Hard Numbers: Berlin's anti-lockdown protests, global COVID cases top 25 million, divided Americans, Oslo bunker tragedy

38,000: At least 38,000 people — many from far-right groups — took to Berlin's streets this past weekend to demand an end to coronavirus restrictions. Some 300 people were arrested after German police said that "right-wing agitators" had thrown glass bottles at them.

25 million: Global coronavirus cases have now surpassed 25 million. India has emerged as the new epicenter, recording more than 78,000 new cases on August 29 alone, the highest single-day increase in the country to date.

77: A median of 77 percent of Americans say the country is more divided now than it was before the COVID-19 pandemic hit, according to a Pew study. That's compared to 46 percent who felt the same way in Australia, and 28 percent in Denmark.

200: An illegal party attended by at least 200 people in an Oslo bunker 70 meters underground ended in disaster this weekend after at least 25 people were taken to hospital suffering from carbon monoxide poisoning. Party organizers were trying to skirt coronavirus restrictions on public gatherings following a rise in cases in recent weeks. A single two-square-meter opening provided the bunker's only entrance and exit.

More from GZERO Media

France's President Emmanuel Macron speaks during a press conference following a summit for the "coalition of the willing" at the Elysee Palace in Paris on March 27, 2025.

LUDOVIC MARIN/Pool via REUTERS

At the third summit of the so-called “coalition of the willing” for Ukraine on Thursday, French President Emmanuel Macron proposed a multinational “reassurance force” to deter Russian aggression once a ceasefire is in place – and to engage if attacked.

A group demonstrators chant slogans together as they hold posters during the protest. The ongoing protests were sparked by the arrest of Istanbul Metropolitan Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu.
Sopa Images via Reuters

Last week’s arrest of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu sparked the largest anti-government rallies in a decade and resulted in widespread arrests throughout Turkey. Nearly 1,900 people have been detained since the protests erupted eight days ago.

National Security Advisor Mike Waltz and Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY), the then-nominee for US ambassador to the UN, during a Cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, DC, on Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025.
Al Drago/Pool/Sipa USA

An internal GOP poll found a Republican candidate trailing in a special election for a conservative-leaning district in Florida, forcing US President Donald Trump to make a decision aimed at maintaining the Republican Party’s majority in the House.

South Sudan's Vice President Riek Machar, pictured here addressing the press in 2020.

REUTERS/Samir Bol

Alarm bells are ringing ever more loudly in South Sudan, as Vice President Riek Machar — chief rival to Prime Minister Salva Kiir — was arrested late Wednesday in an operation involving 20 armored vehicles at his compound in Juba. He was placed under house arrest, a move that is fueling fears that the country will soon descend into civil war.

Afghan Interior Minister Sirajuddin Haqqani, pictured here at the anniversary event of the departure of the Soviet Union from Afghanistan, in Kabul, Afghanistan, on April 28, 2022.

REUTERS/Ali Khara

The Trump administration has dropped multimillion-dollar bounties on senior Afghan officials from the Haqqani network, a militant faction that carried out some of the deadliest attacks on American troops but has now positioned itself as a moderate wing within the Taliban government. But why?

The Canadian flag flies on Parliament Hill in Ottawa.

REUTERS/Blair Gable

Canada’s foreign interference watchdog is warning that China, India, and Russia plan on meddling in the country’s federal election. The contest, which launched last weekend, has already been marked by a handful of stories about past covert foreign interventions and threats of new ones.

The BMW Foundation is dedicated to addressing concrete challenges that, when solved, create the greatest global impact. With the first challenge, “International Collaboration to Develop Energy Transition and Infrastructure Solutions,” the foundation aims to facilitate international collaboration that accelerates the net-zero transition. Access to reliable and affordable energy powers industries and businesses. Technology is one of the most important drivers for a successful transition, but it is international collaboration that will leapfrog societies across the globe. Find out how the BMW Foundation helps drive collaboration and solutions toward a clean and secure energy future here.