Berliner Tageszeitung - News from Berlin, Brandenburg and the world

In the sweltering heat of India's Thar desert, where summer highs soar above 50 degrees Celsius, an architecturally striking school is an oasis of cool thanks to a combination of age-old techniques and modern design.

In the evenings in the Chinese city of Hangzhou, friends meet to "throw eggs" -- a card game winning fans despite official warnings that it is an addictive waste of time and a drain on productivity.

A new volcano erupted on the Reykjanes peninsula in southwestern Iceland late Thursday, spewing hot lava into the air in the sixth eruption to hit the region since December, authorities said.

The Paralympics begin in Paris on Wednesday, putting on display the talents of remarkable athletes in a city still riding the wave of the highly successful Olympics.

For Sabahudin Delalic's seventh Paralympic Games, he has only one goal as he leads Bosnia's sitting volleyball team -- to dethrone the long dominant Iranians.

Kylian Mbappe's La Liga debut for Real Madrid did not go as planned as Los Blancos drew at Mallorca last weekend, with coach Carlo Ancelotti believing the Spanish champions lacked "balance".

Australia on Friday launched a multi-million dollar effort to stop pesticide runoff and other water quality issues on the Great Barrier Reef, the latest effort to save the ailing natural wonder.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was set to meet Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv on Friday, a historic visit in which he is expected to push a settlement to end the war with Russia.

A NATO airbase in western Germany said Thursday it had raised its security level over a "potential threat".

US Federal Reserve chair Jerome Powell is widely expected to use a keynote speech at a major central banking conference on Friday to signal support for cutting interest rates ahead of next month's rate decision.

Venezuela's Supreme Court, which observers say is loyal to the government of President Nicolas Maduro, on Thursday declared him the winner of the disputed July 28 election despite opposition claims of widespread vote fraud.

More than two decades after country music shunned them for famously repudiating then US president George W. Bush, The Chicks sang the national anthem at the Democratic National Convention on Thursday.

Kamala Harris will pledge to be "president for all Americans" Thursday as she accepts the Democratic Party nomination in Chicago in the biggest speech of her life.

The Kamala Harris campaign rolled out the blue carpet for social media influencers at the Democratic National Convention this week, hoping that they can help get out the vote to beat Donald Trump.

Paris prosecutors called Thursday for film legend Gerard Depardieu to face trial for the alleged rape of a fellow actor, ahead of another case against him set to be heard in October.

A Romanian court on Thursday placed controversial influencer Andrew Tate -- who is already awaiting trial over human trafficking and rape charges -- under house arrest, a day after raiding his home in a new investigation involving minors.

Freight rail operations were set to resume across Canada on Thursday following federal intervention to end a crippling disruption triggered by labor disputes at the country's two main operators.

Kamala Harris is set to deliver the biggest speech of her life Thursday as she accepts the Democratic presidential nomination in Chicago after a historic turnaround in the 2024 White House race.

Thousands of flag-waving Russians gathered for a concert by pro-Kremlin pop star Shaman on Thursday, one of many events authorities hope will rally patriotism almost two-and-a-half years into the Ukraine conflict.

Venezuela's Supreme Court, which observers say is loyal to the government of President Nicolas Maduro, on Thursday declared him the winner of the disputed July 28 election despite opposition claims of widespread vote fraud.

Chelsea secured their first victory under new coach Enzo Maresca with a 2-0 victory over Servette in their Conference League play-off round first leg on Thursday.

"This is the real DNC!" says Chicago drag queen Lucy Stoole, sporting a gold dress, heels and blond wig, offset with a thick beard.

Apple will allow iPhone and iPad users in the European Union delete the App Store or its Safari browser, the tech giant told developers on Thursday.

Emmanuel Wanyonyi went close to breaking David Rudisha's vaunted 800m world record in Thursday's Diamond League meet in Lausanne in what was a mixed night for Olympic champions making their return after the Paris Games.

Israeli negotiators were taking part Thursday in talks on Gaza in Cairo, a government spokesman said, as fighting raged on the ground despite US pressure on Israel and Hamas to reach an agreement.

A major new study published Thursday on the effectiveness of climate measures such as taxes or subsidies in reducing greenhouse gases has found stand-alone measures fail to make a big difference.

Kamala Harris is poised to deliver the biggest speech of her political life on Thursday as she accepts the Democratic presidential nomination in Chicago after a historic turnaround in the 2024 White House race.

England's Charley Hull enjoyed a superb finish, with four birdies on the back nine on the Old Course at St Andrews on Thursday, to lead the Women's British Open with a five-under par opening round of 67.

Norway's Jakob Ingebrigtsen went some way to forgetting his Olympic blip in the 1500m when he beat American Cole Hocker in Thursday's Diamond League meet in Lausanne.

A massive 2,492-carat diamond -- the second largest in the world -- has been discovered in Botswana, the Canadian mining company that found the stone announced Thursday.

World number one Jannik Sinner has been placed in the same side of the draw as former champions Carlos Alcaraz and Daniil Medvedev for next week's US Open and will start his campaign against American Mackenzie McDonald.

Jamie Smith's latest Test fifty took England into a narrow first-innings lead in their series opener against Sri Lanka at Old Trafford on Thursday.