loaded with explosives was discovered at Leipzig airport in
eastern GermanyImage: Michael Bihlmayer/Bihlmayerfotografie/IMAGO
Skip next section What you need to know
What you need to know
Welcome to DW’s coverage of what Germany is talking about on Tuesday, 18 August, 2026.
- Ukrainian jailed in Germany over Russian sabotage plot
- New drone research center opens in Saxony-Anhalt
- Historic aquarium reopens in Berlin
Tired of missing our real-time updates? Click here to add us as a Preferred Source on Google.
Skip next section Germany to boost Ebola aid for DRC08/18/2026August 18, 2026
Germany to boost Ebola aid for DRC
Saim Dušan Inayatullah Editor
The German governmet has increased its aid to combat the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo by €11 million ($12.7 million).
“We have to remain capable of taking action, especially in times of crisis,” Development Minister Reem Alabali Radovan said Tuesday in an interview with public broadcaster RBB.
“The key question now is: How can we achieve as much as possible despite having fewer resources?”
Radovan stressed that the situation in the DRC was extremely serious, with conflict in the region making it difficult for healthcare workers to reach those who need treatment.
Germany is also providing the DRC with equipment such as mobile laboratories, as well as training healthcare workers to educate locals about the disease.
The Ebola outbreak in the DRC is now the deadliest in the country’s history. On Monday, the country’s government said more than 2,300 people had died out of nearly 5,000 cases.
According to the UN, it is also the fastest growing outbreak on record, with one person dying from the disease every 30 minutes.
https://p.dw.com/p/5J1fTSkip next section German Jewish Council criticizes Israeli minister08/18/2026August 18, 2026
German Jewish Council criticizes Israeli minister
The Central Council of Jews in Germany (ZdJ) has criticized remarks made by Israel‘s national security minister, calling them “inhuman,” “shameful” and “irresponsible.”
Itamar Ben-Gvir, a far-right extremist who has been part of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu‘s government since 2022, called in a podcast over the weekend for more “targeted killings” of Palestinians in the Gaza Strip, up to “30-40 per night,” including civilians who he said were “not worthy of life” and “shouldn’t live” because they’re “not even people.”
“Ben-Gvir’s inhuman comments stand diametrically opposed to Jewish values and damage the reputation of Israel,” ZdJ president Josef Schuster told Germany’s Catholic News Agency (KNA).
“Itamar Ben-Gvir’s behavior is utterly shameful and irresponsible. It illustrates the danger posed by far-right forces.”
https://p.dw.com/p/5J0g7Skip next section Vietnam orders probe into incident at Munich Airport 08/18/2026August 18, 2026
Vietnam orders probe into incident at Munich Airport
Vietnam‘s Ministry of Construction has ordered the country’s aviation regulator and national flag carrier, Vietnam Airlines, to cooperate with German authorities investigating an incident involving a Boeing 787-9 at Munich Airport over the weekend.
On Saturday, Vietnam Airlines flight VN34 from Munich to Hanoi was forced to land back in the Bavarian capital after the aircraft issued warnings shortly after takeoff indicating a possible tail strike and abnormal tire pressure.
The plane remained in the sky above southern Germany for about two hours, dumping fuel in order to reduce the aircraft’s weight before landing again. No injuries were reported among either the 271 passengers or 16 crew members.
The ministry has instructed the Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam (CAAV) to establish official communication channels with German aviation authorities and to participate in the investigation in accordance with Annex 13 of the Convention on International Civil Aviation.
The CAAV has also been ordered to improve its oversight of Vietnamese airlines and their personnel training and aircraft maintenance operations.
https://p.dw.com/p/5J0XFSkip next section Ukrainian handed jail sentence for spying for Russia; two others acquitted08/18/2026August 18, 2026
Ukrainian handed jail sentence for spying for Russia; two others acquitted
A Stuttgart court has sentenced a young Ukrainian man to one year and three months in prison after being found guilty of conspiring to carry out arson attacks on behalf of Russia – but two other men have been acquitted.
The three men, aged 22, 25 and 30, were arrested in May 2025 in Cologne, Constance and Thurgau (Switzerland) on suspicion of sending packages with GPS trackers from Germany to Ukraine. The aim, according to prosecutors, was to reveal the precise transport routes and pass the information on to Russian secret services.
In a second step, the men were allegedly planning to dispatch packages which were designed to ignite while in transit, but the plan was discovered before it could be implemented.
