Hungary has repeatedly tried to set the record straight about not being the biggest buyer of Russian energy. Now, they are getting some support from an unlikely source: Greenpeace.
In a September report titled “The LNG Trap,” which relies on tanker tracking data out of Refinitiv, Greenpeace calls out France, Belgium, Spain, and the Netherlands for buying €34.3 billion of Russian liquefied natural gas between 2022 and June 2025. Meanwhile, during this same period, these countries handed Ukraine just €21.2 billion to help fight their war against Putin.
The Belgian port of Zeebrugge “is the single largest import hub for Russian LNG in the EU, accounting for around a quarter of total volumes.” However, the Greenpeace report’s consensus for Europe overall was not rosy.
“Rather than phasing out Russian gas, Europe has effectively locked in LNG deliveries as a replacement for lost pipeline flows,” it reads. “Imports rose from 15.9 bcm in 2021 to a wartime high of 22.0 bcm in 2024 – an increase of 38%.”
For the first half of 2025, imports of Russian-origin LNG already stand at 12.8 bcm.
And yet, it is always Hungary and Slovakia that end up in the press as the primary buyers — many have maintained, the only buyers — of Russian oil and gas. Hungary also faces massive criticism for calling on Zelensky to stop bombing the Friendship pipeline, which carries the Russian crude oil it relies on.
In fact, the blame game against Hungary and Slovakia is so egregious, that it quickly becomes apparent that it is part of a broader propaganda war aimed at the two countries.
Brussels and numerous member state leaders especially point to the friendship between Hungarian Prime Minister Orbán and Putin, claiming Hungary’s reliance on Russian oil—along with its continued sanction vetoes and refusal to supply weapons to Ukraine—is proof that Hungary is clearly allied with Moscow.
Meanwhile, most everyone is happily pumping in Russian-origin LNG and fattening the warchest of the man they say Europe must defeat — all while supposedly bemoaning thousands of dead Ukrainians.
Member states continue to publicly state they are weaning off Russian energy. A few countries — Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic — are reportedly at a level of zero, although reports of Russian oil and gas getting into the mix of multiple flows and new transit routes even make this somewhat doubtful. Furthermore, these three countries benefit from other European countries buying up Russian gas, which keeps the price of gas from other sources down.
Of note in the Greenpeace report is the success of the U.S. strategy to get Europe to buy more LNG from them, with 2025 set to double the previous LNG import record of 2023.
A Bangladeshi couple living in Rimini has been placed under house arrest after allegedly forcing their daughter into marriage in Bangladesh and subjecting her to threats, abuse, and drugs intended to induce pregnancy.
The young woman, now 20, has been taken into protective custody at an undisclosed location.
The family had lived in Italy since 2011, when the mother and daughter joined the father, who had worked as a cook in Rimini since 2008.
Prosecutors say the girl’s parents tricked her into returning to Bangladesh at the end of 2024 with the false pretense of visiting a sick relative. Once there, her parents are accused of confiscating her documents and forcing her into marriage with a wealthy man more than 20 years older than her.
The wedding was held on Dec. 17, 2024. Before and after the ceremony, the girl was allegedly threatened and abused to ensure her compliance. She was also reportedly given medications to promote pregnancy and sedatives to reduce her resistance to sexual intercourse with her husband.
Despite this coercion, the young woman secretly began taking contraceptives. As her situation grew unbearable, she reached out for help through social media, contacting the Rimini health center via Instagram. This led to contact with the authorities in Italy.
She eventually persuaded her mother to accompany her back to Italy, claiming she would feel “more at peace” and ready to have children if she returned.
When the two women landed at Bologna’s Marconi Airport, police officers were waiting to arrest the mother. Corriere di Bologna reports that both parents were arrested following an investigation by the Rimini Prosecutor’s Office.
In July, German authorities were told to expect a spike in forced marriages as schools broke for summer, a time when attempts to return daughters to countries of origin to wed them to favored associates are common.
Speaking on the issue at the time, Seyran Ateş, a prominent author and women’s rights advocate, warns that the problem is becoming greater due to mass immigration and the entrenchment of parallel communities within German society.
“In Germany, we speak of a parallel society of the Muslim community,” Ateş said. Forced marriage, she emphasized, is a mechanism used by “archaic patriarchal societies” to impose religious norms, including the control of female sexuality.
Three people have been arrested in Germany after a German-Turk allegedly shot dead a compatriot at a bar in Neumünster on Tuesday.
Armed police were dispatched to the bar at the corner of Kieler Straße and Johannisstraße at around 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday evening amid reports that a 24-year-old man had been killed.
It is believed an altercation occurred between two men, both German citizens of Turkish origin, before one pulled a gun and shot the other.
Police spokeswoman Stephanie Lage told Bild that a man was seriously injured and had to be resuscitated at the scene, but later died from his wounds.
Panic erupted as a group inside the bar attempted to overpower the gunman, forcing their way outside while screaming, with at least two additional shots believed to have been fired during the chaos.
🇩🇪 A German-Turk shot another dead during an altercation at a bar in Neumünster last night.
Armed police were dispatched to the bar on Kieler Straße where one man was found dead.
A group of men managed to restrain the shooter, a 26-year-old German citizen with a Turkish… pic.twitter.com/9n4PXPYXs0
Videos circulating online show the crowd struggling and shouting as they exited the establishment. Armed police officers, carrying submachine guns, quickly secured the area and blocked off public access to the scene.
The suspected 26-year-old shooter surrendered without resistance when confronted by police outside the bar. His firearm was seized.
Later that evening, police and the Kiel public prosecutor’s office confirmed the arrests of two further suspects, aged 29 and 34, both German nationals. “All three are currently in police custody,” authorities said in a joint statement.
Turks have long been the largest diaspora residing in Germany, and were second only to Syrians in the number of Turkish-born migrants naturalized last year.
Internal feuds among Turkish gangs are common. Just last week in Gelsenkirchen, one man was killed and two others were left in a critical condition after two Turkish families battled on the streets.
Approximately 30 people clashed in the Bismarck district of the heavily migrant city.
According to police, this was no ordinary brawl. The members of the two families were armed with baseball bats, tasers, knives, and other dangerous weapons during the clash.
In August, an 18-year-old Turk was arrested for the murder of a police officer who was responding to an armed robbery at a gas station in Völklingen. During a pursuit, the 34-year-old officer struggled with the suspect, who grabbed his service weapon and shot him six times.
An Afghan man has finally been arrested for raping an 80-year-old woman so violently that she died due to the rape, with the incident happening three months ago, on the night of July 5-6, in the French city of Niort.
Police have been investigating the incident and finally made an arrest on Sept. 27, with the Poitiers prosecutor’s office confirming the suspect was born in Afghanistan and arrived in France in 2005.
He has been placed in pre-trial detention, as reported by French newspaper La Nouvelle République and later confirmed by prosecutor Rachel Bray.
According to French newspaper France Bleu, “on the streets of Niort, some residents speak of an ‘abandoned’ neighborhood, where fear is taking hold. The contrast between the victim’s advanced age and the brutality of the attack is particularly shocking. Voices are being raised to denounce a growing sense of insecurity, with many feeling ‘left to their own devices’ and regretting that ‘the state has failed to protect the most vulnerable.’”
Notably, the city, with close to 60,000 residents, is known for its beautiful architecture and proximity to the Deux-Sèvres Marais Poitevin Regional Nature Park.
More recently, the year 2023 was marked by an overall increase in delinquency, rising 4.8 percent compared to 2022. Despite a 22.54 percent drop in drug trafficking, categories such as home burglaries and sexual violence saw their figures increase by 15.77 percent and 6.14 percent, respectively.
A man in Switzerland has been sentenced to 10 days in prison after refusing to pay a fine for a social media post in which he claimed there are only two genders.
Emanuel Brünisholz, a 57-year-old wind instrument repairman from Burgdorf in the canton of Bern, was convicted under the country’s anti-discrimination laws for a Facebook comment made in December 2022.
The case began when Brünisholz responded to a post by Swiss National Council member Andreas Glarner, a parliamentarian for the right-leaning Swiss People’s Party. In his comment, Brünisholz wrote: “If you dig up LGBTQI people after 200 years, you’ll only find men and women based on their skeletons. Everything else is a mental illness promoted through the curriculum.”
The remark was quickly reported to the authorities by activists as discrimination and inciting hatred. Local police then launched an investigation into whether or not the post violated Article 261bis of the Swiss Criminal Code, a provision originally introduced in 1995 to outlaw racist incitement and broadened in 2020 to include sexual orientation and sexual identity.
Brünisholz was summoned for questioning by the Bern Cantonal Police in August 2023, where he openly admitted writing the post. “Yes, that is so. That’s what I wrote,” he told officers, insisting it was neither sexist nor racist and laughing off the accusation. He argued that he had simply pointed out a fact about human biology, saying later in court that he believed most of the public would agree with him.
The authorities, however, took a different view, and he was charged, prosecuted, and ultimately convicted.
As reported by Czech outlet Inside Paradeplatz, prosecutors argued that the comment “publicly denigrated the group of LGBT(Q)I people on the basis of their sexual orientation in a manner that violates human dignity” and that Brünisholz had acted with “at least eventual intent.”
Brünisholz was ultimately handed 50 daily fines of 50 Swiss francs each, suspended for two years, plus an additional fine of 500 francs.
He appealed the ruling, but the Emmental-Oberaargau Regional Court upheld the conviction in December 2023, adding several hundred francs in additional court fees. At that point, his lawyer advised him that a further appeal would have no realistic chance of success in Switzerland’s legal system.
Refusing to pay the 500-franc fine, Brünisholz instead received a summons order to serve 10 days in Burgdorf regional prison starting Dec. 2, 2025. The notice makes clear that the substitute custodial sentence is being enforced in place of the unpaid fine.
For Brünisholz, the issue has become a matter of principle. He continues to insist that he is being criminalized for expressing an opinion about biology, not for inciting hatred. “I stand by what I wrote,” he told police during his interrogation.
After a home invasion in the French town of Bougival, just outside Paris, a family defended itself against three armed burglars. Remarkably, the family had set up an extensive security perimeter after suffering previous home invasions — one which led to the death of their grandfather and the torture of their dog — in the latest sign that the French state cannot protect its own citizens.
Valuers journalist Amaury Bucco wrote in a lengthy post on X about a home-jacking gone wrong last week in the commune of Bougival, just outside of Paris.
“A third burglar, however, remained trapped in the garden. The father and his son-in-law tried to restrain him. A struggle broke out, but the alleged burglar managed to escape toward the inside of the house. In his path, he violently pushed the mother of the family, who broke her foot (30 days of temporary disability), then the daughter,” wrote journalist Amaury Bucco on X.
Although two intruders escaped, the third was finally taken down by the family’s son, who weighs 120 kilograms (260 pounds) and knows judo.
🔴 @Valeurs | Tentative de home-jacking à Bougival, une famille se défend face à trois cambrioleurs armés:
Dans la nuit du lundi 15 au mardi 16 septembre, vers 0h15, une famille de Bougival (Yvelines) a été réveillée par le signal émis par les caméras de vidéo-surveillance… pic.twitter.com/aT0L2dECfT
The police found the suspect had a bag with knives, a hammer, a baton, a tear gas canister, and a roll of tape. There was a clear intention to hold the family hostage, although their motive is unknown.
“He was coming to tie us up…” the father of the family said, recounting that he had already been the victim of an attempted burglary a year earlier.
Gaye M., an 18-year-old young man residing in Franconville (Val-d’Oise), was taken into custody, but the prosecutor’s office has not provided any further information on the case.
Luckily, the family who was targeted had some extensive security measures in place, including spikes on their wall, and were awakened by an alarm from their garden surveillance cameras.
The father told Valeurs that he had already been the victim of an attempted burglary a year earlier, thus all the security measures, plus his father had died at 86 following a similar home-jacking. The perpetrators then had tortured his dog in front of him to extract information, according to the Valeurs report.
“If I had known from the start that he was coming to hold us hostage, I don’t think I would have handed him over to the police in that condition,” the father admitted.
Bucco’s post includes footage of the perpetrators attempting to break into the house. Included was a blurred photo of the suspect they captured.
During the struggle that ensued, as all family members ran outside, the mother was pushed and broke her foot, while her daughter was shoved as well.
The area is no stranger to just burglaries. French TV presenter and real estate agent Stéphane Plaza was a victim of a home-jacking in late August, with no suspects arrested. Before fleeing, the perpetrators stole some €3,000 worth of shoes, according to Gala.
Plaza also had his apartment in Marais nurglurized back in 2022, and he says, the police did not take it seriously. After losing €15,000 worth of jewelry and luxury clothing, as well as €1,500 in cash, he says “all they did was take photos of me.”
Gala says the problem has been increasing recently, with numerous French celebrities facing home-jackings, sometimes violent ones. One, Bruno Guillon, lost €100,000 worth of jewelry and luxury goods and was held captive with his wife and son at gunpoint.
The portal lists several other famous victims, leading to an “unprecedented” trend. The police recorded 337 such incidents in Paris and its inner suburbs in 2022. In 2023, the number has not fallen, but risen.
On July 16, 2025, the European Commission proposed in its draft new EU budget for 2028–2034 that all EU funds would be paid to member states only if they meet the criteria of the rule of law.
“The rule of law is a necessary condition for all funds from the EU budget. In the new budget, we are going further: national and regional partnership plans will make the rule of law and fundamental rights a condition for investment and a subject of reform,” announced European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
Poland’s experience in recent years clearly shows how this new rule will work in practice. For a number of years, our country was deprived of funds from the so-called National Recovery Plan and politically harassed for the alleged “breakdown of the rule of law.” In 2025, however, there was a sudden change. Although the government did not introduce any of the key reforms that the European Commission had been demanding for years, the Commission’s latest report now presents Poland as a model for “restoring the rule of law.” So, what caused the European Commission’s change of attitude towards Poland? The answer is simple: a change of government was enough for Poland to be recognized as a “country governed by the rule of law.”
On the website of the Ordo Iuris Institute, we have published a commentary on the European Commission’s latest report on the rule of law in Poland. The report states that Poland has made “significant progress” in the area of the rule of law, which later in the report turns out to be promises, announcements, or declarations to “begin work.”
An example of such “significant progress” for the EC is the issue of separating the functions of the Minister of Justice and the Prosecutor General. Although the 2016 law combining these two functions, which has been criticized by the EC, is still in force, and successive ministers of justice in Donald Tusk’s government continue to take advantage of the opportunities offered by the office of Prosecutor General, using it to persecute political opponents, the EC sees “progress” in this area. The report points out that, although no legislation has yet been adopted in this regard, “further significant steps have been taken to separate the offices of Minister of Justice and Prosecutor General.”
The EC report also praises the government for “preparing reform plans” concerning the disciplinary system for judges and the National Council of the Judiciary, noting that “the government intends” to introduce new regulations ensuring greater independence.
At the same time, the European Commission turns a blind eye to a number of examples of flagrant violations of the fundamental principles of the rule of law, such as the takeover of public media and the National Prosecutor’s Office with the use of force, the government’s draft law allowing for the political vetting of approximately 3,500 judges in Poland with the possibility of their removal or demotion, and examples of unlawful persecution of political opponents.
All this shows that we cannot have any illusions today – Ursula von der Leyen’s announcement that only “law-abiding” countries will receive EU funds is, in fact, an announcement of further financial blackmail of national governments. Any government that dares to resist the takeover of national sovereignty could be deemed as breaching the “rule of law” and deprived of the funds it is entitled to.
This change also violates the treaty principle that the European Commission remains politically neutral.
What is more, the Commission is also unconcerned that the funds that were to be used for post-pandemic economic recovery, which are in essence long-term loans, were handed out freely and frequently wasted, as clearly shown by the lists of projects financed by the NRP.
Why do these irregularities not bother the elites in Brussels? From their perspective, the NRP funds have achieved their important goal. They have become an effective instrument of financial blackmail against Member States and have helped, among other things, to bring about a change of government in Warsaw.
Such use of funds from the National Recovery Plan is only a harbinger of greater political corruption and mass blackmail against patriotic governments, which is to be enshrined in the European Union budget for 2028-2034.
The introduction of the principle into the EU budget that funds will only go to countries respecting the “rule of law” is a great threat to EU member states, as it gives EU officials a tool for political and financial blackmail of national governments.
That is why experts from the Ordo Iuris Institute are analyzing the assumptions of the new EU budget proposal in detail, so that they can later publicize the threats as widely as possible and inform decision-makers across Europe about them.
I hope that this time we will be able to convince at least some European governments to block this blackmail mechanism. When we warned the Polish government against accepting the “conditionality mechanism” in 2020, our warnings were ignored. Time has painfully shown that we were right.
The draft of the new EU budget, which is intended to give EU officials almost unlimited opportunities to blackmail national governments, is a new example of actions aimed at completely eliminating the sovereignty of nation states.
Ursula von der Leyen’s proposals aim at exactly the same goal as the proposed reform of the EU treaties, which envisages the elimination of the remnants of national sovereignty and the creation of a European superstate in which member states will not be able to decide on their own foreign policy, health, security, army, border protection, energy, infrastructure, or education. We described this in our report “Why do we need sovereignty”, published on our website. If we give the Eurocrats a tool to financially blackmail national governments, there is no doubt that they will use it to take away our decision-making power.
The Ordo Iuris Institute is an independent legal think tank that, over the years of its activities, has built an international reputation as one of the key centers for defending a legal culture grounded in the identity of European civilization, raised on the pillars of Greek philosophy, Roman law, and Christian ethics.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has clashed with his Polish counterpart Donald Tusk after the Polish leader described the Russo-Ukrainian war as “our war” during a major security summit in Warsaw.
Speaking at the Warsaw Security Forum on Tuesday, Tusk framed the conflict as central to Europe’s security and values. “This is our war,” he declared. “Not only because of solidarity with those who are under attack, but because of our fundamental interests.” He warned that Russia’s aggression against Ukraine was part of a broader project to “enslave nations” and undermine democracy, human rights, and freedom.
“If we lose this war, then the consequences will affect not only our generation but also the next generations in Poland, all of Europe, in the United States, everywhere in the world. Let us have no illusions about this,” the Polish prime minister cautioned.
Orbán, who has maintained closer ties to Moscow than most EU and NATO leaders, took to social media to reject Tusk’s assessment, reminding him that the European Union is not a declared participant in the conflict.
“Dear Donald Tusk, you may think that you are at war with Russia, but Hungary is not. Neither is the European Union,” he wrote on X. “You are playing a dangerous game with the lives and security of millions of Europeans. This is very bad!”
The exchange highlights the sharp divisions within Central Europe over the war in Ukraine. Both countries border Ukraine, yet each government has taken a different approach to the conflict. Poland has been one of Kyiv’s staunchest allies, providing extensive military and humanitarian aid and urging the West to stay the course. Hungary, by contrast, has cultivated friendly relations with the Kremlin, resisted sanctions, and repeatedly clashed with EU partners over aid packages for Ukraine.
How will peace be achieved? Through negotiation, not endless war! Europe must have a voice in coming to an agreement. Let there be no doubt: this war is already decided and cannot be won on the battlefield. 🕊️ pic.twitter.com/kZ7tOl0MLm
Budapest’s long-held priority has been an immediate ceasefire in the region and a commitment to peace negotiations.
It has resisted calls for Ukraine to join the European Union and NATO, prompting semi-frequent spats with Kyiv, exacerbated by Ukraine’s decision to cut off energy supplies from Russia and claims of brutal treatment towards ethnic Hungarians being conscripted.
Tensions between Warsaw and Budapest have flared before. Last year, Orbán accused Poland of “hypocrisy” for criticizing Hungary’s ties to Russia while still buying Russian oil. In response, Polish deputy foreign minister Władysław Teofil Bartoszewski suggested that Hungary would be better off leaving NATO and the EU to join an alliance with “Putin and authoritarian states.” Poland has reportedly since cut its Russian oil imports to zero and urged other EU members to do the same by the end of 2026.
Hungary’s position in favor of peace gradually became mainstream following U.S. President Donald Trump’s return to the White House.
A strange and worrying case has come to light in Germany, with a mother on X posting graphic photos of her teen daughter, Ronja, who is shown bloodied and beaten. The mother alleges that her daughter was beaten by a “girl with a migrant background.”
So far, there are no news reports on this case, but her original post has been censored by X, likely at the request of a German or EU authority. Currently, her post cannot be embedded into this article, but a link will be provided here, and a screenshot translated into English will be posted below.
The post contains four photos of the mother’s daughter, along with the following text:
Once again, a so-called “isolated case.”
And this time it’s my child.
Yesterday evening, my 14-year-old daughter was brutally attacked in a small town near Cologne by a girl with a migrant background. She was knocked to the ground, kicked in the face and in the soft parts.
Fortunately, her friends reacted immediately, calling the police and an ambulance. Since then, my daughter has been in the children’s hospital. Physically, she is stable – no permanent damage. But what this does to a girl of that age mentally is hardly imaginable. And yet, it will once again just be an “isolated case.”
The mother of Ronja, Christiane Richter, has also since posted that she is now the subject of an investigation and that her phone was seized after she went to the police to file a complaint on behalf of her daughter.
“Yes, it is indeed true: Today at 10:43 p.m., my cell phone was seized. And this, after my child was threatened over the phone! I recorded the call – and even told the caller multiple times that I was recording. For me, that was evidence to protect my child. But when I went to the police with this recording, I was not helped – instead, my cell phone was confiscated on the spot,” she wrote on X.
Ja, es ist tatsächlich wahr: Heute um 22:43 Uhr wurde mein Handy beschlagnahmt. Und das, nachdem mein Kind telefonisch bedroht wurde! Ich habe den Anruf aufgezeichnet – und dem Anrufer sogar mehrfach gesagt, dass ich gerade aufzeichne. Für mich war das ein Beweis, um mein Kind… https://t.co/VqaaPf4hlc
Due to the fact that the original photo appears to have been censored, it has not been widely shared, earning approximately only 4,500 views. However, this second post, relating to her phone being seized, has trended, earning close to 200,000 views. That post also does not appear to have any censorship applied to it, as it can also be freely embedded into articles.
The mother says she is being accused of a crime for recording the threats made against her daughter over the phone. She is seeking a lawyer and a new phone. Reportedly, one user has already provided her with one.
ich hab mit dem Aufzeichnen der Drohungen an mein Kind ne Straftat begangen
The mother’s account has been active since 2014 and clearly shows that she is an AfD supporter. So far, this story has not been verified by an independent news outlet.
Following a trend toward stricter regulations on digital platforms, Greece is set to become the first European Union member state to ban social media access for minors under the age of 16 starting in late October.
The move comes as political pressure mounts elsewhere, including in Germany, where the CDU/CSU party alliance is considering raising the social media age limit to 16.
The German proposals would prevent those under the designated age limit from accessing platforms like Instagram and TikTok. Researchers are already drawing serious parallels, with some “comparing TikTok to heroin.”
Other countries, such as Australia, have instituted similar bans, but through the use of identity checks that many organizations have called an invasion of privacy.
In Greece, the measure will be enforced through a mobile application called “Kids Wallet”. This technology will automatically block the use of popular platforms such as Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, and X on devices registered to underage users.
The Greek option appears to alleviate some of these privacy concerns, as it only affects devices registered to underage users. Therefore, adult users will not have to prove they are not teens each time they sign into a social media site through an identification check.
The primary goal is to limit addictive scrolling and reduce the potential exposure to dangerous online content.
The restrictions go further than just social media. Access to websites promoting gambling, tobacco, alcohol, or pornographic content will be blocked for users under 18, and the ban also extends to dating platforms such as Tinder.
The technology behind this initiative was developed under the guidance of the European Commission, which is working to create a uniform regulatory framework for all Member States. Unlike Australia, the Greek solution does not rely solely on age verification by the platforms themselves; instead, the enforcement is done “directly on the device, through the ‘Kids Wallet’ application.”
If the EU can enact measures to curb social media use among teens without violating privacy concerns for adult users, it will be a major win for the European project. Social media use has been widely identified as being destructive for developing teenagers, and may play a role in growing mental illness. In addition, young people are being exposed to extreme content on the broader internet, including hardcore pornography.
However, Brussels has other privacy-violating projects in the works, including a measure to scan all messages on encrypted messaging platforms, such as Signal and Telegram. The privacy-violating technology is opposed by member states such as Czechia and Austria, however, countries like Hungary have so far signaled they will back the move.
The EU says the technology will be used to target users committing illegal activity, such as those trafficking in child pornography and narcotics. However, privacy organizations fear the technology will be expanded to monitor users, including for political content or content deemed to violate “hate speech” laws.
In a video message, Stefan Kerth, the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) district administrator of Vorpommern-Rügen, is calling for an end to the infamous firewall with the Alternative for Germany (AfD). The move comes after the AfD has continuously shown it is the strongest party in the country, now at 27 percent.
“The firewall is nonsense; it has strengthened the AfD,” Kerth said in a video message, as reported by the newspaper Ostsee-Zeitung.
The firewall refers to the CDU’s policy of refusing to form any political alliance with the AfD; however, the issue is fraught within the party. Almost all top CDU politicians openly reject an alliance with the AfD, with many of them referring to the party as “right-wing extremist.” However, there are many at the local level ceiling for an end to the firewall, especially CDU officials in the east of the country, where the AfD is highly popular.
In fact, Kerth’s district is located in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, where the AfD is currently polling at a record 38 percent. His CDU party, in contrast, is performing abysmally there at only 13 percent.
🇩🇪Germany's anti-immigration AfD explodes in popularity in the eastern German state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, reaching 38%.
That is an 8 point jump.
AfD is now 2x as popular as the 2nd-place party, SPD.
Kerth says that instead of a firewall, the CDU and CSU should set conditions for cooperation with the AfD.
“The CDU wants more, but the firewall makes any change of course impossible,” Kerth said.
Kerth appears to be playing a strategic game, and argues that the CDU can perhaps push the AfD towards a more “moderate” stance.
“Why doesn’t the CDU at least formulate conditions—people, activities, and program points that the AfD would have to drop in exchange for cooperation?” he asks.
Notably, Kerth points out the conundrum for the CDU, which is continuously forced to make alliances with left-wing parties, such as its current federal coalition with the Social Democrats (SPD), which is leading to a fall in popularity for the CDU.
AfD party co-leader, Alice Weidel, just yesterday posted yet another poll showing the AfD is the strongest force in the country, at 27 percent. The same poll showed that the AfD’s lead over the CDU is growing, with the CDU dropping to 24 percent.
“AfD remains the strongest force with 27%, now leading CDU and CSU by 3 percentage points – and Merz’s popularity is at its lowest point. Real change is only possible with us!” she wrote.
AfD weiterhin stärkste Kraft mit 27 %, mit inzwischen 3 Prozentpunkten Abstand zu CDU und CSU – und Merz' Beliebtheit auf dem Tiefpunkt. Echte Veränderung gibt es nur mit uns! pic.twitter.com/VvNPasM7ZX
Kerth said his party must open itself to coalitions and political cooperation beyond the left-wing parties before it is too late.
“Better now, while it can still set the tone,” he said, recognizing the ongoing damage to the CDU.
Kerth has a past with the SPD, but switched to the CDU in 2023 due to his stance on migration. He has said that a change on migration is not possible without a coalition with the AfD, adding that there has been a “loss of control” since 2015, with the left-wing parties trivializing the resulting chaos since that period.
Kerth also said the presence of the AfD in government would be normal, as most other countries often feature such a party in government.
“Right around us, strongly nationalist, right-wing parties are occasionally in government. And the end of the world doesn’t happen! And Germany, of all places, which is sensitive to history, is supposed to rush straight back into the Third Reich without a firewall? I don’t believe that anymore,” he said.
It should be noted that Kerth is not a high-ranking politician in the CDU, and his view is most likely to be rejected at the federal level, at least for now. However, he joins a chorus of CDU voices in the east of the country calling for an end to the firewall.
Most analysts expect that if the firewall is broken, it will first be broken in the east of the country before it is ever possible to do so at the federal level.
SW Research recently asked Poles if they thought a PiS-Confederation coalition was possible, with 31 percent of respondents saying it was.
A rather large percentage, 42.2 percent, of respondents have no opinion on the matter, and 26.8 percent answered that such a coalition was not a possibility.
The survey, commissioned by “Wprost,” involved 846 interviews with a representative sample of Poles over 18 years of age in terms of gender, age, and town size, according to Do Rzeczy.
PiS leader Jarosław Kaczyński presented the “Polish Declaration” at the end of July and indicated that the proposal was addressed primarily to the Confederation.
In response, Confederation co-chair Sławomir Mentzen published a video on YouTube in which he called the PiS leader a “political gangster.”
“I have no reason to trust this man or to pursue a coalition with him at all costs. If this coalition ends in him destroying us politically, (…) then what’s the point of forming such a coalition? Actually, none,” he said at the time.
Tensions between Law and Justice and the Confederation party have been rising ever since, particularly with Mentzen’s faction, the New Hope party.
Kaczyński has openly criticized the Confederation during meetings with his supporters, with Mentzen happily returning the favor, Do Rzezcy reminds readers.
In a recent Social Changes poll for wPolsce24, PiS received 29 percent support, and PM Tusk’s Civic Coalition (KO) came in second with 26 percent. Confederation, meanwhile, received 9 percent, followed by Nowa Lewica, PSL, and Confederation of the Crown of Poland, with 6 percent each.
Szymon Hołownia’s Polska 2050 (4 percent) and the Razem party (2 percent) would be outside the Sejm. As many as 12 percent of respondents did not select any party, and 1 percent chose other formations.
A Syrian teenager living in Austria was free to walk from the courtroom on Tuesday, despite being convicted of shoving an e-scooter ride onto the train tracks in Korneuburg, Lower Austria, earlier this year.
The 15-year-old suspect was found guilty of robbery, assault, and theft, pertaining to an incident on April 27, when the boy suddenly pushed another teen onto the tracks. The victim, fortunately, escaped with cuts and bruises in what could have been a far more severe incident.
The accused had claimed in court that he had been insulted by the victim, reportedly being called a “junkie and a bum” prior to the attack. However, surveillance footage shown at the trial appeared to debunk claims of provocation.
In mitigation, the Syrian attempted to explain his behavior by blaming his health, telling Vienna’s regional court, “My blood sugar was high. That always makes me aggressive.”
Presumably, his blood sugar was also high ahead of another attack earlier this year, in which he attacked a caregiver at his shared accommodation and robbed another teenager of his cell phone, shoes, and T-shirt. In another incident cited by Heute, the Syrian youth threatened another resident, telling him, “Give me those things, or you’ll bleed right here.”
Despite the multitude of offenses and the potential severity of the train tracks incident, the boy was handed a suspended custodial sentence of 20 months, along with one month of unconditional imprisonment. As that time had already been served in pre-trial detention, he walked free from the court hearing.
When asked by the presiding judge how he would handle his sugar rushes in the future, the teen replied, “Go to the hospital, or something.”
German federal authorities have arrested a Syrian man in Berlin suspected of carrying out brutal acts of torture and murder during the country’s civil war in 2011.
Several officers from the Federal Criminal Police Office detained Anwar S. in the Berlin district of Neukölln on Tuesday morning. According to the Federal Prosecutor General, he is accused of murder, torture, deprivation of liberty, and crimes against humanity as part of a pro-Assad militia that suppressed protests in Aleppo at the start of the Syrian conflict.
A video obtained by the newspaper Die Welt, reportedly recorded in 2011, shows armed regime supporters attacking anti-government demonstrators outside a mosque in Aleppo with batons. Shouts of “Do you want freedom?” can be heard as the mob clubs civilians to the ground. German investigators say the footage corresponds to testimony that Anwar S., as a militia leader, repeatedly inflicted severe violence on opposition members.
Prosecutors allege that on at least eight occasions, Anwar S. ordered or carried out beatings with batons, electric shockers, and metal bars to disperse protests. Some of the detainees were then handed over to Syria’s intelligence service, where they were tortured in custody. In one incident in Aleppo’s Saif Al Dawla district, a demonstrator allegedly died shortly after being severely beaten in the suspect’s presence.
The arrest took place near a shisha café in Neukölln, according to Welt. Anwar S. is expected to appear before an investigating judge of the Federal Court of Justice on Wednesday, who will decide on the execution of an arrest warrant.
It is unclear how the suspect arrived in Germany, and whether or not he claimed and was granted asylum.
Germany has taken in close to one million Syrians since 2015, making them the largest immigrant group in the country over the past decade. The Assad regime was overthrown last year, and Syria is now ruled by Islamist Ahmed al-Sharaa, a former al-Qaeda commander.
Former Justice Minister Judit Varga has been asked to come back to battle against her ex-husband and opposition leader Péter Magyar in a new music video posted by Hungarian artist Wellor.
“If you get in again, the little bitch won’t even know where he is
He stutters, trembles, sweats, and his speech is slurred.
Family doesn’t matter either, he breaks oaths and rules,
Your cheating ex will burn everything down.
Eavesdropped at home, blackmailed, terrorized
He was jealous of your career, he was worried about the libs.”
The portal noted that Fidesz MP Máté Kocsis had previously posted a video in which he said he “really hopes” Varga returns to politics.
Remix News also reported back in July that Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán told Mandiner that she “had the skills of a prime minister.”
“Judit is brilliant – that is the best word,” calling it “so painful and also infuriating” when she resigned (…) It is very rare for a natural talent like Minister Judit Varga to emerge in politics,” he said at the time.
“His criminal record of betrayal, fraud, and abuse is long,
He’s out of his mind, his agenda is revenge.
