TURKEY: A court has jailed 18 more Istanbul municipal officials on corruption charges tied to the case against the city’s Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu amid a continued crackdown on opposition politicians.

Mr Imamoglu, President Tayyip Erdogan’s main political rival, who leads him in polls, was jailed in March pending trial on corruption charges and unproven claims of that he had aided a terrorist group.

GERMANY: The Social Democrats have approved a deal to join a new coalition government, paving the way for the parliament to elect conservative leader Friedrich Merz as the country’s new chancellor.

The party of outgoing Chancellor Olaf Scholtz will join a coalition led by Mr Merz’s Christian Democratic Union and its Bavarian sister party the Christian Social Union, which won February’s election with 28.5 per cent of the vote.

FRANCE: The government is banning left and right-wing activist groups as it tries to portray itself as the guardian of democracy against extremism, prompting accusations of Islamophobia. 

Today, Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau confirmed plans for the dissolution of the Urgence Palestine group, a collective calling for an immediate ceasefire in Gaza, and anti-fascist movement Young Guard. 

SWEDEN: A teenager was arrested today following a fatal triple shooting at a hair salon in the city of Uppsala the day before, with police confirming that the suspect is under 18. 

Officers are investigating the possibility that the deaths are related to gang crime, Swedish media reported, with one victim reportedly known to the force, as the government pushes for new legislation to eavesdrop on children under 15 to address the wave of violence.