A strike on German passenger rail began early Monday, creating headaches for thousands of travellers and commuters, after the train drivers' union rejected a new offer to keep services going.

In a statement on Sunday, rail operator Deutsche Bahn offered to negotiate a coronavirus-related bonus for drivers this year.
The suggestion was "a strong sign of willingness to reach an agreement" on behalf of Deutsche Bahn, the company's personnel director Martin Seiler said in a statement.
-With a coronavirus bonus we have met one of the union's key demands. There is no longer any reason to refuse to return to the negotiating table- Seiler said.
The GDL drivers' union rejected the offer later on Sunday, describing it as a "smokescreen".
-With an offer not worth the paper it's written on, the trickster managers want to deceive passengers and in a targeted way spark anger and frustration against GDL- the head of the union Claus Weselsky said in a statement. 
The strike action, announced last week, is the second in a wage dispute between GDL and German rail. 
Earlier this month, the union led a walk-out after its members voted 95 percent in favour of the move, following the collapse of talks with Deutsche Bahn.
The union is demanding a 1.4-percent pay hike plus a bonus this year, and a further wage rise of 1.8 percent in 2022.
Deutsche Bahn has proposed to phase in a 3.2-percent wage increase in two steps in 2022 and 2023.
The company's most recent offer made no mention of the value of the bonus to be negotiated, while the GDL has demanded a premium of 600 euros ($703).
As the strike began, only one in four long-distance passenger services were operating.
A walk-out affecting Deutsche Bahn's freight services started Saturday at 2:00 am (0000 GMT). The strikes on both passenger and cargo services are due to end on August 25 at 2:00 am (0000 GMT).

The union is demanding a 1.4-percent pay hike plus a bonus this year, and a further wage rise of 1.8 percent in 2022.

In a statement on Sunday, rail operator Deutsche Bahn offered to negotiate a coronavirus-related bonus for drivers this year

German train drivers strike despite last-minute offer

Georgia on Sunday asked Russia to withdraw troops from its territories, calling on Moscow to comply with the 2008 post-conflict agreement with Tbilisi.

-Russia failed to comply with the post-conflict truce agreement- Prime Minister Irakli Garibashvili said, urging Russia to withdraw its soldiers from Georgian territory.
Garibashvili made these remarks on the 13th anniversary of the victims of the 2008 South Ossetia Conflict between the Russian Federation and Georgia, in the capital Tbilisi, according to a statement issued by the Foreign Ministry.
He said his country's territorial integrity was attacked by Russia in the South Ossetia Conflict, in which "20% of the country was occupied by Russia."
Garibashvili further stated that Georgia chooses the peaceful way to solve the conflicts and puts in an effort to end the occupation, while it seeks to protect the country from the aggressive policies of Russia at the same time.
Georgia's fight for independence is still ongoing, said President Salome Zourabichvili during the commemoration ceremony.
She acknowledged that the path to territorial integrity and sovereignty is a hard one, but added, "We, all of us, will witness the reunion of Georgia."

<h2>South Ossetia and Abkhazia conflict</h2>

A 13-month conflict erupted between the Georgian army and Abkhazian separatists supported by Russia between 1992 and1993.

In 2008, a five-day conflict referred to as the South Ossetia conflict broke out between Georgia and Russia over the breakaway regions of South Ossetia and Abkhazia.
Tbilisi ultimately lost control of both areas, and Russia later recognized them as independent states.
In response, Georgia cut off diplomatic relations with Russia, after which Switzerland took up the role of the mediator country.
Both regions remain internationally recognized Georgian territories.

13th anniversary of 2008 South Ossetia Conflict victims commemorated in Tbilisi

Georgia's fight for independence is still ongoing, said President Salome Zourabichvili during the commemoration ceremony

Georgia calls on Russia to withdraw troops from its territories

A firefighting plane crashed on the Greek island of Zakynthos on Sunday while it was responding to a fire there, authorities said.

The Fire Service said the pilot of the airplane, picked up by another firefighting aircraft on the island of Ionian, survived.The aircraft was responding to a small-scale fire in the Lagopodo-Macherado area.
Greece has been fighting wildfires for six days with thousands of people have been evacuated so far.

