DAILY NEWS IN ENGLISH
Hong Kong prodemocracy activists walk free after court upholds appeal Hong Kongʼs highest court has reversed a ruling to jail a trio of prodemocracy activists. The activists, known for their role in 2014 protests, had warned of a "critical juncture" in Hong Kongʼs fight for democracy. The Hong Kong Court of Final Appeal on Tuesday struck down controversial prison sentences for prodemocracy activists Joshua Wong (left), Nathan Law (center) and Alex Chow (right), effectively allowing them to walk free. In 2016, Wong and Law were convicted of unlawful assembly, while Chow was found guilty of inciting Hong Kong citizens to protest, during Hong Kongʼs 2014 pro-democracy demonstrations. Wong and Law were sentenced to community service while Chow was given a three-week suspended sentence. However, last year, a court overturned their sentences after prosecutors argued they were too light for the alleged gravity of the crimes committed by the activists.
Netherlands recalls ambassador from Turkey The spat between the Netherlands and Ankara stems from the Dutch refusal to allow Turkish ministers to campaign for a 2017 referendum. The Dutch foreign ministry said repeated efforts to normalize relations have failed. The Netherlands has officially withdrawn its ambassador from Turkey, the Dutch foreign ministry said in a statement on Monday. The ministry added that it will not allow a new Turkish ambassador in Amsterdam as long as there is no Dutch ambassador in Ankara. Despite recent talks between the two countries, Foreign Minister Halbe Zijlstra said "we could not reach anagreement on how to normalize relations." The Dutch foreign ministry has "paused" talks with Turkey on resolving the matter, it said.
32/2018 • 08, FEBRUARY 2018
Polish president signs controversial Holocaust bill into law Andrzej Duda has signed a bill penalizing persons referring to Polandʼs role during the Holocaust
The law has been demanded in Poland but flies in the face of criticism by Israel and the United States.
Prominent ivory trade investigator killed in Nairobi home World-renowned ivory investigator Esmond Bradley-Martin has been found dead in his home with a stab wound to the neck. Martin had spent decades tracing the trade of ivory and rhino horns from Africa to Asian markets. Kenyan police said on Monday that ivory trade investigator Esmond Bradley-Martin had been found dead in his home by a family member. The relative had gone to check on Martin at his home in the Nairobi suburb of Langat on Sunday afternoon after he did not respond to phone calls. "He was found dead in his house and had
stab wounds," said a police officer. "An investigation has been launched." The head of the United Nationʼs Environment Program, Erik Solheim, said he was shocked by Martinʼs murder and described the late investigator as a "global authority" on ivory and rhino horn trafficking. Martin, an American citizen who had lived in Kenya for decades, was a key figure in the global crackdown on illegal ivory supply chains. Much of his research quantified and analyzed the Asian ivory markets in China, Hong Kong,Vietnam and elsewhere.
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.
Iranian women defiant against compulsory hijab A new wave of protests against the compulsory wearing of hijab has spread across Iran, resulting in the arrests of tens of women. The government has accused the protesters of being under the influence of drugs. For almost four decades since the start of the Islamic Revolution in 1979, Iranian women have tried to push the boundaries of the compulsory hijab rule imposed upon them. Their struggle gained momentum late last year after a 31-year-old woman nicknamed the "Girl of Enghelab Street," stood bareheaded on an utility box on Enghelab (or Revolution) Street in Tehran, waving her white headscarf on a stick. The woman, later identified as Vida Movahed, a mother of a 19month-old child, is being hailed as a hero among Iranian women fighting against the compulsory hijab. Movahedʼs defiant protest and her subsequent arrest drew attention worldwide. She was detained for several weeks before being released from custody on January 26.
Israeli security forces kill Palestinian suspect in rabbi murder Israel security forces say they have killed a Palestinian man who helped kill Rabbi Raziel Shevah in January. More than 19 Palestinians have been killed amid violence following US President Trumpʼs Jerusalem decision. Israeli security forces on Tuesday killed Ahmad Jarrar, a Palestinian man who they say was the head of a militant cell that killed a West Bank settler, Israeli and Palestinian officials said. Rabbi Raziel Shevah, 35, waskilled in a drive-by shootingnear his home in the unauthorized settlement outpost Havat Gilad near the West Bank city of Nablus in January.
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32/2018 • 08, February 2018
Germany to compensate Algerian Jewish Holocaust survivors 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.
IOC concerned over possible design flaws of doping test bottles
Ryanair profit surges despite flight cancellations Europeʼs largest budget airline has reported a surge in quarterly profits. The positive result came despite a flight cancellation crisis that had hit Ryanair after the airline had rostering problems with its pilots. Irelandʼs Ryanair reported Monday its quarterly net profits rose by 12 percent. It said post-tax earnings increased to €106 million ($132 million) year on year in the groupʼs third quarter to December. The carrier added that passenger numbers grew by 6 percent to 30.4 million peopledespite the massive flight cancellations that had been sparked by pilot rostering problems. "We are pleased to report this 12-percent increase in profits during a very challenging third
quarter," Chief Executive Officer Michael OʼLeary said in a statement, speaking of a "pilot rostering failure in September." yanair had to cancel some 20,000 flights through March this year, mainly because of botched holiday scheduling for pilots. The Irish airlineʼs earnings report came just one weekafter it signed an agreement to recognize the British Airline Pilotsʼ Association (BALPA), reversing its previous unwillingness to ink such accords with trade unions.
Could soils help save the climate? Soils are a double-edged climate sword. They are huge reservoirs of organic carbon and can act as a carbon sink. But they can also release CO2 into the atmosphere when used unsustainably. Forests are often called the lungs of the planet because of the way they "breathe" in carbon dioxide. The role they play in locking in carbon dioxide is so essential UN schemes promote forests conservation as a way to offset
greenhouse gas emissions. Soils, meanwhile — less beautiful, and oft forgotten beneath our feet — get less press. Yet they hold 70 percent of the planet’s land-based carbon — four times as much as all the world’s biomass and three times the amount of CO2 in the atmosphere. Agriculture is responsible for around 13 of global greenhouse gas emissions. But if farms managed their soils more sustainably, they could lower that share considerably, scientists say.
The International Olympic Committee says it is concerned about potential flaws in doping sample bottles. The organization wants assurances that the bottles cannot be tampered with ahead of the Winter Olympics. After potential issues with the security of the bottles were aired, the IOC has asked the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) to ensure that antidoping tests at the forthcoming Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang "can be conducted credibly and reliably," an International Olympic Committee (IOC) spokesperson said Tuesday.
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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.