According to an analysis by the responsible Federal Agency for Final Storage, there are small areas, especially in the north-west of Germany, but also in the east and in Bavaria, whose geology is generally suitable for the final disposal of nuclear waste. The search was for rock salt, clay or crystal rock. Such geological formations can reliably shield radiation. At the same time, the nuclear waste must be able to be stored there safely for around a million years, at a depth of at least 300 meters.
Nuclear waste is currently stored in 16 interim storage facilities in Germany. “For reasons of countering terrorism, this cannot be a permanent solution,” says my SPIEGEL colleague Christoph Seidler. Germany needs a final storage facility. "And Bavaria must not duck the question of where this will be best." Christoph is rightly outraged that Bavaria's Prime Minister Markus Söder is loudly promoting nuclear power and is recently even planning a pilot project with mini-reactors, but wants to ward off a final nuclear waste storage facility in Bavaria. “You shouldn’t let Söder get away with this.”
The Israeli Election Commission reported a voter turnout of 31.5 percent at twelve o'clock local time, the highest midday figure since the 1970s. According to media reports, 70,000 Israelis traveled from abroad to cast their votes there.
According to surveys, a neck-and-neck race is emerging. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu relied on escalation and scaremongering in the final stretch of the election campaign, including using AI-generated images of nuclear explosions in Tel Aviv. His main challenger is former military chief Gadi Eisenkot. After voting, he said: "There is a wind of change blowing in Israel."
The prosecution accuses the teacher of not only cheating on her certificate of incapacity for work. She is also said to have had her suitability for diving certified by a non-existent doctor. In total, the alleged submersion specialist may have wrongly received payments amounting to around a quarter of a million euros during the period of the crime.
The woman has not yet commented on the allegations. The presumption of innocence applies. Because of the statute of limitations, the officer can only be prosecuted for some of her alleged crimes, which is somewhat unsatisfactory, says my colleague Swantje Unterberg. “But such a long sick leave with full pay is also the absolute exception.”
Green for the Chancellor: There is now an orchid in Singapore that bears the name “Vanda Friedrich Merz”. The flower has numerous purple-brown flowers and rich green leaves. It was given his name during the German head of government's inaugural visit to Singapore. It was “a great honor” for him, said Merz at the short christening ceremony in the parliament building. The orchid is the country's national plant. It is traditional for high-ranking guests to be honored there by having newly grown orchids named after them. This was also the case with Angela Merkel in 2011 (“Dendrobium Angela Merkel”) and with Olaf Scholz in 2022 (“Renanthera Olaf Scholz”).
If you're one of those people who consider the McRib to be the pinnacle of American food engineers' creation, tonight may be your last chance to eat one. McDonald's is removing it from its program starting tomorrow. It is the “most German burger that ever existed,” writes my colleague Matern von Boeselager in his obituary.
The McRib is made from loose pork that has been pressed into rib shapes and drenched in sugary barbecue sauce. Add a few pieces of onion and cucumber on top - Markus Söder's favorite burger is ready. Bavaria's Prime Minister said two years ago that he prefers to eat a McRib or Big Mac at McDonald's. At the time, people on French television laughed at the rude Germans and their top “gastro-populist.”
If you are also a foodie, you might want to try this French-inspired burger recipe: mushroom burger with rotisserie crème fraîche and melted Comté cheese.
Wish you a nice evening
Yours, Anna Clauss, author of the editor-in-chief