Created in Brussels, a resurrected ancient creature
You said it right last time: it’s just a piece of shit.
Come back, Judit! The bug is already scared.
While he’s fooling people, take back what he took!
Come back, Judit! The vote is waiting.
We have something better for you than carving chair legs.
Come back, Judit! Peti isn’t in a good mood.
He can take his tax rates and shove them up his ass.”
This is not the first time Wellor has created a video taking aim at Magyar. In a previous one posted just a month ago, Varga even makes an appearance in the end, playing the violin.
A Ukrainian suspected by Germany of involvement in the Nord Stream gas pipeline bombing has been arrested in a town near Warsaw.
Mariusz Kamiński, MEP and former minister of the interior under PiS, was quick to slam the move.
“The detention on behalf of Germany of a Ukrainian citizen suspected of the attack on Nord Stream is a scandal and should never have taken place. This is a manifestation of Tusk’s subservience to Berlin. This man should be released immediately,” he posted on X.
Rosyjski Gazprom jest narzędziem prowadzenia polityki imperialnej Rosji, a Nord Stream służył finansowaniu rosyjskich wojen, w tym barbarzyńskiej wojny przeciwko Ukrainie. Wysadzenie NS było w interesie Europy.
Kamiński also wrote that Europe is better off without Nord Stream, as it serves only to fund Putin’s war chest.
“Russian Gazprom is a tool for conducting Russia’s imperial policy, and Nord Stream served to finance Russian wars, including the barbaric war against Ukraine. The blowing up of NS was in Europe’s interest,” he wrote.
According to wPolityce, the lawyer for the accused, Tymoteusz Paprocki, told PAP that his client, Volodymyr Z., was detained on the basis of a European Arrest Warrant issued by Germany.
“At 1 p.m., the proceedings at the District Prosecutor’s Office in Warsaw will begin, after which I will be able to comment more, because then I will know what charges are being brought against my client and what the next steps will be in this case,” Paprocki told press.
“Whatever Ukrainian citizen participated in these activities, taking into account the war in Ukraine and the fact that the owner of this infrastructure is a Russian company that directly finances the war in Ukraine, it is difficult to believe that these actions could be considered a crime,” he added.
According to German intelligence, Volodymyr Z., allegedly a diving instructor, participated in blowing up three of the four lines of the two Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines in September 2022.
The spokesman for the District Prosecutor’s Office in Warsaw, Prosecutor Piotr Antoni Skiba, confirmed that the suspect is being investigated in connection with the execution of a European Arrest Warrant (EAW).
He added that a briefing will be held at the Warsaw District Prosecutor’s Office between 3 and 4 p.m.
German Federal Police will enforce a month-long weapons ban at 15 train stations across Berlin from Oct. 1, a measure that allows officers greater powers to stop and search passengers.
The move is aimed at combating what authorities describe as a growing problem of violent crime on the German capital’s public transport.
In a statement, the Federal Police said, “The number and intensity of violent crimes on railway premises continue to increase. Knives and other dangerous objects are frequently used.” The ban extends beyond knives to include tear gas, blunt instruments, and other potentially dangerous items.
The prohibition will be in effect daily between 2 p.m. and 4 a.m. until Oct. 27. The last time such a measure was imposed, from late May through July, police conducted nearly 10,000 checks and confiscated more than 700 weapons and other prohibited objects.
🇩🇪🗡️ Machetes are on sale from a Berlin discount store despite a huge surge in knife attacks across Germany.
"79 knife crimes per day in 2024 and at the discount store you can buy a machete with a barb for €9.90," wrote the German police union deputy chairman @M_Ostermann.
The affected train stations include major hubs such as Berlin Central Station, Zoologischer Garten, Alexanderplatz, Ostkreuz, and Lichtenberg, as well as suburban locations like Spandau, Neukölln, and Südkreuz.
The move comes amid heightened concern about knife crime in the capital. Since mid-July, Berlin has already banned knives on all buses, trains, and at stations, with fines of up to €10,000 for violations.
According to police data cited by Berliner Zeitung, 324 knife attacks have taken place in the city over the past three years.
Public concern intensified in April after a Syrian migrant fatally stabbed a passenger on the U12 subway line. The 43-year-old attacker was shot by police and later died in hospital. In the aftermath, Interior Senator Iris Spranger of the Social Democratic Party proposed expanding weapon ban zones across the city’s transport network.
“Regardless of yesterday’s homicide, we are examining the establishment of further knife and weapon ban zones in Berlin,” Spranger told Tagesspiegel at the time, arguing that the zones act both as deterrents and as a symbolic message that violence will not be tolerated.
However, the measures have drawn criticism from police representatives. Benjamin Jendro, spokesperson for the Berlin Police Union, dismissed the expansion of prohibition zones back in April as “too short-sighted.” He said recent fatal stabbings demonstrate that what he called “placebo” bans do little to stop determined attackers.
“The police, however, will not be able to control this permanently and comprehensively in the future,” Jendro warned, noting that knives are already banned under Berlin’s public transport rules, which have not prevented violent incidents or deterred the significant numbers still intent on carrying weapons.
The rise in knife crime across Germany is undeniably linked with its policy of mass immigration. A total of 730 cases of violent knife crimes were recorded across the country in the first half of 2025, a 17 percent increase compared to the same period last year.
This data, provided by the German government in response to a parliamentary query from Alternative for Germany (AfD) domestic affairs spokesman Martin Hess, showed a disproportionate overrepresentation of foreign suspects.
Out of the recorded offenses, 278 involved German suspects and 270 involved non-Germans, despite foreigners comprising just under 15 percent of Germany’s population. This figure is already distorted due to the fact that naturalized foreign-born individuals are categorized as “German” in federal crime statistics.
Among the foreign perpetrators, Syrians formed the largest group with 29 cases, followed by Afghans with 23 and Poles with 20. Algerian and Afghan suspects were among the most likely to use a knife rather than merely carry one, with 83 percent of cases involving actual use.
🇩🇪🎄 German police are now confiscating pocket knives from elderly women at Christmas markets.
Exploding knife crime in Germany, which the police openly says is tied to mass immigration, has led to a security state at German Christmas markets. pic.twitter.com/nRTQRIOr2d
Free speech activists have scored a major victory in Poland after the Constitutional Tribunal ruled that key provisions of the so-called “hate speech act,” which sought to expand the scope of hate crimes in the Penal Code, are unconstitutional.
The Tribunal found that the proposed amendments constituted “an improper interference with the constitutionally protected freedom of expression.”
The decision was a victory for the arguments put forth by then President of the Republic of Poland, Andrzej Duda, who submitted the bill for preventive review in April.
“The Constitutional Tribunal granted the President of the Republic of Poland’s motion and sided with freedom of speech. The ruling was unanimously issued by the full bench,” emphasized Zbigniew Bogucki, head of the Presidential Chancellery.
The amendment, passed on March 6 of this year, aimed to expand the catalogue of hate crimes to include four new grounds: age, gender, disability, and sexual orientation. Its purpose was to ensure that hate crimes based on these characteristics would be prosecuted ex officio (by public authorities) without requiring a private indictment.
However, the Tribunal found the amended provisions unconstitutional and deemed them “inextricably linked to the entire act.”
In the justification of the judgment, Judge Justyn Piskorski, who served as the rapporteur, highlighted that the new discriminatory grounds were “imprecisely defined” and susceptible to “overly broad” and “mechanistic” criminalization of speech. He stated that the Constitutional Tribunal believed the new wording of these grounds made “the line between legal criticism, jokes, polemics, and crimes elusive.”
The Tribunal stressed that while offensive statements are inadmissible, restricting freedom of expression with insufficiently defined prohibited acts violates constitutional rights:
“In this case, the Tribunal found that while the inadmissibility of offensive statements in the public space towards any groups or public entities is unquestionable, restricting the freedom of expression by establishing types of prohibited acts with insufficiently defined characteristics violates the constitutional freedom of speech,” wrote the court.
The court expressed concern that the new law moved criminal law away from its intended role. In the Constitutional Tribunal’s view, criminal law is no longer “the last resort used solely to combat the most serious forms of hatred or violence, but can instead be a tool for censoring speech that was not intended to be discriminatory.”
Judge Piskorski emphasized that the amendments constituted “an inappropriate interference with the constitutionally protected freedom of expression,” warning that their application may be “unpredictable” and susceptible to “arbitrary decisions by law enforcement agencies and courts.”
He outlined the potential chilling effect on public debate:
“There is a risk of classifying critical comments, polemics or research concerning sexual identity, cultural norms, social movements or relevant legislation as a crime,” wrote the judge, further clarifying the proper function of criminal law in a democracy by writing: “Criminal law should not be used to restrict pluralism of opinion by excluding controversial statements, which are the essence of democratic discourse. Criminal law should not be used to protect against every form of criticism or social discomfort, but only in cases of actual violation of personal rights and rights.”
The ruling was issued by a full bench of the Tribunal and was unanimous. Following the verdict, Minister Bogucki confirmed that the President is now “obliged” to refuse to sign the amending act.
Bogucki had previously argued that the March amendment constitutes an “impact on freedom of speech” due in part to the “lack of specificity” of the grounds. Questioning the application of the age requirement, he asked: “Does this provision also prevent you from expressing your opinion, excuse the word ‘you brat’? Would this be a phrase that falls under the Penal Code, or not?”
He concluded that this lack of clarity would lead to excessive restrictions on public discourse: “This lack of clarity causes the language of public debate to become restricted and bound, and leads to such a far-reaching, one might say, political correctness that we will not be able to express our views, even if they are not negatively marked.”
Bogucki also asserted that the new grounds were already “adequately protected, for example, by civil law and criminal law,” suggesting that resorting to further “repressive action by the state could actually lead to the closure of public discussion within the specified grounds.”
A shocking femicide case has rocked France, with even the country’s justice minister admitting total failure of law enforcement to protect Inès Mecellem from murder. Mecellem was stabbed to death by an Afghan refugee, Habib, who was her former partner. Now, the 36-year-old Habib remains on the run after the brutal killing.
Remarkably, he was subject to six criminal complaints, which were filed by Mecellem all within six weeks of her death, yet police never took any serious action against the man, even releasing him from custody shortly before Mecellem’s murder.
The mother of the victim, Angélique, has been appearing across the national media, and has described the man who reportedly killed her daughter as “dangerous” and an “extremist” who “did not want to integrate.”
In fact, Habib openly praised the Taliban.
“He said the Taliban were heroes,” said the mother to Le Figaro newspaper. She added that he “intended to return to Afghanistan.”
Amazingly, despite all this, the man was registered as a “political refugee” in France.
Mecellem, who worked as a social worker in an association that helped refugees, did not notice the warnings associated with the man, who would go on to allegedly murder her.
Angélique had said, “I didn’t like him when I saw him.” She described him as a “big macho guy” who had “the mentality of his country.”
However, despite serious incidents, Inès Mecellem stayed with the Afghan man for two years.
“I think she was in denial, she thought she was going to make him change,” said the mother
Inès Mecellem, who was murdered on Sept. 8, was brutally stabbed inside her apartment in Buxerolles, a suburb of Poitiers, allegedly by Habib. They had just permanently separated. Le Monde details how a neighbor heard her screams and found her still conscious laying in a pool of blood.
“There was so much of it, I didn’t know what to do, I didn’t dare touch her wounds,” said the neighbor.
However, Inès Mecellem was later pronounced dead at the scene despite valiant efforts to save her life.
Inès Mecellem’s death becomes a national story
The case has sparked yet another nationwide discussion about unchecked mass immigration and femicide in France. The murder is being showcased as yet another example of France’s failed law enforcement policies.
Appearing on France Inter after the murder, Angelique said that her daughter, Inès Mecellem, was the victim of violence and threats and had filed several complaints against Habib.
In fact, just two days before the murder, her daughter had activated her serious danger telephone (TGD), a device that allows the police to be quickly alerted. The daughter knew she was being “hunted.”
🇫🇷 "This is the life I live every day."
A terrified French woman is sexually harassed by two different men, one after another.
One even makes handgun motions while running up behind her.
"I can’t even begin to explain the hatred and fear — and yet, I stood my ground." pic.twitter.com/t6AMY5kr1k
Habib was arrested but then immediately released. Angelique cannot believe he was immediately released, saying it was “incomprehensible.”
“I’m disgusted because they had him in their hands and half an hour later, he was on the loose. Today he remains free on the run,” she said on France Inter.
The case has reached the highest levels of government.
Minister of Justice Gerald Darmanin has said that he is calling for law enforcement to bring the suspect to justice and acknowledged the state’s “failure.”
“Victims must be at the heart of the justice system’s concerns. Every time one of them seeks protection from law enforcement and the justice system, and we have failed to protect her, it is a profound and terrible failure. All light must be shed on this horrific case, which is why I have requested the opening of an operational inspection at the General Inspectorate of Justice. Furthermore, I will meet with the president of the National Federation of Femicide Victims, as we meet with all victims who approach me,” wrote Darmanin on X.
Les victimes doivent être au centre des préoccupations de la justice. À chaque fois que l’une d’entre elles demande protection aux forces de l’ordre et à la justice, et que nous n’avons pas réussi à la protéger, c’est un profond et terrible échec. Toute la lumière doit être faite… https://t.co/sGMFVKpftU
On Saturday last week, a thousand people participated in a march in memory of Inès Mecellem, with a symbolic passage in front of the Poitiers police station. It is here that the 25-year-old victim had filed five complaints in total against her ex-partner in just six weeks. Despite that, no action was taken that could have prevented her murder.
She told the police in these complaints that she had been strangled and raped during their relationship, with severe insults and threats coming after they broke up.
Sylvaine Grévin, president of the National Federation of Victims of Femicides and guest of RTL Sunday morning, said such failures to protect women are widespread.
“I appeal to Mr. Darmanin, who is still in office as Keeper of the Seals, to effectively establish all responsibilities. Whether they are police officers or whether they are the work of magistrates. I am even asking for a general inspection of justice,” she said.
Angélique has also filed a complaint for “failure to assist a person in danger” against the Poitiers police. A source close to the prosecution says the complaint has been referred to the General Inspectorate of the National Police.
Mehdi Mecellem, the victim’s brother, is now calling the police and justice system accomplices to murder.
“For me, there are two murderers today,” he told the AFP. “The one who is on the run but also the police and judicial system, with all its failures. Her death could have been completely avoided.”
In France, 96 women were killed by their spouse or ex-spouse in 2023, according to the latest report from the Ministry of the Interior. This figure represents a 19 percent decrease compared to the previous year, 2022. The study further specifies that women are the overwhelming majority of victims in marital crimes, accounting for 81 percent of all cases.
🇫🇷 A 30-year-old Moroccan migrant with a deportation order climbed the facade of a building to rape a young French girl.
He undressed on the balcony before entering the girl's room.
A district league football match in Dortmund ended in violence on Sunday when players and supporters of SG Phönix Eving allegedly attacked the referee after a red card decision.
The match against DJK SF Nette II, played in Dortmund’s District League B1, was nearing its end when tensions boiled over. Bild reported how, in stoppage time, the referee showed Phönix player Emre S. a red card with Nette leading 7-4.
Several Phönix players are alleged to have run at the referee, demanding the decision be overturned, prompting him to abandon the game and retreat to the dressing room.
As the referee later made his way to his car, he was chased by a group of Phönix players and supporters. In the parking lot, player Recep S. allegedly punched him in the face, while around 30 men surrounded the referee’s vehicle, preventing him from leaving. Police eventually arrived, arresting Emre S. in the locker room. Emergency services treated the referee for injuries at the scene.
Bild reported that Recep S. is already known to the police for previous assault offenses, while Junge Freiheit noted that the Dortmund-based team “are almost exclusively migrants.”
SG Phönix Eving issued a statement on Facebook late on Monday evening condemning the violence but strongly criticized the press coverage, especially from Bild. “Although we do not include some of the referee decisions in the game, this, of course, in no way justifies such an outcome,” the club said.
The club claimed that the player named in the Bild report had already been substituted before the red card and denied that he was known to police. “All the coverage and commentary borders on murder,” the statement read, calling reactions on social media “slanderous and racist.”
Phönix said it was cooperating with authorities and had begun internal steps to clarify who was responsible. “We will do everything we can to investigate the perpetrator and cooperate with an accurate explanation,” the board wrote.
The referee, who was left shaken but not seriously injured, is expected to file a formal complaint.
Police confirmed they are pursuing an assault investigation.
Spain’s socialist government has begun the gradual transfer of more than 600 Moroccan minors from the North African enclave of Ceuta to different regions on the mainland.
The decision has reignited debate in Madrid over how to manage unaccompanied minors entering the country, as new figures revealed just 41 of the nearly 30,000 minor arrivals since 2018 have been repatriated.
The first transfer took place on Sunday morning, when a 17-year-old Moroccan was moved by ferry to Córdoba, accompanied by an educator. The operation was carried out after the Prosecutor’s Office and the Department of Juvenile Affairs authorized the move, ensuring that the required legal guarantees were respected.
According to Spanish media, further relocations will continue in the coming weeks. The government stressed that the process will be individual and gradual, with strict adherence to deadlines established in the emergency decree: 15 days to resolve cases of minors who arrived during the declared emergency and up to four months for those who had already been living in state reception centers.
The situation in Ceuta has been a long-standing challenge for Spanish authorities, with migrants often targeting the enclave due to its location on the African mainland as an alternative to taking the perilous journey across the Mediterranean.
The enclave currently houses more than 600 Moroccan minors, many of whom arrived during past migration surges. Local officials have repeatedly warned that services are stretched to the limit. In response, other regions such as Aragon and Andalusia have pledged to host hundreds of minors, providing spaces in specialized centers.
Madrid has framed the transfers as part of a broader policy of national solidarity, ensuring that no single territory bears the full burden of hosting.
As reported by La Gaceta, since 2018, 27,891 unaccompanied foreign minors have entered the country. In a written response to parliamentary questions from the VOX party, the government confirmed that from 2018 to the present, “the total number of unaccompanied foreign minors who have been repatriated amounts to 41.”
Officials explained that these low numbers reflect the complexity of the repatriation process, which is carried out in line with the “principles of the best interests of the child and family reunification.” In practice, this means that returns are not only to the country of origin but sometimes to third countries where relatives can be found.
The government emphasized that diplomatic efforts are ongoing with Morocco and other countries to locate family members or establish child-protection arrangements, but that such procedures are often lengthy and uncertain.
VOX seized on the figures to renew its demand for much stricter measures. The party led by Santiago Abascal is the only one in parliament calling openly for the closure of centers for unaccompanied minors and the immediate return of children to their families.
“We demand that all public administrations shut down all those mafias disguised as NGOs that are profiting from human trafficking,” the party said in a statement, accusing both the ruling Socialist Party (PSOE) and the conservative Popular Party (PP) of endangering Spaniards through their tolerance of mass immigration.
In just three weeks, more than 40,000 young Ukrainian men aged 18 to 22 have crossed into Poland after the government in Kyiv lifted travel restrictions for this age group at the end of August. The sudden surge was reported by Ukrainska Pravda and confirmed by the Polish Border Guard.
Between Aug. 28 and Sept. 19, Polish officials recorded nearly 53,000 border checks involving men in this age group, including almost 40,000 entering Poland and more than 13,000 leaving the country. Authorities note that these are checks, not individuals, but the figures suggest a large outflow of Ukraine’s youngest eligible men.
Many observers believe most will not return, fearing conscription and deployment to the front.
The new rule reverses the general travel ban imposed at the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022, which barred men aged 18 to 60 from leaving the country to ensure sufficient mobilization. The government justified the change by citing a need to reduce corruption linked to illegal border crossings and to provide legal avenues for young men to study or work abroad. President Volodymyr Zelensky recommended the reform in August, framing it as a way to strengthen ties between Ukrainians abroad and their homeland.
Prime Minister Yulia Svyrydenko defended the policy, saying, “We want to maintain as many ties as possible as Ukrainians to our homeland.” Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko added that the aim was to allow opportunities for education, internships, and legal employment abroad, so young people could eventually “use the experience they have gained for the development of Ukraine.”
Yet the decision runs counter to repeated appeals from military commanders, who have argued for lowering the mobilization age, currently set at 25, to replenish exhausted forces and counter rising desertion rates. The Ukrainian army continues to struggle with manpower shortages as it faces sustained pressure on multiple fronts.
Polish officials had warned that the new law could trigger a fresh wave of migrants, adding to the millions of Ukrainians already living in Poland since the start of the war. Early reports from Ukraine itself suggest that many young men seized the chance to leave. Within a week of the policy’s introduction, mass resignations were reported at major companies. The Silpo supermarket chain, for instance, lost around 3,000 employees — the same number of young men it employed between 18 and 22.
The trend is being felt beyond Poland. Czech MP Robert Králíček of the ANO movement said arrivals of young Ukrainian men to the Czech Republic had doubled in recent weeks.
“When Volodymyr Zelensky allowed men between the ages of 18 and 22 to leave at the end of August, the number of incoming Ukrainian young men in this age range increased by 105 percent since the beginning of September. Previously, 1,615 of them were arriving per week; today, it is over 3,000,” he said on Czech Television, as cited by Echo24.
The following is an in-depth analysis from Hungary’s Portfolio on Russian energy flows to the EU, amidst Brussels’ recent decision to turn the tap off completely.
The EU has reached a historic turning point: Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced alongside Donald Trump that Brussels would soon introduce import tariffs to permanently eliminate Russian oil and gas imports. Although the share of Russian energy in the EU’s supply has already fallen to a fraction since the outbreak of the war, many importers continue to use various tricks – for example, by buying oil products “laundered” in third countries – to circumvent the sanctions.
Some countries, notably Hungary and Slovakia, are still heavily dependent on Russian sources. A qualified majority of member states will be enough to introduce tariffs, so no country will be able to veto the decision, which could fundamentally reshape the European energy market and pose a serious challenge to the Hungarian government and MOL.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced last week at a press conference alongside U.S. President Donald Trump at the UN General Assembly that Brussels plans to impose new import tariffs to completely wean Europe off Russian energy. She said that “the last bits” must be removed from Europe’s oil and gas supply.
The European Commission has announced that it will present its new sanctions draft within the next one or two weeks, the adoption of which only requires a qualified majority of the member states, so that no single country can veto it, as we wrote about in detail.
Since the outbreak of the war in 2022, the EU has drastically reduced imports of Russian fossil fuels. Some countries – mainly Hungary and Slovakia – and several companies still buy oil and natural gas from Moscow, but the latter, almost without exception, only indirectly. Russia’s fossil fuel export revenues have fallen by half since the spring of 2022.
The question now is how these actors will adapt to the new situation, when the EU and the U.S. are working together to end the last Russian energy relations.
In the case of natural gas, a total ban was never imposed, but the Kremlin began to weaponize deliveries, while several countries, such as Poland and the Baltic states, voluntarily stopped buying. While in 2021, Russian pipeline gas covered more than 40 percent of the EU’s gas consumption, by 2024, this had fallen to less than 10 percent. By early 2025, Russian gas accounted for 14 percent of the EU’s total gas imports. In the case of oil, the decline is even more spectacular: Today, only 2 percent of the EU’s oil imports comes from Russia.
This remainder mainly arrives in Hungary and Slovakia via the southern branch of the Friendship pipeline. The two countries receive around 200,000 barrels of Ural crude oil per day, which they rely on to set up their refineries.
While seaborne imports have been completely eliminated, Hungary and Slovakia were granted an exemption from the embargo in 2022, citing security of supply risks and the lack of alternative transport routes. Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó made it clear at the time: Hungary is only connected to the international oil network by the pipeline from Russia, and the capacity of the Croatian Adriatic pipeline is insufficient, as the Hungarian cabinet is now citing.
Slovakia used a similar argument and was allowed to export Russian-based fuel to the Czech Republic until June 2025. After that deadline, it partially switched to alternative sources, but it can still import Russian oil for domestic use.
Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic have completely divorced themselves from russian oil, so these countries are often given as examples in the EU in the Hungarian-Slovak dispute.
The picture is similar in the natural gas market, but the situation is more complicated. The Ukrainian transit route was closed at the end of 2024, leaving only the TurkStream pipeline active, which will transport Russian gas through the Black Sea to Turkey and then through Bulgaria to Southeastern Europe.
From there, the gas will arrive in Hungary, Slovakia and Bulgaria. In 2021, Hungary signed a 15-year contract with Gazprom, which guarantees the supply of 4.5 billion cubic meters of gas per year until 2036. This made Hungary the only EU member state to increase its Russian gas imports in 2022–2023 after the outbreak of the war. The majority of Hungarian consumption is still covered by Russian gas. Slovakia also buys and transfers the surplus to Austria, so the Austrian market indirectly receives Russian gas again. Bulgaria was previously excluded from the system due to its refusal to pay in rubles, but later regained access to Russian gas through Turkish mediation.
Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) is another grey area. Since it has not been subject to a complete ban, Western European energy companies – mainly France, the Netherlands, Belgium and Spain – have continued to buy it, typically from the Yamal Peninsula. The EU’s action against them is more difficult because while it is easy for member states to enforce the embargo, it is much more difficult for individual energy companies to do so, as they also use creative accounting techniques. In 2024, the EU was the largest market for Russian LNG, acquiring 50 percent of exports.
The four countries mentioned accounted for 85 percent of imports. In August 2025, France bought €157 million worth of Russian LNG, while the Netherlands and Belgium each bought around €60-65 million. Spain has curbed its purchases under political pressure.
Still, the share of Russian LNG is decreasing: It was 22 percent of the EU’s LNG imports at the beginning of 2021, and by mid-2025, it had decreased to 14 percent. In the case of oil, although there is a complete embargo on sea transport, indirect imports have become a significant factor.
Essentially, it is about India, Turkey and other countries buying Russian crude oil cheaply and then selling it as refined products to the EU. For example, India barely imported Russian oil before the war, but by 2024, it had become one of the largest buyers, and it can be assumed that this was due to the fact that the country exported record quantities to Europe.
According to an analysis by Business Today, India exported fuel products worth $19.2 billion to the EU in the first half of 2024, but this amount fell to $15 billion in the same period in 2025, which corresponds to a decline of about 27 percent.
The decrease is caused by the EU’s 18th sanctions package, which prohibits the import of fuels refined from Russian crude oil in third countries, such as India. In the case of oil, the Netherlands was the main target, followed by France and the United Kingdom. Dutch ports have become distribution hubs from which Indian fuels, which are actually Russian fuels, are distributed throughout Europe.
“Hungary’s share of total Russian oil exports is 2.2 percent, which means that the remaining 97.8 percent is purchased by others, which also highlights the hypocrisy of Western European countries,” said Hungary’s FM Péter Szijjártó in New York on Wednesday local time. Of the proportion mentioned by the politician, China and India accounted for 85.6 percent in August, while Turkey accounted for 5 percent.
However, it is still unclear how much Russian oil is being passed through third countries like India and Morocco, regardless of what EU sanctions are supposedly targeting.
According to Eurostat data, Turkey’s export surplus compared to 2021 was 3.1 million tons, while India’s was 10 million tons last year. Based on this, washed, re-refined Russian oil may indeed have appeared in the EU’s annual oil imports, but it still has a small share in the total 450 million tons of imports.
Based on the latest EU summaries, the amount imported in this way does not even reach 5 percent. If the EU really continues to restrict options in the new rounds of sanctions, this ratio may decrease further. This is how Russian energy income disappears.
The loopholes and circumvention of sanctions, as well as sales to India and China, are no longer helping the Russian economy. According to an August analysis by the Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air (CREA), Russia earned €564 million in revenue per day from fossil exports, which represents a 2 percent monthly decrease.
Marine oil revenues fell 12 percent to €170 million per day. Pipeline gas exports, which essentially only cover Hungary and Slovakia, rose 8 percent to €75 million per day, while LNG revenues rose 4 percent to €31 million per day. Coal exports brought in €76 million per day. According to the report, Hungary imported €416 million of Russian energy in August 2025, half of that oil and half gas. Slovakia spent €276 million, mainly on oil. France came in third with €157 million in LNG imports.
The EU’s goal now is to economically force the remaining buyers – be they member states or companies – to give up Russian energy. Von der Leyen’s proposal would include a common EU tariff on the Russian oil that is still flowing in. This would make it more expensive for Hungary and Slovakia to get it, which would encourage the search for alternative sources.
The 19th sanctions package would also require that the import of Russian LNG be prohibited from 2026, a year earlier than previously planned. Hungary is in a particularly difficult situation. Mol’s regional refineries are equipped for Ural-type oil, and although the Croatian Adriatic pipeline offers an alternative, its capacity is limited according to the oil company – although this is strongly denied by its Croatian partner, Janaf. (Portfolio writes about this in detail here.) According to Portfolio’s analysis, separating from Russia would represent an additional cost of up to 10-20 percent.
In 2023, 80 percent of natural gas imports came from Russian sources. Although there has been some diversification – for example, Azerbaijani gas, Croatian LNG, and a Turkish agreement – their volume is negligible compared to the Gazprom contract. It is no coincidence that Prime Minister Viktor Orbán even spoke to U.S. President Donald Trump by phone to dissuade him from his retaliatory stance on importing Russian energy sources, to which his partner seemed receptive.
Europe’s 60-year energy partnership with Russia may now come to an end, at least in the case of Hungarian and Slovak imports, which have been carried out by tricky Western companies and have been exempted from embargoes, and tougher EU (and possibly US) action is coming.
One of the new steps in this could be the 19th sanctions package to be negotiated by the member states in October, which would bring forward the union’s complete separation from Russian energy sources to 2027 and would also impose an embargo on LNG.
As a measure against laundered oil, another 120 ships of the Russian shadow fleet would be banned. The possible tariff increases, floated by Ursula von der Leyen, will be negotiated by the member states as trade restrictions, regardless.
According to an agreement reached on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly, the Netherlands would establish a center in the African country of Uganda to house asylum seekers awaiting deportation.
Other European countries are closely watching to see how this is implemented, as they too are looking for such an option. Only Italy has a similar program, with the Albanian village of Gjader serving as an Italian return hub for rejected asylum seekers since April. The UK had sought to implement a similar deportation center in Rwanda, even passing a law that included various safeguards after the country’s Supreme Court ruled Rwanda was not a safe country, but this plan was abandoned under the new Labour government in 2024.
Representatives of the Dutch government and Uganda signed an MOU to provide temporary accommodation for asylum seekers from neighboring African countries who cannot be directly deported to their home countries.
“We need to focus more on what is feasible than on what is not,” said Dutch Immigration Minister David Van Weel after meeting with Ugandan Foreign Minister Odongo Jeje Abubakhar.
The camp aims to “keep migration under control,” according to Welt, while both sides also stressed that the facility must comply with national, European, and international legislation.
The Dutch opposition has already called out the idea as infeasible while also criticizing Italy’s center for human rights violations.
Migration lawyer Michael Yap is not convinced the deal the Netherlands has struck with Uganda will pan out. “If it’s already difficult to monitor compliance with agreements in a European country like Albania, how will the Netherlands handle it in Uganda?” he asked, according to Dutch news portal NU.
According to the latest polling for the Netherlands, the anti-migration Party for Freedom (PVV), led by Geert Wilders, is leading ahead of next month’s elections. PVV, which won the 2023 election, had formed a coalition with other parties, but that fell apart after his partners refused to adopt Geert’s hardline stance on migration.
A damning new report lays the immigration crisis bare in Germany’s school system, outlining how students with an immigration background have lower vocational school qualifications, fewer career options, and constitute the vast majority of school dropouts.
The “Maltese Migration Report 2025” outlines the ongoing migration crisis in German schools, which Remix News has reported on a regular basis.
Among the findings is that 75 percent of all school dropouts in Germany in 2023 have a migration background.
The promise that newcomers — and their children — would be a boon for the German economy has been debunked in many areas, but the new report underlines that the situation is not likely to improve in the near future due to a faltering education system.
🇩🇪🚨 Mass migration spells disaster for the German education system
440 out of 490 students need German-language support in just one elementary school from 1-4 grade.
170 children fall into the category of "almost no knowledge of German."
In addition to the significant number of dropouts from Germany’s migrant community, there is also a clear difference in vocational training. Half of those without vocational training are from immigrant families. Those with an immigrant background perform worse on standardized testing than native Germans.
“Compared to their peers without an immigration background, children with an immigration background perform worse in mathematics and science. This cannot be allowed to happen,” Feld told Bild newspaper. “If we fail to successfully address this area of social and educational policy, we will simply be ignoring enormous potential for our country.”
“Those who remain in Germany without a school or vocational qualification are more likely than average to have an immigration background. This cannot be ignored” said Sebastian Schilgen, managing director of the Malteser Werke.
The report identifies the man issues are clear language deficits and failures regarding early education.
Approximately 13 percent of children in daycares do not speak German with their families. In addition, children with a migration background between three and six are much less likely to attend daycare facilities, amounting to 77 percent. Meanwhile, 99 percent of children without a migration background attend daycare.
🇩🇪🚨German classroom nightmare
Teachers mocked, lessons disrupted, and even physical assaults.
"I am no longer in control of the situation. I feel like a failure. The children here are just 12 years old."
As Remix News has previously reported, it is not just an issue with language, but also an issue of attitude of students with a migration background. Teachers report insults, disrespect, bullying, and assaults, with those schools with the highest migrant populations generally featuring the most chaos.
🇩🇪🔴 A young German girl spoke of the nightmare she experiences from her Muslim classmates.
"Sometimes they say to me that I’m German. And yeah, then they laugh at me, curse at me and tease me. Others are always Muslim, and they ask me why I am not a Muslim. I said I am a… pic.twitter.com/gggVOm9IPs
European Council President António Costa has proposed how to bypass Hungary’s veto and advance EU accession talks with Ukraine and Moldova.
