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Merino header breaks German hearts and sends Spain into Euro semis
Mikel Merino's header late in extra time sent Spain into the Euro 2024 semi-finals and eliminated hosts Germany after tight a 2-1 win on Friday. In the battle between the record three-times champions, Spain took the lead on 51 minutes when Dani Olmo converted a clever assist from 16-year-old Yamine Lamal. Germany pushed hard for a leveller, which looked like it would not come when Niclas Füllkrug struck the post, but fellow substitute Florian Wirtz thrashed home off the post on 89 minutes. The game went to 30 minutes extra and seemed to be drifting towards penalties when Merino netted with a looping header on 119 minutes from Olmo's cross. Olmo plays for Germany's RB Leipzig while Merino used to play for Borussia Dortmund. The late drama means Germany icon Toni Kroos' football career comes to an end with a painful defeat. Germany deserved more after missing several chances, but they go out of their home tournament after showing so much promise at the start of the event. Spain - winners in 1964, 2008 and 2012 - now head into Tuesday's semi-final in Munich against 2016 champions Portugal or twice winners France.
Dutch coach Koeman not worried with big Turkish support in Berlin
Netherlands coach Ronald Koeman is not concerned over the expected superiority of Turkish fans in Berlin's Olympic stadium for their Euro 2024 quarter-finals clash against Turkey on Saturday. "We know what to expect. I think it will be great to play with such atmosphere. We have to keep the ball so they can calm down," Koeman told a news conference on Friday. The game could be a home match for Turkey as some 200,000 people with Turkish roots live in Berlin. Koeman is expecting an "enthusiastic opponent," also because the Turkish people "have a big heart, just like the Romanians". The Netherlands defeated Romania 3-0 in the last 16 with their best performance of the tournament so far.
White House calls Orbán's meeting with Putin 'counterproductive'
The White House said it is "concerned" about Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's surprise trip on Friday to Moscow, where he met Russian President Vladimir Putin and discussed the war in Ukraine. The behaviour of the Hungarian leader is "counterproductive" in terms of supporting Ukraine's sovereignty and does not contribute to peace in the country invaded by Russia, said US President Joe Biden's spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre. "Russia could end this war today by stopping their aggression against Ukraine, against their sovereignty, against their democracy. They can withdraw. They can withdraw right now," she said.
NATO's Stoltenberg: Russian president thinks he can outlast us
Over and out: All going to plan, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg will chair his last summit of the alliance's leaders next week in Washington. The NATO chief, however, does not show any diminished signs of commitment. In an interview with dpa, the former Norwegian prime minister set out his expectations for Ukraine, and a potential second turn for Donald Trump in the White House. dpa: Mr secretary general, since June 26, it's official. After 10 years at the head of NATO, your mandate will definitely end on October 1. Are you relieved that the NATO states have finally found a successor...
EU Commission asks for information on Amazon recommendation systems
The European Commission is calling on the US internet giant Amazon to provide more information on the transparency of certain recommendation systems used by the shopping platform. The systems use artificial intelligence, for example, to collect data from consumers and recommend additional products. The commission has now submitted a request...
German climate activists smear iconic statue in Bremen with paint
Environmental activists have covered the statue of the Town Musicians of Bremen with black paint. The sculpture depicts the four animals that feature in the fairy tale of the same name by the Brothers Grimm, and is a well-known landmark in the northern German city. Police were alerted by witnesses on Friday afternoon, and found three activists holding up posters from the Last Generation protest group in front of the bronze statue of a donkey, a dog, a cat, and a rooster. The police said the fire brigade was able to remove most of the paint. Criminal charges were brought against the three activists for damage to property. The police have launched an investigation. Radio Bremen reported that the environmental activists are demanding that Bremen's centre-left mayor Andreas Bovenschulte, read out a statement from the group, which was handed over to his office on June 27, at a public press conference. The conservative CDU in Bremen described the action as senseless vandalism. Damaging cultural monuments was detrimental to any goal, no matter how well-intentioned, the party said.
