Pakistan on Wednesday declared an emergency to enroll 26 million children of school-going age who are not registered to seek formal education, the highest number in the world. Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif announced in the capital Islamabad his government was imposing the formal emergency declaration to tackle the daunting task of wooing back children to school. The declaration allows for the mobilization of funds and resources, and puts the problem high on the government agenda. A combination of policy and administrative tools would be deployed, as well as incentives to encourage parents to s...
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Lithuania remains open to the deployment of ground troops in Ukraine as part of training missions for Ukrainian soldiers, Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė said on Wednesday. In a story published in the Financial Times the Lithuanian leader confirmed her previously expressed openness to this idea. She said her country, which is a member of both NATO and the European Union, is prepared to send soldiers on training missions to Ukraine. There is parliamentary authorization to do so, but Kiev has not yet asked for it, she said. Lithuania is one of the most determined supporters of Ukraine, which has...
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Bayer Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso says the success of German clubs in European competitions has further enhanced his club's remarkable season. Leverkusen won the Bundesliga for the first time this season and are on for a treble, with their Europa League semi-final second leg at home to Roma taking place on Thursday and a German Cup final against Kaiserslautern set for May 25. Borussia Dortmund are already through to the Champions League final on June 1 and Bayern Munich may join them. "The high level of the Bundesliga shows that what we have achieved this season has not been easy," said the S...
DPA International
A German Green Party politician attacked in Dresden on Tuesday evening has been identified as Yvonne Mosler, a 47-year-old candidate for Dresden's city council, the party said on Wednesday. Mosler was campaigning in the eastern city alongside fellow Green Party candidate Cornelius Sternkopf and hanging political posters when she was attacked by two people, according to police. The Green politicians were also accompanied by reporters from German state broadcaster Deutsche Welle and the newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. Police said the 34-year-old male suspect pushed the politician aside...
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An EU court on Wednesday overturned the European Commission's approval of millions of euros in bailout money for the German airline Condor. "The commission should not have approved the restructuring aid at issue without initiating a formal investigation procedure," a press release from the European Union's General Court said. Germany got a green light from the commission in 2021 to give Condor €321 million ($345 million) for restructuring after parent company Thomas Cook went bankrupt. EU state aid rules require such bailouts to be approved by the commission. But rival budget airline Ryanair o...
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New body World Boxing hopes the sport will be represented at the 2028 Olympic Games after all following a meeting with the International Olympic Committee (IOC). Last year, the IOC withdrew its recognition of the IBA amateur boxing federation due to governance, finance and ethical issues and an IBA appeal was recently rejected by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). Qualification for July and August's Paris Games is in the hands of a task force appointed by the IOC, as was the case at the last Olympics in Tokyo. Boxing is not currently on the programme for Los Angeles 2028 but World Boxin...
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The German Football Federation (DFB) is considering allowing pyrotechnics to be set off in a certain part of a stadium as increased punishments have so far failed to cut their usage. German football fan culture is famous for its large scale use of flares or firecrackers but dozens of people have been injured by their use in recent years and games are routinely suspended because of too much smoke. "We have now set up a stadium safety working group at the DFB because the burning of pyrotechnics has increased once again after the coronavirus pandemic and fines have gone up significantly," DFB pre...
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French rail transport infrastructure manufacturer Alstom saw a rise in full-year sales, it reported on Wednesday. The company reported earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) before purchase price allocation (PPA) of €356 million ($383 million) for the full year, lower than €366 million in the previous year. Excluding special items, adjusted EBIT increased 17% to €997 million from €852 million a year ago. For the full year, Alstom posted a net loss of €309 million, wider than €132 million loss last year. On an adjusted basis, the company had a profit of €44 million, down from €292 million th...
DPA International
Further attacks on politicians in Germany have rattled the country and prompted renewed outrage from leaders, after Berlin's former mayor was assaulted in a library on Tuesday afternoon. Franziska Giffey, the leader of the Social Democrats (SPD) in Berlin who currently serves as the city's economy minister, was treated at hospital for slight injuries after being hit over the head with a heavy bag. In a separate attack on Tuesday night, a Green Party council candidate was assaulted and spit on by two assailants while putting up campaign posters. Those assaults are the latest in a string of atta...
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The EU General Court decision to annul the European Commission's approval of a German government bailout of the airline Condor "has no impact on Condor's business situation and flight operations," a spokeswoman for the company told dpa. Condor is currently modernizing its fleet with the help, as of 2021, of the financial investor and majority shareholder Attestor. The repayment of the state aid is proceeding according to plan, the spokeswoman said, without going into details. According to earlier statements, the complete takeover by Attestor should take place by 2026 at the latest.
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