Category: General

A 53-year-old suspect has been detained following the fatal shooting of two people at a Mercedes-Benz factory near Stuttgart in southwestern Germany on Thursday, according to local authorities.

The carmaker confirmed in a statement on Thursday that two people had died following the early morning incident at its plant in Sindelfingen – around 10 miles (17km) outside of Stuttgart – which occurred at approximately 7.45am local time. The statement, which was confirmed by the Stuttgart prosecutor, revised earlier reports which stated that one person had died and another was injured.

“One person is in police custody,” the company said in a statement after the shooting on Thursday. “The [deceased] persons are employees of an external service provider.”

The prosecutor’s office has said it is working on the assumption that a single gunman was responsible for the shooting, and that no other individuals were involved. The suspect was identified as a 53-year-old man.

“We are deeply shocked and saddened by the tragic news from Sindelfingen this morning,” Mercedes-Benz added on social media. “Our thoughts are with the victims, their families and all colleagues on site.” Around 35,000 people are employed at the plant where Mercedes-Benz produces its range of popular S-Class luxury sedans.

The fatal shooting is the latest in a series of such incidents to take place in Germany in recent years, and comes amid a debate over whether Berlin should tighten its already strict gun laws.

In March, six people were shot dead at a Jehovah’s Witness congregation in Hamburg. In February 2020, a gunman with a right-wing extremist background shot and killed nine people near Frankfurt, in an incident described as ‘racially-motivated.’ He also shot his mother and himself.

In December Germany said it was to impose stricter gun laws after discovering a suspected plot by a far-right group to violently overthrow the government. Authorities must “exert maximum pressure” to remove firearms from suspected criminals, the EU country’s Interior Minister Nancy Faeser told the Bild am Sonntag newspaper last year, adding that Germany will “shortly further tighten gun laws.”

Source: Russia Today

The sweet-smelling “floral water” of Tunisia, distilled from aromatic flowers in a centuries-old tradition of the North African country, gives a higher-quality fragrance than modern scents, according to a local practitioner. Floral water is deeply rooted in the country’s culture, especially in the northeastern coastal area of Nabeul, where the scents of geranium, rose, and orange blossoms flow through many of the local homes. In a centuries-old practice, which is often handed down from mother to daughter, making floral water involves the distillation of blossoms in large cauldrons for hours on end, to produce a fragrance that can outstrip ready-made perfumes. Duda bin Salim, a resident of Nabeul who grew up in the city, inherited the practice from her elders. Traditional floral water techniques yield scents of higher quality than more modern distillation methods, she told Anadolu, adding, however, that younger people often shy away from the traditional process as it takes a longer time to complete. “The distillation process carried out with traditional methods allows us to obtain a cleaner, higher quality, and more durable product,” she said. Bin Salim, 66, explained that once the flowers are purified, washed, and watered, they are placed in big cauldrons with their stems still attached and placed in a pot over a fire. The vapor leaves the pot through a lengthy tube passing through another pot filled with cold water, cooling it and condensing the steam back into liquid form. “The container of glass at the opposite end of the pipe collects the floral water, which is gathered there and used in the kitchen or as a cosmetic product,” Bin Salim said. The process takes at least four hours for roses and up to three hours for other flower varieties. Bin Salim remarked that they usually sell homemade products, for the equivalent of $15-25, depending on the type of flower.

Source: Anadolu Agency

US President Joe Biden said at a Democratic Party event in New York on Wednesday that his four-day visit to Ireland last month was designed to make sure that “the Brits didn’t screw around” when it came to London’s commitments towards Northern Ireland and its relations with the leadership in Dublin.

“I got to go back to Ireland for the, for the, the Irish accords, to make sure they weren’t, the Brits didn’t screw around and Northern Ireland didn’t walk away from their commitments,” Biden told reporters at the event.

His visit to the island, the majority of which was spent in the Republic of Ireland, marked the 25th anniversary of the Good Friday Agreement – the 1998 political deal that brought an end to decades of conflict between predominantly Catholic and Protestant factions in Northern Ireland during which thousands of people lost their lives.

