DAILY NEWS IN ENGLISH
Israeli health minister steps down over Sabbath railway work Israelʼs health minister, who is also head of an ultra-orthodox Jewish party, has resigned from his post in protest at rail work carried out on the Sabbath. PM Netanyahuʼs government, however, is not in immediate danger. Yaakov Litzman, a rabbi from the United Torah Judaism party, followed through with a resignation threat he made on Friday and stepped down from his ministerial position Sunday over rail work on the Jewish Sabbath. Litzman said he refused to remain in a government that allowed the "desecration" of the Sabbath with Saturdayʼs maintenance work on a public train line. Work on the Sabbath, which lasts from Friday evening until Saturday evening, is prohibited under Jewish law. Although no bus or train services are permitted in Jewish cities and towns on Saturdays, maintenance work is usually allowed by the government.
Egypt targets militants following Sinai attack The Egyptian military has carried out airstrikes and raids against militants reportedly linked to Fridayʼs Sinai attack that killed at least 305 people. President elSissi promised the attack would "not go unpunished." World leaders condemned Fridayʼs deadly assault on a Sinai mosque, as Egypt hit back with airstrikes on suspected Islamist targets. The United Nations also condemned the attack in "the strongest terms" and expressed its condolences for the victimsʼ families and the people of Egypt. Egypt received messages of solidarity and condolence from Israel, Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, and the Vatican. On Friday,militants set off bombs and opened fire on worshippersat a mosque in Sinai, killing at least 305 people and injuring some 109 others, according to state TV reports, citing prosecutors.
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Rerouting flights to Indonesiaʼs resort island
Scientists look at Frederic Chopinʼs alcohol-pickled heart to determine death from TB
Mount Agung has erupted, spewing ash thousands of meters into the air and interrupting air traffic. But disaster management officials have stopped short of raising the alert level, saying tourism is "still safe."
The famous Polish composer has been dead for nearly 170 years. His body is in Paris, but his heart is in a glass jar encased in stone in Warsaw. Now scientists believe they can dispel doubts about the cause of his death. Perhaps Polandʼs most famous classical composer, Frederic Chopin put his heart into his compositions, many of which were based on Polish folk melodiesand helped give voice to the countryʼs blossoming nationalism in the early 19th century. But he also put his heart into what appears to be cognac — and now Polish scientists believe that they have been able to conclude from the pickled organ that Chopin died of tuberculosis (TB), countering a 10-year-old theory that his death at 39 was due to cystic fibrosis.
Volcano erupts in Bali
Brexit divorce bill: Britain prepares to pay more to EU as negotiations falter British Prime Minister Theresa May could bulk up the amount that Britain pays as it leaves the EU, in a bid to move talks on to trade. But senior leave campaigners have attached a condition to the money. Britainʼs Brexit bill offer to the EU is set to swell, national media reports, as senior lawmakers attempt to kick-start stalled negotiations with the European Union. No new figure has been confirmed on the size of the so-called divorce bill, which in recent weeks has become a major source of contention in Brexit talks, but there is a growing acceptance among Conservative Party members to increase it. Online newspa-
pers iNews reported on Tuesday that "May will offer 40 billion pounds to get Brexit moving." The pro-Brexit Daily Telegraph newspaper ran a front-page splash on Tuesday that read "Johnson and Gove back a bigger Brexit divorce bill offer." Cabinet ministers Boris Johnson and Michael Gove are two of the most senior faces of Brexit. They command a large following within their deeply-divided party. Prime Minister Theresa May has repeatedly signaled her willingness to pay more to the EU than initially suggested. But she has avoided publicly discussing figures out of fear that hardline elements within the party will not tolerate a large payout.
Germany must allow third gender in registry of births, court rules An intersex person has won a court case to allow them to enter a third gender into the registry of births. The case was appealed to the Federal Constitutional Court after failing at lower levels. Germanyʼs Federal Constitutional Court on Wednesday called for a third gender option in the registry of births. Intersex people, who are neither male nor female, should be able to register their sexual identity as such, the Karlsruhe court ruled. The court found that the general right to the protection of personality in Germanyʼs Basic Law meant the register had to be altered to
allow a third gender. The court ruled seven to one that lawmakers must create new legislation by the end of 2018 to allow for a third sex, providing the examples of "intersex," "diverse" or another "positive designation of sex." Another possibility raised was to scrap gender entries altogether. "Assignment to a gender is of paramount importance for individual identity; it typically plays a key role both in the self-image of a person and in the way in which the person concerned is perceived by others. The gender identity of those persons who are neither male nor female is protected,"the court ruled.
