Israel’s Herzog Travels to Germany for 1972 Olympics Memorial

Israeli President Isaac Herzog speaks as he meets with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson (not seen) in London, Britain, November 23, 2021. Justin Tallis/Pool via REUTERS
Israeli President Isaac Herzog speaks as he meets with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson (not seen) in London, Britain, November 23, 2021. Justin Tallis/Pool via REUTERS
TT

Israel’s Herzog Travels to Germany for 1972 Olympics Memorial

Israeli President Isaac Herzog speaks as he meets with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson (not seen) in London, Britain, November 23, 2021. Justin Tallis/Pool via REUTERS
Israeli President Isaac Herzog speaks as he meets with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson (not seen) in London, Britain, November 23, 2021. Justin Tallis/Pool via REUTERS

Israeli President Isaac Herzog departed Sunday for Germany, where he will attend a memorial for 11 Israeli athletes killed by Palestinian militants at the 1972 Munich Olympics.

"I am leaving this morning on a state visit to Germany, at the invitation of the President of Germany, Frank-Walter Steinmeier," Herzog said in a statement.

"The main part of the visit will be the memorial marking the 50-year anniversary of the terrible massacre of the 11 Israeli athletes at the Munich Olympics in 1972," he added.

The president's trip to Munich follows a last-minute compensation deal reached last week between Germany and the families of the Israeli victims.

The bereaved relatives were offered $28 million by Berlin, in addition to $4.5 million previously granted.

Around 70 family members of victims are due to attend Monday's memorial, Ankie Spitzer, whose husband Andre Spitzer was killed, told AFP.

The Israel Olympic Committee confirmed it would send a delegation to the September 5 memorial.

It will mark 50 years since gunmen from the Palestinian militant group Black September stormed the Israeli team's lodgings.

They shot two people dead and took nine others hostage, all of whom were killed. Germany was blamed for botching an operation to rescue them.

Steinmeier's office has not said whether the president will make a formal apology during the ceremony at Fuerstenfeldbruck air base, west of Munich, where the hostage-taking reached its violent end.

During his three-day visit to Germany, Herzog is also due to meet Chancellor Olaf Scholz and address parliament in Berlin.



About 60 People Feared Dead in Stampede at India Religious Event

A picture taken with a slow shutter speed effect shows a man sheltering under an umbrella as he walks in the street, during a rainy day in Kolkata, Eastern India, 02 July 2024. Heavy rain disrupted daily life in the city.  EPA/PIYAL ADHIKARY
A picture taken with a slow shutter speed effect shows a man sheltering under an umbrella as he walks in the street, during a rainy day in Kolkata, Eastern India, 02 July 2024. Heavy rain disrupted daily life in the city. EPA/PIYAL ADHIKARY
TT

About 60 People Feared Dead in Stampede at India Religious Event

A picture taken with a slow shutter speed effect shows a man sheltering under an umbrella as he walks in the street, during a rainy day in Kolkata, Eastern India, 02 July 2024. Heavy rain disrupted daily life in the city.  EPA/PIYAL ADHIKARY
A picture taken with a slow shutter speed effect shows a man sheltering under an umbrella as he walks in the street, during a rainy day in Kolkata, Eastern India, 02 July 2024. Heavy rain disrupted daily life in the city. EPA/PIYAL ADHIKARY

About 60 people were feared dead in a stampede at a religious event in India's northern state of Uttar Pradesh on Tuesday, authorities said.
The stampede happened in a village in Hathras district, about 200 km southeast of the national capital New Delhi.
"I can't give the exact toll at the moment, but it is approximately 60 ... There is a possibility that the toll may go up," Manish Chikara, a district police spokesperson, told Reuters by phone.
Unverified videos on social media showed bodies piled up on the ground outside a local hospital. Reuters could not immediately verify the videos.
State Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath ordered an investigation into the incident.
"Instructions have been given to the concerned officials to conduct relief and rescue operations on war footing and to provide proper treatment to the injured," he wrote on X.