Latest news with #RamonaPop
DW
02-08-2025
- Politics
- DW
Germany updates: Domestic violence at all-time high — report – DW – 08/02/2025
Over 250,000 people suffered domestic violence in Germany last year, according to a media report citing official figures. Trains are once again running on a major railroad route after suspected sabotage. DW has more. Nearly 257,000 people were registered as victims of domestic violence last year, a new record, a report by the weekly has said. This means that a person suffered mistreatment at the hands of a partner, ex-partner or family member every two minutes or so on average, according to figures from the Federal Criminal Police Office cited by the paper. Meanwhile, the section of railroad between the western cities of Düsseldorf and Duisburg has reopened after repairs to damage caused by suspected sabotage on Thursday. Train services resumed early on Saturday on the railway line between Düsseldorf and Duisburg in western Germany after successful repairs to cable damage caused by arson attacks. A railway spokesman said test runs had been conducted before the resumption of services to ensure that all was functioning correctly. The suspected arson attacks caused damage to cables vital for operating switches and signals. Police believe left-wing extremists were behind the disturbance and are treating the incident as sabotage. A leftist group has claimed responsibility for the attacks in a letter that is being examined by police. Herbert Reul, the interior minister of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, where the attacks occurred, told a press conference that the extremist group had "carried out several acts of sabotage in the Dusseldorf area in recent years." The route between Düsseldorf and Duisburg is one of Germany's busiest railway connections, with more than 620 passenger trains using the line every day. A German consumer group has launched legal action against several budget airlines, saying that their charges for hand luggage violate existing law. Ramona Pop, the chairwoman of the vzbv consumer umbrella body, told the daily that many carriers were "charging inadmissible fees and thus misleading consumers about flight prices." She said that while current rules obliged airlines to carry reasonably sized hand luggage free of charge, many budget airlines allowed only a small personal item in the base fare, demanding a paid upgrade for larger items. She said the vzbv had issued formal warnings to several carriers, with lawsuits filed against Ryanair, EasyJet, Wizzair and Vueling Airlines. The vzbv's legal action is part of a broader Europe-wide campaign, she said. The group is basing its legal actions on a ruling by the European Court of Justice in 2014 that hand luggage is a fundamental necessity of air travel rather than an optional extra provided by an airline. Cases of violence within private households have reached a record level, according to a report by the weekly that cites statistics from the Federal Criminal Police Office (BKA). Altogether 256,942 people were registered as victims of domestic violence in 2024, a 3.7% increase over the previous year, the paper said. Women suffer the most from domestic violence, making up 73% of registered cases, according to the report. Violence from partners or ex-partners accounted for 171,069 victims, a 1.9% increase over 2024. There was also a 7.3% increase in violence between family members, with 94,873 cases, according to the BKA. Over the past five years, domestic violence has surged by almost 14%, the BKA says from the team in DW's newroom on the banks of the Rhine in Bonn! Today, we will be looking at the latest statistics showing another worrying rise in the number of cases of domestic violence in the country. Germany's railroad system is also in focus following what seems to have been a case of major sabotage on a key section. If you are interested in the major talking points in Europe's largest economy, we hope we have the right stories for you here in our blog on Saturday, August 2!
Al Etihad
02-08-2025
- Business
- Al Etihad
German consumer group sues budget airlines over hand luggage fees
2 Aug 2025 11:09 BERLIN (dpa)A German consumer group has launched legal action against several budget airlines over what it describes as unlawful charges for hand luggage."Ryanair, EasyJet and others lure customers with low fares that don't include standard hand luggage. That's deceptive and violates existing law," Ramona Pop, chairwoman of the vzbv consumer umbrella body, told the Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung newspaper in remarks published on said airlines are obliged to carry reasonable hand luggage at no additional cost, but in many cases, only a small personal item is included in the base fare, with larger bags requiring a paid upgrade.'The size limits used by many carriers contradict EU law,' she a first step, vzbv issued formal warnings to several carriers. Pop said lawsuits have now been filed against Ryanair, EasyJet, WizzAir, and Vueling Airlines.'In our view, they are charging inadmissible fees and thus misleading consumers about flight prices,' Pop called on the European Union to set clear rules and standards for free hand luggage. The vzbv's legal action is part of a broader Europe-wide campaign, she to the consumer group, its legal argument draws on a 2014 ruling by the European Court of Justice. The ruling determined that hand luggage is a fundamental part of air travel, not an optional extra provided by the airline. Consumer advocates argue that airlines should not be allowed to charge extra for it, provided the bag meets reasonable size and weight limits and complies with safety regulations.