Ahead of the trip, Biden told the media that the purpose of the visit was to “keep the peace” in Northern Ireland. Following a brief meeting with UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in Belfast during the initial leg of the trip, the White House released a statement to say that both leaders had “reaffirmed their shared commitment” to the Good Friday Agreement.

Speaking on the campus at Ulster University on April 12, Biden called on Northern Irish lawmakers to re-establish the power-sharing accord which was enshrined in the Good Friday Agreement in 1998. The Northern Ireland Executive collapsed last year after the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) withdrew in protest over post-Brexit trade rules.

The US president added during his Ulster University speech: “Effective devolved government that reflects the people of Northern Ireland, and is accountable to them, that works to find ways to face hard problems together will grow greater opportunities for the region.”

Biden also stated during the visit that he believed Downing Street should work closer with Dublin to support issues in Northern Ireland.

A new Brexit trade deal for Northern Ireland – the Windsor Framework – was greenlit by the UK and EU in March. The DUP has not yet dropped its protest, citing concerns about Northern Ireland being subject to EU trade rules in spite of the UK having left the European Union.

Following Biden’s remarks, Downing Street released a statement on Thursday to say that “the UK priority was always protecting the Good Friday Agreement. We are pleased [that] between the UK and EU we have reached an agreement that works.”

Source: Russia Today

The European Union on Tuesday called indiscriminate shelling of the Gaza Strip ‘intolerable,’ and urged Israel to prevent civilian causalities. The escalating conflict between Israel and Palestine ‘is a source of concern for the European Union,’ Peter Stano, the lead spokesperson of the EU diplomatic service, told journalists in Brussels. ‘It is unacceptable to see indiscriminate rocket fire from Gaza,’ he added. The spokesperson stressed that Israel must ‘take precautions and all the possible measures to prevent civilian casualties in its operations and uphold international humanitarian law.’ Stano repeated the EU’s call on both parties to ‘exercise maximum restraint.’ He reaffirmed the EU’s backing for the relaunch of the Middle East Peace process in order to reach a sustainable political solution instead of temporary cease-fires. At least 25 people died and 76 others were injured in Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip over the past two days, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. The Israeli army launched airstrikes as part of a counter-offensive after rockets were fired from Gaza following the death of a Palestinian inmate, who was on a hunger strike in an Israeli prison.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Head of the Wagner paramilitary group claimed on Thursday that Ukraine has already launched its widely expected counteroffensive, and his forces were under pressure in Bakhmut. In a statement on Telegram, Evgeny Prigozhin said Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was being deceptive by saying that Kyiv needed more time to prepare for major fighting. “Zelenskyy is paltering, the counteroffensive is in full swing, in the Artyomovsk (Russian for Bakhmut) direction, the AFU (armed forces of Ukraine) units press our flanks,” he said. The Wagner head claimed that his group continues to suffer from ammunition shortages, accusing the Russian Defense Ministry of not fulfilling its promises on supplies. Prigozhin has been accusing Russian defense chiefs of failing to give him sufficient support and ammunition, and had threatened to pull his men out of Bakhmut, the Ukrainian city at the center of the months-long battle of the war that broke out last year.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov has expressed doubt that the International Criminal Court (ICC) warrant would be used against the leader of the nuclear power, Russian President Vladimir Putin. In an interview with the ATV channel from the Republic of Srpska, one of the two entities of Bosnia and Herzegovina, late Wednesday, Peskov said Moscow sees the ICC as a “puppet in the hands of the collective West,” used to increase pressure on Russia. “After all, here we are talking about one of the largest countries in the world, one of the largest nuclear powers in the world. It is hard to imagine that anyone would even seriously think about using this warrant against the President of the Russian Federation,” he asserted. Peskov said the West’s mistakes pushed Russia to launch a “special military operation” in Ukraine, among which, according to him are the West-sponsored coup in Kyiv in 2014, and the government’s reluctance to settle the civil war in the country that lasted for eight years. The spokesman explained the protracted nature of the Russia-Ukraine armed conflict by Western interference, saying the US, EU, and NATO backed Kyiv, pumping it with heavy weapons, providing financial support, and everything and the rest is now before you. “The special military operation began as a conflict between Russia and Ukraine… Now, in fact, NATO is a participant in this conflict on the side of Ukraine,” he noted. Nonetheless, some of the goals of Russia’s “special military operation” were achieved in 14 months, he claimed, reiterating that Ukraine’s military capabilities have been significantly reduced during this period, which is in line with the goal of “demilitarization.” Expressing certainty, Peskov claimed that Ukraine’s city of Bakhmut (Artyomovsk in Russian) would be taken by the Russian forces, but refused to comment on details, saying it is not his area of expertise. He slammed numerous “terrorist” attacks in Russia, including a drone strike on Putin’s residence in the Kremlin, calling Ukraine a “sponsor of terrorism.” “This is an absolutely outrageous and unacceptable terrorist activity of this state. We believe that in this way, Ukraine actually equates itself with the states — sponsors of terrorism,” he stressed. Asked about Western media coverage of the conflict in Ukraine, Peskov claimed that there is no freedom of speech there. “The collective West has enjoyed its monopoly in the media for a very long time, primarily the Americans and the British,” he noted. It is impossible to “break this monopoly in one fell swoop,” he said, adding that even a modest attempt by Russia to compete with them “provoked hysteria.” “They immediately took off all the masks and showed that there is no real media freedom there (…) as soon as some media began to take a different view from the (West) mainstream media, they just began banning them,” he said. Even Western countries impose sanctions on journalists, which, the spokesman said seemed unbelievable a few years ago. “They have no freedom of speech. If you don’t think like them, then they announce sanctions against you,” he said, adding that this situation made it more difficult to have an alternative point of view on different issues. And that is why, the spokesman said, the Kremlin has had no contact with Western media in the last one year. “I have made a decision… until I see that the Western media show some interest in (listening to) the truth, we will not contact them,” he said.

