Berlin

Berlin - Two days after a man wrenched the wax head off an effigy of Adolf Hitler, operators of a Berlin tourist attraction said Monday they would repair the waxwork and put it back on display.

A 41-year-old rest-home orderly wrenched the head off the figure on Saturday after he had been egged on by drinking mates in a bar.

Madame Tussaud's, a British company, defended its decision to persist with the display against widespread criticism from Germans, saying, "Hitler represents a decisive part of Berlin's history which we can't just pretend did not happen."

Berlin  - A 24-hour strike by pilots disrupted traffic Monday at two Lufthansa subsidiaries, causing the cancellation of hundreds of flights to and from German airports, according to Lufthansa.

Berlin - German industrial production fell sharply in May, data released Monday showed, signalling that the upswing in Europe's biggest economy could be coming to an end.

The Ministry of Economics and Technology said output slipped by a price-and-seasonally adjusted 2.4 per cent in May after falling by 0.2 per cent in April. Production dropped by a downwardly revised 0.8 per cent in March.

Adding to evidence that the German economy could be heading for a slowdown as the year unfolds, data released last week showed German factory orders falling for the sixth consequence month in May.

Berlin - Germany sharply condemned on Monday the suicide bombing outside the Indian embassy in Kabul, saying the terrorists were trying to obstruct good government and democracy in Afghanistan.

Hamburg  - Most customers find t