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DAILY NEWS IN ENGLISH

Libya: Clashes rage near Tripoli as UN ceasefire attempt fails Intense fighting between progovernment troops and militias loyal toLibyan strongman Khalifa Haftarcontinued Monday despite attempts by the United Nations to secure a temporary ceasefire. Haftarʼs forces launcheda military offensive to capture the Libyan capital of Tripolilast week, threatening to send the conflictridden country into further chaos. On Monday, the UN said an airstrike

by Haftarʼs forces hit Tripoliʼs only functional airport for civilian use. Flights were suspended until further notice. Reports of deaths very, but as of Monday, as many as 50 people are believed to have died in clashes between government loyalists and pro-Haftar forces. The UN says some 3,400 people have been displaced by the fighting, and many are cut off from emergency help.The UN had called for a two-hour truce on Sunday to allow civilians and those wounded in clashes to flee.The US military has temporarily withdrawn its troops "in response to security conditions on the ground."

Sudan: Protesters call on military to intervene Sudanese security forces on Monday fired tear gas and rubber bullets at anti-government demonstratorscamping outside the armyʼs headquartersin the capital Khartoum, witnesses said. They reported that pickup trucks carrying riot police and secret service personnel charged protesters in the early hours of the morning but were met by uniformed soldiers who came out of the compound to protect the activists. Thousands of people have beenrallying outside the military complex since Saturday, calling on the army to back their demand for President Omar al-Bashir to step down. The compound also houses the Defense Ministry and the official residence of Bashir, who has been in power for almost 30 years.

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Turkeyʼs Erdogan decries vote ʼtheftʼ The vote in Ankara has already been handed to the opposition CHP party

President Erdogan has said that a margin of only 13,000 votes is too few for either side to claim victory in Istanbulʼs mayoral contest.

Deutsche and Commerzbank: A marriage of convenience that could well happen Reports that Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank are on the brink of merger talks are gathering strength. Should the two lenders come together, it would have major implications for European banking and beyond.

Deutsche Bank and Commerzbank, the grandest of the grand old German lenders, will next year both celebrate their 150th birthdays. But it increasingly looks like there might be need for only one birthday party, rather than two. Over the weekend, reports have intensified that the two banks are strongly considering the possibil-

ity of a merger.German newspaper Welt am Sonntag reported on Saturday that Deutsche Bank had agreed to start holding talks with Commerzbank on the feasibility of them coming together. The news agency Reuters reported the same over the weekend, citing "a person with knowledge of the matter." While itʼs important to stress that the reports are unconfirmed, with neither bank yet commenting publicly, few who are familiar with the German financial scene could claim to be surprised if an engagement were to be officially announced sometime soon.

As Germany phases out coal, villages still forced to make way for mining This end of thevillage of Immerathis peaceful, with birds chirping in the gables of empty houses. But off in the distance, the sound of excavators tearing down walls and smashing stones betray that calm. The open-pit lignite mine Garzweiler II is just a stoneʼs throw away from Immerath, and soon the village will be no more. Im-

merath was once a lively community with a sports club, church and several kindergartens. Today, the homes have been barricaded or bricked up. Down one abandoned street, a gutted car sits in the open garage of a family home covered in ivy. At the other end of the road, demolition work has already begun.

Germanyʼs AfD joins Italyʼs League in new populist coalition Italy’s Matteo Salvini has formally launched his much-anticipated bid to unite European far-right parties ahead of EU elections in May. "We want to reform Europe," he declared during a press conference at a swanky hotel in central Milan. "For many people, the EU is a nightmare, not a dream," said the Italian interior minister and deputy prime minister. Salvini has teamed up with Germany’s rightwing populist Alternative for Germany (AfD) party, whose leader and currently the group’s only MEP, Jörg Meuthen was by his side. Also at the table were representatives from the Danish Peopleʼs Party and the Finns Party of Finland, who are for now the only other confirmed members.

US brands Iranʼs Revolutionary Guard a ʼforeign terrorist organizationʼ Washington put the elite Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) on its list of foreign terrorist groups on Monday. In response, Iranʼs Supreme National Security Council applied its own terrorist designation to the US Central Command, also called CENTCOM, along with US forces. Iran also labeled the US a "state sponsor of terrorism."

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82/2019 • 9 April, 2019

German billionaire ECB holds interest rates steady to curb family to donate eurozone slowdown The ECB has pledged to keep inter$11M over Nazi est rates at their current historic past low in a bid to revive the eurozoneʼs One of Germanyʼs richest families has said they will donate $11 million (€9.7 million) to charity after learning the extent of their familyʼs ties to the Nazi regime, according to a report by the mass-circulation Bild am Sonntag newspaper. The Reimann familyʼs JAB Holding Companyowns a controlling interest in several major brands, including Panera Bread and Krispy Kreme Doughnuts, among others. What the report revealed: The report focused on Albert Reimann Sr. and Albert Reimann Jr. and their industrial chemicals company in the city of Ludwigshafen during the Nazi era, and found that: Russian civilians and French prisoners of war were exploited as forced laborers in the familyʼs factories and private villas.The two men were anti-Semites and avowed supporters of Adolf Hitler.Reimann Sr. donated to Hitlerʼs paramilitary SS force as early as 1931.Reimann Jr. once complained in a letter to the Ludwigshafen mayor that the French POWs werenʼt working hard enough.

