The government of Greece’s Radical Left Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has been demanding Germany pay reparations to the nation for damage committed by the Nazis during World War II for months, but now they have officially calculated a fixed amount they would like back: 279 billion euros.
More background information on Andreas Lubitz, the Germanwings co-pilot who crashed his plane into the Alps after locking his captain out of the cockpit and killed 150 people, has trickled out over the weekend. Investigation of his medical history has uncovered vision problems that might have made him anxious about the impending termination of his flight career–an even-more stressful development because he reportedly had a baby on the way.
The Germanwings story is mutating with incredible speed. At first we were assured by the company that young co-pilot Andreas Lubitz, who evidently crashed the plane on purpose and killed 150 people, was “100% fit to fly,” with no physical or mental problems whatsoever. Then we were told Lubitz took an extended break from pilot training for counseling to deal with “burnout” and emotional stress, but that was back in 2008, so it wasn’t necessarily relevant to his behavior this week.
It looks as if we have an answer to one of this morning’s lingering questions about Germanwings co-pilot Andreas Lubitz, who evidently seized control of his plane and drove it into the Alps, killing 150 people. Lufthansa earlier divulged that Lubitz took a long break from his pilot training. Now the UK Daily Mail has more details about that episode, saying he suspended training in 2008 “because he was suffering from depression and burnout.”
French authorities released much new information about the horrible Germanwings crash in the Alps this morning, but some vital questions remain unanswered. Why is the French prosecutor so firmly convinced that the co-pilot, Andreas Lubitz, deliberately crashed the plane?
Last night, we learned that black-box audio recordings appeared to show the pilot of the doomed Germanwings Flight 9525 had been locked out of the cockpit and was attempting to gain entry – politely at first, but acting with increasing urgency as the plane descended, until at the end it sounded as if he was trying to smash the armored cockpit door down.
The crash of Germanwings Flight 9525 killed 150 people, including 16 students and two teachers from a school in Haltern-am-See. The small town of 35,000 is 326 miles east of Berlin.
Authorities discovered the black box for Flight 9525, which will hopefully reveal why the flight crashed into the French Alps. The BEA air accident investigation authority announced they “extracted recordings” from the cockpit recorder.
Germanwings cancelled numerous flights after crew members refused to fly due to the tragic crash of Flight 9252 in the French Alps.
Washington (AFP) – A prominent Jewish figure urged the United States to beware surging anti-Semitism in Europe and warned that seven decades after World War II Jews on the continent are having to look over their shoulders once more.
Leftist Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, during a visit with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Berlin, raised the issue of Greece receiving war reparations for the damage the Nazis did to the country in World War II. Despite Merkel’s rapid dismissal of the possibility, the two appeared cordial and friendly during their public press event leading up to a reception dinner.
Iraq’s battle for Tikrit reaches a standstill, humiliating Iran; Disorganization plagues Iraq’s soldiers assaulting Tikrit; Correction to yesterday’s report on France’s elections; Greece’s Tsipras visits Germany’s Merkel and demands reparations
As if tensions between Greece and its creditors in Germany weren’t high enough already, a German TV host decided to create a convincing fake video of Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis flipping Germany the bird.
The fallout over Secretary of State John Kerry’s implication that the United States is open to potentially negotiating with Syrian dictator Bashar al-Assad continues, as Germany’s foreign minister now weighs in, suggesting that such negotiations may be necessary to minimize the loss of life in the ongoing Syrian Civil War and weaken the Islamic State (ISIS) terrorist group.
Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis has denied that he gave the middle finger to Germany, claiming that video evidence of him doing so was doctored. The person who originally uploaded the disputed video to YouTube has insisted that it is
A German court fined Nasser El-Ahmad’s father and two uncles after they attempted to kidnap and marry him off to a Lebanese girl against his will. He also claimed his relatives tortured him over his homosexuality.
Whilst the vast majority of Europe is looking forward to watching next week’s solar eclipse in wonder and delight, for the people in charge of Germany’s power grid, the celestial event poses a major problem. Seven percent of Germany’s electricity comes
Greece threatens to confiscate German property as war reparations; South Ossetia discourages trips to Georgia for medical care; Karachi Pakistan fears ‘nuclear nightmare’ over planned nuclear reactors
The eleventh-hour decision to extend Greece’s bailout a few weeks ago turns out to have been an even closer shave than it seemed at the time, with Reuters reporting that a massive revolt among German conservatives left the vote “hanging by a thread,” as one German legislator put it. Escalating tensions between sullen Greece and fed-up Germany could make the votes on further bailout extensions or new financing deals even tighter.
A young woman from Karlsruhe, Germany is writing feminist messages on menstrual pads and displaying them in public places around her hometown to fight sexism, and she wants you to know about it. Period.
The European Union is set to allow travel Bulgaria and Romania join the Schengen area, so there are no passport controls between the countries and the rest of the EU. The move will mean that illegal immigrants who cross the
Vladimir Putin brags about how he lied about Russia’s invasion of Crimea; Europe to Greece: Stop wasting time and get serious about reforms
Mein Kampf, Adolph Hitler’s demonically anti-Semitic book, will be reprinted in Germany and sold in German bookstores all over Europe — thanks to the expiration of the German copyright held by the state of Bavaria.
Arab countries moving Yemen ambassadors from Sanaa to Aden; Yemen’s banks deteriorate as the economy collapses; US CPI continues in deflation, as Europe offers negative interest bonds
Greece’s PM Tsipras faces opposition from EU bailout deal; Cyprus gives Russia access to Cypriot ports on the Mediterranean
