The warming trend observed in permafrost over the last two decades continued in 2019-2020, the warmest hydrological year on record in Switzerland, the monitoring network PERMOS said on Thursday. Scientists have now observed an increase in permafrost...

Nicola Ruffo is the new director of SWISS FILMS, the national film promotion agency tasked with boosting the visibility of Swiss movies abroad. “The cinematic landscape is in transition. In times of change, I am very happy to give, together with m...

Health authorities have called for an extra effort from the Swiss population to keep Covid-19 infections as low as possible in the next few months. “We’re approaching the finishing line,” said Martin Ackermann, president of the government’s ...

The Swiss response to the Covid-19 pandemic has received good marks from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). However, it said there was still work to be done, in addition to addressing pensions, the environment and relations with the European Unio...

A former representative for Switzerland-based commodities giant Gunvor has pleaded guilty to helping channel more than $22 million (CHF20.4 million) in bribes to high-level officials in Ecuador in exchange for lucrative contracts with the state-run o...

Switzerland has been criticised by human rights organisation Amnesty International for showing too little solidarity with poorer countries, for adopting “draconian” anti-terrorism laws and for its rights-limiting response to Covid-19. “Between...

Swiss theologian Hans Küng, one of the most outspoken critics of the Roman Catholic church, has died aged 93. Küng passed away in the German town of Tübingen, where he had lived and lectured since the 1960s, his Global Ethic Foundation announced ...

A total of 8,667,100 people lived in Switzerland at the end of 2020 – an increase of 61,100 or 0.7% on the previous year. Although there were 8,200 (12.1%) more deaths than the year before and fewer births, net migration caused the population to i...

The Switzerland-Palestine Society has submitted a petition in favour of the former head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees. The letter calls on the government to restore the public reputation of Pierre Krähenbühl. A delegation from the Swit...

The quantity of natural uranium that Switzerland stocks abroad passed the one-million-kilogram mark in 2020. The bounty is double the weight recorded in 2019 – mainly as a result of acquisition, as well as processing of uranium into useable fuel ...

In response to the coronavirus pandemic and the riots in St Gallen, the youth branches of five Swiss political parties are calling on the government to provide better prospects. On Monday they published an open letter [pictured below] demanding that...

Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis is visiting three Middle Eastern countries this week as part of a national strategy to promote stability in the region. This was the first time since 1979 that a Swiss cabinet minister had visited Iraq. Cassis m...

Lakes, the source of 20% of global natural methane emissions, could also be the source of much of the world’s energy, if treated correctly, Swiss researchers have argued. In a paper published this week, researchers from Basel and Zurich suggest a ...

As of this week, Switzerland can no longer import Covid vaccines from the European Union (EU) without a special license. Officials in Bern have asked to be granted an exception to the stricter conditions. According to the SonntagsBlick newspaper, at...

Switzerland, along with its European neighbours, could develop an industrial strategy to reduce its dependence on other markets for essential medical goods, President Guy Parmelin has said. “The pandemic has shown us that we are very dependent, ma...

Border checks over the past two months have found around 700 people entering Switzerland without the necessary negative Covid-19 test, the customs administration has confirmed. According to figures published in the Schweiz am Wochenende newspaper on...

Groups of young people attacked police on Friday night in the eastern Swiss city of St Gallen. A petrol bomb, rubber bullets, and tear gas were used, and 21 people were questioned. The unrest came a week after similar violence when police broke up a...

Protecting Swiss glaciers with white tarpaulins reduces ice and snow melt by around 60%, a new study shows. But this method cannot be applied on a large scale for reasons of cost. Just 0.02% of the country’s total glacier area is currently covered...

Starting Saturday, the Swiss will be able to light a candle on the Internet and “flood the map” of the country “with a sea of lights”, in a show of solidarity being organised by Swiss churches. The virtual candlelight vigil is a way for peop...

Switzerland has followed the United States, the European Union and Britain in sanctioning 11 people considered responsible for the coup in Myanmar. This decision comes two months after the military junta overthrew the government. Since then, those w...

Economics Minister Guy Parmelin and the Director-General of the International Labour Organization (ILO), Guy Ryder, have concluded an agreement on development cooperation. Parmelin, who holds the rotating Swiss presidency this year, also announced t...

US President Joe Biden’s major infrastructure plan is raising high hopes for Swiss firms in the construction and building industry. Although first contracts are expected to go to local firms, experts believe Swiss firms could score opportunities th...

Paris-based studio Bruther, founded by Stéphanie Bru and Alexandre Theriot, has won the seventh edition of the Swiss Architectural Award. “The three works presented by Bruther deal, with great coherence and quality, with the theme of the peripher...

The pollen season is starting earlier and is growing more intense every year as a result of rising temperatures, according to a major study. The Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH) in collaboration with the Federal Office of Meteo...

Switzerland has signed a contract to buy the Skyview airspace surveillance and mission control system from the French supplier Thales. As part of the army’s Air 2030 procurement programme, the Swiss air force’s existing airspace surveillance and...

Major industry associations have joined forces with public agencies to combat free-riders who abuse the “Swiss brand” abroad. The association for Swissness enforcement is intended to foster coordinated action against the wrongful use abroad of S...

The Swiss government has agreed to extend financial aid to people working in the culture sector. Applicants, including self-employed artists with frequently changing and limited work contracts, will be able to receive funds for loss of earnings from...

Twice as many people were caught up in Swiss avalanches last winter, which resulted in a higher rate of deaths than in previous years. By March 30, 27 avalanche fatalities had been recorded among 215 incidents of people being swept away. The average...

Gender equality is improving in Switzerland, according to a World Economic Forum (WEF) global ranking that saw the Alpine state move back into the top ten of best performing countries. Switzerland jumped eight places to number ten in the latest edit...

An intruder gained entry to the Swiss embassy in Washington trying to access the nearby ambassador’s residence. The Swiss foreign ministry on Tuesday confirmed news reports about the incident. The ministry said the man was denied entry on Monda...