Niko Kovacʼs big week at Bayern Munich Niko Kovac was a frustrated figure on the touchline at the Allianz Arena towards the end of November. His team had let a three-goal lead slip to recently promoted Fortuna Düsseldorf.

His apparently mutinous dressing room was leaking stories to the press.

Bayern Munichʼs title defense was said to be over and debate was swirling about whether or not he should be sacked.

weakening economy. The move comes as fears about Brexit and global tensions threaten growth across the bloc.

Policymakers at the European Central Bank on Thursday announced a new round of cheap loans to banks and said record low interest rates would remain unchanged "at least through the end of 2019." Previously, the bank had indicated that the earliest rate hike would come in the fall. The measures aim toallay fears of a eurozone slowdownspurred by uncertainty over Brexit, aUS-China trade war, and threats by

Washington to impose tariffs on European auto imports. "Weʼre coming out of, and maybe we still are in a period of, continued weakness and pervasive uncertainty," ECB chief Mario Draghi told reporters in Frankfurt. "Our decisions certainly increase the resilience of the eurozone economy," he added.

"But can they address the factors that are weighing on the economy in the rest of the word? They cannot."

Drinking hot beverages could increase your cancer risk A large-scale, long-term study by Iranian scientists now confirmed what WHO cancer experts had suspected since 2016.

There are several factors that up your risk of getting cancer. Heavy drinking, smoking and obesity can all contribute to a higher cancer risk — no surprise there. But now researchers from the Tehran University of Medical Sciences in Iran have confirmed another. Their large-scale study showedthat people who regularly drink beverages hotter than 60 degrees Celsius (140 degrees Fahren-

heit) have a significantly higher risk of getting esophageal cancer. The Iranian researchers observed and examined more than 50,000 men and women from the northern Iranian province of Golestan for 13 years, from 2004 till 2017. During this time, there were 317 cases of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC), one of two common kinds of esophageal cancer. Scientists found that drinking 700 milliliters or more a day of tea that was at least 60 degrees Celsius "was consistently associated with an about 90 percent increase in ESCC risk."

Sting to return to Budapest for summer 2019 Sting is head over heels for Budapest.

After a successful free show with Shaggy a month ago on Heroes’ Square, the former Police frontman has just announced another Budapest concert for next summer. On 2 July, the Grammy-winning singer brings his My Songs tour to the Papp László Aréna, where he will be taking the stage with his own band. From “Englishman In New York” to “Every Breath You Take”, the set should include Sting’s biggest hits. Tickets are on sale now.

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Malta in the eye of a financial tempest A recent European Commission report on Malta warned that the country had made "limited progress in addressing the 2018 Country Specific Recommendations (CSRs) concerning money laundering, corruption and financial supervision." A European Parliament report meanwhile described "systemized and serious deficiencies" in the rule of law in Malta, while a police investigation in Italy has alleged that theSicilian Mafiainfiltrated companies in the online-gaming sector some based in Malta to launder money. Read more: Opinion: Golden visas and passport trade undermine EU As if that werenʼt bad enough for the Mediterranean investorsʼ paradise, the EUʼs parliament recently voted to adopt a "tax harmonization” scheme that would create one common corporate tax rate throughout the EU, a move that could halve Maltaʼs tax base.

Vietnamʼs dog meat culture clashes with modern tastes Hoang has been eating dog meat since he was young. He canʼt imagine there will be a time that he wonʼt be eating it at least twice a month. However, Vietnamese officials announced in September that dog and cat meat should no longer be served in the inner districts of the capital city Hanoi because itʼs offensive to tourists and can spread diseases like rabies. Read more: Illegal dog meat trade raises moral questions Dog meat lovers and restaurant owners fear that the government will try to expand the ban and decide to officially forbid eating dog and cat meat entirely.

"I donʼt see how they can ban it.

The demand is just too high," Hoang said at a restaurant in Vietnamʼs largest metropolis, Ho Chi Minh City. In a small alley in Ho Chi Minh City, at least four restaurants serve dog meat, or Thịt chó. People gather around small tables to dine on the canine meat, complementing it with rice wine or beer. Hoang, who declined to give his full name, is sitting at a table with three good friends. "For us itʼs a tradition to eat dog meat. Itʼs just as normal as eating seafood or chicken," he told DW.