Current rules mandate that all 27 EU member states approve each stage of the accession process. Costa’s proposal would allow a qualified majority vote to open so-called negotiating clusters for the two countries, notes Hirado, citing an article by Politico.
However, despite this move speeding up the accession process, final accession approval would still require unanimity.
Guillaume Mercier, the European Commission’s spokesperson for enlargement, said on Monday: “The possibility of the Council deciding by qualified majority on certain intermediate steps in the enlargement process would be worth exploring.”
This would help candidate countries, such as Ukraine and Moldova, to start the necessary reforms to align with EU standards, even if one or two member states officially oppose the start of negotiations.
EU diplomats say Costa’s proposal would offer a way to overcome Viktor Orbán’s repeated vetoes. “When a country is obstructed without any objective reason, despite fulfilling the criteria, the credibility of the entire enlargement process is at risk,” Mercier said.
Regarding “no objective reason,” however, is questionable, as Orbán has offered plenty of reasons. Notably, Ukraine is still at war, and even if the war should end, may be threatened with war once again in the future. Furthermore, Ukraine, even before the war, was rated as the most corrupt country in Europe, and since the war, corruption has only grown worse. Rebuilding the country is also expected to take hundreds of billions of euros, which EU taxpayers will increasingly be on the hook for if Ukraine joins the EU.
Costa nevertheless added, “It is really up to the Member States to decide on the next steps and we hope to open the first cluster soon.”
As Hirado notes, Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has also strongly supported extending qualified majority voting in certain areas such as foreign policy, but she has also clearly indicated that it could benefit other areas as well.
Asked whether EU enlargement could fall into this category, Paula Pinho, the Commission’s senior spokeswoman, responded on Monday: “That could indeed be examined.”
Germany’s airline industry is reeling, with the Lufthansa Group announcing on Monday that it would cut 4,000 jobs, a decision that industry leaders attribute to years of decline driven by “extremely high taxes and fees that do not exist abroad.” However, Germany’s connectivity crisis is also growing.
The job cuts come as the federal government prepares to negotiate relief measures for the aviation sector as part of the budget debate this week.
The withdrawal of services is already evident. “Germany has lost massive amounts of connectivity,” Bischof said. “If you exclude the feeder flights to the hubs in Frankfurt and Munich, we are a fifth of the level in domestic German air traffic prior to Covid… 84 percent are gone – that has consequences for the entire economy!”
Jens Bischof, Eurowings CEO and President of the Federal Association of the German Aviation Industry (BDL), warned in an interview with Welt newspaper that the lack of political relief threatens to sever the last existing flight connections for key German regions.
Bischof emphasized that the German aviation industry is struggling due to government costs that have nearly doubled since 2019.
“It’s good that the Chancellor (Friedrich Merz) is making the issue a top priority,” Bischof said, “Because we haven’t felt any relief yet. On the contrary. Taxes and fees have almost doubled since 2019 and, at €35 for an intra-German or European flight route, are higher than anywhere else in Europe.”
The outspoken Ryanair CEO, CEO Michael O’Leary, does not mince words either, saying last year that “Germany is run by idiots.” He added at the time that, “I don’t think the next government of Germany will be any better.”
As for Lufthansa’s leader, Bischof, his criticism may be a bit more muted, but he is still laying it on thick. He pointed out the severe disparity with neighboring countries: “This is seven times more than in Spain, for example. With an average ticket price of €66 to €110, you can calculate how much we will earn after deducting our costs – namely nothing. Airlines are currently making money primarily outside of Germany. Aviation is booming there.”
The high costs have already led to a drastic reduction in domestic German flights, which have halved since 2019. Bischof warned that without a policy change, the decline will continue.
“If nothing changes on the political side – yes,” he stated. Bischof identified several regional airports where services are at risk: “In Bremen, Dresden, Cologne/Bonn, Leipzig/Halle, Münster/Osnabrück, Nuremberg, Stuttgart – flights are on the brink everywhere.”
He underscored the economic danger this poses to local businesses: “These are strongholds of medium-sized businesses, mechanical engineering and the tech industry. These companies need direct, fast connections to the world, which have so far been ensured via feeder flights to the international hubs of Frankfurt and Munich. All of these regions are threatened with decoupling from global air traffic.”
Beyond business connectivity, the cost burden is impacting families and tourism. Bischof argued the industry has moved past a “tipping point,” stating: “The high ticket prices, which largely consist of taxes and fees, are already making families increasingly unable to afford a plane trip during the summer holidays. This is a question of social participation. After all, vacationing with the family is also a social democratic achievement.”
The economic repercussions are also visible in the tourism and trade fair sectors. “The impact on incoming tourism is already significant,” Bischof noted, adding that trade fairs are now “being moved to locations in other countries that can be more easily reached. When connections disappear, entire value chains collapse. This is a fatal development for an economic nation.”
Bischof made clear that the industry is not seeking a government bailout. “That is precisely the absurdity of this debate. We don’t want any support from the state,” he asserted. “We just don’t want to be burdened further and further by the state. Government costs now add up to €4.4 billion per year, half of which alone represents a special tax, which exists in only nine out of 31 European countries. We have the highest aviation tax in all of Europe.”
He argued that reducing the tax burden would be revenue-positive for the federal government in the long run. “We need the burden to be reduced by €2 billion so that air traffic in Germany can grow again. The resulting increases in value added are twice or three times as high.”
In a stark warning about the human cost, Bischof concluded: “The cancellation of flight connections and aircraft relocated abroad due to high location costs, which cost Germany €4 billion in added value and around 10,000 jobs. This also means: The federal government could completely abolish the aviation tax – and would ultimately emerge with a plus.”
For the first time in Germany, a federal state has formally recognized Islamic holidays, granting Muslims the legal right to official leave from school and work.
Schleswig-Holstein, in northern Germany, has signed a groundbreaking agreement with the Northern German Association of Islamic Cultural Centers (VIKZ), which not only enshrines the right to take time off on the first day of Ramadan and Eid al-Adha, but also lays the foundation for broader recognition of Islam in public life.
The treaty was signed by the Ministry of Education and Culture and regulates several key points: Muslims must be granted leave on the two major holidays; VIKZ is given explicit rights to run educational and cultural institutions and to train imams; and, in the long term, there are plans to introduce Islamic religious education as a standard subject in schools, on equal footing with Protestant, Catholic, or Jewish religious studies.
Education Minister Dorit Stenke (CDU) described the step as “an important sign of recognition and equal treatment of religious communities.” She stressed that the treaty was not simply symbolic, but an affirmation that “people of the Muslim faith are part of our society.” For the government in Kiel, the agreement also provides a legal basis for practices that have, in part, existed informally, while giving Muslim communities greater planning security.
Initial confusion about whether or not the agreement was leading to new public holidays exclusively for Muslims was addressed by NDR in an additional comment under its Facebook story.
“It’s not the case that people of the Muslim faith receive additional days off. Children can request an exemption from school for religious holidays, and adults can apply for leave. However, there is no automatic entitlement,” it wrote.
The move, however, does signify further Islamic encroachment into Western society, with Muslim children effectively being entitled to extra days off from school, and businesses needing to manage workflow on what are typically business days in Germany and the West.
VIKZ, one of the largest Islamic umbrella organizations in Germany, hailed the treaty as a breakthrough. Its vice president, Muhlis Şahin, said, “The treaty makes it clear: Islam is part of our social life. It has taken deep root here and continues to flourish.” He emphasized that the recognition of Islamic holidays and institutions is about more than rituals: It is about participation, integration, and respect.
The agreement goes beyond holidays. It highlights youth work, early childhood education, and social integration as priorities. According to the official statement, this includes language support and educational opportunities aimed at strengthening equal chances for Muslim children and young people. Both the state government and VIKZ noted that the agreement is designed to promote constructive coexistence.
So far, Germany’s approach to Islamic holidays has been uneven. Hamburg and some other states have allowed Muslim pupils to take excused absences for major holidays, but Schleswig-Holstein is the first to grant formal recognition under the Sunday and Public Holiday Act, which also applies to Christian and Jewish observances.
U.S. President Donald Trump has posted to his Truth Social page that he wants to restore the film business after it was “stolen” by foreign countries, slamming California Governor Gavin Newsom for making it so easy for them to do so, “like stealing ‘candy from a baby.”
California has recently announced new incentives to help keep film production in Hollywood, a move that sent a loud message to popular low-cost production locations on the other side of the Atlantic, including Hungary. But clearly, Trump did not think the rebates provided were enough.
“California, with its weak and incompetent Governor, has been particularly hard hit! Therefore, in order to solve this long-time, never-ending problem, I will be imposing a 100% Tariff on any and all movies that are made outside of the United States,” Trump continued.
JUST IN – Trump to impose a 100% tariff on "any and all" movies made outside the U.S. in a bid to reclaim Hollywood, which was "stolen" by foreign countries. pic.twitter.com/4qjV5elHmb
Just a couple weeks ago, Remix News reported on Hollywood’s ploy to win back studio business. Starting in July, California will now allocate $750 million (up from $330 million) to its Film & Television Tax Credit Program, known as Program 4.0, with eligible projects now including animated films and short-format TV shows. Plus, the credit is now a 35-40 percent refundable incentive.
Budapest has become a hot spot for movie-making, with films such as Dune, Blade Runner 2049, Alien: Romulus, The Martian, Ballerina (John Wick), and F1, to name just a few.
The city is known for its own generous tax incentives, as well as top studios, and production talent — from pre-production set design to film crews and post-production editing. The architecture also allows the city to double for many European capitals.
In response to Governor Newsom’s announcement, Origo Studios CEO Márta Horváth told Remix that they are confident Budapest will remain “a world-class production hub.“ However, she also warned that “it is essential that registrations are accepted and processed in line with real production needs, so that projects can begin work as scheduled.”
Budapest Reporter echoed this sentiment, stating that “Faster permitting and less union complexity mean a shorter path from prep to wrap.”
As to the threat of 100 percent tariffs. Who knows.
This may be yet another thorn in the side of the friendship between Trump and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. The American president has insisted that all EU and NATO members stop buying Russian energy products, although it appears that Hungary has gained an exception from the White House on this front for now.
A 13-year-old boy was critically injured after being stabbed in the heart at a school in Kiel in January, and two young men, aged 18 and 19, are now standing trial on charges of attempted manslaughter.
As reported by Hamburger Morgenpost, the Kiel public prosecutor’s office alleges that on the evening of Jan. 19, 2025, the two accused, together with other individuals who are being prosecuted separately, lured the boy out of his shared accommodation in the Hassee district under false pretenses. According to investigators, the group then attacked him in the schoolyard of the Christian School Kiel.
Prosecutors believe that several youths repeatedly punched and kicked the victim, who was eventually left unconscious. One of the assailants allegedly stabbed him with a knife, injuring his pericardium and nearly killing him. Emergency responders managed to resuscitate the boy at the scene before he underwent hours of surgery in hospital. Doctors reportedly later described his survival as a miracle.
Seven suspects between the ages of 14 and 22 were initially arrested on the night of the attack, but five were released shortly afterward. The two men now facing trial have remained in custody since their arrest. It is still unclear who wielded the knife, with the suspects blaming each other while the victim, still traumatized, has been unable to give testimony.
Investigators linked the attack to an earlier dispute between the boy and one of the suspects. The boy’s mother reportedly received threatening phone calls in the days before the assault, one of which directly warned of violence.
As the trial opened, the family released a deeply emotional letter from the victim, published by local AfD politician Hubert Pinto de Kraus and later circulated by activist Martin Sellner. In the letter, written in the first person, the boy describes repeated bullying, humiliation, and violence in the months leading up to the attack.
“Since last year, I had been repeatedly humiliated and beaten by a well-known group of offenders. My mother filed complaints, but nothing happened,” it read.
He recounts how he was ambushed, beaten, and ultimately stabbed, writing: “On January 19, 2025, I died (ed. clinically, as his heart stopped) in Kiel – at 13 years old, from a stab to the heart. My mother and I were ignored, and the perpetrators were given legal counsel. This is my story.”
“Dear readers, My name is Finn Lucas, and on January 19, 2025, I died in Kiel – at 13 years old, from a stab to the heart. My mother and I were ignored, the perpetrators were given legal counsel.
Describing the attack, the boy wrote, “”The blows were deliberate and brutal. Eventually, I lost consciousness. As I slowly came to and tried to get up, I was struck by a hard kick in the face. I lost my weak footing and collapsed unconscious again. I never felt the fatal stab to my heart.”
He went on to describe the trauma he now lives with, both physical and psychological, as well as his family’s struggle to find help and support: “To this day, no one from the city of Kiel has reached out to us, offered help, or support. The perpetrators immediately received legal representation, and five of the seven were released from pre-trial detention after just three days. I myself live in fear and do not know how my life can go on.”
The letter, ending with the question, “Why are perpetrators protected, but not the victims?”
One man is dead and two are in critical condition after two Turkish families battled on the streets of the troubled German city of Gelsenkirchen.
The clash began as a loud argument and then quickly escalated into a mass brawl involving knives and other weapons, resulting in the death of one 56-year-old man.
Shortly after 8:00 p.m., approximately 30 people clashed in the Bismarck district of the heavily migrant city.
According to police, this was no ordinary brawl. The members of the two families were armed with baseball bats, tasers, knives, and other dangerous weapons during the clash.
🇩🇪🔥Blood flows in Germany
1 dead and 5 seriously injured after two Turkish families battled in the streets of the city of Gelsenkirchen.
The deceased victim is a 56-year-old man who was stabbed in the heart.
In total, five people recorded serious injuries, including a woman. Four of them sustained life-threatening injuries due to stab wounds.
The 56-year-old deceased victim was stabbed in the heart, resulting in him later dying in the hospital.
The scene became a sea of blue police lights, crime scene tape, and ambulances racing to nearby hospitals. Two individuals remain in critical condition and are fighting for their lives.
Police conducted a major operation in the area, with backup units arriving from around the Ruhr region, considered one of the troubled “rust belt” areas of Germany. In addition, a police helicopter was deployed.
Police had trouble locking down the crime scene as relatives and friends of the victims streamed into the area. Although Bild reports that rival Turkish families were involved in the incident, the paper indicated that initial reports that the incident was related to warring “clans” have not yet been confirmed by police.
The Ruhr area is located in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, which has been troubled by extreme clan violence in recent years. These feuds often feature dozens of perpetrators battling in the streets, as well as kidnappings, bomb attacks, and murders.
BREAKING: 🇩🇪🩸Bloodbath in Germany after mass brawl involving 100 Lebanese from two rival clan families in the city of Heiligenhaus.
Helicopters and special forces were deployed after two clans battled with machetes and knives, among other weapons, according to police.
Six arrests have been made at the scene, including three male suspects aged 16, 29, and 52, as well as three female suspects, 25, 28, and 50.
Homicide squad officers are currently investigating and are looking for witnesses to come forward.
AfD loses Gelsenkirchen race last night
The city recently made national news due to a runoff election yesterday, Sept. 28, featuring an Alternative for Germany mayoral candidate, Norbert Emmerich, pitted against a Social Democrat (SPD) candidate. The SPD easily won with 66.9 percent of the vote, with Andrea Henze becoming the city’s new mayor. After her victory, she described the city as “unbelievably beautiful.”
The city is known for its blighted districts, growing urban decay, and growing insecurity. However, 25 percent of the population is now made up of foreigners, and many of the city’s remaining population have a foreign background. As a result, even though the AfD performed well in the first round, it had trouble securing a majority of votes.
This situation may accelerate across the country. Germany is becoming less secure, but more diverse, which means that many are turning to the AfD with their votes, but at the same time, those with a foreign background are far less likely to vote for the party.
In a Focus interview from two days ago, the city is described as a “hotspot for social fraud and clan crime.” The paper interviewed Police Chief Tim Frommeyer, who explained how the security situation is deteriorating.
“Gelsenkirchen has always been and continues to be a multicultural city. Nevertheless, especially in the Ruhr area, including here in Gelsenkirchen, many decisions made with good intentions have developed into real problems,” he said.
“The people of this city notice that, despite the city’s great commitment, the cityscape has changed to the detriment of the past decade. Garbage, junk properties and numerous administrative offenses are obvious,” he added.
He pointed to the high rates of crimes committed by people with foreign status.
“Depending on the field of crime, (the rate of foreigner crime) is between 34 and 58 percent. The proportion is particularly high in the case of offenses against life, namely 57.1 percent, and in the area of theft, property and forgery offenses, here the figure is 57.8 percent,” he stated.
Moreover, the growth of clan crime is alarming, as has been seen across Germany.
“In these cases, we perceive increasingly better organized structures, these are networks that have grown over a long period of time and are partly controlled by clans and extended families,” the police chief stated. “Of course, here in Gelsenkirchen we still have a problem with Turkish-Lebanese clans and the associated crimes and crime phenomena. This is about, for example, drugs, money laundering or, as you say, bodily harm crimes. We are also increasingly noticing rivalry with Syrian clans.”
However, as multiculturalism increases, so does the variety of groups competing with each other.
“As has already been said, we are not only dealing with Turkish-Lebanese clans nationwide, including in Gelsenkirchen. Syrian, but also Romanian and Bulgarian clans are now positioning themselves more and more strongly in the scene,” said Frommeyer.
The harrowing trial of Jordy Goukara, a Central African national with three deportation orders and 12 convictions, has come to an end. Goukara received 18 years in prison for raping Claire Géronimi and a young woman named Mathilde at knife point, but his statements during the trial are unlikely to ever be forgotten.
During the trial, the 27-year-old Goukara stated he “felt pleasure” during the rapes, which occurred in autumn of 2023, and explained that is why he keeps committing rapes and may even commit the act again, according to reporting from French media outlet Frontieres.
Describing the rape of his first victim, Mathilde, Goukara said: “I grabbed her by the arm, I told her: I want to f**k. I had to be a bit firmer and I told her: Open your mouth!” Goukara then added: “I started to take out my penis to put it in her mouth.”
The president of the Court reminded him of the fear felt by Mathilde. The accused replied: “I sensed in her a mixture of fear and excitement.”
Both women were present during the trial and routinely leaned on each other for support.
Goukara explained that after failing to ejaculate during the rape of Mathilde, as he was interrupted by someone in the building, he was still determined to rape someone else.
The African illegal migrant then went through his thought process, saying in court: “That day I was like on a mission, I’m a soldier, I told myself that I hadn’t succeeded in my mission.”
A few minutes later, he raped Claire Géronimi and threatened to kill her. Both rapes happened only 45 minutes apart, with the two locations also only 45 minutes apart.
Géronimi, who has gone public with the details of the incident, has appeared on a wide variety of national news outlets. She also has founded an association to support women who have gone through the same experience, saying that already 100 victims have come forward in just one year.
🇫🇷🔴"I had the choice between dying or being raped."
French activist @ClaireGeronimii is finally facing her rapist in court.
The African serial offender, Jordy Goukara, has been convicted 12 times and has 3 deportation orders. He confessed to the rapes on his first day of… pic.twitter.com/zgRHYXQXTU
When asked by his lawyer about his relationship with France, he replied: “I am aware that France gives me more than I give to France.”
Finally, Goukara removed his shirt to show off his muscles in front of the victims’ lawyer and slapped his biceps to try to impress him.
In addition to Goukara’s 18-year prison sentence, he also received a ban from French territory. During the trial, he claimed he was a “victim.” He also made other claims, saying he was successful with women and “did not need to rape,” despite confessing to two rapes multiple times.
He claimed to have “dated 20 to 30 prostitutes” when he was only a minor, having arrived in France at the age of 16 and having a documented history of sexual violence and other crimes, according to Acut-Juridique.
“I have been successful since I was young. I am sure of my charisma, of my aura,” he said.
Right before the trial, Géronimi described her experience during the rape, saying: “I had the choice between dying or being raped.”
During the rape of Géronimi, he said: “Shut up, otherwise I will kill you.
Remix News has a more detailed report of what the young woman experienced, including a transcription of her statements to the press.
Torelló, a town in the Osona region of Catalonia, is facing growing insecurity after a leaked recording revealed local police officers acknowledging they are unable to control violent migrant groups gathering in certain areas, and have been laughed at and forced to retreat from dispatch calls.
The audio, verified by authorities and reported by ElCaso.cat, captures an officer telling a resident that police cannot act against around 25 rioters in Sant Josep Street because only two officers were on duty.
“They are laughing at us,” the officer said in the call. “They are throwing us out. If we don’t want to get hurt, we too [must leave],” he added, describing how officers had to withdraw after being met with hostility.
Residents say the area around the old Vitri lot has become a hotspot for antisocial behavior, fights, and intimidation.
The call has been widely circulated by neighbors, who see it as a symbol of law enforcement’s loss of control. Many have organized a rally outside the town hall for Monday evening to demand action from local authorities.
Security Councillor Elisabet Viñas, from the Republican Left, confirmed the recording’s authenticity and acknowledged the seriousness of the situation. In a private message to residents, she wrote: “The Local Police are going there, they are there and have arrested them many times. The laws are not strong enough, nor justice fast enough to get rid of these filthy people.”
She added that the problem stemmed largely from young men, “mostly foreigners from the Maghreb,” who had occupied several nearby apartments and were allegedly involved in burglaries and shop break-ins.
Municipal sources admitted the issue extended beyond Torelló. “We need stronger laws, faster justice, and more police on the streets,” one official said, noting that insecurity was a growing concern across the country. The town council has announced the creation of five new positions in the Local Police to strengthen its force.
Catalonia has become the epicenter of violent crime in Spain, with foreigners vastly overrepresented in serious offenses, according to interior ministry crime stats published in January.
The stats portal for 2023 showed that all 10 Spanish cities with the highest rates of violent robberies and intimidation are located in Catalonia, with Barcelona leading the list.
Remix News previously reported in November last year on statistics highlighting the extent of foreign overrepresentation in Catalan prisons. At the time, 50.48 percent of the inmate population comprised non-Spaniards.
At a time of domestic economic hardship, Germany provided a record €11.8 billion in international climate financing to other countries in 2024, according to figures released on Monday by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and the Federal Ministry for the Environment (BMUKN).
The sum includes €6.1 billion directly from the federal budget, supplemented by loans and more than €1 billion mobilized from private investors.
Development Minister Reem Alabali Radovan, of the Social Democratic Party (SPD), said that Germany’s commitment comes even in a time of financial strain. “Germany stands by the side of the Global South, even in difficult times. Climate change affects everyone. It respects no borders. Therefore, we must invest together in climate protection worldwide, using both public and private funds,” she stated in the government’s press release.
Environment Minister Carsten Schneider (SPD) added that falling renewable energy costs allowed Berlin to redirect more public resources toward climate adaptation. “Electricity from wind and solar is becoming increasingly cheaper and requires correspondingly less public financing. This gives us the opportunity to focus scarce public resources even more strongly on climate adaptation in the future,” he said, stressing that trust in countries keeping their promises is essential for the upcoming World Climate Conference in Brazil.
The figures show Germany exceeded its pledge to contribute at least €6 billion annually in budgetary resources for international climate aid, part of the global commitment under the 2015 Paris Agreement for industrialized nations to provide $100 billion annually to support developing and emerging economies until 2025. With €11.8 billion contributed, Germany accounted for about 11.8 percent of the global total in 2024.
According to BMZ, Germany’s climate finance supported renewable energy expansion, sustainable agriculture, and climate partnerships with countries such as Mozambique and Bangladesh.
However, it also financed projects in India, South Africa, Indonesia, and Mexico, including renewable energy, water management, and the funding of local public transport.
Alabali Radovan framed the record commitment as a signal ahead of the climate summit in Belem. “Because climate protection means future security, economic stability, and peace. The more we do together today, the better we can protect future generations,” she said.
Dr Rainer Kraft, an MP for the Alternative for Germany (AfD), remarked on the contribution, “The AfD could think of many things they could do with over €11 billion in Germany. Simply not collecting the money and leaving it to the citizens would also be an option.”
German economic woes were reported last month amid the first 100 days of the Friedrich Merz chancellorship, with Welt reporting on Federal Statistical Office data showing a wave of bankruptcies, rising unemployment, and public fears of renewed inflation across the country.
The number of unemployed stands at 3 million people, with welfare beneficiaries reaching an all-time high.
EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs Kaja Kallas, who served as the former prime minister of Estonia, is calling on Trump to use his influence to apply pressure to Hungary and Slovakia to end the import of Russian energy.
Politico wrote that “while underscoring that Europe had already reduced its use of Russian energy, Kallas argued that Washington had a role to play in convincing Hungary and Slovakia — the two biggest importers of Russian energy in the bloc — to sever their dependence. She stressed that the U.S. has ‘leverage’ over those countries, pointing to a phone call between Trump and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán as a positive step.”
Notably, Orbán was a strong backer of Trump during his reelection campaign — the only leader in Europe to thoroughly back Trump. Trump, who notoriously values loyalty, may be willing to give Orbán a pass on the issue, but certainly, other factors could sway Trump’s stance in the future.
Kallas also said that Donald Trump had promised to end the war in Ukraine, so he cannot shift the burden of the war onto Europe.
“He was the one who promised to stop the killing,” Kallas said. “So it can’t be on us.”
She made the comments following Trump’s Truth Social post last week, in which he said Ukraine should reclaim all its lost territory from Russia, writing that it “is in a position to fight and WIN all of Ukraine back in its original form.”
However, there are some in Europe who are questioning this newfound position from Trump.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk wrote on X that the U.S. is actually washing its hands of the conflict in Ukraine and increasingly shifting the burden to EU countries.
Prezydent Trump stwierdził, że Ukraina może, ze wsparciem Unii Europejskiej, odzyskać całe swoje terytorium. Za tym zaskakującym optymizmem kryje się zapowiedź mniejszego zaangażowania USA i przerzucenie odpowiedzialności za zakończenie wojny na Europę. Lepsza prawda niż iluzje.
“President Trump stated that Ukraine, with the support of the European Union, could reclaim its entire territory. Behind this surprising optimism lies a promise of reduced U.S. involvement and a shift of responsibility for ending the war to Europe. Better truth than illusions,” wrote Tusk.
However, what Tusk may mean is that the EU may now have to increasingly pay for U.S. involvement in Ukraine, instead of the U.S. simply shipping weapons to Ukraine at its own cost. In other words, Trump wants the EU to buy U.S. weapons and then transfer them to Ukraine.
The Polish government wants to introduce radical regulations allowing it to block content online, according to Law and Justice (PiS) spokesman Rafał Bochenek. In order to accomplish this goal, the Tusk government wants to use a draft amendment to the Act on the Provision of Electronic Services, which is meant to comply with the EU’s Digital Service Act (DSA).
“The internet has so far been a kind of oasis of freedom – freedom of speech, exchange of ideas, views, discussion, public debate,” Bochenek said on Telewizja wPolsce24, as cited by Do Rzeczy, but he warned that while the DSA is mandatory for the entire European Union, the implementation of the regulation in Poland will be particularly far-reaching.
The MP noted that the procedure gives the president of the Office of Electronic Communication (UKE) and the chairman of the National Broadcasting Council (KRRiT), i.e., government officials, the power to block online posts. Mainstream media, he says, will not highlight or criticize this in any way, as it is dominated by pro-government individuals. Normally, the internet would step in to make sure such concerns reach people. And yet, this regulation essentially stipulates that the government will be able to “verify” and control all online content.
“I believe it violates the pluralism of views and, in fact, influences public opinion through administrative and rigid methods,” Bochenek told viewers.
Poland’s draft amendment to the Act on the Provision of Electronic Services was prepared by the Ministry of Digital Affairs, headed by Krzysztof Gawkowski of the Left. The regulation stems from the obligation to implement the provisions of the EU’s DSA, which, among other things, concerns the blocking of so-called “illegal content” online.
While some of the solutions are unambiguous, its opponents point out that it contains provisions that, in practice, will introduce the possibility of political censorship by blocking content that is “inconvenient to the government,” notes Do Rzeczy.
According to the draft amendment, a blocking procedure will begin with the internet service provider notifying the author of the “disputed content” of the commencement of the proceedings. They will then have two days to present their position.
Both the president of the Office of Electronic Communications (UKE) and the chairman of the National Broadcasting Council (KRRiT) will have the authority to issue an order to remove the content. A removal decision will be issued if it “does not negatively impact civic discourse and electoral processes.”
The decision will not be subject to appeal, and the author of the content will have to file an objection in civil court.
The Act is intended to authorize, among others, the prosecutor’s office, the Police, the National Revenue Administration, and the Border Guard (in matters relating to human trafficking) to apply for an order to block “illegal content.”
Back in May, Poland, along with Czechia, Spain, Cyprus, and Portugal, was referred to the CJEU by the European Commission for either failing to appoint a national Digital Services Coordinator (DSC) or failing to empower those bodies with the authority required to enforce the DSA.
Appearing on wPolsce24 TV, the Law & Justice (PiS) deputy chairman, Przemysław Czarnek, was asked directly if a government takeover was possible.
Conceding that there is no political reason for any imminent government collapse and snap elections, the PiS politician added that “you always have to be ready for it,” reports wPolityce.
“Politics isn’t just about reason; it’s also largely about emotions, which can’t be fully predicted,” he continued, pointing to cracks in the ruling coalition and some recent outbursts in the Sejm, which “could herald certain tremors, even tectonic shifts, that could lead to powerful emotions and the government’s collapse.”
“And we always need to seize such moments in our situation, because Tusk’s government is destroying the state before our eyes, dismantling it in many areas. Therefore, the sooner it falls, the better. So let’s count on the emotions that are stirring today in the Sejm. Let’s count on this gentleman, Marshal Szyman Hołownia, who, along with other MPs, is standing up to Tusk. Let’s count on the fact that some MPs in today’s December 13th coalition will no longer want to support a government that is destroying the Polish state. I believe these are also the motivations of Szymon Hołownia and at least some of his MPs today,” he added.
Asked about how PiS could gain from any actual takeover, Czarnek said it would have to ally with Donald Tusk’s current coalition partners.
“Mr. Editor, first of all, let’s abandon this idea of political gain. The country is crumbling before our eyes. Farmers in Spała today showed Krajewski and the Polish People’s Party what’s happening in agriculture, where wheat is priced below 700 złoty and receives no subsidies. When we were in power, it was 1,400 złoty, and we paid an additional 400 złoty for that ton of wheat. The National Health Fund (NFZ) is short 8 billion złoty (€1.87 billion) for current expenses and the costs of hospitals and healthcare. State-owned companies are generating losses, sometimes enormous ones, such as Bogdanka Lublinska,” explained the former head of the Ministry of National Education.
Czarnek emphasized that there is no time to wait until Poland is “in ruins.”
“Thinking only of political benefits, that it would be nice to wait two years and let them bleed out, is a lack of consideration for the Polish state. The Polish state, devastated at the rate it is today, will be very difficult to rebuild from the ruins in two years, and then what political benefits will we, all Poles, gain from surviving two more years with this government that has bled out? None. Therefore, today there is no time for strictly political thinking. Today is the time for pro-state thinking. And this pro-state thinking means that at any moment we are ready for alliances, even within this Sejm, and the formation of new majority coalitions, in order to remove Tusk and—let’s not be afraid to say it—thieves and bunglers, or people who deliberately work to the detriment of the Polish state. This is the interest of the Polish state and the Polish nation today, which must prevail over mere political interests,” he continued.
The PiS deputy chair ended his interview by underlining that they are committed to ousting Tusk.
“We’re here to take responsibility for the country in a very difficult situation, including geopolitical ones, with a huge threat to national security. This is our number one goal, and we must make every effort to remove Tusk from power,” he said.
Slovakia’s parliament has approved a constitutional amendment defining gender strictly as male and female, a move that has sparked both celebration among conservatives and fierce criticism from liberal and pro-European parties.
The measure, which required 90 votes to pass, was adopted on Friday after two deputies from the opposition Movement Slovakia broke ranks and supported the government’s proposal. Marek Krajčí and Rastislav Krátký, who had publicly pledged not to vote with Prime Minister Robert Fico’s ruling Smer party, switched positions at the last minute. They later said they wanted to help their allies in the Christian Democratic Movement (KDH), which strongly backed the change.
The amendment, which takes effect on Nov. 1, enshrines “two genders – man and woman” in the Constitution of the Slovak Republic. It also bans surrogacy, reinforces parental rights in schools, and defines marriage and parenthood in strictly biological terms.
The text states that the new rules are intended to protect “traditional values” and Slovakia’s “sovereignty in cultural and ethical matters.”
It also ensures that EU law cannot override issues related to such matters, as lawmakers effectively ignored warnings from Brussels not to follow through with the amendment.
European Commissioner for Justice Michael McGrath penned a letter to Bratislava earlier this summer stating that the proposed amendments “raise concerns in connection with the principles of the primacy of European law.”
“The primacy of EU law is not open for debate,” he warned.
Robert Fico hailed the result, thanking “influential people” who helped secure support, though he declined to name them. He said his party had made clear that Friday’s vote would be the last chance to anchor such provisions in the constitution.
The Christian Democrats welcomed the outcome. Party leader Milan Majerský said the amendment safeguarded human dignity and praised the deputies who ensured its adoption. “The constitution protects women in connection with surrogacy, but also children and families,” he said.
But liberal and centrist parties condemned the result. Michal Šimečka, leader of Progressive Slovakia, called the amendment “shameful” and said it would harm the country’s citizens while raising questions about Slovakia’s place in the European Union. He accused the Movement Slovakia of betraying its voters by siding with Fico. “After this, there can be no thought of cooperation with them,” he said.
