Friedrich Merz’s hard-line shift on migration is a calculated gambit by the German conservative leader to neutralize the far right and deliver a breakthrough with wavering voters, according to people familiar with his thinking.

BERLIN (Reuters) - A 99-year-old Holocaust survivor said on Thursday he would return his federal order of merit award to the German state in protest over a parliamentary vote in which support from the far-right was used for the first time to secure a majority.

Germany's federal and state government tax revenue rose 3.8% in 2024 from the previous year despite the economy contracting, the finance ministry said in its monthly report on Thursday. Total tax revenue reached 861.

Morocco has halted imports of feed grains from Germany following an outbreak of foot-and-mouth disease, the head of Morocco's grain trade federation (FNCL) said on Thursday.

Friedrich Merz leaned the right-wing AfD party to push through measures to restrict immigration.

A golden retriever and a German shepherd challenged each other to a spaghetti eating competition, and the results have left users across the internet in hysterics.

Friedrich Merz, the leader of Germany's CDU/CSU conservative bloc which is leading polls ahead of the Feb. 23 vote, is keen to seize the initiative on migration policy, which has shifted sharply back into focus after an Afghan asylum seeker was arrested over deadly stabbings last week.

Six German endurance track cyclists have been seriously injured after an 89-year-old drove a car head-on into the group.

Germany’s parliament has narrowly approved a call by Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s main challenger to turn back many more migrants at the country’s borders, with the help of a far-right party.

Conservatives have cooperated with the far-right AfD for the first time, amid growing support from the tech billionaire.