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Germany news: Big turnout for Pride after Berlin attack
Germany news: DB hampered by 'organized irresponsibility'
Emmy Sasipornkarn | Timothy Jones dpa, Reuters, AP, AFP, epd, KNA | Darko JanjevicPublished 08/01/2026Published August 1, 2026last updated 08/03/2026last updated August 3, 2026DB chief Evelyn Palla wants to overcome the culture of ''organized irresponsibility" by empowering new decision-makers within the railway operator. Bavarian brass musicians have wrapped up a 72-hour concert. DW has more.
https://p.dw.com/p/5I7DJWhat you need to know
- DB's Evelyn Palla sets 2035 as goal for completing major reforms within railway company
- Pride events are taking place in several German cities a week after a deadly attack on a Pride march in Berlin
- Authorities warn of holiday traffic disruption in Germany amid the two-hour closure of a key pass road in Austria
- A forest fire is burning out of control in the Upper Palatinate region of Bavaria, with four firefighters so far injured in the blaze
We've ended coverage. Below is a round-up of some of the main stories from and about Germany hitting the headlines on the weekend of August 1-2.
Skip next section We're closing the blog08/03/2026August 3, 2026We're closing the blog
Thanks for reading the weekend edition of the Germany blog. We'll be back with the latest headlines on the morning of August 3.
https://p.dw.com/p/5IA2VSkip next section Audience boos AI-generate stage design at Richard Wagner festival08/02/2026August 2, 2026Audience boos AI-generate stage design at Richard Wagner festival
The audience at the annual Richard Wagner festival in Bayreuth booed after a performance of "Götterdämmerung" that was staged on a set that was designed with the help of artificial intelligence (AI).
The staging featured a collage of images which appeared to confuse members of the audience, who booed when curator Marcus Lobbes and his team took the stage at the end of the performance on Saturday evening.
The audience, however, warmly applauded the singers and musicians, as well as conductor Christian Thielemann.
Ahead of the performance, organizers had said AI would be used on stage for the first time as "an image-generating force."
The singers of Wagner's epic drama would be "the fixed point within a visually seething cosmos of light, texture, history, and association, amidst projections that erupt, constantly shift, and merge into one another," the festival's organizers said.
The AI-generated projections were drawn from images that Lobbes and his team had pre-selected, which included scenes from previous performances of Wagner's "Ring" cycle of four music dramas and from historical themes.
The collage, which included a commemorative stamp marking German reunification, images of former chancellor Helmut Kohl and the World Trade Center towers after the September 11 terror attacks, appeared to confuse the audience, according to German news agency dpa.
https://p.dw.com/p/5IA1jSkip next section Chancellor Merz 'very stable and strong' – Söder08/02/2026August 2, 2026Chancellor Merz 'very stable and strong' – Söder
German Chancellor Friedrich Merz is in a "very, very stable and strong" position, according to Bavarian Premier Markus Söder, who said on Sunday that he is "totally convinced" that Merz will "remain chancellor."
Söder, of the Christian Social Union (CSU), the conservative Bavarian sister party of Merz's Christian Democratic Union (CDU), made the comments in an interview with public broadcaster ZDF amid falling poll ratings for the chancellor.
With some party members fearing a poor performance in upcoming state elections in autumn, speculation has grown that Merz could be replaced as head of the government.
Söder dismissed such suggestions and warned that such a scenario could lead to demands for an early federal election "which would only promote one thing: extremists gaining power."
Instead, Söder urged party members and supporters to "concentrate on the work which needs to be done" and called for "togetherness" and "unity."
https://p.dw.com/p/5I9emSkip next section Rhine water levels at record low08/02/2026August 2, 2026Rhine water levels at record low
Water levels in the Rhine river reached historic lows in Cologne, Düsseldorf, Bonn, Duisburg and other cities this weekend due to continuing high temperatures and a lack of rain.
In Cologne, the Rhine fell to just 67 centimeters (26 inches), two centimeters lower than the previous record set in 2018. By Sunday, the water level (or Pegel in German) had risen back up to 69 centimeters.
In Düsseldorf, however, the water level dropped to just 21 centimeters on Sunday, also two centimeters lower than the previous low point.
Low water levels are driving up transport costs for the business sector and placing a particular burden on industries that rely on the transport of bulk goods. Inland vessels are forced to carry significantly less cargo or suspend operations entirely.
