Tuesday's top story: Far-right German MP's ex-aide faces verdict in China spy case
A German court is set to hand down its verdict Tuesday in the case of an alleged spy for China who worked as an aide to a far-right member of the European Parliament.
The main defendant, Jian Guo, worked as a Brussels-based staffer for Maximilian Krah of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party when Krah was an MEP between 2019 and 2024.
Prosecutors say Guo, a German national, worked for Chinese intelligence from 2002 and used his position in Krah's office to gather intelligence on European affairs and the AfD.
Krah, now an MP in Berlin, testified to the court this month that he had been unaware of allegations against Guo and had employed him because of his language skills and experience of running an import-export firm.
Guo is also accused of having been the handler for a second alleged operative, a Chinese national identified as Yaqi X., who is also on trial accused of spying on German defence companies.
READ ALSO: Alternative for Germany politician's ex-aide on trial for spying for China
Prosecutors have demanded seven-and-a-half years in jail for Guo, and two years and nine months for Yaqi X.
The federal cabinet plans reforms at two days of closed door meetings
According to German media reports, the black-red federal cabinet is meeting in Berlin in the Villa Borsig, located on the Reiherwerder peninsula, on Tuesday for its first closed meeting.
Consultations are to be held through the end of Wednesday.
The focus is on the economy, and moves to strengthen the competitiveness of German companies and reduce bureaucracy.
"Some of the companies have their backs to the wall or their feet in the abyss. And that's why we have to get results quickly," Chancellor Friedrich Merz had warned before the meeting.
READ ALSO: Taxes to immigration - The major challenges Germany faces this autumn
Chancellor Merz and his 17 ministers are to be joined by representatives from business and research on day one.
On the second day, concrete decisions are to follow in the form of a so-called modernisation agenda.
German government seeks stronger drone defence network
The German government is prioritising stronger networking and coordination in drone defence in response to escalating provocations by Russian drones in NATO and EU airspace.
Speaking at the Warsaw Security Forum, Defence Minister Boris Pistorius warned that Russia poses a growing threat and emphasised the need for unity and cooperation rather than escalation.
During a visit to Lithuania, he supported calls to shift from “air policing” flights to more robust air defence, including enhanced weaponry and revised engagement rules along NATO’s eastern flank.
Pistorius also highlighted boosting cooperation with the Ukrainian defence industry as key to regional security.
At the Forum, NATO partners and EU defence officials discussed enhancing collective capabilities, including the possibility of building “drone walls” on the eastern front.
Bus collision in Hamburg injures 20
Two buses collided Monday in the Osdorf district of Hamburg, injuring 20 people including children.
According to the fire department, 16 people sustained minor injuries while four adults were seriously hurt. Among those hospitalised were four children, who were only lightly injured, and a pregnant woman who suffered severe injuries.
Passengers on one bus included a primary school class on a trip to the German Electron Synchrotron (DESY) research centre.
Emergency services and police escorted the children back to their school.
The Osdorfer Landstraße road was reopened after investigation.
While the exact cause of the accident remains under investigation, initial reports suggest the sun's glare may have blinded the driver of the rear bus, leading to the collision.
Authorities continue to seek further information as they investigate the incident.
German music body sues OpenAI for copyright breaches
A German music rights body is suing OpenAI for copyright infringement, claiming the US tech giant's AI systems reproduced several artists' lyrics without permission, a court heard Monday.
It is the latest court case that OpenAI has faced, with media groups and authors among those claiming that the company's ChatGPT chatbot has been trained on their work without permission.
The music rights organisation GEMA claimed that OpenAI had "systematically" used its repertoire to train its artificial intelligence models, according to a statement from a regional Munich court which is hearing the case.
GEMA – which has more than 100,000 composers, songwriters and publishers as members – is representing lyricists of nine German songs in the case, and is seeking unspecified damages.
The court said it was "undisputed" that OpenAI's large language model was trained with the lyrics from the songs.
OpenAI disagrees however, according to the court.
Fatality following mass brawl in Gelsenkirchen
A 56-year-old man died Tuesday from stab wounds sustained during a mass brawl, escalating from a long-standing family dispute within a German-Turkish family.
The violent confrontation in Gelsenkirchen, involving up to 30 people, involved knives, tasers, and baseball bats.
In addition to the the fatality, several others people sustained serious injuries, with three men critically wounded but later stabilized, and a woman treated and released.
Authorities arrested seven suspects, ranging in age from 16 to 52, who are being questioned by a homicide commission investigating the precise roles and circumstances of the incident.
The brawl prompted a large police response including helicopter support and cordoning off the area for forensic investigations.
With reporting by AFP, DPA and Tom Pugh.
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