information about it ourselves,"" said ""Sea Watch"" spokesman Ruben Neugebauer of the German Press Agency."

"The police said in mid-September that the suspects had raped, tortured and even murdered in the North African country. They were Mohammed C. (27) from Guinea, and the two Egyptians Hameda A. (26) and Mahmoud A (24). ""The migrants were systematically harassed and subjected to atrocities - through repeated and constant physical violence,"" the statement said at the time."

"NGOs and aid organizations are now pointing out that they cannot know exactly who is coming on the ships. ""We cannot scan who the people are. They come without passports,"" said Neugebauer. Torture is one of the main reasons why people are fleeing Libya. It is therefore quite likely that there are also perpetrators on the ships. ""It is therefore very important that this is investigated."""

Italy's right-wing ex-Interior Minister Matteo Salvini immediately demanded an apology from Rackete, who is still under investigation in Italy for aiding illegal immigration.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has given his electric car company a strong boost on the stock market with the prospect of new record numbers.

"""We have the chance to reach our first quarter with 100,000 deliveries,"" Musk wrote in an email to Tesla employees published by the industry blog ""Electrek."""

The new fiscal year will begin in the US on October 1 without a proper budget. The Senate followed the House of Representatives on Thursday and approved transitional funding until November 21.

Although the US Congress and President Donald Trump agreed in August to increase the spending ceilings for the fiscal years 2020 and 2021, the United States is once again without spending plans ahead of the new fiscal year beginning on October 1. The Senate followed the House of Representatives on Thursday and passed a Continuing Resolution (CR) until November 21. Without such a decision, there would have been a shutdown at midnight on Monday, a partial closure of the federal administration. President Trump has yet to put the decision into effect.

For the time being, the Federal Administration will now be financed at the level and in accordance with the priorities of the expenditure plans for the financial year 2019, which ends on Monday. This is because Congress has not been able to agree in time on the 12 expenditure laws that allocate the funds to the various departments and authorities. Therefore, for the time being, the Federal Administration cannot benefit from the expenditure framework expanded from $1.3 trillion to $1.4 trillion for the new financial year.

Democrats have completed ten of the twelve laws in the House of Representatives, where they have a majority, but the spending laws reflect Democratic priorities, which have little chance in the Republican-dominated Senate. Conversely, the Senate also has ten of the twelve spending plans more or less ready, which are barely capable of a majority.

The spirits are particularly divided on the issue of resource allocation for domestic security and border security. In the Senate, Republicans are apparently trying to force $12 billion to build the Wall, one of President Trump's big priorities. Democrats are bothered by the wall construction plans and their financing, which is actually intended for other military buildings and projects. The dispute over the construction of the Wall had already escalated in December 2018 and had led to a 35-day shutdown.

It is currently unclear how the parties intend to get closer to this issue. More likely than an agreement on all twelve spending laws in the next seven weeks is an extension of the transitional financing beyond 21 November. Even a shutdown is not ruled out.

Against the background of the continuing inability of Congress to agree on the twelve spending laws in time, and the associated danger of a shutdown, ideas for automating the process are gaining popularity. Submission p. 1877 to avoid shutdowns, the financing of the federal administration would automatically continue at the previous year's level, prevent the travel activities of parliamentarians and withhold their wages until the new annual spending plans were available.

In France, artificial insemination will also be open to single women and lesbians in the future: the Paris National Assembly voted by a large majority in favour of a government bill allowing all women to use in vitro fertilization, which is likely to significantly increase the demand for anonymous sperm donations.

"The proposal still requires the approval of the Senate. In the three-day emotional debate, critics in the right-wing camp had warned that numerous ""children without a father"" could grow up in the future. The French Bishops' Conference is also against the innovation."

"The new regulation is the core component of a bioethics law that Health Minister Agnès Buzyn defended as an ""opportunity"" for society. It depicts the modern family in which there are children with only one parent or with homosexual parents. According to her idea, the costs of artificial insemination for all women should be borne by social security."

"By a narrow majority, however, the National Assembly rejected an amendment to give widows access to their dead husband's sperm for artificial insemination. In Belgium, Spain and Great Britain, artificial insemination is permitted ""post-mortem."" In Germany, there have been cases in the past in which women complained in vain for the release of the sperm of a deceased. Opponents of the move in Paris argued that a child conceived in this way would then bear a ""particularly difficult fate."""

"Numerous members of the ruling party La République en Marche (The Republic on the Move, LREM) of President Emmanuel Macron and members of the opposition had spoken out against artificial insemination with the sperm of the deceased partner. They stressed that a widow would be imposed a ""double grief"" if her desire to have children remained unfulfilled due to the death of her husband."

The initiators of the now failed amendment consider it unfair that a widow can in future be fertilized with the sperm of an unknown person, but not with that of her own partner.

So far, artificial insemination in France is only allowed for heterosexual couples who cannot father children. They must be married or live together for at least two years. Buzyn had already announced in the summer that surrogacy would remain banned.

In Germany, artificial insemination is theoretically open to all women - but it is often difficult for single or lesbian couples.

Compensation for the climate: Calls for flight levy for universities are getting louder

There is a lot of flying at universities, which is why the country wants to have a climate levy paid there in the future. The rectors say they have no money for it. But now they are also coming under internal pressure.

Universities should also limit themselves to flying. Photo: dpa / Julian Stratenschulte

"The discussion about a climate levy on flights from universities and universities, which was postponed before the summer break, is regaining momentum. After the State Rectors' Conference had reacted sceptically to a corresponding push from the green-black coalition, the plans now receive support from the universities. In a joint statement, the doctoral students from six universities in Baden-Württemberg and a pedagogical university plead for compensation for service flights. This is ""urgently necessary"" as a first step, at the same time there must be a broad debate on the avoidability of flights, according to their statement. Meanwhile, the cabinet decision originally planned in July is still on hold"

According to the FSB, the detainees are said to have fished illegally in Russian waters. Ten days earlier, 161 fishermen from North Korea were arrested. At that time, there was an exchange of fire between the border guards and the boat crew. Three Russians and one North Korean were injured, the fisherman later succumbed to his serious injuries. This time, however, there were no casualties, it was said.

Communist North Korea is suffering from chronic food shortages. North Korean fishermen were therefore traveling in Russian territorial waters, where the Russian Coast Guard says it is patrolling to protect its marine biological resources.

During the renewed checks, 30,000 squid were discovered and confiscated on the boats. Furthermore, according to the information, three fishing boats and two motor boats were confiscated and brought to Nakhodka and Posjet near Vladivostok.

Russia's fisheries authority had not issued fishing licenses to the North Koreans this year, even after complaints from local entrepreneurs. According to the media, thousands of fishermen from North Korea have already been temporarily arrested there this year.

The head of the Association of Russian Fisheries Companies in the Far Eastern region of Primorye, Georgi Martynov, recently also complained of high ecological damage caused by North Korean fishermen. They fished with close-knit synthetic nets banned in Russia. These would also take small creatures out of the sea. Moreover, the nets would simply be disposed of in the sea, where they would take 200 years to decompose.

"The ""most generous nation in history"": Donald Trump, here at a meeting with elected police officials at the White House."

The richest country in the world is closing itself off from those seeking protection: as confirmed by the State Department in Washington, the upper limit for the legal influx of refugees will be further lowered. In the future, especially threatened believers and Iraqis will be granted asylum.

The US government wants to reduce the already historically low limit for the admission of new refugees once again. In the marketing year 2020, which runs in the United States from October 2019 to September 2020, a maximum of 18,000 people are to be allowed into the country, according to the US State Department. In the marketing year that has almost ended, the limit is still 30,000 people.

President Donald Trump's administration has drastically reduced the willingness to accept people seeking protection from around the world in recent years. Under Barack Obama's predecessor administration, far higher reception limits had applied.

"The targeted ceiling of 18,000 refugees would be the lowest since the introduction of the US refugee program in 1980. Nevertheless, the State Department described the US as ""the most pitiful and generous nation in history,"" a phrase strongly reminiscent of the incumbent US president's parlance."

"A ""responsible approach"" to refugees aims to ensure that the refugees can return to their home countries to help with reconstruction, Trump explained. He receives a lot of support from supporters for his tough course on migration policy, but there is also massive criticism."

A major point of contention is the border with Mexico, which Trump wants to seal off. In order to finance the construction of a border wall, Trump had imposed a national emergency. Whether there is a temporal connection between the current measure and the current domestic political developments in the US capital is unclear. Trump is currently under pressure over the Zelensky affair and a potentially threatening impeachment.

According to the Foreign Office, the US government wants to concentrate on taking in two refugee groups in the future: people who are persecuted for their faith - and Iraqis who have helped the US military in the country and are thus in danger, according to the State Department statement. By contrast, a maximum of 1,500 refugees are to be taken in from Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador.

"The US wants people from this ""northern triangle"" of Central America in particular to apply for asylum in other countries. Against this background, the United States has first concluded migration agreements with Guatemala and now also with El Salvador and Honduras in order to curb immigration at the US southern border with Mexico."

"At the request of the Argentine judiciary, an orangutan female has been transferred from the former Buenos Aires Zoo to a reception station for great apes in the USA. ""Sandra,"" who was born in Rostock Zoo in 1986, was granted the rights of a ""non-human person,"" so her release was mandatory. The animal was brought to Dallas by direct flight on Thursday evening - but not as a passenger, but in the cargo hold, as lawyer Andrés Gil Domínguez explained."

"Since the 53-kilogram human ape is unable to adapt to life in the wild, she will live in the outdoor enclosure of the Center for Great Apes in Florida. 21 other orangutans and 31 chimpanzees are already housed there, among them ""Bubbles,"" formerly a pet of pop star Michael Jackson. Before moving into Florida, however, ""Sandra"" has to endure a 40-day quarantine at the Sedgwick County Zoo in Wichita, Kansas."

"After her birth in Rostock, ""Sandra"" spent several years in the former Ruhr Zoo in Gelsenkirchen before being transferred to Buenos Aires in 1995. The trial of ""Sandra's"" fundamental rights, initiated by animal rights activists in 2014, has contributed to the transformation of the Buenos Aires Zoo into an eco-park. A research and educational facility for the conservation of biodiversity is to be built there by 2023."

The extreme mountaineer Dani Arnold has succeeded in a new hussar ride at the almost 3000-meter-high Großer Zinne in the Italian Alps.

Without a net, double floor or other aids, the Swiss conquered the 550-metre-high north face of the Großer Zinne in a new record time.

Dressed in jeans, T-shirt and only supported by absolute freedom from heights, Arnold needed 46 minutes and 30 seconds for the ascent, beating the old record by almost 19 minutes.

Arnold is now the record holder in free solo speed on four of the six most important European north faces.

"Despite the trade conflict with China, the US sporting goods manufacturer Nike posted a significant increase in profits. Net profit rose to 1.4 billion dollars (almost 1.3 billion euros) in the past quarter, 25 percent more than in the same period last year, as the Group announced on Tuesday. The main reason for this is the new marketing strategy ""Nike Direct,"" with which the Adidas competitor addresses its customers directly online."

Sales rose to 10.7 billion dollars in the three-month period to the end of August. Nike sales figures rose most strongly with an increase of 22 percent in China. As a result, the Beaverton-based company in the US state of Oregon also benefited from its approach to addressing consumers directly via the Internet or smartphone apps in the People's Republic.

"CFO Andy Campion announced that Nike would use strategic investments to further drive the ""digital transformation"" of the sporting goods manufacturer and thus expand its competitive advantage. Investors reacted pleased to the quarterly figures - the shares of the sporting goods manufacturer rose by more than five percent."

"Because of racist comments about professional football player Juan Jesus of AS Rome, the club from the Italian capital has imposed a lifelong stadium ban on a fan. Brazilian-born defender Jesus had been insulted by the fan on Instagram. Jesus then posted the private messages and asked his club to take action. ""@ officialasroma You already know what to do with such a fan. # NoToRacism. Proud to be who I am,"" wrote the 28-year-old, who has been playing for AS Rome since 2016."

The club reacted late on Thursday. He had reported the fan's account to Instagram and the police. Furthermore, the Roma supporter was never allowed to attend a match of the club again, the club wrote on Twitter.

"Racism is a problem in Italian football. Italian fans regularly chant racist abuse against black players from rival teams. ""We cannot have racism in society or in sport. In Italy the situation has not improved, and that is very serious. You have to identify those responsible and throw them out of the stadiums,"" Fifa President Gianni Infantino said at the weekend. The statement was prompted by racist chants at the first league match between Atalanta Bergamo and AC Florence last Sunday."

But there had also been recent discussions about the supporters of Juventus Turin. The Italian authorities have now banned 38 rioting fans of record champions Juventus Turin. Four of them are not allowed to enter the stadium for a period of ten years, the police said. Accordingly, bans of four to seven years apply to the rest.

The fans are linked to ongoing investigations into twelve leaders of ultra-fan groups around Juventus. The twelve are accused of severe extortion, money laundering and private violence, among other things. The club started the investigation with a complaint last year.

"According to Italian media reports, the ultra-leaders were behind the black trade in tickets. They had ""militarily controlled"" the ticket trade for the fan curve and allegedly blackmailed Juventus employees in order to get cheaper tickets."

Millennials are narcissistic, Generation Z is political - entire vintages are given catchy names. If you take a closer look, the awards are full of contradictions. So how well do these labels describe the respective attitude towards life of young people?

"""The crabs are coming!"" With this call, the crab catch at Gucheng Lake in Gaochun officially started on September 21, heralding the opening event of the 19th China Gaochun Gucheng Lake Crab Festival, as announced by the Public Relations Department of the Nanjing-Gaochun District Committee."

"Gaochun, which forms the southern foothills of Nanjing in Jiangsu Province, is one of the national environmental zones. The city is the first international ""Slow City"" in China and is also the Chinese headquarters of the international ""Slow City"" movement. The city has ideal ecological conditions with a mixture of ""30 percent mountains, 20 percent water surfaces and 50 percent fields."" The magnificent natural environment of Gaochun offers its inhabitants all the conditions to become rich."

The people of Gaochun started breeding crabs in the early 1990s. Over time, the crab industry has developed into a formative industry that generated high incomes and became an important part of the economic development of Gaochun. In recent years, Gaochun has actively sought a large-scale, ecological and scientific development of crab breeding as well as technology-based crab breeding, and the city has taken care of promoting greater efficiency in agriculture and farmers' incomes.

"In recent years, Gaochun has advanced a reform to ""distribute power, optimize administration and government services,"" carefully building the service network for ""permits under one roof, a law enforcement team, a network for services, a platform for lending,"" in order to comprehensively optimize the environment for permits, services and development."