Gantz assures Netanyahu of support for ceasefire deal
Israeli opposition politician Benny Gantz has promised Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu his support if Israeli negotiators agree to a ceasefire and hostage exchange in indirect talks with Hamas in the coming weeks. His centrist National Unity party will back any reasonable agreement that leads to the return of the hostages abducted by Hamas, Gantz said in a telephone conversation with Netanyahu, according to his office. The talks, which the US, Egypt and Qatar are mediating, have been at a standstill for a long time. However, a new round is due to start in the Qatari capital Doha in the next few days,...
Iranians vote in run-off election between hardliner and reformist
Iranians headed back to the ballot box on Friday in a run-off presidential election that pitted reformist candidate Masoud Pezeshkian against hardliner Saeed Jalili after last week's vote failed to produce a clear winner. Some 61 million people were eligible to vote for a successor to president Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter crash in May. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei cast his ballot and urged the entire nation to take part in the vote, following a first round where turnout hit a record low 40%. "God willing, we will have a president tomorrow," Khamenei said in the capital Tehran. Polling stations were...
Hungary PM Orbán says peace his mission in controversial Moscow visit
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbàn met Russian President Vladimir Putin in the Kremlin on Friday, holding two-and-a-half hours of talks amid strong criticism of the surprise visit from top EU officials and European leaders. Several EU officials stressed that the Hungarian leader had no official EU mandate for negotiations with Russia, and that it had nothing to do with Hungary assuming the six-month rotating presidency of the European Union. The right-wing populist leader, often a thorn in the side of Brussels over a range of issues, is seen as closest to Moscow among European Union leaders. During a joint appearance with Putin after...
Switzerland coach: 'We will cause England problems' in Euro quarters
Switzerland coach Murat Yakin recognized that Euro 2024 quarter-final opponents England have a lot of quality, but said his team will cause them problems on Saturday. "They have a lot of quality. (But) we're in good shape, confident and we have shown already that we can mix it against big teams – against the defending champions (Italy), the hosts (Germany). We will cause England problems," Yakin told a news conference on Friday. Switzerland had a confidence boost after being the only team to take points away from Germany in the group stage with a 1-1 draw and defeating holders Italy 2-0 in...
Norris tops practice for home British GP, Verstappen mixed
McLaren's Lando Norris was fastest in second practice for the British Formula One Grand Prix on Friday after also topping the timesheets in first practice earlier. Norris clocked 1 minute 26.549 seconds on the iconic 5.891-kilometre Silverstone circuit, an improvement of 0.871 seconds from his fastest time in the earlier session. Team-mate Oscar Piastri was second, with the Red Bull of Sergio Perez in third. Triple world champion Max Verstappen was only seventh in the other Red Bull, 0.684 off the pace in cool conditions, having been fourth earlier. Verstappen and Norris made contact when fighting for the lead in the closing stages of...
Orbán vows to continue working for peace in Ukraine after Putin talks
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán has once again called for efforts to find a peaceful solution to the Ukraine war during a joint appearance with Russian President Vladimir Putin in the capital Moscow. According to an official Russian translation, Orbán said that Europe has been living in the shadow of the war in Ukraine for more than two years. "Europe needs peace," he said. Orbán made the surprise trip to Moscow amid fierce criticism from EU officials, Western politicians and from Ukraine. The EU stressed that the Hungarian leader had no official EU mandate for negotiations with Russia. Peace will not come, but must be worked for by all sides, Orbán said. However, the positions of Moscow and Kiev are very far apart. "A great many steps must be taken to move closer to ending the war," he said. Establishing contact was key, he said, adding: "I will continue to work in this direction."
Reports: Israeli army kills six militants in West Bank
Several armed militants and a civilian have been killed in an Israeli military operation in Jenin in the West Bank, Israeli and Palestinian media reported on Friday. The Ministry of Health in Ramallah said seven Palestinians died in total - six militants and a civilian. Israel's army confirmed the operation in the city, during which soldiers exchanged fire with militants surrounded in a building. An aircraft attacked and "eliminated" a group of gunmen, the army said. Israeli forces also killed two more men in the house who they said had taken part in an earlier attack that left one Israeli soldier dead. According...
