Switzerland

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Swiss Pardon Europe's Last Executed Witch

Housemaid accused of casting spells was beheaded in 1782

(Newser) - It's 226 years too late to restore her head to her body but the Swiss have decided to restore the good name of convicted witch Anna Goeldi, the Independent reports. Goeldi, the last person in Europe to be executed for witchcraft, was tortured and killed after being accused of casting...

Qaddafi Cheesed at Swiss Over Son's Arrest

Diplomats, businesses under fire in Libya after Hannibal detained for Geneva assault

(Newser) - Libyan leader Muammar Qaddafi is waging a diplomatic, business and public-relations offensive against Switzerland, the Times of London reports, in response to the July 15 arrest of his son Hannibal in the assault of a Geneva hotel worker. Qaddafi has closed Swiss offices and expelled diplomats, apparently organizing a boisterous...

Swiss Cow Fights Are No Bull
 Swiss Cow Fights Are No Bull 
Jun 7, 2008 7:11 AM CDT

Swiss Cow Fights Are No Bull

Beefy battles are a big spectator sport in the Swiss Alps

(Newser) - In Spain, the bulls do the fighting, but the boot is on the other hoof in the Swiss Alps, Der Spiegel reports. The tough local breed of alpine cows naturally battle among themselves to become queen of the herd, and for centuries, farmers have organized cow fight tournaments. Nowadays, the...

Art Basel: Brisk Sales, but No Frenzy

Collectors buy, but enthusiasm is low at Swiss art fair

(Newser) - Art Basel, the world's most prestigious (and most expensive) art fair, opened Tuesday in Switzerland amid grumbles that works for sale were of middling quality and overpriced. "Now there are just too many art fairs," said a director of PaceWildenstein, one of New York's biggest galleries. As the...

US Victims of Attacks in Israel Sue Swiss Bank

UBS gave Iran money it knew would support terrorism, suit says

(Newser) - American victims of attacks in Israel are suing Switzerland's biggest bank for helping fund militants by providing money to Iran, Reuters reports. The lawsuit says UBS AG gave loans to Iran even though it supports Hezbollah, Hamas, and Islamic Jihad. The plaintiffs seek $500 million in damages for some 50...

Swiss Face French-Fry Shortage
 Swiss Face French-Fry Shortage 
May 9, 2008 3:07 AM CDT

Swiss Face French-Fry Shortage

Snack crisis threatened soccer tourney

(Newser) - Switzerland faces a potato shortage just weeks before hundreds of thousands of famished European soccer fans descend on the country expecting to snack on French fries. The nation, which is co-hosting the upcoming international soccer tournament Euro 2008, is mashing the pending crisis by lifting trade barriers to import 5,...

Swiss Bank Drops Wikileaks Lawsuit
Swiss Bank Drops Wikileaks Lawsuit
Mar 6, 2008 3:32 PM CST

Swiss Bank Drops Wikileaks Lawsuit

Case of posted documents raised free-speech issues

(Newser) - The Swiss bank that sued over private documents posted on Wikileaks.org has withdrawn the motion, the AP reports. Bank Julius Baer did not say why it pulled the case, but the cease-fire brings an end to a case that raised First Amendment questions when a judge ordered the site...

Musharraf Pushes Swiss to Prosecute Foe

Alleges Bhutto widower stashed $55M in Swiss bank account

(Newser) - As the battle to control Pakistan heats up, President Pervez Musharraf's lawyers have asked the Swiss government to prosecute Asif Ali Zardari over decade-old corruption charges. Zardari, the widower of Benazir Bhutto and leader of the victorious Pakistan People's Party, is charged with hiding $55 million in kickbacks in a...

Stolen Art Found in Parking Lot
Stolen Art Found in Parking Lot
Feb 19, 2008 6:55 AM CST

Stolen Art Found in Parking Lot

4 paintings snatched from Swiss museum recovered

(Newser) - The four 19th-century paintings stolen from a Swiss museum have reportedly been found in an unlocked car parked outside a Zurich psychiatric hospital. Although police have not yet confirmed the find, Swiss media are reporting that the $168 million worth of loot—one work each by Cézanne, Degas, Monet,...

Thieves Snag 2 Picassos
Thieves Snag 2 Picassos
Feb 8, 2008 2:28 PM CST

Thieves Snag 2 Picassos

German museum's paintings stolen from exhibition near Zurich

(Newser) - Thieves stole two Picasso paintings that belong to a German museum from a Swiss art gallery where they had been on display, the Guardian reports. The pilfered works, Tete de Cheval and Verre et Pichet, were on loan from the Sprengel Museum. Combined, they're worth $4.5 million, AFP reports.

