Archives

Swiss Info

Mon, 19 Sep 2022 06:57:00 GMT
Swiss president expresses 'deepest sympathies' at passing of the Queen
Swiss President Ignazio Cassis is in London for the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II on Monday. On Sunday he signed the book of condolences for the late monarch, who died on September 8. Cassis, accompanied by his wife Paola, signed the book of condole...

Sun, 18 Sep 2022 12:55:00 GMT
Swiss shun gyms despite absence of pandemic-related restrictions
Covid-related restrictions may be long gone but the Swiss are not rushing back to the gym. Older clients now tend to avoid fitness centers while young people have discovered other types of activities. The Swiss Federation of Health and Fitness Cente...

Sun, 18 Sep 2022 10:34:28 GMT
Russian tourists flock to Switzerland amid war in Ukraine
Russia is at war, but that doesn't stop its citizens from travelling, the NZZ am Sonntag reported on Sunday. Swiss hotels registered 61,214 overnight stays by Russian tourists as of the end of July, according to market data from the organisation Swi...

Sun, 18 Sep 2022 10:20:42 GMT
Swiss electricity data reaches government with major delays
The Swiss government lacks up-to-date information on national electricity production and consumption, according to the Swiss Federal Office of Energy. This is due to the lack of digitalisation of the electricity companies. The lack of information was...

Sat, 17 Sep 2022 14:24:18 GMT
Ukraine: Switzerland calls for probe over Izyum mass graves
Switzerland says it is deeply disturbed by fresh reports of mass graves in Izyum, a territory in east Ukraine that was until recently occupied by Russian forces. The Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs called for "an independent and thorough...

Sat, 17 Sep 2022 09:16:57 GMT
Switzerland and the US plan annual talks
Switzerland and the United States want to continue their strategic partnership in the form of an annual dialogue, according to memorandum of understanding signed to this effect in Washington on Friday. This declaration of intent represents a "signif...

Fri, 16 Sep 2022 14:50:00 GMT
Switzerland sets out revised C02 law plan
Following the rejection of a proposed climate law last year, the Swiss government has mapped out new changes to the legislation. The new C02 law strips out unpopular tax and levies that saw the downfall of the last proposal at the ballot box. The n...

Fri, 16 Sep 2022 12:23:38 GMT
Swiss regulator gives green light to first drug to prevent Covid-19
Swissmedic has issued a temporary marketing authorisation for AstraZeneca’s drug Evusheld, making it the first Covid-19 prophylaxis drug approved by the Swiss medical regulator. This authorisation means that the drug, which is administered as an i...

Fri, 16 Sep 2022 10:48:00 GMT
Billions of francs approved to save Switzerland’s glaciers
A nationwide vote on banning fossil fuels in Switzerland has been averted after parliament agreed on a CHF3.2 billion ($3.3 billion) climate action package. Supporters of the ‘Glacier Initiative’ say the new measures go some way to satisfying th...

Fri, 16 Sep 2022 10:07:41 GMT
Switzerland ends fast-track visas for Russian nationals
The Swiss government decided on Friday to stop issuing facilitated visas for Russian nationals. This brings Swiss visa rules in line with the European Union. At its meeting on September 16, the Federal Council (executive body) agreed to suspend comp...

Thu, 15 Sep 2022 13:20:00 GMT
Switzerland pledges CHF3 million to help Pakistan after floods
Switzerland is allocating CHF3 million ($3.1 million) to help Pakistan confront one of the worst natural disasters in its history. This in response to an appeal for international aid from the Pakistani authorities, as almost a third of the country ha...

Thu, 15 Sep 2022 13:08:43 GMT
Russian culture and language lessons scrapped over Z-symbol
A Russian cultural association lost permission to teach in Switzerland after one of its members displayed the controversial Z-symbol at an Alpine wrestling festival. The Z-symbol is painted on Moscow’s military vehicles in Ukraine and is considered...

Thu, 15 Sep 2022 12:02:24 GMT
Swiss Federal Court: No jail-time for terror group affiliate
Switzerland's Federal Supreme Court has ruled that an Iraqi convicted only of association with al-Qaeda and the Islamic State groups will not be imprisoned. The decision came in response to an appeal by the attorney general. In July 2021, the Federa...

Thu, 15 Sep 2022 11:39:18 GMT
Swiss parliament approves purchase of F-35 jets from US
Switzerland’s House of Representatives has approved the purchase of new F-35 fighter jets from the United States. The decision clears the path for Bern to sign the purchase contract, despite a pending initiative on the issue of Swiss fighter jets. ...

Thu, 15 Sep 2022 10:34:38 GMT
Basel museums to review origins of art collections
Five museums in Switzerland's art hub of Basel plan to examine the origins of objects in their collections amid efforts across Europe to identify the rightful owners of cultural assets. On Thursday, the Basel City cantonal government announced that ...