The men were charged with spying and conspiracy to carry out arson attacks.
The prosecution has called for sentences ranging from two years and nine months to four years and three months, while the defense has argued for acquittal for all three defendants.
The case evokes memories of an incident in 2024, when an air freight package caught fire at a DHL logistics hub in Leipzig. Security sources believe the package was planted on behalf of Russia.
Just recently, in early August, a drone equipped with explosives and a detonator was discovered at Leipzig Airport near Ukrainian transport aircraft (see below).
Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt (CSU) described it as a “hybrid” attack by a “foreign power.” Federal prosecutors are investigating.
https://p.dw.com/p/5IztCSkip next section Historic Berlin aquarium reopens after three years08/18/2026August 18, 2026
Historic Berlin aquarium reopens after three years
The historic aquarium at Berlin Zoo was officially reopened on Tuesday after three years of renovation work.
The three-floor aquarium (plus two additional floors for staff) is home to around 20,000 fish, reptiles, insects and other aquatic creatures representing 1,000 species and living in and around 1 million liters of water.
The main attractions are the 25 different types of jellyfish (the largest such collection in the world, according to the aquarium) and the historic crocodile enclosure, which was one of the original highlights when the aquarium first opened exactly 113 years ago on Aug. 18, 1913.
Back then, of course, as Germany‘s left-leaning TAZ newspaper points out, the German Empire was at its imperial height, when exotic animals were brought back to Europe using the same colonial routes which also enabled the transport of raw materials and even people away from conquered territories in Africa and Asia.
The Berlin aquarium’s first director, Oskar Heinroth (1871-1945), remains a respected and pioneering zoologist, although the field at the time often contributed to Social Darwinist and eugenic thinking.
The aquarium was almost totally destroyed during the Second World War and was slowly rebuilt: the ground floor in 1952, the terrarium in 1956 and the insect enclosure in 1959. By 1968, the aquarium once again possessed one of the biggest collections of watery species in the world.
Today, the aquarium’s inhabitants are fed in part with food grown on-site, including locusts, crickets, sea plankton and various types of flies. Even banana trees are grown in the warm attic beneath the roof.
Sometimes, the creatures receive particularly close attention when staff members, seven of whom are trained divers, enter the water to care for them. Visitors, however, are advised to stay behind the glass.
https://p.dw.com/p/5IzoDSkip next section Germany opens new drone research center08/18/2026August 18, 2026
Germany opens new drone research center
A new drone research center is set to open in the eastern German state of Saxony-Anhalt on Tuesday, two weeks after an incident involving a drone at an airport in nearby Leipzig.
The new facility at the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in Cochstedt, just south of the city of Magdeburg, will be officially opened by Interior Minister Alexander Dobrindt (CSU), Research and Technology Minister Dorothee Bär (CSU) and Saxony-Anhalt state premier Sven Schulze (CDU).
The center will conduct research into new drone security technologies and test them under realistic conditions, combining scientific theory with the practical demands of Germany’s security services.
“The arms race in drone technology calls for specific research facilities in order to keep up,” Dobrindt said following the recent incident in Leipzig, when an explosive-laden drone was discovered close to several Ukrainian cargo planes. State prosecutors spoke of a “serious attack on Germany’s transport and logistics infrastructure” and are continuing their investigations.
An interior ministry spokeswoman said on Monday that “a lot of research, development and observation” is required in order to determine what exactly Germany needs to improve its anti-drone capabilities, and said that the new Cochstedt facility would be a “key component” in this endeavor.
The German government is particularly concerned about developments in AI-controlled drones which can continue towards their targets even when jammers interrupt their connections. Another key aspect involves the accurate identification of different types of drones in order to implement the most effective form of defense.
To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video
https://p.dw.com/p/5IzPqSkip next section Welcome to our coverage08/18/2026August 18, 2026
Welcome to our coverage
Matt Ford | Louis Oelofse Editor
Guten Tag! Welcome to DW’s coverage of what Germany is talking about on Tuesday, 18 August, 2026.
A new drone research center is set to be officially opened not far from Leipzig airport, where an explosive-laden drone was recently discovered close to Ukrainian cargo planes.
Meanwhile, a court is set to deliver its verdict in the trial of three Ukrainians accused of plotting attacks on German freight transport on behalf of Russia.
And in Berlin, an historic aquarium is set to reopen.
Catch up on yesterday’s Germamy news here.
https://p.dw.com/p/5IzRrShow more posts
About The Author
