Germany news: Race against time for stranded humpback whale

Volkswagen is in talks with the Israeli defense firm Rafael Advanced Defense Systems over a possible collaboration that would see production switch from cars to defense equipment at a key VW plant, according to a report in the Financial Times.

In response to queries from DW, a spokesperson for Volkswagen said, "The production of weapons by Volkswagen AG remains ruled out for the future, and we do not engage in speculation regarding further plans for the Osnabrück site."

Find out more about the reports here.

Calls are growing for Germany to update its rape law after a celebrity case involving "deepfakes" caused an uproar.

Campaigners are also pushing for a move to the "only yes means yes" principle of active consent.  

Read more here.

Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil discussed his plans to boost jobs and productivity at the Bertelsmann Foundation in Berlin on Wednesday. 

The Social Democrat leader is proposing a series of changes that could encounter resistance both from within his own party and from other parts of the coalition government led by Chancellor Friedrich Merz of the conservative Christian Democrats. 

Klingbeil said people should prepare for "difficult and uncomfortable decisions" in the coming years. He said that in recent years the state had "taken hundreds of billions in its hands to cushion the effects of crises," but that this could not continue. 

"We cannot simply tackle any and all problems with ever more money," he said. 

Couples' tax breaks, less early retirement and tax reforms all on the table

Klingbeil said that tax reforms should aim above all to promote working more, not less. 

For instance, he said he wanted to scrap a married couples tax break system known as Ehegattensplitting "in its current form" for future marriages. The statute allows couples where one partner has a high income and the other has a low income or no income to split their income tax burden. This leads to a lower combined tax bill than it would if the high earner was taxed individually and fell into a higher bracket.

Klingbeil said it was necessary to "get rid of a mistaken incentive that primarily has trapped women in part-time work," portraying the "system from a previous century" as outdated.

Various attempts to reform the law have been floated but failed in recent decades, and the latest bid is by no means certain to succeed. It has already encountered staunch criticism from members of the conservative Bavarian CSU as an attack on married couples.

Klingbeil also said the tax system should be reformed to make work more attractive. He did not detail how, but said the goal would be to relieve the tax burden for 95% of workers, suggesting that higher taxes on top earners and assets or capital gains could plug the gap. 

"For me it's completely clear that high incomes and large fortunes will contribute in this," he said. 

The finance minister also said reforms were necessary to remove incentives for early retirement and to reward those who work longer. 

He voiced support for a system that would "orient itself much more strongly towards the number of years worked," potentially meaning a later retirement for graduates who spent their younger years in higher education.

Chancellor Friedrich Merz was asked in the periodical question-and-answer session in the Bundestag on Wednesday what he was doing to try to bring a halt to the fighting in Iran and the wider Gulf region. 

He alluded to his trip to Washington earlier in the month and a call with US President Donald Trump on Sunday. He said he had sought to convey his "concerns" and some of the risks to the world and the economy posed by the ongoing conflict, "by no means least importantly the opportunities it is creating for the regime in Moscow" in its war against Ukraine as oil prices rise. 

"I am in close consultation with my colleagues in the European Union, and beyond that, in the UK and Norway and many others," Merz said. "We are trying to do everything in our power to move the US and Israel towards now seeking a diplomatic solution to this war."

"Some of what's being said does not make sense to us on a strategic level," Merz said. "And so we are looking for ways in which we can bring our weight to bear in the EU and beyond to contribute to an end to this war. However, that does require the readiness of all sides, also on the Iranian side, which at present is clearly not recognizable." 

Business sentiment in Germany has weakened sharply in March as the Iran conflict weighs on the economy.

The Ifo business climate index fell by 2.0 points to 86.4, in line with expectations, while companies kept their current situation unchanged but downbeat outlooks for future business.

Confidence declined across industry, services, and retail, with construction expectations dropping at their fastest rate since March 2022.

Ifo President Clemens Fuest said the war has "for now ended hopes of a recovery."

Economists said the drop reflects rising energy prices and growing uncertainty, with the bank LBBW noting a recovery in German industry is "off the table for now."