"Gaochun fully exploits the local advantages through the connection to southern Jiangsu and southern Anhui and uses the development zone and its position as an international ""slow city"" as figureheads to locate intelligent high-end production plants, companies for biomedical and medical technology, for energy storage and environmental protection, from the cultural and healthcare industries as well as enterprises for organic agriculture, which are leaders in the ""3 + 2"" area. At the same time, Gaochun has promoted the establishment of a national tourism zone covering all areas and tourist resorts of national importance. Here, the ecological and cultural resources of the Gaochun landscape have been integrated, the condition of the buildings for civic services and for the public service"

Iran-US conflict: Rouhani talks about end of sanctions - Trump contradicts

Following his return from the UN General Assembly, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani spoke of an alleged US offer to lift sanctions. The United States had promised an end to all sanctions in exchange for talks with the Tehran leadership, Rouhani said on his official website.

"However, US President Donald Trump contradicted the Iranian counterpart via Twitter: ""Iran wanted me to lift the sanctions imposed on him so that there would be a meeting. I said, of course, no."""

"Rouhani describes the events as follows: German Chancellor Angela Merkel, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and French President Emmanuel Macron were present in New York and urged a meeting to take place. ""And America says I am lifting the sanctions,"" Rouhani added. The nature of the punitive measures that should be ended has been up for debate. ""And they have clearly said that we are lifting all sanctions."""

"However, this move was not made in an acceptable way, Rouhani criticized. In view of the current punitive measures and ""the poisoned atmosphere of maximum pressure,"" no one could predict the outcome of negotiations."

Earlier this week, Chancellor Angela Merkel met with Rouhani in New York. The background was the hope of the Europeans to save the nuclear deal with Iran negotiated with Russia and China, which is intended to prevent the Islamic Republic from developing nuclear weapons. French President Emmanuel Macron, like Merkel, had expressed hope on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly that Rouhani would meet with US President Donald Trump.

After western Turkey was shaken by two earthquakes within a very short time, the fear of a catastrophe is growing. 34 people were injured in the earthquake on Tuesday. Since the earthquake the day before, there have been almost 200 aftershocks, Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay said on Friday.

14 schools in Istanbul were closed for security reasons. Hundreds of buildings were damaged. The 5.8 magnitude earthquake shook the Marmara region off Istanbul on Thursday and caused panic in the metropolis of millions. Now the government wants to set up a commission to better prepare the country for earthquakes in the future, Oktay announced.

In the past 20 years, Turkey has not been sufficiently prepared for quakes, said Istanbul's mayor Ekrem Imamoglu. In the city itself, the latent danger is repeatedly ignored. Every year, poorly built residential buildings collapse - among other things, worn down by the many smaller earthquakes that regularly shake Istanbul.

Urban planners such as the well-known architect Mücella Yapici have been warning for years that large open areas registered as refuges in the centre have long since been built up. It was only on the 20th anniversary of the Gölcük quake in August that the Istanbul Chamber of Civil Engineers warned that an estimated one million buildings in Istanbul were not earthquake-proof.

The epicenter of Thursday's quake was in the Sea of Marmara in front of the district of Silivri and at a depth of about seven kilometres, according to the civil protection agency Afad. A smaller aftershock caused even greater panic on the streets a few minutes later.

Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu said on Twitter that injuries or damage had not been reported at first. State broadcaster TRT showed people running out of the houses in panic. Students were taken out of the buildings in the Silivri district for security reasons. Some students cried, as shown in pictures.

Istanbul is considered particularly vulnerable to earthquakes. Under the Sea of Marmara lies a section of the so-called North Anatolian Fault, which marks the border between the Eurasian and Anatolian plates. Turkey is repeatedly shaken by earthquakes. One of the deadliest was the earthquake in 1999 near Istanbul. At that time, more than 17,000 people were killed.

Researchers fear that an earthquake of magnitude 7.1 to 7.4 could threaten. However, it is unclear when the earthquake will occur. Thursday's earthquake hit the west of the country and Istanbul again.

Companies design contingency plans, private individuals have so-called go-bags packed with everything necessary standing next to front doors, and schools teach children how to behave when the earth wobbles. It is unclear when the next big quake will come.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said after his return from New York that eight people were injured. Some buildings suffered minor damage. Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu followed the developments of the Istanbul Disaster Coordination Centre (Akom). According to him, two minarets of mosques collapsed in the districts of Avcilar and Sariyer.

On social networks, many users report panic. Buildings wobbled. Schools and hospitals were evacuated. Telephone lines were interrupted. It was more violent than Tuesday's, writes one user. The head of the Turkish Red Crescent, Kerem Clinic, warned via Twitter of aftershocks. He called on people to stay away from buildings that had suffered visible damage.

According to official figures, the time of the quake is given as 1.59 p.m. (local time). Only a few minutes after the first quake, according to CNN Turkey, there was an aftershock with a magnitude of 4.0 on the Richter scale.

Only on Tuesday an earthquake with a magnitude of 4.6 shook the Turkish Marmara region - it was felt as far as Istanbul. Its epicenter was also located in the Sea of Marmara west of the metropolis of millions, the civil protection authority Afad announced already on Tuesday.

It was not the only earthquake that made headlines this Tuesday: Pakistan was also hit by a severe earthquake.

Researchers assume that sooner or later a catastrophic earthquake could occur in Istanbul - the tension between the tectonic plates is extremely high. Scientists believe that it will eventually discharge - and cause massive damage.

"Earthquake researcher Sükrü Ersoy expects that the earthquake is now an advance warning. It has become more likely, he told CNN Türk. ""These could be the signs of a larger earthquake,"" Ersoy told the station. ""Sooner or later the big quake will also come."""

Already a few weeks ago there had been an incident - the earthquake also caused great concern in Istanbul. In Albania there had also been a violent earthquake only a few days ago - there were 68 injured. The earth had also shook at Lake Constance this year.

"Two explosive documents provide new fuel in the Ukraine affair over possible abuse of power by US President Donald Trump. On the way to possible impeachment proceedings, the US Democrats are encouraged: the complaint filed by an anonymous whistleblower about Trump and his controversial phone call with the Ukrainian president contains important clues for investigations against the president. Trump himself once again sees himself as the victim of a ""witch hunt."" He also doubted the credibility of the whistleblower."

USA: United Airlines passenger locked in toilet - plane diverted

Because a female passenger was locked in the board toilet, a United Airlines flight was diverted. The toilet door was blocked during flight 1554 from Washington to San Francisco, the airline said, according to US media.

During an unscheduled stopover on Wednesday evening (local time) in Denver, the woman was finally freed from the narrow cabin. She had been locked in it for about an hour, US media wrote, citing other passengers. Passengers had to change planes for the onward flight to San Francisco.

"A video distributed on the Internet, which according to the US media is said to be from Flight 1554, shows several people trying to free the woman. ""We are currently working on opening the door, Ma'am. We'll get you out soon, Okay?"" says one man. The airline apologized to all passengers. At first it was open whether the woman would receive compensation."

The Cockroach: Inspired by Kafka: Ian McEwan writes Brexit novel

How does a writer like Ian McEwan deal with all the Brexit chaos? He writes a book about it - and his protagonist is unmistakable.

"Inspired by Franz Kafka's famous story ""The Transformation,"" the successful British author Ian McEwan (71) has written a book about the Brexit chaos in Britain."

"The novel ""The Cockroach"" (original: ""The Cockroach"") will be published in German on 27 November, announced Diogenes Verlag (Zurich). It is about the transformation of a man named ""Jim Sams,"" who was ignored or hated in his former life but is now suddenly the most powerful man in Great Britain. He sees it as his mission to put the will of the people into practice and is wildly determined to let nothing and nobody stop him."

"McEwan was quoted as saying: ""If parliament is closed so that the government cannot be challenged at a critical moment, when ministers shamelessly lie like the Soviet leaders once did, when Brexiteers in high positions practically beg the catastrophe of a no-deal - then a writer must ask himself what he can do. There is only one answer to it: write."" McEwan's novel ""Machines Like Me"" about artificial intelligence was only published in the spring."

"Kafka's story, first published in 1915, is about Gregor Samsa, who wakes up one morning and sees himself ""transformed into a tremendous vermin,"" is gradually excluded from family and society and eventually perishes. ""Ian McEwan bows to Kafka to describe a world that stands upside down,"" said Diogenes Verlag."

EU invests 9.5 million euros in Austria's railway infrastructure

11,200 wagons in Austria and Hungary receive whisper brakes to reduce noise pollution from freight trains. In addition, sections of the railway connections between Graz and Györ and Wiener Neustadt and Sopron will be modernised and electrified.

"According to the EU authority, this should make travel more comfortable and reduce CO2 emissions. The funds come from the EU infrastructure pot ""Connecting Europe Facility."""

"The German tour operator Thomas Cook has cancelled all trips up to and including 31 October 2019 one day after its insolvency application. Travel ""could not be started for insolvency reasons,"" the company announced on Thursday evening."

This also affects bookings of the brands Thomas Cook Signature, Thomas Cook Signature Finest Selection, Neckermann Reisen, ÖGER TOURS, Bucher Reisen and Air Marin, which have already been paid or paid in full. The company left open how it stands for travel starting from 1 November 2019. In coordination with the insolvency insurance, the further procedure will be examined, it said.

Thomas Cook in Germany had fallen into the wake of the bankruptcy of the British parent company and filed for bankruptcy on Wednesday. The company, which includes Neckermann Reisen, Öger Tours and Bucher Reisen, employs about 2000 people in Germany.

Starting this Friday, however, hotels abroad that currently host Thomas Cook holidaymakers will receive money from Zurich Insurance. According to Zurich, payments to the hotels are conditional on holidaymakers no longer being asked to make extra payments.

"On the basis of the booking information and without presentation of separate invoices, the hotels in the holiday resorts are now to receive 50 percent of the outstanding payments, as a Zurich spokesman for the German Press Agency said. ""This applies immediately and under the condition that Thomas Cook travellers are from now on neither requested nor otherwise coerced by these hotels to pay individual hotel bills,"" said spokesman Bernd Engelien."

The insurance company responded to reports of hotel guests who, according to their own statements, had been forced to pay for their accommodation on site themselves. Accordingly, some had to put more than 1000 euros on the table. The German Travel Association (DRV) and the Federal Association of Consumer Centers had sharply criticized this.

How many hotels are affected will be coordinated with the insolvent travel provider on Friday, said the insurance spokesman. According to data from Thursday, 70 000 Thomas Cook package holidaymakers from Germany were still on the road. Zurich Germany has secured the holiday and return journey of Thomas Cook customers.

Insolvency administrators want to try to continue the three Thomas Cook companies in Germany and find a future solution.

However, the now announced payments to hotels by Zurich Insurance only help travellers who are currently still on the road. Things look bad for Thomas Cook customers who still want to fly on holiday. Late on Thursday evening, the company announced that all trips up to and including 31 October would be cancelled. This also applies to bookings that have already been paid.

The company left open the situation regarding travel starting on 1 November 2019. In coordination with the insolvency insurance company, the further procedure will be examined, it said. In principle, the Zurich insurance company is also responsible for these cases. The sale of new trips has stopped. dpa

The company refers to the insurer Zurich, which is represented by the company Kaera. Customers could inform themselves on the Kaera website about possibilities of reimbursing the travel price and assert their claims via a web form.

Prince Harry has long continued the commitment of Lady Diana. In Africa he is now walking directly in the footsteps of his mother.

Dressed in a blue splinter protection vest, the British Prince Harry detonated and destroyed an explosive mine in Angola.

Near a camp of the British Halo Trust near the town of Dirico, he produced the ignition circuit in front of running TV cameras on Friday morning. At a safe distance, the explosive device exploded in the savannah landscape without causing damage. Although the Halo Trust alone has destroyed more than 100,000 relics of the decades-long bloody conflict in the African country, there are still more than 1000 minefields that threaten the population.

On the fifth day of his trip to Africa, Harry wanted to follow in the footsteps of his mother Diana (1961-1997) in the city of Huambo. With the same explosive master who once accompanied his mother, he wanted to travel the way she went at that time. The pictures of Princess Diana walking through a cleared minefield in 1997 had gone around the world. She, too, had demonstrated support for the Halo Trust.

Harry (35) and his wife Meghan (38) have been on a ten-day trip to Africa since Monday, which started in the South African tourist metropolis of Cape Town.

Stalled Brexit negotiations: The danger of a no-deal remains acute

Actually, Prime Minister Boris Johnson had clearly committed himself: with him there will certainly not be a third postponement of the Brexit negotiations. But what statements are eternal for the polarizing Briton. The recent ruling by the Supreme Court in Britain hovers over the blond head like a sword of Damocles. His suspension of parliament in order to be able to stubbornly carry out his Brexit course until the exit date was annulled earlier this week. And a law passed by parliament obliges Johnson to extend the bilateral talks until 31 October in the event of failed negotiations with the EU. However, Johnson had categorically ruled this out again and again.

But the pressure does not seem to pass Johnson noticeably either. Meanwhile, while visiting a hospital, he made suggestions that he would support an extension of the negotiations until the end of October in the event of a non-agreement:

At the same time, however, we are confident that we will leave the EU by 31 October.

And preferably with a deal. I'm cautiously optimistic that it will work.

And time is gradually running out of the Brexit negotiators in Brussels. The EU and British negotiators still have about six weeks to prevent Britain from leaving the European Union without an agreement. However, the recent talks have again failed to achieve a breakthrough. An agreement by the end of October currently seems rather difficult to imagine. If the British Prime Minister does not break the law, a further postponement of the exit date will be in force. However, the opposition does not trust the Prime Minister's words. It fears that Johnson could somehow push through Brexit in the event of a no-deal.

"The number of deaths associated with the use of e-cigarettes in the US has risen to twelve. In addition, there are now 805 confirmed and probable injuries in this context, the US health agency CDC reported. According to a study in the ""New England Journal of Medicine,"" there have already been more than 900 people affected, around 500 of them confirmed. The cause of the lung damage is still completely unclear. So far, no similar increase in lung damage is known in Europe. The complaints seem to be limited to users in the US."

"The videos of Mohammed Ali have been shared millions of times in online networks. The Spanish-based contractor and actor calls for a ""people's revolution."" Today, Friday, he has called for further protests against President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and the Egyptian military, which critics accuse of corruption and mismanagement. Ali hopes for mass rallies with one million participants in central squares of the country."