Aircraft crashes while responding to small-scale fire, pilot survives

The fires surround the village of Peyki, on the island of Evia on the fifth day of a wildfire in the area north of the island of Evia, Greece on August 8, 2021.

Firefighting plane crashes on Greek island of Zakynthos

A police car siren calls for the last residents of the village of Gouves on the Greek island of Evia to evacuate as fire rages down a mountainside and engulfs the first houses. 

-I don't want to, I don't want to- repeats in sobs a woman on her porch who cannot find the strength to flee even as the approaching inferno turns the sky orange. 
The fires remained out of control over large swathes of Evia island on Sunday, as evacuations were continuing, pushing hundreds of people towards the beach.
Many villagers joined the battle, and around 10 men were busy digging, cutting and pulling out branches in an effort to slow the raging fire despite the repeated urging of police to leave. 
Forming a human chain, they unrolled water hoses fed by agricultural pick-ups, desperate to save their livelihood. 
-If people leave, the villages will burn for sure- says Yannis Selimis, a young man from Gouves. -We are in the hands of God.-Tempers flared over a lack of government response.
-Which authorities? Which firefighters? Do you see anybody here?- exclaims one local.
-They burnt our paradise- says Triantafyllos Konstantinos, 46. "We are done," he sighs.
-It's tragic. We are all going to the sea- says Nikos Papaioannou as the fire steadily encroaches on residential areas near the island's northern coasts.

At Gouves, cars pass through a vast cloud of smoke as they try to go towards the beach. 

Some kilometres away, at the beach of Pefki, a ferry boat docked on the beach and a warship off the coast are waiting to rescue these people who have become refugees in their own country. 
They wait without knowing whether they will reach the mainland Sunday evening. 
-Evia is finished- says Cleopatra Plapouta. "People are fighting all by themselves. Not a single firefighter inside the villages," she complains, wearing a scarf and a mask against the thick smoke and ash. 
-We are burning for a week now!- her husband exclaims. -The fire started 60 kilometres away! 60 kilometres!-Shirtless, the greying man gesticulates with despair. "It's unbelievable! It was a heaven, they burnt it down!"
Maria Moushogianni, who owns a beach hotel where she is shelterin two families who have abandoned their homes, says that Sunday was the first day that airplanes appeared. 
-They abandoned us, they lied to us! I'm going to close the hotel and leave- adds the 66-year-old woman, holding her white cat. -This evening if possible.-

The fires remained out of control over large swathes of Evia island on Sunday, as evacuations were continuing, pushing hundreds of people towards the beach

The fires were out of control over large swathes of Evia

Abandoned' Greek villagers reluctantly flee raging fires

Israel set up rapid coronavirus testing stations across the country on Sunday, the Magen David Adom emergency service said, as the government tries to stave off another pandemic lockdown.

-Following a request from the Ministry of Health, Magen David Adom on Sunday opened 120 rapid detection stations- an MDA statement said.
The testing centres are aimed at the non-vaccinated and those who have recovered from the virus and need a health pass. Results are received in 15 minutes.
Since Sunday morning, unvaccinated people must present a negative Covid test less than 24 hours old, and health passes will be extended to children under 12 from August 20.
Over the past week, Israel has been recording an average of more than 3,000 new coronavirus cases a day -- the highest since April.
The rise in infections is a step back after its world-leading vaccine campaign drove down new Covid-19 cases from 10,000 a day to fewer than 100.
Tests at the new stations will cost 52 shekels ($16) and will enable those tested to receive a health ministry pass valid for 24 hours.
-Lockdown will be imposed as a last resort and we will do everything to avoid it- Health Minister Nitzan Horowitz said in a statement welcoming the launch of the rapid test service.
Last December, the country of nine million people was one of the first to launch a major vaccination campaign, thanks to an agreement with pharmaceutical giant Pfizer giving it rapid access to millions of doses in exchange for biomedical data on the effects of the vaccine.
Despite the campaign reducing the number of reported infections, contamination has risen again with the spread of the Delta variant in unvaccinated adults and in those vaccinated more than six months ago.
Israel has now launched a campaign to provide a third booster dose of vaccine to the elderly and has also reinstated the health pass.
Most Covid restrictions were lifted in early June, but some were reimposed last month following the resurgence of cases.
Only people who have been fully vaccinated, cured of Covid-19 or with a negative PCR test taken less than 72 hours previously are allowed to enter places holding more than 100 people, indoors or outdoors.
Over the past 24 hours, Israel has recorded 2,886 new cases of Covid-19. Of the 602 people in hospital because of the virus, 348 are seriously ill.
More than 6,500 people have died in Israel from coronavirus out of nearly 900,000 cases.

