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Swiss Info

Mon, 23 May 2022 07:55:00 GMT
Switzerland and Germany seek to conclude gas solidarity deal
Swiss and German ministers have agreed to negotiate a solidarity agreement to help each other with gas supply issues in an emergency. The announcement was made on the side lines of the World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting taking place in Davos. “We ...

Sun, 22 May 2022 17:23:00 GMT
Swiss open World Health Assembly with conflict healthcare plea
Switzerland’s Health Minister Alain Berset has opened the 75th World Health Assembly (WHA) in Geneva with a call for healthcare access to be guaranteed in conflicts, as the war in Ukraine unfolds. The WHA is the top decision-making body of the wor...

Sun, 22 May 2022 12:35:00 GMT
Monkeypox medication not authorised in Switzerland
The antiviral drug tecovirimat and the latest generation smallpox vaccine – which both help against monkeypox and are authorised in the European Union – are not available in Switzerland, the NZZ am Sonntag newspaper has reported. The news comes ...

Sun, 22 May 2022 10:28:00 GMT
More hot days ahead, warns weather expert
A top meteorologist has told the SonntagsZeitung that new summer heat records are “very likely” in Switzerland. This might cost the country hundreds of millions of Swiss francs in productivity in the long-run, the newspapers warns. “The chance...

Sat, 21 May 2022 15:29:00 GMT
Swiss confirm first case of monkeypox
Switzerland has detected its first case of monkeypox in canton Bern, health officials said on Saturday evening. The case has been confirmed by the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) in a tweet. "Currently, an accumulation of monkeypox infection...

Sat, 21 May 2022 14:14:00 GMT
Swiss elected chair of top European research universities group
University of Geneva Rector Yves Flückiger has been elected chair of the League of European Research Universities (LERU). The move comes at a time of uncertainty over Switzerland's future in the European research funding programme Horizon Europe. "...

Sat, 21 May 2022 11:29:00 GMT
Dolphins use coral ‘clinics’ for skincare
Dolphins are rubbing up against certain types of coral to help alleviate skin conditions, research by a Swiss and German team suggests. The findings, published in the iScience journal this week, have shown that these corals have medicinal properties...

Fri, 20 May 2022 15:18:00 GMT
Swiss households braced for 20% electricity price hike
Electricity prices are expected to leap by as much as 20% for many Swiss households and businesses this year, according to a survey of power providers. The ongoing war in Ukraine is expected to heap further pressure on costs, said the Swiss Associat...

Fri, 20 May 2022 14:29:00 GMT
Refugee ‘crypto millionaire’ faces Swiss money laundering probe
Swiss prosecutors have launched a money laundering investigation against a refugee who claims to have made millions from cryptocurrency trading. Dadvan Yousuf, 22, generated media headlines last year with his rags-to-riches story since fleeing to Sw...

Fri, 20 May 2022 12:59:00 GMT
Swiss financial firms close down Moscow offices
Zurich Insurance Group and Julius Bär bank have announced plans to abandon their Moscow offices amid the ongoing war in Ukraine. Zurich said on Friday that it would sell its Russian subsidiary in a management buyout. “Under its new owners, the bu...

Fri, 20 May 2022 12:32:00 GMT
Uyghurs in focus as UN human rights chief visits China
Michelle Bachelet will become the first United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights to visit China since 2005 during a six-day official mission that starts on May 23. Bachelet will visit Guangzhou, Kashgar and Urumqi, the capital city of the X...

Fri, 20 May 2022 11:21:00 GMT
Swiss doctors adopt tighter assisted suicide guidelines
New regulations for doctors dealing with euthanasia cases have been criticised as too harsh and difficult to implement by assisted suicide organisations. The guidelines agreed yesterday by the Swiss Medical Association notably state that “assisted...

Thu, 19 May 2022 14:15:00 GMT
US ambassador praises Swiss efforts to freeze Russian money
The US ambassador to Switzerland has praised the “immense progress” made by Switzerland in the search for Russian funds in Swiss banks. The United States is very pleased with the efforts Switzerland has made so far to find the funds of Russians ...

Thu, 19 May 2022 09:41:00 GMT
Swiss to re-open Ukraine embassy
Switzerland is re-opening its embassy in Kyiv, with five staff members set to return to the Ukrainian capital, the foreign ministry said on Thursday. The embassy was closed at the end of February, after the Russian invasion of Ukraine led to fears o...

Thu, 19 May 2022 09:26:55 GMT
Swiss plan to let spy agency snoop on security risk financial flows
The Swiss government has proposed letting its spy agency penetrate the country’s famous banking secrecy to snoop on financial transactions that it suspects are funding terrorism, espionage or violent extremism. Unveiling a draft amendment of the i...

