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☆ Seven Killed in Shooting at Hamburg Jehovah’s Witnesses Hall
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Georgi Kantchev | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Investigators and forensic experts outside a Jehovah’s Witnesses building after a shooting in Hamburg, Germany. BERLIN—Seven people were killed in a mass shooting at a Jehovah’s Witnesses hall in northern Germany, local police said Friday, a rare kind of attack in a country where gun ownership is severely restricted. The suspected shooter was also found dead after the attack, police said, adding that others were seriously injured.

The 35-year-old man, whose name was given as Philipp F. in accordance with German privacy laws, killed six people and then himself when he opened fire on Thursday evening. The exact motives were still unknown, but officials said the gunman had previously expressed his hatred for Jehovah's Witnesses. According to a briefing given by police and prosecutors in Hamburg on Friday, Philipp F. was the licenced owner of a Heckler & Koch P30 semi-automatic handgun. "Philipp F. supposedly harbours a particular anger towards religious followers especially towards Jehovah's Witnesses and his former employer." When they met Philipp F., he was cooperative and gave no indication of mental health problems.

A DB spokesperson told Reuters that under current IT security legislation it did not have to run network components by Germany's cybersecurity office, the BSI, unlike public telecoms network operators. A BSI spokesperson said it was not aware of any law that determined the DB IT systems as "critical components". A Huawei spokesperson said the firm would never harm any nation or individual. The December contract with Deutsche Telekom Business Solutions, a subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom, is for Huawei tech like switches and routers. A government source said it had detected some operators had already built in Huawei critical components without waiting for a BSI green light and could be required to replace those.

The gas leak at the Nord Stream gas pipeline in September. German authorities investigating blasts that tore through the Nord Stream natural-gas pipelines last year have identified a boat manned by a six-member crew that they say could have been involved in a sabotage operation, according to a senior government official. A summary report on the probe compiled for senior German officials said the vessel, a sport sailing boat, was rented in northern Germany days before the blasts by the six people, some of whom presented Ukrainian passports as identification, the official said.

☆ Tiny Baltic island finds itself 'a pawn' in Nord Stream gas drama
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Nikolaj Skydsgaard | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Tom LittleCHRISTIANSÖ in the Baltic Sea, Denmark, March 9 (Reuters) - Inhabitants of the tiny island of Christiansö in the Baltic Sea found themselves in the glare of global media attention this week after reports alleging a boat moored off the rocky outcrop was used to blow up the Nord Stream gas pipelines. I got calls from 87 different people," island caretaker Soren Thiim Andersen, the highest authority on the island that is Denmark's easternmost point, told Reuters. Andersen told Reuters the Danish police had interviewed local people for information about boats that moored on Christiansö on Sept. 16-18. That our small island could be a pawn in such a big political game. Christiansö is part of a small archipelago about 18 km northeast of the Baltic Sea island of Bornholm.

Schwedt has traditionally supplied 90% of the gasoline, diesel, jet fuel and fuel oil used in Germany's capital city. Moscow last month retaliated against their bilateral efforts by halting oil flows to Poland via the Druzhba pipeline, thereby squeezing Poland’s ability to free up oil for Schwedt. Polish state-controlled refiner PKN Orlen now needs to use more capacity at the Gdansk oil terminal to feed its own Plock refinery. ROSNEFT STAKEGermany and Poland started discussions about shipping non-Russian oil to Schwedt via the port of Gdansk, Polish pipelines and Druzhba in early spring 2022. KEBCOIn a move that further complicated talks with Poland, Germany late last year approached Kazakhstan about supplies for Schwedt, sparking new concerns in Warsaw.

“There have been about 1,300 Russian tank losses … so the actual numbers of new tanks [for Ukraine] in a military sense are not that significant. There’s a lot of Ukraine and 20, 30, 40 tanks does not go that far,” said Ronald Ti, an expert in military logistics at King’s College, London. Nevertheless, the move to create a new “tank coalition,” as some officials called it, has been widely welcomed in Ukraine. Zelenskyy has said Ukraine requires around 300 tanks in order to successfully defend its territory from an expected Russian spring offensive, and to begin winning back territory ceded to Moscow since the invasion began last February. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, seen in Berlin on Wednesday, has faced prolonged criticism for a reluctance to send military equipment to Ukraine.