Since Sunday morning, unvaccinated people must present a negative Covid test less than 24 hours old, and health passes will be extended to children under 12 from August 20

A medic performs a Covid-19 coronavirus swab test on a child in Jerusalem

Israel sets up Covid rapid test stations nationwide

Iran reported over 500 daily Covid deaths for the first time on Sunday, its health ministry announced, as new infections also hit a record high.

Iran registered 39,619 new infections in the 24 hours to Sunday, taking the total since the pandemic started to 4,158,729, the ministry said.
During that same period it recorded 542 deaths, taking the total number of fatalities to 94,015, it added.
Iranian health officials have acknowledged that the Islamic republic's Covid figures underestimate the real toll.
But Iran remains the Middle East country worst hit by the pandemic.
Covid infections have been surging since late June, in what officials have warned is a "fifth wave" caused by the highly infectious Delta variant.
Daily infections have hit several records over the past few weeks.
The previous recorded high for fatalities was 496, registered on April 26, at the height of the Islamic republic's previous wave.
Iran's state television said hospitals across the country were facing a "crisis" and described the health situation as bleak.
-Although the vaccination pace has been accelerating, the observation of health protocols has dropped significantly- it said.
Iran has pinned its hopes on vaccinations to help with the health crisis.
But the innoculation campaign launced in February has progressed more slowly than authorities had planned.
Choked by US sanctions that have made it difficult to transfer money abroad, Iran says it is struggling to import vaccines for its population of 83 million.
More than 12.5 million people have been given a first vaccine does, but only 3.7 million have received the necessary two jabs, the health ministry said on Sunday.
Raisi said Saturday that a "plan to transform the way to confront the coronavirus" was to be reviewed next week. 
He did not give any details, but said on Sunday that accelerating the pace of vaccinations is one of his government's priorities, according to the president's official website.
Chairing a Covid taskforce meeting, he also vowed on Saturday to "support domestic vaccine production" while "not hesitating" to import jabs from abroad.
The authorities have approved the emergency use of two locally produced vaccines, with the only mass-produced one, COVIran Barekat, still in short supply.
The other vaccines used in Iran include Russia's Sputnik V, China's Sinopharm, India's Bharat and AstraZeneca/Oxford, according to the health ministry.
Raisi and parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf received their first Barekat jab on Sunday, state TV said.
Last week, supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei ordered the government to take "necessary measures" to contain the spread of the pandemic.
Iran has avoided imposing a full lockdown on the population, and instead resorted to piecemeal measures such as temporary travel bans and business closures.
Outgoing health minister Saeed Namaki has recently suggested a two-week shutdown to help contain the spread of the virus.

Iran registered 39,619 new infections in the 24 hours to Sunday, taking the total since the pandemic started to 4,158,729

A handout picture provided by the Iranian presidency on August 8, 2021, show President Ebrahim Raisi receiving a dose of the domestically-produced coronavirus vaccine "COVIran Barekat" in the capital Tehran

Iran records over 500 Covid deaths, hits new high

Vlado Adamović, the lawyer of the Chief State Prosecutor Gordana Tadić, confirmed today for "Dnevni avaz" that he had filed an appeal against the decision of the First Instance Disciplinary Commission of the HJPC B&amp;H by which Tadić was relieved of her duties.
Adamović told us that he filed the complaint three days ago and that it was in response to the Office of the Disciplinary Prosecutor (UDT B&amp;H).
- After that, the whole procedure goes to the Second Instance Commission of the HJPC. I demanded that the measure of dismissal be revoked. Everything that the First Instance Commission published does not stand. In all reports, Serge Brammertz praised Gordana Tadić and the Prosecutor's Office of B&amp;H, before the UN - Adamović told us.
TadiĆ was relieved of her duties, as stated in the decision of the First Instance Commission of the HJPC B&amp;H, because she "committed disciplinary violations".
She was given a disciplinary measure "transfer from the position of Chief Prosecutor of the Prosecutor's Office of B&amp;H to the position of Prosecutor of the Prosecutor's Office of B&amp;H".
The Office of the Disciplinary Prosecutor (UDT) of the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council of Bosnia and Herzegovina (HJPC B&amp;H) filed disciplinary lawsuits against Gordana Tadić, Chief Prosecutor of the Prosecutor's Office of B&amp;H, and Ranko Debevec, President of the Court of B&amp;H, in early April. While Tadić was disciplined for much more lenient acts, Debevec, who hid his property in Spain for 14 years, "partied" with the suspects, was only publicly warned.