Davos Summit: a Moral Sham?
Davos Summit: a Moral Sham?
OPINION
Jan 25, 2008 9:28 PM CST

Davos Summit: a Moral Sham?

Moguls shed guilt and seek bailout money, but do pay homage to ideas: Guardian

(Newser) - The Davos summit, an annual retreat “where money comes to find morality and politics comes to meet money,” is the capital of capitalism—yet the world's economic crisis is only spoken of in whispers there, writes Julian Glover in the Guardian. Instead, moguls press the flesh with Middle...

Power Brokers Return to Davos
Power Brokers Return to Davos
Jan 22, 2008 12:00 PM CST

Power Brokers Return to Davos

World Economic Forum slights Hollywood, gets back to business

(Newser) - The Swiss ski resort of Davos turns into a giant think tank tomorrow as politicians, financiers, and other masters of the universe gather for the World Economic Forum. This year's summit will eschew some of the Hollywood glamor of sessions past, the Independent reports: Emma Thompson will put in an...

Inside the Siemens Bribery Scandal
Inside the Siemens Bribery Scandal
Dec 28, 2007 8:40 AM CST

Inside the Siemens Bribery Scandal

How international prosecutors dug up suspicious payments

(Newser) - In one of the world's largest corporate bribery scandals in recent years, German industrial giant Siemens allegedly channeled millions of euros in bribes to customers in Nigeria, Russia, Libya, and other countries to win infrastructure contracts. The Wall Street Journal traces the unearthing of the Siemens case across four years...

eBay Halts Sale of Iraqi Treasure
eBay Halts Sale of Iraqi Treasure
Dec 18, 2007 4:24 PM CST

eBay Halts Sale of Iraqi Treasure

Smuggled 4,000-year-old tablet was taken down minutes before auction closed

(Newser) - eBay called off the auction of a 4,000-year-old clay tablet last week just minutes before it closed because an expert suspected the artifact had been smuggled out of Iraq, the Guardian reports. A German archaeologist alerted authorities after spotting the tablet, a business-card-size object covered in distinctive cuneiform script,...

Swiss in Turmoil as Power Sharing Collapses

Rift after 50 years of consensus rule

(Newser) - After 49 years, Switzerland’s cozy form of consensus government collapsed today, when the right-wing People’s Party went into opposition, angered by the ejection of one of its members from the cabinet. “You have forced us to go into opposition, destroyed our treasured system of government and sacrificed...

Swiss MPs Eject Populist Leader
Swiss MPs Eject Populist Leader
Dec 12, 2007 10:59 AM CST

Swiss MPs Eject Populist Leader

Surprise move blocks Blocher from cabinet post

(Newser) - Cristoph Blocher, the controversial head of Switzerland's People's Party, has been ejected from cabinet in an unexpected move that could end 50 years of consensus politics. The populist leader was slated for reelection as justice minister, Bloomberg reports, but a surprise deal by the three other parties voted in another...

Euro 2008 Draw Unveiled
Euro 2008 Draw Unveiled
Dec 2, 2007 7:57 PM CST

Euro 2008 Draw Unveiled

Italy, France and Holland end up in "Group of Death"

(Newser) - World Cup finalists Italy and France will meet again: this time in Group C, the "Group of Death" of the Euro 2008 soccer championship. For Romania, it could be called "unluck of the draw" as it was selected for that group today along with another powerful squad, Holland,...

New Swiss Ad: Come Here and Suffer
New Swiss Ad: Come Here
and Suffer
Nov 29, 2007 8:10 AM CST

New Swiss Ad: Come Here and Suffer

Xenophobic TV spots airing in Africa portray destitute immigrants

(Newser) - While most countries promote tourism or business opportunities, new Swiss TV spots airing in Nigeria and Cameroon make the nation look blatantly unfriendly, writes the Independent. The ads roll up the red carpet by depicting a destitute African immigrant begging, being chased by police, living under a bridge, and calling...

Rich Nations Break Climate Vow to Poor

$1.2B pledge to developing countries is mostly forgotten

(Newser) - Several of the world's richest nations have forgotten about a $1.2 billion pledge to help developed countries cope with climate change, the Guardian reports. The group has doled out less than $185 million so far to help them plan for global warming, defend against floods, and boost conservation. "...

Hewlett-Packard Nixes BEA Buy
Hewlett-Packard Nixes BEA Buy
Nov 21, 2007 12:48 PM CST

Hewlett-Packard Nixes BEA Buy

ITer says it's best to remain neutral between software companies

(Newser) - “We are the Switzerland of these heterogenous environments,” a Hewlett-Packard exec said by way of explaining why his company is not interested in acquiring BEA, after BEA rejected an offer from Oracle as too low. HP is a partner of BEA’s, the company's software chief said, but...

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