☆ Man stabs passengers on German train; 2 dead, 5 injured
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +1 min

BERLIN — A man fatally stabbed two people and injured five others on a train in northern Germany on Wednesday before being arrested, police said. Germany’s Federal Police force said the man used a knife to attack several passengers shortly before a regional train traveling from Kiel to Hamburg arrived at the Brokstedt station. The interior minister of Schleswig-Holstein state, Sabine Suetterlin-Waack, said the attack happened at about 3 p.m. local time. “We are shocked and horrified that something like this has happened.”Regional police and the federal police were on the scene and the prosecutor’s office was investigating the attack, NDR reported. The train station in Brokstedt was closed for several hours.

☆ Two killed in knife attack on German train - authorities
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/5] Forensic experts stand next to a train on which an incident involving a knife attack took place, at a railway station in Brokstedt, Germany, January 25, 2023. REUTERS/Fabian BimmerBERLIN, Jan 25 (Reuters) - Two people were killed and several others injured in a knife attack on Wednesday on a regional train travelling between Kiel and Hamburg in northern Germany, authorities said. Earlier, the Bild newspaper had said five people were injured in the attack. Police were investigating at the train station in Brokstedt, the German railway Deutsche Bahn said on Twitter, adding some services between the two cities had been cancelled. "Federal and state police are working closely together on investigating this case," state interior minister Sabine Suettelin-Waack said in a statement.

☆ At least one dead, several injured in machete attack at southern Spain churches
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( David Latona | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/3] A body covered in thermal blanket is seen at the scene of a stabbing incident at a church in Algeciras, Spain January 25, 2023 in this screen grab from a video. The man attacked clergymen at two different churches - San Isidro and Nuestra Senora de La Palma, around 300 metres (1,000 feet) apart - just after 8pm on Wednesday evening in downtown Algeciras, a spokesperson for the city said. Jose Ignacio Landaluce, the mayor of Algeciras, has declared a day of mourning in the city for Thursday and a rally outside Nuestra Senora de La Palma church at midday. Earlier on Wednesday, two people were killed and several others injured when a 33-year-old stateless Palestinian man attacked them with a knife on a regional train travelling between Kiel and Hamburg in northern Germany, authorities said. Reporting by David Latona, Belén Carreño and Aislinn Laing; Editing by Rosalba O'BrienOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ The Nord Stream pipeline attack shows what Russia can do, Western officials say, even if they can't prove Russia did it
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-23 | by ( Christopher Woody | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

After months of investigation, Western officials can't prove Russia blew up the Nord Stream pipelines. While they can't name Russia as the culprit, officials say the attacks illustrate what Russia can do. The vulnerability of undersea infrastructure, like pipelines and data cables, is a growing concern. Four months on, investigators are unable to prove Moscow was behind the attack, but officials say the explosions illustrate the threat malign actors — especially Russia — pose to vital undersea infrastructure. Despite the uncertainty, the attack has only added to concern about threats to undersea infrastructure, particularly cables and pipelines, that connects continents and powers economies.

☆ Northvolt says 'believes in Germany', battery plant talks ongoing
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Victoria Waldersee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BERLIN, Jan 18 (Reuters) - Northvolt believes in Germany as an industrial location and continues discussions on building a battery plant there, it said on Wednesday amid speculation that the Swedish battery maker could divert its planned investment to the United States. There are certain requirements in order to make this feasible in competition with the United States," Nicolas Steinbacher, Head of Strategy and Program for Northvolt in Germany, said at a battery conference in Berlin. "We are working together with the government in a spirit of trust to solve these challenges," he added. The company is holding fortnightly citizen consultations in Heide in northern Germany, where it signed a memorandum of understanding with the state of Schleswig-Holstein in 2022 for a possible battery plant. Reporting by Victoria Waldersee; Editing by Christoph Steitz and Tomasz JanowskiOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ European natural gas prices return to pre-Ukraine war levels
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( Elliot Smith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

