An activist is unglued from the road by police officers in Berlin. AP
An activist is unglued from the road by police officers in Berlin. AP
An activist is unglued from the road by police officers in Berlin. AP
An activist is unglued from the road by police officers in Berlin. AP

German climate activists bring 10th day of gridlock to Berlin


Tim Stickings
  • English
  • Arabic

German climate protesters declared a 10th straight day of gridlock on Friday as they once again glued themselves to Berlin's streets.

Activists from the group the Last Generation blocked major roads during rush hour before some were forcibly removed by police.

The group's latest stunts have divided opinion in Germany but activists have promised to continue their civil resistance for an 11th consecutive day on Saturday.

The protests come at an awkward time for the government, which is hosting an international climate meeting in the capital next week.

Germany will aim to help galvanise global climate action even as it stands accused by activists of doing too little at home.

Activists describe themselves as the 'Letzte Generation' or 'last generation' before a climate tipping point. AP
Activists describe themselves as the 'Letzte Generation' or 'last generation' before a climate tipping point. AP

Government spokeswoman Christiane Hoffmann said Germany “fundamentally shares the goals” of drastically reducing carbon emissions to tackle climate change.

“We merely think that the path taken by these activists is the wrong way to draw attention to it,” she said.

Activists have brushed off a campaign by Germany's conservative opposition to bring in tougher prison sentences of between three months and five years for disruptive activities.

MPs rejected the centre-right's push on Thursday, with members of Chancellor Olaf Scholz's coalition saying current laws were sufficient.

Police officers remove a climate activist in Berlin. AP
Police officers remove a climate activist in Berlin. AP

Most activists hauled into court have received fines, although some have received short prison sentences.

“The strategy of locking us away in police cells has clearly failed,” said Raphael Thelen, a spokesman for Last Generation.

“Today I am once again sitting on the street and blocking traffic, because the climate catastrophe has long since begun.”

Activists from Extinction Rebellion meanwhile staged a protest on Friday outside the Danish parliament in Copenhagen.

Their goal was “to pressure the government to bow to our simple demands for more protected nature and less industrial agriculture in Denmark”, the demonstrators said in a statement.

This activist's hand was firmly glued to the street near a Berlin landmark on Friday. AP
This activist's hand was firmly glued to the street near a Berlin landmark on Friday. AP

Brighton 1
Gross (50' pen)

Tottenham 1
Kane (48)

Analysis

Members of Syria's Alawite minority community face threat in their heartland after one of the deadliest days in country’s recent history. Read more

Sri Lanka Test squad:

Dimuth Karunaratne (stand-in captain), Niroshan Dickwella (vice captain), Lahiru Thirimanne, Kaushal Silva, Kusal Mendis, Kusal Janith Perera, Milinda Siriwardana, Dhananjaya de Silva, Oshada Fernando, Angelo Perera, Suranga Lakmal, Kasun Rajitha, Vishwa Fernando, Chamika Karunaratne, Mohamed Shiraz, Lakshan Sandakan and Lasith Embuldeniya.

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The Dictionary of Animal Languages
Heidi Sopinka
​​​​​​​Scribe

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Most match wins on clay

Guillermo Vilas - 659

Manuel Orantes - 501

Thomas Muster - 422

Rafael Nadal - 399 *

Jose Higueras - 378

Eddie Dibbs - 370

Ilie Nastase - 338

Carlos Moya - 337

Ivan Lendl - 329

Andres Gomez - 322

HIJRA

Starring: Lamar Faden, Khairiah Nathmy, Nawaf Al-Dhufairy

Director: Shahad Ameen

Rating: 3/5

The years Ramadan fell in May

1987

1954

1921

1888

Dhadak 2

Director: Shazia Iqbal

Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri 

Rating: 1/5

Afghanistan fixtures
  • v Australia, today
  • v Sri Lanka, Tuesday
  • v New Zealand, Saturday,
  • v South Africa, June 15
  • v England, June 18
  • v India, June 22
  • v Bangladesh, June 24
  • v Pakistan, June 29
  • v West Indies, July 4

