Thousands Protest in Berlin in Solidarity with Iranian Uprisings

Protesters participate in a demonstration in support of the nationwide protests in Iran against the government, in Berlin, Germany, Saturday, Feb. 7, 2026. (AP)
Protesters participate in a demonstration in support of the nationwide protests in Iran against the government, in Berlin, Germany, Saturday, Feb. 7, 2026. (AP)
TT

Thousands Protest in Berlin in Solidarity with Iranian Uprisings

Protesters participate in a demonstration in support of the nationwide protests in Iran against the government, in Berlin, Germany, Saturday, Feb. 7, 2026. (AP)
Protesters participate in a demonstration in support of the nationwide protests in Iran against the government, in Berlin, Germany, Saturday, Feb. 7, 2026. (AP)

Thousands of people protested in Berlin on Saturday in support of Iranians' nationwide uprising, coinciding with the anniversary of Iran's 1979 anti-monarchy revolution.

The rally follows nationwide protests in Iran, which started in December over economic hardships and quickly turned political and were repressed in the most violent crackdown since the 1979 revolution.

Around 8,000 were ‌gathered at ‌Berlin's Brandenburg Gate ‌at 1300 ⁠GMT, the Berlin ‌police told Reuters, adding that 20,000 had registered to attend.

Shahin Gobadi, a member of the foreign affairs committee of the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI), claimed the crowd numbered 100,000, saying thousands were unable ⁠to travel to Berlin after flights were cancelled ‌because of weather.

Former US Secretary ‍of State Mike ‍Pompeo joined the event online after his ‍flight was cancelled.

The event is supported by 344 organizations and political figures, including parliamentary friendship groups for Iran, trade unions, and civil society actors at national and local levels from several European countries, as well ⁠as 312 Iranian associations in Europe, according to the organizers.

"The message of the Iranian people and their Resistance has been and remains this: no appeasement, no war or foreign intervention, regime change and sovereignty of the republic of the people, by the people and their organized resistance," said Maryam Rajavi, president-elect of the National ‌Council of Resistance of Iran, at the rally in Berlin.



China Rejects Trump’s Election Interference Claim as ‘Groundless Accusations’

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian attends a press conference in Beijing, China April 10, 2025. (Reuters)
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian attends a press conference in Beijing, China April 10, 2025. (Reuters)
TT

China Rejects Trump’s Election Interference Claim as ‘Groundless Accusations’

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian attends a press conference in Beijing, China April 10, 2025. (Reuters)
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian attends a press conference in Beijing, China April 10, 2025. (Reuters)

China on Friday said it has never interfered in US elections and has no interest in doing so, urging Washington to stop making what it described as “groundless accusations” after President Donald Trump accused Beijing of meddling in the 2020 election.

In an address to the nation Thursday, Trump again raised doubts about the US elections results in 2020 and accused China of interfering in them.

“The relevant allegations by the US are entirely fabricated and aimed at vilifying China,” said China’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lin Jian. “We have no interest in interfering in US elections and have never done so.”

In a daily briefing in Beijing, Lin called on the US to stop making groundless accusations against China.

Asked whether this might affect the expected visit of Chinese President Xi Jinping to the US in September, the spokesperson replied: “As I just said, we urge the US to stop making an issue of China in its elections and do something conducive to China-US relations.”

Trump visited Beijing in mid-May and met with Xi, and both governments said they would adopt a new framework to manage the bilateral relations. Trump invited Xi to visit the United States in September and Beijing confirmed Xi has accepted the invitation.


2 Dead after Violent Thunderstorms in France, 53,000 Without Power

A woman rides a bicycle during a rainstorm in central Lyon on 16 July, 2026. (Photo by OLIVIER CHASSIGNOLE / AFP)
A woman rides a bicycle during a rainstorm in central Lyon on 16 July, 2026. (Photo by OLIVIER CHASSIGNOLE / AFP)
TT

2 Dead after Violent Thunderstorms in France, 53,000 Without Power

A woman rides a bicycle during a rainstorm in central Lyon on 16 July, 2026. (Photo by OLIVIER CHASSIGNOLE / AFP)
A woman rides a bicycle during a rainstorm in central Lyon on 16 July, 2026. (Photo by OLIVIER CHASSIGNOLE / AFP)

At least two people have died as violent thunderstorms hit France overnight following a prolonged heatwave, and 53,000 households were left without power on Friday, French media and local grid operator Enedis said.

In Saint-Victurnien, in the central Haute-Vienne department, a woman died ⁠after a tree ⁠fell on her on Thursday evening, and in Dolomieu to the east a man was found burned to death late on Thursday ⁠in a workshop that caught fire after being struck by lightning, AFP reported on Friday.

A municipal police car drives down a street during a rainstorm in central Lyon on 16 July, 2026. (Photo by OLIVIER CHASSIGNOLE / AFP)

Grid operator Enedis said on Friday that 53,000 households were left without power, with cuts affecting mainly the Auvergne Rhone-Alpes area in the Southeast and the ⁠Nouvelle ⁠Aquitaine in the Southwest.

Weather service Météo-France on Friday lifted the orange alert for thunderstorms in all the departments of Southeastern France that were previously affected, having earlier warned of large hailstones and gusts of wind from the Massif Central to the Alps.


Landslide in Southwest China Traps People, Rescue Efforts Underway

 In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, rescuers conduct search and rescue operation on the site of the landslide in Pengshui County in southwestern China's Chongqing on Friday, July 17, 2026. (Xinhua via AP)
In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, rescuers conduct search and rescue operation on the site of the landslide in Pengshui County in southwestern China's Chongqing on Friday, July 17, 2026. (Xinhua via AP)
TT

Landslide in Southwest China Traps People, Rescue Efforts Underway

 In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, rescuers conduct search and rescue operation on the site of the landslide in Pengshui County in southwestern China's Chongqing on Friday, July 17, 2026. (Xinhua via AP)
In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, rescuers conduct search and rescue operation on the site of the landslide in Pengshui County in southwestern China's Chongqing on Friday, July 17, 2026. (Xinhua via AP)

A landslide Friday in the southwestern Chinese city of Chongqing buried some residential buildings, trapping an undetermined number of people, state media reported.

State broadcaster CCTV said at least nine people were rescued from the debris, and that search and rescue operations were ongoing.

CCTV said the landslide occurred at around 9:08 a.m. in Chongqing’s Pengshui County. Massive amounts of rocks and soil washed downslope, burying more than 10 residential buildings, and rescuers were using more than 50 sets of detection, search and rescue equipment, according to the official Xinhua News Agency.

Images by CCTV showed part of a mountainside collapsing onto a residential area. Several buildings were located next to the collapse site, while rescue crews were seen searching through the debris.

Photos showed large slabs of rock sliding beside buildings several stories high into a waterway below. Two buildings that looked about five and 15 stories high were damaged but still standing.

The rain-triggered landslide occurred near a section of the Wujiang River, which cuts through karst mountains peppered with small towns and terraces.

Authorities sent more than 8,000 disaster-relief items to Chongqing, including tents, folding beds and family emergency kits.

Pengshui County is located in the southeast part of Chongqing, bordering the provinces of Hubei and Guizhou.