Blow for bishop as orgasm church flops
Sweden’s highest court has refused to hear a last-ditch plea by the Madonna of the Orgasm church to be recognized.
Day: August 25, 2010
Germany
Westerwelle to take tough line on Serbia during Balkan tour
German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle embarked Wednesday on a tour of the former Yugoslavia preparing a tough message for Serbia on Kosovo while encouraging the region's European Union ambitions.
Sweden
Red-greens split on pensioner tax cuts
The red-green coalition revealed a split on a proposal to cut taxes on pensioners to the levels of wage earners on Wednesday morning.
Germany
Prosecutors seek suspended sentence for No Angels singer
A prosecutor called Wednesday for a suspended jail term for German pop star Nadja Benaissa on trial for hiding her HIV status from her sexual partners and infecting one of them with the virus.
Germany
Neo-Nazis targeting children online
German right-wing extremists are increasingly targeting children online, luring minors to websites by disguising their hate-filled ideology.
Sweden
Sweden Democrats publish report on rape
The Sweden Democrats presented a report on Wednesday showing that of 114 convictions for rape in 2009, 48 percent involved men born outside Sweden.
Sweden
Nordegren breaks silence on split with Tiger
Elin Nordegren has broken her nine-month silence over the sex scandal that ended her marriage with golf star Tiger Woods, saying the extent of his philandering had made her feel "stupid" and she had been through "hell."
Sweden
Prosecutor orders probe against Assange
Swedish prosecutors have announced that WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange will be subject to a preliminary investigation on suspicion of molestation.
Germany
Berlin drafts financial crisis bank tax
The German government said Wednesday it has adopted a disputed draft tax on bank profits intended to act as a buffer against the cost of future banking failures.
Sweden
Traffickers intimidated victims with voodoo
Eight people were charged on Wednesday for trafficking and pimping 10 African women, intimidating the victims into prostitution by using means including voodoo.
Germany
Sauerland cell terrorist’s wife one of three arrested for al-Qaida ties
Germany's federal prosecutor’s office said Wednesday it had charged three German citizens with supporting groups linked to al-Qaida, including the wife of a man convicted in March of a thwarted car bomb plot.
Germany
Business confidence hits pre-crisis high
German business confidence has regained levels not seen since before the global financial crisis, the Ifo economic institute said on Wednesday in the latest sign of strength in Europe's biggest economy.
Sweden
Iran claims Oriflame may be backed by spy agency
Iranian authorities alleged on Wednesday that it closed Swedish cosmetics firm Oriflame in Tehran and arrested five of its employees on Sunday because it was running a pyramid scheme and was possibly backed by a spy agency.
Germany
‘The Neverending Story’ tops list of world’s favourite German books
Falkor! Michael Ende’s fantasy “The Neverending Story” has topped an international competition sponsored by the Goethe Institute to uncover the world’s favourite German-language books.
Sweden
Rotten fish? It’s a delicacy
It has been banned by airlines as an offensive weapon, its smells like a gas leak and it is Swedish schoolchildren's favourite way to cause classroom chaos. Yet thousands of Swedes regard it as a culinary delicacy. Emy Gelb reaches for a clothespin and takes a look at the famous Swedish "rotten herring" - surströmming.
Sweden
Foreign tourists boost Swedish retail sales
Last year was a bumper year for tourism in Sweden, with foreign tourists spending more money in Sweden than Swedish tourists spent overseas, according from retail group Svensk Handel.
Germany
Gabriel signals Sarrazin should leave SPD over xenophobic views
The Social Democrats' leader Sigmar Gabriel has signalled that Bundesbank board member Thilo Sarrazin should leave the centre-left party following his latest inflammatory and anti-immigrant statements.
Germany
Hospitals review hygienic standards after infant deaths
German hospitals are reviewing their hygienic standards this week after the tragic deaths of three infants at a Mainz clinic where they were exposed to bacteria through dirty feeding infusions, a survey of facilities around the country showed on Wednesday.
Germany
Military reforms could alienate soldiers, Bundeswehr commissioner warns
Germany's parliamentary watchdog for the armed forces on Wednesday criticised Defence Minister Karl-Theodor zu Guttenberg’s plans to streamline the military, saying that “clear cutting” Bundeswehr facilities would alienate soldiers from the rest of German society.
Germany
Steinmeier’s kidney donation successful
Social Democratic parliamentary leader Frank-Walter Steinmeier's kidney transplant to his wife was successful and both patients are now recovering, a media report said on Wednesday.
Sweden
Government slammed on environment policy
The Swedish Society for Nature Conservation (SSNC) has in a new report criticised the government for having "gone backwards" in several key environmental issues, arguing that the smaller parties have had to defer to the Moderates.
Sweden
Woods seeks to rekindle career after divorce
US golfer Tiger Woods will compete at the Barclays this week, his first tournament since finalising his divorce from Swedish ex-wife Elin Nordegren in a bid to determine his stature on the PGA Tour's playoffs.
Sweden
Assange hires top Swedish defence lawyer
Leif Silbersky, one of Sweden's most high profile defence lawyers, has been hired by WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange ahead of a looming decision by prosecutors