Branislav Gröhling, leader of Freedom and Solidarity (SaS), also criticized the two deputies who switched sides. “One night was enough for the anti-corruption movement to change its mind and support Robert Fico,” he said. SaS lawmaker Mária Kolíková warned that the change could put Slovakia’s EU funding and membership in the Council of Europe at risk.
The right-wing Republic movement and the nationalist Slovak National Party welcomed the vote, calling it a historic moment that confirmed Slovakia’s commitment to traditional values.
A mother, father, and two adult children from a Palestinian family in Örebro are facing trial for unlawful deprivation of liberty after allegedly kidnapping their 20-year-old daughter and keeping her monitored because she wanted to integrate into Western society.
On April 30, police in Hallsberg were alerted after witnesses saw two men forcefully drag a young woman into a car. Swedish outlet Samnytt reported how one witness followed the vehicle and helped police track it down within ten minutes. Officers stopped the car and found five family members inside, including the frightened young woman who showed signs of struggle.
The father, 58, was driving with the 54-year-old mother in the front seat. In the back sat three of their children, including the 20-year-old victim. Though she initially downplayed the incident, saying it had been “a little argument,” investigators soon discovered she had been living in sheltered housing to escape years of strict control.
According to social services documents, the young woman grew up under constant surveillance, forced to wear a headscarf, and never allowed out alone or to choose her friends. She dreamed of becoming a social worker and living independently, something her family opposed.
In 2023, she was taken against her will to Gaza, but managed to return via Egypt when war broke out. Back in Sweden, she fled between women’s shelters, but her family tracked her down repeatedly, even hacking her SIM card, email, and social media accounts.
Phone messages and chats obtained by investigators reveal the family’s hostility toward her independence. In one exchange, the father wrote in Arabic: “She must have her head cut off!” He later told police this was not meant literally, claiming it reflected a cultural way of speaking. In other messages, the older brother complained about her embracing Swedish identity, writing that “She loves Sweden and being Swedish.” The older sister suggested smuggling her abroad.
Prosecutors have now charged the father, mother, and brother with unlawful detention over the April abduction, while the sister is charged with aiding and abetting. The father also faces a separate charge for attempted unlawful detention linked to last year’s failed kidnapping, and the brother has admitted to hacking her online accounts.
The family, who came to Sweden from Gaza in the 2000s, are now Swedish citizens, and thus, none can be deported even if found guilty.
Honor-related crimes have become commonplace in Sweden in recent years.
The verdict leaves no one convicted of the killing itself, despite significant circumstantial evidence and allegations of an honor-related motive. All three defendants, however, were convicted of lesser charges related to the killing.
Ten migrant defendants aged between 16 and 21 appeared before the Vienna Regional Court on Thursday to face charges of sexual offenses against a 12-year-old girl.
The trial, which continued Friday, comes a year and a half after the case first shocked Austria when reports emerged of a youth gang allegedly abusing the child.
The accused, who were between 14 and 20 years old at the time of the alleged crimes in 2023, pleaded not guilty. They stand charged with sexual coercion and violation of sexual self-determination. One is also accused of distributing sexually related images of minors. According to prosecutors, the assaults took place over several months in parks, stairwells, hotel rooms, and private apartments in the city’s Favoriten district.
The prosecutor argued that the girl, who first met one defendant through Snapchat, was pressured into sex after refusing. She said the victim “felt harassed” and complied because of intimidation, the group’s numerical dominance, and exposure to videos of violence.
In one incident in April 2023, the youth gang had an 18-year-old book a hotel room where a total of twelve teenagers, aged between 13 and 16 at the time, allegedly abused the girl.
Heute reported how the Court heard the defendants had goaded the victim into sexual acts, telling her, “Come on, do it,” and later telling police officers, “She wanted it that way.”
The alleged abuse only ended when her mother forbade her from leaving the apartment.
However, prosecutors also confirmed that the original allegation of aggravated sexual abuse of minors was dropped. Investigators concluded there was not enough evidence to prove that the defendants knew the girl was only 12. The court noted that the girl appeared older than her age, raising questions about intent.
The majority of the defendants are non-Austrian, originating from Macedonia, Syria, Turkey, Bulgaria, and Italy. One is an Austrian citizen with a migration background.
Their ages at the time of the offenses have proven to be problematic. Nine of the ten defendants were juveniles at the time and are therefore facing a lesser charge of violation of sexual self-determination. Three individuals allegedly involved in the offenses were under the age of criminal responsibility at the time and therefore cannot be prosecuted.
Defense lawyer Mirsad Musliu told the Court the facts were “morally reprehensible,” but that “we’re in the wrong place,” claiming the case is not relevant from a criminal perspective because no threats were made or force used against the girl. “These young people are being pilloried. This is unbelievable,” he added.
This case is not the first connected to the victim. Previous trials led to mixed outcomes: A jury ruled consensual sex with a 16-year-old defendant was not criminal, while a 17-year-old was acquitted of other charges of a sexual nature.
The girl’s ex-boyfriend, now 18, was convicted in March and given a suspended 15-month sentence for sexual abuse of a minor and coercion.
Several of the current defendants already have criminal records, mostly for aggravated robbery, burglary, and resisting arrest.
The presiding judge urged them to take the proceedings seriously after the accused stood grinning in Court, while three defendants turned up late.
Most are out of work, with one telling the judge, “I don’t do anything now,” when asked for his employment status.
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is now positive that the European Union has the proper legal basis to “unblock” up to €140 billion in Russian assets and use them to finance Ukraine’s military operations.
Beyond the legal questions surrounding the confiscation of Russian assets, not to mention the precarious precedent it would set, Paris, Brussels, and Berlin have so far argued that profits from frozen assets are already being allocated to aid Ukraine. Of key concern is also the risk of discouraging foreign investment in the EU, in particular, scaring away the Chinese.
However, Merz is now suggesting that Russian assets could continue to be frozen — and used as a loan to Ukraine — until Moscow pays Ukraine reparations for war damages. According to Merz, this would address the lack of a legal basis for such action, avoid infringing on Russian property rights, all by using the money to provide Ukraine with an interest-free loan.
The loan to Ukraine would be guaranteed by EU member states and then backed by the EU’s long-term budget from 2028.
“We need a new impetus to change Russia’s calculations,” Merz wrote in an article for the FT, cited by Do Rzezcy. “The time has come to apply effective leverage that will break the Russian president’s cynical game of gaining time and force him to negotiate.”
The politician noted that the loan would have to be repaid once Russia committed to paying reparations for damages inflicted on Ukraine during the war. Payments would be transferred to Kyiv in tranches, and decisions regarding arms purchases would have to be made jointly by Ukraine and EU member states.
Merz hopes to pursue this option at the European Council meeting on October 23-24.
Some $300 billion worth of Russian assets is currently frozen across the EU, with a whopping €210 billion held in cash and bonds by the Belgian clearing house Euroclear.
Belgian Prime Minister Bart de Wever has recently pushed back against tapping these funds, saying it’s not as simple as politicians: “When money owned by another country’s central bank is used by another country, it will have consequences.”
Deputy PM Radoslaw Sikorski is one of the parties also putting pressure on Belgium to release these funds and rallying member states to help insure it against potential Russian suits, telling journalists, “Poland is ready to participate in such insurance for Belgium, but not everyone is ready for it yet.”
Several drones flew over the Mourmelon-le-Grand military base in the Marne department in northern France. Authorities intercepted the drones, Polish news portal Do Rzezcy reports.
According to the Military Delegation of the Marne Department and the French Army, these were “small machines, not drones operated by military personnel.” They also indicate that, as of yet, there is zero evidence of foreign interference.
Drones flew over all units at the base, where engineers, armored units, and a supply regiment are stationed, AFP reported on Thursday. Ukrainian soldiers were stationed at the Mourmelon-le-Grand base for training last year. Since this year, the base has also housed a tactical drone training center.
Earlier in the day, French President Emanuel Macron had assured Denmark of French support in the face of their own incident with “unidentified drones.”
“I have just spoken with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen. I expressed France’s full solidarity with Denmark following repeated intrusions by unidentified drones affecting operations at Copenhagen Airport. France stands ready to support Denmark in assessing the situation and contributing to the security of Danish airspace,” he had posted on X.
The timing of the drones in France is disturbing, given a slew of other recent incursions.
Russian aircraft, including Tu-95 bombers, were reportedly intercepted by the U.S. Air Force over Alaska just days ago. NORAD posted a statement that downplayed any actual threat: “The North American Aerospace Defense Command (NORAD) detected and tracked two Tu-95s and two Su-35s operating in the Alaskan Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ) on Sept. 24, 2025. NORAD responded with an E-3, four F-16s, and four KC-135 tankers to positively identify and intercept in the Alaskan ADIZ.”
“The Russian military aircraft remained in international airspace and did not enter American or Canadian sovereign airspace. This Russian activity in the Alaskan ADIZ occurs regularly and is not seen as a threat,” their official statement read, although they also added: “NORAD remains ready to employ a number of response options in defense of North America.”
Two weeks ago, numerous Russian drones flew into Polish airspace, in the latest of a number of such incidents.
A week ago, Russian fighter jets flew into Estonian airspace, with authorities there immediately requesting consultations under NATO’s Article 4. Estonia also requested an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council. Poland has also requested Article 4 to be invoked.
This past August, drones similar to those intercepted in France, appeared over an industrial park in Brunsbüttel, Germany, as well as near a German nuclear power plant, German military bases and critical infrastructure facilities.
On Thursday, NATO’s Air Command announced that five Russian fighter jets flying close to Latvian airspace were intercepted by two Hungarian Gripens.
The Su-30, Su-35, and three MiG-31 aircraft were flying over the Baltic Sea. The Gripens took off from a base in Šiauliai, Lithuania, where they are stationed as part of the Baltic Air Policing mission.
As tensions escalate on the back of U.S. President Trump’s harsh words for Putin and apparent approval of any Russian drones or jets to be shot down in NATO airspace, Poland has now warned its citizens to leave Belarus immediately.
According to a statement cited by the Kyiv Independent, the Polish embassy in Minsk has stated, “In the event of a drastic deterioration in the security situation, border closures, or other unforeseen circumstances, evacuation may prove significantly more difficult or even impossible.”
The United States is considering lifting sanctions on Turkey and allowing the country to purchase advanced F-35 fighter jets, but there’s one condition: Ankara must stop buying Russian oil.
U.S. President Donald Trump met with his Turkish counterpart, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, in the Oval Office, where he made his stance clear. Yesterday was Erdoğan’s first visit to the White House in some six years.
“I want them to stop buying all oil from Russia while they continue their rampage against Ukraine,” the U.S. president told reporters, as cited by Hirado, referring to Turkey as one of the biggest buyers of Russian oil.
“We’ve been friends for a long time, including the four years I was in exile,” Trump said, referring to Joe Biden’s presidency.
Sanctions were imposed on Ankara during Trump’s first term in 2020 over its purchase of Russian S-400 missile defense systems. Now, however, Turkey is looking to boost its military capabilities and wants to purchase advanced F-35 fighter jets made by Lockheed Martin, as well as 40 F-16s.
Asked by reporters when the sanctions would be lifted, Trump said before the talks, “almost immediately, if our meeting goes well.”
While Germany has been rife with violent migrant crime, 50-year-old Alexandra Sabine Lewalter Maric and her husband, Udo Lewalter, 55, probably thought they would be safe from such things in New York City. Maybe a pickpocket or rude New Yorkers.
Instead, the couple ended up as victims of Mohammed Abouzaid, 40, a driver without any license who recklessly ran over them in his 2001 Toyota Sienna in midtown Manhattan and then took off at high speed.
Lewalter Maric was killed on the spot, nearly decapitated by being run over, while Lewalter was rushed to the hospital to have a severed finger reattached and a skull fracture treated.
The couple had been in New York to celebrate their 23rd anniversary and had just returned from a Virgin cruise up the East Coast. Lewalter Maric had worked at Apple Retail Germany for the past 14 years, according to info from her LinkedIn profile, while Lewalter was a journalist for Computer Bild.
Mohammed Abouzaid had only a learner’s permit when he backed up “at a high rate of speed” into the couple at a crosswalk, crashing into a parked box truck and leaving Lewalter Maric pinned under his minivan, reports the New York Post.
The perpetrator was arrested just an hour after the crash. According to an ongoing investigation, he had been living in his car, had been residing in NYC for some two years—but the New York Post writes it is “unclear” if the man was in the country illegally. That’s when he struck the couple at the crosswalk, pinning the woman under his vehicle, and also hit a box truck stopped at the light, according to sources and a criminal complaint.
Manhattan Criminal Court has arraigned Mohammed on charges of leaving the scene of an accident and failure to yield to a pedestrian. Bail was set at $25,000 or a $75,000 bond.
“He was living out of the car he was driving, that caused this accident, specifically killing one person, and the other hospitalized with a skull fracture. The defendant fled the scene after he hit a pedestrian,” Manhattan Assistant District Attorney Courtenay Cullen told Judge Janet McDonnell, NYP reports.
“I want to point out that he did show signs of not exercising due care,” Judge McDonnell said. “He must have known that he crashed into a truck, and he did drive off at a high rate of speed in a crowded intersection, which can be defined as reckless, killing someone.”
In his defense, Mohammed Abouzaid’s court-appointed public defender said the accused had “specific reasons” for driving off after the crash, including because “he was scared, he panicked, he doesn’t have insurance.”
“He was caught at a box in an intersection, what he attempted to do was back up, he attempted to back up, and he hit a truck as he was trying to back up. Pedestrians were moving between his car and the truck. He doesn’t have insurance,” he said, asking the judge not to place Mohammed in jail.
Further charges have not been ruled out as the investigation is ongoing.
According to a statement from the German Consulate, cited by the New York Post, “The injured person is being looked after by the consulate general.” The consulate was unwilling to provide any further details on the case.
In France, the Essonne Assize Court sentenced Mamadou C., a 34-year-old man, to 16 years in prison for the rape and assault of a Chinese woman, who was working as a prostitute, in Paris in 2021. He had been previously convicted in 2014 for similar offenses against four other women. The prosecution described him as a “predator.”
In August 2021, Mamadou C. was living a “very isolated” life, according to French newspaper Le Parisien. The man’s family had remained in Mali. Homeless and without family or friends, he worked as a dishwasher and frequented prostitutes monthly. On Aug. 9, he met Y., a 44-year-old Chinese prostitute, near the Château-Rouge metro station in Paris, where they agreed to a sexual encounter for €20.
According to Y.’s testimony, the first sexual act was protected with a condom. “It was after he ejaculated that he wanted a second act without a condom,” she stated.
When she refused, Mamadou C. became violent, demanding, “Give me your pussy! Give me your pussy!” He then inserted his fingers into her vagina, beat her, bit her arm, and hit her with a glass. Y. recounted, “I told him to stop, but he kept saying, ‘I’m a good boy.’”
She screamed during the encounter, alerting neighbors who called the police, leading to his arrest.
This violent behavior was not an isolated incident. Mamadou C. had a history of similar attacks. In his previous trial, he was convicted of raping four Chinese prostitutes, all of whom he attacked after they refused a second unprotected sexual encounter.
The violence included punches and, in some cases, blows with a frying pan. The prosecution noted that the “evidence suggests predation, with a particular target: prostitutes of Chinese origin.”
Mamadou C. has consistently denied the rapes. In reference to Y.’s accusations, he said, “If I touched her, it wasn’t intentional. Why is she accusing me? I don’t know, maybe for financial reasons. She got €20,000 (in the first instance), she’s happy.”
A psychological expert who evaluated him identified “an addiction to sexuality, with Mamadou C. hypothetically able to find affection and a sense of existence in sexual intercourse.”
The expert noted that his life revolved around sex, as evidenced by photos of his erect penis next to piles of money that he sent to “women he found online.” Despite these behavioral patterns, no psychiatric disorders were noted.
When asked about the common nationality of his victims, Mamadou C. responded, “I don’t know, I don’t understand. The others (foreign prostitutes) never complained.”
His lawyers, Mr. Berrebi-Amsellem and Mr. Romain Ruiz, argued that their client was “declared guilty because he has already been convicted.” The court did not agree with this position.
Y., who did not attend the second trial “to avoid reliving the trauma,” is now rebuilding her life away from Paris. Given his history, the public prosecutor questioned, “What will happen when he gets out?” After serving his sentence, Mamadou C. will be subject to five years of socio-judicial monitoring and compulsory treatment. This is the same condition that was ordered in 2014, “with the consequences we all know.”
Three men have been sentenced for their role in a high-profile robbery that set off a drug war in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia in the summer of 2024, which involved hostage taking, explosive attacks, and even torture.
The case involved 700 kilograms of marijuana and dated back to June 2024, with half of the stash being stolen during an armed robbery near Cologne. This sparked off a sprawling war between criminal gangs, with two hostages being taken. Cologne also suffered from bombing attacks.
Three of the major perpetrators, all who are dual German citizens, were sentenced.
The 22-year-old Aymen G., who has German and Algerian citizenship, was found to have given the robbers decisive tips and was handed seven years in prison.
The 22-year-old Saddam B., who also has Iraqi citizenship, received six years in prison. He had a shorter sentence due to the torture he experienced at the hands of a Dutch gang member, which had been ordered by the gang’s boss. They were seeking information about the stolen drugs, according to Bild.
The 22-year-old Ayman S., who also has Tunisian citizenship, was charged with aiding and abetting drug trafficking. He was sentenced to seven and a half years in prison and was under probation at the time of the incident.
The big issue with crime statistics
The fact that all three men have German citizenship means that in the federal crime statistics, they will be counted as German, with no mention of their other citizenship.
However, North Rhine-Westphalia will not be able to send this data on to the federal level, as that is still against the federal reporting rules. This means on a nationwide scale, the public is still having this data hidden from view.
Interior Minister Herbert Reul, of the Christian Democrats (CDU), announced the reasoning behind this change in policy.
“If we don’t capture all nationalities, we’re in the dark. If you want to see reality, you have to measure it,” said Reul.
“This is the only way we can call a spade a spade and enable our police to identify dangers at an early stage and combat crimes effectively. Security only comes with clarity. When we record multiple nationalities, we create transparency – thus strengthening our police force in the fight against crime,” he added.
If all German states were to begin reporting on the crimes of dual citizens, it could potentially reveal hundreds of thousands of crimes committed by dual citizens across the country, and would dramatically change how the national statistics are viewed. Foreigners already account for nearly six in ten violent and serious crimes in Germany, which means the number is actually far higher if dual citizens were included.
As Remix News recently reported, Berlin’s clan crime statistics have been released, and they highlight how crime reporting is vastly distorted in Germany, which fails to account for the migration background of suspects. Instead, more and more serious crime is attributed to Germans, which fails to provide a comprehensive picture of crime trends in the country.
The data shows that there were 616 clan crime suspects. Of these suspects, 324 have German citizenship. Another 108 are “stateless,” 94 are Lebanese, 28 are Turkish, 15 are Syrian, and 47 have multiple nationalities. That totals 292 foreign suspects.
This means that in Berlin, more than half of the clan criminal suspects are listed as Germans in the crime data, totalling 52.6 percent.
Austria’s Federal Constitutional Service has ruled that a planned “integration phase” linked to social assistance payments cannot be limited to asylum seekers and people with subsidiary protection status, but must also apply to Austrians.
The interpretation has divided the ruling coalition, with the Social Democrats (SPÖ) embracing the view while the center-right People’s Party (ÖVP) and liberal NEOS sharply rejected it.
As reported by Exxpress, the proposal, originally intended only for newcomers, would require all employable people to complete up to three years of German-language and values courses before receiving full social assistance. Until then, they would receive only a reduced “integration allowance.”
The Ministry of Social Affairs, led by SPÖ minister Korinna Schumann, had already reached the same conclusion two weeks ago, citing equality principles. “For reasons of equal treatment, the integration phase could not apply only to immigrants,” her office said.
The Constitutional Service’s written opinion reinforced that stance, warning that tying integration obligations solely to immigration status could breach constitutional protections. “The blanket link to protection status should not constitute an objective distinguishing feature that can justify the granting of a lower security deposit,” the statement said.
ÖVP Integration Minister Claudia Plakolm ridiculed the idea of subjecting Austrians to German and values courses. She said, “There will certainly be no integration phase for Austrians. That is and remains absurd. The mere idea that Austrian citizens should attend German and values courses is self-defeating.” Plakolm argued that upcoming EU regulations will allow targeted integration requirements for migrants starting in 2026, making the SPÖ’s interpretation unnecessary.
The NEOS found itself aligned with the ÖVP, with parliamentary group leader Yannick Shetty also denouncing the proposal earlier this month.
The Constitutional Service stressed that any integration phase must be proportionate and not automatically run for the full three years. Criteria should be realistic, it said, noting that many jobs do not demand advanced German or formal training. The statement cited a 2019 ruling in which Austria’s Constitutional Court struck down parts of a previous social welfare reform, warning against repeating past mistakes.
Beyond integration, the Service also approved plans to offset family allowances against social assistance, provided dependents are adequately protected to avoid double benefits.
The reforms will be discussed with Austria’s federal states for the first time on Thursday. Because implementation falls to the individual states, political resistance there could determine the fate of the scheme.
The government aims to roll out the new social assistance framework in January 2027.
Bosch, the world’s largest automotive parts supplier, is planning further significant staff reductions and expanding its efficiency program due to difficult market conditions.
Bosch is preparing to cut another “five-figure number” of jobs, but it is unclear which countries will be hit the hardest in terms of Bosch’s global network of producers. Swiss news outlet Bluewin.ch noted these jobs losses would head into the “tens of thousands.” This announcement comes after the company already cut 10,000 jobs. Earlier this year, Poland also saw dozens of jobs lost at a Bosch brake factory.
Bosch Labor Director Stefan Grosch told Stuttgarter Zeitung in a recent interview that the business is aiming to reduce the mobility division’s costs by €2.5 billion per year. He noted that the cost gap will be closed by 2030 only if the right measures are implemented.
The CEO of Bosch, Stefan Hartung, said earlier this month that Bosch will continue to fight for every cent with competitors — with competition fierce due to limited demand. At the same time, Bosch is staring down the issue of rising trade barriers.
The CEO predicted further structural adjustments ahead.
According to Handelsblatt, Bosch’s revenues will increase by around 2 percent in 2025 compared to last year’s level of €90.5 billion.
Bosch, which employed around 418,000 people worldwide last year, has announced a press conference for later Thursday. The company declined to comment on the layoffs reported in the press.
Automakers and their suppliers have been hit especially hard. Among a variety of factors, there is also faltering demand in the Chinese market, which has long bought German vehicles. The Chinese are increasingly turning to their own domestic suppliers, such as BYD.
A Muslim man and his partner have been jailed in France after violently attacking a father and daughter at a train station in Meulan-en-Yvelines, hurling insults at them, beating them, and threatening to kill them because of how they were dressed.
The 25-year-old attacker, Mohamed, was sentenced to eight years in prison, while his 24-year-old partner Cassandra was given five years.
The incident occurred on July 27, 2025, at Thun-le-Paradis station as Laurent, 58, waited with his 28-year-old daughter Eve for a train to a K-Pop concert. According to 78Actu, the perpetrators clocked the couple and berated the daughter for wearing a short skirt. They shouted “Dirty whore” from across the tracks before crossing the platform and launching the violent assault.
Witnesses said Mohamed beat the father and daughter for nearly five minutes, using his fists and even an aerosol can as a weapon, while Cassandra joined the attack against Eve. The court heard that Mohamed then forced the pair to withdraw €140, threatening Eve, “If I don’t kill you, I’ll kill your father.”
The following day, Mohamed is reported to have tracked Laurent in the street.
Both suspects were arrested soon after and brought before the Versailles court for a preliminary hearing on Aug. 1. Prosecutors denounced what they called “extremely brutal and gratuitous violence.”
CNews reported how, at trial this week, Mohamed and Cassandra claimed that they had been provoked with racist insults, including “bicot” (a slur against people of North African origin) and “pou voilée” (“veiled louse”), a version of events firmly rejected by the victims and the Court.
Cassandra also denied attacking Eve, saying she had tried to take her to the hospital, a claim the judges dismissed.
In victim impact statements, Eve revealed how she had experienced extreme weight loss following the ordeal, and noted that she struggles with anxiety. Her father admitted that he now rarely leaves the house after the attack.
The first day of Jordy Goukara’s trial began yesterday in Paris, with the Central African migrant already confessing to the brutal rape of two women, Mathilde and Claire Geronimi, at knife point. The high-profile case is being widely reported across France and has become a political flashpoint over the issue of mass immigraiton and crime. The two rapes, which happened 45 minutes apart in Nov. 11, 2023, occured right in the middle of the afternoon in an upscale part of Paris.
Geronimi herself has gone public with her horrifying rape, appearing on national news outlets and founding an association for women who have suffered the same experience.
The case is shocking in nearly every day. The African, Goukara, already had 12 criminal convictions, including for sexual assaults, and had three deportation orders, none of which were executed.
The defendant, Goukara, has already confessed to the crime in the first day of court, saying that he has “uncontrollable sexual urges” and could not help himself from raping the women. He also stated that he masturbates 10 times a day.
Both victims stood side by side in the court, touching hands and shoulders at difficult moments.
It was the first time they faced the man since 2023, when they were savagely assaulted in the hallways of their buildings in the upscale neighborhoods of the 17th and 8th arrondissements of Paris.
The 27-year-old African, armed with a knife, forced them to perform fellatio on him and threatened to kill them if they screamed or struggled. He also penetrated his second victim, Geronimi. The two rapes happened right after another, between 3:52 p.m. and 5:05 p.m., with Geronimi raped just a 15-minute walk from the first rape.
“So here are these two women, gathered in the criminal court until Friday. Mathilde (her name has never been revealed), the first victim, was raped for eight minutes. She was 19 at the time. She is a very beautiful, slender young woman with a porcelain complexion. She looks like a little dancer from a music box. To her right stands Claire Geronimi, raped for 20 long minutes. She was 26 years old. Because she denounced the situation of Jordy Goukara, an irregular Central African who was subject to three OQTFs (obligations to leave French territory) in 2020, 2021, and 2023, and his criminal past,” writes legal media outlet Actu Juridique.
Geronimi was ostracized by feminists, according to the victim’s own statements. Worse! By speaking out in so-called “conservative” media and joining Éric Ciotti’s UDR, she alienated a section of public opinion, which led to the left making her “invisible.
As Le Parisien notes in a profile of the young woman, her face was “playing in a loop on television sets, but especially on channels with lines from the most conservative editorial offices, notably from the Bolloré group,” as the debate on an Immigration bill was raging in parliament.
However, she says that the left and right have exploited her story at times.
“The problem is that both the left and the right used my story to hit each other, and I was in between,” she told the media. However, since then, she has teamed up with the right, specifically because she said that was the only political option to fix the issue.
“But very quickly, I understood that social commitment was not enough. There also needed to be political commitment. This is why I joined Éric Ciotti’s UDR. With MP Christelle D’Intorni, we are bringing a bill so that the State can be condemned when a victim is attacked by an individual under OQTF,” she explains. She is currently the vice-president of Éric Ciotti’s UDR movement, which is allied with Marine Le Pen’s right-wing National Rally.
In the two years since the attack, Geronimi has become a prominent voice denouncing the dysfunctions related to deportation orders (OQTFs). Her current speech is extremely critical of the state, referencing not only her own case but also other high-profile incidents. “What I suffered was a double punishment. Attacked the first time by a criminal, and a second time by a State which failed in its duty. This person should not have been in this territory. And I am not an isolated case: The stories of Philippine and Lola showed the same bankruptcy,” she stated in an interview with French news outlet JDD this week.
As the trial begins, her words have become more intimate, as she shared on X: “Two years have passed and I have come a long way — and despite this I can’t help but ask: why me? Why did I survive?”
“Throughout the entire duration of the trial, I will not speak to the media. I appeal to your respect for my loved ones and those of Mathilde: We need this time for rebuilding, so that our story can finally be heard and recognized by the justice system,” she wrote in another post.
Ça y est, le moment est arrivé. Aujourd’hui s’ouvre le procès de mon agresseur. J’y entrerai la tête haute.
Je veux une nouvelle fois exprimer toute ma gratitude envers ceux qui me soutiennent, ainsi que Mathilde. Je suis profondément touchée de voir que tant de personnes seront…
Geronimi has been making the rounds in French media. Speaking to Le Figaro, she addressed what her thoughts had been right before meeting her attacker for the first time during the trial.
“The state of mind, I would say that I am very stressed, very stressed about seeing my attacker again. And at the same time, I actually tell myself that it’s the culmination of something. A victim cannot rebuild their life until there has been justice. Two years is quite fast. On average, it’s between two and five years since the beginning. It’s the fact that there are also other victims who have not been able to be heard.
That’s really what gives me this strength. It was quite an intense moment, but at the same time I was also eager to be able to show him that he had lost and that I was the one who had won the most in this story because he was the one behind bars and that he didn’t destroy me. My attack took place on November 11th, 2023 in the heart of the Eighth Arrondissement in the middle of the afternoon when I had gone shopping and was returning home. I didn’t look when I entered my code for my front door, and a man pushed open this door, which is one of the large Parisian carriage doors, followed me into my entrance hall and tackled me to the ground.
He also threatened to kill me with a weapon. It was a blade. At first, I tried to struggle, but unfortunately, I had the choice between dying or being raped. At first, I thought he was just going to steal my bag and leave. But in the end, I quickly realized that he had told me that he was going to rape me and then kill me.
Matildhe too was threatened with the weapon, this famous knife. And fortunately, some neighbors also arrived and made him flee, except that in fact, the attacker was still “hungry,” as he said himself, and so he attacked another victim. So that was me. There you have it. Investigations have shown that the suspect had a serious criminal record. He is also alleged to have raped and sexually assaulted two young girls during his childhood. What does that make you think? He has already been in prison for theft.”
She continued that just three months before the attack, Goukara was in prison, and then let out to attack again.
The young victim said that there are many concrete examples of other women going through the same thing, with Geronimi directly referencing the case of Philippine Le Noir de Carlan, who was murdered almost exactly a year ago by a Moroccan migrant convicted of sexual offenses.
🇫🇷🔴 The Moroccan who killed 19-year-old French woman Philippine Le Noir de Carlan:
“I can give you lots of concrete examples of victims that we support with the association that I created, the Éclats de Femme Association. It’s always the same pattern,” said Geronimi. “They are always repeat offenders and at the same time. In fact, it starts all over again. We can also take the example of the Philippines. These are problems from a legal perspective that are unfortunately not insignificant. My attacker is a man who is now 27 years old. He arrived in France when he was 16 and was in a foster family where there had already been complaints of sexual assault on a minor within his foster family. This was not taken into account. Even though the social worker had clearly stated it, they say that there is a real failure on the part of the justice system.”
She also pointed to the man’s many deportation orders, saying, “Beyond that, my attacker, who was subject to three deportation orders, will he be sent back to his country or not after the sentence he served in France? Unfortunately, reoffending is also very likely. I expect the justice system to be exemplary in terms of the sentence my attacker may receive.”
Beyond the actual attack, she also noted how difficult her life has become on a personal and professional level since the attack.
“So of course it takes time. I was working. I was doing financial consulting. I was living in my ideal world, living in a very nice neighborhood. I was graduating from a top business school. You quickly realize that spending all day on Excel spreadsheets is not the same thing at all and is pointless. So that’s why I started this association and I threw myself 100% into the association that I created, the Éclats de Femme association , because I had received many testimonies from other victims, including other victims who had been assaulted in the street, stories that were somewhat similar — similar to mine.
After a victim is attacked, there is both self-loathing and self-hatred. Each victim, let’s say, reacts differently. They may sink into a deep depression or they may not cope with it for 20 years or it may resurface later. So I think I immediately took this personal fight as a more social fight, let’s say. Having testified and so on, and having heard many testimonies from other victims a bit like me. I also stopped working because inevitably, following an assault, there is a potential risk that you could suffer from burnout. There is also a potential risk that you could no longer be with your partner.
Today, it is still very, very complicated to be able to trust someone, a man, simply to have intimacy.”
She says her foundation, which has only been in existence for a year, has already helped 100 women. She laments how little support there is for victims, which she hopes to remedy through her work.
“With the association, we have established the average cost of a victim. It’s more than €35,000 between filing the complaint and the trial. In addition to legal and psychological costs. These are things that, I don’t think, should be paid by a victim.”
Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala has told voters that they don’t have to like him or his government in order to vote for him and keep Andrej Babiš’s ANO movement from retaking charge.
“You don’t have to love Spolu,” he said, referencing the current coalition parties of ODS, KDU-ČSL, and TOP 09. “You don’t have to like me personally, but the reality is that if the votes are diluted, Andrej Babiš will form the government,” he warned.
In an interview with Deník.cz, cited by Echo24, the ODS leader rejected the idea that current government parties could support a minority government led by Andrej Babiš’s ANO movement after next week’s parliamentary elections in order to stop Babiš from extending a coalition invite to right-wing groups.
Fiala accused Babiš of being driven by personal ambition rather than national interest. “Andrej Babiš is not at all concerned with the good life of people in the Czech Republic, but rather with his personal, power-hungry, and economic interests,” he said. He also dismissed speculation that he might resign in the event of a poor result for Spolu, insisting: “I am only thinking about how to win the elections.”
Fiala commenced “Project Fear” with less than two weeks to go until polling day, warning of the stakes if ANO secures a majority with its potential allies. “The moment they have a majority in the House, it’s lost, it’s gone, and we’ll quickly wonder how the country starts to change in a matter of hours or days,” he said.
