News from Germany on politics, society, regions and everyday issues relevant to readers in Germany and across Europe.
The German government has no reliable figures on how long children and adolescents must wait for a therapy place. This is according to a response to a parliamentary question from the Left Party, which Spiegel has seen.
The German cabinet has approved a reform package of more than 700 pages, granting domestic and foreign intelligence services greater powers to counter hybrid threats. As Deutsche Welle reports, the reform also draws criticism.
The federal cabinet is set to decide on the reform of child and youth welfare. The Social Association of Germany (SoVD) warns of risks for children with complex disabilities.
The federal government wants to push the BAföG reform through the cabinet today. However, the increase in the housing allowance to 440 euros will only come into effect in the summer semester of 2027, as reported by Tagesschau.
A review by the ADAC has found significant defects at pedestrian crossings in Hesse. As the FAZ reports, one in three zebra crossings near elementary schools is unsafe.
In the first half of the year, employees in Deutsche Bahn's regional transport were victims of violence almost 990 times. The subsidiary DB Regio says the company wants to counter this with stab-resistant vests, body cameras, and more staff.
Following the drone incident in Leipzig, Federal Minister Steffen Bilger wants to quickly improve defense measures at German airports. According to Tagesschau, he is calling for faster equipping of airports.
The youth traffic school at Frankfurt's Grüneburgpark is in urgent need of renovation. The practice area has seen better days, and a new building is not expected before 2028.
Only 25.8 percent of long-distance trains between Hamburg and Berlin currently reach their destination on time. The line had been closed for ten months.
The Berlin–Hamburg rail line will be closed again at night in August and September. Deutsche Bahn says it will fix remaining defects and carry out final optimizations.
Severe thunderstorms swept across parts of Germany on Monday evening and into Tuesday, causing damage and disrupting rail traffic, particularly in Thuringia and North Rhine-Westphalia.
In the first six months of 2026, 9,663 people were deported from Germany, about 2,100 fewer than in the same period last year, according to the Federal Ministry of the Interior.
The transport of the new Sternbrücke in Hamburg-Altona begins today, Wednesday, a day earlier than planned, according to Deutsche Bahn. The 3,700-ton steel bridge will be moved onto Max-Brauer Allee.
Passengers on S-Bahn lines S5, S6, and S8 as well as the Werdenfelsbahn will face disruptions in August due to bridge construction at Westkreuz. Replacement services will be provided by buses.
Due to slope stabilization work by the railway, the S7 line between Icking and Wolfratshausen will be closed for four weeks starting August 12. Munich's S-Bahn is setting up a replacement bus service.
After the deadly terrorist attack on the Christopher Street Day (CSD) parade in Berlin, the heads of government from Lower Saxony, Schleswig-Holstein, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, and Hamburg have expressed their dismay. According to NDR, a woman was killed and several people were injured.
A repair at a signal box near Südkreuz station is causing delays on several S-Bahn lines this morning. In the evening, a central section of the line will be closed.
The ADAC is warning of increased traffic jam risk on German motorways this coming weekend. The reason is the start of summer holidays in almost all federal states, as well as numerous construction sites and closures.
Hessen is expanding deportations to Afghanistan. The state interior ministry announced that "regular deportations of individuals required to leave the country to Afghanistan are now possible" – no longer limited to criminals and those deemed a threat.
Due to possible fatigue cracks, Bonn's municipal utility SWB temporarily suspended 60 of its 75 trams on Tuesday. According to WDR, the vehicles are to be inspected.
The German railway company is expanding its alcohol ban to every station nationwide, citing safety concerns for passengers and staff.
The young footballers of the Munich-based FC KARS (U10) took part in the Tuscher Sommercup F1 Jugend tournament, which was held on July 19 in Hettenshausen. For the boys, who haven\'t been training together for that long, it was only their second official tournament, but the result exceeded many expectations: three wins, one draw, and only a single defeat in the match against the eventual tournament winner — the TSV Reichertshausen team.
A resident of Aschheim found a brown bottle with dried picric acid while cleaning. The substance is highly explosive, and the fire department carried out a controlled detonation.
A 26-year-old security employee was attacked on a regional train heading to Karlsruhe on Friday evening and fell from the moving train. The severely injured rail security employee is out of life-threatening danger, according to the public prosecutor's office.
After a freight train derailed in Nidderau, the railway line between Friedberg and Hanau will remain closed until at least August 7. The Hessische Landesbahn (HLB) announced that a replacement bus service will be set up.
After a railway employee suffered life-threatening injuries when he fell from a moving regional train, the Karlsruhe District Court has rejected an arrest warrant against the 36-year-old suspect. The court cited doubts about the sequence of events after reviewing surveillance footage.
Germany's Bundesrat has approved a law aimed at preventing abusive paternity acknowledgments, particularly those involving foreign children.
Travelers with Deutsche Bahn must prepare for new disruptions due to extensive construction work in the Rhine-Main region.
After several suspected far-right attacks in Cottbus, the Christopher Street Day (CSD) on Saturday will take place under heightened security measures. Police will accompany the demonstration to send a signal against right-wing extremism.
Munich breweries are allowed to pump millennia-old deep groundwater for their beer – the city's emergency drinking water reserve. The city also permits them to use the precious water for lemonade and rinsing.
After a botched riverbed cleaning in autumn and months of dispute, surfing on Munich's famous Eisbachwelle at the Haus der Kunst is now permitted again under certain conditions. An amended general decree by Mayor Dominik Krause (Greens) came into force on Friday.
The Bundestag is set to vote today on the savings package aimed at stabilizing health insurance contributions. The Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians in Berlin warns of fewer doctors and longer waiting times.
The Bundestag has passed a law change expanding liability for e-scooter rental companies. Victims will now find it easier to claim compensation.
The dilapidated Rheinstraßenbrücke in Darmstadt is set to be replaced by a new bridge in 2030. According to the FAZ, the city has received approval from the Hessian Ministry of Transport for a revised design.
The reform of the Bavarian Child Education and Care Act (BayKiBig) threatens the existence of many large daycare centers. Childminders fear for their future because an important subsidy is being cut.
The Starnberg city council has voted overwhelmingly in a non-public session to rename the local gymnasium after the philosopher Jürgen Habermas.
Munich plans to use camera-equipped vehicles, known as scancars, to catch illegal parkers. The cars will scan license plates and automatically report violations.
The Federal Constitutional Court has dismissed emergency motions filed by the Greens and the Left Party against the planned adoption of the health reform. As Tagesschau reports, the Bundestag can now pass the law as planned on Friday.
A 50-year-old man lightly injured three police officers at Munich Central Station on Wednesday. According to federal police, he attacked the officers when they tried to enforce a ban on his presence.
A family of restaurateurs from Aschheim is planning a campsite at Heimstettener See. It would be the first such facility in the Munich district.