Germany news: Bavaria's state premier visits BMW plant in US

Hong Kong publisher Jimmy Lai has been awarded a German press freedom prize amid the uproar over his lengthy prison sentence issued last month for violating the Chinese territory's controversial national security law. 

The Media Association of the Free Press and the Federal Association of Digital Publishers and Newspaper Publishers split their 2026 "Press Freedom Prize" between Lai, the Austrian correspondent for the Süddeutsche Zeitung newspaper Cathrin Kahlweit and the Jan Jessen, a crisis and conflict reporter for the Funke group of newspapers. 

The award ceremony is scheduled for May 6 in Berlin, with Lai highly unlikely to be able to attend. 

The 78-year-old was sentenced to 20 years in prison in early February for alleged violations of Hong Kong's national security laws including colluding with foreign powers and publishing "seditious" material. 

Lai founded the now defunct Apple Daily newspaper in Hong Kong and was among the highest-profile arrests for alleged violations of the controversial new laws imposed on the island by the central government in Beijing. 

China committed when reclaiming control of Hong Kong from colonial power Britain to uphold democratic standards in the coastal city under a regime that was dubbed "one country, two systems." The national security laws and other changes since the 1997 handover are perceived by some including the UK government as breaches of this pledge.

In the international friendlies before the FIFA World Cup, some players on Germany's national football team made the most of their chances, while others missed the opportunity to impress.

Learn more about which players are set to be on the plane to fly across the Atlantic for soccer's biggest event this summer, and who is likely to be left behind.

The German government has denounced the decision by Israel's parliament (Knesset) to pass a law allowing the death penalty to be imposed against Palestinians convicted of terror offenses.

Government spokesperson Stefan Kornelius said Tuesday that Berlin "regrets the Knesset's decision" and views it "with great concern," adding that opposition to the death penalty is a "fundamental feature of German policy."

"The German government is additionally concerned that such a law would likely apply exclusively to Palestinians in the Palestinian territories," Kornelius said.

The spokesperson said it was "understandable" that Israel had "cracked down hard on terrorism" in the wake of the October 7, 2023, attacks by Palestinian militants Hamas. However, Germany could "not endorse" the Israeli parliament's decision, in particular because of its uneven application against Palestinians.

Several of Israel's other international allies, including France and the United Kingdom, have also condemned the move.

Authorities in Austria have issued avalanche warnings in parts of the Alps after heavy snowfalls of between 50 and 60 centimeters (roughly 19-24 inches) fairly late in the ski season. 

In parts of Vorarlberg, between the borders to Germany and Switzerland, level 4 warnings on a 5-step scale were in place on Wednesday. 

In much of the neighboring state of Tirol, level 3 warnings were in place. 

The ÖAMTC Austrian motoring club said that snow chain usage was mandatory on certain high-altitude roads in the country. Authorities did not report any major traffic disturbances.

To the west, Switzerland was experiencing similar risks, with level 3 warnings in place across most of the southern half of the country and level 4 warnings issued across a narrower band of the mountains.

The snows are forecast to abate by Wednesday, and much warmer temperatures, with highs of up to 20 degrees Celsius (68 Fahrenheit) are forecast for the Easter bank holiday weekend in a few days. 

Nine out of 10 manufacturing companies in Germany expect the war in the Middle East to impact their business operations, the Munich-based Ifo economic institute said Tuesday.

Ifo said only 9% of industrial companies said they do not expect the Iran war to have an impact.

"The conflict impacts manufacturing directly but above all causes major uncertainty," said Ifo's head of surveys, Klaus Wohlrabe. "Many companies are preparing for additional burdens in the coming months."

Over three-quarters (78%) of companies said the main cause for concern was rising energy prices as a result of the war and Iran's closure of the Strait of Hormuz, which has seen oil prices surge.

More than a third (36%) pointed to restrictions on shipping routes and issues with deliveries, while 16% were worried about disruptions to air freight traffic. Many firms also point to financial risks, such as logistics costs, rising insurance premiums, or increased payment risks.

"The results make it clear that the economic consequences of the war in Iran are already becoming apparent and could intensify through various channels," said Wohlrabe.

"The longer the uncertainty persists, the greater the economic problems for companies will become."

German armaments manufacturer Rheinmetall plans to partner with Boeing Australia to offer a sophisticated autonomous drone to the German military. 

