Germany news: Race against time for stranded humpback whale

A Berlin court has sentenced four members of a Hamas-linked underground cell to several years in prison.

The court handed down terms ranging from four and a half to six years for membership in a foreign terrorist organization and related offenses.

Judges said the men, aged 36 to 58, acted as operatives responsible for weapons depots across several European countries.

According to the court, the stockpiles were intended for use in potential attacks on Israeli, Jewish or other facilities in Europe over an extended period.

Possible targets were the Israeli Embassy in Berlin, the US Ramstein Air Base and the area around Berlin's disused Tempelhof airport.

The men denied being Hamas members. The main accused did admit to visiting an arms cache in Bulgaria, but claimed his visit concerned "private arms dealing."

Read more about the sentencing here.

House prices in Germany have increased again, marking a continued recovery after recent declines.

According to the Federal Statistical Office, residential property prices in the fourth quarter of 2025 were up 3.0% compared with a year earlier, the fifth consecutive quarterly rise year-on-year.

Prices edged up 0.1% from the previous quarter, while the annual average for 2025 rose 3.2%, the first yearly increase since 2022 after declines in 2023 and 2024.

Growth was strongest in rural areas, where apartment prices rose 5.4%, compared with 4.8% in large cities and 2.1% in Germany’s seven biggest urban centers — Berlin, Cologne, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Munich and Stuttgart.

On a quarterly basis, prices fell 1.6% in major cities but climbed 2.6% in rural regions, showing a shift in demand.

German police have mounted a large-scale operation to escort the first nuclear waste transport from an ex-research reactor site in the western city of Jülich in North Rhine-Westphalia.

Around 100 vehicles, including dozens of police units, formed a convoy protecting the heavy-load transporter carrying the radioactive cargo on its way to an interim storage facility in the town of Ahaus.

Authorities deployed extensive security measures, with officers guarding access points and even mobile toilets included in the convoy.

Highway exits were repeatedly closed, leaving drivers with limited options and in some cases forcing them to turn around.

The operation marks the start of a series of transports, with 151 more Castor containers set to be moved to the Ahaus interim storage site.

Police deployed about 2,400 officers, while unions warned of potential strain on personnel amid growing security demands.

The first container reached Ahaus after about four hours, as small groups of protesters demonstrated along the route and at the destination.

Early Wednesday morning, four activists from the environmental group Greenpeace were suspended from a massive construction crane right next to the Chancellery in Berlin — a crane that has been there for some time due to renovations at the building, which was swaying dangerously in the fierce wind on this gloomy morning.

The activists mounted a 100-square-meter (around 1000 square feet) banner, visible from afar above the government district, reading: "Freedom instead of fossil fuel politics." 

They want to draw attention to what they see as the shortcomings in the new climate protection program of Chancellor Friedrich Merz's government, which is set to be approved by the cabinet at midday this Wednesday.

By 2030, the government promises to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 65% compared to 1990 levels; 48% of that target has already been achieved. But Greenpeace is certain: the 65% target is virtually impossible to meet.

Greenpeace energy expert Mira Jäger wrote in a press statement released simultaneously with the crane protest:  "There is a looming massive gap in the CO2 targets. So far, no measures are known that could even begin to close this gap. The rising prices for fuel and gas show everyone: The climate protection program must provide a clear roadmap for phasing out fossil fuels. We cannot afford to 'carry on as usual,' neither ecologically nor economically."

A stranded humpback whale has been fighting for survival off Niendorf beach in northern Germany, with rescuers forced to wait for better equipment.

A rescue attempt with a suction dredger failed because it was not powerful enough to remove the compact sand. Larger machinery is expected to arrive, likely on Thursday, to continue efforts.

Carsten Mannheimer from the marine conservation organization Sea Shepherd said the situation was difficult. "I would like to do more," he said, adding that there was little to do for now.

The group said the animal probably got stuck while migrating, and that it might be the same whale repeatedly sighted in the area this month.

The young whale has been stuck on a sandbank since Monday, with its back visible above water and its low sounds audible from hundreds of meters away.

Mannheimer said such incidents are hard to prevent, though improved equipment could help, adding he still hopes the whale will make it back to deeper water.

Guten Tag from the DW newsroom here in Bonn.

You join us as we follow the plight of a humpback whale stranded off the coast of the northern state of Schleswig-Holstein.

Special machinery is on its way, but it's a race against time to save the animal that became stuck in shallow water on Monday.

Stay with us for the latest on this and other news from Germany.