China: Deadly blast hits Ningbo port city, near Shanghai A major explosion in a Chinese port city south of Shanghai has killed at least two people and injured more than 30 others. Authorities say they are investigating the cause of the incident. The blast ripped through a factory site in the eastern harbor city of Ningbo early Sunday, filling the sky with gray smoke, Chinese state media reported. Local officials said at least two people died and more than 30 others were taken to hospital for treatment.
weather today BUDAPEST
0 / 6 °C Precipitation: 0 mm
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US and Poland strike $10.5 billion missile defense deal The US has approved the $10.5 billion sale of a Patriot anti-missile system to NATO ally Poland. Eastern European NATO states have been ramping up their military capabilities in the face of perceived Russian aggression. In a move likely to irk Russia, the US and Poland agreed on Friday a major arms deal that could see the eastern European NATO member soon begin conducting air and missile defense operations. As part of the $10.5 billion (€8.9 billion) sale, Poland is expected to receive 208 Patriot Advanced Capabilty-3 (PAC-3) Missile Segment Enhancement missiles, 16 M903 launching stations, four AN/MPQ-65 radars, four control stations, spares, software and associated equipment. Made by US defense contractor Raytheon, the missiles are reportedly designed to detect, track and engage unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), cruise missiles and shortrange or tactical ballistic missiles. In a statement issued following the sale, the State Department said that: "A secure Europe capable of deterring air and missile threats and other forms of aggression promotes peace and stability within NATO and on the European continent."
Oscar Pistoriusʼ prison sentence more than doubled
Black Friday: Hackers exploit shoppersʼ China sales behind hunt for hot deals German Cybersecurity experts and concarmakersʼ rosy sumer advocates warn online shopthird quarter pers about "Black Friday" risks. Clicking on that "too good to be true" offer could bring a virus, not a bargain. Black Friday sales are a boon to consumers getting a head start on the holiday shopping season, often from their desks. "Online shopping is booming," confirmed Laurens Rutten, spokesman for the European Consumer Organization (BEUC). "Global e-commerce sales are expected to reach $4 trillion in 2020, up from $1.6 trillion in 2016. On weekends
like these, with Black Friday and Cyber Monday, this might increase even more," he told DW. But experts warn that careless online behavior is a gift to cybercriminals. The marketing tactic migrated from the US, where the day after Thanksgiving is the biggest shopping day of the year and the following Monday - called Cyber Monday - has now been pulled in too.
Fall armyworm is threatening half of Africaʼs corn harvest Two years ago, the voracious caterpillar emerged in southern Africa. Since then, it has spread to 38 countries on the continent. The fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda) is likely to cause great damages to the harvest this year and in the coming years. Thatʼs what JeanBaptiste Bahama, a representative of the UN Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) in the Ethiopian capital
Addis Ababa, told German news agency DPA. The caterpillar attacks primarily corn, which is the most important staple food in Africa. The fall armyworm originates in the tropical and subtropical regions of America. In Africa, it first emerged in Nigeria in 2016. Since then it managed to spread to 38 African countries. In July of this year, the parasite has even been sighted on Cap Verde, a group of islands in the Atlantic off the western African coast.
South Africaʼs Supreme Court of Appeal has increased the Paralympianʼs jail term for killing his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp to more than 13 years. Prosecutors had argued that the original sentence was "far too lenient." South Africaʼs Supreme Court of Appeal in Bloemfontein increased the prison sentence of formerParalympic champion Oscar Pistoriusto 13 years and five months on Friday.
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Strong vehicle sales in the wordʼs most important car market have been essential in enabling German carmakers to end their third quarters on a positive note. Their dependence on China is expected to increase further. Germanyʼs top carmakers would not have been able to present positive thirdquarter results without a booming auto market in China, a study by consultancy EY showed Tuesday. It said China had long become the most important market for Volkswagen, BMW and Daimler, with one in three of their cars sold in the third quarter having gone to the Asian nation. To be more precise, the Chinese market accounted for 34 percent of Germanyʼs overall car sales between July and September, the highest ever rate logged so far. Back in 2010, only 23 percent of Germanyʼs quarterly car sales ended up in China.
Ousted Venezuelan opposition leader escapes house arrest, flees to Spain Ousted Caracas mayor Antonio Ledezma has likened his escape to a film. He plans to take the fight against Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro abroad. The ousted opposition mayor of Caracas arrived in Spain on Saturday after orchestrating a daring escape from house arrest in Venezuela. Antonio Ledezma landed in Madrid from Bogota, Colombia, where he arrived a day earlier after slipping across the border. He was greeted by his wife and two daughters who live in Spain. Ledezma said he planned to organize resistance from abroad to President Nicolas Maduro, under whose rule millions of Venezuelans have suffered from shortages of food and other basic supplies. "I am going to travel the world to spread the hope of all Venezuelans to escape this regime, this dictatorship," Ledezma said. The 62-year-old opposition figure was removed as mayor of Caracas and arrested in 2015 on allegations he sought to topple Maduro. He was later put under house arrest due to health issues. Ledezma was one of the opposition leaders who led protests against the government in 2014, which also resulted in the arrest of opposition leader Leopoldo Lopez. He remains under house arrest.