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DAILY NEWS IN ENGLISH

Violence against refugees in Germany drops dramatically Refugees and refugee homes are still attacked nearly every day in Germany — but the figures dropped significantly last year. Left-wing politicians blame both the AfD and Angela Merkelʼs party for stirring up hatred.

The German government counted 2,219 attacks on refugees and refugee homes in 2017, new Interior Ministry figures revealed on Wednesday have shown. This is a third fewer than in the previous year, when the authorities counted more than 3,500 attacks, but still translates to more than five a day. According to an Interior Ministry answer to an official parliamentary information request, the attacks broke down into 1,906 attacks on refugees and 313 on homes, with more than 300 people injured as a result. The crimes listed in the statistics included bodily harm, property damage, defamation, hate speech, trespassing, arson, and causing an explosion.

Stealthy sleuths: Lithuania calls for ʼcyber Schengenʼ zone Coming soon to a cyber attack near you: an EU rapid-response team led by Lithuania, able to leap national borders in a single bound.

Criminals do it, so why not the good guys? Teri Schultz reports.

As NATO and the European Union team up to cut red tape for troops to move more quickly through Europe to counter a potential crisis, Lithuania is leading an effort to do the same for cyber defenders. Lithuanian President Dahlia Grybauskaite has called on fellow EU leaders to support the creation of a "cyber Schengen," modeled on the area of free movement of people within the European Union, to better battle online crime and aggression which operate border-free.

50/2018 • 01, MARCH 2018

Syrian forces gain ground in Eastern Ghouta despite truce Russia blames rebel groups for the outbreaks of violence during the daily humanitarian pause

A temporary ceasefire offered up by Russia appears to have been wholly ineffective as violence continues.

German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer pays ʼflyingʼ visit to Mobile World Congress Deutsche Telekom has ʼflownʼ in a special guest to showcase its broadband capabilities at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. The German telecom giant focused on its activities to advance 5G mobile networking.

Deutsche Telekomʼs Head of Innovation Claudia Nemat was just wrapping up her description of the European Aviation Network, a project that allows passengers to use broadband thousands of meters up in the air, when she casually invited CEO Timotheus Höttges up on stage, claiming she had a surprise for him. Next thing,legendary German goalkeeper

Manuel Neuerappeared on the screen behind them. He was sitting in a plane, live-streaming the Deutsche Telekom press conference. "Howʼs it going?" Höttges asked breezily.

Neuer grinned and pointed his smartphone out the window at the clouds.

The gimmick concluded a press event that was dedicated to showcasing Deutsche Telekomʼs advances in 5G, its new voice assistant Magenta (meant, Nemat stressed, as an alternative, not as a replacement to counterparts like Alexa) and a pair of smart glasses that could one day display a checklist for doctors to consult before performing surgery.

German university hospital defends auto firmsʼ nitrogen dioxide test ethics No experiments on animals or humans can take place in Germany without a go from an authorized ethics committee. Dr. Thomas Kraus from Aachen University Hospital says this was the case in the most recent NO2 scandal.

The European Research Group on Environment and Health in the Transport Sector (EUGT) "did not impinge in any way on the nitrogen dioxide (NO2) research it commissioned Aachen University Hospital to do," Professor Thomas Kraus from the

hospital told the German press agency DPA on Monday. The EUGT is a now defunct organization that was funded

by German carmakers Volkswagen, Daimler and BMW plus partsmaker Bosch, thus raising questions of possible conflicts of interest. In 2013, 25 healthy volunteers were exposed to NO2 pollution for three hours, Kraus said. "None of them had any negative health effects," he went on, adding that the tests were meant to measure the impact of pollutants in the workplace.

Uproar in Pakistan over ʼtorture and sexual abuseʼ of Christian youths Rights groups have condemned the alleged torture and sexual abuse of two Christian youths by investigating officials. The latest blasphemy controversy highlights the plight and vulnerability of Pakistani Christians. On Friday, Sajid Masih, a 24-year-old blasphemy suspect, leapt from the fourth floor of the Federal Investigation Agencyʼs (FIA) Punjab headquarters in Lahore and severely injured himself. In a video statement, Sajid alleged that he jumped because the FIA officials tortured him and ordered him to "sexually assault" Patras Masih, his cousin and the main accused in an online blasphemy case.

"They asked me to abuse myself, but I refused to do so. Later, they asked me to sexually assault my cousin, but I remained silent and jumped from the building," he said.

India bids farewell to Bollywood legend Sridevi Kapoor The Indian film starʼs accidental death on the weekend has unleashed an outpouring of public grief. Fans have lined Mumbaiʼs streets to pay their last respects. Thousands of fans have taken to the streets of Mumbai to farewell Bollywood star, Sridevi Kapoor, whodied over the weekend after drowning in her bath tub. Some mourners carried photos of the screen star, while others held flowers as they waited to pay their last respects at a condolence service.

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50/2018 • 01, March 2018

Germany to compensate Algerian

Gmail German case to be decided by ECJ

Jewish Holocaust survivors

For close to a decade, the German telecommunications regulator has argued that Google’s email service should come under its legal remit.

