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The Venice Film Festival used to be the place where the awards season put on its best tuxedo. This year, it looks more like a war room, as politics and political cinema are set to dominate the red carpet.  The 83rd Venice International Film Festival kicks off on September 2 with Danny Boyle's "Ink," a drama about Rupert Murdoch's 1969 takeover of Britain's The Sun tabloid — the origin story of the Murdoch right-wing media empire. Over 11 days on the Lido, audiences will get films about Israel and Gaza, Russia's war on Ukraine, the CIA-backed coup in Pinochet's Chile, ICE raids in Minneapolis and a tell-all documentary on the world's richest man. Festival artistic director Alberto Barbera has called it Venice's "most political" edition ever.'NAZA,' a documentary by 'No Other Land' direc...

Oyo Nyimba, a Ugandan king of the traditional pre-colonial kingdom of Tooro, has died aged just 34, the prime minister of Tooro announced late on Thursday.  "It is with profound sadness and a heavy heart that I announce the passing of His Majesty Omukama of Tooro, King Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV," Tooro's regional leader Calvin Armstrong Rwomiire Akiiki said on social media.  What is the role of traditional monarchs in Uganda?  Uganda is a republic, ruled by a parliament and a nominally-elected head of state, longstanding President Yoweri Museveni, who's been in power since 1986.  But the country retains several traditional monarchies that still preside over their kingdoms as they were constituted in the pre-colonial period. Their power is largely symbolic but they wield consid...

Skip next section Man gets life in jail for US tourist's rape, murder08/28/2026August 28, 2026Man gets life in jail for US tourist's rape, murderThe defendant had been known to authorities for other sexual offenses, including attempting to rape a 16-year-oldImage: Thomas Frey/dpa/picture allianceA German court on Friday sentenced an 81-year-old man to life in prison for the rape and murder of a US tourist over 30 years ago. Amy Lopez was 24 when she was raped and killed by the convicted man in 1994. Hans S., whose last name is not given as per Germany's privacy laws, was only arrested earlier this year, when police were finally able to identify him using new DNA technology. Read more on the 81-year-old's trial and how police managed to arrest him over three decades after the crime here....

Estonian classical music composer Arvo Pärt, Italian literary translator Anita Raja and Greek theater director and actor Prodromos Tsinikoris are the three recipients of the 2026 Goethe Medal, an annual award that honors international public figures who contribute to creating cultural bridges between Germany and partner countries. The annual award, presented this year on August 28 in Weimar, is one of the most prestigious awards in Germany for international cultural work. So what connects these three personalities to Germany's culture? A prolific German exile: Estonian composer Arvo Pärt Considered one of the most influential figures in contemporary classical music since the 1960s, the Estonian composer is renowned for his minimalist, contemplative compositional technique called "tinti...

Gamescom, which runs from August 26-30 in Cologne, is promoted as the world's largest video game trade show. Last year, two-thirds of its non-industry visitors were male, with over 40% of them between the ages of 16 and 25. Those are precisely the young people the Bundeswehr, Germany's armed forces, is trying to reach as it urgently seeks to expand its ranks. Germany's military aims to have 260,000 active-duty soldiers by 2035. The German government has supplied hundreds of billions of euros to modernize the country's armed forces. Defense has become a priority for Germany as it faces the current global security situation. Career advice in camouflage The Bundeswehr set up shop at Gamescom for the first time in 2016. It's been back every year since. A brand-new, olive-green Caracal off...

Interior ministers and other senior officials from 10 European countries are meeting in northern Germany on Friday to discuss how to counter hybrid threats, with drone defense set to be a key focus. German Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt of the conservative Christian Social Union (CSU) is hosting the Baltic Sea Security Summit at the German naval academy in Flensburg. Germany, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Sweden are taking part, alongside Norway and Ireland, which currently holds the rotating EU Council presidency. The talks will focus on joint "strategies for better intelligence, deterrence and defense," according to Germany's Interior Ministry. Security authorities have recorded numerous suspected hybrid incidents in the Baltic Sea region, with Russia...

Steinmeier called for clear rules against extremist and anti-democratic content in video gamesImage: Christoph Reichwein/dpa/picture allianceGerman President Frank-Walter Steinmeier has called for a more critical debate about the risks of video games, warning about addiction, extremist content and depictions of violence. Speaking during his first visit to Gamescom in Cologne, Steinmeier said the growing importance of gaming meant its negative aspects also needed to be discussed "objectively, honestly and in a nuanced manner." He noted that gaming disorder is recognized as an illness by the World Health Organization and can have serious consequences for those affected. "There are also some computer games in which young people are confronted with brutality and raw violence, with sexism, r...

Yayoi Kusama gained fame in recent years for her Instagrammable "Infinity Rooms" — immersive installations using mirrors, lights and reflective surfaces to create the illusion of endless space — as well as her large-scale polka dot sculptures. While her works often appear playful, behind them lies the story of a woman who has faced major social and mental health challenges. Around the age of 10, Yayoi Kusama began experiencing hallucinations, seeing dots and net patterns enveloping everything in her mind's eye. She attributed these early visions to the psychological strain of growing up with an unloving mother, who forbade her from painting and tried to impose traditional expectations on her behavior. Although she continued to experience hallucinations until late in life, Kusama learned t...

Actor Tim Curry died at the age of 80, Variety, TMZ and other celebrity news outlets reported on Wednesday.  A cause of death was not immediately given but Curry had been in poor health for some time following a severe stroke that left him confined to a wheelchair and wrote in his memoir "Vagabond" last year that he was still not able to walk.  Curry won Laurence Olivier and Tony Award nominations for his work on stage in the UK and the US, as well delivering Emmy-winning TV performances later in his career.  Curry was another member of the class of 1946 to feature in 'Home Alone 2,' as was the current US President Donald TrumpImage: Everett Collection/picture alliance Who was Tim Curry? Curry was born in Cheshire into a Navy family in 1946 and spent his life bouncing around an array ...

Caroline Wahl, 31, has published three novels to date. All three shot to the top of Germany's fiction bestseller lists. Now, her fourth book is set to be released on August 28: "1999 Meter über dem Meer" (1999 Meters Above Sea) tells the story of a young woman who takes on a false identity to mingle among the high society in St. Moritz, Switzerland. It is one of the most anticipated new books of the summer in Germany. So what is the secret to Caroline Wahl's success? Debut with a bang Caroline Wahl's breakthrough came with her first novel, from 2023: "22 Bahnen" (22 Lengths) sold more than a million copies in German-language editions. The story of the young student Tilda, who has to navigate everyday life alongside her alcoholic mother and her little sister, was praised by critics f...