Turkish outrage grows over UEFA suspension of Euro player Demiral
Turkey on Friday condemned UEFA's two-match suspension for their defender Merih Demiral over a controversial gesture which rules him out of Saturday's Euro 2024 quarter-final match against the Netherlands. Turkish Football Federation (TFF) chairman Mehmet Buyukeksi labelled the decision “unacceptable, illegal and political." Sports Minister Osman Askin Bak said the "unfair and biased decision ... has no legal basis and is entirely political." Friday's events came ahead of the match in Berlin, which Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has confirmed he will attend. The TFF reportedly mulled a protest at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) but Buyukeksi said the world's highest...
German Olympic chief hopes for peaceful Paris Olympics as team named
Germany's Olympic boss Thomas Weikert has expressed hope that the Paris Games will be a peaceful event in turbulent times. "The general conditions are very difficult. I hope it remains safe and peaceful," German Olympic Sports Confederation (DOSB) president Weikert said on Friday at a kit event for the German team. "I hope that there will be no incidents. But I have great confidence in the IOC [International Olympic Committee] that the Games will be organized well." The July 26-August 11 Games take place amid an uncertain political situation in France. France's far-right National Rally, led by Marine Le Pen, has topped the first...
Bayern sell out stadium for Bundesliga season despite finishing third
Bayern Munich sold out the Allianz Arena for the upcoming Bundesliga season shortly after the fixtures were released on Thursday, despite only finishing third last term. Chief executive Jan-Christian Dreesen said interest was "greater than ever before" as new coach Vincent Kompany takes the helm after last season's first campaign since 2012 without a trophy. "The Allianz Arena is always good for records. More fans than ever before want to come to Bayern to see beautiful, successful football - we want to do justice to that in the upcoming season," he added in a statement on Friday. "The record demand for tickets to Bayern's home games shows how our team and our club continue to move people and how the unique stadium experience at Allianz Arena excites them. For our players and all of us, this means additional motivation." Despite being strictly speaking sold out, tickets are still available for all Bundesliga home games. This is because some tickets will be raffled among members and fan clubs as always.
Orbàn and Putin end 2.5 hours of talks in the Kremlin
Russian President Vladimir Putin and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbàn held a two-and-a-half hour meeting in the Kremlin on Friday. Putin's foreign policy adviser Yuri Ushakov said many issues had been discussed in what he said was a very good atmosphere - above all Ukraine. Putin recently made a proposal for ending the war against Ukraine that he launched more than two years ago, although he made it conditional on Ukraine agreeing to territorial concessions in advance. Putin said he wanted to inform Orbàn about the details of his ideas. Despite the Russian invasion, Orbàn continues to maintain good relations with the Kremlin...
Eurozone inflation eases but banking authorities call for caution
Inflation accelerated rapidly in the eurozone after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in early 2022 and peaked at more than 10% in 2022. Energy costs in particular shot up after the invasion caused gas prices to spike with a knock on effect on the cost of industrially produced goods and imports. After two years, eurozone inflation stands now at 2.5% in June, down from 2.6% in May. The European Central Bank (ECB), tasked with maintaining price stability, lowered its key interest rates by 0.25 percentage points for the first time in June since inflation hit the euro area. If inflation falls in...
Germany's Scholz, coalition partner salute Labour on UK poll victory
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz on Friday congratulated the British Labour Party on its comprehensive victory in the United Kingdom's general election. Asked whether he saw himself in a new alliance with freshly appointed British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, the Social Democratic Party (SPD) leader concurred, saying he was delighted with the result. As a traditional centre-left party, Labour occupies a similar place on the UK's political spectrum to Scholz's SPD in Germany. Scholz said he knows Starmer personally and has met him several times, and stated that he would be a very successful prime minister. The pro-business Free Democratic Party (FDP), the junior partner...
Amazon at 30: From online bookseller to 2-trillion-dollar tech giant
Amazon marked its 30th anniversary on Friday as a two-trillion-dollar company, capping a remarkable rise from the online bookseller it was founded as, inside a garage in the early days of the internet. Founder Jeff Bezos stepped down as chief executive in 2021, but he remains the executive chair and largest shareholder of a company now known as an e-commerce and cloud computing giant. Since its foundation as a bookseller, the company has grown into an online retail heavyweight where consumers can buy almost anything. It has also expanded, making many of its own products that it sells online, including electronics, led by...
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