Today in Switzerland: A roundup of the latest news on Wednesday
Calls for the teen who stabbed a Jewish man in Zurich to be stripped of his Swiss passport; air travel to become cheaper this summer; and more news in our roundup on Wednesday.
Zurich official wants to revoke the citizenship of teen stabber
The 15-year old radicalised teenager who stabbed a Jewish man in Zurich on Saturday is a dual Tunisian-Swiss citizen. In a video posted online, he claimed allegiance to the Islamic State.
Now Zurich security chief Mario Fehr is calling for the teen’s Swiss citizenship to be revoked.
“There is no place for terrorists in Switzerland,” he said.
It is possible to strip a dual national of their Swiss citizenship if their acts are “significantly detrimental” to Switzerland’s security.
In such a case, deportation of the teen would be an option, especially as there is a treaty to this effect between Switzerland and Tunisia, Fehr said.
READ ALSO: Can Swiss citizenship be revoked - and can you get it back?
Disabled people are left out of the 13th pension pay
When the Swiss voted in favour of the 13th pension payout for retirees on Sunday, “we forgot to include people who receive disability pensions,” a number of MPs said, adding that this omission “is an injustice” as it “creates unequal treatment.”
As social insurance, disability (AI) compensates for disadvantages suffered in professional life; a 13th monthly pension “would therefore be justified," according to deputy Christian Lohr.
As a result, he and other MPs have filed a parliamentary motion to include this group of people in the 13th pension law.
Air travel from Switzerland could become cheaper this summer
The prices of airline tickets have soared in the past few years, but this upward trend may now be over.
This is a finding of a price analysis on the travel site Kayak.
It shows that prices for a number of flights from Swiss airports between the beginning of May and the end of September are lower than they were for the same destinations in 2023.
Switzerland, as it was seen from abroad in 2023
The Federal Council released a report on Tuesday outlining how Swiss events were perceived in other countries last year.
"Against an international backdrop of ongoing geopolitical crises and tensions, two topics dominated foreign media coverage of Switzerland in 2023," the government noted.
The collapse of Credit Suisse and its takeover by UBS, for instance, were in the media spotlight worldwide.
Foreign media argued that the demise of Credit Suisse meant serious reputational damage for the entire Swiss financial centre, the report said.
“However, the actions of the Swiss authorities in handling the crisis were assessed in a more nuanced manner. The volume of reporting levelled off significantly after a short time."
The other topic which regularly dominated foreign media coverage was Switzerland's position and actions regarding the war in Ukraine.
“The main areas covered were the prevention of arms transfers, neutrality, sanctions against Russia, and Switzerland's solidarity and reliability – often with a rather critical tone."
If you have any questions about life in Switzerland, ideas for articles or news tips for The Local, please get in touch with us at [email protected]
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Zurich official wants to revoke the citizenship of teen stabber
The 15-year old radicalised teenager who stabbed a Jewish man in Zurich on Saturday is a dual Tunisian-Swiss citizen. In a video posted online, he claimed allegiance to the Islamic State.
Now Zurich security chief Mario Fehr is calling for the teen’s Swiss citizenship to be revoked.
“There is no place for terrorists in Switzerland,” he said.
It is possible to strip a dual national of their Swiss citizenship if their acts are “significantly detrimental” to Switzerland’s security.
In such a case, deportation of the teen would be an option, especially as there is a treaty to this effect between Switzerland and Tunisia, Fehr said.
READ ALSO: Can Swiss citizenship be revoked - and can you get it back?
Disabled people are left out of the 13th pension pay
When the Swiss voted in favour of the 13th pension payout for retirees on Sunday, “we forgot to include people who receive disability pensions,” a number of MPs said, adding that this omission “is an injustice” as it “creates unequal treatment.”
As social insurance, disability (AI) compensates for disadvantages suffered in professional life; a 13th monthly pension “would therefore be justified," according to deputy Christian Lohr.
As a result, he and other MPs have filed a parliamentary motion to include this group of people in the 13th pension law.
Air travel from Switzerland could become cheaper this summer
The prices of airline tickets have soared in the past few years, but this upward trend may now be over.
This is a finding of a price analysis on the travel site Kayak.
It shows that prices for a number of flights from Swiss airports between the beginning of May and the end of September are lower than they were for the same destinations in 2023.
Switzerland, as it was seen from abroad in 2023
The Federal Council released a report on Tuesday outlining how Swiss events were perceived in other countries last year.
"Against an international backdrop of ongoing geopolitical crises and tensions, two topics dominated foreign media coverage of Switzerland in 2023," the government noted.
The collapse of Credit Suisse and its takeover by UBS, for instance, were in the media spotlight worldwide.
Foreign media argued that the demise of Credit Suisse meant serious reputational damage for the entire Swiss financial centre, the report said.
“However, the actions of the Swiss authorities in handling the crisis were assessed in a more nuanced manner. The volume of reporting levelled off significantly after a short time."
The other topic which regularly dominated foreign media coverage was Switzerland's position and actions regarding the war in Ukraine.
“The main areas covered were the prevention of arms transfers, neutrality, sanctions against Russia, and Switzerland's solidarity and reliability – often with a rather critical tone."
If you have any questions about life in Switzerland, ideas for articles or news tips for The Local, please get in touch with us at [email protected]
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