In any case, the security authorities are alarmed. An increased police presence has already been observed in central Cairo. Several subway stations remained closed, roads around central Tahrir Square were closed. In recent days, the police had already stepped up their street checks and searched pedestrians' mobile phones partly for messages and photos in connection with the protests.

On September 20, the demonstrators also gathered around Tahrir Square.

"Last weekend there were protests in Cairo, Alexandria, Suez and Mansura with hundreds of participants. There had not been such an open protest in Egypt for years. Accordingly, the security forces reacted harshly. According to the human rights organization Human Rights Watch (HRW), almost 2000 people have been arrested since last week. Many of them have been arbitrarily arrested - just because they were ""in the wrong place at the wrong time,"" HRW said, citing lawyers."

The organization also criticized censorship in the North African country, according to which the government in Cairo is blocking websites and online services to stop further protests against al-Sisi. The general has ruled the country since 2013 after overthrowing the democratically elected Islamist President Mohamed Morsi. Thousands of Islamists, opponents of the government, bloggers and activists have been imprisoned and partially convicted in recent years.

"The polar explorer Arved Fuchs returned from his Greenland expedition on Friday. Upon his arrival in the Port of Hamburg, he was welcomed by skipper Boris Herrmann, who had brought climate activist Greta Thunberg across the Atlantic with the racing yacht ""Malizia."""

"Together with a team of scientists, Fuchs had investigated and documented the consequences of global warming on his sailing ship ""Dagmar Aaen"" on the coasts of Iceland and Greenland in recent months."

The Fridays for Future movement is a blessing, said the polar explorer. He had waited for years for the young generation to speak out. It has been known for decades that the Earth is warming. Nevertheless, many acted as if there was a planet B.

"""What happens at sea often takes place to the exclusion of the public,"" said Fuchs. He and his team wanted to inform people about the effects of global warming and the littering of the oceans. During the expedition, among other things, Greenland glacier ice was measured with a drone and fished for microplastics with nets, they said."

"For his ""struggle for a sustainable and respectful use of the world's oceans,"" the polar researcher from Bad Bramstedt was awarded the ""Seadevcon Maritime Award"" at the Hamburg Climate Week. ""For all of us who care about the survival of the oceans, Arved Fuchs is a great role model,"" said skipper Boris Herrmann at the award ceremony. ""He is a witness to the changes that have taken place in the Arctic in recent decades."""

Expensive spaghetti in Rome: Tourists paid 430 euros for noodles

430 euros for two plates of spaghetti with fish in a simple restaurant not far from Castel Sant'Angelo in Rome: that seemed too much for two Japanese tourists. Although the bill with 80 euros tip was paid by the two women, they posted the receipt on Facebook, which triggered heated reactions.

"""Such cases damage the reputation of Rome. We call on the police to investigate whether this is a fraud,"" demanded a spokesman for Federagit, the Association of Travel Guides in Rome, according to the Roman daily Il Messaggero (Friday edition)."

The reaction of the owners of the restaurant came promptly. The Japanese women had ordered not only spaghetti, but also fresh fish, the local owner justified himself. However, this cannot be inferred from the bill. Also a tip of up to 20 percent of the bill is normal, said the innkeeper.

A phone call in Ukraine, and everything is broken? US President Donald Trump could indeed face impeachment after the turbulent revelations of the past few days, the Democrats now want to examine this as soon as possible with their investigation in the House of Representatives - there is talk of weeks before a decision would be made.

At the beginning of the scandal is supposedly the telephone conversation with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. The accusation of the whistleblower, who ultimately brought the conversation to the public with his complaint out of concern for national security and US democracy, is monstrous: the president abused the power of his office to instrumentalize the government of another country to influence the 2020 election. He had extortionately exploited Ukraine's dependence and thus wanted to force it to take action against a political opponent.

The core of this project can also be understood in the now published transcript of the conversation with Zelensky, although it does not reproduce the full wording. However, the July 25 telephone call is only one episode of a much larger story, at the center of which, besides Trump, is above all his personal lawyer: Rudy Giuliani.

"From the public's point of view, the story begins in May 2019, when the New York Times reports on Rudy Giuliani's travel plans to Ukraine. He wants to meet with the newly elected President Zelensky in Kiev, and the lawyer himself knows very well that his intentions are delicate. ""We don't interfere in an election, we interfere in an investigation into what we have the right to do,"" he tells the newspaper. One might think it is inappropriate, but ""nothing is illegal about it."" Giuliani wants investigations to be pursued in Ukraine for which there is hardly any basis - ""because this information will be very, very helpful to my client and could turn out to be helpful to my government."""

The lawyer and former New York mayor seems to have become infected with right-wing conspiracy fantasies fixated on Trump's opponent in the 2016 election: Hillary Clinton colluded with actors in Ukraine, critics said at the time, to construct an occasion for the Russia investigation in the US. However, this accusation was never to be taken seriously.

This is precisely the investigation that Trump will talk about so prominently on the phone with Zelensky in July. Giuliani and the president's version is that the former vice president and currently promising candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination, Joe Biden, as the Obama administration's Ukraine envoy, had pushed for the dismissal of the then Ukrainian Attorney General Viktor Shokin, in order to stop the investigation he was responsible for into the gas company on whose supervisory board his son Hunter Biden served. Biden Sr. had financially blackmailed Ukraine to cover up his family's corrupt machinations.

In fact, the process was somewhat different. When Joe Biden demanded that the Ukrainian attorney general leave, the investigation into the gas company had already been completed, and Hunter Biden was never directly affected. Schokin himself was also accused of deeply corrupt behavior, and the US government was far from the only Western partner pushing for his dismissal. Moreover, the Obama administration even explicitly supported the investigation into the company.

Disruptions on Instagram Facebook and Whatsapp: Social media are down

Users worldwide report massive disruptions to Instagram and Facebook. Accordingly, Germany, Great Britain and Spain are mainly affected. On the website allestörungen.de users report that Facebook has not been loading again and again since about 3.30 p.m. Instagram also issues the error message that content could not be loaded. Whatsapp also seems to be affected by the disruption, although so far not to the same extent.

This is not the first massive incident this year. Already in March and July, the services had been cancelled for several hours. And as in previous cases, users use Twitter to vent their anger.

Three Polish scientists have been rescued from the ice of Antarctica by the Chilean Air Force. They were travelling in a rubber dinghy and several miles from their base when their engine failed. They were lucky in the accident - it took the Chilean rescue helicopter less than an hour to recover.

"""At 9: 30 a.m. we received the news, shortly before ten we started, and a good 20 minutes later we were over the dinghy."""

Poland has operated the Henryk Arctowski Polish Antarctic Station on King George Island since 1977, with 19 scientists working there. The frozen researchers were safely returned to their research station.

Inductive technology via Qi standard is extremely practical, but should not be used.

Since several new smartphones have recently been launched that support wireless charging and sell very well - especially the new iPhone 11 models, we would like to recall a study from the beginning of July. Wireless charging of mobile devices is extremely practical, but not necessarily recommended.

Researchers warn against the wireless charging of smartphones. According to the findings of the Univerity of Warwick, this is extremely harmful for the devices. The reason for this is the significantly greater heat generation. If a mobile phone is charged normally by cable, the battery heats up to 27 degrees within three hours. When charging wirelessly, however, the researchers have always measured over 30 degrees even when the smartphone is perfectly aligned on the charging pad. If the mobile phone is slightly next to the coil, the temperature rises even higher. In addition, the watt strength of the charging pad also increases, which in turn drives up the power consumption.

According to the researchers, the temperature is a decisive factor for the durability of batteries. Every single degree plays a role here. When charging at higher temperatures, the battery not only loses capacity, but also does not last as long overall. The service life is therefore lower. The researchers therefore advise to always charge the smartphone by cable. Since a battery replacement with modern smartphones is always associated with high costs, this should be a helpful tip. Apple has recently even increased the cost of a battery replacement - for all iPhones.

The technology is extremely convenient: Simply place the device on a corresponding charging pad - these are now even installed in many restaurants, airports, hotels and cars - and the battery is charged without annoying cable clutter and laborious plug fumbling. Since Qi (stands for inductive energy transmission) is a worldwide standard that, for once, even Apple participates in, there are hardly any restrictions. Nevertheless, according to the researchers, the technology should only be used in exceptional cases.

Everest traffic jam photographer: 13 eight-thousanders in six months

According to his own information, a Nepalese climber has climbed 13 of the 14 highest mountains in the world in just six months. Nirmal Purja (36) has reached the top of Manaslu in Nepal and thus set a record, his expedition operator said.

"The former soldier wants to climb all 14 eight-thousanders in seven months. Purja calls his project ""Mission Possible."" He has already made international headlines: he took a photo of climbers queuing up on Mount Everest that went viral in the spring."

The image of the mass crowd triggered a debate about stronger security measures on the 8,848-meter-high mountain and highest peak on earth. In May, eleven climbers had died during the ascent within a few days.

A problem for Purja could be the ascent of the 14th eight-thousander: Currently, Chinese authorities are closing the Xixabangma Mountain in Tibet. Among other things, the reason for this is bad weather. At the beginning of the week, Purja wrote on Twitter that Nepal's government wanted to talk to China to allow him to climb.

"Among the dead animals was a pregnant elephant cow, a police spokesman said on Friday. ""We suspect that the elephants were poisoned."""

The four carcasses were found in a protected area near the famous and visited by many tourists former rock fortress Sigiriya. According to the police spokesman, the animals were probably between 15 and 25 years old. An autopsy was ordered to determine the cause of death.

In Sri Lanka, almost 200 elephants are killed every year. The perpetrators are often farmers on whose land the animals had previously kept harmless. At the same time, around 50 people are killed by elephants every year. This usually happens when the animals move through villages built near their habitat.

It is estimated that only about 7,000 elephants live in Sri Lanka. Their killing is theoretically subject to the death penalty.

"The British oil tanker ""Stena Impero"" leaves the port city of Bandar Abbas more than two months after its detention by Iran. According to the IRNA news agency, the Iranian Revolutionary Guards had detained the British-flagged tanker on 19 July on charges of flouting maritime law regulations in the Persian Gulf."

"The responsible Economic Committee of the House of Commons wants to investigate the bankruptcy of the travel giant Thomas Cook comprehensively, dealing with the salary packages of the Executive Board as well as the question of why the British government did not want to financially jump aside the company struggling to survive. ""Our interest is in supervision in the company as well as control by external auditors,"" said committee chairwoman Rachel Reeves in London. ""Apparently we are dealing with a bad example of management greed."""

According to experts, genes are overestimated in colorectal cancer risk

The role of genes in the family-increased risk of colorectal cancer has apparently been overestimated so far. Researchers at the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) Heidelberg come to this conclusion in a recent study. Other risk factors such as family eating habits probably weigh more heavily than previously assumed. This has consequences for calculations of the individual risk of colorectal cancer, the DKFZ scientists emphasize.

"Musk wrote this in an email to Tesla employees published on Thursday (local time) by the industry blog ""Electrek."" Demand was strong, so that Tesla could record 110,000 orders, Musk's circular continued."

The challenge is to bring the cars to customers quickly. To do this, Tesla must provide as many resources as possible at the end of the quarter.

Investors liked the information: Tesla's shares went out of trading with an increase of over six percent. The price has not gained so strongly in almost four months. In the second quarter, Tesla had delivered a good 95,000 cars, reaching its previous record.

Does British government want to circumvent Brexit law? Johnson cautious

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is keeping a low profile on whether he is looking for ways to circumvent the last law passed by Parliament against an unregulated Brexit. In response to a question, he only told journalists on Friday that his government would abide by applicable law.

"The law stipulates that the government must request a postponement of the withdrawal date if no agreement with the EU has been reached by mid-October. Johnson criticizes this as a ""surrender law"" that makes negotiations with the EU more difficult."

"Former British Prime Minister John Major had expressed the suspicion on Thursday that Johnson could try to use ""political harassment"" to circumvent the law. Johnson could use a procedural trick to postpone the law's entry into force until after leaving the EU."

"Johnson said he was seeking a treaty with the European Union. ""We are confident of leaving the EU on 31 October, and the best way is with an agreement."""

"Iran's President Hassan Rouhani has increased the pressure on the European contracting parties in the dispute over the rescue of the historic nuclear agreement. ""Unfortunately, the European states show inability or unwillingness when it comes to concrete actions,"" Rouhani said on Thursday at a press conference on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York. In the event that they did not stand by their promises, he promised ""further steps"" away from the agreements of the painstakingly negotiated 2015 agreement."

"The background is the conflict over the international agreement to prevent an Iranian nuclear bomb, which in return contained a commitment to Tehran to normalize economic relations. The US single-handedly withdrew from the agreement in 2018 in order to force Iran to change course in the Middle East policy deemed aggressive with ""maximum pressure."" President Donald Trump's administration wants to negotiate a new agreement with tougher conditions and is now again relying on tough sanctions against Tehran. Iran recently responded by restarting the treaty's limited uranium enrichment."

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed in a report that the Islamic Republic is now using or at least preparing the centrifuges installed at the beginning of September with uranium. According to IAEA figures, Iran is also preparing to build more than 300 more centrifuges.

Perhaps the Europeans were not prepared to bear their part of the deal and therefore left the Iranians alone with the costs and burden of oppressive US sanctions, Rouhani suspected. Nevertheless, there would be further talks that would hopefully bring a solution.

Rouhani continues to deny Iran's involvement in attacks in Saudi Arabia

"However, the situation has changed after an attack on an important oil facility in Saudi Arabia in mid-September: Germany, France and Great Britain followed the US assessment on Monday that Tehran was responsible for the attack. Originally, the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen claimed responsibility for the attack, but this was seen by the US as a false commitment. ""We have nothing to do with it,"" Rouhani reiterated his position on Wednesday."

"""Those who make such accusations must present evidence of this,"" said Rouhani. However, the European leaders could not have done so in the talks with him during the UN general debate. Instead, they only claimed that the rebels in Yemen could not carry out an attack like this. Rouhani had met with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson in recent days."

"Before possible talks with US President Trump, the far-reaching sanctions of the US administration must first be lifted, Rouhani demanded. He called on the government in Washington to shift to a policy of ""dialogue and reason."""

Astronomers are currently observing a comet from the depths of space. This has been achieved before. The comet allows conclusions to be drawn about other solar systems.

What was initially only an assumption is now confirmed: an interstellar guest crosses through our solar system. The comet from the depths of space was christened 2I / Borisov after its discoverer and has aroused the interest of astronomers all over the world.