Source: Anadolu Agency

The Palestinian Islamic Jihad group demanded on Thursday that Israel end its assassination policy in order to establish a cease-fire. Speaking to Anadolu, the group’s spokesman Dawood Shihab said no progress has yet been achieved on a cease-fire between the Palestinian groups in Gaza and Israel. ‘The Egyptian side is continuing efforts with the Palestinian groups to reach a cease-fire in Gaza,’ Shihab said. He added that senior Islamic Jihad leader Mohammed Al-Hindi is set to arrive in Cairo to discuss the developments and stop Israeli “aggression on Gaza.” On Wednesday, a Palestinian source said that Egyptian efforts to broker a cease-fire between Israel and Palestinian factions in Gaza have stalled. ‘The truce talks have stalled as factions insist on obligating Israel to halt its assassination policy,’ the source told Anadolu on condition of anonymity because he was unauthorized to speak to the media. At least 25 Palestinians were killed and 76 injured in the Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip since Tuesday, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. Three senior military commanders of the Islamic Jihad group, their wives, and children were among those killed in the attacks. Palestinian factions fired a barrage of rockets Wednesday into Israel amid tensions following Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip.

Source: Anadolu Agency

A study being conducted by the University of Vienna among Muslim students in Austria has drawn criticism from Muslim associations, according to a report in the Kurier on Thursday. The study, titled ‘Effects of Islamic Religious Education in Austria,’ is surveying 2,000 Muslim students, but Muslim Youth Austria (MJO) is highly critical of its ‘racist nature,’ claiming that the study has a tendentious structure that seems to have pre-fabricated results. The young people involved would report a “feeling of unease and incomprehension” about the fact that only Muslim students had to take part in the survey, a statement from the MJO told the Austrian news agency APA. MJO said that the young people were removed from regular classes and subjected to external supervision, including having to answer questions such as ‘It’s disgusting when homosexuals kiss,’ and to decide who would go to hell. “The sight of disabled people bothers me” is another statement to be evaluated. Another one is “When women wear miniskirts or revealing clothing in public, they signal sexual willingness.” The study is led by Austrian-Turkish professor of Islamic religious education Ednan Aslan. The professor had already been sharply criticized for the so-called “Islam map” and a controversial kindergarten study in Austria. The MJO, together with the Austrian NGOs Initiative Discrimination-Free Education (IDB) and ZARA- Civil courage and anti-racism work, demand the immediate termination of the study. In addition, the organizations demand a statement from the rector of the University of Vienna, Sebastian Schutze and the Austrian Minister of Education, Martin Polaschek.