Thu, 15 Sep 2022 09:37:11 GMT
FIFA: Swiss want justice for foreign workers in Qatar
Swiss citizens want FIFA to compensate foreign workers whose human rights were violated during preparations for the World Cup to be hosted by Qatar in late 2022, according to a poll commissioned by Amnesty International. The Zurich-based world footba...

Thu, 15 Sep 2022 08:26:13 GMT
Fedpol investigates fake government energy poster campaign
The Swiss Federal Office of Police (Fedpol) has launched an investigation into a fake government poster campaign encouraging people to report their neighbours if they heat their homes above a certain temperature. Images of the fake posters are believ...

Thu, 15 Sep 2022 07:13:22 GMT
Competition authorities probe Novartis over suspected patent abuse
The Swiss competition commission (COMCO) has opened an investigation into suspected unlawful use of a patent to reduce competitive pressure by Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis. The probe, which is in collaboration with the European Commission, is...

Wed, 14 Sep 2022 17:14:00 GMT
Legal complaints issued after hot coal stunt backfires
Office workers who were scorched by hot coals during a team bonding exercise are suing the organisers of the event for criminal negligence. Twenty five people were treated for burns at the corporate get-together on the shores of Lake Zurich in June....

Wed, 14 Sep 2022 16:43:00 GMT
Swiss foundation to manage frozen Afghanistan funds
Switzerland will have a seat on a foundation that has been set up in Geneva to manage CHF3.5 billion ($3.66 billion) in Afghanistan central bank funds that were frozen as the Taliban took control of the country. The board of trustees will be complet...

Wed, 14 Sep 2022 14:35:00 GMT
Printed telephone directory gives way to digital age
Private phone numbers in Switzerland will only be listed on digital platforms from next year as the iconic printed telephone directory will be discontinued, ending 142 years of existence. The first Swiss ‘White Pages’ telephone directory was pri...

Wed, 14 Sep 2022 13:43:00 GMT
Czech money launderers see sentences cut for large scale fraud
Two businessmen who were convicted in 2013 for large scale money laundering offences have had their sentences reduced by a Swiss court. The Czech citizens were jailed and fined for their part in the Czech Mostecka Uhelna Spolecnost (MUS) coal compan...

Wed, 14 Sep 2022 13:06:00 GMT
Zurich looted art probe “hapless”, says Swiss expert
A Swiss art expert has slammed the investigation of suspected Nazi looted artworks at a collection in Zurich as “unprofessional” and “hapless”. Lawyer Marcel Brülhart, who is on the board of the Bern Museum of Fine Arts foundation, made his...

Wed, 14 Sep 2022 09:42:00 GMT
Border strip search violated woman’s rights, Swiss court rules
Swiss border police over-stepped their authority in subjecting a woman to an intimate strip search, according to a landmark court ruling that defends personal dignity. The complainant, aged 36 at the time, was forced to remove clothing and endure a ...

Wed, 14 Sep 2022 09:12:00 GMT
Swiss-born NASA science chief Zurbuchen to step down
Thomas Zurbuchen, a Swiss-American astrophysicist, says he will quit as science chief of the United States space agency (NASA) at the end of this year. He has served as head of the science mission directorate of the National Aeronautics and Space Ag...

Wed, 14 Sep 2022 07:44:00 GMT
Top Swiss banker denies image problem for Swiss financial institutes
The president of the Swiss Bankers Association, Marcel Rohner, has warned of the negative impact of the high level of debt worldwide. “The debt level is gigantic. This is a very worrying situation,” is quoted in the Wednesday edition of the Blic...

Tue, 13 Sep 2022 14:33:00 GMT
Egg cell donation approved by Swiss parliament
Both chambers of parliament have cleared the way for infertile women to receive egg cell donations in Switzerland. On Tuesday, the Senate voted through a motion to enable the fertility treatment, following a similar vote by the House of Representati...

Tue, 13 Sep 2022 13:50:00 GMT
Eritrea seizes control of Swiss-funded vocational centre
The Eritrean government has taken control of a vocational education centre that was run by an Italian Catholic order and sponsored by Swiss development funds. Swiss public broadcaster SRF reports that the facility in Dekemhare was nationalised as pa...

Tue, 13 Sep 2022 12:43:00 GMT
Swiss parliament approves bailout for electricity providers
Companies that produce Switzerland’s electricity will have access to CHF10 billion ($10.5 billion) in emergency state credit should they run into financial difficulty in the coming months. The measure was approved by the House of Representatives o...

Tue, 13 Sep 2022 12:03:00 GMT
Swiss car importer pledges to end petrol vehicle sales
Switzerland’s largest car importer, AMAG, plans to sell purely electric powered vehicles from 2040 and is diversifying into solar systems and heat pumps. AMAG, which imports cars and sells them to dealerships, said on Tuesday that it will acquire ...



home