The well-travelled comet was discovered on 30 August by amateur astronomer Gennady Borisov at the Margo Observatory in Crimea - with a homemade telescope of 65 centimetres in diameter. Follow-up observations from various observatories not only confirmed that it was an unknown comet, but also showed that it did not originate from our solar system.

After 1I / 'Oumuamua of 2017, 2I / Borisov is only the second interstellar object spotted during a flight through our solar system.

"2I / Borisov offers astronomers the rare chance to gain close-up insights into a foreign solar system before it disappears goodbye. Initial observations show that the interstellar comet resembles those of our own system, as reported by the astrophysical institute of the Canaries. ""The current speed of the comet is high, about 150,000 kilometers per hour, which at this distance is well above the typical speeds of objects orbiting the Sun,"" Davide Farnocchia of the US space agency Nasa reported in a statement."

According to the analyses, the comet is traveling on a so-called hyperbolic orbit that leads it out of our system - and clearly of interstellar origin, as reported by the International Astronomical Union (IAU). It is also responsible for the naming and categorization of celestial bodies. In honor of its discoverer, the interstellar tail star, which was initially listed under the catalogue number C / 2019 Q4, was named 2I / Borisov, with the first part of the name indicating that it is the second interstellar object discovered in our solar system.

"The astronomers are lucky: In contrast to 1I / 'Oumuamua, 2I / Borisov has already been spotted approaching, leaving the researchers with many months to investigate. ""The object will reach the greatest brightness in mid-December and will then be visible with medium-sized telescopes until April 2020,"" explained Farnocchia. ""After that, it will only be observed with larger, professional telescopes until October 2020."""

Several observatories have already targeted the visitor. For example, a team led by Karen Meech from the University of Hawaii, who had already led the characterization of 1I / 'Oumuamua, determined in an initial study the diameter of the celestial object at 2 to 16 kilometers. Images from the Gemini Observatory in Hawaii show a clear tail of the comet.

"Researchers at the astrophysical Institute of the Canary Islands (IAC) have already obtained a first so-called spectrum of the interstellar tail star, which offers a kind of fingerprint of its chemical composition. ""The spectrum of this object is similar to that of comets in our solar system, and this indicates that their composition must be similar,"" reported IAC researcher Julia de León. This observation suggests that comets in other solar systems could form through similar processes as in ours, added de León's colleague Javier Licandro."

According to the IAU, the discovery of two interstellar visitors within just two years suggests that these objects could open up a new way to explore certain processes in other solar systems. However, it is still difficult to estimate how frequent such flying visits are. One of the next interstellar visitors could possibly intercept a planned satellite mission by the European space agency Esa.

"The agency plans to deploy the three-part spacecraft ""Comet Interceptor"" at a waiting position 1.5 million kilometres from Earth by 2028. According to Esa Science Director Günther Hasinger, it will either lurk for a still untouched, fresh comet from our own solar system, or for an interstellar visitor such as 1I / 'Oumuamua."

Just in time for the 70th birthday of the People's Republic, the time has come: a first passenger plane of China United Airlines has landed at the new mega-airport in the south of the Chinese capital, a special honour for the captain and crew.

"By 2022, the new airport is expected to handle around 45 million passengers annually, and by 2025 it is expected to reach 72 million. China's President Xi Jinping personally announced the opening of the 450 billion project. China's latest prestige project is also called ""starfish"" because of its six-armed building structure."

The complex has four runways, which will later be expanded to seven and is equipped with the world's largest automatic air traffic management system. A new subway transports passengers to downtown Beijing in just 20 minutes.

Already during the construction, the Chinese had repeatedly announced that Berlin could learn from Beijing. The opening of the capital airport in Germany, which has been under construction since 2006 - and much smaller - has so far been repeatedly postponed. In Beijing, on the other hand, a first passenger plane landed after only four years.

New supersonic aircraft to fly in 2030: from London to Sydney in four and a half hours

"From London to Sydney in just four and a half hours - this is what the British space agency UK Space Agency dreams of. This supersonic flight, targeted for the 2030s, is to be made possible by a special propulsion system (Synergetic Air-Breathing Rocket Engine, Sabre), which the company Reaction Engines from Oxfordshire is developing, the US broadcaster CNN quoted the agency as saying. ""This is the technology that could definitely accomplish this,"" agency chief Graham Turnock told the broadcaster. ""We are talking about the 2030s for commissioning, and the work is already very advanced."""

"In order to advance the project, the British Space Agency wants to cooperate more closely with the Australian one. A flight from the British capital to the Australian metropolis currently takes about 20 hours. As the only supersonic aircraft for passenger transport, Concorde had covered the New York-Paris route from 1976 until its closure in 2003 and took three to three and a half hours to do so. In 2000, an accident occurred during the launch of a Concorde at Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris, in which all 109 occupants were killed. Last year, the US aircraft manufacturer Lockheed Martin announced plans to develop a supersonic aircraft, the ""X-Plane,"" together with the US space agency Nasa."

"""Sabre will make the world smaller with its high-speed point-to-point transport,"" writes Reaction Engines on its homepage, among other things. The Sabre propulsion system could be used for efficient travel at a speed of Mach 5 - which means five times as fast as sound. In addition, such aircraft can also be used outside the Earth's atmosphere, enabling the ""next generation of truly reusable frame rides."""

Uproar in Washington: Trump wants to track down anonymous tippers in Ukraine affair

In the Ukraine affair over possible abuse of power by the US president, Donald Trump wants to track down possible leaks in the White House.

"""I want to know who gave the whistleblower the information,"" Trump told employees of the US Embassy to the United Nations in New York on Thursday. The person concerned was almost ""a spy"" and they were dealt with ""a little differently"" in the past than they are today."

This was seen as an attempt at intimidation against tippers. Actually, the event was not public. However, several US media distributed audio recordings of the speech on Friday. Democrats reacted outraged to the president's statement.

Democrats in the US House of Representatives announced preparations for impeachment proceedings against Trump on Tuesday, based primarily on the written complaint of an anonymous intelligence official making serious accusations against Trump and his government headquarters. Due to great public pressure, the whistleblower's accounts were made public on Thursday.

"As part of his work, the whistleblower claims to have received information from several government officials that the US president is ""using the power of his office"" to get another country to interfere in his favor in the 2020 US election."

At the center of the allegations is a controversial phone call between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in late July, in which Trump encouraged his counterpart to investigate that could harm his political rival Joe Biden, involving previous dealings of Biden's son Hunter in Ukraine and alleged efforts to protect his offspring from Ukrainian justice. Biden is ahead in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination for the 2020 election.

With regard to the Ukraine phone call, the whistleblower also accused the White House of covering up: senior government officials had tried to keep the exact wording of the conversation under cover. As usual, an electronic wording protocol had been prepared. However, after the conversation, on the instructions of lawyers from the White House, this had been removed from a database usually intended for this purpose and instead stored in a specially protected system. So far, only a rough conversation protocol has been published.

The identity of the whistleblower is not publicly known. The New York Times reported that he was an employee of the foreign intelligence agency CIA.

"Trump again questioned the credibility of the source on Friday. In a series of tweets on the subject, the president wrote, among other things, that the ""so-called whistleblower"" had disseminated second-hand information that turned out to be inaccurate. Therefore, there may be no tippers or spies at all."

But how Trump spoke in New York about those who allegedly leaked information to the whistleblower sparked outrage. US House Chairwoman Nancy Pelosi reacted alarmed and complained that Trump's testimony once again undermined the integrity of the government.

In the House of Representatives, various committees have been investigating Trump and his surroundings for months. In view of the Ukraine allegations, the Democrats are now pushing ahead with new force to launch a possible impeachment proceeding against Trump.

"""The whistleblower gave us a roadmap for our investigation,"" said House Intelligence Committee chief Adam Schiff. Trump sharply attacked Schiff, accused him of misrepresenting things and again demanded the resignation of the committee chairman. Trump regularly insults Schiff and had already demanded his withdrawal months ago."

"More than 300 former US security and foreign policy officials, mostly under Democratic but also Republican presidents, backed the Democratic investigation into possible impeachment in a statement released on Friday. If the allegations prove true, it would be ""an unscrupulous abuse of power"" by Trump, it said."

There is no precise timetable for the further procedure. With their majority in the House of Representatives, the Democrats could initiate a so-called impeachment procedure, but the decision on an actual impeachment would be made in the Senate, where Trump's Republicans have a majority. Therefore, the prospects of success of such a trial are slim. So far, no US president has been removed from office by impeachment proceedings.

The plans of the VW brand to further reduce production costs could be at the expense of production in Germany and Europe. This concern is driving the car manufacturer's works council around. The brand wants to reduce its annual factory costs of ten billion euros by two billion euros by 2023, of which 500 million euros are to be saved already this year.

"One key to this is personnel costs. The ""Future Pact"" negotiated between the company and the works council in 2016 already provides for the reduction of 14,000 jobs in Germany alone by 2020. Basically, a job can only be cut at the car manufacturer if it is virtually proven that the associated activities are no longer necessary. In addition, employment security applies until 2029."

"As our newspaper now learned from works council circles, however, jobs in production that were not actually available are ""gradually"" dismantled via another route - i.e. past the official course. Thus, vacant regular positions would often not be filled again."

"In these cases, the works council has no possibility of forcing the reoccupation. Meanwhile, there is a lack of staff in many places, the intensification of work is increasing, the worries about a gradual bleeding of the vehicle plants are increasing. Thus, the fear is growing that vehicle production could gradually be withdrawn from Germany and Europe because it is cheaper in other parts of the world. VW only said: ""An adjustment of the employment volume takes place as agreed socially acceptable along the demographic curve."""

"The VW brand wants to standardize production worldwide even more and manage new projects centrally. This is also intended to reduce costs and accelerate decisions - behind this is the goal of increasing productivity and thus competitiveness. Chief Production Officer Andreas Tostmann said at a manager conference in Berlin: ""Especially in uncertain times from Brexit to the impending trade war between the USA and China, we are well advised to make ourselves crisis-proof."""

There are already successes on this path: this year, for example, for the first time since 2013, production costs per vehicle would fall compared to the previous year. Tostmann told journalists that the production time for the Golf 8, which is to be presented on 24 October in Wolfsburg, would be shortened by 1.1 hours. VW does not give exact figures on the production time, according to information from our newspaper, the Golf 7 is around

In our region, the Wolfsburg headquarters is the only VW factory in which vehicles are produced. The Braunschweig and Salzgitter plants manufacture components. For Wolfsburg, the rule of thumb applies internally to VW that 800,000 cars have to be built there annually in order for the plant to be satisfactorily profitable. In 2018, however, capacity utilization in Wolfsburg was only around 700,000 vehicles - due to falling diesel demand and the problems with the conversion to the new consumption and exhaust gas test method WLTP.

"As Chief Production Officer Tostmann already announced last year, however, one million cars are to roll off the assembly line in Wolfsburg ""in perspective."" This should make it possible to bundle golf production at the main plant - because the Zwickau plant is handing over golf production by converting it to a location for e-car production."

In addition, the SUV Tiguan and Tarraco (Seat) are produced in Wolfsburg. However, the sales figures of Golf and Tiguan have recently declined. Therefore, expectations are now resting on the Golf 8. Despite all efforts to build up e-mobility, it is to remain the bread-and-butter car of the Wolfsburgers for the time being.

Young women from Nigeria have been sworn, smuggled into the Ruhr area and forced into prostitution. Six suspected traffickers have to go to prison for this.

Six suspected traffickers from Nigeria were sentenced to probation and imprisonment of up to eight years and three months in Bochum on Friday. The defendants had smuggled young women from Nigeria into the Ruhr area and forced them into prostitution. In order to force their obedience, the Nigerian women who wanted to leave had to take a ritual oath in front of a voodoo priest at home.

The victims were between 17 and 22 years old. They were brought across the Mediterranean with the help of Libyan smugglers in rubber dinghies. However, the dream of a better future was not fulfilled. Arriving in Germany, they were distributed to various brothels in order to pay the alleged smuggling costs of an average of 25,000 euros.

"The defendants - four men and two women - had admitted the infiltration and subsequent distribution of the young Nigerian women to brothels in the trial. ""The work made it difficult for the women physically and psychologically,"" said Judge Isabel Hoffmann at the sentencing. ""Some were really disgusted."""

The sentences are on commercial and gang infiltration of foreigners, human trafficking, pimping and severe forced prostitution.

FIn the ongoing dispute with the Lufthansa Group, the flight attendants' union Ufo has again threatened to strike.

"If the company does not return to the negotiating table, the union will ""inform about the industrial action in the LH Group on 14 October,"" Ufo CEO Daniel Flohr announced on Friday. Lufthansa and its subsidiary Eurowings have been refusing to conduct collective bargaining with Ufo for months, including the question of whether the union has legally terminated collective agreements with Lufthansa."

"Following a decision by the Frankfurt Labour Court, Ufo now sees itself strengthened on this point. Lufthansa wanted to state that the collective agreements had not been terminated. The court rejected the applications. The company confirmed the decision and is considering appealing against it. ""I think it is unlikely that a second court will see the matter completely differently,"" said Ufo CEO Flohr."

In August, Lufthansa also filed an application with the Frankfurt Regional Labour Court to have UFO's status as a union reviewed in court. The company argues that the union has not appointed a board of directors entitled to represent for months and is thus unable to fulfil its role as a collective bargaining partner.

This was preceded by a fierce leadership dispute in the trade union, during which numerous members of the Executive Board and the Advisory Board resigned, including the long-standing union chief Nicoley Baublies. Due to doubts about its leadership, the UFO had suspended an already begun ballot on strikes by cabin crew at Eurowings at the end of July.

Until now, Saudi Arabia was not exactly known as an international tourist magnet, but that is about to change. The Persian Gulf country wants to introduce new visa regulations.

With a new visa system, Saudi Arabia wants to attract more international tourists in the future. By 2030, it wants to increase the number of international and domestic visitors to 100 million per year, the Tourism Commission announced.

"""The opening of Saudi Arabia to international tourists is a historic moment for our country,"" said Ahmad Al-Khatib, Chairman of the Tourism Commission."

Saudi Arabia has so far been difficult for tourists to access. Visas are usually only granted for short business trips, religious pilgrimages or visitors with relatives in the desert state. With the new rules, the arch-conservative kingdom hopes for more revenue from the tourism business. According to its own statement, Riyadh wants to reduce its dependence on the oil trade.

In mid-September, several rockets and drones hit two of the most important oil facilities in eastern Saudi Arabia: the country's largest oil refinery in Abkaik and the Churais oil field. As a result, national oil production collapsed drastically and oil price shots soared. It is likely to take several weeks for the kingdom's oil production to return to its old level.