The Prime Minister also framed Babiš’s foreign alliances as dangerous, pointing to his ties with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Austria’s Freedom Party (FPÖ). “You cannot support someone who associates with someone like Viktor Orbán or the FPÖ at the European level; that is not a policy in the interest of the Czech Republic,” Fiala claimed.
He added that Babiš “does not come from any value system, cannot withstand pressure, and Orbán would treat him like a puppet.”
Elections are due to be held on Oct. 3 and 4, and Babiš’s ANO has maintained a healthy polling lead for months and is widely expected to be returned to parliament as the largest single party. It will, however, likely fall short of the required mandate to govern alone.
Possible coalition partners could include anti-establishment parties on either the left or the right, including the anti-immigration Freedom and Direct Democracy (SPD) and the protest left-wing group Stačilo! (Enough!)
With 200 seats in the Czech parliament’s lower house, a total of 101 seats is required for a majority. Latest polling shows ANO attaining 68, Spolu at 41, SPD and its allies on 24, STAN with 24, the Pirates on 19, Stačilo! at 15, and Motorists with 5.
Babiš has built his campaign around prioritizing domestic needs over international commitments. He has vowed to block Czech participation in the EU-led purchase of ammunition for Ukraine and rejected NATO’s proposed increase in defense spending, insisting that funds should instead go toward pensions, healthcare, housing, and cost-of-living support.
Following a phone call between Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and U.S. President Donald Trump, the Hungarian government discussed some of the topics covered, including the ongoing war in Ukraine and Hungarian energy policy.
“The relationship is ongoing: Viktor Orbán and Donald Trump discussed the state of the war, the processes of the world economy, and the issue of Central European energy supply on the phone,” wrote Hungarian commentator Daniel Deak on Instagram.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó stated in New York that the Hungarian government is also in constant contact with the American leadership.
“We are also in constant contact with the American government. The prime minister also spoke with President Donald Trump recently, and several matters were discussed, the state of the war, the possibility of peace, the processes of the world economy, the situation arising from customs duties, and of course the issue of Central European energy supply. This happened a few hours ago,” Szijjártó said.
When asked, Hungarian Gergely Gulyás, the head of the Prime Minister’s Office, said that Trump clearly understood the Hungarian viewpoint on energy. Gulyás said the EU has been trying to force a divestment from Russian energy sources for years, and this same position has also been reflected in American rhetoric in recent weeks, he added.
“A government calculation was made in 2022 about the separation from Russian energy sources, and it was already obvious then that the cost reduction could not be maintained without Russian energy sources,” said Gulyás.
He also said that this government has done everything to ensure that the country can obtain energy from as many sources as possible. The main question is how much could be obtained now, both in quantity and price. However, he warned that it is certain that this would definitely be more expensive than today’s price from Russia.
Regarding the massive EU free trade deal with South America, known as the Mercosur agreement, the Hungarian government does not yet have a position. In response to another question, Gulyás said that there are currently two positions in the cabinet regarding the Mercosur agreement. The EU is currently trying to push through the deal, which will harm European farmers and flood Europe with cheap and unregulated farm goods from South America. It is also expected to drive down the price of produce and meat for Europeans, at least in the short term. So far, Hungary remains on the fence over the deal.
During meetings at the UN, including with U.S. President Donald Trump, Polish President Karol Nawrocki made clear Poland’s view of “the threat posed by the Russian Federation.”
Regarding Trump’s new stance on the Ukraine war, Nawrocki believes “this reflects, on the one hand, President Trump’s awareness, and on the other, the work that we, the leaders of Central and Eastern European countries, including myself as the president of Poland, have been consistently doing,” he told press in New York, according to Do Rzeczy.
“I emphasized several of the most important foundations in the scope of Russian aggression in Ukraine and the threats of hybrid warfare and the violation of the Polish air border by Russian drones,” Nawrocki said.
Nawrocki’s comments come after Trump appeared to sharply diverge from his past stance on Russia, calling instead for Ukraine to reclaim all of its lost territory in a Truth Social post. Previously, Trump was urging Ukraine to exchange territory for peace. In the same post, Trump referred to Russia as a “paper tiger” and also warned that Ukraine may even end up seizing Russia territory itself.
Nawrocki, seen as a hawk on the issue of Russia, is taking a victory lap along with other European leaders sharply opposed to Putin.
“I also referred to humanitarian issues, Poland’s tasks in the UN and all those issues that are most important to me as the president of Poland, also in the context of the European Union, or a certain permanent principle of compensation for war crimes and for provoking wars, which should be the basis for building our responsibility for the future of both civilization and the world in a forum such as the UN, “ he added.
In other comments, Nawrocki also agreed with Trump that Europe was imploding over green policies and migration. He further stated that various other talks he held while in New York would prove beneficial for Poland and Poles going forward.
Nawrocki is also reported to have met with Ukrainian President Zelensky and is expected to travel to Ukraine to further discuss economic and security matters.
Mohammad Khawari (47) appeared in front of a judge at the Kortrijk courthouse, Belgium, on Tuesday afternoon. He faces charges of stabbing three people to death in Roeselare. Le Figaro reports that the man comes from Afghanistan.
This is not Khawari’s first time in court, as he stood in the exact same place in August to plead guilty to domestic violence, specifically beating his wife and children on more than one occasion. He was just sentenced last week on this charge to a year in prison, 6 months suspended, and an €800 fine.
According to GVA, earlier reports had said a restraining order his family had against Khawari had also been lifted, but the court announced earlier today that this would only expire after 30 days, during which time his family could appeal.
However, what does appear to be the case is that various conditions that his sentence would have imposed were not enforced due to the language barrier with Khawari.
Belgian political activist Dries Van Langenhove posted on X that the accused is an Afghan migrant who spoke none of the languages used in Belgium, despite having lived there for over a decade. He added that “the conditions that normally apply, were NOT applied to him ‘because it is impossible to communicate with Khawari.’”
Sadly, on Sunday afternoon, Khawari stabbed his wife, a 45-year-old acquaintance, and his former neighbor to death. The third murder took place in the evening, as police failed to initially find Khawari. He was finally arrested at 11 p.m. that night.
According to Dries, Khawari mistakenly believed this neighbor was the one who filed a complaint against him due to his yard being “infested with rats, (posing) a danger to everyone.”
All charges against him have been classified as the most serious, and Khawari will remain in detention. He will appear before the council chamber next Friday, at which time it will be decided if he will remain in pre-trial detention.
His lawyer, Iris Roegiers, declined to comment after the appearance before the Kortrijk investigating judge, reports GVA.
Vladimir Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, responded to Donald Trump’s post on Truth Social, which claimed that Ukraine could regain all of its territory with appropriate support, and perhaps even enter Russian territory.
“We will continue our special military operation to secure our interests and achieve the goals that (…) the president of our country has set from the beginning,” the Kremlin spokesman said.
Then he added: “We will do this for the present and future of our country. Therefore, we have no alternative.”
He assessed that Russian forces were moving forward across the entire front, and the dynamics of the war were obvious. He also emphasized that the stability of the Russian economy was assured, which Trump said in his post was collapsing due to Ukrainian strikes on refineries.
Peskov added that the recent rapprochement between Moscow and Washington was yielding “close to zero results.”
Peskov was responding to yesterday’s statement from Trump, who expressed his belief that Ukraine, with the support of the EU, is able to fight and regain its territory in its original form, i.e., within the state borders recognized by the international community.
“After learning about the military and economic situation of Ukraine and Russia and fully understanding it and seeing the economic problems it is causing in Russia, I think that Ukraine, with the support of the European Union, is able to fight and CONQUER all of Ukraine in its original form,” wrote Trump on Truth Social.
Notably, it appears Trump is now fully backing Ukraine’s military, a significant departure from his previous stance of quickly ending the war with a long-term ceasefire. He also previously had stated on numerous occasions that Ukraine would have to give up territory for peace.
Hungary’s foreign minister made the connection between mass immigration and terrorism while speaking in New York on Tuesday at the United Nations headquarters.
“The Hungarian government is not willing to change its migration policy due to any kind of pressure, as the measures are effective, and keeping illegal immigrants out is the right way,” said Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Szijjártó .
According to a statement from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, reports Szijjártó’s comments came during a meeting on the fight against terrorism at the UN, writes Hungarian news outlet Hirado.
The threat of terrorism is greater than ever before, he said, with wars around the world and the resulting waves of migration largely contributing to the dangerous times we live in.
Notably, Hungary has not suffered any terror attacks in recent years, whereas countries that have welcomed mass immigration, such as Germany and France, have suffered from serious attacks for years. In both countries, investigators have also actively foiled a wide variety of attacks, with the vast majority perpetrated by Islamic extremists.
In fact, for the most recent half-year data from Germany, it was found that 99 percent of serious terror cases were perpetrated by radical Islamists.
There were 3,495 terrorist attacks in the world last year, Szijjártó underlined, also noting that Hungary sits on the frontline of illegal migration, with migrants often trying to force their way into the country, sometimes violently.
“Terrorism is usually one of the main reasons why people leave their homes. Migration waves provide an opportunity for people with bad intentions, including terrorists, to move freely and unhindered between different parts of the world,” he said.
An explosion occurred in the center of the Norwegian capital, Oslo, on Tuesday, and one person was detained, police said, adding that an object that appeared to be a hand grenade was defused at the scene. The gang war that is also raging in Sweden appears to have reached Norway.
“There were no reports of injuries after the incident that occurred in the evening near Oslo Met, a higher education institution in the Norwegian capital,” the police said.
Speaking to the media at the scene, Brian Skotnes, the head of operations for the Oslo police, confirmed the explosion, adding that an unexploded object, which appeared to be a hand grenade, was also found and detonated.
🚨 BREAKING
A powerful explosion occurred in Oslo's Pilestredet, triggering a swift response from emergency services.
No further details were released about the circumstances of the incident or the identity of the arrested man.
According to the state-run radio and television company NRK, the suspect is a minor.
Brian Skotnes said they are looking for additional suspects.
BREAKING Norway: Suspected failed terror attack near the synagogue in Oslo. A loud explosion was reported, and grenades along with other explosives were observed. pic.twitter.com/tXN3byaFHK
Photos taken by witnesses and published in the press showed a grenade lying on a pedestrian crossing, a structure likely destroyed in a controlled manner by the police.
Authorities set up a security cordon around the scene and asked residents to stay home while they inspect for any remaining explosive devices.
Norway has a low crime rate, but in recent months the gang war raging in neighboring Sweden has reached the country.
After speaking at the United Nations yesterday, U.S. President Donald Trump has come out swinging, indicating that Ukraine could win back all territory lost to Russia and underlining that the Russian economy has fallen off a cliff fighting this war.
“I think Ukraine, with the support of the European Union, is in a position to fight and WIN all of Ukraine back in its original form. With time, patience, and the financial support of Europe and, in particular, NATO, the original Borders from where this War started, is very much an option,” Trump posted on his Truth Social platform.
While many war hawks will celebrate his about face, it is clear that his rhetoric is a clear departure of his previous stance focused on ending the war quickly and restoring peace between Ukraine and Russia.
He also took a jab at Putin and Moscow’s pride as a military power, saying “Russia has been fighting aimlessly for three and a half years a War that should have taken a Real Military Power less than a week to win.”
Trump also assured that the U.S. “will continue to supply weapons to NATO for NATO to do what they want with them.”
Speaking at the U.N. later in the day, he reiterated how shocked he was that the war in Ukraine was still going on and that it was not easily ended. “It was supposed to be just a quick little skirmish. It’s not making Russia look good, it’s making them look bad,” he said.
Notably, Russia has suffered incredibly high casualties during the war, which has dragged on for three and a half years. Russia’s progress has certainly slowed during its summer offensive, as Ukraine utilizes drones and other precision weapons to make up for its manpower shortage. Furthermore, Ukraine’s increased strikes on Russia’s oil and gas refineries are dramatically reducing the country’s output and harming its ability to finance the war.
During his speech, the U.S. president also did not hold back against other countries, taking direct aim at the majority of the same NATO allies, saying, “Your countries are going to hell. In America, we’ve taken bold action to swiftly shut down uncontrolled migration. Once we started detaining and deporting everyone who crossed the border and removing illegal aliens from the United States, they simply stopped coming. They’re not coming anymore.”
“The entire globalist concept of asking successful, industrialized nations to inflict pain on themselves, and radically disrupt their entire societies, must be rejected completely and totally,” he added.
He also called climate change “the greatest con job ever perpetrated on the world,” adding, “All of these predictions made by the United Nations and many others, often for bad reasons were wrong (…) If you don’t get away from this green scam, your country is going to fail.”
Turning back to Ukraine, Trump nailed China and India as “the primary funders of the ongoing war by continuing to purchase Russian oil.” However, POTUS did not excuse NATO countries still buying Russian energy as well. “I found out about (this) two weeks ago, and I wasn’t happy. Think of it, they’re funding the war against themselves, ” he said, calling this reality “embarrassing.”
Reiterating that “they have to immediately cease all energy purchases from Russia. Otherwise, we’re all wasting a lot of time,” Trump said he would be discussing this with his European allies that day.
Hungary, and Slovakia, have been vocal about their resistance to switching away from Russian oil, Asked specifically about Hungary on this front, Trump indicated he may have a personal call with his “friend” Orbán to change his mind, Telex reports.
However, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó, who was also present at the UN General Assembly, told press: “We fully support the U.S. president’s efforts for peace. However, we cannot change the reality of our geographical location.”
Concluding his speech with a call to follow the American example, especially leading up to the 250th anniversary of the founding of the United States of America, Trump warned again against the dangers of green energy policies and rampant migration.
“You need strong borders and traditional energy sources if you are going to be great again,” he told those gathered at the UN.
President Trump also noted the status of Christianity, the principles upon which the U.S. was originally founded, as the most persecuted religion today.
“Let us defend free speech and free expression. Let us protect religious liberty, including for the most persecuted religion on the planet today. It’s called Christianity. And let us safeguard our sovereignty and cherish qualities that have made each of our nations so special, incredible, and extraordinary.”
In a sit-down with UN head, Oliveira Guterres, Trump made a surprising show of support for an institution he, and other U.S. leaders, have often butted heads with. “Our country is behind the United Nations 100%. (…) I may disagree with it sometimes, but I am so behind it because the potential for peace at this institution is so great,” he told Guterres, thanking him for the “warm treatment” he and those accompanying him had received.
The Netherlands is the second most densely populated country in Europe, and with surging mass immigration, has been experiencing a raging housing crisis for years.
However, despite this crisis, refugees can gain access to social housing in a mere 14 weeks, while the average Dutch citizen must wait up until 12 years. Now, efforts are being made to right this injustice for Dutch citizens with a new bill, but Council of State, the country’s highest legal advisory body, is criticizing any attempt to block housing access to refugees. The authority claims refugees should receive equal treatment, as required by the Dutch constitution.
Of course, the fact that there is no equal treatment currently, and that refugees are gaining access to social housing years before Dutch on waiting lists, does not appear to factor into the Council of State’s concerns, according to Dutch news outlet NOS.nl.
The minister behind the proposal, Mona Keijzer of the BBB party, says she is not backing down. Keijzer’s plan aims to create more affordable housing by ensuring that refugees, or “status holders,” no longer receive priority for housing solely because of their status
The Council of State argues that the proposal leads to unequal treatment, which is “contrary to the Constitution.” The Council has advised the cabinet not to submit the bill to the House of Representatives.
However, Minister Keijzer is not swayed by the advice.
“That’s kind of how the discussion is conducted in the Netherlands. And that’s a shame,” she said. Regarding the “unconstitutional” judgment, she stated, “The Constitution is not mathematics, it also states that I must take care of public housing for Dutch people.”
Arguments for and Against Priority Status
According to the Council of State, status holders have “an unfavorable starting position on the housing market” because they can only register for a home after arriving in the Netherlands, placing them at the bottom of waiting lists. The Council writes that while the government has proposed other measures to help status holders, it is “unrealistic” to expect them to have a timely effect, so “Permit holders therefore remain behind.”
Keijzer counters that the opposite is true, arguing that Dutch citizens are the ones currently at a disadvantage.
She noted that status holders are entitled to social housing after just 14 weeks, while the waiting lists for other home seekers can be more than 12 years.”
Treating equal cases cannot result in Dutch home seekers being treated unequally,” she said.
“Dutch people in their twenties and thirties live with their parents in the attic or share an apartment with two or three people,” she said on EO radio in August.
She believes that status holders should be expected to find housing in the same ways as other citizens, such as living with family or getting help from their employer.
“We also ask that of Dutch home seekers,” she said. The reception organization COA reports that on average, 6 to 10 percent of released social housing units go to status holders.
Keijzer said she would study the Council of State’s advice but maintained her position, saying, “But I am convinced that the ban on priority for status holders should be introduced.”
Keijzer’s proposal is different from another plan from the far-right PVV party, led by Geert Wilders, which seeks to completely prevent asylum seekers with residency from getting emergency housing declarations, even in cases of homelessness or domestic violence.
While that PVV plan has been adopted by the House of Representatives, Keijzer has stated that she intends to delete it because she believes it is discriminatory and “legally untenable.”
WATCH: 🇩🇪🇪🇺 Mass immigration is fueling the West's housing crisis.
Here's how it's happening in Germany.
In a powerful speech in the German Bundestag, @AfD politician Carolin Bachmann slams the ruling government for allowing 2 million migrants into the country while families… pic.twitter.com/DMEqiV316S
The European Parliament Committee on Legal Affairs (JURI) recommended not lifting MEP Ilaria Salis’ immunity. After the vote, Salis said that defending her immunity did not mean avoiding justice, but rather showing that she was protected from political persecution by the Orbán so-called “regime.”
“I have full confidence that my colleagues in the European Parliament will confirm this decision at the next plenary session in October,” she said, according to Telex.
Salvini posted on X: “In the European Parliament, in the first vote in Committee the request to revoke Saris’ immunity was rejected (13 to 12). In October, the decisive vote in the plenary session in Strasbourg. He who errs, does not pay.”
Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó posted: “No surprise here. @EP_Legal chose to shield Antifa activist @SalisIlaria from justice, the perpetrator who in 2023 assaulted innocent people on the streets of Budapest. The message is clear: with an extremist ideological background, you can get away with anything. A disgrace to Europe.”
The draft passed by only one vote, but JURI decisions are typically always confirmed by the EP plenary.
EU News reports that Adrián Vázquez Lázara, a Spanish member of the European People’s Party who voted in favor of lifting her immunity, called it a “dangerous and ugly precedent,” because “immunity covers only alleged crimes committed during the mandate, not before.” He also noted that Hungary may very well appeal.
Salis was arrested last February on charges of attempted assault causing death by a criminal organization, and could face up to 11 years in prison. She was held under house arrest in Budapest and later claimed immunity to escape trial in Hungary after being elected as a member of the European Parliament for the far-left GUE/NGL faction. Hungary then applied for her immunity to be lifted.
She was accused in Hungary of participating in brutal Antifa attacks against a number of individuals on the streets of Budapest, with some of the scenes caught on surveillance cameras.
Many of the victims in Budapest, some of whom were mistaken for right-wing extremists but turned out to be people simply headed to work wearing combat boots and dark clothing, were left with life-changing injuries.
JURI also rejected Hungary’s request to lift immunity for opposition leader and Orbán’s primary rival ahead of the 2026 elections, Péter Magyar, whose Tisza Party is part of the EPP. He faced charges of snatching a mobile phone and tossing it into the Danube, as well as defamation of a Fidesz politician.
Pro-Palestinian demonstrations, some of which escalated into serious riots, took place in several Italian cities on Monday.
According to organizers, approximately 50,000 people demonstrated in Milan, where “masked demonstrators threw bottles and stones at police officers, smashed the windows of the Milan train station, and set off smoke bombs.”
The violence resulted in 60 police officers being injured, with 23 requiring hospitalization. Police temporarily closed the station before restoring order after about two hours.
Conservative Italian newspapers, such as Il Giornale, have come out harshly against the protests.
“They called it a ‘strike in solidarity with Palestine,’ but it was a day of premeditated guerrilla warfare. From Milan to Rome, from Bologna to Naples, thousands of common criminals, organized by the far left and painted as pacifists, devastated streets, attacked police officers, blocked trains, highways, and ring roads. If these are the spokespeople in Europe for a ‘free Palestine,’ best wishes and good luck to the Palestinians,” read an editorial from the paper.
🇮🇹🔥Protests turn violent in Italy as trade unions, students, and left-wing groups "block everything" across the country.
They are demanding Italy's government recognize Palestine as a state, following in the footsteps of the UK, Australia, France, and other nations. pic.twitter.com/k93373tk3K
However, the protests had massive backing from trade unionists, the political left, and a number of far-left groups.
The far-left trade union federation USB organized the demonstrations in 81 Italian cities, calling it a “general strike” with the slogan “Let’s block everything.”
The USB stated, “The strike is taking place in response to the ongoing genocide in the Gaza Strip, the Israeli army’s blockade of humanitarian aid, and the threats against the international ‘Global Sumud Flotilla’ mission.” Organizers also criticized “the inaction of the Italian government and the European Union, which refuse to impose sanctions against the State of Israel and continue to maintain economic and institutional relations despite the gravity of the situation.”
The protests caused significant disruption, with train and road traffic halted, and schools and universities closed. In Florence and Genoa, demonstrators blocked major transportation hubs. In Milan, rioters burned or symbolically smeared US flags with red paint.
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni reacted with outrage to the protests. So far, her government has refused to recognize Palestine, along with a number of European holdouts, such as Hungary and Germany.
Indegne le immagini che arrivano da Milano: sedicenti “pro-pal”, sedicenti “antifa”, sedicenti “pacifisti” che devastano la stazione e generano scontri con le Forze dell’Ordine.
Violenze e distruzioni che nulla hanno a che vedere con la solidarietà e che non cambieranno di una… pic.twitter.com/dpurnN5CBM
She wrote on X that “self-proclaimed ‘Antifa’ and self-proclaimed ‘pacifists’ are vandalizing the train station and causing clashes with the police. Violence and destruction have nothing to do with solidarity and will not change the lives of the people in Gaza in the slightest, but will have concrete consequences for the Italian citizens, who will ultimately suffer and pay for the damage caused by these thugs.”
The Italian prime minister emphasized her hope for “clear words of condemnation from the strike organizers and all political forces.”
Interior Minister Matteo Piantedosi described the events on X as “unacceptable scenes that had no connection whatsoever with the issues of peace and the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.”
He stated that rioters exploited the issue to attack law enforcement and expressed gratitude to the security forces “for their once again great professionalism and composure.”
Today, several Western nations, including Great Britain, France, and Canada are expected to recognize Palestine as a sovereign state for the first time at the UN General Assembly.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has made opposition to immigration a key plank in his political career. Now, he is sounding the alarm that if the opposition wins upcoming national elections, namely the Tisza Party, Hungary will quickly become a nation of immigrants just like neighboring Germany.
In turn, all the problems that have beset Germany, including an education crisis, soaring crime, clan gangs, a poor track record of integration, and soaring deficit costs, will also take root in Hungary.
“We can see what migration has brought about in the West. Public security has collapsed in many large cities, migrant gangs are terrorizing people, crime has skyrocketed and bombings are frequent. In contrast, Hungary is an island of peace and security,,” Orbán said in the Hungarian Parliament before the agenda on Monday.
In his speech at the first session of the autumn session, Orbán noted that Hungary had failed to find partners to block the EU migration pact in Brussels, and that efforts to withdraw have so far been unsuccessful — again due to a lack of allies.
🇩🇪🇭🇺 Angela Merkel is headed to Hungary in October to promote her new book, "Freedom."
She has chosen the George Soros’ Central European University for the Hungarian launch of the book.
Hungary's @PM_ViktorOrban seems wryly surprised about her planned visit.
“Therefore, the European Commission continues to want to force its migration pact on Hungary,” he warned.
He highlighted that the migration pact is supported by the left-wing parliamentary opposition parties and the Tisza Party, but the Hungarian government opposes it, does not accept it, and will not implement it.
He also noted that “Brussels has imposed financial sanctions on Hungary for not allowing migrants in.”
The prime minister stated that the number of illegal migrants in Hungary is zero and will remain that way as long as his Fidesz Party is in power.
Opposition would go along with Brussels
Hungary’s opposition, the Tisza Party and the DK, announced that they would comply with Brussels’ demand to implement migrant quotas. Under the new EU law, migrants should be distributed across the EU, and any country that refuses must pay up to €22,000 in solidarity fees. Hungary has been opposed to such a move dating back to the 2016 migrant crisis.
Remarkably, despite claims that migrants are the “future” of the EU, who would help save Europe’s pension system and provide workers to an aging workforce, the reality has been completely different. Now, countries like Germany and France are looking to offload their migrants into countries like Hungary, all under the guise of calling it “solidarity.”
🇭🇺🔴Viktor Orbán points to Germany and France and their growing crisis with violence and in education due to mass immigration.
"You go to a schoolyard in Vienna or Munich or Paris and look at the students there, how they are grouped together, what they do, how they relate to… pic.twitter.com/NW0nt0jOVn
According to the Hungarian government, the opposition’s agreement to the EU migrant pact would be a suicidal policy and these migrants should not be allowed in.
“There is no room for experiments on the issue of migration, because in this matter, mistakes simply cannot be made,” said Orbán.
Orbán also mentioned that where migrants have been allowed in, public safety has drastically deteriorated, public spaces are dangerous, some city districts are uninhabitable, and local residents are moving away.
“I will say it openly, I do not see a compromise between the opposition and the government on this issue as possible. As long as there is a national, not a Brussels-based, government in Hungary, the southern fence will remain, there will be no migration pact, so there will be no migrant ghettos, and there will be no migrant crime,” he said.
A court trial for a 23-year-old Iraqi migrant has begun before the Dresden Regional Court, who prosecutors believe has no ability to limit his sexual impulses after a series of groping incidents targeting women and children.
The man is expected to be permanently placed in a secure psychiatric facility after the series of attacks, if prosecutors have their way.
In March 2025, according to prosecutors’ indictment, he sexually harassed several women and even a child.
Among the incidents, he grabbed a 22-year-old’s buttocks in front of the Frauenkirche (Church of Our Lady), and in Blasewitz, he harassed a 17-year-old. Both victims were fortunately able to defend themselves from the stranger’s sexual assaults.
However, he then targeted a younger and smaller victim, attacking a 10-year-old near a school.
Police were able to arrest the Iraqi man, but in each case, he was quickly released.
The accused first applied for asylum in Sweden but likes to repeatedly travel to Germany. In February 2024, he returned to the Swedish city of Trelleborg with a ferry using the Dublin procedure. However, he popped up again in Saxony-Anhalt shortly after he was sent back to Sweden.
Now, the court is examining whether the Iraqi man has schizophrenia and whether he can be put inside a psychiatric hospital, permanently.
Apparently, police sources say there is an agreement to deport the man, but it is unclear where that could be to. As already noted, he keeps reappearing after being sent to Sweden, which means any deportation to that country would not only be ineffective, but would also burden Sweden with the repeat offender.
“Iraq is best. He’ll probably keep coming back from Sweden,” said an insider. The trial will continue behind closed doors.
It is worth noting that foreigners only make up approximately 14 percent of the German population.
Even when broken down by age, young foreigners are vastly overrepresented in sexual crimes and violent offenses compared to German youths of the same age, according to data released this year.
Polish economist, author and former presidential candidate Artur Bartoszewicz was asked about the country’s foreign minister, Radosław Sikorski, and he had little nice to say.
“I don’t know who puts him in this role, but he is a dangerous man,” he said. “He should have been dismissed a long time ago,” Bartoszewicz said during a Youtube interview, according to Do Rzeczy.
Sikorski has recently openly supported the idea of Poland assisting Ukraine with downing Russian missiles and drones, even over the territory of Ukraine.
Zelensky himself has said he thinks Poland should shoot down Russian missiles flying towards Ukraine, adding that this does not have to mean NATO’s involvement in the war.
“This is a man detached from reality,” continued Bartoszewicz’ commentary on Sikorski. “This is a dog that barks. I don’t know who sets him in this role, but he is such a dangerous man. He is the Minister of Foreign Affairs, and he behaves as if he were the Minister of War.”
Reminding listeners that his role as a diplomat means finding a way to “mitigate conflict” not further incite it, he added, “Diplomacy is not about punching someone in the face, but to look for a way (…) to get along.”
“He mixed up the roles. I don’t know in whose interest he acts, but he puts social, economic and political interests at risk with a narrative,” he said, adding that his comments not only risk escalating the war but also scare away investors who may easily perceive his statements as if there was already a war in Poland.
Bartoszewicz also took aim at Sikorski’s wife, American journalist Anne Applebaum, saying it is a “completely unprecedented situation in the world that the wife of the Minister of Foreign Affairs is a citizen of another country.”
Such an appointment should be impossible, as you “do not know who he works for.”
He further called into question the fact that Sikorski formerly held British citizenship, although he gave this up in 2006 upon becoming Poland’s minister of defense.
Nonetheless, there are many who view Sikorski as a potential “traitor” in the wake of Poland defending its airspace against Russian drones—even if that is a stance NATO firmly and vocally defends. In fact, some of them are looking to launch criminal charges against the foreign minister.
At a press conference on Friday, Janusz Korwin-Mikke, president of the KORWiN party, and Grzegorz Braun, president of the Confederation of the Polish Crown, announced that they had submitted a notice to the prosecutor’s office about Sikorski having possibly committed a crime.
“Mr. Sikorski’s relationships date back to the old days when he was a war correspondent in Afghanistan. At that time, there was a fight with the Soviets, so in my opinion, being a British agent he did nothing wrong, but now it is worrying, because the interests of Great Britain clearly diverge from the interests of Poland,” Korwin-Mikke stated.
Korwin-Mikke went even further, claiming that the drones that arrived in Poland have a range of 300 to 600 kilometers, so they could not arrive from Russia.
“Also, ladies and gentlemen, the Polish government took part in the provocation. I am absolutely sure that it was not invented by the Ukrainians themselves. (…) But unfortunately, if a person cooperates with a foreign country that wants to draw Poland into a war that is beneficial to this country, but in a clearly unfavorable way for Poland, the prosecutor’s office should deal with it. And that’s what I asked the prosecutor’s office,” said Korwin-Mikke.
Although there has been no secret that intelligence experts have been split as to whether the Russian incursions were intentional, there has been general agreement that the drones came from Russia, that the incursions were a danger, and they do represent Russia’s increased aggression. Certainly, the number of drones Russia is sending to attack Ukraine, even if it is ultimately unclear if the drones that hit Poland simply went off-course or were pushed off-course by Ukrainian electronic counter methods.
As for Braun, he also expressed his opinion that the intrusion of drones into Polish airspace on Sept. 10 was an “international provocation” meant “to push Poland deeper” into the war.
Do Rzeczy notes that back in November 2024, Korwin-Mikke appealed to remove Radosław Sikorski from the post of head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as soon as possible, with the allegation he was being used by pro-war circles.
In general, Poles are quite supportive of the country’s defense efforts in relation to Russia.
An IBRiS poll from May revealed that 63.3 percent of respondents felt Poland was threatened with invasion. The results of another IBRiS poll for Defence24 released in late June revealed that a whopping 75 percent believe NATO must defend its eastern flank, and 50 percent support increased military expenditures.
However, many Poles not believe a Russian attack is likely, despite some media hype.
Interestingly, only 12 percent in this poll saw a Russian attack as likely, with 15 percent seeing an attack on the Baltic states as possible. Meanwhile, a mere 8 percent believe Poland is ready for a war with Russia, explaining the large percentage in favor of upping the budget on this front.
The trial of Mohamed Lahlou Koulali, 37, began in Montauban, France, last Tuesday, for the charge of misdemeanor rape of a 17-year-old girl in July 2021. The girl, now 21 and a non-commissioned officer in the French army, attempted suicide the day after she was allergy raped.
A Spanish national born in Oujda, Morocco, Mohamed had met the young girl the day before at a party. He then proceeded to send her messages on Snapchat.
“You’re pretty, come see me,” he wrote.
“I’m only 17. I’m not interested,” the girl replied.
Mohamed, 33 at the time, then ran into her in downtown Montauban and pressed her to drink alcohol and then to his place to “smoke a joint.” There, he continued to push her to “let him have his way” with her.
The young woman, drunk and high, finally gave up resisting. She only remembers his penis being forced on her mouth, before waking up naked in the apartment.
A few hours later, she attempted suicide by swallowing pills, after which her family called the police who took her statement of having been raped as she was curled up in shock, reports French news outlet La Dépêche
“It’s true, I kissed her and touched her breasts, but I didn’t put my penis on her mouth,” he said through a Spanish interpreter at his hearing. Mohamed denied the most serious charges:
“She’s the one who put her hand on my penis,” Mohamed insisted, before trying to say it was the alcohol that made him behave differently. “I had drunk too much, I wasn’t myself. I’m not someone who does that. I have a mother, sisters,” he told the court.
The only problem was his blood alcohol level was zero. He also deleted his Snapchat account the next day.
“I wanted to close it because some of her friends were threatening me,” he replied, before conceding: “I did something I shouldn’t have done. But it was unintentional.”
The young girl’s lawyer snapped back: “Who fell for a trap that day?”
“She was 17, drunk, incapable of consenting. She had rejected your advances,” stated prosecutor Bruno Sauvage, clearly delineating that Mohamed had broken the law.
