Tobacco taxes will rise more than planned by 2030

Germany on Monday summoned Russia’s ambassador to Berlin in protest against cyber attacks targeting the European Union.

In a post on Twitter, the Foreign Ministry said cyberattacks against Germany, EU partners and Ukraine were unacceptable and would be dealt with decisively, including through additional sanctions.

in a statement On Monday, the European Union announced sanctions on Russia over cyberattacks, saying the targets included France, Germany, Poland, Cyprus, the Netherlands, Austria, Slovakia, Romania and Finland.

Germany’s Volkswagen warned its employees that it may need to cut about 50,000 jobs to match the competitiveness of its rivals, according to an internal memo.

The memo effectively confirms news that the German carmaker is looking to cut up to 100,000 positions.

In the memo seen by Reuters news agency, VW CEO Oliver Blume said the group had calculated a cost loss of 20% compared to comparable companies.

“We are currently assessing across all brands, companies and regions how many adjustments are truly necessary and feasible,” Bloom said in the document.

Reuters, citing unnamed sources, said labor representatives have blocked proposals to cut jobs and possibly close four factories.

“To date, we still cannot confirm competitive use cases for the plants in Emden, Hanover, Zwickau and Neckarsulm in the 2030s,” Blume said in the memo.

He stressed that he preferred an “intelligent solution” rather than closure. Previously, Bloom had floated the idea of ​​keeping underutilized factories useful to serve the defense industry or produce Chinese Volkswagen models in Europe.

VW had already agreed to cut 50,000 jobs across the group.

A German court has sentenced a man and a woman to long prison terms for enslaving and abusing two Yazidi girls under the so-called “Islamic State” group in Iraq.

The Iraqi couple were convicted of war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity. He was also convicted of sexually exploiting children and aiding and abetting the commission of listed offences.

The man was sentenced to life in prison, while his former partner was given a juvenile sentence of nine and a half years.

Read DW’s full report on the decision here.

Germany’s coalition government plans to raise tobacco taxes faster than previously planned.

a report of Editorial Network Germany (RND) Newspapers cited a draft guide from the Finance Ministry calling for a gradual increase in the price of a cigarette packet to €12 (about $13.7), up from €8 currently.

This represents an increase of approximately 40 percent compared to the recently decided amount. Taxes on fine-cut tobacco used for hand-rolled cigarettes are also to be increased.

The RND report said the increase was to fill a budget shortfall.

“This increase also serves to protect public health and is in line with the federal government’s goal of reducing smoking rates among young people and adults,” the RND said, quoting government sources.

Nearly a quarter of Germans smoke regularly Data from Eurostat, the European Union statistics office. This includes citizens 15 years of age and older who smoke packaged cigarettes, cigars, cigarillos or pipes but does not include other tobacco products such as electronic cigarettes.

An American citizen infected with the Ebola virus has reached Germany and was admitted to Frankfurt University Hospital early Monday.

The patient was working for a humanitarian organization in the Democratic Republic of Congo, where a severe Ebola outbreak is growing out of control.

The patient arrived at the hospital’s special isolation unit at around 3 a.m. local time (0100GMT) after being infected with the Bundibugyo variant of the virus in Congo, according to the hospital.

“The patient is currently in stable condition,” said Timo Wolf, head of the special isolation unit.

The hospital said the patient was being treated in complete isolation, in a unit structurally and organizationally separate from the rest of the facility, stressing that there was no risk to the public or other patients.

This is the second American citizen to undergo treatment in Germany after being infected with the Ebola virus. Earlier, an American doctor was admitted to Charite Hospital in Berlin for treatment and was discharged after two weeks.

The latest Ebola outbreak has been particularly difficult to control, partly because there is no vaccine or specific treatment for the Bundibugyo strain. As of Sunday, 1,926 laboratory-confirmed Ebola cases and 702 deaths were recorded in the DRC.

Good morning to another sunny and warm summer day in our DW newsroom in Bonn.

Today, reports are emerging that Friedrich Merz’s ruling coalition plans to raise tobacco duties more than previously planned, which could affect about 25% of the German population.

A court in Bavaria has sentenced an Iraqi couple accused of enslaving two Yazidi girls.

Meanwhile, Frankfurt University Hospital in the west of the country has admitted an American citizen infected with the Ebola virus.

This blog will give you the latest on all things Germany. Stay tuned!