Google disagrees. Now, Europe’s highest court will ultimately decide.

Jews who lived in Algeria during the Vichy regime will receive compensation, said the Claims Conference. Algerian Jews were "one of the last" groups to be recognized by Germany, the organizationʼs vice president told DW. The Claims Conference Hardship Fund on Monday announced that a new group ofJewish Holocaust survivorswill be eligible forcompensation from the Germany government.

The group consists of Jews who lived in Algeria between July 1940 and November 1942. Those eligible for compensation will receive a one-time payment of €2,556 ($3,180), which the German government will begin paying out in July. "Even at this late stage, itʼs very important both for the individuals, because it acknowledges what they went through, and in general, because it creates a historical record which will stand the test of time," Eric Schneider, who serves as executive vice president of the Claims Conference, told DW. "The further we get away from the events, I think thereʼs the greater possibility of Holocaust revisionism … When the German government takes responsibility and acknowledges the event, then it makes it a lot harder to refute it.

Usain Bolt to play charity football match amid pro contract hint After his retirement from the track, Usain Bolt is making strides towards a new career. The Jamaican sprint great will captain a star-studded side in charity football match and has hinted at a professional contract. Never one to shy away from the spotlight, Usain Bolt is set to make a return to the sporting world in a charity football match which has previously attracted such luminaries as Real Madrid coach Zinedine Zidane, Brazilian legend Ronaldinho, actor Will Ferrell and pop star Robbie Williams.

The long-running legal dispute between the German Federal Network Agency (BNetzA) and Google over the search giantʼs email service Gmail took another twist on Monday. The German Higher Administrative Court (OVG) in Münster ruled on Monday that the case be referred to the European Court of Justice (ECJ), the EUʼs highest court. It means the dispute, which has rumbled on for close to a decade, may have several years left to run. The issue at hand is the fact that the German Federal Network Agency believes Googleʼs popular Gmail service — which has over 1

billion users— qualifies as a telecommunications service, and ought to be regulated accordingly by German and European telecommunications law.

Google disputes this designation, which a German Administrative Court in Cologne upheld in November 2015.

Google appealed that verdict to the Münster court, which has now sent the case to the EUʼs highest court on the basis that the relevant sections in the German Telecommunications Act are based on identical provisions in EU law. Google welcomed the courtʼs decision.

The short, complicated life of a fig wasp When Mother Nature conceived of the fig, she seems to have asked herself: ʼWhy go for the easy option?ʼ The plant relies on an extremely complex — and somewhat macabre — pollination process to bear fruit.

When Mother Nature conceived of the fig, she seems to have asked herself: ʼWhy go for the easy option?ʼ The plant relies on an extremely complex — and somewhat macabre — pollination process to bear fruit. The life of a fig wasp is fixed to a strictly defined track. Its final destination is

the center of a fruit. Letʼs start at the exact moment a female fig wasp climbs into a fig. She doesnʼt have to burrow; nature has left a small hole for her. But short spines on her head ease her passage through the unripe fruit. Still, space is scant. On the way, the insect, which is just 2 to 3 millimeters in size, will lose her wings, and large segments of her antennae and legs. Thereby, her fate is sealed: the wasp will never re-emerge. She doesnʼt need to. Sheʼs carrying the pollen from the fig in which she was born in order to pollinate the fig in which she will die.

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German metalworkers finally secure wage agreement Following weeks of bitter fighting, a wage agreement for the German metal and electrical industries has finally been struck. Employees were able to secure higher wages and more flexible working hours.

A wage agreement was reached in the early hours on Tuesday in Germanyʼs metal and electrical industries. The powerful IG Metall union announced the deal initially covering workers in the southern German state of BadenWürttemberg, but expected to be eventually implemented for a total of 3.9 million workers in the sector nationwide. According to the deal, employeesare to receive a pay hike of 4.3 percent from April this year. Additionally, monthly one-off payments of €100 ($124) were agreed for January through March. Employers and trade union representatives also agreed on the possibility of workers reducing their hours from 35 to 28 hours per week for two years, should they need to look after children or care for older relatives.

A record 28 French restaurants get Michelin threestar ratings Twenty-eight French restaurants have been honored with the gastronomic sectorʼs most coveted rating. Thatʼs a record number of three-star ratings for any single country in the Michelin Red Guide.

A comeback by La Maison des Bois mastermind Marc Veyrat (pictured) and the emergence of Christophe Bacquieʼs Hotel du Castellet as another culinary force in southern France have given the country a record for most restaurants to hold a vaunted foodie guideʼs coveted three-star maximum. Set for official release on Friday, Michelin France has become the most prestigious of the publicationʼs 31 national editions and the domestic culinary bible.

Michelin has faced criticism that its stars reward pomp and presentation rather than the food itself and for the guideʼs putting restaurateurs under unbearable scrutiny. The guide has made many a chefʼs name; others say it has nearly broken their wills.