Berliner Tageblatt - News from Berlin, Europe and the whole world

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Thursday dismissed new allegations that his aides had tried to "blackmail" and threaten Conservative rebels, in a potentially criminal twist to Downing Street's "partygate" scandal.

A giant iceberg that detached from Antarctica in 2017 released the equivalent of 61 million Olympic-sized swimming pools of fresh water as it melted, according to research published Thursday, raising questions over the impact on the marine ecosystem.

US President Joe Biden said Thursday that any entry of Russian troops into Ukraine will be treated by the West as "an invasion," as he tried to clarify confusion over an earlier suggestion that a "minor" attack could invite a lesser response.

There were tears on the catwalk on Thursday as the final Louis Vuitton show by US designer Virgil Abloh, whose death shocked the industry last year, drew rapturous applause at Paris Fashion Week.

Saint-Etienne and Bordeaux have won a combined 16 French league titles, but two of French football's most successful clubs find themselves rooted in a deep malaise and facing the grim prospect of relegation this season.

South Africa head coach Mark Boucher faces charges which could result in his dismissal, Cricket South Africa (CSA) announced on Thursday.

Beaming and waving her arms in the air, teenage pilot Zara Rutherford was euphoric Thursday after completing a solo, round-the-world flying odyssey with the dream of getting into the record books.

The US real estate market last year saw the most existing homes sold in 15 years, even as sales slumped in the final month of 2021, according to industry data released Thursday.

The Russian central bank proposed Thursday cracking down on cryptocurrencies, a move which if adopted could disrupt the burgeoning virtual money sector as Russia is one of the largest crypto-mining nations in the world.

In a battle against Poland's constant smog, scientists are testing out a new "cannon" that uses soundwaves to push toxic particles higher into the atmosphere to allow residents to breathe.

At least two people were killed and 22 wounded Thursday by a bomb blast in a busy shopping district of the Pakistani megacity of Lahore, police and officials said.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and European allies insisted it was still possible to revive the Iran nuclear deal but said "time is running out", after talks in Berlin Thursday.

Prosecution and defence lawyers presented their closing arguments on Thursday to a Norwegian court which will now decide whether to parole Anders Behring Breivik, just 10 years after the neo-Nazi committed the country's deadliest peacetime attack.

The newly elected leader of Hong Kong barristers said Thursday that his profession should avoid politics and build closer ties to mainland China, as concerns grow about rule of law in the financial hub.

At least 29 people, including 11 children and a pregnant woman, were killed when robbers triggered a stampede at a religious rally in Liberia's capital, officials said on Thursday.

Scotland's Scott Jamieson fired a sparkling nine-under-par 63 to take a one-shot lead over Norwegian star Viktor Hovland after the first round of the Abu Dhabi Championship on Thursday.

Sudanese security forces fired tear gas on Thursday at protesters rallying against the killing of dozens in a post-coup crackdown, as US diplomats pressed for an end to the violence.

Henry Slade now appears to be available for all of England's Six Nations matches after Exeter said he was in contention to play in their European Champions Cup match against French side Montpellier on Sunday.

Turkey's central bank on Thursday bowed to market pressure and halted a four-month streak of interest rate cuts that saw inflation soar and the currency collapse.

Benedict XVI, accused of failing to act in German sex abuse cases, was the first pope to resign since the Middle Ages after presiding over a papacy beset by Church infighting and outcry over paedophilia.

A Lebanese judicial delegation will meet French authorities in Paris next week to discuss investigations into Lebanon's central bank governor Riad Salameh, a judicial source said on Thursday.

Daniil Medvedev took aim at sections of the raucous Australian Open crowd following his entertaining victory over home hero Nick Kyrgios on Thursday, saying: "They probably have a low IQ."

American Airlines reported another quarterly loss Thursday after the latest Covid-19 surge dented demand at the end of the year, but said consumers were booking more trips for the spring.

Wales wing Alex Cuthbert has been given a three-week ban for a dangerous tackle during the Ospreys' Europeans Champions Cup clash with Racing 92, tournament organisers announced Thursday.

Reigning US Open champion Emma Raducanu crashed out of the Australian Open in the second round Thursday as she struggled with blisters on her hand so bad that some of her team had urged her not to play.

Rivals St Pauli and Hamburg clash on Friday in historically one of the fiercest derbies in German football, with the two sides fresh from knocking Bundesliga clubs Borussia Dortmund and Cologne out of the German Cup.

Indonesia will push for the creation of a new global health agency while the country holds the presidency of the G20, President Joko Widodo said Thursday at the virtual Davos forum.

Swiss snowboarder Patrizia Kummer is serving her time in quarantine as she prepares to compete at the 2022 Beijing Winter Olympics unvaccinated for Covid-19.

A years-long saga over tech firms transferring data from Europe to the US re-erupted on Thursday, days after Austrian officials slapped down Google for failing to respect EU privacy rules.

Nick Kyrgios said that he put on a "good show" during four high-octane sets against Daniil Medvedev and has no plans to change despite bowing out of the Australian Open on Thursday.

Norway's 2020 overall World Cup champion Aleksander Aamodt Kilde is aiming to keep his simple ethos of successful skiing ticking over into next month's Beijing Olympics.

British artist Tracey Emin demanded Thursday that Prime Minister Boris Johnson's Downing Street office remove an artwork of hers reading "More Passion," saying it did not need further encouragement to party.