The Irish government will intervene in the case taken by South Africa and argue that restricting food and other essentials in Gaza may constitute genocidal intent, the foreign minister Micheál Martin said on Wednesday.

“We believe there is a case, given how this war has been conducted,” Martin said.

“We will be inviting the court to consider the issue of broadening how you determine whether genocide has taken place or not on the basis of an entire population being collectively punished.”

A clear pattern of behaviour had impeded humanitarian aid, resulting in widespread suffering, he said. “Half the population of Gaza is facing famine and 100% is experiencing food insecurity.”

In 2024, Jewish money is once again being confiscated by a German bank: Berliner Sparkasse freezes Jewish Voice account

On 25 March 2024, our account with the Berliner Sparkasse was frozen with immediate effect. In a letter, the Sparkasse informed us that it had taken this step as a precautionary measure and that we should submit numerous internal documents by 5 April to update our customer data. As a public corporation, the bank is bound by public law and may therefore not arbitrarily freeze accounts without providing an explanation, which it did not. It is also highly unusual that the required documents include a list of our members with their full names and addresses.

Why should this information be important to the Berliner Sparkasse? It sounds more like a question that might be asked by an intelligence service or the police, who have been politically persecuting us as a Jewish organisation for some time. Our previous account with the Bank for Social Economy was closed in 2019 because of our support for BDS. This happened after agitation by Israeli journalist Benjamin Weinthal and pressure from the Central Council of Jews in Germany.

This pressure and political persecution are increasing as Israel and its apartheid policies in the state of Israel and the West Bank, and now its genocidal policies in the Gaza Strip, lose support around the world. Germany is one of Israel"s last loyal allies, and the German state is co-operating with Israel"s apartheid and genocide, even though over 80% of the population does not support the German government"s policy.

The Palestine Congress will take place in Berlin in mid-April and will feature a wide range of international speakers, including the former Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis. The closer the congress gets, the more intense the persecution becomes; for weeks, there has been shrill defamation from the tabloid media and local politicians, such as describing it as a "hate summit" for which "thousands of anti-Semites" will be coming to Berlin. Because the journalists can"t write anything factual about it, they try to delegitimise the congress through guilt by association.

However, because the organisers are independent of politics, the usual methods such as cancellation or denial of spaces do not work. The congress is financed by ticket sales and donations; we, the Jewish Voice, have made our account available for this purpose – which is why it has now been blocked. We will not be intimidated by this, even if we lose our account: Our position on genocide is derived from our Jewish values and is not dependent on financial resources. Our membership grows with every day and every act of repression. Anyone who is a member of our organisation knows it themselves. It is none of any bank"s business. We are taking legal action against the arbitrary, politically motivated freezing of our account, which is unacceptable in a democracy.

It was the first time the Dutch publicly attributed cyberespionage to China, as national security tensions grow between the two countries. They are also in a confrontation over restrictions of exports of high-tech semiconductor equipment made by Dutch giant ASML to China.

Beijing routinely denies allegations of cyberespionage and says it opposes all forms of cyberattack.

BUDAPEST, March 26 (Reuters) - Thousands of people protested in Budapest near parliament on Tuesday demanding the chief prosecutor and Prime Minister Viktor Orban resign after a former government insider accused a senior aide to Orban of trying interfere in a graft case.

Protesters marched from the chief prosecutor's office towards parliament shouting "Resign, resign", with many carrying torches.

Several banks in China, the UAE and Turkey have boosted their sanctions compliance requirements in recent weeks, resulting in delays or even the rejection of money transfers to Moscow and reducing revenue to the Kremlin.

Powered by a BMW engine and normal fuel, the AirCar flew for 35 minutes between two Slovakian airports in 2021, using runways for take-off and landing.

It took just over two minutes to transform from a car into an aircraft.

Now vehicles made based on its design will be used within a "specific geographical region" of China.

Hebei Jianxin Flying Car Technology Company, headquartered in Cangzhou, has purchased exclusive rights to manufacture and use AirCar aircraft inside an undisclosed area.

Brussels had announced the probe on February 16, with EU internal market commissioner Thierry Breton at the time saying CRRC Qingdao Sifang Locomotive was thought to have relied on subsidies to "submit an unduly advantageous offer" to try to win the tender for electric trains in Bulgaria.