Sauvage then requested an 18-month prison sentence, including six months suspended with probation, with the defense countering that if he got 12 months in prison after having admitted wrongdoing, “his value system would collapse.”
Mohamed was ultimately sentenced to 18 months, 12 of which were suspended, with the possibility of a sentence adjustment, at the discretion of the sentencing judge. He was banned from engaging in any activity related to minors for 10 years. His name will be entered in the criminal register of sex offenders. He must also pay €34,293 in damages to the victim.
Putin’s summer offensive was supposed to have given Moscow the upper hand, especially going into negotiations with U.S. President Trump, but this was far from the case, as highlighted by a recent piece in Die Welt.
Noting the muddy winter months to come, “a period of greater immobility” dreaded by soldiers, Schoker says Putin has failed to set up the desired “security zone” announced in May, and Russian forces are nowhere near capturing the capital of the Ukrainian border region of Sumy.
“The advance in the region has not even reached 10 kilometers into Ukrainian territory. And it is no longer an advance at all, but rather a rearguard action,” he writes, citing data from the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) that Ukrainian forces have meanwhile advanced in the northern part of the region.
ISW has a record of being pro-Ukrainian, but many in the West rely on its analysis and map information, and even Russian bloggers and experts closely track what the institute writes about the war.
Putin has also supposedly been fed misinformation as to the extent of Russian victories on this particular frontline, with ISW further claiming that Russian military bloggers are actively calling out Russian Chief of the General Staff Army General Valery Gerasimov’s report a “very big exaggeration.”
Russia has taken 3,500 square kilometers of Ukrainian territory and 149 settlements since March 2025? ISW says this is more like 2,346 square kilometers and 130 settlements, and again, nowhere near the primary objective of Sumy City.
And Schocker says the same is true along the entire front. “What’s happening in the Sumy region reflects the situation along the entire front: It’s a back-and-forth battle, with Russia suffering heavy losses. And even when Putin’s army manages to gain ground, it’s mostly fields, rows of trees, or small villages.”
Meanwhile, Zelensky is celebrating various comebacks, most importantly in Dobropillya, where the Ukrainian leader just last week announced that forces had recaptured some 160 square kilometers and seven villages.
Kyiv has engineered a successful counteroffensive, protected the key city of Kramatorsk, taken 100 Russian soldiers prisoner, and even taken out a Russian supply convoy and Moscow’s comms in the region.
In addition, around 100 Russian soldiers were captured. He estimated Russian losses at 2,500 soldiers, including 1,300 dead.
None of Zelensky’s claims have been verified, and fighting continues in what is still contested territory. What is clear is that Moscow has made little headway.
However, Die Welt points out a perhaps far more important reality: “Ukraine is far less dependent on Western arms deliveries than it was a year ago.”
Citing a report out of Reuters, the piece notes Zelensky as saying that some 60 percent of its weapons will be manufactured domestically. This apparently includes the involvement of “Western partners in Ukraine,” i.e., Western arms manufacturers who have taken up production there.
“Ukraine is now even producing its own bunker-busting long-range weapons and is no longer just asking for weapons, but is also soliciting investment in its defense industry,” according to Reuters.
As a matter of fact, Ukraine expects to have a surplus of weapons from its newly burgeoning weapons business, so much so that Zelensky also announced last week “a controlled arms export program” to fund further drone production.
No word on whether Kyiv will be paid for training up allies on counter-drone warfare, but they are “lining up” to learn from Ukraine’s in-the-field expertise, with Poland already signing an agreement to do just this. Given the repeated incursions of Russian drones into Polish airspace, their need is evident.
Kyiv is also making advances elsewhere, namely, directly in Russia by way of repeated attacks on Russian oil refineries and pipelines. And Ukraine is also active over enemy territory.
According to Die Welt, Moscow’s oil revenues this year have plummeted 25 percent. The outlook for Russia’s finances is not good. “Added to this were low world market prices in the first half of the year and a stronger ruble. Revenue from oil and gas sales accounts for about a quarter of the Russian state budget. Moscow is now even discussing spending cuts and tax increases.”
In terms of perception, Moscow is also falling behind, according to Schoker. Countries such as Hungary and Slovakia may be calling out Ukraine for threatening their energy supply and heating for their citizens as winter nears. But Russia appears to have escalated bombings and drone attacks that lack any precision ordinances, which has increased civilian casualties.
“While Ukraine attacks the Russian oil industry, Putin’s army continues its attacks on civilian targets: Zelensky announced online that three people were killed and dozens more injured in heavy airstrikes on Saturday night. Russia fired 40 missiles and approximately 580 drones.”
Germany’s left have long claimed that the Alternative for Germany (AfD) is a threat to democracy, and due to this claim, they argue the party should be banned entirely. Although banning parties is typically reserved for authoritarian regimes, this outcome remains a very real possibility in Germany, and a local election in the city of Ludwigshafen just showed what such an outcome could look like in practice.
Incredibly, the main candidate for the AfD, Joachim Paul, was banned from running in the mayoral election. The method used to ban him could become widespread and now represent — despite what the left claims — the true threat to democracy in Germany.
Using an expert opinion from the powerful domestic spy agency, the Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV), commissioned by Social Democrat (SPD)-led Interior Minister of Rhineland-Palantinate, Paul was banned through the courts. It was a backdoor method that three separate courts upheld after numerous appeals by the AfD”s lawyers.
“Election night without the blue bar. And without an alternative! Remarkable: low voter turnout and a relatively high number of invalid votes. I thank everyone who has supported me in the last 6 weeks! Many heartfelt thanks!” wrote Paul on his X page.
#Ludwigshafen: Wahlabend ohne blauen Balken. Und ohne Alternative! Bemerkenswert: niedrige Wahlbeteiligung und relativ hohe Zahl ungültiger Stimmen. Ich danke allen, die mich in den letzten 6 Wochen unterstützt haben! Vielen lieben Dank! 🙏🤝 pic.twitter.com/mxmLGeBA13
Notably, Paul was leading in the polls before he was removed entirely from the ballot. Nobody replaced him on the ballot either, meaning the AfD was not represented by anyone in the election.
Now, the turnout in the mayoral election has reached an all-time low of just 29.3 percent. In 2017’s mayoral election in Ludwigshafen, the then-SPD candidate Jutta Steinruck won with 60.2 percent participation.
That means voter turnout was cut in half from that election.
That is not all. For those who did vote, many of them appear to have submitted “spoiled” ballots. A record-high number of ballots were ruled invalid, at 9.2 percent. Eight years ago, that number was just 2.6 percent.
In the final totals for this most recent election, in which Paul was banned, Klaus Blettner (CDU) and Jens Peter Gotter (SPD) have advanced to the runoff vote. Blettner received 41.2 percent of the vote and Goter 35.5 percent. Another SPD candidate, Martin Wegner, received 15.7 percent, and Volt candidate Michaela Schneider-Wettstein received 7.6 percent.
However, to claim that whoever wins the second round of voting now has a “mandate” from the people in a fair democratic election is questionable, if not outright laughable.
Still, the liberal media and establishment politicians will either be silent about what happened in Ludwigshafen or openly cheer it on, despite 70 percent of voters choosing simply not to vote, and many who did protested with invalid votes.
This entire operation, a true victory for “democracy,” was orchestrated by AfD rival parties from start to finish. Outgoing Mayor Steinruck, while serving as chairwoman of the electoral committee, initiated the expulsion. All parties in the city are represented on the electoral committee — except the AfD.
The only party to reject the move in the committee was the Free Democrats (FDP). All others backed the unprecedented move. It was in their electoral interest, after all. Eliminating the democratic competition through bureaucratic backroom deals is now de facto a reality in Germany.
Paul says he is not giving up and told the media that he has initiated further legal action, the very same day voters headed to the polls.
“We are determined to contest the election. Whether after the first round or after the runoff is up to my lawyers,” Paul told the German Press Agency.
Other courts have already rejected Paul’s attempts to gain a spot on the ballot before the election, with all of these courts telling him he must pursue legal actions after the vote was already concluded.
Party co-leader Alice Weidel has criticized the mayoral race as well.
“Only 29.3% of the Ludwigshafen residents participated in the mayoral election, from which AfD candidate Joachim Paul was excluded. A democracy thrives on the freedom of choice — but that wasn’t even granted to the citizens,” wrote Weidel.
Nur 29,3% der Ludwigshafener nahmen an der Wahl des Oberbürgermeisters teil, von der AfD-Kandidat Joachim Paul ausgeschlossen wurde. Eine Demokratie lebt von der Freiheit der Wahl – doch die hat man den Bürgern gar nicht erst gelassen. pic.twitter.com/aauwsnAs1a
However, her and her party’s protests are certain to have little influence on how this new weapon is used. In fact, the only remedy may be through the courts, the same ones that have many judges actively hostile to the AfD.
In contrast, the outgoing mayor, Steinruck, says banning a candidate through a bureaucratic process, one that has never been used before, is simply the “rule of law.”
“There are rules. We, as the electoral committee, have obviously adhered to these rules. There are now three court rulings that confirm this.” She said the fact that people are “questioning” the rule of law makes her “sad.”
“We all have to continue working on this in the future,” Steinruck added.
AfD remains at record high
This move comes at a time when debate over a ban on the entire AfD continues to rage. The AfD currently stands at between 26 percent and 27 percent in national polls, and could even reach 30 percent within the next year.
Of course, the party may also fall from this polling high. However, the federal government remains deeply unpopular, and the core issues of a faltering economy, sky-high immigration, exploding crime, troubled schools, soaring debt levels, and a disastrous energy policy are not going away.
The ground is ripe for the AfD to remain a competitive party.
Pressure for an outright ban will grow more intense as the party grows more popular, but if that is not achieved, more and more AfD candidates may simply be eliminated from participating in elections altogether via the method used to eliminate Paul.
A misinformation influence campaign has been launched, in the German language, about Hungary leaving the European Union and joining BRICS. Despite the information campaign being based on entirely false information, it rapidly spread on social media, including a translated version in Czechia.
Who is behind these campaigns? It could be opposition activists in Hungary, but given that some of these campaigns are in foreign languages, such as German, it could also be state intelligence agencies, foreign NGOs, and other shadowy actors looking to discredit Hungary. With national elections fast approaching this year in Hungary, expect these campaigns to grow in frequency.
This time, Czech news outlet Novinky, usually no friend to Orbán’s government, reported that the post circulating about Hungary leaving the EU is false for many reasons.
“After all, until the end of last year, it was Hungary that held the presidency of the European Union. In November, there was even an informal meeting of the European Council in Budapest, where the Budapest Declaration on strengthening the Union’s global competitiveness was adopted,” the paper wrote.
Furthermore, Hungarian Foreign Minister Petr Szijjártó said that BRICS “is an attractive organization for many countries“ and his nation is willing to work with it, but membership is not even a question at this point.
The BRICS is a group originally composed of the states of Brazil, Russia, India and China, and in 2011, South Africa joined them. Since then, 11 members, including Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Iran, have joined.
As for Hungary leaving the EU, there have been whisper campaigns about this for some time, especially from an opposition that is well aware that Hungarians are firmly in the camp of staying in the EU.
“Similar reports about Hungary leaving the European Union appeared already in 2023. At that time, Orbán was supposed to announce the country’s departure from the European 27 in his New Year’s speech. In the end, the panic was moderated by fact-checking projects and the Hungarian embassy in Prague. Although Orbán has been criticizing the European Union for a long time, he is not considering leaving. Conversely. According to him, it would rather harm Hungary,” wrote Novinky.
“In Orbán’s last speech, although he criticized the EU on September 7, he certainly did not call for its abandonment. He confirmed this in one of the last interviews. He repeated the same thing during a meeting with Donald Trump,” the media outlet continues.
In fact, Orbán has repeatedly claimed throughout the years that there is no chance his country is leaving the EU. Instead, he has the specific goal of turning the EU into a force that respects national sovereignty and is, overall, a more conservative organization — certainly a tall order for a Brussels currently dominated by the left. To this end, Orbán was instrumental in forming the Patriots of Europe group in the European Parliament.
“Don’t raise your hopes too high, Hungary will not leave the EU,” Orbán hit back at Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk earlier this year.
Dear Donald, Don’t raise your hopes too high. Hungary will not leave the EU. We will transform it with the @PatriotsEU, to restore it to what it once was when Poland and Hungary joined.
Back then, Brussels bureaucrats served the people instead of themselves. Back then,… https://t.co/AmbCyl6Q9d
It found that 85 percent of Hungarian exports go to EU markets, a huge factor in why Hungary has no plans to leave. Hungary is highly integrated in the German supply chain, along with other countries. It is also landlocked, making leaving all the more difficult.
Hungarians, in turn, fully back staying in the EU, with surveys showing that up to 85 percent of Hungarians want to remain in the bloc.
A year after the tragic murder of their 19-year-old daughter, Philippine’s parents spoke with Le Figaro to honor her memory but also describe their ongoing hellish struggle to life without their daughter, with the mother saying she is now “half-dead.” Philippine, described by her parents as “full of life, radiant, intelligent, and loving,” was a top student who was killed in the Bois de Boulogne on September 20, 2024, by a criminal rapist and illegal Moroccan migrant with a deportation order.
The Moroccan migrant, who was subject to a French deportation order for a previous rape that he was convicted of, remains in jail in connection with her death.
The parents say they want to remain non-confrontational.
“That is not our mindset. What we want is to pay tribute to Philippine,” Loïc, the father, said.
However, Le Figaro reported that the parents still harbor a deep and quiet anger.
FRANCE: The far left is attacking any memorial to 19-year-old Philippine, who was raped and murdered by an illegal migrant.
"No sooner had we finished (putting up posters to pay tribute to Philippine) when far-left militants were laughing and ripping them off." pic.twitter.com/GahOcOV4eD
“The more we learn, the more we see dysfunctions. And when we talk about it face-to-face, it’s never anyone’s fault. Those who failed in their duty didn’t have a single word for Philippine; no one sent a wreath to her grave. It shows how little they feel guilty or responsible,” Blandine, the mother, said,
The parents do not name any names of the politicians or authorities they believe failed to protect their daughter.
“But we have enough grief not to beat our heads against a wall. Maybe I will be angrier when I have less pain.” However, they both agreed that the Moroccan should have never been able to harm their daughter.
“This individual should never have been in her path, so it’s even more revolting,” the parents told Le Figaro.
That fateful day
On that fateful day, Friday, Sept. 20, 2024, Philippine left Paris-Dauphine University around 2 p.m. to walk to her student room. In the Bois de Boulogne, she crossed paths with Taha Oualidat, a 22-year-old Moroccan man with a prior conviction for rape. An autopsy later confirmed that the Moroccan strangled Philippine to death.
For the past year, her parents, Loïc and Blandine, have kept a fluorescent light on in her room in the family home in Montigny-le-Bretonneux, as if to maintain her presence. Philippine grew up in this peaceful neighborhood and was known as the sibling who excelled at everything.
France lost Philippine Le Noir de Carlan after failing to deport Taha Oualidat, who already raped another student in 2019.
He served 5 years in prison, but instead of being deported as ordered, he remained in France to murder Philippine. pic.twitter.com/gpVzmX7N0N
“Philippine is perfect; she knows how to do everything and does everything well,” shared one of her older sisters. Her parents, who still live in the same house, can hear children playing in the nearby “Philippine Square” from their home.
Though they are private people, her parents felt it was important to share her story.
“It’s important for us to talk about Philippine; she was wonderful,” Blandine began.
Loïc added, “We received hundreds of letters. The church square was full during the funeral. It was completely overwhelming. This article is also to thank all those people who were so moved and shocked by what happened.”
🇫🇷 JUST IN: An Algerian migrant was arrested after stabbing to death Kylian B., a 17-year-old French boxing champion, outside a nightclub.
Just last week, 19-year-old Philippine was raped and murdered by an illegal Moroccan migrant who already raped another woman 5 years ago. pic.twitter.com/3U401FrLUU
After high school, Philippine had many prestigious university options, but she chose Paris-Dauphine to study Economics and Financial Engineering. She was not only brilliant but also incredibly hardworking. Her mother explained, “When she did presentations with friends, she would redo everything before handing in the document. She would stay up all night, but she wanted it to be perfect. She always wanted to give the best of herself.”
Her father noted, “She was very demanding of herself and therefore very demanding of others.”
The family noted how often Philippine came home to visit and stay with them, despite studying in Paris In fact, Philippine had already envisioned having a large family. Her mother recalled with tenderness, “I have a photo of Philippine with a baby. She had a gift for communicating with toddlers and captivating their attention.”
Le Figaro paints a picture of a family that will remain forever haunted by what they lost. The paper describes photos of Philippine and her smile, which fill the family living room.
Philippine’s parents reminisce about family vacations, Philippine making cakes for her sisters, and days spent splashing in lakes with her siblings — all the memories that fill a young life.
She was also known for her sharp wit and honesty. As her mother described, “People generally took it well because she did it with a lot of love. She loved people.”
Loyal to her friends from middle school, whom she called “the seven little dwarfs,” Philippine was a central figure in their group. “They would meet up regularly; I don’t know what they talked about,” her mother chuckled. She was also an avid scout, with friends remembering her kindness, joy, and “always well-placed” jokes.
For an association, she spent two years preparing a camp to help children in Romania.
At her funeral, her friends wrote, “We will continue to grow, to laugh, to cry, to eat cookies, to party, and to go on adventures with you. We are going to live for you, dream for you, accomplish great things for you. We will miss your smile and your laughter forever. You are now the star who will guide each of us in our lives.”
Le Figaro reports that Philippine was a deeply altruistic person. When she became old enough, she donated her blood and even her hair to charities that make wigs for cancer patients.
“That made a big impression on me, and I often think about it,” Blandine shared. “Her hair was very important to her… She grew her hair out, and one day she gave it away.”
🇫🇷‼️ 15-year-old Matisse was stabbed to death by an Afghan migrant teen in France last April.
He was stabbed a total of 12 times in the chest and died at the scene. As Matisse lay dying on the ground, his killer's mother bent over him and slapped him in the face.
Blandine and Loïc are still trying to rebuild their lives. Both have returned to work part-time.
Blandine finds comfort in her faith but struggles to move on.
“I am Catholic; I am convinced that Philippine is with the Father,” she said. “I buried my daughter, but I need her to give me a sign. And maybe then I can let her go. I haven’t moved an inch in a year; I’m half-dead. Almost every day, I have little things to tell her, and there’s only silence.”
The parents said that even Philippine’s pet rabbit, Puka, which she got at 13, couldn’t survive her absence.
“Philippine passed away on Friday, Sept. 20. The rabbit was starting to get very old, so we took him into our room. And he died on Friday, Dec. 20. He couldn’t stand not seeing Philippine anymore; he couldn’t survive,” Blandine recounted.
The Moroccan with a long criminal record
After serving a seven-year sentence for a previous rape, Taha Oualidat was placed in an administrative detention center. He was subject to a French deportation order but couldn’t be sent back to Morocco without that government’s approval.
A judge, while recognizing his danger, released him under house arrest in a hotel.
Oualidat never went to the hotel, and he disappeared before running into Philippine. It was Philippine’s family who found her body during a search the next day. Oualidat was later charged with murder, rape, theft, and fraud.
🇫🇷🚨 France in shock after another young European victim murdered
A "North African type" is suspected in killing 11-year-old Louise. Her body was found on Friday night going into Saturday (Feb. 8) in the Templar forest in Épinay-sur-Orge.
Blandine also spoke about the dangerousness of the Bois de Boulogne.
She said, “The Bois de Boulogne has a bad reputation; we know that, but Philippine was there at 2 in the afternoon, in a place where people were passing by. It wasn’t Philippine who wasn’t in the right place at the right time. It was the other person, the suspect, who was in the wrong place at the wrong time. People have to understand that their little girls can be all sweet, dressed in pants and a T-shirt, and there are still people who mean harm.”
“The repeal of the Marleix law disgusted and devastated me. How can men and women take the risk that our young people will be murdered?” she said, outraged. The French interior minister is currently working to ensure the law is enacted, according to a statement on his website.
« Tu étais fiancée, pleine de projets et de rêves. Tu étais rayonnante. Tu aurais pu être ma petite sœur et je continuerai à prier pour toi »
Philippine’s family are not the only ones mourning. Many across France commemorated her death, with feminist activist organization Collectif Némésis holding a ceremony for the young woman on Sept. 20.
“You were engaged, full of plans and dreams. You were radiant. You could have been my little sister, and I will continue to pray for you,” one of their speakers said during the ceremony.
The group erected a memorial stone at the exact spot where the young woman was murdered.
One of many youths victimized by Open Borders
Thousands of European youths have had their lives sacrificed on the altar of open borders and the belief that all cultures and people are exactly the same.
The left ignores these murders and the families that must suffer.
The father, Ludovic, was trying to raise awareness about the French government and its lack of response to the brutal crime, as well as to the fact that the man who allegedly tortured his daughter into a coma had a long criminal record but remained free to attack again.
“(The government) not communicating about this attack gives credit to all these sexual predators and other parasites of society who plague the streets. A wake-up call to the government about the fact that we leave this kind of individual, with a heavy criminal past, in complete freedom, would be welcome. ‘Trust in justice,’ we were told… We only want that,” he said.
As Remix News previously reported, the 18-year-old suspect has a long and violent criminal record consisting of 17 offenses involving physical assault, theft, and the incestuous sexual assault of his younger sister.
“I dream of a France where a young woman is not in danger of ending up in a coma after being robbed, raped and horribly tortured by Oumar, a repeat offender, in her own home,” wrote former presidential candidate Éric Zemmour at the time.
Budapest’s novel Holocaust museum, in the works for years and still incomplete, will now be the Brüll Alfréd House – Hungarian Jewish Heritage Park, announced the Hungarian government’s special envoy against anti-Semitism, Minister János Bóka, and MTK president and head of the Fidesz EP delegation, Tamás Deutsch.
The bill submitted by the government, according to Neokohn, would transfer the House of Fates property to the MTK sports club to be used for the association’s management. According to the government’s plans:
A memorial site will be created that will honor the memory of the child victims of the Holocaust.
An educational institution will provide knowledge sessions, as well as physical and mental opportunities, including sports.
A community space will house exhibitions, lectures and leisure programs.
The Hungarian Jewish Heritage Park will add further green spaces to the capital.
Boka said that the Hungarian government’s goal is to bring the property, which has been vacant and unused for a long time, back to life and serve the benefit of Hungarian citizens and the domestic Jewish community.
The previously named “House of Fates” on Pava Street. (Source: Zsido.com)
The building and premises had previously been in the hands of the Association of Hungarian Jewish Communities (EMIH), whose head, Rabbi Shlomo Köves, said the move to transfer the Holocaust museum to a sports club struck him as “bizarre” at first. However, he also said that leadership under János Boka is “a ray of hope.”
Boka also represents Hungary in the European Commission’s working group responsible for combating anti-Semitism and supporting Jewish life. According to Mazsihisz, he believes the promotion of Jewish life is critical to the fight against anti-Semitism: “The basis of our work is to protect Jewish communities, as these communities are an integral part of society.”
On his Facebook page, Boka just recently posted a video inviting the Munich Philharmonic Orchestra to perform in Budapest after the Flanders Festival Ghent canceled its scheduled performance over its conductor, Tel Aviv-born Lahav Shani, not “clearly” distancing himself from his country’s government.
“Here, music does not need political footnotes,” he said.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán spoke at the first national meeting of his Digital Civic Circles (DKP) program at Budapest’s Papp László Sports Arena on Saturday. There, he reiterated his party’s trajectory for Hungary and announced that a peace march would take place on Oct. 23.
The Fidesz-KDNP alliance is rallying support and moving into full campaign mode as Hungary’s April 2026 parliamentary elections near.
The DKP online community serves as Hungary’s digital border fortress system to protect Hungarian culture, language and identity. More than 70,000 people have already joined the initiative, including public figures, artists, athletes and scientists, writes Magyar Nemzet, which covered the prime minister’s speech.
“What a day! More than 10,000 patriots gathered at our Digital Civic Circles event. Proud Hungarians, united and strong – I was honoured to share my thoughts with them. Let’s make Hungary and Europe great again! “ Orbán posted on X.
What a day! More than 10,000 patriots gathered at our Digital Civic Circles event. Proud Hungarians, united and strong – I was honoured to share my thoughts with them. Let's make Hungary and Europe great again! 🇭🇺 pic.twitter.com/vTViCPjUkC
After noting that these gatherings are outgrowing all venues, the Hungarian prime minister said, “For centuries, the life of every Hungarian generation, its quality, has depended on how we navigate the ship of our country in the waves created by empires. Our grandparents experienced two era changes, then our country did not miss any wars, we came out of them as losers and with heavy losses,” Orbán told those gathered.
“I imagined that I was born in a losing country, but would die in a winning country, because we would make Hungary great. We do not want war, we do not want to lose a single Hungarian life,” he stated.
Offering no mercy to Brussels, he said: “European leaders have turned the European Union into a bankrupt mass.”
The European Union is teetering on the brink, with debt, migration, violence, and failing policies everywhere. Hungary stands firm: migrant-free, pro-family, providing opportunities to those willing to work. We need courage – intellectual, political, and personal – to recognise… pic.twitter.com/pfxHzAvjdc
His generation had already achieved a change of era in 1990 and had rescued Hungary from the falling beams of communism, the prime minister noted. However, now the hope that a change of era would be enough has been shattered, the EU leaders have squandered the chance, he said.
“No one denies anymore that Western Europe is struggling in a serious crisis, the German Chancellor announced the end of the welfare state, energy prices in France are skyrocketing, the customs agreement with the USA is simply tragic. According to Mario Draghi, the former president of the European Central Bank, the continent is stumbling towards collapse,” he continued.
“It must be said: We must not copy them, because we will also end up on a losing track. Let us say that we have remained a migrant-free country, and that our family policy and tax system are better. Let us dare to follow our own path and build our own economy, let us dare to make Hungary great again,” Hungary’s prime minister told those gathered.
“We reject the path that Brussels is offering us. If we take it, Hungarian money will go to Ukraine, because Brussels is at war. This is worse than the 10 plagues. There is no war in Hungary and there will be no war, there are no migrants here and there will be no migrants, and Ukraine will not be a member of the EU either,” Orbán said.
On the nation’s capital of Budapest, still under opposition control, he added: “We will never give up on Budapest. We will never allow the liberals and the police to turn the nation’s capital into a migrant haven, a drug den, and an LGBTQ paradise.”
Noting that he had also met people from Békéscsaba at the DPK event, Orbán noted the huge investment announced there on Friday. “We are building an economy where there is butter on the edge of the bread,” he said, noting that both those living in rural Hungary and in Budapest can count on the government.
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó had announced on Friday that Singaporean Vulcan Shield Global will establish world-class manufacturing facilities for high-tech ceramic-fiber insulation materials in Békéscsaba. The development will create 2,500 new jobs in the coming years and consist of three separate investments worth up to HUF 280 billion (€720 million).
Listing off other recent accomplishments of his government, Orbán mentioned Europe’s most attractive housing program, its largest tax reduction program, a country-building plan for the next 10 years, and, of course, continued border protection.
Turning back to the success of Fidesz’s recent campaign initiatives, which aim to protect both “the homeland and freedom in the digital space,” he noted, “72,000 people have joined the digital civic circles and 46,000 have joined the Warriors’ Club.”
“The monopoly of the globalist network that builds hatred has been broken. The DPK provides reliable protection against left-wing madness and has released enormous constructive energies,” he told the audience.
“We will cover the entire country, and we must tell everyone that our homeland is on the verge of a new era, and how to avoid the wrong path and set off on the right path.”
“We welcome everyone who loves their homeland and does not want to be a humble servant of Brussels. We are many, we are strong, and we will prevail. We will make Hungary great, if you want that too,” concluded Orbán.
Milorad Dodik, who was stripped of his office by the Bosnian Election Commission in August, has officially resigned as president of the Republika Srpska.
The official gazette of the Republika Srpska published on Friday an amendment to the Law on Internal Affairs, which was signed not by Milorad Dodik, but by his deputy, Davor Pranjic. The signing of laws falls within the authority of the President of the Republika Srpska, so it turned out that the vice president had taken over this authority.
The Bosnian-Herzegovinian Election Commission decided to remove Dodik from office in early August. The decision was made after the Bosnian Court of Appeals upheld the first-instance verdict in a second-instance ruling, sentencing the Bosnian Serb president to one year in prison and banning him from office for six years.
Since under Bosnian law, prison sentences can be replaced by a fine, Dodik paid the imposed fine of 36,500 convertible marks (€18,600), but had said he would not resign from his presidency. The election commission, nevertheless, called a presidential election for Nov. 23 in the Serb-majority part of Bosnia and Herzegovina,
Remix News reported at the time that Dodik had been defiant. “I am not going anywhere, there’s no surrender,” he had stated, announcing a referendum to determine whether Bosnian Serbs agree with the electoral commission’s decision and whether they should accept the disregard for the constitution of the Republika Srpska.
“The will of the people will prevail, no one can break the political will of a people. I will listen to the people, because I received my mandate from the people,” he had said at the time.
Dodik has long argued that Bosnia and Herzegovina have been actively discriminating against Serbs, which led him to systematically pull out of federal institutions and legal frameworks of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Serb leader has also been pushing for the Serb-dominated Srpska to join Serbia and has been openly friendly with Russia, a long-time ally of Serbs. He most recently drew the ire of the EU after he visited Moscow for talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov at Zinaida Morozova’s Mansion, the “reception house” for Russia’s foreign ministry.
He was also accused of refusing to take into account the decisions of the international high representative, Christian Schmidt, a German politician currently holding the position. Dodik signed a law rejecting his institution and powers. Dodik has now been sentenced for going against the orders of the international peace-keeping envoy and suspending rulings by the country’s constitutional court.
Earlier in the year, when the first instance ruling was handed down, Hungarian PM Viktor Orbán had defended the leader.
“The political witch hunt against President Milorad Dodik is a sad example of the weaponization of the legal system aimed at a democratically elected leader. If we want to safeguard stability in the Western Balkans, this is not the way forward!”
In the autumn of 2023, Hungary had stepped in to take over German investments in the Republika Srpska, as Berlin sought to distance itself from Dodik’s pushing for closer ties to both Moscow and Belgrade.
At the time, Germany was said to be pursuing four infrastructure projects worth a total of €105 million. At the end of 2022, Hungary’s EXIM bank had already loaned Dodik €110 million.
A shop owner in the city of Flensburg, Germany, near the Danish border, decided to put up an anti-Semitic sign in his window, effectively banning Jews from his store.
The 60-year-old owner of the shop, Hans Velten-Reisch, admitted to putting up the A4-sized paper himself, which read: “Jews not allowed!!!”
Below that clear ban, in smaller letters, the owner wrote: “Nothing personal, not anti-Semitism, I just can’t stand you.”
“Jews have house ban here” — a sign displayed in Flensburg, Germany today.Shocking. This is not “criticism of Israel.” It is blatant, unapologetic antisemitism.
More than 80 years after Nazi Germany posted signs excluding Jews from public life, we are seeing the same vile hatred… pic.twitter.com/BejTCT0g2N
In a statement to the Schleswig-Holsteinische Zeitungsverlag, reported on by Magyar Nemzet, the owner denied the accusation of anti-Semitism and justified his actions with Israel’s attacks on Gaza.
“There are Jews living in Israel, and I can’t tell who supports the attacks and who doesn’t,” R. said, in an attempt to justify his action. He also called Israeli attacks in Gaza “hypocritical.”
“They always say that history shouldn’t repeat itself, but then they do it themselves,” the shopowner added, comparing Israeli actions in Gaza to the Holocaust.
Posts with photos of the shop window have gone viral on social media.
Felix Klein, the German federal government’s commissioner against anti-Semitism, has spoken out on the matter.
“This is pure anti-Semitism, and of course a direct reference to the Nazi era, when Jews were boycotted and many such signs were visible.”
“This should not be tolerated in any form,” Klein emphasized.
Local politicians were also quick to react, with the Flensburg branch of the Greens condemning the anti-Semitic poster most strongly. Simone Lange, the former mayor of Flensburg, personally filed a police report.
Federal Minister of Education Karin Prien, who also has Jewish ancestry, said: “Anyone who expresses and justifies anti-Semitism goes against everything that our democratic coexistence represents.”
Police have received several reports regarding the sign, and the prosecutor’s office is investigating whether a crime was committed.
“We must show that we will not tolerate anti-Semitism,” Klein stated.
The Israeli ambassador to Germany, Ron Prosor, also spoke up. “In Flensburg, in 2025, signs saying ‘Jews not allowed’ are once again hanging in shop windows. Just like then, in the streets, cafes and stores of the 1930s,” The Independent reports him as saying.
“This is exactly how it began – step by step, sign by sign. It is the same old hatred, only in a different font. After the signs came shards of glass, fire and destruction. And today, people behave as if it were ‘nothing personal.’”
“It was never about Zionism. It was always about Jewish life. And it has never ended harmlessly,” Ambassador Prosor added.
The Alternative for Germany (AfD) is jumping ahead in yet another eastern German state after posting record polling results in two other states. On top of that, the party has hit 27 percent nationally in a new YouGov poll, marking a record result and putting the party in first place in yet another national poll.
However, one German minister of the ruling government predicts the AfD will crash to a mere 9 percent nationally in time for the next national election in 2029.
The latest state poll from Insa shows the AfD has surged ahead of the left-wing Social Democrats (SPD) by 10 points in the state of Brandenburg. Now, 34 percent of voters said they would vote for the AfD party, while the SPD has dropped to 24 percent. The new poll shows the AfD improving by 4.8 percentage points from its results approximately a year ago. Meanwhile, the CDU is lingering at only 13 percent.