In addition to freight shipping, the exceptionally low water levels on the Rhine are also causing difficulties for tourism and passenger shipping.
According to one company, the Köln-Düsseldorfer Deutsche Rheinschiffahrt GmbH, numerous trips have had to be canceled, and certain vessels have been unable to dock at specific piers along the Rhine due to the receding waters.
"Freight traffic on the Rhine is already reacting to the falling water levels," warned Thilo Schaefer from the German Economy Institute (IW), telling the Rheinische Post newspaper that the reduced loads on river barges force transport costs upwards and also puts motorways and railways under more pressure.
Christoph Ploss, a conservative (CDU) politician who acts as the German government's maritime coordinator, warned that "low water levels must not become a ball and chain for the German economy."
Can shipping adapt as Germany's busiest river runs dry?
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https://p.dw.com/p/5I9dpSkip next section Bavaria: drunk man falls asleep on autobahn08/02/2026August 2, 2026Bavaria: drunk man falls asleep on autobahn
A 41-year-old man was found drunk and asleep next to a German motorway in the early hours of Sunday.
Police said they received several calls from drivers who had spotted the inebriated pedestrian stumbling around on the A96 Autobahn near Memmingen in the southern state of Bavaria.
When officers arrived on the scene, they found the man asleep under a crash barrier.
The man, who was said be "absolutely dunk" was taken to a cell to sober up.
https://p.dw.com/p/5I9bKSkip next section Brass musicians wrap up a 72-hour performance in Bavaria08/02/2026August 2, 2026Brass musicians wrap up a 72-hour performance in Bavaria
Around 1,850 brass musicians finished an unprecedented, 72-hour live performance with a church service In St. Jacob's church in Nürnberg, Bavaria on Sunday.
The event involved over 140 bands from across the German state, with them swapping roughly every 90 minutes to ensure there are no interruptions longer than 10 seconds.
The record is now to be confirmed by Germany's Record Institute.
Bavaria's Premier Markus Söder agreed to act as patron for the event.
In a statement, he conservative politician praised the "enthusiasm" and "passion" displayed by the musicians, and said that music creates "a strong sense of community — not only inside the circle of brass musicians, but also between them and their listeners."
https://p.dw.com/p/5I9QXSkip next section Kölln cereal recalled due to 'foreign objects'08/02/2026August 2, 2026Kölln cereal recalled due to 'foreign objects'
German cereal producer Kölln is expanding its contamination warning for its cereals with chocolate over fear that "foreign objects" might have gotten into the packages.
"We would like to emphasize that, to date, there has been only one known case in which a hard plastic part from our production process was found in a package. The foreign object was not baked into the product," they said in a statement online.
The warning now applies to cereal packages of 375 grams with batch numbers L6165, L6164 and L6235. The packages are also marked with "best before" dates of 17.04.2027, 16.04.2027 and 05.06.2027.
Kölln urged customers to return their product to supermarkets, promising a full refund regardless of having a receipt.
https://p.dw.com/p/5I9QCSkip next section Deutsche Bahn chief Evelyn Palla blasts 'organized irresponsibility' in the company08/02/2026August 2, 2026Deutsche Bahn chief Evelyn Palla blasts 'organized irresponsibility' in the company
The culture inside Germany's Deutsche Bahn (DB) is already shifting but the current crisis will take years to overcome, the head of the national railway company told Germany's Welt am Sonntag.
CEO Evelyn Palla criticized the old decision-making process in DB, saying that the central management often made big decisions on the operative level.
"The people in the headquarters, who made those decisions, don't have any responsibility for implementing them in the field," Palla said. "They have to be implemented by colleagues who are out there. But they say 'I didn't make this call, and it also doesn't work for me.' Then the headquarters says 'I have no operational responsibility, those people in the field did not implement [the decision] properly.' In the end it was something like organized irresponsibility."
Deutsche Bahn: Reliable no more?
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She told the paper that much has been "reformed" and "slimmed down" since she took the reins of the state-owned firm last October, and that multiple administration levels inside DB had been cut.
"But all of that does not make for a better (Deutsche) Bahn," she added. "Things will only change when the management changes, when decentralized units take responsibility and live with it."