Higher oil and gas prices are fueling inflation concerns and have already led economists to lower growth forecasts, with some now expecting around 0.8% growth instead of about 1%.

Commerzbank's chief economist, Jörg Krämer, said he believed the slump in Ifo business expectations reflects the legitimate concerns of German companies about the US-Israeli war on Iran.

"If the war and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz were to continue for another month or two, the economic damage for Germany would be clearly noticeable," he said.

Environment Minister Carsten Schneider presented the coalition's climate action plan for the next four years in Berlin on Wednesday. 

It foresees dozens of steps and additional expenditure of around €8 billion (roughly $9.25 billion), notably including the construction of roughly 2,000 new wind turbines. 

The plan is supposed to help the government meet its 2030 climate goal of a 65% reduction in CO2 emmissions compared to 1990 levels. This is part of a gradual reduction program that aims for the country to become carbon neutral by 2045. 

German emissions have drastically reduced in recent years; 2024 figures were roughly 48% lower than in 1990, with a similar rate of reduction evident early in 2025. 

Green groups criticize climate plan

However, the latest proposal is drawing criticism from all quarters.

Environmental groups have called the plans inadequate, too optimistic in its predicted gains, and based on outdated information.

The DUH group, or Environmental Action Germany to use its English language name, said it was planning a legal challenge to the government's plans, calling them "illegal" and an act of "climate policy arson." 

Greenpeace had also staged a protest at the Chancellery in Berlin earlier in the day. 

Meanwhile, industry lobby groups say the climate plans are too bureaucratic and will prove too expensive. 

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Wednesday that the government "cannot cover all additional costs from the federal budget" and that "the best way to combat high prices is to end the war in Iran."

Addressing the German parliament, the Bundestag, Merz (CDU) said that demands from some Social Democratic Party (SPD) ministers for further government relief measures would "lead immediately to significant revenue drops for the federal budget."

On the Middle East conflict itself, Merz said Germany, together with the European Union, was "trying to do everything" to persuade the United States and Israel to end the war against Iran, and that Berlin was prepared to join "international stabilization efforts after hostilities end."

But he ​added that ‌any operation would require a ​mandate ⁠from the United ⁠Nations.

Authorities in the western German state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) on Tuesday confiscated around a ton of unrefrigerated chicken that was being transported from Belgium to Berlin.

After stopping a van on the A2 autobahn near the city of Bielefeld due to overloading, authorities discovered the deep-cooled chicken being transported in an ambient temperature of 15°C (59°F) — rather than the legally required -18°C (-0.4°F).

The 42-year-old driver told police that he had already dispatched two pallets of chicken in a vehicle with an appropriate cooling system  but then simply packed the rest in his van.

He is being investigated on suspicion of breaching German food safety laws.

Germany's inland shipping sector has transported fewer goods in 2025, reaching its lowest level since reunification in 1990.

The Federal Statistical Office said total freight volume fell 1.3% year-on-year to 171.6 million metric tons.

The decline was mainly driven by weaker exports, with outbound shipments dropping 4.8% to 41.1 million tons.

Domestic transport remained largely stable at 42.8 million tons, while transit traffic fell 5.4% to 10.7 million tons.

Imports rose slightly by 0.6% to 77.0 million tons.

Bulk goods such as ores, coal, and petroleum products accounted for the largest share of cargo.

Rotterdam remained Germany's most important foreign port by a wide margin, ahead of Antwerp and Amsterdam.

More than half of all shipments were carried by Dutch-flagged vessels, while German ships accounted for just under one-third.

A Berlin court has sentenced four members of a Hamas-linked underground cell to several years in prison.

The court handed down terms ranging from four and a half to six years for membership in a foreign terrorist organization and related offenses.

Judges said the men, aged 36 to 58, acted as operatives responsible for weapons depots across several European countries.

According to the court, the stockpiles were intended for use in potential attacks on Israeli, Jewish or other facilities in Europe over an extended period.

