German chancellor says attacks are ‘outrageous and cowardly’ after politicians have been hit and injured in Germany

Germany’s chancellor, Olaf Scholz, has strongly condemned a rash of attacks on politicians after a senator and former mayor of Berlin was struck over the head in a public library in the third assault on an elected official in less than a week.

Franziska Giffey, a member of Scholz’s centre-left Social Democratic party (SPD) was slightly injured and briefly hospitalised after a man hit her from behind with a bag containing an unidentified hard object on Tuesday. Police have arrested a 74-year-old male suspect.

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Anna Haholkina tells of shock and says no one from deputy Italian PM’s League sought her for permission

A woman whose photograph was used in a controversial poster campaign by Italy’s far-right League, a member of Giorgia Meloni’s ruling coalition, has said she will consult lawyers, describing the images as “racist”.

Anna Haholkina, an Ukrainian-Italian model who lives in Rimini, said she was shocked to see her face on the posters that have sprung up in Milan in recent weeks as the League, which is led by the deputy prime minister, Matteo Salvini, intensifies its anti-Islam stance in the run-up to next months’s European elections .

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10% of the windfall profits will fund non-lethal aid to assuage EU member states that do not wish to fund arms

The EU has reached a deal to seize profits from Russia’s frozen assets to fund weapons and aid for Ukraine within months.

EU senior diplomats meeting on Wednesday agreed a compromise on using the estimated €4.4bn windfall profits to aid Ukraine, smoothing over a dispute about taxation and management costs in Belgium, the country where most of the frozen assets are held.

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Fiona Schenk outlines the compassionate treatment refugees receive in Germany and the benefits that brings to the host country

Re the treatment of refugees in the UK ( Report, 2 May ), I work in Germany in a government-run institution for newly arrived asylum seekers. The initial processing involves an interview establishing the person’s name, nationality and languages spoken, and explaining what will happen in the centre (with help from translators).

They also get health checks and vaccinations, and receive necessary clothing and hygiene articles, before being allocated a bed in a shared room (families are housed together; women and men in separate accommodation).

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Even in a country less keen on US pop, singer’s arrival is a big deal, boosting business for everyone from hotels to bakeries

She may be the owner of a bakery in the centre of a city famous for its millefeuilles and religieuses, but in recent days Beth Beji’s team has been fielding requests for a rather different sort of cake: a Taylor Swift-themed sweet treat.

“There is a huge obsession with Taylor Swift and we see it in the orders coming in,” said Beji, of Clove Bakery . “We’ve had a lot of orders for custom layer cakes, cupcakes, cookies featuring her. We’ve had requests for Taylor Swift on a stage with a microphone in fondant, Taylor Swift riding a unicorn, Taylor Swift album covers, cakes with her face on them … The orders are very specific in the details.”

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Sources say EPP had baulked at use of term ‘far right’ in joint statement of parties in Europe

A row has broken out among political parties in Europe after the centre right group to which Ursula von der Leyen belongs refused to sign a letter condemning the far right and a spate of recent attacks on politicians in Germany, Belgium, Spain, Sweden and Ireland.

The open letter calls on Von der Leyen to “reject any normalisation, cooperation or alliance with the far right and radical parties” and denounces a physical assault on German centre-left politician Matthias Ecke . Ecke was “seriously injured” after allegedly being attacked by four young men while putting up campaign posters.

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Several Russian diplomatic premises that UK believes have been used by Russian intelligence also closed

The Kremlin also said that it valued its relations with North Korea, when asked about a report that Russia has been shipping refined petroleum to North Korea at levels that appear to breach a cap set by the United Nations Security Council.

“We value our bilateral relations with North Korea and intend to further develop them in all possible areas,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

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Franziska Giffey was injured when a man struck her from behind with a heavy object in a local library

A 74-year-old has been detained in Germany, after Franziska Giffey , a Berlin senator and former city mayor, was injured when a man struck her from behind with a heavy object in a local library.

Reuters reported, citing police, that the suspect was previously known to law enforcement for hate crime and unspecified incidents against state security, and was also believed to have mental health issues.

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Incident involving Boeing 767 jet operated by FedEx comes amid intense scrutiny of troubled planemaker

A Boeing cargo plane has been forced to land at Istanbul airport without its front landing gear, in the latest setback for the embattled planemaker.

Nobody was hurt in the incident, in a flight operated by the delivery company FedEx, according to Turkey’s transport ministry.

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