Berliner Tageszeitung - News from Berlin, Brandenburg and the world

Around 1,000 French police officers were on duty Wednesday to provide security at Israel's football match against Mali at the Paris Olympics, a high-risk occasion which saw fans flying Palestinian and Israel flags.

Canada's central bank on Wednesday lowered its key lending rate to 4.5 percent, saying the second straight cut of 25 basis points was warranted due to slowing inflation.

Israeli premier Benjamin Netanyahu slammed Gaza ceasefire demonstrators Wednesday and called for a global alliance against the Iranian regime he accuses of funding the protests, as he addressed a US Congress divided by the war.

France booked their place in the Olympic rugby sevens knock-out phase Wednesday but struggled to live up to their pre-tournament favourites tag while powerhouse Fiji showed they will take some beating.

Venezuela's opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, barred by the regime from contesting Sunday's presidential election but tirelessly campaigning for her stand-in, gets mobbed by adoring supporters wherever she goes.

Argentina coach Javier Mascherano described the events that marred his team's 2-1 defeat by Morocco in the opening game of the men's Olympic football tournament on Wednesday as a "disgrace" and "a circus".

The sporting programme at the Paris Olympics endured a chaotic start on Wednesday as men's football kicked off and a huge police operation was put in place for Israel's first appearance at the Games.

Panama is working on a plan to clean up the Darien jungle, contaminated by the passage of hundreds of thousands of migrants heading towards the United States, the country's environment minister said Wednesday.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu asked for unity from lawmakers Wednesday as he addressed a US Congress divided by his military campaign in Gaza, with a rift between the nations deepening over the conflict's humanitarian toll.

Antoine Dupont received a rapturous welcome from a raucous Stade de France crowd on Wednesday, scoring a vital try to help the French team qualify for the quarter-finals of Olympics rugby sevens.

At least 25 migrants have died and dozens are missing after their boat capsized off Mauritania, the country's news agency AMI said Wednesday, in the latest in a string of migrant tragedies off the coast of West Africa.

US President Joe Biden will give an Oval Office speech Wednesday to explain his historic decision to drop out of the 2024 election and pass the torch to Kamala Harris as the Democratic nominee.

Tearful crowds gathered around a mud pit containing dead bodies Wednesday as volunteers dug for survivors of landslides that have killed 229 people and displaced thousands more in southern Ethiopia.

Oleg Verniaiev has a twin mission at the Paris Olympics, where he hopes a strong performance from Ukraine's gymnasts can help amplify the message that his country remains under siege but still strong.

Thousands of demonstrators marched towards the US Capitol on Wednesday to protest Benjamin Netanyahu and call for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war, as the Israeli premier prepared to address the US Congress.

Japan's Daiki Hashimoto on Wednesday told reporters not to compare him with gymnastics great Kohei Uchimura as he aims to match his countryman by retaining the Olympic all-around title in Paris.

England's Harry Brook has no intention of letting success go to his head following a first Test century on home soil.

Chaos and confusion reigned on Wednesday as Morocco beat Argentina 2-1 in their opening game of the men's Olympic football tournament, but only after a late equaliser for the South American side was disallowed and the final minutes were played out in an empty stadium following crowd trouble.

Typhoon Gaemi made landfall on Taiwan's eastern coast in the early hours of Thursday, after unleashing torrential rainfall and whipping winds across the island that left two people dead.

US anti-doping chief Travis Tygart accused Olympic bosses of "stooping to threats" after they awarded the 2034 Winter Games to Salt Lake City on Wednesday but warned US authorities to get in line.

Men's tennis number one Jannik Sinner withdrew from the Paris Olympics on Wednesday, days before it begins, after falling ill with tonsillitis.

Unions representing Disneyland theme park employees in California reached a tentative deal with the company on Wednesday, averting a major strike at the "happiest place on Earth."

Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Wednesday urged world leaders to work together and find solutions to hunger as he launched an initiative to tackle "the most degrading of human deprivations."

At least 15 migrants have died and dozens are missing after their boat capsized off Mauritania, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and local sources said Wednesday, the latest in a string of migrant tragedies off the coast of West Africa.

Small white squares dot the ocean off Havana, an unlikely fleet of fishermen bobbing on makeshift polystyrene rafts they use to make up for a lack of fuel or money to buy a proper boat.

Luxury group Kering said Wednesday that its half-year net profit fell by half and warned operating earnings for the second half of the year would be down around 30 percent.

Antoine Dupont received a rapturous welcome from a raucous Stade de France crowd on Wednesday, but was unable to guide the French to victory over the United States in their opening Paris Olympics rugby sevens match.

France struggled to live up to pre-tournament billing as favourites for Olympic Gold in rugby sevens Wednesday, held to a 12-12 draw by the United States to the disappointment of a packed Stade de France.

Two-time Olympic ski champion Marcel Hirscher said Wednesday he planned to compete under the Dutch flag for at least one more year following his sensational return from retirement.

Cristian Medina scored the equaliser in the 16th added minute as Argentina came from two down to draw 2-2 with Morocco in a hostile atmosphere on the opening day of men's Olympic football on Wednesday, while Spain edged Uzbekistan 2-1.

World number one Jannik Sinner withdrew from the Paris Olympics tennis tournament on Wednesday after falling ill with tonsillitis.

Global stock markets tumbled Wednesday following a batch of disappointing corporate results in the United States and Europe.