Skip next section Germany convicts man of spying for Moroccan secret service
09/01/2025September 1, 2025
Germany convicts man of spying for Moroccan secret service
A German court convicted a Moroccan man for spying for a Moroccan secret service.
The higher regional court in Düsseldorf handed the man an 18-month suspended sentence. It said he “had been working for the Moroccan secret service DGED since at least January 2022.”
He is found guilty of spying on members of the Hirak movement, a Moroccan opposition protest group. The court said the defendant, named only as Youssef El A. as per Germany’s privacy rules, had previously been a supporter of the movement.
The court said the defendant made a full confession during the trial. Moroccan authorities had denied any connection with the defendant when he was arrested in January.
https://p.dw.com/p/4zp44
Skip next section German military chief reports GPS jamming during flights
09/01/2025September 1, 2025
German military chief reports GPS jamming during flights
The German military’s inspector general has reported also experiencing GPS jamming during flights, hours after EU Chief Ursula von der Leyen’s plane was hit by suspected Russian GPS jamming.
Carsten Breuer, the Bundeswehr’s (German armed forces) highest-ranking general, reported an incident when he experienced GPS jamming while flying over the Baltic Sea and another one when the jamming occurred during a visit to a military exercise in Lithuania.
Pilots are usually capable of circumventing the jamming, Breuer said, adding that he could not tell whether the jamming targeted his aircraft or was part of a wider campaign.
“We are currently under constant sabotage and espionage, and we are also subject to hybrid influence and hybrid actions, which we can very often trace back to state actors and, in many cases, to Russia,” the military chief said.
https://p.dw.com/p/4zood
Skip next section German defense minister criticizes von der Leyen’s comments on deployment to Ukraine
09/01/2025September 1, 2025
German defense minister criticizes von der Leyen’s comments on deployment to Ukraine
German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius was sharply critical of comments reportedly made by EU Chief Ursula von der Leyen regarding military security guarantees for Ukraine.
In statements carried by British newspaper the Financial Times, von der Leyen said that “precise plans” are being drawn up for a multinational troop deployment to Ukraine.
On Monday, Pistorius said he believed that publicly discussing such topics before Kyiv and Moscow sat at the negotiating table was “completely wrong.”
“Apart from the fact that the European Union has no jurisdiction or competence whatsoever when it comes to the deployment of troops – regardless of for whom or for what — I would be very cautious about confirming or commenting on such considerations in any way,” he told reporters during a visit to an arms manufacturer in Troisdorf, a small town near Cologne.
Pistorius nevertheless alluded to ongoing deliberations about “what might be possible, what might not be possible, and under what conditions and reservations something could even be conceivable.”
https://p.dw.com/p/4zolj
Skip next section Merz in Germany’s most populated state ahead of local elections
09/01/2025September 1, 2025
Merz in Germany’s most populated state ahead of local elections
According to German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who is visiting North Rhine-Westphalia(NRW), the upcoming local elections in the most populous German state state will not be a major test of public opinion for his ruling federal coalition.
“Local elections are local elections,” Merz said, even if there is “a certain view of state and federal politics.”
Around 13.7 million citizens will be eligible to vote on September 14 for thousands of seats in the local councils of the 396 cities and municipalities in NRW, as well as the 31 districts and the Ruhr Regional Association (RVR).
https://p.dw.com/p/4zoSD
Skip next section Dozens of Afghan nations arrive in Germany despite Merz’s tough immigration stance
09/01/2025September 1, 2025
Dozens of Afghan nations arrive in Germany despite Merz’s tough immigration stance
Dozens of Afghan nationals have arrived in Germany on a scheduled flight from Pakistan after receiving visas.
German news agencies reported upwards of 45 Afghan nationals had arrived, landing at Hanover Airport on Monday on a commercial flight from Istanbul, having begun their journey in Islamabad.
Many Afghan families have been waiting in Pakistan for months to secure passage to Germany. Others have waited years after fleeing their homeland due to the Taliban’s return to power.
In addition to former employees of German institutions and their relatives, Berlin had indicated it would take in other Afghans at risk of persecution due to their careers as lawyers, journalists or human rights defenders.
However, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, who has taken a tough stance in immigration, vowing to reduce numbers. As a result, Merz’s government has paused plans to resettle hundreds of Afghans who were informed of Germany’s “readiness” to accept them following the Taliban’s return to power in Afghanistan in 2021.
On Monday, a court ruled that the German government has the right to stop issuing visas. However, it is understood that Afghans who arrived that same day succeeded in acquiring visas after filing lawsuits.
Under Taliban shadow, Afghans in Pakistan look to Germany
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https://p.dw.com/p/4zodD
Skip next section Welcome to our coverage09/01/2025September 1, 2025
Welcome to our coverage
Guten Tag! Welcome to DW’s coverage of developments in Germany.
Chancellor Friedrich Merz is visiting North Rhine-Westphalia ahead of local elections, which some view as a test of public opinion on his government, a few months after his ruling coalition took power.
Meanwhile, dozens of Afghan nationals have arrived at Hanover Airport, despite a German court ruling that the federal government has the right to halt the issuing of their visas. The Afghans are understood to have succeeded in acquiring visas after filing lawsuits.
https://p.dw.com/p/4zo6C
