Cyberattack Disrupts Bremen Regional Administration, Linked to Russian Hackers

A Lufthansa flight from Frankfurt to Seville experienced a serious incident when the co-pilot fainted, leaving the aircraft without a pilot in command for approximately 10 minutes, according to a report by the German news agency dpa on May 17, 2025. The incident occurred on February 17, 2024, when the captain was in the restroom aboard the Airbus A321, which was carrying 199 passengers and six crew members. The aircraft was sustained in stable flight mode thanks to its active autopilot, while the cockpit voice recorder captured sounds indicative of a medical emergency. Efforts by the captain to enter the cockpit were unsuccessful, as he attempted the door access code multiple times. Eventually, he implemented an emergency code, prompting the door to unlock just before the co-pilot regained consciousness and opened it himself. Following the incident, the captain opted for an unplanned landing in Madrid, where the co-pilot received medical attention. A Lufthansa spokesperson confirmed awareness of the investigation by the Spanish accident investigation authority CIAIAC but did not disclose the findings from its internal safety investigation.

A 40-year-old German palliative care doctor has been charged with the murders of 15 patients, utilizing lethal drugs to allegedly end their lives, according to prosecutors in Berlin. The suspect, whose identity remains confidential due to German privacy laws, is accused of killing 12 women and three men from September 2021 to July 2024, a figure that authorities believe may increase as the investigation continues. Prosecutors assert that the doctor administered an anaesthetic and a muscle relaxant without the patients’ knowledge, resulting in respiratory arrest and rapid death. Additionally, he is alleged to have attempted to cover up the crimes by setting fire to the homes of several victims on five occasions. The charges highlight incidents including the simultaneous deaths of a 75-year-old man and a 76-year-old woman in July 2024, both under suspicious circumstances. The authorities are pursuing a "lifelong professional ban" and "preventative detention" for the doctor, who remains in custody as investigations into potentially more victims continue.

Authorities have dismantled a significant Darknet platform known as "Kidflix," which had facilitated the sharing of over 91,000 videos depicting child sexual abuse. According to the Bavarian State Criminal Police Office and the General Prosecutor's Office of Bamberg, the operation, coordinated by Europol, involved law enforcement from 38 countries and resulted in 79 arrests, including suspects aged 20 to 40. The investigation, which began in early 2022, revealed that the platform had nearly 1.8 million users, with 190,000 active at the time of the shutdown. Detective Guido Limmer described the crackdown as a "major blow" against child pornography, noting that many of the suspects had long histories of Darknet engagement. Authorities executed 96 raids in Germany across 13 states. They utilized specialized detection dogs to uncover evidence. While two children, including an 11-year-old from North Rhine-Westphalia, were identified from video evidence, the ultimate operator of the site remains unidentified, leaving investigators determined to pursue further leads.