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, WED., OCT. 7, 2026No. 3 · 6:00 p.m. CEST6 p.m. CEST
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Politics · Saxony-AnhaltPress ✓ 9 outlets · wording of the remarks not verified

Day two after the AfD vote in Magdeburg: Merz condemns the votes for Rausch but warns against “hasty conclusions”

The CDU in Saxony-Anhalt faces a severe test, the SPD halts an initiative for a cross-party government, and the BSW and AfD want to push through a joint Ukraine motion.

One day after Tobias Rausch (AfD) was elected state parliament speaker, Chancellor Friedrich Merz has spoken publicly. According to reports in Spiegel, Zeit, Tagesschau and Süddeutsche Zeitung, he criticized the votes from other caucuses for the AfD candidate, but at the same time warned against hasty conclusions: the vote was by secret ballot, and who voted for him is not documented. North Rhine-Westphalia’s Minister-President Hendrik Wüst called the episode a deep rupture in our republic. Süddeutsche Zeitung writes that Merz now has a new AfD problem. Tagesschau reports that the CDU caucus in Magdeburg faces a severe test after the vote on the presidium. Spiegel and Zeit point to the dispute within the CDU, which could bring AfD caucus leader Ulrich Siegmund into the office of minister-president in December. The AfD claims to have already made a deal with CDU lawmakers for his election; that is not documented.

The SPD drew consequences: according to Zeit reports, it halted an initiative for a cross-party government in Saxony-Anhalt, and its federal leadership is demanding clarification from the CDU. Green Party leader Felix Banaszak warned of a creeping normalization of the AfD. At the same time, the BSW and the AfD announced in Magdeburg that they would pass a joint motion on Ukraine; according to Zeit, they are demanding an end to German aid for Ukraine. Handelsblatt writes that the Union and the SPD are caught between the firewalls, and FAZ reports that the coalition sees a historic test for democracy. This evening the coalition committee meets in Berlin.

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By the numbers
4votes at least from other caucuses for Rausch, with 48 yes votes and 44 seats held by the AfD and BSW
Dec.election of the minister-president in Magdeburg; the AfD is nominating Siegmund
1cross-party initiative the SPD has halted (Zeit)
Security · JusticeSource ✓ Federal Prosecutor’s Office · Press ✓ 7 outlets

Former BND chief Hanning is placed in pretrial detention. Britain’s MI6 is reportedly checking what may have leaked from the BND

The investigating judge has ordered pretrial detention for the former BND president August Hanning. The Federal Prosecutor’s Office accuses him and his former chief of staff Manfred D. of having obtained almost 2,000 documents from the service between 2010 and 2022; some of the papers were intended for the intelligence situation briefing at the Chancellery. According to Spiegel, investigators are examining links to Azerbaijan’s intelligence service; the Federal Prosecutor’s Office names no country. FAZ and Handelsblatt report that Britain’s MI6 is reviewing all confidential information it has shared with the BND. A former BND deputy chief spoke of the “effect of an atomic bomb”; Handelsblatt demands that the Chancellery clean up the BND. The presumption of innocence applies.

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Word of the day
Pretrial detentionLaw

Custody before a verdict, ordered by a judge when there is strong suspicion of an offense and a ground for detention such as risk of flight or of tampering with evidence. It is not a punishment; only a court decides on guilt.

Foreign policy · RemembrancePress ✓ 7 outlets

Three years after October 7: Merz pledges support to Israel, hundreds commemorate the victims in Berlin

On the third anniversary of the Hamas attack on Israel, Chancellor Friedrich Merz expressed his sympathy to the bereaved and declared that Germany stands firmly at Israel’s side. This, he said, is a lesson of the Shoah and part of German identity. The federal government wants to lay the foundation for an order in which Israelis, Palestinians and their neighbors can live in peace and security, and he committed to the two-state solution. It intends to fight antisemitism consistently in all its forms. Merz thereby repeated a promise that has stood since October 2023.

In Israel, memorial ceremonies remembered the victims, including those of the Nova festival; Tagesschau describes an emotional day of remembrance, with the pain running deep. In Berlin, hundreds of people commemorated the victims, and leading German politicians took part; at the same time Greta Thunberg took part in a pro-Palestinian demonstration. Tagesschau speaks of a difficult balancing act for Germany in its relationship with Israel; Jewish people described how caution is becoming part of everyday life. The Greens are pressing for a new antisemitism commissioner.