BRANDENBURG | Sonntagsfrage Landtagswahl INSA/MAZ, MOZ, LR
Currently, Brandenburg is led by SPD state premier, Dietmar Woidke.
More importantly, YouGov now puts the AfD party at 27 percent nationally, one point ahead of the Christian Democrats (CDU). The AfD is closing in on the key number of 30 percent, but the question is whether it will ever reach it.
🇩🇪🔴The anti-immigration AfD party jumps to a record 27% and remains the most popular party in Germany.
The latest results from Brandenburg also come after the AfD has posted record results in the eastern states of Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia, as Remix News previously reported.
Notably, it is the eastern German states where the AfD has come under the most pressure from the powerful domestic spy agency, the Office for the Protection of the Constitution (BfV). For example, the BfV’s branch in Brandenburg designated the AfD as “certainly right-wing extremist” in early August.
“The AfD will be at 9% by 2029”
However, the AfD’s polling surge has its doubters.
Minister of State for Culture Wolfram Weimer, of the CDU, said the AfD’s supporters are only driven by resentment.
“The firewall is an ethical category. We, the political center, have a foundation of values that we can fall back on. The AfD doesn’t,” he told Politico.
According to a United Surveys poll for Wirtualna Polska, as many as 57.5 percent of respondents say President Karol Nawrocki is doing a good job. He enjoys significantly greater support among men.
Respondents were asked how they assessed Karol Nawrocki as president of the Republic of Poland. The majority of respondents, 57.5 percent, view the current president positively, with 25 percent expressing a strong positive opinion and 32.5 percent expressing a rather positive opinion.
However, 32.9 percent expressed the opposite opinion. Of this group, 12.6 percent expressed a strongly negative opinion of Nawrocki’s presidency, while 20.3 percent expressed a rather negative opinion.
The new president is viewed most critically by rural residents, with 38 percent of respondents rating him negatively.
He is also viewed negatively by 36 percent of residents of large cities with populations over 250,000. Meanwhile, he scores highest among residents of small towns of up to 50,000 (60 percent positive). The portal noted that rural areas have previously been considered home to the core Law and Justice (PiS) party electorate.
Support in specific age groups
The survey shows that Nawrocki enjoys good ratings among those aged 18-29, with 73 percent of respondents viewing him positively and 27 percent negatively.
Among those aged 30-39, 67 percent view him positively and 22 percent negatively. The new president has fewer supporters among those aged 40-49, with 59 percent viewing him positively and 33 percent negatively.
Among those aged 50-59, 53 percent view him positively and 28 percent negatively, and among those aged 60-69, 57 percent view him positively and 35 percent negatively. Among older people aged 70 and over, 42 percent view Nawrocki positively and 52 percent negatively.
Political scientist Prof. Antoni Dudek assessed for WP that the high support for Nawrocki in the youngest age group is understandable, stating, “A candidate from the lower classes who has achieved a stunning career may appeal to many, especially young people. They are impressed, and they are waiting for him to disrupt the system – the Civic Platform-Law and Justice party duopoly.”
When it comes to preference among the sexes, men (69 percent) definitely see Karola Nawrocki as a better choice for the new president than women (44 percent).
The survey was conducted by United Surveys by IBRiS for Wirtualna Polska using the CATI/CAWI method on September 13-15, 2025, on a sample of 1,000 people.
The U.S. State Department has announced the sale of 2,506 missiles, as well as 253 launchers equipped with sights to Poland, according to a statement out of the Pentagon’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA).
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defense Władysława Kosiniaka-Kamysza wrote on X: “Javelins for Poland. The US Department of State has approved the sale of 253 launchers and over 2,500 missiles to Poland, along with the necessary training and spare parts.”
“Javelin is an anti-tank guided missile used by the Territorial Defense Forces,” he added.
Kolejne Javeliny dla Wojska Polskiego! Departament Stanu USA🇺🇲 udzielił zgody na sprzedaż Polsce 253 wyrzutni i ponad 2,5 tysiąca pocisków, wraz z niezbędnym szkoleniem i zapasem części zamiennych. Javelin to przeciwpancerny pocisk kierowany będący na uzbrojeniu @terytorialsi… pic.twitter.com/cJs1icT19i
This is just the latest in a long line of military equipment purchases by Poland from the USA.
In late August, Washington also approved the sale of logistics and support services for Polish F-35s, Do Rzeczy reminds. General Electric Aerospace will be responsible for implementing the contract, which is estimated to be worth $1.85 billion. This is a key element in Poland’s preparations for the full deployment of modern, fifth-generation combat aircraft.
Under a contract signed in 2020, Poland is to receive 32 F-35A fighters, along with a training package and spare engines, worth a total of over $4.5 billion. These aircraft, alongside the F-16, are to become the main pillar of Polish military aviation, significantly enhancing the country’s defense capabilities and its position within NATO.
With the recent Russian drone incursions into NATO airspace, specifically over Poland, fueling concerns of the war in Ukraine escalating, Poland and NATO in general are anxious to beef up their defenses. Other countries have also announced their commitment to helping defend Polish airspace and NATO’s eastern front.
French President Macron has already announced his country is sending three Rafale fighter jets to help defend Polish airspace and NATO’s eastern flank.
Germany is stepping up support as well, with four Luftwaffe Eurofighter Typhoon fighters will be deployed to Poland. One of the most modern multi-role aircraft in the world, the Typhoon, can reach speeds exceeding Mach 2 (approximately 2,450 km/h) and maintain supersonic speed without the use of afterburners. They are equipped with radar, an IRST optronic sensor, and missile self-defense systems, and can carry a wide arsenal of weapons, Do Rzeczy lists.
Last weekend, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez also announced that his country would send its air force to protect Polish skies. “Putin will not intimidate us. Our assets will remain on the eastern flank as long as necessary,” he wrote in a statement.
Denmark, France, the United Kingdom, the Czech Republic, and other member states will also be involved in the operation.
“The purpose of sending Russian drones to Poland was not only to test NATO’s ability to react, but also to present Europe with a strategic dilemma: support Ukraine or defend the Alliance’s eastern flank,” argues German political scientist Herfried Muenkler in an interview with the weekly Die Zeit.
In addition to testing Poland’s and NATO’s ability to react, the expert believes Putin sought to pressure the Alliance to quickly commit all its forces to securing the entire eastern flank and relocate all available air defense systems there.
Meanwhile, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has underlined that the drone incursions were the largest-scale violation in recent years and are becoming increasingly frequent.
Today we announce the launch of “Eastern Sentry” to bolster our posture even further along our eastern flank.
This military activity will involve a range of assets from Allies.
“Regardless of whether Russia acts intentionally or not, it violated NATO airspace. The Alliance will respond in solidarity,” Rutte emphasized, reports Do Rzeczy. In line with this, NATO’s Eastern Sentry operation will not be extended.
Supreme Allied Commander Europe, General Alexus Grynkewich, says Eastern Sentry will now cover the entire eastern flank – from the Arctic, through the Baltic, to the Black Sea and the Mediterranean. The primary objective will be integrated air defense, utilizing both land and air assets.
Eastern Sentry is expected to last as long as necessary to deter Russia and protect NATO allies.
In other news, Italy has decided against sending any fighter jets to Poland.
Defense Minister Guido Crosetto had been in favor but is reported to have caved to pressure from Deputy Prime Minister Matteo Salvini, who seeks more open dialogue with Russia. Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni and Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani went along with Salvini, looking to avoid a conflict with the third-largest party in government, reports Decode39.
Assuring Italy’s continued support to NATO in other ways, Crosetto stated: “We are already among NATO’s top contributors. We will provide availability to extend the deployment of the Samp/T already stationed on the Eastern front and to extend the deployment of the Caew radar aircraft already operating in the area.”
American Senator Lindsey Graham took to social media on Tuesday to go on a tirade against Hungary and Slovakia, as they both buy Russian oil.
“POTUS is right to demand that Europe stop buying Russian oil. The good news is that Europe has substantially reduced their purchases of Russian oil and gas,” he wrote in an X post.
“When it comes to buying Russian oil, it is now virtually down to Hungary and Slovakia. I hope and expect them to step up to the plate soon to help us end this bloodbath. If not, consequences should and will follow,” he added.
.@POTUS is right to demand that Europe stop buying Russian oil. The good news is that Europe has substantially reduced their purchases of Russian oil and gas.
When it comes to buying Russian oil, it is now virtually down to Hungary and Slovakia. I hope and expect them to step up…
Graham was following up on U.S. President Trump’s comments to press on Sunday, when he claimed NATO allies are “not doing the job.”
“Europe… they’re my friends, but they’re buying oil from Russia, so we can’t be expected to be the only ones that are, you know, full bore,” he said.
Unfortunately, despite Slovakia and Hungary being by far the largest EU importers of Russian oil, and doing so directly via Ukraine, data has shown that other EU member states and NATO allies are still guilty, even if their purchases are indirect, for example, via Turkey.
And of course, this poses another issue, namely that Turkey is itself a NATO ally.
“China and India are of course at this moment the two biggest importers of Russian oil, in that order, but what’s less well known is that NATO member Turkey is the third largest. Ironically, Turkey maintains the second largest military in NATO, next to the United States,” a ZeroHedge article pointed out.
So, ZH also asks why would Graham have only named Hungary and Slovakia in his post? For that matter, why wouldn’t he have also called out other EU members for their purchases, even if indirect?
For its part, Slovakia has said it will continue to meet its domestic energy needs from Russia. Slovakia, along with Hungary, has an exemption through 2027, but Slovakia shows no interest in giving up its reliance on Moscow.
“Russian gas is the most economically advantageous for us, so we prioritize it. We could buy 100% of our needs. That’s about 8 million cubic meters per day,” Michal Lalík, trading director at SPP, told Bloomberg, as reported by the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre.
Hungary has said it is working to diversify its energy supply, and in late summer 2024, despite interruptions with the Friendship pipeline through Ukraine, the country’s foreign minister told press that its gas supply was secure, “as the Turkish Stream pipeline, via Turkey, Bulgaria, and Serbia.”
Hungary has also made no secret that it hopes to benefit from the Qatar-Turkey natural gas pipeline, as well as from its Azeri gas transport contract and the start of Turkmenistan’s exports to Europe.
Again, any mention of Turkey raises the question of getting Russian oil and gas into the mix.
Last October, Remix News reported on Turkey being the largest buyer of Russian crude oil, natural gas, and coal for 2023. Meanwhile, between February 2023 and February 2024, EU imports of petroleum products from Turkey increased by 107 percent, with EU member states importing 5.16 million tons of petroleum products worth €3.1 billion.
Despite its own domestic consumption of such products barely increasing, Turkey imported twice as much oil from Russia in 2023, an amount worth €17.6 billion, handing Russia some €5.4 billion for its war chest. And EU countries are largely to thank for that.
Fast-forward to today, and not much has changed. Just yesterday, the EU Observer ran an article detailing how Russian gas and oil continues to flow to Europe through Turkey. If anything, Slovakia and Hungary are just being more honest about their own purchases.
Back in early 2024, France purchased €600 million worth of natural gas from Moscow in the first three months of the year. In just March of this year, Le Monde reported that “with its five LNG terminals, France is a major gateway for liquefied natural gas into Europe. In 2024, a third of this gas came from Russia, but it’s difficult to know how much of it simply passes through France, or is consumed domestically.”
There have been some total reversals. For example, late last year, Austria’s OMV outright cancelled its contract with Gazprom that had been set to expire only in 2040.
The exact data pertaining to who is doing business with Russia has been shifting yet constant. As Reuters has confirmed, in general, “the U.S. and European Union still import billions of euros worth of Russian energy and commodities, ranging from liquefied natural gas to enriched uranium.”
Last week, in a Truth Social post, Trump had written to NATO allies that he was “ready to ‘go’ when you are. Just say when?” regarding imposing full pressure on Russia, as well as “50 percent to 100 percent tariffs on China.”
“NATO’S commitment to WIN has been far less than 100 percent, and the purchase of Russian Oil, by some, has been shocking! It greatly weakens your negotiating position, and bargaining power, over Russia,” the president wrote.
It should be noted that Trump has also made clear he expects Zelensky to get ready to make a deal.
An Afghan man desperate to return home to his country says he got naked and flashed three female French police officers, a move he said was done to help push authorities into sending him back home. French authorities, however, say that it is not possible to send the Afghan repeat offender home.
In court, when asked about his actions, the 33-year-old unemployed migrant said, in his native language, “I got naked so the police officers would understand my situation. If they don’t send me back to Afghanistan, I’ll start getting naked every time. But everything’s fine for me, even if it’s complicated to complete administrative procedures, not speaking French,” he said, according to a report from French news outlet Le Télégramme.
He was taken into custody on Sept. 1 for sexual assault. During a police questioning, he caused a commotion by completely undressing in front of three female officers and refusing to put his clothes back on. He is being tried in court for indecent exposure.
The man has multiple arrests for various offenses, including a previous sexual assault against a nurse in a hospital in Angoulême, France. He was already under judicial supervision at the time he flashed the three female officers.
The judge also asked him why he only undressed in front of female officers, but the man remained silent in response to this question.
One of the main issues with the man being sent home is that he, like many illegal migrants, has no passport. Many toss their passport before entering Europe in order to complicate efforts for authorities to deport them back home, however, in chaotic countries like Afghanistan, many citizens fail to obtain a passport in the first place.
“How can we send you back to your country since you don’t have a passport? Your country will not accept you.” the judge asked the man.
The Afghan has a troubled history, with his medical report indicating he has “personality disorders, a suicide attempt, and fluctuating responses.”
However, the man was not exactly poor before he left Afghanistan. In fact, his medical report indicated that he claimed to have paid smugglers €27,000 to leave his country. He says he now wants to return to Afghanistan to his wife and five children.
His lawyer argued, “There has been no recent psychiatric assessment to determine his condition at the time of these events. It is not certain that he understands the sentence that will be handed down. It is an act of protest, without any sexual provocation. He has a residence permit in France, but he must renounce it to be able to return to his country.” The lawyer added, “But in the meantime, he needs care.”
The lawyer for the police officers recounted, “This is the first time in 12 years of service that these three women have experienced such a situation. This man behaved in such a way, even though he was about to be released, and he fully understood what the interpreter was translating for him.”
The prosecutor requested eight months in prison for the Afghan man, stating, “He has no fixed address, and his previous judicial supervision had no effect on him. His psychiatric assessment is recent, dating from March 2025: It is significant in highlighting an impairment of judgment. But he knows what he’s doing when he gets naked. He refused to get dressed, even going so far as to remove the blanket the officers had handed him to hide his genitals. He behaved dangerously, with a desire to commit this offense.” The prosecutor also noted that the officers filed a complaint because of his “disturbing attitude,” which was similar to his behavior with the nurse he assaulted.
The court ultimately sentenced the man to six months in prison and ordered him to pay €200 in damages to each of the three police officers.
The commander of the Warsaw Capital Police, Dariusz Walichnowski, is about to lose his position, according to unofficial information provided by RMF FM radio, and later by Gazeta Wyborcza.
However, many believe the move is political, with Polish newspaper wPolityce stating, “According to the media, the politicians of the Civic Coalition ruling in Warsaw did not have relations with Walichnowski. He was reluctant to refer to the ideas of showing up with them and did not quickly enough remove officers who worked during the rule of the United Right from their positions.”
Superintendent Dariusz Walichnowski took over the Capital Police Headquarters after Paweł Dzierżak in April last year. Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski, who was running for president of Poland, managed to convince Walichnowski to take part in handing over 27 police cars to the capital’s police in January 2025 — during the ongoing campaign.
The support of the Civic Coalition candidate in the race for the presidential seat caused a storm. Trzaskowski was accused of using the police for political purposes, and PiS MP Waldemar Buda announced that he would send a notification to the National Electoral Commission in connection with the violation of electoral law.
Wielichowski was supposed to “feel bad” after that conference.
“He did not want to appear with politicians because he preferred not to be associated with any party. (…) He was forced to leave because he did not allow the politicization of the police,” said an anonymous KSP police source to wPolityce.
“Politicians of the ruling party wanted police officers to take photos with them and take part in a political nativity scene. Commander Walichnowski avoided it very much and did not want politics to be done by policemen. He is not afraid to refuse politicians,” another police source told the paper.
Cheap and dangerous food from South America directly supports Russian leader Vladimir Putin. Instead of keeping money and food security in Europe, the money will flow to Brazil and then on to Russia, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki warns.
On Sept. 3, the European Commission adopted the EU-Mercosur free trade agreement. Before it can enter into force, the agreement must still be approved by the European Parliament and member states in a vote at the EU Council.
“The EU-Mercosur agreement is a deadly threat to Polish agriculture. Cheap food from South America is also a support for Putin. Instead of staying in Europe, money will flow to Brazil… and further to Russia. What is the government doing?” wrote Morawiecki on X.
Umowa UE🇪🇺–Mercosur🇧🇷 to śmiertelne zagrożenie dla polskiego rolnictwa. Tania żywność z Ameryki Płd. to też wsparcie dla Putina. Zamiast zostać w Europie, pieniądze popłyną do Brazylii… i dalej do Rosji. Co robi rząd? pic.twitter.com/5ni8IiwtY7
The agreement is strongly supported by German politician and President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen. The Mercosur agreement is beneficial for German Big Business, especially chemical producers who sell South American pesticides banned in Europe. For tens of millions of German citizens, however, the deal is anything but favorable.
It is also particularly unfavorable for Poland, which has its own healthy agricultural sector. Farmers and many experts predict that Polish agriculture will decline in some areas.
Morawiecki: ‘This issue has a deeper meaning’
Morawiecki warns of the consequences of the agreement in his X post.
His video notes that the current government said it would fight against the agreement, and it quoted Warsaw Mayor Rafał Trzaskowski’s words from his campaign:
“I say a firm ‘no’ to the agreement between the European Union and Mercosur,” he said at the time.
Morawiecki’s video warns that “when it comes to fighting for the real interests of Polish farmers, they ignore our breadwinners. If we are flooded with food from South America, our farmers will lose their last semblance of competitiveness in a market that is already severely compromised by extensive European bureaucracy, but there’s another layer to this issue. Brazil, which accounts for three-quarters of the entire Mercosur organization, is one of the few countries in the world that not only hasn’t suspended but has drastically increased the value of its trade with Russia after 2022.”
“We cannot allow Polish agriculture and the security of all of Europe to be sacrificed on the altar of German and French interests. Stop talking about how great you are and show some agency for once,” Morawiecki’s video concludes.
Spanish police have arrested 19 illegal immigrants on suspicion of abusing, torturing and killing 50 of their fellow passengers on a boat as they crossed the Atlantic Ocean from Africa to the Canary Islands.
The Spanish coast guard said they rescued the remaining passengers on the 20-meter boat, which had drifted some 400 kilometers from the coast, on Aug. 24.
🇪🇸🔴 Murder and "witchcraft" on the Atlantic Ocean
Spanish police have arrested 19 African illegal migrants after murder and torture on a boat crossing to Spain.
50 people lost their lives.
Witnesses said passengers were allegedly murdered during the voyage from Africa to the… pic.twitter.com/OnXYTCcGUN
The police issued a statement and a video highlighting the arrests, writing: “National Police officers have arrested 19 people suspected of murder and torture aboard a cayuco rescued on Aug. 24. The vessel was adrift in waters near Gran Canaria and contained 248 migrants, one of whom died in the hospital. Several migrants traveling on the cayuco report murders, injuries, and torture committed during the voyage. The disappearance of at least 50 people thrown overboard by the alleged masters is also being investigated. All those arrested, who were traveling on the same vessel, have been remanded in custody.”
Authorities took 248 passengers to the island of Gran Canaria, where several of them reported that there had been around 300 of them when they left Senegal, writes the Hirado news portal.
According to eyewitness accounts, a group of passengers acted as the boat’s command and used violence against the others.
The police further detail how many on the ship were accused of witchcraft and then murdered.
“The causes of these deaths, according to the testimonies gathered, are believed to be related to superstitions that labeled certain crew members as ‘witches’ when incidents occurred during the voyage, such as engine failure, food shortages, or bad weather. Likewise, homicides were documented simply because some people protested or expressed their disagreement with the conditions of the trip,” wrote the police in a statement.
Passengers told authorities that the aggressors had thrown some into the water alive, while others were tortured or even murdered directly on the boat.
After the police launched an investigation, the suspects were ultimately charged with facilitating illegal immigration and murder.
An 8-year-old Italian boy was savagely beaten with an iron bar and left severely disfigured after an attack from foreign youths during the victim’s own birthday party in a park in the Fidene suburb of Rome. Despite the severe attack, the three youths will not face any criminal charges.
The suspects are brothers from the Roma community, aged 7, 9 and 11, according to Italian media.
The Italian child was raced to the hospital after the attack on Sept. 12 and underwent emergency surgery, which means his life is no longer in danger. However, the young boy is reportedly disfigured from several facial fractures and will require multiple reconstructive surgeries to repair his shattered face.
“We heard a scream in the park. The party was almost over, and we were cleaning up. One of the children had been punched and hit with an iron rod in his face by three Roma kids,” said Luigi Pascucci, head of the Association of Magnolia Park.
The 8-year-old boy was celebrating his birthday with his friends in the park when the three siblings insulted and beat the victim, reports Italian news outlet Corriere Della Sera.
The parents of the victim were speaking with the parents of the Roma boys when the attack began. The suspects have been detained, but due to their extremely young age, they cannot be held criminally responsible.
“Nothing like this had ever happened,” said the Councilor for the Environment of the Municipality, Matteo Zocchi.
“I was the one who called the ambulance and the police,” adds Pascucci, in a long post on social media. “Given the severity of the wounds from the blows which, according to the doctors, were inflicted with inhuman violence, the little boy underwent surgery and will have to repeat many operations in the future to reconstruct his face.”
The child was discharged on Saturday morning.
Regarding the three Roma brothers, Pascucci adds that they “were recognized by the other children from the photos shown by the policemen.”
The iron bar used in the attack has also been recovered by police. Authorities are looking to see whether the parents can be charged, as they were present during the attack in the park.
At the very least, the children may be taken from the parents, with authorities starting family checks and involving social services.
However, none of that will ever repair the trauma suffered by the 8-year-old Italian boy, whose birthday party became the location of his life-changing injuries.
The residents of that area mainly reported thefts to us, but episodes of aggression like these had never occurred,” said the mayor of the III municipality, President Paolo Emilio Marchionne. “That is an area that has always been very popular where children’s parties are often organized: the association provides tables and chairs for events; there is also a vegetable garden. In short, it’s a place that is usually under control, and apart from a few small thefts, there have never been violent events.”
Meanwhile, another unbelievable explosion of violence from ethnic minorities, who have foreign status in Italy, has led to outrage from the right.
“It is unacceptable that a moment of joy like a birthday turns into an act of violence. We need zero tolerance towards such behavior and a concrete commitment to the supervision of our parks and to education in respect from a young age,” demands the group leader of the Brothers of Italy in the municipality, Manuel Bartolomeo.
Austria is facing a wave of bankruptcies, with as many as 7,000 Austrian companies facing bankruptcy by the end of the year, which would be a record.
More and more companies are going bankrupt in Austria, with the number of corporate bankruptcies expected to rise to 7,000 this year, said Ricardo-José Vybiral, head of the Austrian credit and debt collection agency KSV1870.
According to the group’s latest estimates, as reported by Hirado, 5,110 companies went bankrupt in the first three quarters of this year alone, employing a total of 15,200 employees.
According to Vybiral, trade and industry are still performing poorly, with the wave of bankruptcies affecting the same sectors as before: “retail, construction, and accommodation and catering.”
A total of 921 retailers have gone bankrupt since the beginning of the year, the agency reports, a 10 percent increase versus last year. The construction industry is in second place, and the accommodation and catering industry came in third.
According to the Kronen Zeitung, 6,587 insolvencies were registered last year, and 5,380 in 2023, and now, as Austria is in its third consecutive year of recession, 2025 may see a record 7,000 corporate bankruptcies. “We have reached a bottom in business” – the Austrian economy is weak for the third year, the recession continues
Despite some signs of economic stabilization, it has not been enough to curb the wave of bankruptcies, Hirado notes. High energy costs, high wages, U.S. tariffs, and a weak economy in Germany, Austria’s primary trading partner, are all preventing any real recovery.
In terms of consumers helping the economy, this is unlikely, as Austrians are looking to save given the surrounding uncertainties.
“We have reached a low point in business,” said Ricardo-José Vybiral, adding that the negative mood permeates the entire country, to the point that even Austria’s westernmost province, Vorarlberg, “which has always been exemplary in terms of business confidence, is now below average.”
Many bankruptcy proceedings cannot even be initiated due to a lack of funds to cover costs, the agency head continues. Some 1,800 companies in the first three quarters were forced to close their business and all their employees lost their jobs.
After a report in “Rzeczpospolita” that a house in Wyryki was damaged not by a Russian drone on Sept. 10 but by a Polish missile, Poland’s opposition has been up in arms, accusing the government of withholding information and misleading not only President Nawrocki, but all Poles. The opposition now says the incident not only reveals the government’s incompetence, but also threatens Poland’s security.
The Polish government, meanwhile, counters that if Russian drones had not flown into Poland, Polish missiles would not have been fired.
The missile was allegedly fired by a Polish F-16 while attempting to down a Russian drone. The incident lays bare the risks of war and has only increased tensions, as the need to defend Polish airspace against Russian drones resulted in damage to a Polish civilian’s home.
Polish Minister-Coordinator of Special Services Tomasz Siemoniak confirmed the report to TVN24. “Everything indicates that it was a missile fired by our plane in defense of Poland, in defense of the homeland, in defense of our citizens. And the military declared that it would cover these losses.
“The investigation is ongoing, and it’s not like everything is clear after the first hour or three hours. These drone parts are currently being examined very carefully, very thoroughly by our specialists – by the services, by experts,” he added.
According to former Minister of National Defense Mariusz Błaszczak, current Prime Minister Donald Tusk, along with ministers Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz and Radosław Sikorski, are “burying their heads in the sand and trying to shift the blame for – either intentionally or through their own incompetence – giving Putin an argument to dispute his responsibility for the drone attack,” Do Rzeczy reports.
Confederation politicians, in turn, are demanding Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s resignation.
“The worst prime minister in Polish history. He concealed the truth about the attack on the house in Wyrywki from Poles and the world. He ridiculed us on the international stage and gave fuel to Russian propaganda. And in the end, he started hiding behind soldiers of the Polish Army. Resign!” wrote Tomasz Grabarczyk on X.
Najgorszy premier w historii Polski. Zataił przed Polakami i opinią światową prawdę o uderzeniu w dom w Wyrywkach. Ośmieszył nas na arenie międzynarodowej i dał paliwo ruskiej propagandzie. A na końcu zaczął się zasłaniać żołnierzami Wojska Polskiego.
Magyar Nemzet is reporting that President Nawrocki is also furious, as Polish Deputy Foreign Minister Marcin Bosacki had used a photo of the damaged property to accuse the Russians at a meeting of the UN Security Council on Sept. 12.
Nawrocki’s office issued a statement yesterday protesting that the president had not been fully informed about the incident and accusing the government of withholding information.
“We cannot tolerate information being withheld. In times of disinformation and hybrid warfare, the information provided to Poles must be solid and verified,” the statement reads.
Poland’s defense minister, Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, has firmly rejected accusations that the government concealed information from the president and the public, saying everything was released after its authenticity was verified.
Prime Minister Donald Tusk wrote on X: “All responsibility for the damage to the house in Wyrykach falls on the authors of the drone provocation, that is, Russia. The appropriate services will inform the public, the government, and the president about all the circumstances of the incident after the proceedings are completed.”
He ended his post by writing, “Hands off Polish soldiers!”
The Polish Ministry of Foreign Affairs also posted that FM Radoslaw Sikorski told Polsat News, If someone breaks into a house, and the other person, defending themselves, breaks a vase – whose fault is it?”
Tusk also posted a message on X indicating Poles are behind their military forces despite the mishap, saying “94 percent of Poles declared their trust in the military today.”
“The military and state authorities formed a unity in the moment of trial. Poland gave the entire world an example of courage, responsibility, and national solidarity in the face of threat. Let us not allow anyone to waste this. No one!” his post read.
France is seeing a wave of extremely violent attacks on French police officers, with two incidents showcasing the risks law enforcement faces.
According to L’Union news outlet, six off-duty police officers were violently attacked by around 10 individuals while they were meeting colleagues for dinner. The incident was caught on film and shows a number of individuals surrounding and beating the officers.
The beating took place on September 13-14 in Reims.
🇫🇷🔴6 off-duty French police officers were violently lynched in the French city of Reims, by about 10 individuals.
2 arrested suspects are from Mayotte (off the coast of Africa).
The suspects knew the officers, and one had just been released from prison 4 days ago.
Prosecutor François Schneider described the attack as a “lynching.” Two suspects, aged 26 and 27 and originally from Mayotte, an island off the coast of Africa in the Indian Ocean, were arrested on Sept. 15 and will be charged.
Prosecutors allege that the perpetrators knew who they were attacking and were purposefully targeting police officers. The officers’ injuries range from 4 to 28 days of temporary incapacity for work, including a broken ankle, a fractured nose, and blows inflicted with a belt buckle.
The two suspects, already known to the courts, are repeat offenders for violence. One of them had just been released from prison four days earlier. The prosecutor’s office has requested their pretrial detention.
The UN1TÉ union described the area of Reims, known as Promenades, as a “lawless zone” and “cut-throat” at night. The police union is demanding more staff. The National Police Alliance calls for an “exemplary and swift” conviction.
Officer left disfigured
In a separate attack, a French anti-crime officer was left disfigured. During this incident, the lone officer was surrounded by a pack that relentlessly beat him. A number of suspects have since been arrested, all French citizens: Islam S., Sofiane B., Gebril S., Aissa S., and Khadija S.
The beating was so brutal that the country’s interior minister was forced to issue a statement.
🇫🇷🚨A French anti-crime officer was beaten savagely by a group of thugs in the French city of Tourcoing.
Spectators watched on and filmed the brutal assault.
He suffered severe injuries and remains hospitalized.
Two of the teenagers are in pre-trial detention, while three others are under judicial supervision. They have also been banned from public roads without proper legal authority between 7:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m.
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu has also contacted the officer, stating he offered “his full support.”
The beating took place on Sept. 11 in Tourcoing, according to CNEWS.
The officer, who serves as an anti-crime squad officer (BAC), suffered a broken nose during the beating. He had intervened on Thursday afternoon during a “scooter theft.”
According to police, the case “involved blackmail, harassment of a kid, a poor kid, who was subjected to terror by a small gang,” said outgoing Minister of Justice Gérald Darmanin.
In other words, the officer was trying to help a youth being targeted by a gang.
Darmanin said that the officer suffered a broken “nasal septum for which he will probably have surgery.”
These are not isolated incidents, as violent acts against French police had already doubled over the last two decades, according to data from 2021.
In a recent interview, Polish-American model and TV personality Joanna Krupa stated her belief that Poland is obviously a much safer country than the United States.
Krupa, who is well-known in Poland for her work on “Top Model” and her animal welfare advocacy, has lived in the U.S. since the age of five.
However, she told Polish outlet Plotek.pl in a piece published today that crime is getting worse and worse in the United States.
“Unfortunately, it’s actually getting worse. I hope it gets better somehow, because in Poland, as a mother, I see the difference that it’s very safe here compared to the States. Obviously, nowhere is perfect, but I think Poland is a country where they really care about safety. And in the States, I think it’s common for someone to go to jail and then they release them.”
Krupa then pointed to the brutal murder of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska by Black male career criminal DeCarlos Brown, who stabbed her to death on a train near Charlotte, North Carolina. The man had 14 criminal convictions but was released on no-cash bail.
Charlie Kirk's last video cannot be embedded, implying it has now been censored on the X platform.
While discussing murdered Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska, he notes that the racial double-standard involved. https://t.co/QEWte06voc
“Like recently with that girl [Iryna Zarutska] who was unfortunately killed on the train… For me, it’s shocking, for me, it’s something incredible that things like this are happening. I think it has to change,” she admitted in an interview with Plotek, adding that she feels safer in Poland.
For those are saying, "Let's not make it about race," the footage tells us another story.
Decarlos Brown Jr. is heard saying, “I got that White girl,” after the killing of Ukrainian refugee Iryna Zarutska in Charlotte.pic.twitter.com/nf0HJCB5Yb
Zarutska’s death has sparked global news coverage, but her death is symptomatic of the incredible crime problem facing Americans, including Black-on-White crime. The issue has prompted commentary from European politicians, including MEP Tomasz Froelich, of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.
“Black people make up 13% of the population in the USA but account for 56% of murderers. Their homicide rate is 6-8 times higher than that of Whites. For every three Black people killed by Whites, seven Whites are killed by Blacks—despite there being almost five times as many Whites as Blacks in the USA. Now, 23-year-old Ukrainian Iryna Zarutska was brutally stabbed to death by a repeatedly convicted Black man in Charlotte, North Carolina,” Froelich wrote on X.
🇺🇸🇺🇦 This is Iryna Zarutska, which shows her life before she was murdered, in a video made by her friends in her memory.
She had hopes, dreams and aspirations – all cut brutally short by a career criminal on a train in Charlotte, NC.
However, Krupa is not taking any chances with her own safety or the safety of her children.
To protect herself in the U.S., Krupa says she has “cameras, I have an alarm, everything to protect myself.” She added that she avoids wearing expensive jewelry when she goes out, explaining, “Now you never know who’s going to approach you if you’re wearing expensive clothes.”
