Latest news with #NorthRhineWestphalia
Yahoo
15 hours ago
- General
- Yahoo
Cologne starts biggest bomb disposal operation since World War II
The largest bomb-related evacuation since 1945 has begun in the German city of Cologne after the discovery of three US World War II bombs. A large part of the city centre is being closed off so that the devices can be defused. More than 20,000 people in the evacuation zone in the Deutz district, on the east bank of the Rhine river, are affected. The city of Cologne said on its website: "The evacuation is the largest such measure since the end of World War II. Everyone involved hopes that the defusing can be completed in the course of Wednesday." A city spokeswoman told dpa that it was not yet possible to say when the defusing operation itself would begin. Roadblocks have been in place since 8 am (0600 GMT). Officials are checking that all flats in the danger zone are empty. In the whole of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, 1,500 to 2,000 bombs from World War II are found every year. About 200 of these are larger devices, such as those found in Cologne, said Kai Kulschewski, the city's head of explosive ordnance disposal.
Forbes
3 days ago
- Business
- Forbes
How One Farmer's Climate Lawsuit Could Lead To A Win For The Planet
17 March 2025, North Rhine-Westphalia, Hamm: Peruvian mountain farmer and mountain guide Saul ... More Luciano Lliuya (r) arrives at the Higher Regional Court for the hearing of his climate lawsuit against energy company RWE and talks to journalists. Geoscientists and structural engineers appointed by the court are to present their expert opinions. The issue at stake is the danger posed to the plaintiff's house in South America by a tidal wave or mudslide. The plaintiff accuses the German company of being partly responsible for climate change due to the CO2 emissions it produces. Photo: Rolf Vennenbernd/dpa (Photo by Rolf Vennenbernd/picture alliance via Getty Images) A farmer's climate lawsuit is a win for the planet. Recently, a German court quietly ended a landmark legal battle that had spanned nearly a decade. In Lliuya v. RWE, a Peruvian farmer and mountain guide, Saúl Luciano Lliuya, sued Germany's largest utility company, RWE, over its historic carbon emissions and the resulting impact on his hometown of Huaraz. Though the Higher Regional Court of Hamm ruled against Lliuya, stating that he had not sufficiently demonstrated imminent danger or direct causation, the case represents something far more significant than a legal loss. It marks another pivotal moment in the evolving global discourse on climate accountability, climate justice, and how courts will address the issue of liability in an era of planetary risk. Lliuya first went to court in 2015. He claimed that glacial melt driven by global warming had swollen a lake above his town, threatening a catastrophic flood. He asked RWE, a company responsible for roughly 0.47% of global historical emissions, to pay for protective measures proportional to its emissions. It was a novel request, but one that resonated with growing legal and ethical arguments about polluters' responsibilities to communities on the frontlines of climate change. HUARAZ, PERU - MAY 23: Saul Luciano Lliuya (41), Peruvian farmer and mountain guide who filed a ... More lawsuit against the German electricity consortium RWE, visits the lake Palcacocha in Huaraz, Peru on May 23, 2022. (Photo by Angela Ponce for The Washington Post via Getty Images) In many ways, this case echoed others around the world, including youth-led lawsuits like Held v. Montana. In that case, a state court ruled that Montana had violated young residents' constitutional right to a clean and healthful environment by promoting fossil fuel development. While Lliuya v. RWE did not secure a similar victory, it represents a similar trend of individuals and communities using the legal system to seek remedy and accountability in the face of government inaction and corporate pollution. Climate litigation of this kind presents unique legal challenges. How do courts trace global emissions back to individual corporations? Can one company be held liable for incremental damage when the crisis is collective? The court in Lliuya v. RWE essentially said no, at least not with the evidence presented. But the fact that the case advanced as far as it did is noteworthy. Most climate lawsuits do not survive procedural hurdles, let alone reach a stage where climate science and corporate responsibility are discussed