DAILY NEWS IN ENGLISH
German former nurse confesses to killing 100 patients Already serving a life sentence for two murders, former nurse Niels Högel went on trial again on Tuesday on charges that he killed another 100 patients. When asked by the presiding judge whether the charges against him were accurate, Högel replied: "Yes." The massive trial opened in the northern German city of Oldenburg with a minute of silence in memory of the victims. Court proceedings had to be held in a nearby festival hall instead of in Oldenburgʼs regional court to accommodate the 126 plaintiffs in the case and the high level of public interest. "The plaintiffs want to look the defendant in the eye," lawyer Gaby Lübben said on Tuesday. Presiding Judge Sebastian Bührmann said that the goal of the trial was to reveal the full scope of the murders that were allowed to go unchecked for years. "We will do our utmost to learn the truth," he said. "It is like a house with dark rooms — we want to bring light into the darkness."
Denmark foils ʼIranian intelligence agencyʼ attack Danish domestic intelligence chief Finn Borch Andersen on Tuesday said that an Iranian intelligence service had prepared an attack against an Iranian Arab opposition figure living in Denmark. "We are dealing with an Iranian intelligence agency planning an attack on Danish soil," Andersen said. "Obviously, we canʼt and wonʼt accept that." Police arrested a Norwegian citizen of Iranian heritage in relation to the planned attack, saying the suspect had helped Iranian intelligence "to act in Denmark." Andersen said the suspect had taken photographs of the residences of members of the Arab Struggle Movement for the Liberation of Ahwaz (ASMLA).
248/2018 • 31 OCTOBER, 2018
Longtime Merkel critic Friedrich Merz launches political comeback Given that they share a party, he and Merkel are poles apart
The conservative politician left politics in 2009 after a protracted battle with the German chancellor. Now he will vie to replace her at the top of the CDU. It was the surprise after the surprise: First, Angela Merkel announced shewould not stand for re-electionas the Christian Democratic Unionʼs (CDU) party leader — a position she has held since 2000 — after the CDU suffered yetanother embarrassing defeat in state electionson Sunday. Then, of all people, one of her most ardent critics, Friedrich Merz, announced on Tuesday that he would stand for the position. The party leadership election will take place at the CDUʼs annual convention in Hamburg this December. Should Merz be successful in his bid it would be a moment of personal satisfaction as well as political revenge, for he was one of those who most clearly lost out as Merkelʼs political star rose. During her ascent to party leadership, Merkel successfully dislodged Merz from the partyʼs top echelons after a series of inner-party disputes. When the CDU and its Bavarian sister party — the Christian Social Union (CSU) — lost Germanyʼs 2002 federal election Merkel also insisted on taking over parliamentary group leadership in the
opposition, a position Merz had held for two years. The dramatic break between the two would continue to deepen over the coming years. Merzʼs constant criticism of the Merkel-led grand coalition between CDU/CSU and the Social Democratic Party (SPD) that governed Germany between 2005 and 2009 was seen by many as sour grapes from a political loser. Consequently, a frustrated and disappointed Merz withdrew from politics in 2009. When he announced his retirement he said he had made the decision in reaction to "the grand coalitionʼs current policies." Prior to that point, Friedrich Merz had been a powerful political player within the CDU. Trained as an attorney, he had served as the partyʼs parliamentary leader from 2000 until 2002, as well as serving as deputy parliamentary leader from 2002 to 2004. A financial expert, he was considered to be one of the partyʼs most-talented members and in many ways Merkelʼs political antipode: More business-friendly and conservative but also more provocative and entertaining.
South Korean leaderʼs support slips amid ʼNorth Korea fixationʼ Public support for South Korean President Moon Jae-in has slipped into the 50 percent range, continuing a gradual but apparently consistent decline from the high 70s he was receiving only a few months ago, as the public and the media raise questions about his economic policies. It is even being suggested in some quarters that he has a "fixation" with rebuilding ties with North Korea and that domestic issues are suffering as a result. In a Gallup poll released on October 25, 58 percent of South Koreans gave Moon a positive grade on his achievements to date.
German unemployment rate dips below 5 percent Germanyʼs nominal unemployment rate dropped 0.1 point to 4.9 percent in October, as 53,000 people fewer were registered as unemployed compared with the previous months. With the total number of jobless people in this country standing at 2.204 million, the figure was 185,000 people lower than in the same month a year ago. In a further positive sign, the Germanyʼs Federal Statistics Office, Destatis, said on Tuesday that seasonally adjusted employment — as measured by the International Labor Organization — climbed by 557,000 on the year to a record of 45 million in September.
weather today BUDAPEST
8 / 19 °C Precipitation: 0 mm