German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Monday evening that he had become „disillusioned“ with the US and Israel over the war on Iran.
„At this point I am disillusioned simply because the US and Israel claimed at the beginning that they could solve this problem within days,“ Merz said in televised remarks. „Now I must recognise: it is not solved.“
Netanyahu’s government “continues to undermine international efforts aimed at establishing peace and stability”, Turkiye’s Foreign Ministry says.
It also condemned Israel’s intensifying attacks in Lebanon, which “are further exacerbating the humanitarian situation in the country”.
The international community “must act without delay” to bring Israel’s “occupation of Lebanon” to an end.
(January 13, 2026)
Coining the term “near-Earth astrophysics,” Fasel has devoted much of his career to investigating solar-terrestrial interactions between the Sun and Earth, using the aurora borealis to obtain clues regarding the coupling mechanisms between the solar wind and the Earth’s terrestrial magnetic field.
“Stars have winds,” says Fasel. “And this includes our Sun. While solar wind is a relatively continuous stream of particles that interact with the Earth’s magnetic field, the Sun can also produce powerful solar storms. These storms expel billions of charged particles [plasma] coupled to magnetic fields, called coronal mass ejections, which bang up into the Earth’s magnetic field.”
The Earth’s magnetic field lines, Fasel explains, “act like wires” on which these particles travel down into the Earth’s upper atmosphere, specifically the ionosphere. The aurora is an end result of this interaction, where high-energy electrons collide with oxygen to produce green light, while those of lower energy produce a raspberry-red color.
(February 5, 2026)
Among other things, he told us that the Democrats already have 60,000 members registered in the party, and are shooting for 100,000 now, which will make us the second-largest political party in Israel in terms of numbers. In addition, he stressed the need to reach out to the Arab citizens of Israel, who make up 22 percent of our population:
There is no future for Israel without Jewish-Arab cooperation in Israeli politics.
This is a critical issue in the political discourse right now, since it is obvious that a new government will not be able to be formed if the so-called “centrist” political parties don’t agree to welcome Arab political parties into the next coalition. So far, only The Democrats have agreed to do so!
Stanford University political scientist Tom Clark questioned the validity of the memo, which appears to directly conflict with the Fourth Amendment of the US Constitution, which requires search warrants as a protection against “unreasonable searches and seizures.”
“So, here’s how the law works,” he wrote. “People on whom it imposes constraints don’t get to just write themselves a memo saying they don’t have to follow the law. Maybe I’ll write myself a memo saying that I don’t have to pay my taxes this year.”
Ausgerechnet im Namen des Friedens stellt US-Präsident Trump die internationale Ordnung auf den Kopf. Heute will er in Davos seinen neuen „Friedensrat“ gründen – und fordert damit die Vereinten Nationen heraus.
(today)
Over the past week, at least four ministers have spoken out about the scandal, in which close Netanyahu aide Jonathan Urich and his former spokesperson, Eli Feldstein, are accused of working as lobbyists for Qatar while simultaneously being employed in the Prime Minister’s Office. The allegation is particularly explosive because Hamas’s leadership is based in Qatar and the Gulf state has acted as a mediator in the Gaza war and the current ceasefire.
The US vice president, JD Vance, on Monday said that security infrastructure needs to be in place and international peacekeepers need to deploy to Gaza before Hamas disarms.
“Before we actually can ensure that Hamas is properly disarmed, that’s going to require… some of these Gulf Arab states to get forces in there to actually apply some law and order and some security-keeping on the ground,” Vance told reporters.
“We don’t even have the security infrastructure in place, meaning the Gulf Arab states, our allies, don’t have the security infrastructure in place yet to confirm that Hamas is disarmed,” he added.
(September 11, 2025)
In fact, Trump and top aides have come to question whether Netanyahu, who authorized the strike and has threatened more, was trying to sabotage the talks, according to the person close to Trump’s team.
“Every time they’re making progress, it seems like he bombs someone,” the person said. “That’s why the president and his aides are so frustrated with Netanyahu.”
(August 11, 2025)
French President Emmanuel Macron on Monday denounced Israel’s plan to expand military operations in Gaza City as a “disaster waiting to happen”. He pushed for a permanent ceasefire and a UN-mandated international coalition to stabilise the Gaza Strip, protect civilians and support Palestinian governance, and urged the Security Council to act quickly.
The remarks come just two days after Luxon’s government announced it was considering formally recognizing the State of Palestine by September.
“Netanyahu has gone way too far. I think he’s lost his mind,” Luxon said, describing the situation in the Palestinian territories as “appalling.” He added that the Israeli prime minister “does not listen to the international community,” calling this stance “unacceptable.”
In 2021, the court outlined very narrow circumstances under which a Basic Law can be annulled. A number of petitions were filed challenging the constitutionality of the Nation State Law. While the court did not strike down the law, Supreme Court President Esther Hayut said that “there is one restriction, exceedingly narrow, which is incumbent on the Knesset in its function as the constituent authority, that it is unable to revoke Israel’s essence as a Jewish and democratic state through a Basic Law.”
