Germany updates: Bavarian castles join World Heritage list

07/12/2025July 12, 2025

UNESCO puts Bavarian castles on World Heritage List

The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) on Saturday announced the newest additions to its list of designated World Heritage Sites during an annual meeting in Paris.

Several sites in Germany were added to the list, namely, the castles and residences of King Ludwig II of Bavaria (1845-1886).

Built in the 1800s in different historicizing styles and defamed as a fanciful if not mad waste of money at the time, the sites have been tourist magnets for nearly 140 years. 

The UNESCO designation will no doubt increase the number of people visiting the sites. Some 1.7 million individuals, many of them foreign tourists, visited the castles in 2024. 

Politicians in the southern German state of Bavaria have fought for the designation for a quarter century. 

Known around the world — in large part due to the Disney corporation's use of Neuschwanstein as a model for various castles, as well as the image of the palace perched on an outcropping and surrounded by Alpine forests — Neuschwanstein Castle, Herrenchiemsee Palace, Linderhof Castle and the King's House on Schachen were all added to the list Saturday. 

"The inclusion of the palaces on the World Heritage List is an outstanding tribute to these impressive places," said German Unesco Commission President Maria Böhmer.

"They are all architectural masterpieces and bear witness to the artistic imagination, but also the eccentricity of the fairytale king."
 
Prior to Saturday's additions, there were 54 UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Germany. Globally, there are some 1,223 World Heritage Sites in 168 different countries.

07/12/2025July 12, 2025

Thyssenkrupp and IG Metall reach labor agreement

ThyssenKrupp Steel Europe and labor union IG Metall announced on Saturday that they have reached agreement over hard fought cost-cutting measures at the German industrial company.

A collective restructuring agreement came Saturday after three days of negotiations, with management and labor seeking to put the company back in the black by 2030.

ThyssenKrupp, Germany's largest steelmaker, has struggled with rising energy prices and cheap imports from Asia of late.

In order to combat that trend, lay-offs — up to 10,000 of them — and the cancellation of various bonuses will be undertaken, with laborers taking home less pay in the future. 

"We are reducing excess capacity, improving efficiency, and can thus achieve a competitive cost structure," said Marie Jaroni, a member of the company's executive board, in describing the company's long-term viability.

Regional IG Metall leader Knut Geisler noted that concessions made by ThyssenKrupp regarding firings and investment had softened the impact of the agreement.

Now IG Metall union members at ThyssenKrupp must approve the deal.

07/12/2025July 12, 2025

Interior minister says spat over judicial appointments doesn't weaken Constitutional Court

German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt on Saturday said recent parliamentary wrangling within the ruling coalition over the appointment of judges to the Federal Constitutional Court do not weaken the institution.

Dobrindt, of Bavaria's conservative Christian Social Union (CSU), was reacting to criticism by opposition parties but also from coalition partner Social Democrats (SPD) who accused the CDU/CSU of "deliberately dismantling our highest German court and our democratic institutions."

Speaking with radio broadcaster Deutschlandfunk (DLF), Dobrindt said, "I don't see any damage to the Federal Constitutional Court at all." 

Germany's Bundestag had been scheduled to vote on three appointments to the bench on Friday but the vote was torpedoed when the conservative CDU/CSU bloc unexpectedly withdrew support for a candidate put forth by the SPD over plagiarism accusations.

07/12/2025July 12, 2025

Welcome to our Saturday coverage

Guten Tag from Bonn!

Following the pause, DW resumes its coverage of news and analysis from Germany.

On Saturday, Germany awaits news from Paris, where the World Heritage Committee of UNESCO is expected to decide whether to grant World Heritage status to the castles of Neuschwanstein, Herrenchiemsee, and Linderhof, as well as the royal residence on Schachen Mountain in Upper Bavaria.

Stay tuned for more, and we hope you enjoy reading!

07/12/2025July 12, 2025

We're pausing our coverage

07/11/2025July 11, 2025

WATCH: Victims of Srebrenica massacre laid to rest after 30 years

Thousands of Bosnians gather at a cemetery near Srebrenica to mark the 30th anniversary of a massacre in which more than 8,000 Muslim Bosniak men and boys were executed by Bosnian Serb forces during a 1992-5 war.

07/11/2025July 11, 2025

German comedian 'El Hotzo' to face trial over Trump assassination remarks

Sebastian Hotz, aka El Hotzo, has more than a million followers on InstagramImage: Hendrik Schmidt/dpa/picture alliance

German comedian Sebastian Hotz will have to go to court in relation to social media posts he made about the attempted assassination of Donald Trump.

The Berlin public prosecutor's office charges that Hotz, who is also known as "El Hotzo," condoned and rewarded criminal offences.

His trial is scheduled to begin on July 23 at the Tiergarten district court in Berlin.

Hotz deleted the posts on X, but screenshots soon began to circulate.

In one comment, he suggested a similarity between a "last bus" and then presidential candidate Trump, writing that "unfortunately" both had been "just missed." In another, Hotz said: "I think it's absolutely fantastic when fascists die."

In the wake of the scandal, regional public broadcaster RBB ended its collaboration with Hotz on a youth program.

Soon after, national public broadcaster ARD Kultur canceled a literary event with him.