Rheinmetall said it expected the Boeing MQ-28 Ghost Bat, currently being developed for the Royal Australian Air Force, to be made available to Germany's Bundeswehr by 2029. 

"With Boeing Defence Australia as a partner, we are laying the groundwork to optimally tailor the MQ-28 to the Bundeswehr's requirements," Rheinmetall CEO Armin Papperger said in a company press release, saying he anticipated revenue potential for the German company "in the range of three-digit millions of euros." 

A so-called Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA), the Ghost Bat is designed for use both as an uncrewed escort for crewed combat aircraft, increasing their efficiency and firepower, or for conducting missions independently using artificial intelligence. 

"This is not just a partnership between our companies but between two great countries, Germany and Australia, who share a similar strategy for integrating collaborative combat aircraft into their air forces," Boeing Global president Brendan Nelson said. 

German Defense Minsiter Boris Pistorius also inspected the Ghost Bat during his recent visit to Australia. 

The drone is a notable diversion from the low-cost, single-use so-called kamikaze drones, such as Iran's Shaheds that countries including Russia, Ukraine and the US have mimicked, with a unit cost that's often comparable to an expensive car. These are the drones most commonly credited with transforming battlefield calculus in recent conflicts in places like Ukraine, Armenia and the Middle East.

Precise figures for the Ghost Bat are not available, but estimated unit costs once mass production is streamlined is more in the region of $10-15 million.

Germany had demonstrated a reticence towards using kamikaze drones, amid questions over their compatibility with the Bundeswehr's more restrictive rules of engagement and operation that can be traced back to defeat in World War II. However, the Bundestag budget committee did approve initial plans to acquire such aircraft from Helsing and Stark Defence last month. 

The unemployment rate in Germany fell slightly in March to 6.4%, the country's Federal Employment Agency said on Tuesday.

The number of unemployed people dropped by 49,000 last month. The decrease is the largest for the month of March since 2022.

But despite the decline, the number of jobless people in Germany remained above 3 million.

Some 54,000 more people were unemployed compared to March last year.

"As usual, the spring upturn begins in March – though this year without any significant momentum," said Andrea Nahles, the head of the Federal Employment Agency in Nuremberg.

Germany's economic struggles in recent years have seen unemployment steadily rise. A third consecutive year of recession was narrowly avoided last year.

The EU's top diplomat Kaja Kallas and foreign ministers from across the bloc, including Germany's Johann Wadephul, arrived in Kyiv to attend a memorial on Tuesday for victims of the 2022 Bucha killings.

The Russian army is accused of killing hundreds of civilians in the Kyiv suburb at the beginning of the war in Ukraine, as Moscow troops withdrew on March 31. Russia denies the allegation, claiming without evidence that the massacre was staged.

The top politicians attended a memorial service in the small town and then convened for a ministerial meeting.

The talks are expected to focus on continued support for Ukraine in its fight against Russian forces, as Hungary maintains its stranglehold on financial aid to Kyiv.

Wadephul said the visit was intended to send a clear signal: "The Ukrainian people are part of our European family," the minister said.

Wadephul said that the message to Russia was that those responsible for the war and the crimes committed must not go unpunished. He said the German government would support Ukraine in collecting evidence and documenting Russian crimes.

"As a founding member of the compensation commission for Ukraine and with our commitment to a special tribunal for the crime of aggression against Ukraine, we are working together with our partners to enable the legal prosecution of Russian atrocities," Wadephul emphasized.

Read our report for more on the EU ministers' meeting in Ukraine.

A woman was bitten by a wolf in Hamburg's central Altona district, local authorities said Tuesday.

The incident took place on Monday evening on the Grosse Bergstrasse shopping street near an IKEA furniture store.

It was unclear how the incident unfolded, a spokesperson for the environmental agency said Tuesday morning. 

The woman's condition was unknown. The fire department said an ambulance had brought her to a hospital in Hamburg for treatment.

According to the Bild newspaper, the wolf had wandered into a shopping gallery and repeatedly ran into a glass window pane. The woman, 65, tried to free the wild animal. It then bit her in the face, Bild reported. Her injuries were not thought to be serious, although she did require stitches.

The wolf was reportedly captured later on Monday night in central Hamburg after police pulled it from the water at a pier on the Binnenalster, an artificial lake within the city.

