Latest news with #LeftParty
Jordan News
12 hours ago
- Business
- Jordan News
Nearly Half a Billion Euros in German Arms Exports to Israel Since October 7 Attack - Jordan News
Since the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, Germany has approved arms exports to Israel worth nearly €500 million, sparking widespread controversy and legal challenges. اضافة اعلان According to a German Ministry of Economy response to a parliamentary inquiry by the Left Party, between October 7, 2023, and May 13, 2025, Berlin authorized the export of military weapons and equipment valued at €485.1 million to Israel. The response—signed by State Secretary Bernhard Kluitsch and obtained by Deutsche Presse-Agentur (dpa)—did not clarify whether the newly installed German government (a coalition of the Christian Democrats and Social Democrats) had issued further licenses after assuming office on May 6, 2025. Review of Arms Policy Germany's new Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul recently cast doubt on the continuation of arms exports to Israel. In an interview with Süddeutsche Zeitung, he said such exports are under review to assess compatibility with international humanitarian law, particularly in light of Israeli actions in Gaza. 'This review will determine whether what is happening in Gaza complies with international humanitarian law,' Wadephul stated. 'Based on that, we will decide whether further arms deliveries are appropriate.' When asked if the review could result in halting exports altogether, he affirmed: 'That is exactly what the wording implies.' Legal and Political Challenges The issue remains legally contentious, as Nicaragua has filed a case against Germany at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague, accusing Berlin of complicity in genocide in Gaza due to its arms shipments. In April 2024, ICJ judges rejected an emergency request to halt the deliveries but did not dismiss the case, allowing the proceedings to continue. Domestic Backlash Ulrich Thoden, defense policy expert from the Left Party, called for an immediate halt to all arms shipments to Israel: 'Otherwise, Germany risks being found complicit in crimes prosecutable under international law.' The case continues to stir legal, political, and ethical debate both within Germany and on the international stage.
Local Germany
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Local Germany
Germany deports 'above average' number of people at the start of 2025
In the first three months of the year, 6,151 people were deported from Germany -- more than the average number of deportations seen per quarter in the past two years. This figure was announced by the federal government in response to an inquiry brought by the Left Party ( Die Linke ) in the Bundestag, and reported by Redaktionsnetzwerk Deutschland (RND) . In 2024 a total of about 20,100 people were deported from Germany. The repatriations, carried out from January to March, took place under the previous federal government. But the conservative Christian Democrat and Christian Socialist (CDU/CSU) parties have announced ambitious plans to carry out even more repatriations going forward. Why is Germany carrying out more deportations The increase in deportations carried out in Germany comes in part as the effect of the Repatriation Act ( Rückführungsverbesserungsgesetz ), which came into force on February 27th, 2024. Proponents of the law said it was aimed at tightening and enforcing deportation rules for people who had been convicted of criminal offences, but it also grants authorities more power to deport asylum seekers who had not committed offences. The law also extended the amount of time people could be detained and granted police more power to search their accommodation and smartphones. 'Dublin transfers' People were most frequently deported to Turkey, Georgia, France, Spain and Serbia. A total of 157 people were deported to Iraq, and five to Iran. According to the government report, around 1,700 of the deportations were so-called "Dublin transfers" . According to EU immigration rules, refugees must apply for asylum in the EU country where they first set foot on European territory. So when asylum seekers enter the country on land by first crossing through neighbouring countries, Germany can send them back to the first EU country where they were registered. READ ALSO: EU paves way for states to set up controversial return hubs for migrants Advertisement High costs and 'brutal' procedures Conservative leaders argue that repatriations save Germany money and resources that would be spent on social benefits for new arrivals, but the deportation process itself is also expensive. According to the government report, more than a third of the deportations took place with expensive charter flights. Most other deportees were sent on pre-scheduled flights. In total 5,216 deportations were carried out by air, 913 by land and 22 by sea. Collective deportations to Pakistan were particularly expensive and time-consuming. The costs for this amounted to €462,000. Similarly, the costs for deportation flights to Ethiopia amounted to €418,000, and deportation flights to Nigeria, Ghana and Cameroon totalled €380,000. For many of these flights, however, the European border protection agency Frontex bore the costs. The Left Party MP Clara Bünger criticized the way authorities carry out departations. She said she was aware of several cases in which the police acted "brutally and without any empathy". "We are talking about families being torn apart ice-cold or about sick people being literally kidnapped from the hospital, and carted directly from there to the deportation flight," Bünger told RND .
