Benjamin Bathke

What if a male German national who acknowledges the paternity of a foreigner's child to secure the mother's residence is not actually the real father? We explain the scope of so-called sham paternities, what Germany's new law to prevent such fraud entails and what it could mean for binational families now the law is enacted.

The bodies of 11 people, believed to be migrants, have been washed ashore from last week's shipwreck off Libya, bringing the known death toll to at least 26. Separately, Libya's eastern government has reportedly banned entry of nationals from four eastern African countries.

To increase the rate of deportations to Afghanistan, Germany has reportedly agreed to accept more diplomats representing the Islamist Taliban. In Brussels, meanwhile, the EU hosted Taliban officials for the first time on Tuesday.

He's one of the breakout stars of the World Cup: Deniz Undav, the first German international with Kurdish and Yazidi roots. After three goals in two games, Undav doesn't only have supporters of the German national team believing in the next title, he has also become a role model for many Kurds and Yazidis in Germany and beyond.

The Spanish Civil Guard has reportedly broken up a suspected migrant smuggling ring in Ceuta, arresting six people. The Spanish enclave has seen a sharp increase in irregular arrivals since the beginning of the year.

Even while arrivals to European countries keep decreasing, the number of people who have died trying to reach Europe has been on the rise this year, new data by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) shows. Another trend is an uptick in so-called invisible deaths.

Since July 1, a new facility in the German state of Saxony is to house asylum seekers obliged to leave Germany due to another EU country being responsible for them.

Latvia is experiencing an increase in irregular border crossings from Belarus, the country's border guard chief has said. The Belarus route first emerged almost five years ago.

A total of 13,500 asylum seekers and documented migrants with permission to work were hired by large companies in the Netherlands last year, according to media reports. A new study moreover shows that more and more migrants are finding work across the EU.

Despite ongoing budget cuts to integration initiatives, Germany is prioritizing access for migrants with labor market prospects. The aim is to ensure they can continue essential language training starting August 1.