The court could strike down a Basic Law if it endangers democratic principles such as those that deal “a mortal blow to free and fair elections, core human rights, the separation of powers, the rule of law, and an independent judiciary,” Hayut said.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has reportedly stressed that the Wagner mercenary group will have no role in guarding Russian tactical nuclear weapons that are being transferred to his country.
A state-run news agency in Belarus cited Lukashenko as saying on Tuesday that a substantial amount of Russian nuclear weaponry has been moved into the country.
(…)
The report said Lukashenko denied such views, saying, „It is our job. And I am personally responsible for the security of the weapons.“
(Sep 2, 2022)
Earlier this year, there was an important legal dispute in Germany, about whether electronic voting machines were legal for use in German government elections. The dispute was decided by the German Constitutional Court (similar to the U.S. Supreme Court), and the short answer was „no.“ Now, we have available an official English translation of the ruling. As I had been told before, the ruling really does seem to ban any kind of computing equipment from being used in German elections. The legal reasoning was interesting enough that I thought I‘d share one reflection on it. The basis for the ruling was the Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany (similar in function to the U.S. Constitution) and the principle that „all essential steps in the elections are subject to public examinability.“
Far from being your typical extremists or “anarchists” – as the protesters are often denounced by representatives of Israel’s religious-right government – many of those devoting themselves full-time to the movement have never been involved in a political or social cause before (…)
In explaining the largely unanticipated, fierce pushback against the government by these mainstream Israelis, Ben-Porat likes to cite the famous parable about the frog in the pot of water: When the water’s temperature is turned up gradually, the frog fatally stays in the pot. But if it is thrown into the boiling water, it jumps out.
Die Covid-19-Pandemie hat die Gesellschaft verändert: Die Österreicher und Österreicherinnen werden zunehmend konservativer und angepasster. Unabhängigkeit und Solidarität sind indes rückläufig, wie die Studie „Values in Crises“ zeigt.
Für Söder wird der Kampf um die Kanzlerkandidatur so oder so kein schlechtes Ende nehmen. Schwer vorstellbar, dass das alles ungeplant passierte. Die CDU könnte am Ende vor einem Scherbenhaufen stehen.
m
Der deutsche Ethikrat hat sich gegen staatliche Sonderregeln für CoV-Geimpfte ausgesprochen. Der Hauptgrund sei die Unsicherheit, ob Geimpfte weitere Personen anstecken könnten, sagte die Vorsitzende des Ethikrates, Alena Buyx, heute in Berlin.
Woran liegt es, dass gerade in dieser Situation kritische Stimmen von linker Seite fehlen, die die Maßnahmen hinterfragen?
Das frage ich mich auch den ganzen Tag. Denkfaulheit, Opportunismus und ein Totalausfall fallen mir da bei einigen wirklich wichtigen Akteuren in Politik, Medien und Wissenschaft auf.
„Ich bin schockiert, welche Beschränkungen der offenen Gesellschaft nach dem Infektionsschutzgesetz möglich sind.“ Das sagt der Historiker René Schlott im NachDenkSeiten-Interview. Schlott betont im Interview, dass er es als seine staatsbürgerliche Pflicht erachtet, kritisch auf die Einschränkungen der Grundrechte hinzuweisen. Die jetzige Situation, sagt Schlott, übertreffe bereits die Dystopie des französischen Philosophen Phillipe Muray, in der die Gesellschaft alles der Gesundheit unterordne und Denunzierung und Kritiklosigkeit als Teil des „guten Reichs“ an der Tagesordnung seien. Der in Berlin lebende Publizist beobachtet zudem eine politische Instrumentalisierung der Corona-Maßnahmen, „etwa im Rennen um den CDU-Vorsitz und die Unions-Kanzlerkandidatur.“
SPD-Rechtsexperte Florian Post sagte der „Bild“:
Seit fast einem Dreivierteljahr erlässt die Regierung in Bund, Ländern und Kommunen Verordnungen, die in einer noch nie dagewesenen Art und Weise im Nachkriegsdeutschland die Freiheiten der Menschen beschränken, ohne dass auch nur einmal ein gewähltes Parlament darüber abgestimmt hat.
Doch nun wird klar: Der Verfassungsschutz hat widerrechtlich Informationen über AfD-Mandatsträger gespeichert.
Dirk-Martin Christian – bislang im Innenministerium für die Aufsicht der Behörde zuständig und nun selbst an der Spitze des Verfassungsschutzes – hatte das wiederholt kritisiert, wie er jetzt erklärte.
„Wir hatten natürlich die Hoffnung, dass das Landesamt unsere rechtlichen Hinweise auch umsetzt.“
(heute)
„Durch die Aufklärungsarbeit im Untersuchungsausschuss ist deutlich geworden, dass das BKA und der Generalbundesanwalt es versäumt haben, die Spurenlage am Lkw umfassend auszuwerten“, sagt die Grünen-Innenpolitikerin Irene Mihalic. Auf Basis der bearbeiteten Spuren könne „nicht der Schluss erfolgen, dass Amri alleine den Lkw gekapert und gesteuert hat“, so die Bundestagsabgeordnete. Der Frage, ob es weitere Mittäter oder Helfer und Unterstützer gegeben habe, sei nicht konsequent nachgegangen worden.