Hamburg  - Bayer Leverkusen regrouped on Saturday to win 3-1 at Borussia Moenchengladbach to remain in touch with Bundesliga leaders TSG Hoffenheim and Bayern Munich.

Stefan Kiessling struck twice and fed Patrick Helmes for the other for Leverkusen, who are unbeaten against Moenchengladbach in 23 matches since a last defeat in 1994.

Leverkusen now have 31 points, moving into third place ahead of Hertha Berlin, who remain on 30 after losing 1-0 at beleaguered Schalke 04 thanks to a goal from from Gerald Asamoah. Hoffenheim and Munich lead the way with 34 points each after Munich won their table- topper 2-1 on Friday.

Munich - If al-Qaeda terrorists sell their stories for money, the income should be seized to benefit victims' families, according to a petition sent to Germany's parliament.

The news magazine Focus said Saturday the petition was in the name of the 52 members of the German Alliance on Capital Crimes, which represents relatives of victims.

They lost loved ones in the September 11, 2001 attacks in the United States and other Islamist attacks in Djerba and Bali, as well as in a 1975 attack in Stockholm by the far-left German terrorist group, the Red Army Faction.

Aachen, Germany - Andrea Riccardi, the Catholic layman who founded the Sant'Egidio Community in Rome, was picked Saturday as the winner of the prestigious Charlemagne Prize in Germany.

The civic prize, to be handed over next year in the western city of Aachen, honours his services to Europe.

Riccardi founded the community with other lay people at the parish church of Sant'Egidio in Rome 40 years ago.

In addition to prayer and charity, it has actively mediated between enemies in an effort to bring peace to nations such as Iraq.

Hamburg - The fairy tales are over for German football as national team manager Oliver Bierhoff urged hard work for future success in an interview published on Saturday.

"We must realize that the summer fairy tale, and the summer fairy tale 'reloaded' - if you want to give Euro 2008 this name - is over ... We must be down to earth again," Bierhoff told the Sueddeutsche Zeitung.

Frankfurt - Deutsche Boerse, the company that runs the Frankfurt Stock Exchange, is in merger talks with the New York Stock Exchange company, the news magazine Der Spiegel said Saturday.

NYSE Euronext of Wall Street is the world's biggest operator of financial markets.

A spokesman for Deutsche Boerse declined comment on the Spiegel report that its chief executive, Reto Francioni, presented a report last week to his executive board on a possible merger.

Hamburg  - The fantasy movie Inkheart, the first film based on the best-selling juvenile fiction series by author Cornelia Funke, premieres next week, one day before Funke turns 50.

Los Angeles based Funke is often described as a German equivalent of JK Rowling, the author of the Harry Potter series.

She has hooked huge numbers of adult readers worldwide, along with the children and teens who relish the magic worlds of her novels. The movie release seems likely to mark a change of gear for her from being just big to going mega.