Possible targets were the Israeli Embassy in Berlin, the US Ramstein Air Base and the area around Berlin's disused Tempelhof airport.

The men denied being Hamas members. The main accused did admit to visiting an arms cache in Bulgaria, but claimed his visit concerned "private arms dealing."

Read more about the sentencing here.

House prices in Germany have increased again, marking a continued recovery after recent declines.

According to the Federal Statistical Office, residential property prices in the fourth quarter of 2025 were up 3.0% compared with a year earlier, the fifth consecutive quarterly rise year-on-year.

Prices edged up 0.1% from the previous quarter, while the annual average for 2025 rose 3.2%, the first yearly increase since 2022 after declines in 2023 and 2024.

Growth was strongest in rural areas, where apartment prices rose 5.4%, compared with 4.8% in large cities and 2.1% in Germany’s seven biggest urban centers — Berlin, Cologne, Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg, Munich and Stuttgart.

On a quarterly basis, prices fell 1.6% in major cities but climbed 2.6% in rural regions, showing a shift in demand.

German police have mounted a large-scale operation to escort the first nuclear waste transport from an ex-research reactor site in the western city of Jülich in North Rhine-Westphalia.

Around 100 vehicles, including dozens of police units, formed a convoy protecting the heavy-load transporter carrying the radioactive cargo on its way to an interim storage facility in the town of Ahaus.

Authorities deployed extensive security measures, with officers guarding access points and even mobile toilets included in the convoy.

Highway exits were repeatedly closed, leaving drivers with limited options and in some cases forcing them to turn around.

The operation marks the start of a series of transports, with 151 more Castor containers set to be moved to the Ahaus interim storage site.

Police deployed about 2,400 officers, while unions warned of potential strain on personnel amid growing security demands.

The first container reached Ahaus after about four hours, as small groups of protesters demonstrated along the route and at the destination.

Early Wednesday morning, four activists from the environmental group Greenpeace were suspended from a massive construction crane right next to the Chancellery in Berlin — a crane that has been there for some time due to renovations at the building, which was swaying dangerously in the fierce wind on this gloomy morning.

The activists mounted a 100-square-meter (around 1000 square feet) banner, visible from afar above the government district, reading: "Freedom instead of fossil fuel politics." 

They want to draw attention to what they see as the shortcomings in the new climate protection program of Chancellor Friedrich Merz's government, which is set to be approved by the Cabinet at midday this Wednesday.

By 2030, the government promises to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 65% compared to 1990 levels; 48% of that target has already been achieved. But Greenpeace is certain: the 65% target is virtually impossible to meet.

Greenpeace energy expert Mira Jäger wrote in a press statement released simultaneously with the crane protest:  "There is a looming massive gap in the CO2 targets. So far, no measures are known that could even begin to close this gap. The rising prices for fuel and gas show everyone: The climate protection program must provide a clear roadmap for phasing out fossil fuels. We cannot afford to 'carry on as usual,' neither ecologically nor economically."

A stranded humpback whale has been fighting for survival off Niendorf beach in northern Germany, with rescuers forced to wait for better equipment.

A rescue attempt with a suction dredger failed because it was not powerful enough to remove the compact sand. Larger machinery is expected to arrive, likely on Thursday, to continue efforts.

Carsten Mannheimer from the marine conservation organization Sea Shepherd said the situation was difficult. "I would like to do more," he said, adding that there was little to do for now.

The group said the animal probably got stuck while migrating, and that it might be the same whale repeatedly sighted in the area this month.

The young whale has been stuck on a sandbank since Monday, with its back visible above water and its low sounds audible from hundreds of meters away.

Mannheimer said such incidents are hard to prevent, though improved equipment could help, adding he still hopes the whale will make it back to deeper water.

Guten Tag from the DW newsroom here in Bonn.

You join us as we follow the plight of a humpback whale stranded off the coast of the northern state of Schleswig-Holstein.

Special machinery is on its way, but it's a race against time to save the animal that became stuck in shallow water on Monday.

Stay with us for the latest on this and other news from Germany.