Source: Anadolu Agency

Foreign ministers of Germany, France, Egypt, and Jordan on Thursday called for urgent steps to calm spiraling violence in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “In the last two days alone in Gaza, more than a dozen people have died, it is appalling to see that there were civilians among the casualties, children were among them,” German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said at a joint press conference with her counterparts in Berlin. Baerbock called on Israel to abide by its obligations under international law while responding to rocket fires from Gaza. ‘Israel has the right to defend its people against attacks, and at the same time, I would like to say this very clearly, as every country in the world Israel has the duty to protect the civilian population to the best of its abilities, and stick to the principle of proportionality,’ she said. The foreign ministers of Germany, France, Egypt, and Jordan met in the so-called Munich format as part of their regular consultations on the Middle East conflict and discussed Egypt’s efforts to mediate an end to the fighting. French Foreign Minister Catherine Colonna called for immediate steps to end the violence and urged a return to the negotiations for peace between Israelis and Palestinians. ‘We all know that violence simply leads to more violence. Violence kills. What we need is a political perspective,’ she said. ‘Violence will not stop unless we have a just, sustainable solution to the Middle East conflict,’ she added. Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry heavily criticized Israel for escalating tensions in the region through its military operations in the occupied Palestinian territories. ‘That does not only pose a threat to the international and national security but also destroys any hopes for a peaceful coexistence in the region, it is making all of our efforts void and leads to a vicious cycle of violence,’ he said. Shoukry said the international community should increase pressure on Israel to stop its unilateral actions and military aggression that threatens the two-state solution. Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi said all countries should step up their efforts to end the recent spiral of violence. ‘Security should be guaranteed for both sides and therefore we need real true efforts,’ he said. Safadi warned that due to Israel’s military operations, Palestinian people are losing hope in a true peace process. ‘We need to come back to a calmer situation as a starting point to develop a political perspective and launch a political process that will help us to move towards a two-state solution,’ he said. ‘Peace is a right for everybody, security is a right for everybody. Security of Israel cannot be guaranteed without Palestinians having security too,’ he added. The death toll from the latest Israeli airstrikes on the Gaza Strip has risen to 25, the Palestinian Health Ministry said on Thursday. The Israeli army said the airstrikes are part of its Operation Shield and Arrow, an offensive launched after rockets were fired from Gaza following the death of a Palestinian inmate who was on a hunger strike in an Israeli prison. Palestinian factions also fired a barrage of rockets at Israel on Wednesday. According to Palestinian figures, more than 130 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces since the start of this year. At least 19 Israelis have also been killed in separate attacks during the same period.

Source: Anadolu Agency

“All the liberal people of the world can stand together and support Cyprus to end the illegal occupation that continues on the island.” This was stated by New Hampshire Democratic Congressman, co-chairman of the Hellenic Caucus Chris Pappas in the context of the 38th Congress of PSEKA in Washington. Pappas, awarded by PSEKA president Philip Christopher and emphasized that the Cypriot cause has strong bipartisan support in Congress in order to end the illegal Turkish occupation. “As co-chair of the Hellenic Caucus in the House of Representatives, I will continue to work closely with Gus Bilirakis, Nicole Malliotakis, Dina Titus, John Sarbanis, Robert Menendez Jr. and many Philhellenes in Congress. I think it was Isocrates who said that anyone who can display Greek values in mind and spirit can be Greek. And we certainly have many allies in Congress who are doing that on a bipartisan basis,” Pappas said.

Source: Cyprus News Agency