The Advertiser
21-05-2025
- Business
- The Advertiser
Swedish MPs back financing for new nuclear reactors
Sweden's parliament has passed a bill to finance a new generation of nuclear reactors the government says are key to energy security and achieving net zero emissions by 2045. The government plans four large-scale reactors - with installed capacity of about 5000 megawatts - or the equivalent in small modular reactors (SMRs). Half of that should be on-stream by 2035, according to the government. "It's a question guaranteeing Swedish jobs, for dealing with climate change and it's a question of Sweden's security," Financial Markets Minster Niklas Wykman said during a debate in parliament on Wednesday. Electricity demand is expected to double to about 300 terrawatt hours over the next two decades and the government says without nuclear power, key new industries like green steel, bio-fuels and large-scale hydrogen production will go elsewhere. The government says it supports all fossil-free energy production,but that only nuclear can supply reliable and predictable power. A white paper published in August last year, which proposed a similar model, said the state could need to lend nuclear developers between 300-600 billion crowns ($A48-$A96 billion). Price guarantees would stay in place for 40 years. Critics say nuclear power will be too expensive and too slow to build and would squeeze out cheaper wind and solar which are the only way to meet increased demand in the short term. "It is an item of religious faith for this government to build nuclear power whatever the price," Birger Lahti of the opposition Left Party said. Sweden's parliament has passed a bill to finance a new generation of nuclear reactors the government says are key to energy security and achieving net zero emissions by 2045. The government plans four large-scale reactors - with installed capacity of about 5000 megawatts - or the equivalent in small modular reactors (SMRs). Half of that should be on-stream by 2035, according to the government. "It's a question guaranteeing Swedish jobs, for dealing with climate change and it's a question of Sweden's security," Financial Markets Minster Niklas Wykman said during a debate in parliament on Wednesday. Electricity demand is expected to double to about 300 terrawatt hours over the next two decades and the government says without nuclear power, key new industries like green steel, bio-fuels and large-scale hydrogen production will go elsewhere. The government says it supports all fossil-free energy production,but that only nuclear can supply reliable and predictable power. A white paper published in August last year, which proposed a similar model, said the state could need to lend nuclear developers between 300-600 billion crowns ($A48-$A96 billion). Price guarantees would stay in place for 40 years. Critics say nuclear power will be too expensive and too slow to build and would squeeze out cheaper wind and solar which are the only way to meet increased demand in the short term. "It is an item of religious faith for this government to build nuclear power whatever the price," Birger Lahti of the opposition Left Party said. Sweden's parliament has passed a bill to finance a new generation of nuclear reactors the government says are key to energy security and achieving net zero emissions by 2045. The government plans four large-scale reactors - with installed capacity of about 5000 megawatts - or the equivalent in small modular reactors (SMRs). Half of that should be on-stream by 2035, according to the government. "It's a question guaranteeing Swedish jobs, for dealing with climate change and it's a question of Sweden's security," Financial Markets Minster Niklas Wykman said during a debate in parliament on Wednesday. Electricity demand is expected to double to about 300 terrawatt hours over the next two decades and the government says without nuclear power, key new industries like green steel, bio-fuels and large-scale hydrogen production will go elsewhere. The government says it supports all fossil-free energy production,but that only nuclear can supply reliable and predictable power. A white paper published in August last year, which proposed a similar model, said the state could need to lend nuclear developers between 300-600 billion crowns ($A48-$A96 billion). Price guarantees would stay in place for 40 years. Critics say nuclear power will be too expensive and too slow to build and would squeeze out cheaper wind and solar which are the only way to meet increased demand in the short term. "It is an item of religious faith for this government to build nuclear power whatever the price," Birger Lahti of the opposition Left Party said. Sweden's parliament has passed a bill to finance