Hacker group accuses Merkel government of helping to spy
MUNICH — The Chaos Computer Club, a leading hacker organization based in Germany, filed a criminal complaint against Chancellor Angela Merkel and members of her government Monday, accusing them of violating the law by helping U.S. and British intelligence agencies to spy on German citizens.
Human Rights Watch criticizes inaction on Syria
BERLIN — The advocacy group Human Rights Watch sharply criticized international powers Tuesday for the way they are dealing with the civil war in Syria, saying that the desire to bring President Bashar Assad’s government to the negotiating table should not become a pretext for failing to protect civilians caught in the conflict, which has claimed more than 100,000 lives.
European leaders grapple with youth unemployment
FRANKFURT, Germany — Record youth unemployment is emerging as the most urgent problem in the eurozone, if the political rhetoric of recent days is any measure. But leaders are struggling to come up with effective ways to prevent jobless young people in countries like Spain and Greece from becoming a lost generation and source of social upheaval.
France and Germany mark a milestone
BERLIN — France and Germany recently issued a joint postage stamp as part of a yearlong celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Elysee Treaty, the landmark agreement between the two former enemies.
Merkel’s coalition moves to ease Germans’ welfare costs
BERLIN — Leaders from Chancellor Angela Merkel’s coalition agreed Monday on a raft of changes to social welfare programs aimed at easing costs for average Germans to bolster the government’s sagging popularity less than a year before parliamentary elections.