GOLF’S RAHMBO

- 5 wins in 22 months as pro
- Three wins in past 10 starts
- 45 pro starts worldwide: 5 wins, 17 top 5s
- Ranked 551th in world on debut, now No 4 (was No 2 earlier this year)
- 5th player in last 30 years to win 3 European Tour and 2 PGA Tour titles before age 24 (Woods, Garcia, McIlroy, Spieth)

All the Money in the World

Director: Ridley Scott

Starring: Charlie Plummer, Mark Wahlberg, Michelle Williams, Christopher Plummer

Four stars

BMW M5 specs

Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor

Power: 727hp

Torque: 1,000Nm

Transmission: 8-speed auto

Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km

On sale: Now

Price: From Dh650,000

The specs

Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors

Power: Combined output 920hp

Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm

Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic

Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km

On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025

Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000

Brief scores:

Pakistan (1st innings) 181: Babar 71; Olivier 6-37

South Africa (1st innings) 223: Bavuma 53; Amir 4-62

Pakistan (2nd innings) 190: Masood 65, Imam 57; Olivier 5-59

The burning issue

The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE. 

Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on

Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins

Read part two: how climate change drove the race for an alternative 

Our legal consultant

Name: Dr Hassan Mohsen Elhais

Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.

The Lowdown

Us

Director: Jordan Peele

Starring: Lupita Nyong'o, Winston Duke, Shahadi Wright Joseqph, Evan Alex and Elisabeth Moss

Rating: 4/5

COMPANY PROFILE

Name: N2 Technology

Founded: 2018

Based: Dubai, UAE

Sector: Startups

Size: 14

Funding: $1.7m from HNIs

Bangladesh tour of Pakistan

January 24 – First T20, Lahore

January 25 – Second T20, Lahore

January 27 – Third T20, Lahore

February 7-11 – First Test, Rawalpindi

April 3 – One-off ODI, Karachi

April 5-9 – Second Test, Karachi

The specs

Engine: 5.0-litre V8

Power: 480hp at 7,250rpm

Torque: 566Nm at 4,600rpm

Transmission: 10-speed auto

Fuel consumption: L/100km

Price: Dh306,495

On sale: now

How to get exposure to gold

Although you can buy gold easily on the Dubai markets, the problem with buying physical bars, coins or jewellery is that you then have storage, security and insurance issues.

A far easier option is to invest in a low-cost exchange traded fund (ETF) that invests in the precious metal instead, for example, ETFS Physical Gold (PHAU) and iShares Physical Gold (SGLN) both track physical gold. The VanEck Vectors Gold Miners ETF invests directly in mining companies.

Alternatively, BlackRock Gold & General seeks to achieve long-term capital growth primarily through an actively managed portfolio of gold mining, commodity and precious-metal related shares. Its largest portfolio holdings include gold miners Newcrest Mining, Barrick Gold Corp, Agnico Eagle Mines and the NewMont Goldcorp.

Brave investors could take on the added risk of buying individual gold mining stocks, many of which have performed wonderfully well lately.

London-listed Centamin is up more than 70 per cent in just three months, although in a sign of its volatility, it is down 5 per cent on two years ago. Trans-Siberian Gold, listed on London's alternative investment market (AIM) for small stocks, has seen its share price almost quadruple from 34p to 124p over the same period, but do not assume this kind of runaway growth can continue for long

However, buying individual equities like these is highly risky, as their share prices can crash just as quickly, which isn't what what you want from a supposedly safe haven.

The five pillars of Islam
Pharaoh's curse

British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.

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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Sand Castle

Director: Matty Brown

Stars: Nadine Labaki, Ziad Bakri, Zain Al Rafeea, Riman Al Rafeea

Rating: 2.5/5

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The years Ramadan fell in May

1987

1954

1921

1888

In numbers: China in Dubai

The number of Chinese people living in Dubai: An estimated 200,000

Number of Chinese people in International City: Almost 50,000

Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2018/19: 120,000

Daily visitors to Dragon Mart in 2010: 20,000

Percentage increase in visitors in eight years: 500 per cent

Updated: April 28, 2023, 3:50 PM`