https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Germany in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed A new centralised immigration authority will be created in Thuringia, the state's migration minister has announced. https://www.thelocal.de/20250409/german-state-of-thuringia-to-open-central-immigration-office Wed, 09 Apr 2025 13:35:19 +0200 german-state-of-thuringia-to-open-central-immigration-office A German regional leader has sparked a backlash after he admitted on a chat app to playing Candy Crush on his phone during online pandemic response meetings with Chancellor Angela Merkel. https://www.thelocal.de/20210125/german-politician-panned-over-candy-crush-at-covid-meeting-confession Mon, 25 Jan 2021 16:24:42 +0100 german-politician-panned-over-candy-crush-at-covid-meeting-confession The east German state of Thuringia will be the first in Germany to scrap social distancing requirements put in place to stem the spread of the coronavirus. https://www.thelocal.de/20200609/first-german-state-ends-coronavirus-social-distancing-requirements Tue, 09 Jun 2020 15:49:41 +0200 first-german-state-ends-coronavirus-social-distancing-requirements As Germany slowly emerges from coronavirus lockdown, one woman is lighting a nightly installation of 8,000 candles in memory of the pandemic dead, determined to continue "until a vaccine is found". https://www.thelocal.de/20200520/nightly-blaze-of-candles-lit-in-homage-to-german-coronavirus-victims Wed, 20 May 2020 19:50:16 +0200 nightly-blaze-of-candles-lit-in-homage-to-german-coronavirus-victims Germany's far-right AfD party is considering a split with its radical Flügel faction to create two separate parties, according to party co-leader Jörg Meuthen. https://www.thelocal.de/20200402/head-of-germanys-far-right-afd-urges-split-with-radical-wing Thu, 02 Apr 2020 12:14:45 +0200 head-of-germanys-far-right-afd-urges-split-with-radical-wing Politicians in the eastern German state of Thuringia re-elected a former state premier Wednesday, with Chancellor Angela Merkel's ruling CDU party sitting out the vote after a first try sank it into a deep crisis. https://www.thelocal.de/20200304/merkels-cdu-sidelined-as-left-party-wins-closely-watched-east-german-vote Wed, 04 Mar 2020 18:18:43 +0100 merkels-cdu-sidelined-as-left-party-wins-closely-watched-east-german-vote Lawmakers in the eastern German state of Thuringia will try again to elect a new state premier Wednesday, re-running a vote that sank Chancellor Angela Merkel's ruling CDU party into what has been described as the biggest crisis in its history. https://www.thelocal.de/20200304/thuringia-set-to-elect-new-state-leader-after-far-right-vote-debacle Wed, 04 Mar 2020 10:07:29 +0100 thuringia-set-to-elect-new-state-leader-after-far-right-vote-debacle The eastern German state of Thuringia plans to hold new elections in spring, after mainstream parties' apparent cooperation with the far right there unleashed a national scandal and forced the resignation of Chancellor Angela Merkel's chosen successor. https://www.thelocal.de/20200218/germanys-thuringia-state-to-vote-again-after-far-right-scandal Tue, 18 Feb 2020 12:09:09 +0100 germanys-thuringia-state-to-vote-again-after-far-right-scandal Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz on Friday said it was "right" for German leader Angela Merkel to rule out working with the far right, even after he did the opposite in his previous government. https://www.thelocal.de/20200215/austrias-kurz-backs-merkel-rejection-of-far-right Sat, 15 Feb 2020 10:41:01 +0100 austrias-kurz-backs-merkel-rejection-of-far-right Several thousand people demonstrated Saturday in Erfurt, capital of Thuringia state in Germany's former communist east, where far-right lawmakers last week helped install a new state premier. https://www.thelocal.de/20200216/protesters-to-hit-the-streets-in-thuringia-against-far-right-deal Sun, 16 Feb 2020 03:58:32 +0100 protesters-to-hit-the-streets-in-thuringia-against-far-right-deal