During the interview, she was also asked what she misses from the United States when she comes to Poland. Apparently, there is not much she is missing.
“There really isn’t that much difference between Poland and the States, because in Poland we have everything. The only thing that’s worse for me is that when I leave the States, if I’m going to Poland for a long time, I miss my daughter because it’s very hard for me to leave without her. And when she’s here, I don’t really miss anything,” she said.
However, even in countries like neighboring Germany, Poles are getting tired of dealing with crime and growing chaos in the schools and cities, and are opting to return to Poland in large numbers.
The conversation between the two, caught on camera, came following the hours-long rape of a young Polish man by a migrant inside a Munich metro station, which became international news.
In relation to big cities, Berlin was rated as having 10 times more crime than Warsaw, and a travel advisory was even issued to Polish travelers about the crime issues facing Germany in 2023.
However, the crime rate in many U.S. cities is astronomically high, whereas in cities like Berlin, crime remains high in comparison to countries like Poland and Hungary, but still does not compare to the U.S. in most cases.
Earlier this week, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán took flak for misquoting some figures related to migrant crime in Sweden. Specifically, he had posted that “over 280 underage girls arrested for murder,” when in fact very few were charged with that actual offense, albeit they were arrested for other violent crimes.
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson was quick to repost Orbán’s tweet, slamming him for “outrageous lies.”
Unfortunately, despite a slight error on Orbán’s part, the ensuing debate between numerous parties has led to only one thing: further exposing just how bad the situation on the ground in Sweden is.
First off, let’s just discuss why teenage girls are even being arrested in the first place. This is due to migrant gangs (clan gangs) purposely using minors, both girls and boys, for their dirty work, as those under 15 cannot be held criminally liable, and those between 15 and 17 will face lesser punitive measures.
Orbán may, in fact, have gotten his figure of 280 straight from a CBS News report of all places. Earlier this month, Sept. 5, CBS reported on the use of teenage girls by Swedish organized crime groups. “Some 280 girls aged between 15 and 17 were charged with murder, manslaughter or other violent crimes last year — though it is unclear how many were linked to organized crime,” the report states.
Stockholm prosecutor Ida Arnell is quoted as having told AFP that girls “have to show that they are even more determined and tougher (than boys) to get the job,” but more and more are signing up willingly.
The situation surrounding crime, and specifically migrant crime, is not news. Five years ago, Remix News reported on a Swedish police chief warning that migrant clans were coming to Sweden to grab power and commit crimes. And we have been reporting on the issue ever since. Like here, and here, and here, and here. Then there’s the fact that three out of four murders in Sweden are not committed by migrants, and here’s a gem.
In fact, the problem has escalated to such an extent that Sweden announced in April it would pay up to €55,000 to migrant families willing to return back to their country of origin. On the back of a surge in homicides and increasingly brazen criminal activity, the Swedish government has framed its remigration policy as a response to the decline in social cohesion and the failure of decades of integration efforts. Still, some on the left apparently have no clue.
So why is Sweden’s prime minister calling out a slight misquote by a fellow EU leader, all while calling him “desperate,” leaves one scratching one’s head. The situation in Sweden is bad, and now many more people are clear on that.
As to Orbán, he had his own take on the matter.
“We feel for the Swedish people – trapped in disorder while their leaders spend their time pointing fingers,” he commented on a repost of Kristersson’s tweet.
The Hungarian prime minister then laid out the facts: “Hungary: 0 bombings, 0 illegal migrants, 132 people smugglers caught, 16,000 illegal migrants apprehended in 2024 alone. Safe, orderly, under control.
“Sweden: 317 gang-related explosions in 2024, 32 this January, 62,000 linked to criminal networks, 8,935 illegal migrants, gun homicide rate 4 per million vs. 1.6 EU avg.”
We feel for the Swedish people – trapped in disorder while their leaders spend their time pointing fingers.
Let’s have a look at the facts:
🇭🇺 Hungary: 0 bombings, 0 illegal migrants, 132 people smugglers caught, 16,000 illegal migrants apprehended in 2024 alone. Safe,… pic.twitter.com/mbEeM0KAzt
One final note for Sweden’s PM: If any number of minor girls have been arrested for any crime, and certainly if that number is in the hundreds and in fact pertains to violent crimes, perhaps it is best not to try to defend that, in any way.
It is fair to correct the record on Orbán’s quote, but then to scream about rule of law in Hungary while ignoring a spiraling crime crisis in your own nation, reeks of desperation and an attempt to distract from domestic issues.
Wizz Air has announced that it will completely withdraw from Vienna by March 2026 due to high airport fees and taxes in the Austrian capital.
For similar reasons, Ryanair, Wizz Air’s main rival, may also reduce its flights to Vienna, with CEO Michael O’Leary urging the government to reduce costs. Otherwise, he said more companies may withdraw, Mandiner reports based on an article out of Die Presse.
Given this news, Austrian Airlines is looking at routes it could take over, but the airline’s CEO, Annette Mann, is also complaining about rising costs in Austria. She noted that Budapest does not have, for example, an airline tax, making it more competitive for airlines in the region.
Overall, Die Presse notes that rising costs are becoming an issue for companies not just in the airline business but other sectors as well.
Meanwhile, in Hungary, air transport, for both cargo and passengers, is booming. Remix News reported in June, tourism has been on a strong rebound since the end of Covid, and now Budapest may need an entirely new airport for its freight traffic due to the increase in tourists at the capital’s Liszt Ferenc International Airport.
Meanwhile, Hungarian-based Wizz Air is trying to make its own comeback.
In August, CEO József Váradi gave himself two years to turn the airline around after the cancellation of its Middle East expansion and various engine problems with its aircraft. The company’s shares had fallen sharply over these concerns. Váradi said he plans to focus on the Central and Eastern European market and avoid further risky expansions.
Váradi has maintained that there is room for both Wizz Air and Ryanair, its low-cost competitor.
At the time, the CEO ruled out the possibility of an acquisition or partnership, emphasizing the importance of independence and simplifying operations.
According to Marta Kos, European Union Commissioner for Enlargement, the screening phase of Ukraine’s and Moldova’s EU accession process is almost complete.
However, of course, there is still that pesky Hungarian veto the EU must find a solution to, at least regarding Ukraine’s accession.
Kos, echoing sentiments expressed by Denmark’s Minister for European Affairs Marie Bjerre, assured the press that they will “proceed with the technical aspects,” even if the EU Council does not give its political approval, reports Magyar Nemzet.
Previously, Bjerre stated: “We are still trying to find a solution to get Hungary to give up its veto. If that doesn’t work, we are ready to consider all political and practical means to succeed [in opening negotiations], because our security is at stake.”
Readers should note that Denmark is the current president of the European Union, and it has made it clear that starting accession negotiations with Ukraine is a top priority of its presidency. As noted above by Bjerre, they are directly linking it to the security of the entire EU.
Denmark is not alone. Lithuania has actually presented a way to get around Hungary’s veto by simply starting negotiations without it. Although it is unclear as to how this would work, European Council President António Costa also believes that negotiations on Ukraine’s accession to the EU should continue, despite Hungary’s veto.
A unanimous vote is required for negotiations to begin, so, again, it is not clear what the parties who seek to do otherwise have in mind. Then again, perhaps ECB chief Christine Lagarde has the answer.
According to the head of the European Central Bank, the unanimity principle that the EU follows should be tossed altogether. But would it be that simple?
Back in July, the New Union Post specifically addressed these sticky accession talks, namely, Hungarian PM Orbán’s committed veto. According to experts they spoke with, the Treaties would not need to be amended to shift from the now-followed unanimous voting to qualified majority rule; at least it could potentially be dropped at some of the stages of the accession process.
The real issue, however, is a lack of “political will.”
“The real question is whether there is enough political will within the Council. Orbán’s Hungary is little more than a fig leaf for the deeper reluctance of many other member states to give up their veto power,” they wrote.
According to Lagarde, speaking in Paris this past Monday, “Europe should extend qualified majority voting.”
“This is how decisions are taken at the ECB – and it works,” she said at the 25th anniversary of Institut Montaigne. Lagarde was addressing various efforts at making the EU economy and the euro more competitive being “hindered by indecision.” She has been specifically behind the push for a digital euro.
Further elaborating and pushing back against claims that switching to qualified majority voting would be undemocratic, the ECB head said, “It is not a weakening of democracy. It is the only way to exercise it fully: by pooling our resources and our capacity to achieve the required scale in these strategic fields, we give citizens back their ability to shape events, and Europe its independence in a world of rival powers, where size and the scale effect are critical.”
Not everyone agrees, with a harsh counterstatement coming from Harald Vilimsky, head of the Freedom Party delegation in the European Parliament.
“This call for the undermining of democracy must be firmly rejected. A weakening of the unanimity principle must not be up for debate,” Express reports Vilimsky as saying.
“Ms. Lagarde would be well advised to concentrate on her core task at the ECB – there is certainly plenty to do there – instead of depriving the people of Europe of their democratic rights.”
In a post on X, Vilimsky was more pointed: “The system wants to make the states totally totalitarian once and for all. Only we patriots stand for sovereignty and freedom.”
By unanimous decision, the Party of European Socialists (PES) in the European Parliament will permanently exclude Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico’s party, Smer.
The move had been rumored by various outlets, and now Politico is reporting that the vote actually took place last Thursday, with PES highlighting its inability to tolerate Fico’s continued dealings with both Russia and China.
Fico, notably, has pursued a pro-peace policy in relation to the war in Ukraine, calling an end to the bloodshed and an immediate ceasefire.
PES has made it clear that Smer is no longer aligned with the left’s core values and accuses Fico’s government of “consistently undermining the rule of law,” writes Mandiner. Fico’s party had already been suspended once back in October 2023 after Smer formed a government with the Slovak National Party (SNS).
Smer’s five MEPs will now either continue their work in the European Parliament as independents or try to join another parliamentary group.
There has been no official confirmation from either PES or Smer.
Lucia Yar, MEP from the strongest Slovak opposition party, Progressive Slovakia, told Euractiv, “Fico cooperates not only with nationalists, but also with Putin, Xi Jinping and other authoritarian leaders.” She also predicts that such pressure “will open the eyes of many voters.”
Notably, such rhetoric nearly resulted in Fico’s death, with the assassin shooting the Slovak prime minister multiple times last year. He was allegedly angered over Fico’s stance on the war in Ukraine, with that anger fueled by the extreme rhetoric being directed at the Slovak leader.
Anton Spisak, an analyst at the Centre for European Reform, told the same portal that “this decision was long overdue.” However, he believes its impact will be limited. His “exclusion is unlikely to have a serious domestic impact, as Fico has consciously positioned himself as an opposition to the EU mainstream, so his supporters do not feel the move is a threat,” Spisak said.
Just last week, as Mandiner reminded its readers, Manfred Weber, leader of the European People’s Party (EPP), called Fico a “fool” and struck out at Hungarian PM Orbán as well during an EP session.
“We cannot allow Orbán and that fool Fico to turn the European Union into a crazy organization,” he stated.
An African migrant, from Eritrea, committed an incredible number of crimes in a short period of time, perpetrating at least 46 crimes in just 13 months in Switzerland. The number and range of crimes is shocking, with the man routinely showing his penis to women on trains, committing thefts, and sexually assaulting at least one woman in Frauenfeld.
The man has been sentenced to three years in prison and ordered to be deported, with a ban on Swiss territory for 10 years. Whether they actually manage to deport him, or just shift him to another European country, remains to be seen. In 10 years, he may return to Switzerland.
He robbed from many different cities, committing thefts in St. Gallen, Thurgau and Zurich. In addition, he was known for his routine and bizarre acts of exhibition, exposing his penis to women on trains and even in a flower shop.
In one incident, he seriously sexually assaulted a woman in Frauenfeld, jumping on her at night, groping her, and sexually harassing her. It was only a matter of luck that the victim was able to wriggle free from the African and escape.
During his trial, the St. Galler Tagblatt reported that the defendant appeared to have no remorse or even any insight as to why he was in court. He dragged the court process on with interjections, although he spoke little German and had to have all his statements translated.
The man routinely asked for the court to repeat what had just been said, even though he appeared to be mentally absent from most of the proceedings.
Judge Daniel Geeler screamed during the proceedings, “You’d better listen!”
The man’s criminal convictions were 23 pages long, and the court case featured witness statements, videos, and even the occasional confession from the suspect regarding at least some of the crimes.
Although he was accused of 46 separate offenses, the court convicted him on only 31 counts, including sexual assault, theft, sexual harassment, and trespassing.
The African showed no remorse in court. He will also have to pay 50,000 Swiss Francs as restitution; however, it is unclear how he will ever obtain any such sum of money besides through taxpayer-funded welfare.
The Swiss judge, Geeler, seemed to be shocked by the man’s crime spree.
“The accused has an incredible 31 convictions, this court of law has never seen this before,” the judge said during the trial.
Now, Swiss media is using the case to showcase that “hardly any perpetrator in the region has accumulated such a criminal record in such a short period of time.”
Despite claims that “diversity is our strength,” cases like this are far from rare. One Lebanese migrant in Germany had over 100 active investigations for his various crimes, including stalking children on playgrounds in Zetel.
Recent news of California rolling out a far more generous tax refund for film and TV productions had many wondering: Will this be a significant drain on studios choosing to film in Hungary?
In recent years, Budapest has become so popular for film productions that it has been dubbed “Hollywood on the Danube,” so concerns were justified when this news from the Golden State hit.
And the state has made a significant move to lure productions back home. Starting this past July, California is allocating $750 million (up from $330 million) to its Film & Television Tax Credit Program, known as Program 4.0.
What exactly will this mean? For starters, eligible projects can now include animated films and short-format TV shows. Plus, the credit is now a 35%-40 percent refundable incentive.
By the way. California is not simply looking to keep productions from Hungary. It is seeking to up the ante against various locations around the world, as well as other states in the U.S.
Still, on the ground here in Hungary, people were abuzz with what this could mean for the sector here in Budapest. As Budapest Reporter noted, “Every big-budget series or feature filmed here delivers more than jobs for Hungarian crews. It fills hotels and restaurants, sustains construction and costume workshops, and boosts tax revenues.”
In other words, movie-making is a big part of the Hungarian economy, beyond the studio.
So what does an actual studio have to say about the development?
Remix News reached out to Origo Studios and Korda Studios for comment.
While we received no response from Korda, Origo had plenty to say and is clearly on top of the matter.
“California’s new incentive expansion is focused primarily on television productions. We expect that this will accelerate the trend of some U.S. series returning home, especially recurring shows where predictability and long-term planning are critical,” Origo’s head of marketing, Mihály Tóth told me.
Nevertheless, he maintained that Origo believes Hungary will remain “one of the most competitive filming destinations for feature films and international streaming projects.”
This is because Hungary has far more to offer than its popular 30 percent rebate system. Although Tóth concedes this “has been the cornerstone of our success,” there are other attributes in Hungary, and specifically at Origo that draw productions.
“Origo Studios is ranked among the top eight studio complexes worldwide,” he notes, adding, “We are proud to work with highly experienced local crews, including Academy Award winners such as Zsuzsi Sipos and Zsuzsa Mihalek, whose work in art departments has been internationally recognized.”
Then you have the factor of security, i.e., the safety enjoyed here in Hungary. “Actors like Tom Hanks have praised Budapest as one of the safest cities they have filmed in. During COVID-19, Hungary built a reputation for strict medical protocols, on-site facilities, and reliable safety measures, all of which reassured productions at a critical moment,” he tells me.
“These factors — safety, security, professionalism, and infrastructure — remain decisive advantages for producers choosing Hungary today.”
The smooth operation of Hungary’s rebate framework itself is also key to its competitiveness.
“The National Film Institute’s transparent and dependable registration process has been the bedrock of producers’ confidence over the past two decades,” Tóth emphasizes.
NFI processes applications, assesses eligibility based on cultural test criteria, and issues tax certificates for eligible productions. Being a reliable partner to studios from around the world is critical, as productions must have as few delays as possible.
This is yet another reason Hungary has achieved its status “as a global leader in film production.”
People also highlight that overall costs should still come in far lower in Hungary, not to mention the country, and specifically Budapest, offers an amazing array of diverse architecture and cityscapes to mimic other capitals.
And then there is production speed, with Budapest Reporter noting: “Faster permitting and less union complexity mean a shorter path from prep to wrap.”
Only time will tell if Hungary experiences any impact from California’s new plan, but the CEO of Origo Film Group, Dr. Márta Fekszi Horváth, summed up where Hungary stands best.
A Senegalese man and his “second” wife are on trial in Orléans for the murder of the “first” wife, a 31-year-old French woman, a case highlighting themes of polygamy, religious control, and domestic violence.
The victim, Clothilde Ba, died in August 2022 from blows to the face and head, dying a few hours later after the assault at Montargis urban hospital. She was pregnant, and her unborn baby girl also could not be saved. The two co-accused, Sileye Ba, 38, Clothilde’s ex-husband, and Dieynaba Kande, 34, his “second” wife, each face life imprisonment and are blaming each other for the fatal blows, according to French news outlet Le Parisien.
The tragic story began with a love affair. Clothilde, an atheist communications student, met Sileye, a cameraman, during an internship in Dakar in 2015. They secretly married, but when they returned to France, Clothilde’s father, Didier Ghiti, noticed a change in his daughter.
“When she returned from Senegal with the man who became her husband, we lived under the same roof, and I realized she was no longer the Clothilde I knew,” he said.
The Senegalese migrant, Sileye Ba, is a member of the Baye Fall movement, a branch of Islam that practices strict gender roles.
According to the young woman’s father, “Clothilde was searching for spirituality, and this man probably provided her with some answers. The influence began like that.”
As neither his daughter nor the new husband worked, Didier Ghiti supported them financially until he found the living situation “unbearable” and “ended up kicking them out.”
The couple, who by then had one child, found refuge in a shelter before securing an apartment in Montargis. In 2018, Sileye’s “second” wife, Dieynaba, joined them under the guise of being a cousin on an au pair contract. This created a “strange ménage à trois” that lasted for four years.
Neighbors observed Dieynaba monitoring Clothilde’s every move, who now appeared veiled and had cut off contact with her family and friends. Clothilde gave birth to a second and third child in 2019 and 2020.
The household’s financial stability relied on social assistance and the support of Clothilde’s mother, Sylvie Ghiti, who moved in with them after leaving her husband. Sylvie, who suffered from schizophrenia, converted to Islam and became increasingly devoted to Sileye, whom she called “baba” or “my guide.”
Her ex-husband, Didier, reported Sileye for abuse. Sylvie’s devotion soon turned to disillusionment as she “helplessly witnessed scenes of psychological and physical violence against her daughter.”
She documented this in messages on her phone. To maintain control, Sileye accused Clothilde of having affairs, using it as a justification to install surveillance cameras in the home.
The extreme coercive control led Sylvie to leave in late 2021. She lived in her car for months, cut off from her daughter and grandchildren. In May 2022, she committed suicide. A few days before her death, she wrote to her son-in-law, “Your God has destroyed me and you too.”
That same spring, social services received warnings about the living conditions and potential violence in the home. An assessment was launched, but Clothilde “kept smiling, found answers to everything, and avoided further appointments.”
She fabricated an assault to explain a black eye and never incriminated her husband or Dieynaba.
However, an autopsy revealed multiple injuries and bruises all over Clothilde’s body, including her genitals. As lawyer Pauline Rongier, representing several civil parties, stated, “This trial must also serve to retrace and understand the humiliations and mistreatment suffered by Clothilde.”
The court will now determine the responsibility of Sileye and Dieynaba for the fatal night of August 2-3, 2022.
A 50-year-old man is facing potential attempted murder charges for defending his own life after a home invasion in the French city of Saint-Dié.
During the incident, five individuals smashed a window of the man’s home and entered.
When an intruder lunged at the man, the homeowner said he awakened, and in a panic, grabbed a knife and stabbed one of them in the chest. “I was in a panic. I grabbed what I had at hand. It was a gesture of self-defense,” he said to French media outlet Voges Matin.
The five attackers have all been arrested and will stand trial in February 2026.
So far, not many details of the incident have been released, including the first names or nationalities of anyone involved.
The question is now being raised about how far homeowners can go in defending themselves, especially in situations where they are startled awake and are vastly outnumbered by suspects inside their home in the middle of the night.
The fact that the prosecutor is even considering charging the man shows just how drastically different self-defense rules are between Europe and the United States.
In a video interview with news portal La Bonne Droite, Cédric Gallineau recounts that the incident began when he awoke one night and heard muffled sounds in his garage. After telling his wife to call the police, Gallineau, who is a collector of medieval swords, marched to select the appropriate longsword from his collection.
He then charged into his garage, where he stores a luxury car, and proceeded to swing his sword at the group of burglars. The men appeared to be shocked to learn they had entered the home of a bearded swordsman.
“As they came out, I would tap them,” Cédric said, using sword-fighting skills he had picked up over time.
During the video interview, he almost seemed disappointed by his foes’ lack of ability to counter his longsword attacks.
“They were pushing each other, it was chaos,” Cédric said.
Cédric was never charged in the incident, but police also never identified the suspects, and it remains unclear if any of them suffered any serious injuries.
Assistant to U.S. President Donald Trump and Special Presidential Envoy for Ukraine Keith Kellogg had a lot to say on Russia’s famed might and those recent drone incursions into NATO airspace.
Claiming 19 incursions cannot be an accident, Trump’s envoy said Vladimir Putin “is acting purposefully, he’s sending a signal, and he wants to hear a response,” reports Ukrainska Pravda.
“Ukraine will not lose this war. Ukrainians have a moral superiority over Russia, that’s obvious,” Kellogg also noted, specifically praising Ukraine’s advanced drone production capabilities.
As to Russia, he said during the interview at the YES Annual Meeting 2025, “They talk a big game,” adding that Putin often likes to tout that Russia is a nuclear power, but other Western powers have nuclear weapons too.
On the topic of Russian superiority, “We’d kick their ass (…) They’re not as good as Putin says they are.” He also credits Ukraine with helping curb Moscow’s military might.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen. Dan Caine also confirmed to U.S. President Trump that Russia is “not winning” the war, according to Kellog.
“If he was winning, he’d be in Kyiv,” Kellog added, again giving credit to Ukraine for slashing Russia’s military power.
Poting on X, Kellog said, “The vision of our country is to see a halt to the death and destruction and restore peace and stability in Europe. Promoting peace over endless wars and proxy conflicts abroad is a defining feature of the America First leadership of President Donald J. Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio.”
Honored to speak at the Yalta European Security Conference this week in Kyiv alongside the European National Security Advisors to deliver an America First perspective on bringing this war to an end. The vision of our country is to see a halt to the death and destruction and… pic.twitter.com/GGEXxxmQrr
Kellogg also spoke about Russia’s total dependence on China.
“Russia has now become China’s junior partner. At present, we can say that China has both an economic advantage over Russia and a military advantage, and even historically. I will say more – if China completely cut off its aid to Russia, – this war would end tomorrow,” Kellogg claims.
Urging more aggressive action, including further sanctions, against Putin, Trump’s envoy maintained that Russia does not have “the capacity that they had that they could march towards Berlin or anywhere else.”
Polish Energy Group (PGE) warns that electricity prices in 2026 may soar to levels not seen in years.
The company has come out saying that prices are expected to breach PLN 500 (€118) per megawatt-hour.
A bill to freeze electricity prices at the current level of PLN 500 per MWh until the end of 2025 was adopted by the Standing Committee of the Council of Ministers. Prepared by the Ministry of Energy, the bill includes a district heating voucher.
In recent years, government tax-funded energy protection mechanisms have effectively kept household energy prices at a certain level, as Do Rzeczy reports, but this is now coming to an end, with the government under Donald Tusk planning to let prices go higher in 2026.
For millions of Poles, electricity could become a key burden on their household budgets, with the final price of electricity itself influenced by other, increasingly important factors.
PGE already estimates the so-called profile and balancing costs at approximately PLN 100/MWh. These are fees for maintaining system stability—for ensuring that electricity is always available when needed, regardless of the time of day or weather.
These costs may also rise, further increasing the final invoice rate. In practice, the projected increase means that the average family will spend several hundred zlotys more per year.
Energy Minister Miłosz Motyka did also announce a heating voucher for the lowest-income households that use district heating. This will cover approximately 400,000 households and help mitigate the effects of rising heating costs.
Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto had some sobering remarks on Monday. Speaking to press at the conclusion of a round-the-world voyage of the Italian Navy’s training ship Amerigo Vespucci, he flatly pointed out that Italy was in no way prepared for war.
“We are not ready for any military attack, neither by Russia nor by any other country,” Crosetto said on Monday, urging an international peace plan to end the war in Ukraine as soon as possible.
Despite people not necessarily wanting to hear about the need for any military intervention, Crosetto said that “our task is to create the conditions for our country to defend itself against a possible attack,” reports Hirado.
He also clarified that this does not pertain only to Russia, but any potential aggressor.
“We are not ready for a Russian attack, nor for an attack by any other country. We are not capable because we have not spent on defense in the last 20 years,” he said, emphasizing that Italy cannot catch up in just one or two years.
Italy is participating in NATO’s Eastern Sentinel defense operation with the largest contingent, 2,000 soldiers, as well as F-35 attack helicopters and Eurofighter jets.
Crosetto indicated that Italy is prepared to do more as a part of this exercise, but this requires an official invitation from NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte.
“The international situation is expected to worsen with the current way of handling crises. I hope that in the coming weeks the international community will move to accelerated action, because there is no time to waste: The current situation, if nothing changes, will worsen, with dramatic consequences for all of us,” he said.
“We have a duty to do everything we can to reverse the course which, I believe, is currently leading unstoppably and increasingly rapidly towards an abyss,” said Crosetto.
In yet another senseless act of violence, a Moroccan migrant has been arrested for severely beating an elderly German woman for no apparent reason in the German city of Dortmund. The 35-year-old man is accused of cowardly coming from behind and launching the attack against the 78-year-old woman, which left her with a traumatic brain injury.
The attack occurred on Saturday at 4:26 p.m. on Hagener Street near the Dortmund Zoo. Witnesses report the Moroccan man jumped on the woman’s back from behind and kicked her hard in the back. They say the man did this without warning, and there was no reason or previous communication between the two parties.
According to Bild newspaper, the woman fell to the ground, prompting witnesses to rush to her aid. The police and emergency services were immediately contacted, and an emergency doctor treated the woman on site.
The woman was transported to the hospital with a traumatic brain injury.
His daughter was murdered by an illegal Palestinian migrant, stabbed 38 times, along with her boyfriend.
17-year-old Ann-Marie is gone, but her father won't let her memory die. He delivered a message to Olaf Scholz's face:
A police manhunt led to the perpetrator being quickly arrested just a short distance from the scene.
The police said there was no motive for the attack.
There was another attack in the area shortly before the elderly woman was beaten, near Rombergpark. Police believe the Moroccan man may have also been responsible for that attack and are investigating whether there is a connection.
Moroccan men are considered to have the highest violent crime rates in Germany, according to police data. They have a rate of 3,388 suspects in the category of violent crime per 100,000. In contrast, for 100,000 German men, 272 were suspected of a violent offense.
This data was obtained from the Police Criminal Statistics (PKS) 2024, which shows data for the so-called “suspect exposure number” (TVBZ) with regard to the age, gender and origin of suspects. This data describes how many suspects there were per 100,000 inhabitants of a certain group per crime, such as assault, based on criteria such as gender and foreign status, for specific years.
🇩🇪 Germans will "perish" due to mass immigration, says German-Turkish TikToker "Based Girl 2.0."
"You wanted diversity, you have diversity."
"Call me whatever you want, I don't care. But this diversity will eventually drag you to the ground."
Elderly victims have also been a common target in Germany, including in murders, assaults, rapes, and robberies.
The issue is not only common in Germany, but also in other countries with large migrant populations, such as France, where the elderly have also been victimized in countless murders, assaults, rapes, and home invasions.
🇩🇪🔴 A young German teen ponders what Germany would be like if Merkel had not welcomed over 1 million migrants.
She was only 4 when the former chancellor made her decision, but life has dramatically changed.
Another outrageous honor-related killing attempt has emerged in Germany, this time in the Lower Saxony city of Cuxhaven. The case involved a Syrian father who commissioned his son to kill the father’s 19-year-old daughter — who was also the sister of the son.
“I locked all the doors. And I was afraid he’d come and do something to us,” said the 17-year-old son who was ordered to kill his sister, while speaking to police.
Bild newspaper reports that the 17-year-old son courageously defied his father after he ordered the boy to kill his sister because she had violated the family’s honor.
She had saved a boy’s phone number on her phone, which was supposed to merit a death sentence.
“He looked at me with a cold stare. No smile, nothing,” the brother said. “Then he said, ‘You have to kill her. Make it look like an accident, like a fight. No one must know that she insulted my honor.’”
The teenager went to the police with the information, saying it was clear he would never take his sister’s life.
“It deserves the highest recognition that a young person in such a difficult and stressful situation finds the courage to turn to the police and thus also to stand up against his own father,” says Stephan Hartmann, head of the 1st Specialized Department of the Cuxhaven Police Department.
The male suspect, 46-year-old Ali, fled to Germany with his wife and eight children in 2019 and lived on state benefits in a large apartment. However, the media reports indicate that the family lived under a very strict upbringing mandated by the father, who regularly beat his daughters and watched their every move. He forbade them from contacting other boys.
Now, the daughter has also spoken out to Bild, saying: “For five years, my father has been beating us daughters. We are not allowed to speak to boys or have contact with them.”
As a part of their strict regime, they are not allowed to even take photos of themselves or have any part of their body in a photo.
“Once I took one of an ice cream that also had my hand on it. I had to delete it immediately,” she told Bild.
The man is now facing attempted murder charges and remains in custody.
The man is known to the police for other offenses, including a previous assault, which resulted in him being banned from his own apartment for 14 days.
The father repeatedly told the daughters over the years that he wanted to “live in a country where people applaud him when he kills his daughter—not in a country where he goes to prison for it.”
This is far from the only honor killing in Germany, with numbers soaring since the border was opened in 2015. Since then, a number of high-profile cases have emerged, including within families where the siblings were accomplices to murders.
Last year, a Somali migrant stood trial in Germany accused of stabbing his sister to death with a kitchen knife on her 23rd birthday to restore her honor after disagreeing with her assimilation in Western society.
The prosecution also submitted evidence of two handwritten notes found during a search of the defendant’s home after the arrest in which he wrote, “My sister is trying to be a slut” and “I can live without a future but not without honor.”
In the first major state elections since the new government, North Rhine-Westphalia went to the polls, with the Christian Democrats (CDU) coming out on top while the Social Democrats (SPD) crashed in support. Meanwhile, the Alternative for Germany (AfD) is now the third-strongest party in the state, more than tripling its support from the last elections.
The state, which has 14 million eligible voters, served as a major litmus test for the new government. The CDU was the clear winner, earning 33 percent of the vote, compared to its 2020 total of 34.2 percent.
The AfD was seen as growing its support substantially, jumping to 14.5 percent of the vote, a clear jump from 5.1 percent in the last elections. However, the party actually received a higher share of the vote during the federal elections, meaning support for the party appears to be stagnating.
Nevertheless, the establishment views the AfD results as a worrying sign.
“This result should give us pause and cannot let us sleep peacefully,” said North Rhine-Westphalia Minister-President Hendrik Wüst, of the CDU, to the “Report from Berlin.”
The left-wing SPD was seen as one of the big losers, falling to 22 percent in what was once considered one of its heartlands. In 1994, the party received 42 percent of the vote.
The far-left Green Party also sunk dramatically, going from 20 percent to 13.4 percent.
The local elections could have implications for the federal coalition between the CDU and SPD. With the SPD losing votes, it could turn more sharply against the CDU, with the two parties already sharply clashing over judicial appointments.
The votes were for thousands of candidates, including those running for district councilor, mayor, districting administrators, and other positions.
However, a looming crisis has to do with the fact that a majority of municipalities are on the verge of bankruptcy. Only 16 out of 427 were able to put forward balanced budgets in 2024.
A number of run-off votes will also be taking place on Sept. 28. The CDU and SPD are combining forces to block AfD candidates. For the first time, the AfD will be in mayoral run-offs, including Norbert Emmerich in Gelsenkirchen, who scored 29.8 percent of the vote. However, he is far behind the SPD opponent, Andrea Henze, who received 37.1 percent of the votes.
In many of the other races, the AfD candidate appears to have little chance of victory.
NRW woes
Unemployment is growing in the German state, with 800,000 jobless reported in August. Bankruptcies are also growing, jumping to 3,190 in the first half of 2025, a 17.2 percent increase.
The AfD is still celebrating its results. Party co-leader Alice Weidel celebrated on X, writing it was a “great success.” However, the actual totals for the AfD turned out to be slightly less than exit polls initially predicted.
Ein riesiger Erfolg: Nach ersten Prognosen hat sich das Ergebnis der AfD in NRW verdreifacht. Herzlichen Dank an alle Wahlkämpfer und an unsere Wähler! pic.twitter.com/5eim5eDxfP
The AfD, however, continues to grow in strength in the east of the country. Furthermore, new polls show the party hitting close to 20 percent in Bavaria.
The party will still need to boost its support to close to 20 percent in North Rhine-Westphalia and other Western states if it ever hopes to secure the support of 30 percent of voters nationwide, one of its key goals. If it ever manages to secure such a voting share, it would make forming coalitions without the party at the federal level nearly impossible.