Justin and Hailey Bieber stuck in preparations for wedding party

Singer Justin Bieber (25) and his wife Hailey (22) are preparing for their wedding party. The model posted several party photos in her Instagram Stories on Thursday (local time) showing her in a white wedding look. Reality star Kendall Jenner (23) and others had organized a bachelorette party in Los Angeles, according to People magazine.

"Justin posted several colorful suits printed with bananas on Instagram and asked his followers: ""Help me choose my tuxedo for the wedding."" According to media reports, the celebrity couple wants to get married in church next weekend."

The Biebers said yes a year ago in a New York registry office. There had been no bigger celebration at that time.

"In a recent interview with Australian Vogue, Hailey explained that the two had found a common level after initial problems: ""If you don't want to compromise, you can't have a relationship."""

Two people were killed in the crash of a small plane in the western Czech Republic. The wreck was discovered on Friday in a wooded area near the city of Mecin (Metschin), the police said. The dead were a 38-year-old woman and a 64-year-old man.

The authorities had been searching for the plane since Thursday evening after the crew had given a distress signal via GPS. A military helicopter was also deployed during the search. The cause of the accident has yet to be determined. The crash site is located about 30 kilometres south of Pilsen (Plzen) and 100 kilometres northeast of Regensburg.

In addition to pests, diseases, alien species, unsustainable logging and the growth of cities are also causes of the threat, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) reported on Friday in Brussels. It examined the stocks of all 454 tree species known in Europe. 265 of them do not occur on any other continent. Of these 265, 58 percent are threatened. 66 are already at the highest level of endangerment and thus facing extinction.

"The IUCN divides endangered species into six categories: from ""potentially endangered"" to ""endangered,"" ""endangered,"" ""critically endangered"" and ""extinct in nature"" to ""extinct."" In total, it lists more than 28,000 animal and plant species worldwide as endangered."

"In Germany, rowans (Sorbus) in particular are threatened, said one of the authors, David Allen, of the German Press Agency. ""Most are threatened because the populations are small anyway or by the transformation or weakening of their habitats."""

"It also looks bad for the wild common horse chestnuts. They have been considered ""endangered"" since 2017, level two of the IUCN scale. In addition to a fungus, the biggest threat is the Balkan miner moth. It has spread from southeastern Europe across the continent since the 1980s and has hardly any natural enemies. IUCN estimates the number of wild horse chestnuts (Aesculus hippocastanum) in Europe at less than 10,000 specimens. The trees in cities, parks and avenues are not taken into account in this assessment."

At the same time, the IUCN scientists compiled new European red lists for molluscs, shrubs and mosses. More than a fifth of molluscs and mosses and almost half of all shrub species are threatened, according to the IUCN. This is mainly due to the destruction of the wilderness, introduced species, agricultural practices and climate change. Molluscs such as snails played a key role in recycling nutrients in the soil and are an important food source for birds and other animals.

"""This report shows that the situation is precarious for many overlooked and underestimated species, species that form the backbone of the European ecosystem and contribute to a healthy planet,"" said Luc Bas, IUCN Director of the European Office. ""We need to limit the impact of humans on our ecosystems and make the protection of these species a priority."""

34 people were injured in the recent earthquake in Turkey. According to the figures, there were no deaths. Dozens of people had to leave their homes, 14 schools in Istanbul were closed for security reasons, Turkish Vice President Fuat Oktay said on Friday.

Hundreds of buildings were damaged. Since the earthquake the day before, there have been almost 200 aftershocks. The earthquake of magnitude 5.8 shook the Marmara region off Istanbul on Thursday and caused panic in the metropolis of millions.

Now the government wants to set up a commission to better prepare the country for earthquakes in the future, Oktay announced. In the past 20 years, Turkey has not been sufficiently prepared for quakes, said Istanbul's mayor Ekrem Imamoglu.

Under the Sea of Marmara lies a section of the so-called North Anatolian Fault, which marks the border between the Eurasian and Anatolian plates.

One of the worst earthquakes was one of the magnitude 7.6 in 1999 near Istanbul. The epicenter was then in Gölcük, southeast of Istanbul. More than 17,000 people were killed.

Already on Tuesday, a magnitude 4.6 earthquake shook the region around Istanbul. Authorities called on residents to stay away from damaged buildings.

Super Bowl 2020: Jennifer Lopez (JLo) and Shakira perform in the halftime show

"Latin pop singers Jennifer Lopez and Shakira will lead the halftime show of the next American football final Super Bowl, as the singers announced on Twitter. ""It won't get any bigger,"" Shakira wrote to a photo of herself and Lopez. She is incredibly excited to be on the Super Bowl stage. It will be in Miami on February 2, 2020."

"Jennifer Lopez explained that she had dreamed of performing at the Super Bowl since 1996 - when she saw Diana Ross fly to the sky at the halftime show. ""Now it's even more special because the NFL is 100 years old and I'm going to perform with another Latina."" She couldn't wait ""to show what we girls can do on the biggest stage in the world."""

"Shakira pointed out in a statement that she was honored to stand alongside another artist on one of the biggest stages worldwide and to represent Latinos and Latinas from the USA and around the world. ""And then on my birthday!"" The main sponsor of the event wrote on Twitter that it was the first time that the two ""queens"" have been on stage together."

Shakira is from Colombia. Jennifer Lopez was born in New York and her parents are from Puerto Rico.

The Super Bowl is the highlight of the American football season. The game and the halftime show are among the most watched TV broadcasts in the USA. Even though you've recently dropped viewing figures, this February the spectacle in the US attracted the fewest viewers in more than ten years. Nevertheless, it was still nearly a hundred million people on average.

There had been an uproar about the halftime show of the last Super Bowl in advance: According to media reports, top stars like Rihanna, Pink and Cardi B did not want to perform in the dispute over the handling of quarterback Colin Kaepernick last February. Finally, the pop group Maroon 5 led the halftime show - the reviews were not friendly.

Kaepernick, then quarterback of the San Francisco 49ers, had gone to his knees in the 2016-17 season before NFL games at the national anthem in protest against police violence and racism. With his protest Kaepernick triggered a movement, numerous players took over the gesture. This caused great excitement, US President Donald Trump attacked the mostly African-American football stars sharply. Kaepernick himself has been without a club since March 2017 and has not played an NFL game. He accuses the clubs of not wanting to hire him for political reasons.

According to a press report, the bankruptcy of travel provider Thomas Cook is likely to cost some banks dearly. There is a risk of high write-downs on outstanding bonds and loans. Credit Suisse is also affected, writes the Financial Times in its Friday issue.

According to the report, banks such as Barclays, Morgan Stanley, UniCredit and Credit Suisse would probably have to write down a total of up to 1.8 billion British pounds (around 2 billion euros) on their books, according to estimates by the consulting firm AlixPartners.

Bond creditors would have to accept write-downs of £900 million to £1 billion and lenders between £550 million and £825 million, with the actual amounts to be written off more likely to be at the upper end of the range, an expert told the paper.

"How big the losses of the creditors will actually be in the end will become apparent after the end of the insolvency proceedings. A person close to these proceedings did not radiate too much hope. For example, the approximately 40 Thomas Cook aircraft in Great Britain are ""old"" and many of the properties are in bad locations. The most money can probably be obtained with the sale of the airport slots and the Thomas Cook brand, it continued."

"Sea Watch captain Carola Rackete may have brought men to Italy who allegedly tortured and killed people in Libya. ""We cannot rule this out, but we have no reliable information about it ourselves,"" Ruben Neugebauer, spokesman for the refugee organization Sea-Watch, told the dpa news agency."

"Other migrants recognised the three men in Italy. They are accused of raping, torturing and killing people in Libya. The alleged perpetrators were arrested in the reception camp in Messina, Italy. Neugebauer stressed that the refugee organizations could not check who they let on their ships. ""They come without passports."""

Carola Rackete had illegally brought migrants to the port of Lampedusa on 29 June, ramming a ship of the Italian financial police. On that day, the three suspects are also said to have arrived there. Investigations are ongoing against the captain for aiding illegal immigration.

The head of the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Ajit Pai, has warned the German government not to trust the Chinese network supplier Huawei.

"We believe that the risks are too great, ""Pai told Handelsblatt with a view to setting up the new 5G mobile network."

"China has a ""national security law"" that requires every company ""under Chinese jurisdiction"" to follow instructions from the security forces."

"Current law also prohibits companies from informing third parties about such requests, ""the FCC CEO continued, making it very difficult to have confidence in the integrity of technical equipment and services."

"In the meantime, the Federal Government has agreed to demand a ""declaration of trust"" from suppliers."

"Berlin first wants to try to control the risks, for example with technical solutions, reports the ""Handelsblatt,"" citing its own information."

Pai doubts that this is possible. 5G technology does not only consist of hardware:

"Especially the software is important to keep the devices up to date. This software consists of billions of lines of program code that change over time, ""said Pai."

"It is ""very difficult to imagine"" that a government agency, ""no matter where, would be able to check every single update in real time to detect security risks,"" the FCC chief continued."

He accuses the Chinese company Huawei of close contacts with the Chinese state apparatus:

"The ownership is opaque. The employee company that allegedly owns the company is not necessarily independent of the government, ""Pai told Handelsblatt."

The US has findings that government employees are placed within the company. Pai was recently in Berlin for talks to promote the US position.

At night, local residents hear explosions. A gigantic wall of fire illuminates the sky above a northern French chemical factory. The fire is extinguished after hours - but the cleanup could now take days.

After a fire in a chemical factory in the northern French city of Rouen on Thursday, schools and crèches in the region remain closed.

In twelve municipalities, the facilities would not open on Friday as a precautionary measure, the responsible prefecture announced. The Ministry of the Interior had asked citizens to stay in buildings as far as possible and not expose themselves to the smoke. There were no injuries. Farmers and breeders were called upon to bring their animals indoors, protect their feed and stop harvesting for the time being.

The fire was completely extinguished on Thursday evening, according to the prefecture. There is still a risk that smell will spread after the extinguishing, according to the prefecture on Twitter. According to the prefecture, 240 firefighters as well as 90 police and gendarmes were deployed at the scene of the fire.

A gigantic black column of smoke had previously risen from the chemical factory. French media reported huge flames and explosions at the Lubrizol factory, which produces additives for oils. The production plant is located a few kilometres from the city centre.

According to the authorities, the factory in Normandy belongs to the so-called Seveso category of dangerous sites, which are particularly monitored. In Seveso, Italy, near Milan, a devastating chemical accident occurred in 1976.

"The prefect of the Normandy region, Pierre-André Durand, told the news channel BFMTV that no ""high toxicity"" had been detected in samples at first. However, pollution of the nearby Seine could not be ruled out. Dams against pollution had been built in the river, the prefecture said."

The fire broke out early in the morning at around 2: 40 a.m., the authorities reported. The cause remained unclear at first. Rouen is a regional metropolis and is located on the Seine between Paris and the port city of Le Havre.

French Economy and Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire has called on Germany to invest more to boost economic growth in the eurozone.

"Germany must invest now, the sooner the better, ""Le Maire said on Thursday evening at the presentation of the French budget for the coming year."

"We must not wait for the economic situation to get worse to take the necessary decisions. """

Those states that have budgetary room for manoeuvre for more investment must act, said Le Maire, among other things, with regard to Germany.

"France does not have these margins, the minister added, pointing to his country's high public debt, which amounts to more than 98 percent of gross domestic product. French public debt must be ""stabilized"" and ""reduced,"" said Le Maire."

In recent years, France has repeatedly appealed to Germany to make more public investments in order to revive the European economy. In return, German politicians have repeatedly called on France to get its budget deficit under control.

The French budget for 2020 presented on Thursday provides for tax relief of more than nine billion euros for households.

Among other things, the French government is reacting to the protests of the Yellow Vest movement. New debt is expected to fall to 2.2 percent, after an expected 3.1 percent this year.

Is he still trying to trick?: Johnson dodges question on Brexit tactics

"British Prime Minister Johnson strongly criticizes the ""surrender law"" passed by Parliament."

Parliament is back, a law requires the British prime minister to avoid a chaos Brexit. However, critics fear that Boris Johnson could still use a loophole. Asked about this possibility, however, the Tory politician evades.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is keeping a low profile on whether he wants to push through an unregulated Brexit - despite the law recently passed by Parliament, which is intended to prevent exactly that. In response to a question, Johnson merely told journalists that his government would abide by applicable law.

"The law stipulates that the government must request a postponement of the withdrawal date if no agreement with the EU is reached by mid-October. Johnson criticizes this as a ""surrender law"" that makes negotiations with the EU more difficult."

"Former British Prime Minister John Major had expressed the suspicion on Thursday that Johnson could try to use ""political harassment"" to circumvent the law. The prime minister could use a procedural trick to postpone the law's entry into force until after leaving the EU. Johnson said he was seeking a treaty with the European Union. ""We are confident of leaving the EU on 31 October, and the best way is with an agreement."""

"Johnson's chief adviser Dominic Cummings, meanwhile, declared that he perceived the political disputes over Brexit as a ""walk in the park"" and was confident that the desired exit from the EU would still come about: ""We enjoy it, we will win, we will (editor's note: leave the EU), don't worry,"" Cummings told the British newspaper ""Telegraph"" at a book launch."

"Cummings, who led the Brexit campaign ""Vote Leave"" during the election campaign before the 2016 EU referendum, now serves as chief strategist in the British government headquarters of Downing Street. He is said to be behind the uncompromising policies that have led the prime minister into an almost hopeless situation."

"Jimi Hendrix, Bob Dylan or Janis Joplin - they all stood in front of the camera of Linda McCartney, who has become one of the great rock photographers. But it doesn't always have to be the great glamour. The photo book ""The Polaroid Diaries"" dives deep into the very private world of the McCartney family."

"Paul McCartney, who was married to her from 1969 until Linda's death in 1998, was visibly proud and moved when he presented the illustrated book ""The Polaroid Diaries"" at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London in mid-September. Illustrious guests included Ringo Starr, Stella McCartney, Olivia Harrison and Pretenders frontwoman Chrissie Hynde."

"After the launch event, McCartney wrote on Instagram: ""# ThePolaroidDiaries is a glimpse into the life of an extraordinary pre-Instagram family, a celebration of LindaMcCartney's legacy as a dedicated artist and the instant magic of Polaroid film."""

"With Linda McCartney, who had studied art history at the University of Aizona until she found photography, the camera was always there. She made thousands of Polaroids, several hundred of them are now published for the first time in ""The Polaroid Diaries."""