07/11/2025July 11, 2025

German steak heiress on trial over kidnapping of her own children

The 52-year-old heiress is accused of organizing the abduction at the end of a lengthy custody battleImage: Georg Wendt/dpa/picture alliance

Christina Block, heiress to Germany's Block House steakhouse chain, went on trial in Hamburg on Friday accused of ordering the violent kidnapping of her two youngest children.

Block is standing trial alongside her partner, former television sports presenter Gerhard Delling, and several other alleged accomplices accused of snatching the children from their father in Denmark.

Find out more about the high-profile case.
 

07/11/2025July 11, 2025

Srebrenica: Survivor speaks for Bosnians who no longer can

Hasan Hasanovic lost his twin brother and father in the Srebrenica genocide in 1995. Now, he has made it his life's work to document the deadliest massacre in Europe since World War II.

Today, one of Hasanovic most important projects has to do with building an archive with video footage of survivors of the genocide telling their stories. It is unique and the most important record of what happened 30 years ago.

Read more about his life and work here.

07/11/2025July 11, 2025

Wife of Lufthansa CEO expresses 'deep sorrow' over fatal car accident in Italy

Vivian Spohr, the wife of Lufthansa CEO Carsten Spohr, said she was "at the complete disposal" of Italian judicial authorities following the death of a 24-year-old woman who was struck by a vehicle in the Italian island of Sardinia.

Local media reported that the 24-year-old died from serious head injuries after she was struck by a vehicle at a crosswalk on Tuesday, with Spohr reportedly at the wheel.

Gaia Costa, the victim, was from from Tempio Pausania, in the Gallura region of northern Sardinia. She died at the scene of accident in in Porto Cervo in northern Sardinia.

In a statement issued by her Italian lawyer on Friday, the 51-year-old German businesswoman expressed "dismay and deep sorrow for this grave accident, which has devastated a family, the town of Tempio, and the entire community of Gallura."

The statement added that Spohr places herself "at the complete disposal of the Italian judicial authorities for the necessary investigations and, while aware that such a great personal loss cannot be repaired, will take steps to mitigate its consequences." 

Spohr had been staying at her family's vacation home when the accident occurred, local media reported. She returned to Germany shortly after the accident. 

07/11/2025July 11, 2025

Germany denies report it plans to buy more F-35 jets

Germany does not plan to procure more F-35 fighter jets beyond the 35 already ordered, the defense ministry has said, rejecting a Politico report that claimed Berlin aimed to expand its fleet to 50.

Germany has so far ordered 35 US-made jets to replace a total of 85 ageing Tornado aircraft.

"The defense ministry currently has no plans to procure additional F-35s beyond the 35 F-35s already contractually agreed," a ministry spokesperson said at a regular news conference.

A military source told the Reuters news agency that the 15 additional jets had been part of earlier considerations.

However, NATO's new targets for weapons and troop numbers mean that the number may need adjusting. The source did not confirm if more jets will ultimately be ordered.

The report by Politico comes amid tensions between Germany and France over their joint FCAS fighter jet project. An industry source told Reuters that France now wants an 80% workshare, which could scrap the agreed split and block the project's next phase.

07/11/2025July 11, 2025

Merz set to make first official visit to London next week

German Chancellor Friedrich Merz will make his first official visit to London on Thursday, with a German-British treaty of friendship expected to be signed.

Government spokesman Steffen Meyer said in Berlin on Friday that the visit aims to deepen close ties between the two countries. Merz will be received by British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who has sought to repair relations with the EU after Brexit.

The draft treaty is set to be approved by the German Cabinet on Wednesday. It will focus on cooperation in foreign and defense policy, economic growth, and more direct contact between citizens.

Once signed, the agreement will go to the Bundestag for approval. An action plan with specific joint projects will also be presented to strengthen bilateral ties.

07/11/2025July 11, 2025

How Germany selects its top judges

The Bundestag has postponed a decision to appoint three judges amid controversiesImage: Michael Bihlmayer/CHROMORANGE/picture alliance

Independent justices preside over Germany's Federal Constitutional Court.

How are they chosen? DW looks at the process of picking judges in Germany.

07/11/2025July 11, 2025

Volkswagen shuttering Nanjing factory

A joint car plant in the Chinese city of Nanjing, run by German car company Volkswagen and its local partner SAIC, will be closed in the coming months.

"Volkswagen Group and its joint venture partners are accelerating the transformation towards electric, intelligent, connected vehicles," a spokesperson for Volkswagen told AFP news agency.

"Many SAIC Volkswagen sites are currently being converted or have already been converted for electric vehicle production," the spokesperson said.

The spokesman also confirmed the news first reported by German newspaper, Handelsblatt, about production having already come to a halt there.

One reason for the closure of the plant, which is set to be closed over the second half of the year, was because of its urban location, making the expansion of electric vehicle production difficult.

The plant, which has a capacity to produce 360,000 vehicles per year, first opened in 2008. It made models like Volkswagen Passat and Skoda Superb.

07/11/2025July 11, 2025

Bankruptcies on the rise in Germany

The number of companies that went bankrupt in Germany significantly rose again in April, according to finalized data from the German Federal Statistical Office (Destatis).

The number of 2,125 companies going bust in April 2025 marks a rise of 11.5% more than in the same month last year.

Volker Treier, the head analyst of the German Industry and Commerce Chamber, warned that "Whoever wants to ensure competitiveness, cannot further postpone relief."

According to preliminary data from Destatis, the number of businesses filing for bankruptcy in June 2025 is expected to rise by 2.4% in comparison to June 2024.