Adamović told us that he filed the complaint three days ago and that it was in response to the Office of the Disciplinary Prosecutor

Adamović for "Avaz": We sent a complaint, we asked that the disciplinary measure against Gordana Tadić be lifted

The President of SBB, Fahrudin Radončić, sent congratulations to Reis-l-ulema Husein ef. Kavazović, all members of the Islamic Community in B&amp;H and Muslims on the occasion of the New Year 1443 AH.
- I pray to Allah for all of you to welcome the Hijri year 1443 and spend it happy and satisfied in health, peace and security. In these difficult and uncertain times of the pandemic, the year ahead is an opportunity for us as Muslims, as a society and a state, to show additional unity, strength and desire to work together and fight against all adversities that stand in the way of prosperity. I believe that the New Hijri Year gives a new opportunity for everyone to show more mutual understanding, respect and appreciation and to, in terms of the essential message of the Hijra, leave everything that is not good and useful - said Radončić.

I believe that the New Hijri Year gives a new opportunity for everyone to show more mutual understanding, respect and appreciation and to, in terms of the essential message of the Hijra, leave everything that is not good and useful, said Radončić

Radončić: An opportunity to show additional unity

SBB President Fahrudin Radončić congratulated the New Year 1443 AH

More than 250 migrants disembarked in Sicily on Saturday from an NGO rescue ship, while another vessel carrying around 550 people was given permission to land on the Italian island.

Both ships had put out urgent appeals for a safe port following days at sea in the central Mediterranean, warning of the deteriorating health of those on board, who include children.
-The #SeaWatch3 (ship) reached the port of Trapani this morning. We are happy to finally have a port of safety- the German organisation Sea Watch International tweeted, saying 257 people were being disembarked.
On Thursday, they had warned of a "critical" situation, with a lack of many medicines and symptoms of dehydration appearing among many of those on board, some of whom had been at sea for a week.
Meanwhile the crew of another rescue vessel, Ocean Viking, told AFP they had been given permission to disembark their 549 passengers at the Sicilian port of Pozzallo on Sunday.
They had earlier warned they were running out of medication, some on board were suffering from dehydration and others had skin infections.
-What we need is a place of safety to disembark them as soon as possible- crew member and spokeswoman Julia Schaerfermeyer said, adding that 118 minors including 13 children aged under 12 were among those on board.
The vessel, run by French NGO SOS Mediterranee, rescued 555 people last weekend, although two pregnant women and two others have since been evacuated, alongside two of their relatives.
They were waiting off the east coast of Sicily for permission to disembark. They said requests to Malta were rejected while Tunisia and Libya did not respond.
Schaerfermeyer had appealed to the European Union to help coordinate plans to manage rescue ships in international waters, "to step up in support of the coastal states, and for a predictable disembarkation mechanism to be put in place".
Tens of thousands of people seek to cross the central Mediterranean each year, normally setting off from Libya and aiming for the Italian coast, but it is a deadly journey.
Almost 1,000 people have died on the route so far this year, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

Both ships had put out urgent appeals for a safe port following days at sea in the central Mediterranean, warning of the deteriorating health of those on board, who include children

Hundreds of migrants find safe port in Italy

India gave emergency approval to Johnson and Johnson's single-shot coronavirus vaccine Saturday to ramp up its flailing immunisation campaign as fears grow of a new wave of infections. 

