Germany

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Curveball's True Identity Comes to Light

Iraqi informant lied about WMDs for green card, 60 Minutes says

(Newser) - Curveball, the Iraqi informant whose tall tales of mass weaponry helped push the US to war, has been identified by 60 Minutes as a lousy student—not the brilliant chemical engineer he claimed to be—who lied through his teeth to get his green card. This week's show names him...

Court Overturns Volkswagen Law, Takeover Likely

Porsche to exercise control in VW

(Newser) - The EU’s highest court today overturned a 47-year-old German law that protected Volkswagen AG from takeover, opening the door for a long-rumored Porsche coup. Porsche already owns 31% of VW, but the law capped their voting rights at 20%. With that impediment gone, “I see Porsche flexing its...

Housing Ills Ripple Across Pond
Housing Ills Ripple Across Pond

Housing Ills Ripple Across Pond

(Newser) - The American housing crisis is echoing in Europe, where home prices are dropping after a decade of rapid growth. The damage is limited, however, by intercontinental differences. High interest rates and shaken confidence are catching up to prices in France, Ireland, and particularly Spain, where new home construction had spurred...

Book Details How a Curveball Spun Into a War

Iraqi defector lied on WMDs, but CIA was a willing dupe

(Newser) - An Iraqi defector codenamed Curveball, a primary source behind the WMD intelligence that inspired the invasion, is the subject of a new book that bears his handle, but  the CIA is the most guilty party in author Bob Drogin's account.  Analysts “twisted” and “magnified” the low-level engineer's...

Interpol IDs Serial Pedophile in Scrambled Web Photos

Cops: Canadian teacher hiding out in Bangkok

(Newser) - Interpol has identified a suspected serial pedophile who posted altered photos of himself with as many as 12 boys he apparently molested in Vietnam and Cambodia, reports Reuters. Agents identified Christopher Paul Neil, a Canadian English teacher who has taught at Asian schools, after Interpol released digitally unscrambled photos from...

Germany Paid Dearly for Hostage Release

Afghan captors secure cash, cronies' freedom in risky precedent

(Newser) - On one hand, the German government successfully negotiated the release of a German engineer held hostage in Afghanistan; on the other, the deal cost the Germans a hefty ransom, the release of five prisoners, and its hard line against granting terrorist demands, reports Der Spiegel. "I have purchased a...

German Publishers Launch Google Books Rival

Service won't show text snippets, which Germans think violate copyright

(Newser) - German publishers irked by Google Book Search's indexing of their books without paying a fee have launched a competing version of the same service. So far, reports Ars Technica, about 300 publishers have made about 8,000 German books available to searchers on Libreka.de, with up to 50,000...

European Militants Find Training in Pakistan

Fighters wary of Iraq are groomed for terror ops on Afghan border

(Newser) - Renewed Al-Qaeda strength on the Pakistan-Afghan border is wooing European militants to train in Pakistan, the Los Angeles Times reports. Fighters who are wary of Iraq—where they may have to strap on a bomb on short notice—can enjoy being groomed for missions in Pakistan. “Pakistan worries me...

Supremes Won’t Hear CIA Torture Suit

Earlier dismissals rested on concerns about national security

(Newser) - The Supreme Court declined today without comment to hear the case of a German citizen who claims he was kidnapped and tortured by the CIA. Lower courts had dismissed Khaled el-Masri's case on the grounds that a trial would expose state secrets. German authorities have said the US acknowledged abducting...

Germany's FBI Faces Up to Nazi Roots

Security service's founders were behind thousands of deaths

(Newser) - The German equivalent of the FBI has acknowledged what everyone already knew: It was founded by Nazis. The agency is inviting historians to explore those dark roots, making it the first German security organization to do so, Der Spiegel reports. Owning up to the past is the only way to...

