Despite accusations of cowardice and dithering, Chancellor Olaf Scholz has stood firm on taking his time to weigh up a decision before finally announcing on Wednesday that Germany would supply Leopard tanks to Ukraine.. Bild daily piled on the pressure at home, accusing Scholz of cowardice.
At least two people were killed and seven wounded in a knife attack on a regional train in northern Germany Wednesday in which fellow passengers overpowered the alleged assailant, police said.. Germany has been hit by several deadly knife attacks in recent years, some carried out by extremists and others by people suffering serious psychological problems.
Greece's main opposition leader Alexis Tsipras on Wednesday called for a no-confidence vote in the government over a long-running wiretap scandal which he alleged the prime minister had personally masterminded.. The no-confidence vote is to be held on Friday.
UNESCO on Wednesday added the historic centre of Ukraine's port city of Odessa, often described as "the pearl of the Black Sea", to its World Heritage List, overcoming opposition from Russia.. Six other Ukrainian sites have already been inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, including the Saint-Sophia Cathedral in the capital Kyiv and the historic centre of the western city of Lviv. cf-ah/sjw/kjm
The United States announced Wednesday that it will provide 31 Abrams tanks to help Ukraine repel Russia's invasion, mirroring a similar move by Germany in the face of dire warnings from Moscow.. Asked Wednesday if Germany requested that Washington provide Abrams as a precondition for it to give Leopards, a senior official said Berlin would have to speak on the timing of its announcement, but that the United States has "closely coordinated our security assistance with allies and partners throughout the conflict."
Two sons of former Panamanian president Ricardo Martinelli were released from prison in the United States Wednesday after serving sentences for corruption linked to the Brazilian construction giant Odebrecht, authorities said.. Luis Enrique and Ricardo Martinelli were released slightly ahead of completing their three-year terms because of good behavior, a spokesperson for the federal Bureau of Prisons told AFP. The brothers admitted receiving $28 million in bribes from the disgraced construction group, of which $19 million had passed through US accounts.
The UK said Wednesday it was reviewing how sanctioned individuals are permitted to use the country's legal services, after reports the government helped the head of Russian mercenary group Wagner sue a British journalist.. "The government appears to have granted a waiver for a warlord that enabled him to launch a legal attack on a British journalist," Labour's foreign affairs spokesman David Lammy said.
A Moscow court on Wednesday ordered the closure of Russia's oldest human rights organisation, the Moscow Helsinki Group, silencing another respected institution amid a political crackdown.. The Moscow Helsinki Group was created in 1976 to monitor Soviet authorities' commitment to respect human rights and fundamental freedoms and was considered to be Russia's oldest rights group.
The United Nations aid chief said Wednesday he had urged the Taliban authorities to offer more clarity on humanitarian sectors that could be reopened for Afghan women workers, warning that a "famine was looming" as the country faces a harsh winter.. The winter is with us, people are dying, famine is looming," he said.
UNESCO on Wednesday added the historic centre of Ukraine's port city of Odessa, often described as "the pearl of the Black Sea", to its World Heritage List despite opposition from Russia.. The site was also added to the List of World Heritage in Danger, which UNESCO says "gives it access to reinforced technical and financial international assistance" to protect or, if necessary, rehabilitate it.