"They are portraits, still lifes, landscapes, several hamsters, a sheep in the kitchen and other interiors from the early 70s to the late 90s. ""She wanted real moments,"" writes art critic Ekow Eshun in his preface. And of course, the focus is always on one: her husband Paul - as you may never have seen him before."

There he dances with his daughter Mary on his shoulders, talks on the phone in a bathrobe with a bag on his head or wears misshapen moonboots. Sure, the McCartneys were an extraordinary family, but they also lived a normal life beyond the spotlight on their farm in southern England or in Scotland. According to the BBC, Mary McCartney said that as a baby she had slept in a bed her father had made from old potato boxes. And it hasn't always been tidy with the McCartneys.

Like hardly any other medium, the Poloraid camera captures the immediate moment. Linda McCartney's shots are certainly a kind of family diary, but they are much more than just snapshots.

"It's about the decisive click: you have to recognize when a great photo happens in front of you. And then you have to take it at exactly the right moment, ""said Paul McCartney."" If you snap two seconds later or two seconds earlier, it can be a completely different photo. ""And Linda would have had the gift of always capturing exactly the right moment."" She just knew she had it, ""Paul said in the Eshun essay."

"The light, the composition, the picture detail and the colours are right, which makes ""The Polaroid Diaries"" not only an entertaining picture book for Beatles fans, but also a great aesthetic pleasure, where landscapes sometimes seem like abstract paintings. The perfect complement to the newly released Beatles album ""Abbey Road,"" which was released exactly 50 years ago."

Turkey wants to continue importing oil and gas from the neighbouring country despite the US sanctions imposed on Iran. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said in an interview published on Friday that Turkey could not cut off oil and gas imports from Iran.

"We will continue to buy our natural gas from there, ""Erdogan said in New York, where he attended the UN General Assembly."

"However, Erdogan admitted that Turkey had problems importing Iranian oil, as some companies had ""withdrawn because of US threats."""

"Nevertheless, Turkey will ""continue our relations with Iran, especially on this issue and on many other issues,"" said the Turkish president, who has repeatedly criticized US sanctions against Iran in the past."

"Since its withdrawal from the international nuclear agreement with Iran, the US has pursued a policy of ""maximum pressure"" against the Islamic Republic. According to the US, Iran is secretly pursuing a nuclear program and does not abide by the agreement."

Their sanctions have led to the collapse of Iranian oil exports and a severe economic crisis in Iran. Tensions in the Gulf region have intensified considerably in recent months.

The US government wants to drastically restrict the admission of refugees. The US State Department said on Thursday that the annual ceiling of a resettlement program should be lowered from the current 30,000 to 18,000 refugees, a cut of 40 percent.

The State Department said that while the US remains committed to supporting refugees, the most important task is to protect and serve US citizens. Currently, the US immigration system is overburdened.

In the future, the US government wants to focus on taking in two refugee groups: people who are persecuted for their faith - and Iraqis who have helped the US military in the country and are thus in danger, according to the State Department statement. By contrast, a maximum of 1,500 refugees are to be taken in from Honduras, Guatemala and El Salvador.

Launched in 1980, the program selects refugees from UN camps around the world and resettles them in the U.S. The ceiling of 18,000 refugees for the 2020 budget year would be the lowest in the program's history. Even the current ceiling of 30,000 is a low. When US President Donald Trump's predecessor, Barack Obama, left the White House, the number was just under 85,000.

"Aid agencies reacted in horror to the announced lowering of the ceiling. ""This is a very sad day for America,"" said International Rescue Committee chief David Miliband, further damaging the US's leadership in protecting the world's most vulnerable people."

Trump is trying to strictly limit immigration to the US - both legally and illegally. According to its own figures, the US government expects 350,000 asylum applications for the coming budget year. These figures are separate from the resettlement program.

"US President Donald Trump has accused whistleblowers of espionage in the whistleblower affair. Whoever gave evidence to the informant who accused him of abuse of power ""comes close to an informer,"" Trump said, according to a recording of a private event in New York on Thursday, according to several US media outlets."

"When asked about the person who informed the whistleblower about controversial events in the White House, he replied, ""That comes close to an informer."" Then Trump added, ""Do you know what we did in the old days when we were smart? Right. The spies and betrayal, we used to deal with it a bit differently than we do now."""

Observers evaluated the latter remark as a possible allusion to the death penalty. Democrats strongly criticized Trump's remarks and accused him of intimidating witnesses. It was also an attempt to obstruct a congressional inquiry into possible impeachment proceedings against him, the chairmen of the House Foreign Affairs, Intelligence and Oversight Committees wrote.

In a now published complaint, the whistleblower accuses the president of abusing his office to ask for another country to interfere in the 2020 US election. Specifically, his controversial phone call with his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky in the summer: In the conversation, Trump suggested that he launch an investigation into his possible Democratic challenger Joe Biden and his son Hunter in Ukraine. Trump denies any wrongdoing.

It is still unclear who both the whistleblower himself and his informants are. However, as the New York Times reports, the whistleblower is said to be an analyst of the foreign intelligence agency CIA.

Again and again people try to cross the Aegean Sea from Turkey to Greece. The often far too small boats regularly capsize. Seven migrants have now died in the sinking of a rubber dinghy - including five children.

Seven migrants died in the sinking of a rubber dinghy off the Greek island of Chios. Among the fatalities were a baby and four other children, the Greek Coast Guard reported. Four children, three women and five men were rescued from the floods by the crew of a passing ferry.

Among the victims is said to be a smuggler, reported the local news portal of Chios, Alithia.gr. The migrants had left Turkey in the morning. They had tried to reach the small archipelago of Inousses in the northeast of the island of Chios. Inousses is located between Chios and the Turkish mainland.

It is not yet known which countries the migrants come from. Currently, hundreds of migrants from Turkey are transferring to the Greek islands in the east of the Aegean Sea, mostly in far too small boats. Last year, according to the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), 174 people were killed on this route.

"A US concert by the rock band The Who has come to an abrupt end due to an indisposition of lead singer Roger Daltrey. In the middle of the performance on Wednesday night (local time) in Houston, his voice failed the service. On the eighth song, Daltrey told the audience, ""I think I should leave it while it's still running."""

"Lead guitarist Pete Townsend asked for an apology and added that Daltrey ""really couldn't speak now."" Townsend promised the audience to get his money's worth at a reparation concert, but a date has not yet been fixed."

The Who cancelled performances scheduled for Friday in Dallas and Sunday in Denver. They are scheduled to be made up at a later date. 75-year-old Daltrey and his 74-year-old bandmate Townsend are the only remaining founding members. The British cult band formed 55 years ago.

Rental suddenly stopped: WeWork makes real estate markets tremble

Within a few years, WeWork is rising from a small startup to a driving force in the world's most expensive real estate markets. But now the company is in crisis. Landlords have to fear for billions in revenue.

"The crisis of office landlord WeWork threatens to disrupt the balance in the world's largest real estate markets. A few days ago, the company removed founder Adam Neumann as boss, postponed the planned IPO and started selling subsidiaries and assets such as the private jet for executives in order to gain financial leeway for the coming weeks and months. In addition, the British ""Financial Times"" reports that WeWork has stopped completing new rentals with immediate effect, making the largest tenant of office space suddenly off the market in New York and London, among others."

WeWork rents large office space on a long-term basis and rents them out to members at short notice in sometimes small units. These can be individual freelancers, small startups or entire departments of large corporations. So far, WeWork has been burning money at breathtaking speed with this business. Last year, the company posted a loss of 1.6 billion dollars, with a turnover of 1.8 billion dollars. This year, rental costs alone are said to have risen to an estimated 2.5 billion dollars by renting ever new large spaces. In order to limit the loss, the new management is now said to have pulled the emergency brake and stopped renting new space with immediate effect.

According to the Financial Times, WeWork has now concluded leases with maturities of up to 15 years, resulting in commitments of more than $40 billion. These huge liabilities could become a problem not only for the company itself and its investors, but for entire real estate markets.

"According to calculations by economist Dan Alpert of Cornell Law School in New York, WeWork in Manhattan, one of the most expensive real estate markets in the world, rented nearly 300,000 square meters of office space in the past 24 months. WeWork's new contracts alone ensured that the demand for offices in New York was greater than the space newly launched during that time. Without WeWork's expansion, office vacancy in the US metropolis would have increased during this time, as Alpert wrote in the ""Business Insider."" The situation is similar in London, where WeWork now operates several dozen office locations in a prime location."

In the British capital, too, the balance in the real estate market could shift noticeably without a further expansion of the aggressive startup. Among other things, WeWork is the main tenant in an office building in the centre of the financial metropolis bought last year by the Sparkassen fund provider Deka for almost 100 million euros.

Many landlords have converted their properties to meet the requirements of WeWork with high investments. If WeWork fails to make its business model profitable soon, the property owners would probably have to write off part of the hoped-for billions in revenue. Despite the long-term leases, they do not have access to WeWork's - already scarce - reserves. Because the rental of WeWork's individual locations is usually carried out by specially founded subsidiaries, so-called Special Purpose Vehicles, for which the parent company is only liable within narrow limits.

The Russian Coast Guard has once again taken action against North Korean fishermen. In recent days, a total of 262 poachers have been arrested who have fished illegally in the waters, the Russian domestic intelligence agency FSB told the Interfax agency on Friday.

Just ten days ago, 161 fishermen from North Korea were arrested. Previously, the border guards had been shot at and three of them injured. This time there were no casualties, they said. Communist North Korea is suffering from chronic food shortages.

The North Korean fishermen were therefore traveling in Russian territorial waters, where the Russian Coast Guard says it is patrolling to protect its marine biological resources. 30,000 squid were discovered during the renewed checks. In addition, according to the data, three fishing boats and two motor boats were confiscated and brought to Nakhodka and Posjet near Vladivostok. According to the Ria Novosti agency, the Coast Guard detected a total of more than 8,000 violations in 2018.

Even after complaints from local entrepreneurs, the Russian Fisheries Authority had not issued fishing licences to the North Koreans this year. According to the media, thousands of fishermen from North Korea have already been temporarily arrested there in 2019.

The head of the Association of Russian Fisheries Companies in the Far Eastern region of Primorye, Georgi Martynov, recently also complained of high ecological damage caused by North Korean fishermen. They fished with close-knit synthetic nets banned in Russia. These would also take small creatures out of the sea. Moreover, the nets would simply be disposed of in the sea, where they would take 200 years to decompose. Nor would the ships themselves comply with hygienic and technical regulations.

According to Moscow, three members of the Russian Coast Guard were injured in the arrests the previous week. According to the FSB, a North Korean who was also wounded later died of his injuries. On September 17, Russian border guards first detained a North Korean boat and then a second one after it opened fire.

"The US has imposed entry bans on former Cuban President Raúl Castro and his children. The US State Department justified this in a statement on Thursday with Castro's involvement in ""gross human rights violations."" As head of the Communist Party of the Caribbean state, he presides over a system in which thousands of Cubans are arbitrarily arrested and there are more than 100 political prisoners."

"As chairman of the armed forces, the brother of the late revolutionary leader Fidel Castro is also complicit in human rights violations there by supporting the President of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro. ""The disregard for human rights and the use of force by the Cuban regime to support the former Maduro regime are responsible for the ongoing crises in Cuba and Venezuela,"" tweeted American Secretary of State Mike Pompeo."

President Donald Trump issued entry bans on Wednesday against members of the Venezuelan government and the military, among others. A bitter power struggle between the government and the opposition has been raging in Venezuela for months. The US has imposed a whole series of sanctions on Maduro's government to bring him to his knees and help the opposition leader and self-proclaimed interim president Juan Guaidó to power.

Cuba is considered one of Maduro's closest allies. The socialist Caribbean island receives oil from Venezuela in exchange for the services of seconded doctors. According to the US and the Venezuelan opposition, Cuba has also sent numerous intelligence agents to Venezuela to help the government suppress opponents of the government.

One week after the biggest international climate protests to date, thousands and thousands of people want to take to the streets again today for more climate protection.

At the end of an international climate strike week, the Fridays for Future movement is once again planning actions and rallies in dozens of countries worldwide. Due to the time difference, New Zealand and Australia are likely to start before the protests move across Europe to North America. There, climate activist Greta Thunberg wanted to participate in a major rally in Montreal, Canada. Demonstrators also wanted to gather in front of the White House in Washington.

"How big the worldwide popularity will be this Friday after the record turnout of the previous week is relatively unclear. Thunberg himself was in good spirits. ""Last Friday, more than four million people went on strike for the climate. We'll do it again this Friday!"" she wrote on Twitter. So far, there have been 6383 actions in 170 countries as part of the strike week, she added."

According to estimates by Fridays for Future, a good third of all demonstrators worldwide - around 1.4 million - took part in the protests in 575 German cities. This time, according to a list of the movement, rallies are planned in at least 65 cities. Among them in metropolises such as Berlin, Hamburg, Munich and Cologne, but also in smaller municipalities and cities such as Jüchen in North Rhine-Westphalia or Westerland on Sylt, people want to take to the streets for the climate.

At the age of 15, Thunberg sat before the Swedish parliament in August 2018 to call on her country's politicians to make a stronger commitment to climate protection. Within a short time, the Fridays for Future movement emerged. The climate protests are mainly attended by pupils and students, but increasingly also by scientists and other adults.

Together they demand more ambition from politicians in the fight against global heating and the impending climate catastrophe. Above all, according to the Paris climate agreement, global warming must be contained to below 1.5 degrees compared to pre-industrial times.

Thunberg arrived in New York almost a month ago after a two-week transatlantic cruise on a deep-sea racing yacht, where she had recently participated in climate protests and United Nations summits. On Monday, she gave an emotional speech at the UN in which she spoke forcefully into the conscience of the world's leaders. In her native Stockholm, she was awarded the Alternative Nobel Prize of the Right Livelihood Foundation on Wednesday for her commitment to more climate protection.

"People in Russia will no longer be allowed to smoke on the balcony. This provides for a change in fire protection. ""This also applies to smoking,"" a spokesman for the Ministry of Emergencies told the Tass agency in Moscow on Thursday. The ban is scheduled to enter into force on 1 October."

Those who smoke nevertheless have to expect a fine of 3,000 rubles (42.46 euros). If the cigarette should light a fire, then the penalty is higher. According to the ministry, the ban also includes burning candles. Also grilling meat skewers on the balcony is no longer permitted.

In the fight against crimes on the Internet, German investigators have for the first time excavated a large server provider for illegal transactions on the darknet.