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Markets · CurrenciesSource ✓ dpa-AFX closing report, ECB reference rate · Press ✓ 6 outlets

The DAX loses 1.35 percent to 25,104 points. Rising yields and France’s bond market weigh on prices

The DAX closed on Wednesday down 1.35 percent at 25,104.36 points, and the MDAX lost 1.41 percent to 30,112.41. The Euro Stoxx 50 fell at one point to its lowest level since mid-June and closed 1.47 percent lower at 6,180.29. Analysts see rising yields as the main reason: the yield on ten-year German government bonds rose from 3.481 to 3.503 percent, in Britain some bonds are above six percent, and the US ten-year yield, according to Handelsblatt, reached 5.342 percent, the highest since 2002. Banks such as BNP Paribas, Société Générale, UniCredit and Santander lost two to five percent.

Among individual stocks, Infineon fell 5.8 percent; Fresenius Medical Care lost almost seven percent after the abrupt departure of chief executive Helen Giza. The euro slipped: the ECB set the reference rate at 1.1177 dollars, down from 1.1269 on Tuesday. The minutes of the US central bank, released in the evening, show disagreement over the course of interest rates. Also in focus: the International Energy Agency is speeding up the release of oil reserves, diesel is in the spotlight, and no solution is in sight in the Iran war.

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Domestic politicsPress ✓ 6 outlets · committee’s outcome not available at press time

Coalition committee meets this evening: pensions, taxes and the 2027 budget are on the table, the SPD expects no decisions

On Wednesday evening the leaders of the Union and the SPD meet in the coalition committee. According to Tagesschau and other reports, the agenda covers the reforms on pensions, long-term care, taxes and the labor market, as well as the 2027 budget. The SPD had said beforehand that it expected no decisions. Merz had said that full implementation of the July package by Christmas could not be managed; he hopes for completion in spring 2027. FAZ and Handelsblatt write that after the vote in Magdeburg the coalition faces a historic test.

Two further points of dispute are in play. In a paper, the SPD calls for a wealth tax, while the CDU is calling for a higher inheritance tax. And Merz and Macron, according to reports in Handelsblatt and Spiegel, are struggling to agree a common line on how to loosen the EU’s combustion-engine ban further (“Made in Europe”). Results from the committee are not expected until Thursday.

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In brief
  • Thuringia’s head of government Mario Voigt withdraws his lawsuit over the revocation of his doctorateHandelsblatt · SZ · Spiegel · FAZ
  • Suspected member of the Russian hacker group Qilin transferred to Germany; NRW investigators report a blowFAZ · Zeit · Handelsblatt · Tagesschau
  • Federal cabinet sets in motion a law against digital violence, including sexualized deepfakesSpiegel · Tagesschau · Zeit
  • Porsche cuts 40 percent of management jobs; strategy through 2035 is meant to make the company successful againSZ · Handelsblatt
  • Mercedes sells 31 percent less in China in the third quarterHandelsblatt · SZ
  • Audi wants to lend engineers to defense firmsSZ · Handelsblatt
  • Thuringia’s AfD fails with its motion to dissolve the state parliamentHandelsblatt · Zeit
  • WHO demands information from Russia on a possible plague caseSpiegel · Zeit
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Unverified — what we could not confirm

“Hanning spied for Azerbaijan.” Spiegel reports on investigations into links to the Azerbaijani intelligence service. The Federal Prosecutor’s Office names no country; there is no evidence.
“The CDU arranged Rausch’s election with the AfD.” The AfD claims a deal for Siegmund’s later election. The vote was secret; all that is documented is that there were more votes than the AfD and BSW have seats.
“MI6 is ending its cooperation with the BND.” FAZ and Handelsblatt report only that MI6 is reviewing confidential information for possible leaks. There is no mention of an end to cooperation.
Glossary · dotted words — economics, law, security and science terms explained in the context of the story. The list grows every day.
INSIDEDay two after the AfD vote in Magdeburg: Merz condemns the votes for Rausch but warns against “hasty conclusions”Politics · Saxony-AnhaltFormer BND chief Hanning is placed in pretrial detention. Britain’s MI6 is reportedly checking what may have leaked from the BNDSecurity · JusticeThree years after October 7: Merz pledges support to Israel, hundreds commemorate the victims in BerlinForeign policy · RemembranceThe DAX loses 1.35 percent to 25,104 points. Rising yields and France’s bond market weigh on pricesMarkets · CurrenciesCoalition committee meets this evening: pensions, taxes and the 2027 budget are on the table, the SPD expects no decisionsDomestic politics