The wolf has been taken to a wildlife park, the head of the city hunters’ department at the Altona district office told NDR.

Earlier this year, the German parliament passed a legal amendment to allow wolves to be killed again, as the animal's numbers have been recovering in recent years.

Germany's men's national football team capped off a confidence-boosting March international break with a narrow win over Ghana on Monday night in Stuttgart.

Local hero Denis Undav came off the bench to score the decider in the 88th minute to give the Germans a deserved victory over the 72nd-ranked team in the world.

A Kai Havertz penalty just before half-time had given Germany the lead for Julian Nagelsmann's side.

Read more in our full match report.

A special commission has presented a raft of proposals aimed at curbing Germany's spiraling health care costs. But whether the government can impose them is another matter.  

Read more on the 66-point plan to lower the ever-growing health insurance contributions that Germans have to pay into the system in DW's report.

The humpback whale stuck for more than a week in two different spots in the Baltic Sea finally started to swim again on Monday evening, despite having shown signs of deteriorating health throughout the day.

Water levels in Wismar Bay rose around 30 centimeters on Monday evening, presenting a chance for the whale to free itself, and rescuers had been preparing to try and coax it into moving off.

A police spokesperson said the whale had submerged late on Monday and was no longer visible from the surface.

An Environment Ministry spokesman said it was unclear in which direction the whale was swimming. Environmental organization Greenpeace said it was heading toward Wismar harbor.

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz's remarks on Syrian immigrants in Germany have sparked a fierce backlash from the opposition and members of his own governing coalition.

On Monday, Merz hosted Syrian interim president Ahmad al-Sharaa. During the visit, Merz said he wants 80% of the more than 900,000 Syrians in Germany to return to Syria in the next three years.

The chancellor said those who break the law should be prioritized for return to Syria, which is still reeling from a nearly 14-year civil war.

Despite multiple flare-ups of communal violence in the country last year, Merz said conditions in Syria have "fundamentally improved" more than a year after the war.

The opposition has heavily criticized the remarks. The leader of the Green Party,  Franziska Brantner, said Merz had "just plucked a number out of the air" and ignored the fact that many Syrians who arrived in Germany as refugees in 2015 "have since become deeply rooted" in the country and hold "key positions" in healthcare.

There was also pushback from Merz's own governing coalition. Social Democrat immigration expert Hakan Demir said: "I can't see how we can just send back tens of thousands of people," he said. "It's just not possible if you look at the situation on the ground there."

Bavarian State Premier Markus Söder is heading to South Carolina on Tuesday, where he is expected to visit a BMW plant in the city of Spartanburg.

This follows a two-day visit to Texas. There, he visited NASA's Mission Control Center in Houston, where the "Artemis 2" mission to the moon and back will be controlled from later this week.

During his visit to NASA, Söder signed two deals that will further tighten cooperation between the world-famous US space agency and the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in Oberpfaffenhofen near Munich. 

"The great thing is that the strategies we launched in Bavaria a few years ago — which were met with skepticism by some — are now being very well received," said Söder, adding that Bavaria is now "virtually an equal partner" of the European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA. 

Widely mocked when he announced the 10-year aerospace program in 2018, the cooperation has led to a burgeoning aerospace industry around the Bavarian cities of Munich and Augsburg. The industry has generated around €12 billion ($13.8 billion) in annual revenue and employed around 40,000 people in the southern German state.

Away from the high-tech surroundings of NASA, Söder also leaned into Texan stereotypes by visiting the George Ranch outside of Houston, where he watched a rodeo rider show off his lasso skills and enjoyed a barbecue.

During his trip to Texas, Söder also announced that the first Original Hofbräuhaus in Texas would open its doors in the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area later this year.

Correction: An earlier version of this article stated that Markus Söder was in North Carolina, not South. This has now been corrected

Guten morgen from the DW newsroom in Bonn! It is a chilly and gray Tuesday morning on the banks of the Rhine, but brighter days are ahead – spring is nearing, and Easter is just around the corner.

We will bring you coverage of Bavarian leader Markus Söder's trip to South Carolina after spending the past two days in Texas, as well as the publication of a report on far-right attacks against civil society in Germany.

Stay tuned for the latest on those topics and other issues making headlines in Germany on Tuesday.