A total of 13 perpetrators are suspected of having hosted numerous websites through which international criminals operated their machinations as operators of a data centre in a former NATO bunker in Traben-Trarbach on the Moselle.

This was announced by the Attorney General's Office in Koblenz. Seven suspects were arrested in a major action on Thursday evening. The darknet is a shielded part of the Internet.

"Customers of the suspects are said to have been the operators of the world's second largest darknet marketplace for drugs, ""Wall Street Market,"" which investigators had smashed in the spring. According to the Attorney General's Office, the attack on 1.25 million telecom routers at the end of November 2016 was also controlled via a server in the cyberbunker."

Such a hoster was excavated for the first time in Germany, it said. A web hoster provides the infrastructure for an internet presence.

During the access operation with the support of special forces such as the GSG9, there were searches in Germany and neighbouring countries. It was the result of almost five years of investigations. At noon, the investigators want to inform about further details.

At the end of an international climate strike week, the Fridays for Future movement once again planned actions and rallies in dozens of countries worldwide.

In Germany, protests are planned in at least 65 cities, including metropolises such as Berlin, Hamburg, Munich and Cologne, but also in smaller municipalities and cities such as Jüchen in North Rhine-Westphalia or Westerland on Sylt. Climate activist Greta Thunberg wants to take part in a major rally in Montreal, Canada.

A sense of justice and courage are high virtues, even in the 21st century, in a world full of war and smoke factories that warm the climate. All the more astonishing that a 16-year-old girl of all people holds the mirror in front of the power people of this time. But what is behind it? Is it helpfulness or clever marketing of a climate activist? Historical masterpiece or manipulative tactics for its own sake?

On the one hand, Greta Thunberg sets the masses in motion and gets young people to rise up for a better climate-friendly world. Historically, it is not the first time in Europe that a young person manages to win over a collection of children and young people. Already in 1212, a child named Nicholas from Cologne felt chosen to work for a fairer world. At that time, he was also able to win over a crowd of young people and persuaded them to cross the sea to reach the Promised Land, similar to how Greta Thunberg recently set out on a journey to America with a sailboat.

"But is there a downside in this regard? Why does it take a stock called ""We don't have time"" to save the world? In addition, Greta Thunberg has rich PR managers at her side. By the way, her mother has published a book, which has sold extensively, thanks to the daughter in the spotlight. Also tried and tested followers of Greta Thunberg were a little indignant about the last PR show, or the journey by boat was probably too thick for some successors. This is also not unfounded, because the action came into its own very well in the media worldwide and a lot of money flows thanks to the impressive action."

Here the spirits are now divided: Is it morally right to enrich oneself financially in saving the world? Is it still authentic if certain circles of people work together with stockbrokers during the world rescue campaign? No matter which position is ultimately taken, a critical and reflected point of view is increasingly important in a democratically shaped society, because democracy thrives on different opinions and discussions. Therefore, it can make sense to critically question even seemingly pious projects of certain trendsetters.

Comet discovered: Interstellar guest crosses through our solar system

The assumptions of the astronomers have been confirmed: a foreign comet is currently crossing our solar system - it is only the second of its kind.

Garching / Washington - For a long time the researchers only suspected it, but now they have certainty: A comet from another star is currently crossing our solar system. It was christened after its discoverer 2I / Borisov and currently employs astronomers worldwide.

2I / Borisov: Comet was discovered by amateur astronomers in Crimea

The said body was discovered by an amateur astronomer named Gennady Borisov in Crimea. He looked at the sky with a homemade telescope and further follow-up observations confirmed his first suspicion. It is actually an unknown comet that does not originate from our solar system. It is only the second of its kind to be spotted during the flight.

The great opportunity for astronomers now is to catch up-close insights into a foreign solar system. Apparently, the comet resembles those of our own system, as reported by the astrophysical Institute of the Canaries. According to the International Astronomical Union (IAC), the comet is clearly of interstellar origin and is currently moving on a so-called hyperbolic orbit that leads it out of our system.

Comet was spotted before approach - and can be observed for several months

"But before the time comes, astronomers can observe it in detail, because unlike its predecessor, 2I / Borisov has already been spotted in its approach, which means that it can be studied from Earth for many months. ""The object will reach its greatest brightness in mid-December and will then be visible with medium-sized telescopes until April 2020,"" explains Davide Farnocchia of the US space agency Nasa. ""After that, it will only be observed with larger, professional telescopes until October 2020."""

"The predecessor of the new visitor: 1I / 2017 U1 ""Oumuamua."""

According to the initial findings, the comet is estimated to be 2 to 16 kilometres in diameter. At the same time, the celestial body seems to be similar to our comet - because as IAC researcher Julia de León puts it, the spectrum of the tail star is similar to ours. This observation suggests that comets in other solar systems could form through similar processes as in ours, added de León's colleague Javier Licandro.

However, the observation goes beyond individual findings. The fact that two such objects have already been discovered within only two years may allow a new way to explore certain processes in other solar systems.

Asteroids repeatedly occupy the researchers. Only recently a giant asteroid raced past Earth and came dangerously close to it.

"""Absolutely reprehensible"": Rachel Johnson horrified by brother"

"Boris Johnson is getting lonelier. First his younger brother leaves the cabinet, now his sister castigates with clear words the warlike language of the prime minister as ""tasteless."" It is not the brother she knows."

"""Capitulation,"" ""fraud,"" treaty "": Prime Minister Boris Johnson is under pressure and continues to arm - at least verbally. At Question Time in the House of Commons this Wednesday, this was met with massive outrage from the opposition, and in the meantime other critics have spoken out: dozens of bishops and his own sister Rachel Johnson."

"The well-known journalist and author told Sky News that her brother used words like surrender, as if the opponents of leaving the EU were to be ""hanged, elongated, quartered, tarred and feathered."" She thought this was extremely reprehensible. She did not recognise her brother's version, said Rachel Johnsons, who ran for the anti-Brexit party ""Change UK"" in the EU Parliament elections."

"She was particularly struck by the fact that her brother mentioned Jo Cox, a pro-EU MP who had been murdered by a neo-Nazi a few days before the 2016 exit referendum. Their memory could best be honoured by going through Brexit, Boris Johnson had said in the House of Commons. ""It is very distasteful to refer to an MP who was murdered by someone who shouted 'Britain first',"" now criticised Johnson's sister. The perpetrator had obviously come from the far-right camp, which felt empowered ""by this kind of language."" For all those who mourned her, it was very distasteful."

"The widower of Cox also sharply criticized the Prime Minister. ""It makes me sick when Jo's name is used like this,"" he tweeted. The best way to honor her is to stand up passionately and decisively for what you believe in - no matter what view you are. But you should never ""demonize the other side."" He also complained that an atmosphere had emerged in which attacks had become more likely."

"Just a few weeks ago, Boris Johnson's younger brother Jo resigned from his post as Secretary of State and his mandate as a Tory MP. ""I have been torn between loyalty to the family and the national interest in recent months - it is an indissoluble tension,"" Jo Johnson explained."

"Johnson's language has also met with sharp criticism in the Church. As the Times reports, all 118 bishops and archbishops of the Church of England criticize the language that is ""not worthy of this country."" In a joint statement, they declared: ""In recent days, the language has not been acceptable, both in debates and outside Parliament. We should speak to each other with respect."""

"In the year of its 100th anniversary, the NFL is sending a strong signal: In the halftime show of the upcoming Super Bowl, two women with Latino roots will perform, promising ""an explosion of fun and energy."""

Latina power at the Super Bowl: Superstars Shakira (42) and Jennifer Lopez (50) will deliver the halftime show at the upcoming final of the US football league NFL, the organizers announced on Thursday (local time).

"""I feel incredibly honored and humbled to represent the Latino community alongside JLo, because it has an incredible strength in the US,"" Shakira said in a video."

"The final of the American Football League, which celebrates its 100th birthday next year, will take place on February 2 in Miami. Many people with Latin American roots live in the metropolis at the southern tip of Florida. Shakira (""Waka Waka"") comes from Colombia, Lopez (""On the Floor"") is of Puerto Rican origin."

"""I love that this time the Super Bowl puts two women on stage - and two Latinas,"" Lopez explained. This sends an important message to all Americans and the world. She promises ""an explosion of fun and energy"" for the show."

"The 50-year-old was born in New York after her parents emigrated from Puerto Rico. In the 2000s she landed big hits with songs like ""Waiting For Tonight"" or ""Let's Get Loud"" and later also released songs in Spanish. Lopez also works as an actress and can be seen in German cinemas from November in the drama ""Hustlers."""

"Shakira became known in Colombia as the star of a telenovela and singer. She made her worldwide breakthrough in 2001 with her first bilingual album and the single ""Whenever, Whereever."""

The announcement of the mid-term guests is eagerly awaited every time in the US. This year, many see the selection as a political gesture. After all, the country is deeply divided, not least by President Donald Trump's immigration policy.

The Super Bowl is the biggest US sporting event and at the same time a gigantic advertising spectacle. Musicians like Justin Timberlake, Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Madonna, Bruno Mars and the Rolling Stones caused a sensation there. As a rule, well over 100 million television viewers watch the NFL finale, it is also extremely popular in Germany.

Last year there were political controversies in advance. The reason was the dispute over quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who had refused to rise while playing the national anthem in protest against police violence against blacks and had been harshly tackled by US President Donald Trump, among others. In solidarity with Kaepernick, some musicians had rejected a Super Bowl appearance - including Rihanna and Pink. The fact that the rock group Maroon 5 performed was ultimately criticized by many.

An actor and YouTuber attacks Egypt's ruler: For the time being, however, Mohamed Ali prefers to stay abroad.

The two men who influence whether blood is flowing again on the streets of Egypt have both spent the past week abroad. One of them floated back at Cairo airport on Friday. President Abdelfattah al-Sisi returned from the UN General Assembly. The ex-general, who deposed the Muslim Brother Mohamed Morsi, the country's first freely elected head of state, in 2013, had spent a pleasant time in New York: US President Donald Trump had praised Sisi's actions against political Islam and had not lost a syllable about the human rights violations on the Nile - in a week in which Egypt's security forces arrested hundreds of people for daring to protest against the president.

"According to the president, this is what the other man who is currently determining what is happening on the streets is trying to mislead. Mohamed Ali, of course, stayed abroad, where he evades the grip of the security forces, who would immediately arrest him if he tried to enter Egyptian soil. Weeks ago, the 45-year-old was known as an actor only to a minority of Egyptians. Today, he is the leading voice that dominates the political discourse in the country's cafés, living rooms and tea rooms: with his YouTube channel ""Mohamed's Secrets,"" Ali calls on his compatriots to rise up against Sisi."

He approaches the head of state directly and in quite rustic language. While the people are starving, the president indulges in luxury and has magnificent new palaces built, they say. Ali accuses the army leadership on which Sisi bases his rule of corruption and enrichment. Because he did business with exactly these gentlemen for 15 years in his second profession as a contractor, he seems to know quite exactly what he is talking about - at least that is the impression of many Egyptians, as the almost exploding click numbers show.

"After thousands demonstrated against his rule last week for the first time since Sisi's grip on power and nearly 2,000 citizens, among them prominent civil society figures, human rights lawyers and opposition politicians, were arrested, Ali called for a ""million-dollar march"" this Friday. It was unlikely that so many people would really venture into the streets. But there were isolated smaller protests, for example in Giza near Cairo and in the town of Kina near Luxor. Videos on social media showed protests whose participants accused Al-Sisi of corruption and demanded his departure. In these protests, the police also used tear gas and rubber bullets. These videos could not be independently verified"

"From the city of Mansura in the Nile Delta, where demonstrators tore banners with the portrait of the president to pieces last week, a massive police presence was reported on Friday. Security forces set up checkpoints in the city and on the arterial roads. In Cairo, several subway stations in the city centre were closed for ""maintenance work,"" most of the streets around Tahrir Square, the heart of the 2011 revolution, were blocked. And in Rabaa Square, where supporters of the ousted Muslim Brother Morsi entrenched themselves in 2013 until the army took them under fire and killed up to 800 people, another measure was intended to prevent dissatisfied people from gathering here: Sisi"

"Mohamed Ali prompted these arrangements to change his tactics: ""Our goal does not have to be Tahrir Square,"" Ali said in his video camera in Barcelona. ""Let's not clash with police officers."" But this is not to be understood as a withdrawal: ""All of Egypt is Tahrir Square."""

If the Internet connection always seems much slower than advertised by the provider, there are various test options.

Anyone who concludes an internet contract does not need to blindly trust the speed information of the providers. Customers can check for themselves how much of it is actually achieved in case of abnormalities.

After all, the previously promised transmission rates are a contractual component and should therefore also be achieved, explains the Bavarian Consumer Centre.

If the connection always seems much slower than advertised by the provider, there are various test options. For example, the measurement tools of the Federal Network Agency (BNetzA) measure the actual data transmission rates and compare them with the rate agreed in the contract.

"""However, the tests of the providers are carried out according to provider-specific specifications and are therefore not uniformly and objectively calculated,"" says the Bavarian Consumer Centre on its side."

If the connection is much slower than announced, customers can set the provider a reasonable period of usually 14 days to produce the promised service. Affected persons do this best in writing by registered letter.

If this does not work even after repeated requests, customers can terminate and under certain circumstances also claim damages. However, in the absence of success, only the course of action will help.

"As the first senior Republican, the governor of Vermont has called for an impeachment investigation into US President Donald Trump. ""I think the investigation is important, yes, and where that leads from here is determined by the facts that are established,"" Phil Scott said at a press conference on Thursday. He wants to know more about the whistleblower affair before action - an impeachment procedure can lead to the removal of the president - is taken."

"Scott said he was not surprised by revelations that Trump had repeatedly called on Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in a telephone call to investigate interventions by Democratic presidential candidate and former Vice President Joe Biden in Ukraine, because Trump has been watching Biden ""for years."""

Republicans have so far refrained from criticizing Trump over the whistleblower affair; few have shown unease about it. Scott's remarks are a first sign of this in Trump's party. Scott, a moderate Republican, has repeatedly opposed Trump's policies, such as relaxing environmental regulations and tightening immigration regulations.

"It was a shock for all Spider-Man fans: At the end of August it was announced that Sony and Marvel would go their separate ways in the future. Tom Holland's Spider-Man would no longer be part of the ""Avengers"" universe. It was completely unclear how the movies around Tom Holland would continue."

"Now the surprise: After ""Spider-Man: Homecoming"" and ""Spider-Man: Far From Home,"" Spider-Man receives another final third film within the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU). This is reported by several US media outlets. Accordingly, the theatrical release is already fixed: The film is scheduled to be released in the USA on July 16, 2021."