German Women Win World Cup
German Women Win World Cup

German Women Win World Cup

Defend title with 2-0 defeat of Brazil

(Newser) - Germany took down Brazil 2-0 today, to win its second straight women’s World Cup. The game’s pivotal moment came in the second half, when Brazilian star Marta had a chance to tie the game on a penalty kick, but was blocked by goalkeeper Nadine Angerer. “After the...

Photos Show Auschwitz, on the Weekend

Album reveals death camp guards relaxing after 'a hard day's work'

(Newser) - A photo album of co-workers decorating Christmas trees, playing with dogs, eating blueberries—fond memories, but for the swastikas on the merrymakers' uniforms. The US Holocaust Museum has posted online 116 photos showing how Auschwitz guards "unwound after 'a hard day's work,' " archivist Rebecca Erbelding tells the...

Germany Opens Trial Against 'Cyber-Jihadist'

In groundbreaking case, Iraqi accused of inciting terror online

(Newser) - Deutsche Welle reports on a landmark trial in Germany, where an Iraqi-born Kurd has been accused of using the internet as a terror weapon. Prosecutors charge that over the 18 months German intelligence monitored his internet use, he posted material intended to incite terrorist attacks. The lead prosecutor has accused...

Dalai Visits Germany; China Irked
Dalai Visits Germany; China Irked

Dalai Visits Germany; China Irked

Beijing responds: calls off German trade talks

(Newser) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel will meet today with the Dalai Lama, even as China responded by canceling meetings in Munich. The Chinese government, which governs Tibet, derided the meeting as part of the Dalai Lama's agenda to promote Tibetan independence. BBC reports the Germans were unmoved: "The meeting will...

Rwandan War Crimes Suspect Arrested In Frankfurt

Ex-minister wanted for abetting genocide

(Newser) - An ex-cabinet minister wanted for war crimes during the 1994 Rwandan genocide has been arrested in Germany after more than a decade on the lam. Deutsche Welle reports that a manhunt had tracked Augustin Ngirabatware since July as he shuttled between hotels and apartments before being caught on Wednesday near...

German Cardinal Uses Nazi Term to Describe Art

Says "degenerate" remark unintentional, but critics disagree

(Newser) - Germans are in an uproar after an archbishop labeled some modern art “degenerate,” the same word Nazis used to persecute artists. A spokesman for Cardinal Joachim Meisner said the archbishop didn’t intend to acknowledge “old ideologies,” but the BBC says the term was precisely scripted...

US Agencies Aided German Terror Probe

Capture of suspects in bomb plot a joint effort with the CIA

(Newser) - The CIA and NSA played a marquee role in last week’s capture of three men suspected of planning major terror attacks in Germany. For several months, Angela Merkel’s chief of staff held a weekly meeting about the plotters, Der Spiegel reports, and the cooperation was so significant that...

Bomb Threat Leaves US Air Base on Alert

German police, American security swing into action

(Newser) - The US air base in Spangdahlem, Germany, received a phoned-in bomb threat last night, and German police and the American military personnel have secured the facility. Although officials say they doubt the threat is credible, they're taking no chances. "It is being taken very seriously given the current situation...

3 Arrested in German Terror Plot
3 Arrested in German Terror Plot

3 Arrested in German Terror Plot

Militants planned to bomb Frankfurt airport and American military base

(Newser) - German officials have arrested three suspected Islamic militants involved in a "massive" and "imminent" plot to bomb the Frankfurt Airport and the Ramstein Air Base, a U.S. and NATO military hub, the AP reported this morning. The men had gathered 1,500 lbs of hydrogen peroxide. "...

Berlin Synagogue Reopens
Berlin Synagogue Reopens

Berlin Synagogue Reopens

Country’s largest synagogue survived century of strife

(Newser) - Germany’s largest synagogue has re-opened its doors after a major restoration, welcoming political leaders and Holocaust survivors to its unveiling. Built over 100 years ago, the Berlin temple was burned on Kristallnacht but the structure survived Nazism, Communism and decades of neglect. Architects re-created the original appearance with the...

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