Health minister Mansukh Mandaviya said the approval will boost the fight against the pandemic in India, where at least 200,000 people died in a brutal two-month wave up to mid-June. 
-India expands its vaccine basket! Johnson and Johnson's single-dose COVID-19 vaccine is given approval for Emergency Use in India- the minister said on Twitter. 
No indication has been given as to when the US company's doses will reach India. 
The nation of 1.3 billion people has administered 500 million vaccine doses so far, but barely eight percent of the population has had two shots. 
Johnson and Johnson's vaccine is the fifth to be approved after Oxford-AstraZeneca's Covishield, the home developed Covaxin, Russia's Sputnik V, and the US-made Moderna jab. 
India remains the second worst-hit nation after the United States, with more than 32 million confirmed cases and 427,000 deaths. Because of under-reporting experts say the real toll is much higher. 
They also warn that the slow vaccination pace puts India at risk from any new infection crisis. The number of new cases and deaths has started rising again in the past two weeks. 
The government’s free immunisation drive relies heavily on Covishield and Covaxin and producers are struggling to meet demand.
Sputnik has not yet scaled up production and Moderna is yet to import any shots.

No indication has been given as to when the US company's doses will reach India

India has given emergency approval to use Johnson and Johnson's single-shot Covid-19 vaccine

India approves J&J's single-shot Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use

Authorities in Switzerland are investigating two UEFA employees, who have since been dismissed, over allegations that they received kickbacks, the prosecutor of the Vaud canton said on Friday, confirming reports in the Swiss daily Blick.
The case dates back to April when the police raided the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, on the shores of Lake Geneva between Geneva and Lausanne. 
Nothing had filtered out from either the justice department or from the organisation which oversees European football until Blick revealed the case on Thursday. 
-The Vaud public prosecutor confirms the existence of a criminal investigation, which included a police intervention at UEFA headquarters. Many people, some of them UEFA collaborators, have been heard- explained the prosecution in response to questions from AFP. 
The two accused had been held in custody since April 7 although one was released Wednesday and the other Friday, the prosecuters confirmed. 
-The investigation is in relation to arrangements with external ICT (Information and Communication Technology) service providers to the detriment of UEFA, and does not concern the sales of rights or any commercial arrangements with official partners- UEFA told AFP in a statement. 
According to Blick's sources, rebates were collected on contracts between UEFA and providers with the sums embezzled said to be substantial. 
-UEFA terminated the employment contracts with the staff concerned with immediate effect- said the statement which added that the football body had cooperated immediately and fully with the Swiss authorities.
Deeming itself to be a victim in the affair, UEFA has filed a civil action.
The probe will continue in the coming months, the prosecution said, adding that it will not make any further comments.&nbsp;

The case dates back to April when the police raided the UEFA headquarters in Nyon, on the shores of Lake Geneva between Geneva and Lausanne

The two accused had been held in custody since April 7 although one was released Wednesday and the other Friday

Swiss confirm corruption probe into two former UEFA workers

Deputy Prime Minister of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Vesko Drljača, Deputy Ambassador of China to B&amp;H Miao Dake and Acting Director of the Public Health Institute of the Federation of B&amp;H Siniša Skočibušić received 500,000 doses of Sinopharm vaccine from China at the Sarajevo International Airport, which the Federation of B&amp;H procured from a Chinese manufacturer. 

This is the largest single delivery of COVID-19 vaccines to Bosnia and Herzegovina to date.
-This is the realization of the Agreement that was concluded at the end of July directly with the manufacturer Sinopharm. This Agreement has a special significance for the Federation of B&amp;H and on that behalf I would like to thank China and Sinopharm. Also, I would congratulate to the FB&amp;H Institute for Public Health- said Drljača.
Chinese Deputy Ambassador to B&amp;H Miao Dake stated that today's delivery, 500,000 doses, is a sign of friendship between B&amp;H and China, and China's commitment to vaccines as a global public good.
-Only by adhering to multilateralism, unity and cooperation can we defeat the pandemic. China will continue to support B&amp;H citizens in the fight against the pandemic, and will provide assistance in its capabilities. We wish you a quick victory over the pandemic, peace and health- said Dake.
Today's delivery of vaccines is the result of long negotiations and legal and financial activities led by the FB&amp;H Institute for Public Health with the Government of the Federation of B&amp;H.
-At this turning point for the Federation, after the delta variant of SARS-CoV-2 virus was detected and when we record a slight increase in the number of infected, this delivery gives us confidence that in the coming period we will have the opportunity to continue vaccinating the population according to priorities, and especially persons who are over 60 years old- pointed out the Acting Director of the Institute for Public Health of FB&amp;H Siniša Skočibušić.