Thu, 19 May 2022 08:58:00 GMT
Government wants to buy fighter jets without public vote
The Swiss government wants to finalise the purchase of new US-built fighter jets before March 2023, without waiting for a possible public vote on the issue. The seven-member body said on Wednesday that the “deteriorating security situation” call...

Wed, 18 May 2022 16:34:00 GMT
Germany’s Scholz and NATO’s Stoltenberg to attend Davos WEF meeting
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg will be among the leaders at the annual World Economic Forum (WEF) meeting in Davos, which starts on Sunday after a two-year hiatus due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Over 50 heads...

Wed, 18 May 2022 14:55:00 GMT
Swiss government presents plans to boost gas reserves
The Swiss government has outlined its plans to boost gas storage capacity in neighbouring countries to secure supplies ahead of winter. Gas makes up roughly 15% of Switzerland’s final energy consumption and is mostly used for heating and cooking. ...

Wed, 18 May 2022 14:40:00 GMT
Complicity in crimes against humanity: court upholds charge against Lafarge
A Paris appeals court has confirmed that the cement firm Lafarge must face charges of complicity in crimes against humanity over alleged payoffs to Islamic State group and other jihadist groups during Syria's civil war. Lafarge is now part of the Swi...

Wed, 18 May 2022 11:26:00 GMT
Swiss woman indicted for jihadist terror stabbings in Lugano 
The Office of the Attorney General of Switzerland (OAG) has filed an indictment against a Swiss woman who attacked two people with a knife in a department store in the Swiss city of Lugano in 2020. The 29-year-old, who lives in canton Ticino in Ita...

Wed, 18 May 2022 10:32:00 GMT
Swiss philanthropist Hansjörg Wyss receives special award
Swiss billionaire Hansjörg Wyss has been given a special award for his generosity and support to Swiss science. The 86-year-old business tycoon and philanthropist, who lives in the United States, was awarded the 2022 Gallatin Award by the Swiss-Ame...

Wed, 18 May 2022 09:50:00 GMT
Switzerland ranked second-worst global facilitator of tax avoidance
Switzerland has moved from third to second in an annual ranking of the worst global tax havens. Overall however, the country is going in the right direction, reports the Tax Justice Network. Despite coming second behind the United States in this yea...

Tue, 17 May 2022 14:29:00 GMT
Prehistoric Swiss dolphin species newly discovered
Landlocked Switzerland was home to previously unknown species of dolphins 20 million years ago, new research has found. During this period, part of Switzerland, known as the Upper Marine Molasse, was covered by an ocean teeming with prehistoric fish...

Tue, 17 May 2022 13:29:00 GMT
Switzerland to host European space technology centre
Switzerland has signed an agreement with the European Space Agency (ESA) to host a centre of excellence for developing space technology. The European Space Deep-Tech Innovation (ESDI) centre will be set up at the Paul Scherrer Institute (PSI), which...

Tue, 17 May 2022 11:10:29 GMT
NGO fears Dubai gold imports evading Russia sanctions
Switzerland has recorded a significant increase in gold imports from the United Arab Emirates since the introduction of sanctions against Russia. NGO Swissaid calls for more transparency to determine whether this gold is coming from Russia. Swiss go...

Tue, 17 May 2022 09:10:11 GMT
Hate crimes against LGBTQ on the rise in Switzerland
The number of hate crimes reported by the LGBT+ helpline rose 50% in 2021. Concerns are high levels of underreporting are renewing calls for a nationwide reporting system for hate crimes. There were 92 reports of anti-LGBTQ hate crimes in 2021 accor...

Mon, 16 May 2022 14:31:00 GMT
Funds pledged to help Sri Lankan adoptees trace roots
The Swiss authorities will provide up to CHF250,000 ($250,000) a year to help Sri Lankans who were illegally adopted trace their roots and find their birth families. The government and cantonal funding will support a three-year pilot project by the ...

Mon, 16 May 2022 13:47:00 GMT
Switzerland aims for 50% plug-in vehicle adoption
Private sector automotive, electricity and real estate companies have agreed to back Swiss government plans to ramp up adoption of fully electric and hybrid plug-in vehicles. The public-private initiative aims to increase the share of eco-friendly v...

Mon, 16 May 2022 09:39:00 GMT
French comedian Dieudonné loses Swiss appeal over anti-semitic sketch
The French comedian Dieudonné M’bala M’bala has lost his appeal against a 2021 conviction for racist content during performances in Switzerland, which included denying the existence of Nazi gas chambers. A Geneva appeals court has confirmed las...

Sun, 15 May 2022 15:33:00 GMT
Local voters grant Zurich ‘sanctuary’ status
Voters in Switzerland’s biggest city have decided to introduce an identity card for local residents, including illegal immigrants. In a local referendum on Sunday, 51.7% of voters confirmed a plan for the so-called ‘Züri City Card’. Parliame...



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