Germany news: Syrian president puts planned visit on hold

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa has postponed his planned visit to Berlin.

A German government spokesman confirmed the decision on Sunday, citing the political situation in Syria.

Al-Sharaa was scheduled to arrive in the country on Monday and due to meet Chancellor Friedrich Merz and several ministers on Tuesday. Talks were expected to focus on refugee repatriation and rebuilding Syria after nearly 14 years of civil war.

But on Sunday Syria's government signed a ceasefire deal with Syrian Democratic Forces, a Kurdish-led armed group after intense fighting over the weekend.

The agreement calls for an immediate halt to fighting on all fronts.

You can read more about it in our blog on the Syrian ceasefire.

A team of 15 soldiers from Germany's armed forces is heading back from Greenland, via Reykjavik and Copenhagen, a spokesperson from the German military said.

"The results of the reconnaissance mission ‍are such that everyone is satisfied and

The evaluation will now be carried out in Germany," the Reuters news agency quoted the spokesperson as saying.

"The reconnaissance mission was carried out as planned," the spokesperson said.

German industry lobbies have come out strongly against US President Donald Trump's threat of tariffs as a tactic to pressure those standing in the way of him acquiring Greenland.

"Europe must not allow itself to be blackmailed, not even by the United States," Bertram Kawlath, president of the German engineering association VDMA, said in a statement.

"Greenland is part of Europe and must remain so. If the EU gives in here, it will only encourage the American president to make the next ludicrous demand and threaten further tariffs," Kawlath said.

He said the European Commission needed to determine whether the anti-coercion instrument — which allows the EU to take countermeasures in the face of economic pressure —  can be used.

"Highly controversial political objectives are being unacceptably linked to economic sanctions — to the detriment of German and other European companies, as well as American consumers," said Volker Treier, a foreign trade ‍specialist at the German Chamber of Commerce and Industry (DIHK).

"From an economic perspective, de-escalation and defusing the current conflict should remain the top priority," Treier said.

German newspaper The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reported that one of the country's oldest monastery breweries is to be taken over.

According to the report, the Regensburg-based Bischofshof brewery in Weltenberg, Bavaria, will be taken over by family-owned Bavarian brewery Schneider Weisse.

The family-owned brewery Schneider Weisse, based in nearby Kelheim, will acquire the trademark rights to "Bischofshof" and "Weltenburger" in 2027 while the small brewery in Weltenburg Abbey is to be retained.

While beer has been brewed at the Danube Gorge in Weltenburg for nearly 1,000 years, the beer market in Germany has been in decline, amid rising energy costs and shifting consumer habits.

This week's visit by Syria's interim president, Ahmed al-Sharaa, to Berlin has elicited a mixed response from Syrians who were forced to flee to Germany.

Al-Sharaa led the Haya Tahrir al-Sham militant group, previously affiliated with the US-designated terror group al-Qaeda, that overthrew the regime of Bashar Assad in 2024.

He is due to meet Chancellor Friedrich Merz and other government officials on Tuesday, where the question of migrant returns to Syria is up for discussion.

The visit comes amid a battle by Syria's army to extend government control over large parts of the country's northern region by dislodging Kurdish-led forces. It has raised questions about al-Sharaa's commitment to protect the rights of minorities.

Kurdish groups and representatives of the Yazidi community have expressed concern.

The Congress of Yazidis in Diaspora said al-Sharaa's arrival "raises fundamental questions about the coherence of state action and the protection of the interests of victim communities who have found protection in Germany."

The German government says almost 100,000 members of the Yazidi religious group from Iraq and almost 15,000 Yazidis from Syria have fled to Germany since 2014.

They were targeted by the so-called "Islamic State" extremist group, which carried out mass killings across the region as they attempted to carve out a caliphate.

A man who police said appeared to be an unlicensed driver took officers on a high-speed chase as he tried to avoid arrest near Hildesheim, south of Hanover.

Police said the pursuit began following an attempt to stop the 40-year-old man by the Hildesheim Highway Patrol, who then tried to evade authorities.

Police said the driver of an Audi A4 accelerated to nearly 200 kilometers per hour (124 miles per hour) along the A7 motorway before fleeing via the B6 towards Heersum in north-central Germany.

Police said the man repeatedly overtook other cars despite oncoming traffic, forcing other road users to take evasive measures.

Once the driver reached the village of Wendhausen, police said he switched off his lights and tried to escape through narrow streets.

On the outskirts of the village, he exited his car and tried to run across several fields with police hot on his heels.

Fleet of foot officers managed to arrest the man and upon initial investigation, discovered he did not possess a driver's license.

He was also suspected of being under the influence of narcotics and faces criminal charges for illegal street racing, endangering other road users while driving under the suspected influence of drugs and also driving without a license.