EU energy ministers are wrangling over a proposed price cap on gas. LONDON — European natural gas prices fell this week to levels not seen since before Russia's invasion of Ukraine. At their peak in August, European gas prices topped 345 euros/MWh as Russia's weaponization of its natural gas exports to the rest of the continent in response to punitive EU sanctions, and sky-high temperatures over the summer, drove up demand while constricting supply. The spiking prices sent household energy bills soaring and have fueled a cost-of-living crisis across much of the continent. Goldman Sachs in November predicted a sharp fall in European gas prices in the coming months as nations gained a temporary upper hand on supply issues.

☆ Former Nazi Camp Secretary, 97, Found Guilty in What Could be Final Holocaust Trial
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-20 | by ( Bertrand Benoit | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Irmgard Furchner arriving at the start of her trial in Germany for her role as a junior employee at a Nazi concentration camp in World War II. BERLIN—A court in Germany found a former secretary in a concentration camp guilty of accessory to murder, the latest in a string of convictions targeting low-level members of the Nazi’s extermination effort. In what could be one of the last criminal cases against individuals who participated in the Holocaust, the court in Itzehoe, northern Germany, handed Irmgard Furchner, 97 years old, a suspended two-year prison sentence for her role as a junior employee of the Stutthof concentration camp near Gdansk, now part of Poland, between 1943 and 1945.

EU energy ministers are wrangling over a proposed price cap on gas. European Union nations are engaged in crunch talks to cap gas prices morning, with energy ministers Monday seeming optimistic about a deal following two months of tough negotiations. Runacher said France would be "comfortable" with a range of "160 to 200 euros [eur/MWh], and we feel that this price [range] converges with that of the presidency." On Monday morning, ministers referred to the measure as a "gas market correction mechanism" rather than a cap. European natural gas prices reached historic levels of around 350 euros per megawatt hour in August, when traders were concerned about the bloc's unity in fighting the energy crisis.

☆ Germans spending less as soaring power, food costs gnaw finances
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-01 | by ( Mathis Richtmann | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +8 min

REUTERS/Thomas PeterSummary Germans consuming less as inflation bitesMore worried about personal finances than FrenchState support arriving, but will it work? But this year he took the dish off the menu because rising costs all along the supply chain would have doubled its price compared to last year. That would be beyond the budgets of Germans looking to cut back on non-essentials amid a cost of living crisis fuelled by rising energy prices. At some point in 2023, he and hundreds of thousands of others will receive a bill for his 2022 heating to recover additional costs from rising prices. Discount retailer Primark said in November it was looking to reduce its presence in Germany as it grappled with weak sales and rising costs.

But a new U.S. law offering hefty subsidies to local manufacturers of green technology has given the company pause for thought. That is roughly four times what the German government is offering, he said, with cheaper energy prices in the United States on top. The act introduces tax credits related to investment in green technology, plus tax breaks for consumers buying an electric vehicle or other green product made in North America. German carmakers and suppliers, for which the United States is a main export market, are among its biggest victims. "If we don't do anything, a lot will emerge in the United States," said Siemens Energy (ENR1n.DE) Chief Executive Christian Bruch.

☆ European Energy Ministers Set to Clash Over Proposed Gas-Price Cap
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-24 | by ( Kim Mackrael | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Pipes at facilities of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline in Lubmin, northern Germany. European Union countries earlier this year agreed to voluntary plans to reduce their gas consumption. BRUSSELS—European Union energy ministers are gathering to haggle Thursday over details of a new proposal from the bloc’s executive body for an emergency cap on the price of natural gas. The meeting convenes as EU diplomats struggle to agree on a separate, international plan to cap prices paid for Russian oil around the world.

