Daily Briefing 17.10.2026, 16:54 (CEST)

German Chancellor Merz promises reforms in meeting with youth wing

Embattled German Chancellor Friedrich Merz told a gathering of the youth wing of Germany's allied conservative parties (JU) that far-reaching social reforms and economic growth are prerequisites for his party's future electoral success at the national level.

'Gruffalo' illustrator intends legal action over AI-generated images

Axel Scheffler, the illustrator of the children's book character "The Gruffalo," intends to take action against AI-generated images in the style of his work.

Breakthrough in exploratory talks on forming Berlin state government

The Left Party, the Greens and the Social Democrats (SPD) have successfully concluded their exploratory talks on forming a state government for the German capital Berlin, party sources told dpa, four weeks after the election.

Germany win over 80 World Cup

Germany's over 80 team has won the inaugural World Cup title in Australia and said that this success goes beyond football.

German far right and conservatives lose ground in latest polling

The anti-immigrant Alternative for Germany (AfD) and the conservative bloc have both seen a slight drop in support in an opinion poll published on Saturday, while the populist BSW and The Left party have made small gains.

Germany's Greens welcome EU action on 'subsidy tsunami' from China

The Greens in the German lower house of parliament, the Bundestag, have welcomed the tougher stance on trade adopted by the European Union towards countries such as China.

Call for more central government funding for German regional transport

Transport ministers from the German states are stepping up the pressure on the federal government to help them finance costly regional rail services.

German publisher halts Ukraine wartime romance novel after backlash

A German publishing house has halted the publication of a fictional love story between a Ukrainian woman and a Russian soldier after criticism that the novel romanticizes the war, its head Matthias Slunitschek told dpa.

Investigators say German forest fire was caused by 'external factors'

Investigators in western Germany believe the devastating Hürtgen Forest fire in August was probably caused by "external factors," though they cannot be sure whether it was started negligently or intentionally.

One killed, two seriously injured in attack at German care home

An 86-year-old woman was killed and two others seriously injured in a knife attack at a care home in western Germany, police said.