Hamburg - Three men suspected of smuggling illegal immigrants into Germany have appeared in court following their arrest in a series of police raids, justice officials said Wednesday.

The trio was detained in Hamburg on Tuesday during searches carried out in four towns and cities. Documents, computers and 30,000 euros (39,000 dollars) in cash were also seized.

The men face charges of smuggling people from Iran, Afghanistan and Kosovo into Germany for payment.

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.

Hamburg  - Fans of online role-playing games will have even more worlds to explore this autumn when game publishers release expanded versions the most popular titles.

World of Warcraft, Lord of the Rings Online and Everquest are all set to release expansion packs this autumn. The Chronicles of Spellborn marks the introduction of at least one brand new online world. And for players who want to stay offline, there will be an apocalyptic world to explore in Fallout 3. If you just want to race a car, there's Need for Speed - Undercover.

Ham