Driving without a license is considered a serious criminal offence in Germany and can result in fines, driving bans and even imprisonment.

Guten Morgen from the DW newsroom based in Bonn.

Its a chilly 1 degree Celsius (33.8 degrees Fahrenheit) outside.

We'll be bringing you the latest news and analysis from Germany right here so keep on reading to stay up to date on the latest from Europe's biggest economy.

The co-chair of the Green Youth, Luis Bobga, is under fire after posting a video on Instagram that uses a strong insult while showing an image of Bavaria's premier, Markus Söder, who is also head of the Christian Social Union (CSU).

In the social media clip, Bobga can be seen rapping along to a song by German rapper Haftbefehl. Like Haftbefehl, Bobga uses the term "son of a b@#$" while showing a picture of Söder.

The video reportedly refers to Söder's proposal to reduce the number of federal states.

The conservative CSU called the video "hate speech" and demanded that Bobga resign and apologize. "Anyone who says something like that is no longer acceptable," the head of the CSU parliamentary group, Alexander Hoffmann, told Bild newspaper.

Bobga has since said he never intended to insult Söder directly and was "sorry that this happened because of the song I chose." He also expressed frustration that the discussion over the number of federal states has been overtaken by the controversy.

Green Party co-chair Felix Banaszak welcomed the apology, calling it the right step.

A German man has died in an avalanche in the Swiss Alps.

Police say the incident happened Friday on Piz Badus, near the village of Tujetsch in central Switzerland.

Seven cross-country skiers were caught in the avalanche, and five were buried under the snow.

One member of the group managed to call for help, prompting a rescue operation with helicopters and dogs.

The German victim was found lifeless, while four others suffered minor injuries and were flown to nearby hospitals.

Authorities have not released the nationalities of those injured.

Berlin's police chief says syndicates in the city are flying in criminals from overseas to carry out violence and extortion.

"Young men are specifically recruited abroad for this purpose," Berlin police chief Barbara Slowik Meisel told German news agency DPA.

"They enter the country on a short-term tourist visa and then commit crimes here that they have been hired to carry out," Slowik Meisel explained.

She said some of those recruited spoke little German and vanished shortly after incidents.

"The clients are either based abroad and want to gain ground on the criminal Berlin market for illegal business practices, or the orders are placed by parts of the organized crime structures based here,"Slowik Meisel told DPA.

The comments come after police in Germany's capital recorded an spike in violence between rival gangs operating in the city.

"We have noticed an increase in shootings," she said. "In December, there was also a hand grenade thrown into a pub at night as a threat."

Slowik Meisel said the violence was centered around turf wars between rival drug-dealing syndicates and those extorting local businesses,

The city's police chief said that police had conducted raids and had made arrests but she called for further powers to be granted to officers investigating illgal firearms.

"In our experience, the discovery of an illegally held firearm always indicates involvement in organized crime."

Syria's interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa, will arrive in Berlin on Monday for a two-day visit focused on the return of Syrian refugees and ongoing violence in his country.

He’s scheduled to meet Chancellor Friedrich Merz on Tuesday and join talks with business leaders, Economy Minister Katherina Reiche, and Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul.

"We ⁠have an ‍interest in deepening relations and, if you like, making a fresh start with the new Syrian government," a German government spokesperson said.

Merz invited al-Sharaa last November to discuss repatriation plans after the fall of Bashar al-Assad in late 2024. Germany hosts hundreds of thousands of Syrians who fled the civil war.

Al-Sharaa, who became the transitional president in January 2025, has tried to rebuild ties with the West. But recent clashes in Aleppo and attacks on minorities have raised concerns, with hundreds reported dead.

His visit has drawn criticism from Kurdish and Alawite groups in Germany, accusing his government of violent repression.

"The key question remains ‌how the political transition will ‌be shaped so that all social groups can live in safety and participate equally in political and social life," the German government spokesman said.

"It is one of the key topics we are discussing with the Syrian government."

 

Guten Tag from  from a sunny Bonn, yes, we get overly excited about sunshine in winter!

But just because the sun is out doesn’t mean it’s necessarily warm, as this picture of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz attending the Bundesliga match between Borussia Dortmund and St. Pauli shows.

Speaking of Merz, he is set to meet Syria’s interim President Ahmed al‑Sharaa next week. The Syrian leader, who once would have been arrested as the head of what was then designated a terrorist organization, will be in the German capital for two days, meeting several high‑ranking government officials.

And speaking of Berlin, police there have warned that syndicates in the city are flying in criminals from overseas to carry out violence and extortion.

We’ll have more on that and other stories from across Germany in this blog.