The head of Chancellor Angela Merkel's CDU in Germany's Thuringia state stepped down Friday over his role in an alliance with a far right party which plunged the party into crisis. https://www.thelocal.de/20200214/head-of-merkels-cdu-in-thuringia-steps-down-over-far-right-crisis Fri, 14 Feb 2020 17:05:33 +0100 head-of-merkels-cdu-in-thuringia-steps-down-over-far-right-crisis German Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives are in crisis mode after regional MPs sided with the far-right in a key vote, causing nationwide outrage and testing her leadership. https://www.thelocal.de/20200207/merkels-conservative-party-in-turmoil-after-far-right-vote-debacle-in-eastern-german-state Fri, 07 Feb 2020 16:47:11 +0100 merkels-conservative-party-in-turmoil-after-far-right-vote-debacle-in-eastern-german-state The new premier of Thuringia has stepped down after he was elected with the help of far-right AfD lawmakers in a vote Angela Merkel called "unforgivable". Here's why this is Germany's latest political crisis. https://www.thelocal.de/20200206/why-germany-is-up-in-arms-over-far-right-afd-backing-for-fdp-politician-in-thuringia Thu, 06 Feb 2020 11:03:37 +0100 why-germany-is-up-in-arms-over-far-right-afd-backing-for-fdp-politician-in-thuringia The premier of Germany's Thuringia state stepped down and called for snap elections Thursday, barely 24 hours after he was elected with the help of far-right AfD lawmakers. https://www.thelocal.de/20200206/thuringia-state-premier-calls-for-new-polls-to-undo-stain-of-far-right-afd-vote Thu, 06 Feb 2020 15:09:56 +0100 thuringia-state-premier-calls-for-new-polls-to-undo-stain-of-far-right-afd-vote The tiny central state of Thuringia broke a German political taboo Wednesday when a candidate for the regional premiership was unexpectedly heaved into office with help from the far-right AfD party, prompting outrage. https://www.thelocal.de/20200205/first-time-in-history-far-right-afd-upsets-vote-for-regional-leader-in-eastern-germany Wed, 05 Feb 2020 15:02:03 +0100 first-time-in-history-far-right-afd-upsets-vote-for-regional-leader-in-eastern-germany Two children, both eight years old, were killed and five more seriously injured when a school bus slipped off an icy road into a ditch in central Germany on Thursday, officials said. https://www.thelocal.de/20200123/two-children-die-after-school-bus-accident-in-thuringia Thu, 23 Jan 2020 11:31:57 +0100 two-children-die-after-school-bus-accident-in-thuringia Katja Wolf, mayor of the town of Eisenach in the central German state of Thuringia, has been sued by a member of her city council for refusing to shake his hand. https://www.thelocal.de/20191208/german-mayor-sued-for-refusing-handshake-with-neo-nazi-politician Sun, 08 Dec 2019 15:38:41 +0100 german-mayor-sued-for-refusing-handshake-with-neo-nazi-politician US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo retraced his steps Thursday in the eastern German village of Mödlareuth, once a divided "Little Berlin" where he served as a young army officer. https://www.thelocal.de/20191107/pompeo-retraces-army-service-past-at-little-berlin Thu, 07 Nov 2019 15:57:39 +0100 pompeo-retraces-army-service-past-at-little-berlin Mainstream parties have ruled out working with the far-right AfD. But now CDU officials in Thuringia say talks with the anti-immigration party shouldn't be ruled out. Is the tide turning? https://www.thelocal.de/20191105/could-merkels-christian-democrats-really-work-with-the-far-right-afd Tue, 05 Nov 2019 10:59:30 +0100 could-merkels-christian-democrats-really-work-with-the-far-right-afd German Chancellor Angela Merkel faces renewed pressure from within her Christian Democrats after the centre-right party was beaten by the populist, far-right AfD in the Thuringia state election on Sunday. https://www.thelocal.de/20191029/merkel-under-fire-after-far-right-gains-in-regional-german-election Tue, 29 Oct 2019 15:03:37 +0100 merkel-under-fire-after-far-right-gains-in-regional-german-election