Berliner Tageszeitung - News from Berlin, Brandenburg and the world

Hindu pilgrim Parvati Gupta braved jostling crowds to be at the world's largest religious festival in India but will leave with injuries that will keep her bedridden for months.

A man who repeatedly burnt the Koran in 2023 in Sweden, sparking outrage in Muslim countries, has been shot dead, media reported Thursday as police confirmed a man died in a shooting the day before.

British energy giant Shell on Thursday announced a 17-percent drop in annual net profit owing to weaker oil and gas prices as well as asset write-offs.

Palestinian militant group Hamas on Thursday handed over Israeli woman hostage Agam Berger, a soldier, as a third hostage-prisoner exchange got under way, an AFP journalist reported.

Ayse Barim, a renowned manager of Turkish television stars, has always steered clear of politics, but that did not help her escape prison on charges of "attempting to overthrow the government".

Fed up with paying ever increasing prices at grocery stores and shopping outlets, Croatians have begun channeling their anger into a nascent boycott movement targeting retailers that shows signs of spreading across the Balkans.

The Red Cross museum in Geneva is warning that it risks closure after its funding was axed in a broad government cost-cutting plan, with some suggesting it could be moved to Abu Dhabi.

Britain's vehicle production slid below one million units last year as the sector transitions to electric cars, an industry body said Thursday as it warned over US President Donald Trump's tariff threats.

The French economy grew 1.1 percent in 2024 but shrank in the fourth quarter as a political crisis gripped the country after a boost from the Paris Olympic Games, official data showed Thursday.

A US passenger jet carrying 64 people crashed into Washington's Potomac River after colliding midair with a military helicopter on a nighttime training exercise Wednesday, prompting a desperate search for survivors in the dark, near-freezing water.

DR Congo President Felix Tshisekedi insisted his troops were mounting a "vigorous" response to Rwanda-backed fighters advancing in the country's perennially troubled east and slammed the international community's "silence and inaction".

The Golden State Warriors withstood Oklahoma City star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's 52-point outburst to beat the Western Conference leading Thunder 116-109 on Wednesday.

EU talks to relaunch Europe's embattled car industry are to get underway on Thursday, with automotive CEOs awaited in Brussels to discuss fines and competition from China.

Japanese authorities have asked 1.2 million people to cut back on showers and laundry to prevent leaking sewage aggravating an operation to rescue a truck driver in a sinkhole.

Swarming throngs of devotees bathed in rivers at the world's biggest religious gathering in India on Thursday, undeterred by a stampede a day earlier that killed at least 30 people.

A US passenger plane carrying 64 people crashed into Washington's chilly Potomac River on Wednesday after colliding mid-air with a military helicopter near Reagan National Airport, prompting a major emergency response and the grounding of all flights.

Donovan Mitchell scored 34 points to lead the short-handed Cleveland Cavaliers to a 126-106 NBA victory over Miami on Wednesday, maintaining their Eastern Conference lead over reigning champions Boston.

Israel will cut ties with the UN agency for Palestinian refugees on Thursday following accusations it provided cover for Hamas militants, a move likely to hamper delivery of its vital services after 15 months of war in Gaza.

Despite US President Donald Trump's sabre-rattling, the European Central Bank is set to press on with interest rate cuts Thursday as officials increasingly voice confidence that the fight against inflation is on track.

Pristine samples of the asteroid Bennu transported to Earth contain the "basic building blocks" for life, shedding new light on the perennial question of how life began on our planet.

A France side bolstered by Antoine Dupont will begin their quest to deny Ireland an unprecedented third successive Six Nations title when they launch this year's edition at home to Wales on Friday.

After years of feeling "invisible" as she managed her daughter's cancer, Antonietta Moccia said she hopes a European court on Thursday will recognise the Italian government's failures to protect her from toxic waste.

Israel and Hamas were set to carry out their third hostage-prisoner exchange on Thursday, with three Israelis and five Thai captives slated for release as part of a ceasefire deal aimed at ending the Gaza war.

A passenger jet from Kansas crashed into Washington's Potomac River after colliding mid-air with a military helicopter near Reagan National Airport, officials said Wednesday, prompting a major emergency response and grounding all flights.

Afghanistan's women cricketers on Thursday played their first game since fleeing the Taliban three years ago, a charity match in Australia that captain Nahida Sapan said she hoped would spark "a movement for change".

Asian equities were mixed in another holiday-thinned trading day Thursday, with investors digesting broadly positive tech earnings that came days after the upheaval caused by China's DeepSeek explosion onto the global AI scene.

Australia's reliance on coal-fired power stations has dropped to a record low, accounting for less than 50 percent of its electricity for the first time, the market operator said Thursday.

Inter Milan have a chance to pile pressure on Serie A leaders Napoli when the reigning champions take on local rivals AC Milan in a derby clash which could be key to the destiny of the Scudetto.

Ireland's chances of an unprecedented third successive Six Nations title are hindered by fly-half options that are "a distance away from being Grand Slam winning playmakers" Irish rugby great Hugo MacNeill told AFP.

DR Congo's President Felix Tshisekedi insisted Wednesday that his troops were mounting a "vigorous" military response as Rwanda-backed fighters advanced in the east of the country.

Beyonce, Kendrick Lamar and...The Beatles?

The global success of Brazilian movie "I'm Still Here" -- riding high after three Oscars nominations -- has set off a national fervor usually reserved for Carnaval or the football World Cup.