a new generation of nuclear reactors the government says are key to energy security and achieving net zero emissions by 2045. The government plans four large-scale reactors - with installed capacity of about 5000 megawatts - or the equivalent in small modular reactors (SMRs). Half of that should be on-stream by 2035, according to the government. "It's a question guaranteeing Swedish jobs, for dealing with climate change and it's a question of Sweden's security," Financial Markets Minster Niklas Wykman said during a debate in parliament on Wednesday. Electricity demand is expected to double to about 300 terrawatt hours over the next two decades and the government says without nuclear power, key new industries like green steel, bio-fuels and large-scale hydrogen production will go elsewhere. The government says it supports all fossil-free energy production,but that only nuclear can supply reliable and predictable power. A white paper published in August last year, which proposed a similar model, said the state could need to lend nuclear developers between 300-600 billion crowns ($A48-$A96 billion). Price guarantees would stay in place for 40 years. Critics say nuclear power will be too expensive and too slow to build and would squeeze out cheaper wind and solar which are the only way to meet increased demand in the short term. "It is an item of religious faith for this government to build nuclear power whatever the price," Birger Lahti of the opposition Left Party said.
West Australian
21-05-2025
- Business
- West Australian
Swedish MPs back financing for new nuclear reactors
Sweden's parliament has passed a bill to finance a new generation of nuclear reactors the government says are key to energy security and achieving net zero emissions by 2045. The government plans four large-scale reactors - with installed capacity of about 5000 megawatts - or the equivalent in small modular reactors (SMRs). Half of that should be on-stream by 2035, according to the government. "It's a question guaranteeing Swedish jobs, for dealing with climate change and it's a question of Sweden's security," Financial Markets Minster Niklas Wykman said during a debate in parliament on Wednesday. Electricity demand is expected to double to about 300 terrawatt hours over the next two decades and the government says without nuclear power, key new industries like green steel, bio-fuels and large-scale hydrogen production will go elsewhere. The government says it supports all fossil-free energy production,but that only nuclear can supply reliable and predictable power. A white paper published in August last year, which proposed a similar model, said the state could need to lend nuclear developers between 300-600 billion crowns ($A48-$A96 billion). Price guarantees would stay in place for 40 years. Critics say nuclear power will be too expensive and too slow to build and would squeeze out cheaper wind and solar which are the only way to meet increased demand in the short term. "It is an item of religious faith for this government to build nuclear power whatever the price," Birger Lahti of the opposition Left Party said.
Perth Now
21-05-2025
- Business
- Perth Now
Swedish MPs back financing for new nuclear reactors
Sweden's parliament has passed a bill to finance a new generation of nuclear reactors the government says are key to energy security and achieving net zero emissions by 2045. The government plans four large-scale reactors - with installed capacity of about 5000 megawatts - or the equivalent in small modular reactors (SMRs). Half of that should be on-stream by 2035, according to the government. "It's a question guaranteeing Swedish jobs, for dealing with climate change and it's a question of Sweden's security," Financial Markets Minster Niklas Wykman said during a debate in parliament on Wednesday. Electricity demand is expected to double to about 300 terrawatt hours over the next two decades and the government says without nuclear power, key new industries like green steel, bio-fuels and large-scale hydrogen production will go elsewhere. The government says it supports all fossil-free energy production,but that only nuclear can supply reliable and predictable power. A white paper published in August last year, which proposed a similar model, said the state could need to lend nuclear developers between 300-600 billion crowns ($A48-$A96 billion). Price guarantees would stay in place for 40 years. Critics say nuclear power will be too expensive and too slow to build and would squeeze out cheaper wind and solar which are the only way to meet increased demand in the short term. "It is an item of religious faith for this government to build nuclear power whatever the price," Birger Lahti of the opposition Left Party said.