This is the largest single delivery of COVID-19 vaccines to the country to date

Chinese Deputy Ambassador to B&H Miao Dake stated that today's delivery, 500,000 doses, is a sign of friendship between B&H and China, and China's commitment to vaccines as a global public good

A shipment of 500,000 Sinopharm vaccines arrives at Sarajevo Airport

The Office of the Disciplinary Prosecutor of the High Judicial and Prosecutorial Council of Bosnia and Herzegovina, headed by Alena Kurspahić-Nadarević, answered today for "Avaz" that it will appeal the decision of the First Instance Disciplinary Commission in the "Ranko Debevec" case for several reasons.
Including the appeal against the rejecting part of the decision and the decision on the imposed disciplinary measure, it was said for "Avaz" from the HJPC.
We remind you that although he was part of numerous scandals, inappropriate meetings, threats to prosecutors, journalists, Ranko Debevec, severely compromised President of the Court of B&amp;H, by the decision of First Instance Disciplinary Commission of the HJPC, was only publicly warned in disciplinary proceedings against him for several disciplinary offenses.
One of them is for inappropriate contact with Osman Mehmedagić Osmica, director of the Intelligence and Security Agency (ISA), last year, on the day when the Prosecutor's Office of B&amp;H filed a new indictment against Osmica in the "Security Checks" affair.
All this was not enough to suspend Debevec and relieve him of his duties. It is obvious that the HJPC of B&amp;H has double standards: one applies to the Chief Prosecutor of the Prosecutor's Office of B&amp;H Gordana Tadić, and the other to the President of the Court of B&amp;H Ranko Debevec.
With this decision of the HJPC B&amp;H, Bakir Izetbegović, the leader of the SDA, who controls Debevac through Osmica, still has the head of the Court and the head of the ISA at his disposal.

Including the appeal against the rejecting part of the decision and the decision on the imposed disciplinary measure, it was said for "Avaz" from the HJPC

From the Office of the Disciplinary Prosecutor for "Avaz": We will complain about the public warning to Ranko Debevec

In the past 24 hours, 1,506 samples were registered with the Public Health Institute of the Federation of B&amp;H, of which 61 were positive for SARS-CoV-2.

New cases have been registered in all cantons in the Federation of B&amp;H, except in Bosnia-Podrinje and Posavina cantons.
A total of 758,910 samples have been tested so far, and SARS-CoV-2 has been confirmed in 134,866 individuals.
In the past 24 hours, two deaths were reported in the Federation of B&amp;H.
The total number of deaths in the Federation of B&amp;H is 5,544, the Institute announced. 
In Republic of Srpska, 235 laboratory samples were tested in the last 24 hours, and coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) was confirmed in 14 people. 
No deaths have been reported to the Republic of Srpska Institute of Public Health in the last 24 hours.
So far, 64,528 cases of coronavirus have been confirmed in Republic of Srpska, and a total of 3,809 people died who have been tested positive for coronavirus.
After testing 178 samples, there were no positive cases in the Brčko District. In the past 24 hours, no deaths were reported in Brčko.

New cases have been registered in all cantons in the Federation of B&H, except in Bosnia-Podrinje and Posavina cantons

In Republic of Srpska, 235 laboratory samples were tested in the last 24 hours, and coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) was confirmed in 14 people.

B&H registers 75 new cases of COVID-19 and two deaths

German prosecutors said Friday they have launched an investigation against the district chief of the flood-hit region of Ahrweiler for negligence as warnings were made belatedly, resulting in the deaths of dozens of residents.