"In the magazine ""Screenrant,"" Marvel boos Kevin Feige is quoted as saying: ""I am delighted that Spidey's path will continue at the MCU. I and everyone at Marvel Studios are delighted that we can continue to work on it... He is the only superhero with the ability to play in different universes as Sony continues to work on his Spidey verse. You never know what the future will bring."""

But how does the sudden good news come about? Sony is said to have made an offer to Marvel. According to industry magazines, Disney, which also includes Marvel, would share 30 percent of the revenue of upcoming Spider-Man films. However, the news is not confirmed.

"Duchess Meghan and Prince Harry appear in the ""Suits"" finale"

"After nine seasons, the series ""Suits"" has now reached the grand finale in the USA. In the last episode there were many happy endings and just as many cameo appearances. And also the royal couple Prince Harry (35) and his Meghan (38), who worked on the show for many years, were charmingly paid tribute. Attention, the following sections contain spoilers for the series finale."

First of all: Duchess Meghan did not return in the finale for a last farewell greeting as Rachel Zane, at least not for new scenes. Instead, some reviews showed once again the most memorable scenes with today's Duchess. For example, the moments of the failed and successful wedding with Mike or how she greets him after his served prison sentence.

"But her real husband, Prince Harry, was also mentioned casually in the ""Suits"" finale, of course in a wedding scene. When Louis Litt (Rick Hoffman, 49) walks straight towards the altar to marry his fiancée Sheila (Rachael Harris, 51), Harvey Specter (Gabriel Macht, 47) makes a telling remark about his suit. Whether he actually threw himself on a frock coat, the puzzled Harvey wants to know from the groom, only to remark snippily: ""Louis, you're not the Prince of England."""

A baby and four other children drowned while capsizing a refugee boat in the Aegean Sea. A total of seven people died in the accident, according to the Greek Coast Guard on Friday. The nationalities are still unclear.

The boat sank near the Greek island of Inousses, which lies between the island of Chios and the Turkish mainland. Four children, three women and five men were rescued.

Currently, hundreds of migrants from Turkey are transferring to the Greek islands in the east of the Aegean Sea. Last year, according to the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), 174 people were killed on this route. Federal Minister of the Interior Horst Seehofer has now announced his intention to visit both countries.

"Together with his French colleague and the responsible EU Commissioner, he wanted to ""inform himself in Turkey about the refugee situation,"" Seehofer said on Friday. Afterwards, he wanted to learn more about the ""administrative problems of the Greeks"" in Athens in order to be able to help cope."

A spokeswoman for the EU Commission confirmed on Friday Seehofer's planned trip with EU Home Affairs Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos and France's Interior Minister Christophe Castaner.

An unusual number of migrants from Turkey continue to arrive in Greece. On Tuesday alone, 654 people transferred to the Greek islands, the Greek Ministry of Civil Protection said on Wednesday.

The increased figures recently raised doubts about the functioning of the EU-Turkey agreement concluded in 2016. This stipulates that the EU can send back all refugees and migrants who come illegally to the Greek islands via Turkey. In return, the EU wanted to take in a Syrian refugee from Turkey for every deported Syrian.

However, the processing of asylum applications is progressing with difficulty on the Greek side due to staff shortages. According to the Ministry of Civil Protection, almost 29,400 people are waiting on Lesbos, Chios, Samos, Leros and Kos. The situation on Lesbos is worst: 5,200 migrants are currently housed in a camp with capacity for 650 people.

Never since the entry into force of the EU-Turkey refugee pact in March 2016 have there been so many, the state radio reported.

"According to physicians, climate change will put the healthcare system to the test in the future. Climate changes are ""certainly"" one of the biggest challenges for the healthcare system in the next 20 to 50 years, said Andreas Zeiher, President of the German Society of Cardiology. Especially the cardiovascular system caused high temperatures and large temperature jumps within a short time and increasingly led to heart attacks. Especially people with cardiovascular diseases, the elderly and diabetics are affected."

Green Party politician must answer for embarrassing photo breakdown

The leader of the Canadian Greens, Elizabeth May, during the election campaign - was the cup manipulated for this reason?

The Canadian Green Party leader holds a reusable cup in her hand in a photo. But now it came out: The cup was manipulated.

Ottawa / Canada - It went unnoticed for quite a long time - and finally noticed. Elizabeth May, the leader of the Canadian Greens, never held the reusable coffee cup with a metal straw in her hand. On the party's website, she was seen in a photo with this cup, talking to citizens. However, the photo had been published before and also distributed to the media - and the cup was still a disgraceful (cardboard) cup, as the Canadian National Post reported.

"The National Post then accused May of manipulation and that the party was producing fake news to appear more credible on the subject of ""environmental protection,"" in the middle of an election campaign for the House of Commons, in which Trudeau is also finding it increasingly difficult because of a bribery scandal."

"The photo went viral on social media and fueled the discussion about fake news. One user shares a juxtaposition of the photos and writes: ""The Greens manipulate a photo of their chairmen to conceal their disposable cup."""

May was shocked and asserted on her blog that she had not known about this action. To underline this, she immediately posted the original: She, in conversation with citizens, a cup in her hand. However, she corrected, it was made of bamboo. She always had it with her. A spokeswoman for the party said that it was only a matter of placing the party logo in the picture, and not of covering up anything. Only an excerpt of the photo can be seen on the website.

"May writes that she is sorry for the employee who did this. ""I don't want to call him stupid, but there was nothing to hide,"" she told the Guardian and at the same time asked for something from her overcommitted team: ""If they feel like editing a picture again, couldn't they do something with my face so that I look younger?"""

The German Greens also got into shitstorms because of their use of disposable plastic or because of air travel - but their pictures were not photoshopped. So the head of the Bavarian Greens, Katharina Schulze, ate ice cream with plastic spoons on holiday, as merkur.de * reported.

Allegedly, Jaqueline Ng was assured of an upgrade by email from Cathay Pacific. But when she asked for it at check-in, she was not allowed on board - and she should never be allowed to fly with Cathay again.

Getting a spontaneous upgrade for Business Class - many passengers dream of it. Sometimes they are lucky, and the staff at check-in offer a change from Economy Class for free.

However, this case shows how not to do it: a self-declared influencer has actively asked the airline Cathay Pacific for a free upgrade. Jaqueline Ng is followed by more than 65,000 users on Instagram. She flew from Taiwan to New York on May 30 and back on June 7.

On the outbound flight, employees refused to upgrade Jaqueline, although she showed an email in which Cathay Pacific allegedly promised her an upgrade. The influencer claims to have received the letter from a marketing employee of the airline. The airline, on the other hand, accuses Jaqueline of falsifying the mail.

On the return flight, Jaqueline tried again to get an upgrade for the long-haul flight. This time, the woman is said to have shown the same mail, but with a different reference number. The employees at JFK airport were sceptical: they checked at the headquarters. And indeed, the employee from whom the mail allegedly came is said to have denied the mail contact with Jaqueline. This was also confirmed by the mail system, in which the messages did not appear.

The airline employees at the airport canceled Jaqueline's ticket and imposed a lifetime flight ban with Cathay Pacific. She had to buy a new flight ticket to Taiwan for 1,400 US dollars (around 1,280 euros).

With her case, the influencer turned to Elliot Advocacy, a company that represents consumer interests, because Cathay had reimbursed her for the price of her original ticket, but Jaqueline also demanded the cost of the new ticket back.

But as long as Jaqueline does not submit the metadata of the mail, the case remains clear: for Cathay, the influencer has committed fraud, she remains blocked for future flights. The airline's terms and conditions also state that she does not have to pay for the new flight. Jaqueline does not want to be satisfied with this - and now hires a lawyer.

Oil prices fell by more than one dollar within a very short time on Friday afternoon. Most recently, a barrel (159 litres) of the North Sea variety Brent cost 61.83 US dollars - about 1.4 percent less than the previous day. The price of a barrel of the American variety West Texas Intermediate (WTI) fell 1.3 percent to 55.77 dollars.

The slide was triggered by a Wall Street Journal report on a ceasefire in Yemen. Saudi Arabia is said to have agreed to a ceasefire in four areas.

A drone attack on the oil facilities in Saudi Arabia had brought five percent of global oil production to a standstill in mid-September. Iran-allied Houthi rebels in the civil war country of Yemen had claimed the attacks. Saudi Arabia, like the US government, blames Iran. A ceasefire would defuse the political tension in the region.

Should an agreement actually be reached, it would be possible to focus on growth and demand concerns, Ole Hansen, head of commodities strategy at Saxo Bank, told the Bloomberg news agency.

Oil prices are thus continuing their downward trend of the past few days. A week ago, a barrel of WTI oil had cost up to nearly $59, Brent nearly $65.

Most recently, Bloomberg, citing insiders, reported that repair work on oil facilities in Saudi Arabia was progressing faster than expected after the attack in mid-September. According to the report, production volumes had again reached a volume of eight million barrels per day and were moving back towards the original volume.

Recently, there have been several press releases citing insiders reporting rapid progress by the state-owned oil company Saudi Aramco in the repair work. However, commodity experts pointed out that Saudi Aramco is currently planning an IPO and wants to avoid negative headlines.

"At the same time, there was some easing in the conflict between Iran and Western countries: the British oil tanker ""Stena Impero"" is on its way to leaving the port more than two months after being detained by Iran and the recently granted clearance. The crew is now preparing to depart while the ship is still anchored, shipping chief Erik Hånell told Swedish radio in a text message on Friday morning."

However, the US announced that it would deploy defensive missiles and soldiers to the Iranian arch-enemy in Saudi Arabia. Fears of an escalation between the Islamic Republic and countries such as the US and Britain had at times pushed up oil prices significantly in recent weeks.

"In the affair over possible abuse of power by US President Donald Trump, allegations of cover-up have been raised against the White House. Several leading government officials have made intensive efforts to prevent access to the wording of the conversation after a contentious phone call between Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky at the end of July, an anonymous whistleblower said. House Speaker Nancy Pelosi explicitly accused the White House of ""cover-up."" Trump spoke of a ""witch hunt."""

North Korea considers third summit of Trump and Kim questionable

North Korea has raised doubts that a third summit of leader Kim Jong-un and US President Donald Trump will soon take place in the nuclear dispute. The meaning and chances of success of such a meeting are questionable because of a lack of progress in implementing agreements at the first summit in Singapore, top diplomat Kim Kye-gwan said on Friday, according to the KCNA agency.

"The US has so far done nothing to implement the decisions of the summit last year, said the adviser to the North Korean Foreign Ministry. He also criticized tighter US sanctions and the joint military exercises of the US and South Korea. However, he hopes for a ""wise"" and ""courageous"" decision by Trump to bring about a rapprochement again."

Trump said on Monday that he wanted to know what a third summit with Kim should bring before he agreed to do so. Negotiations on disarmament of North Korea's nuclear and missile program have stalled since the failed second summit of Trump and Kim in Hanoi in February. In June, the two met in the Demilitarized Zone between the two Korean states, agreeing to revive the discussions, but so far without much success.

Prince Harry: Arms manufacturers should help with mine clearance

"Dressed in a blue splinter protection vest, the British Prince Harry symbolically detonated and destroyed an explosive mine in Angola. Near a camp of the British Halo Trust near the town of Dirico, he produced the ignition circle. The explosive device exploded at a safe distance. With a view to the goal of getting Angola mine-free by 2025, he later demanded in front of running TV cameras: ""I call on all the countries whose names are on these weapons, but who have not helped to clear away, to commit themselves to help."""

With interest rates cut soon, the pound is losing value against the euro.

Frankfurt Speculation of an early interest rate cut by the Bank of England (BoE) is hitting sterling, with the British currency down as much as 0.4 percent to $1.2269 on Friday.

The sales were triggered by statements by central banker Michael Saunders, who talked about a rate cut even if a chaotic Brexit could be averted, as uncertainty will affect the British economy for the foreseeable future. This statement is surprising, as Saunders is considered an advocate of restrictive monetary policy, said analyst Ricardo Evangelista of the broker house ActivTrades.

Last week, the Bank of England had already pointed out the burden on the economy of the Brexit squabble without directly signalling an interest rate cut. Prime Minister Boris Johnson wants to lead his country out of the EU without a divorce agreement on 31 October if necessary.

More: The British Prime Minister has taken a high risk with his provocations, but it could pay off for him, says Handelsblatt editor Kerstin Leitel.

Material from the Moscow analysis laboratory is being manipulated - this is confirmed by David Howman, former director of the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada) and current head of integrity of the World Federation of Athletics.

At the start of the World Championships in Athletics, new details about the doping scandal in Russia are revealed - and they destroy the little credibility that Russian sport had regained at the beginning of the year and even to some extent. In January 2019, the Moscow doping laboratory finally delivered the required samples from 2012 to 2015 to the World Anti-Doping Agency (Wada). Now it turned out that they were forged.

In December 2014, systematic fraud in Russian sport was revealed. Wada had banned the Russian Anti-Doping Agency (Rusada) for three years. During this time, Russian athletes were not completely banned from the world stage. After individual examination, the International Olympic Committee had around 270 athletes from the country compete under a neutral flag at the 2016 Summer Games in Rio, and 168 Russian athletes competed at the Winter Games in February 2018. They were also allowed to participate in the World Cups in the various sports, and in the summer the World Cup with the host took place in Russia.

The following September, Wada lifted the Rusada ban, but demanded access to the laboratory and the aforementioned samples. The data were intended to shed light on the extent of the cover-up of doping cases in state doping. They were intended to help punish athletes afterwards. Three months later, they were finally delivered.

"However, the chairman of the Independent Integrity Commission (AIU) of the World Federation of Athletics (IAAF) has now confirmed that the doping data from the Moscow analysis laboratory has been manipulated. ""Yes. We received the data nine months ago. We should check whether the task force received the right data,"" said David Howman in an interview with the ""Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung"" on Friday. ""We have found numerous discrepancies between the data Wada received from a whistleblower and those it received from the Russians in January."" Many positive findings were missing, which were mentioned in the McLaren report."

This confirms the attitude of the IAAF: the Athletics Federation is the only organisation to stick to the spell of Russia. At the World Championships in Doha, 30 Russian athletes will compete under a neutral flag. They had to prove that they train outside the Russian system and undergo tests.

Earlier this week, Wada had already launched manipulations and called on Russia to respond to the allegations within three weeks. Russia is now threatening to ban Rusada again and, in the worst case scenario, to be excluded from the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.