in depth. This case forced a European court to consider whether a corporation could be liable for climate-related damage across borders. Even without a favorable ruling, the legal framework it helped shape may influence other jurisdictions. Just as U.S. courts are beginning to take youth-led climate lawsuits more seriously, international courts may one day revisit Lliuya's argument with a different outcome. The decision may be a disappointment to many climate advocates, but it is not a dead end. It is a milestone in what some legal scholars call "strategic litigation.' This is the use of the legal system not just to win individual cases, but to influence policy, raise awareness, and build momentum for broader change. The RWE decision also arrives at a moment of heightened scrutiny for corporate climate commitments. Even as some fossil fuel companies tout their decarbonization plans, many continue to invest heavily in fossil infrastructure. Policymakers and regulators now have an opportunity to step in where courts have hesitated. The legal questions raised by Lliuya's lawsuit could inform new laws or treaties addressing transnational environmental harm. As the world approaches COP30 and new rounds of climate finance negotiations, Lliuya's effort may serve as a moral and rhetorical guidepost. The Higher Regional Court of Hamm may have ruled against Saúl Luciano Lliuya, but the larger movement for corporate climate accountability has gained steam. As Lliuya's case moved along in Peru, activists in Canada pushed for stronger climate disclosure standards. The legislative measure failed, but the Canadian courts issued a ruling in favor of youth climate litigants alleging government responsibility for climate change impacts. Both groups vowed to fight on, 'We were significantly disappointed with Canada's first-ever sustainability disclosure standards released last month. These new regulations are a welcome step forward, but they still fail to respond to crucial problems for our specific context in Canada. In 2025, we will continue the fight for strong sustainable finance regulation that meets international standards.' If nothing else, Lliuya's decade-long fight reminds us that the climate crisis is personal, political, and legal. Each lawsuit, whether it ends in victory or not, helps redraw the boundaries of responsibility. In that sense, this case was never just about a glacial lake in Peru. It was about charting new paths to justice on a warming planet.
Reuters
6 days ago
- Business
- Reuters
German states paint mixed picture amid hopes for falling inflation
BERLIN, May 30 (Reuters) - Economists expect Germany's inflation rate to ease further in May towards the European Central Bank's longer-term target of 2%, but state data released on Friday before the national figures painted a mixed picture. In Bavaria, the inflation rate remained unchanged in May at 2.1%. In Baden-Wuerttemberg it eased to 2.2% from 2.4% in April, in North Rhine-Westphalia it rose to 2.0% from 1.8%, and in Lower Saxony it inched up to 2.3% from 2.2%. Economists polled by Reuters forecast German inflation to reach 2.0% in May in harmonised terms, down from 2.2% the previous month. Economists will pay close attention to the national data, with the euro zone's largest economy publishing its figures ahead of data for the entire currency bloc on Tuesday. Euro zone inflation is expected to ease to 2.1% in May from 2.2% in April, according to economists polled by Reuters.
Yahoo
27-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Meta to use EU user content for AI training as opt-out period ends
US tech giant Meta can use Facebook and Instagram posts from German and other EU users to train its artificial intelligence (AI) software Meta AI, after the deadline for users to opt out expired on Tuesday. The company plans to analyze all public content shared by adult users across the EU to improve its AI models, unless users have actively objected. A German court on Friday dismissed a complaint by the consumer protection agency in the western state of North Rhine-Westphalia, which accused Meta of violating EU data protection rules. The court found that Meta's data use serves a legitimate purpose that cannot be achieved by less intrusive methods and noted that the company had pledged to filter out sensitive data such as names, phone numbers and account details. WhatsApp chats remain excluded due to encryption, but conversations with Meta's AI assistant are considered public and may also be used for training.