Some 189 people lost their lives in severe floods that pummelled western Germany in mid-July, raising questions about whether enough was done to warn residents.
Following an initial examination of the case, prosecutors in Koblenz said they have "affirmed the initial suspicion of negligent homicide and negligent bodily harm... and have initiated investigations."
Ahrweiler district chief Juergen Pfoehler is the focus of the probe because he had "sole decision-making authority" and was meant to be in charge of the operation according to current regulations.
Another member of the crisis group, who had for at least part of the time taken over the command of the emergency response, was also under investigation, prosecutors said, without naming the suspect.
After reconstructing the events, investigators found that forecasts about the impeding floods should have led officials to sound the warning and evacuate residents living near the swollen Ahr river by 8:30 PM (1830 GMT) on July 14.
-This, according to the initial suspicion, was obviously either not carried out, or not carried out with the required clarity or only carried out belatedly, such that it could amount negligence- said prosecutors.
Sixteen people are still missing after torrents of water ripped through towns and villages, destroying bridges, roads, railways and housing in the region's worst flooding disaster in living memory.

Some 189 people lost their lives in severe floods that pummelled western Germany in mid-July, raising questions about whether enough was done to warn residents

After reconstructing the events, investigators found that forecasts about the impeding floods should have led officials to sound the warning and evacuate residents living near the swollen Ahr river by 8:30 PM (1830 GMT) on July 14

German prosecutors launch probe over deadly floods

The number of COVID-19 vaccine shots administered worldwide surpassed 4.31 billion on Thursday, according to Our World in Data, a tracking website affiliated with Oxford University.&nbsp;China, where the virus was first detected in late 2019, leads the count with more than 1.73 billion jabs, followed by India and the US with 489.34 million and 348.1 million, respectively.
Brazil has administered over 147.2 million vaccine shots, while the figure stands at 93.75 million in Germany.
Next on the list are Japan and the UK, with 92.3 million and 85.6 million doses.
Turkey has administered over 74.8 million jabs and ranks ninth worldwide.
More than 41.42 million people have received their first doses in Turkey and 28.09 million have been fully vaccinated.
As COVID-19 vaccines are generally given in two separate doses per person, the count of administered vaccines does not mean that the same number of people have been vaccinated.
The global COVID-19 case count is now over 200.4 million, including 4.26 million related deaths.

Brazil has administered over 147.2 million vaccine shots, while the figure stands at 93.75 million in Germany

Turkey has administered over 74.8 million jabs and ranks ninth worldwide

German train drivers strike despite last-minute offer

Georgia calls on Russia to withdraw troops from its territories

Firefighting plane crashes on Greek island of Zakynthos

Abandoned' Greek villagers reluctantly flee raging fires

Israel sets up Covid rapid test stations nationwide

Iran records over 500 Covid deaths, hits new high

Adamović for "Avaz": We sent a complaint, we asked that the disciplinary measure against Gordana Tadić be lifted

SBB President Fahrudin Radončić congratulated the New Year 1443 AH

Hundreds of migrants find safe port in Italy

India approves J&J's single-shot Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use

Swiss confirm corruption probe into two former UEFA workers

A shipment of 500,000 Sinopharm vaccines arrives at Sarajevo Airport

From the Office of the Disciplinary Prosecutor for "Avaz": We will complain about the public warning to Ranko Debevec

B&H registers 75 new cases of COVID-19 and two deaths

German prosecutors launch probe over deadly floods

Over 4.31B coronavirus vaccine jabs given worldwide

News

German train drivers strike despite last-minute offer

Georgia calls on Russia to withdraw troops from its territories

Firefighting plane crashes on Greek island of Zakynthos

Abandoned' Greek villagers reluctantly flee raging fires

Israel sets up Covid rapid test stations nationwide

Iran records over 500 Covid deaths, hits new high

Adamović for "Avaz": We sent a complaint, we asked that the disciplinary measure against Gordana Tadić be lifted

SBB President Fahrudin Radončić congratulated the New Year 1443 AH

Hundreds of migrants find safe port in Italy

India approves J&J's single-shot Covid-19 vaccine for emergency use

Swiss confirm corruption probe into two former UEFA workers

A shipment of 500,000 Sinopharm vaccines arrives at Sarajevo Airport

From the Office of the Disciplinary Prosecutor for "Avaz": We will complain about the public warning to Ranko Debevec

B&H registers 75 new cases of COVID-19 and two deaths

German prosecutors launch probe over deadly floods

Over 4.31B coronavirus vaccine jabs given worldwide