EU internal market commissioner Thierry Breton said that Europe's single market remained open "for firms that are truly competitive and play fair" but that Brussels will take "all necessary measures to preserve Europe's economic security and competitiveness".

Cross-posted from: https://feddit.de/post/10406685

The guidelines apply to all autocratic countries, but China is likely to be the principal concern.

Scholarships funded by foreign governments and partnerships that mean academic staff have to pass ideological tests may breach rules, according to the Office for Students (OfS).

It has launched a consultation on its guidance, which will come into effect in August.

Universities say they take their commitments to freedom of speech and academic freedom "extremely seriously".

"The escalation of threats and violence suffered by journalists in Novi Sad, northern Serbia, has reached an unprecedented level," the European Centre for Press and Media Freedom (ECPMF) says.

In just ten days, no fewer than seven journalists have faced threats and assaults in the city of Novi Sad alone. Whether it is physical assaults, verbal abuse, online harassment or death threats, the ability of Serbian journalists to do their job is severely compromised and their safety is at risk.

After two years of war in Ukraine, videos of death and torture have become commonplace in Russia. And methods of torture once only spoken about in witness testimonials are now being promoted online by the perpetrators themselves as they publish photos and videos of brutality for bragging rights.

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — The Russian ambassador to Poland did not show up Monday for a meeting at the Polish Foreign Ministry where he had been summoned because of a Russian cruise missile that violated Polish airspace on the weekend, the Polish ministry’s spokesman said.

Cross-posted from: https://feddit.de/post/10380911

Sir Iain Duncan Smith, Tim Loughton and Stewart McDonald said it's time for a "new era" in UK-China relations at a press conference in London, with Sir Iain adding they cannot be "bullied" by Beijing.

The former Tory party leader said: "We have been subjected to harassment, impersonation and attempted hacking from China for some time."

While that was "extremely unwelcome", Sir Iain said "our discomfort pales in comparison to Chinese dissidents who risk their lives to oppose the Chinese Communist Party".

Sanctions against Chinese officials are expected to be announced later.

It documents a time when tight borders ran through Germany and separated eastern from western Europe and how millions of people in former East Germany (GDR), Poland, Hungary and other Eastern European countries fought for freedom and democracy in 1989. The exhibition targets a young audience, which is why it was first presented in Berlin's Heinrich-Hertz secondary school. Students had done additional research on the exhibits documenting the history of the Cold War, which their parents or grandparents experienced firsthand.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez suggested that the fact the four leaders represented all sides of the political spectrum - with Spain and Malta governed by centre-left parties, Slovenia by a Liberal party, and Ireland by a centre-right party - showed there was broad political consensus that the recognition of Palestine is necessary for any future peace process.

Although the European Union supports the so-called two-state solution - which would deliver statehood for Palestinians - and is the single biggest donor of aid to Palestinians, it has not yet unanimously backed the recognition of a Palestinian state.

Until a few weeks ago, Péter Magyar was virtually unknown. Now, he is dominating conversations and headlines – and making the government of Hungary’s longtime prime minister, Viktor Orbán, deeply uncomfortable.

Cross-posted from: https://feddit.de/post/10376907

China is increasingly targeting people outside its borders in a tactic known as transnational repression, which aims to stifle debate or criticism.

Steve Tsang, the director of the Soas China Institute, says Chinese student protesters in the UK have long been photographed and monitored, but the practice “may well” have increased with newer surveillance technology.

Students say their families in China have also been threatened by local authorities, warning them to stop engaging in political activities overseas.

Some politicians in Germany consider the app "a danger to our democracy," says Roderich Kiesewetter, vice chairman of the Bundestag’s intelligence control committee and member of Germany’s conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU), because it is an "important instrument" in China and Russia’s hybrid warfare.

Jens Zimmerman, a member of Germany’s Social Democratic Party, said that the government should consider at least banning the app on federal devices. This is the case for the EU institutions, for instance.

Less than 10 years ago, Germany, and especially Berlin, was held up as a beacon of openness and inclusivity in a western world rocked by Brexit and Donald Trump. Angela Merkel’s decision to take in thousands of refugees displaced by the war in Syria boosted her country’s reputation in progressive circles, with many international artists and academics choosing to make the German capital their new home.

Yet the conflict in the Middle East is showing Germany in a new light, highlighting fissures in society and the arts world that until now had been easier to ignore.