The Independent
27-05-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Why Erik ten Hag can be a success as Bayer Leverkusen's risky hire
The club who famously never used to win anything headlined the profile of their new manager: 'Experienced trophy collector'. Erik ten Hag might like that, the manager who in his final outing as Manchester United manager insisted the season would be a success if they won the Carabao Cup, even though they were 14th in the Premier League then. Which, Ten Hag may note, means they actually slipped down the table after his sacking. But now he is Bayer Leverkusen manager, a year after 'Neverkusen' ditched their unwanted tag. Their unbeaten German double, their maiden Bundesliga title, their run to the Europa League final all helped forge Xabi Alonso such a reputation that he was targeted by Bayern Munich, of interest to Liverpool and, a year later, hired by Real Madrid. Ten Hag's return to football comes with his new and last club forming a contrast: United, with their pretensions to be the biggest in the world, Leverkusen perhaps not even the biggest in the Cologne region of North Rhine-Westphalia. Yet United have become arguably the global game's greatest underachievers – Ten Hag has some culpability in that – whereas Leverkusen represented the overachievers extraordinaire in 2023-24, ending Bayern's 11-year reign in the Bundesliga. United can look among the worst run clubs in football, Leverkusen among the best. Leverkusen have spent recent years getting decisions right; Alonso, after all, was untried in senior management before they hired him. They have turned to Ten Hag to replace the Bernabeu-bound Basque. It is hard to imagine the Premier League runners-up appointing him now, but their Bundesliga counterparts have. But then Ten Hag's reputation is higher in Germany than England, just as his German is better than his English. It may be a legacy in part of his time with Bayern Munich's second team, when he was nicknamed 'Mini Pep' but he also has admirers at Borussia Dortmund, though Niko Kovac's heroics in salvaging a Champions League place meant there was no vacancy at the Signal Iduna Park this summer. Or it may mean the distance from Leverkusen to Old Trafford camouflaged his issues there. Sporting director Simon Rolfes, in his explanation of Ten Hag's appointment, put more emphasis on his record at Ajax, which means the 55-year-old has won more than Leverkusen, and then referenced 'ensuing success at Manchester United under difficult circumstances at times'. One explanation of Ten Hag's excellence with Ajax, with three league titles and a Champions League semi-final appearance, is that he was surrounded by the right structure, in director of football Marc Overmars and CEO Edwin van der Sar. Another is that he had the biggest budget the club had ever had. Each has a pertinence. Leverkusen should offer the structure United lacked (though part of the rationale they offered for giving him a reprieve after talking to other managers last summer was that he would fare better with the Ineos-led appointments behind the scenes; he didn't and was sacked a few months later). Financially, though, Leverkusen can never rival Bayern's wage bill, which proved no impediment to Alonso last season. Yet they will surely have the largest transfer fund in their history, assuming Florian Wirtz and Jeremie Frimpong join Jonathan Tah in leaving. It would also leave Leverkusen without some of the outstanding figures in their greatest team. Ten Hag's time at Old Trafford left questions about his judgement of players, if he invariably overrated his fellow Dutchman and Ajax alumni. United had too little to show for a £600m spending spree and yet, somehow, Ten Hag always seemed to think the way of demonstrating ambition was to spend more. So perhaps the club should make the signings and counsel the manager against the kind of feud he had with Jadon Sancho, which lent little benefit. It will be instructive how much Ten Hag changes; Alonso often preferred a back three, whereas he has tended to favour 4-3-3 or 4-2-3-1. After a fine debut season at Old Trafford, Ten Hag's tactics felt increasingly incoherent at United. Rolfes nevertheless felt he and Leverkusen are a fine fit. 'Our ideas of football coincide,' he said. 'With technically demanding and dominant football, we want to carry on in the Werkself style.' And part of the job is to simply carry on. Few managers are fortunate enough to inherit a success story; Ten Hag did not at Old Trafford. He does now, even if a two-year contract does not amount to a huge vote of confidence. Leverkusen's hope may be that they are getting the Ajax Ten Hag not the United variant. His lone Champions League campaign with United was a shambles, whereas he punched above his weight in taking Ajax to the last four. It is an achievement that has stood the test of time. It has helped Ten Hag land one of the plumb coaching jobs on offer in Europe this summer. And that, in turn, reflects the peculiar position United may now occupy: those who leave Old Trafford may escape blame for failure. If Ten Hag can argue his record looks rather better now Ruben Amorim is doing significantly worse, Antony and Scott McTominay are the latest examples of players prospering after they left United. For Ten Hag, who hitched his fortunes rather too closely to Antony's, the task at Leverkusen is twofold. To be a worthy successor to Alonso and the managerial equivalent of Antony.