☆ European Energy Ministers Clash Over Proposed Gas-Price Cap
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-24 | by ( Kim Mackrael | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Pipes at facilities of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline in Lubmin, northern Germany. European Union countries earlier this year agreed to voluntary plans to reduce their gas consumption. BRUSSELS—European Union energy ministers failed to reach an agreement Thursday on a plan to put an emergency cap on the price of natural gas, saying they would resume their debate next month. EU diplomats are also struggling to agree on a separate, international plan to cap prices paid for Russian oil around the world.

☆ German officials search bank in Russian oligarch probe
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/3] German officials have searched a large bank in Munich and Frankfurt, Germany, November 8, 2022, in an investigation into suspected money-laundering by a Russian oligarch, a spokesperson for the prosecutors said on Tuesday. Swiss bank UBS confirmed that its branches were the subject of the searches and that it was cooperating with authorities. REUTERS/Kai PfaffenbachBERLIN, Nov 8 (Reuters) - German officials have searched a large bank in Frankfurt and Munich in an investigation into suspected money-laundering by a Russian oligarch, a spokesperson for the prosecutors said on Tuesday. Swiss bank UBS confirmed that its branches were the subject of the searches and that it was cooperating with authorities. The prosecutors' spokesperson did not name the bank and declined to name the oligarch, adding that individuals of the bank were not under investigation.

☆ Investments in infrastructure has fueled Germany's transition to hydrogen-powered trains
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( James O'Malley | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

In Lower Saxony, in northern Germany, the first hydrogen-powered commuter trains were officially commissioned for full-time service after two years of extensive testing. Otherwise, the lack of hydrogen infrastructure would have rendered the project not viable. Alstom is positioning the iLint as a like-for-like replacement for diesel trains serving regional rail routes that have not been electrified. According to Soua, maintenance costs on hydrogen trains are much lower, and hydrogen-powered trains will cost less than diesel after about 15 years of operation. The company has already signed up its second customer from Germany, as the Rhine-Main region has ordered 27 iLint trains, and similar contracts have been inked in Italy and France.

Suspected sabotage on the German rail network and on the Baltic Sea gas pipelines linking Germany and Russia in recent weeks have raised concerns about the country's exposure to attacks. "We have strengthened the police's work at sea," Faeser said. "Police are patrolling at sea with all their available forces and ships to also protect maritime infrastructure." Now the ministry wants to make some requirements legally binding and will present key points for a new law this year, ahead of schedule, Faeser said. Germany is also rushing to improve its preparedness for catastrophes, both manmade and natural, Faeser said, a task the country has long neglected.

☆ German police investigating Russian billionaire Usmanov search yacht
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Russian billionaire Alisher Usmanov walks out of a voting booth at a polling station during the presidential election in Moscow, Russia March 18, 2018. REUTERS/Maxim ShemetovBERLIN, Sept 27 (Reuters) - German police investigating money laundering accusations against Russian billionaire businessman Alisher Usmanov have searched a motor yacht in northern Germany, prosecutors said on Tuesday. Prosecutors did not identify the yacht or its owner but described him as a 69-year-old Russian businessman and said he was the target of the same investigation as last week, when police raided a lakeside villa registered to Usmanov. Usmanov's representatives were not immediately available to comment on Tuesday's yacht raid. The federal criminal police office has said it is worth half a billion euros.

☆ Germany to sign LNG contracts in UAE - German economy minister
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz addresses the media after Germany placed the German subsidiary of Russian oil giant Rosneft under trusteeship amid the energy crisis following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, in Berlin, Germany, September 16, 2022. REUTERS/Christian MangBERLIN, Sept 19 (Reuters) - German Chancellor Olaf Scholz is expected to sign contracts for liquefied natural gas (LNG) during his visit to the United Arab Emirates on Sunday, his deputy chancellor said, as Germany looks for new partners to replace Russian energy imports. In May, sources told Reuters that LNG talks between Germany and Qatar were fraught with differences over key conditions, including the duration of any contract. [nL5N2WW7BO]Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterGerman is acquiring LNG terminals as part of its efforts to diversify away from Russian gas. "There is a good, realistic chance ... that the two FSRU vessels there will be able to feed into the German gas network from the turn of the year," he said.

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