Latest Olaf Scholz News
German parliament approves plans to relax strict restrictions on family names
BERLIN (AP) — The German parliament on Friday approved plans to relax strict restrictions on family names — clearing the way, among other things, for couples to take double-barreled surnames and pass them on to their children. The reform of Germany's rigid rules is due to take...
Shaken by the Fico assassination attempt, the EU wonders if June elections can be free of violence
BRUSSELS (AP) — In an increasingly vitriolic political climate, the last thing needed in the runup to the June European Union elections was an assassination attempt on one of the bloc’s most controversial figures. As Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico lay recovering from...
Memoirs of former German leader Angela Merkel, titled 'Freedom,' will be published in November
BERLIN (AP) — The memoirs of former German Chancellor Angela Merkel will be released in November, nearly three years after her 16-year tenure leading one of Europe's biggest powers ended. The roughly 700-page volume, titled “Freiheit” ("Freedom"), will be published on Nov. 26,...
German court backs intelligence agency's designation of far-right party as suspected extremist case
BERLIN (AP) — Germany's domestic intelligence agency was justified in putting the far-right Alternative for Germany under observation for suspected extremism, a court ruled Monday, rejecting an appeal from the opposition party. The administrative court in Muenster ruled in favor of...
Another German politician is attacked as concerns rise over violence ahead of EU elections in June
BERLIN (AP) — A prominent Berlin politician was violently assaulted and suffered injuries to her head and neck, police said Wednesday, in the latest attack on elected officials that raises concern over rising political violence in Germany. Franziska Giffey, the city's top economic...
Germany recalls its ambassador in Russia for a week in protest over a hacker attack
BERLIN (AP) — Germany said Monday it recalled its ambassador to Russia for a week of consultations in Berlin following an alleged hacker attack on Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s party. Germany last week accused Russian military agents of hacking into the top echelons of Scholz's...
German teen turns himself in over attack on European election candidate
BERLIN (AP) — A teenager surrendered to police on Sunday over an attack on a candidate from the party of Chancellor Olaf Scholz that fueled concern about intimidation and violence in the run-up to next month’s election for the European Parliament. The 17-year-old, accompanied by...
A candidate for Germany's key party was beaten up while campaigning for European elections
BERLIN (AP) — A candidate for Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s center-left party in next month’s election for the European Parliament was beaten up and seriously injured while campaigning in an eastern city, the party said Saturday. The incident raised political tension in Germany...
German foreign minister says Russia will face consequences for monthslong cyber espionage
BRUSSELS (AP) — Germany on Friday accused Russian military agents of hacking the top echelons of Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s party and other sensitive government and industrial targets, and was joined by NATO and fellow European countries in warning that Russia’s cyberespionage would have...
As EU election campaigns kick off in Germany, the Ukraine war, rise of far right are dominant themes
BERLIN (AP) — Several German parties on Saturday kicked off their campaigns for the election of the European Parliament in June with a focus on issues such as the war in Ukraine and support by many European voters for far-right nationalist parties across the continent. German...