In the interview published on Sunday, she also said that the German railway network was "run into the ground by 25 years of saving money" and that tangible improvements will take time.
She pointed to DB's 200-year anniversary coming in 2035, saying that "this should be the year when the worst is behind us."
https://p.dw.com/p/5I9BZSkip next section We are resuming our coverage08/02/2026August 2, 2026We are resuming our coverage
Welcome back to our coverage of top news stories from Germany on this early August weekend.
On Sunday, Berlin is preparing for an anti-Islamist march in response to the deadly terror attack which shook Germany to the core a week ago.
In Bavaria, over1,800 brass musicians are hoping to break the record for the world's longest concert as they near the end of the unprecedented 72-hour live performance.
And Evelyn Palla, the head of Germany Deutsche Bahn, is decrying "organized irresponsibility" inside the troubled railway company.
We will be bringing you more on these and other stories from Germany in this live blog.
https://p.dw.com/p/5I9AzSkip next section We've paused coverage08/02/2026August 2, 2026Thank you for reading the weekend edition of our blog about Germany and be sure to check in on Sunday morning to stay up to date with the latest headlines out of the country.
https://p.dw.com/p/5I8pzSkip next section WATCH — Hamburg Pride draws 300,000 after Berlin terror attack 08/01/2026August 1, 2026WATCH — Hamburg Pride draws 300,000 after Berlin terror attack
Hamburg's Pride parade went ahead under heightened security, one week after a 21-year-old drove a van into crowds at Berlin Pride. The attack killed one person and injured 29 others.
Hamburg Pride draws 300,000 after Berlin terror attack
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https://p.dw.com/p/5I8VuSkip next section IN DEPTH: Germany widens deportations to Afghanistan08/01/2026August 1, 2026IN DEPTH: Germany widens deportations to Afghanistan
Oliver PieperEarlier this week, Germany for the first time deported a man with no criminal record to Kabul.
This set a precedent that sparked vociferous protests: 260 people heeded the call of an anti-racism alliance and came to demonstrate inside the airport's departure hall, accompanied by a police escort.
Read more about Germany's policy on deportations to Afghanistan.
https://p.dw.com/p/5I8HdSkip next section Klingbeil urges for solidarity with Spain over Ceuta border breach08/01/2026August 1, 2026Klingbeil urges for solidarity with Spain over Ceuta border breach
German Vice Chancellor and Finance Minister Lars Klingbeil on Saturday called on Europeans to stand by Spain amid the debate over the surge of migrants into Ceuta.
Footage showing tens of thousands of migrants crossing into Spain's North African exclave of Ceuta raised concerns across the European Union.
"Migrants were used in an attempt to divide Europe," Klingbeil said.
He noted that Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez had restored control quickly and that most migrants who entered Ceuta had already returned to Morocco.
"Especially in situations like these, Europe must not allow itself to be divided," Klingbeil said.
Klingbeil's comments come after Italy officially suspended the Schengen agreement with Spain for one month in response to the mass crossing in Ceuta.
https://p.dw.com/p/5I8OzSkip next section Popular German national park closed after storm leaves 1 dead08/01/2026August 1, 2026Popular German national park closed after storm leaves 1 dead
A popular park in eastern Germany was closed to visitors on Saturday after a storm caused damage and left one person dead overnight.
A 38-year-old man was killed on Friday evening near the Felsenbühne open-air theater in Rathen when he was struck by a falling tree.
Ten other people were injured, three of them seriously, while 40 people were evacuated.
Emergency crews resumed clean-up operations on Saturday.
Authorities closed the area between the Bastei rock formation, the villages of Rathen and Hohnstein, and the Polenztal valley, citing ongoing safety risks for visitors.
https://p.dw.com/p/5I8HZSkip next section IN DEPTH: Germany weighs the future of minijobs08/01/2026August 1, 2026IN DEPTH: Germany weighs the future of minijobs
Dasha ThyssenWhen Anahita Abdollahi starts her shift, she first checks her emails to make sure she's up to date on all the library requests.
The 26-year-old master's student from Iran describes her job as a "part-time librarian" — she helps people find books they need for their studies, answers phone calls, and waters the plants.
This type of employment is known in Germany as a "minijob," a system that allows millions of workers, including students, to avoid paying income tax or social security contributions.
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