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For more than 28 years, the Berlin Wall stood as a symbol of Germany's division and the Cold War. On Nov. 9, 1989, East Germany announced the easing of border controls. Thousands stormed the Berlin Wall and demanded its opening. Deutsche Welle looks back at the events that led up to and followed this turning point in European history.

 
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A small piece of the Berlin Wall at Potsdamer Platz in Berlin

November 9, 1989 - the day that changed European history

In a press conference on Nov. 9, 1989 GDR central committee spokesman Guenter Schabowski unintentionally announced that citizens could travel to West Germany immediately. It was the beginning of the end for East Germany. »

 
 
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People standing on the wall in front of the Brandenburg Gate

Celebrations begin as the German capital marks the fall of the Berlin Wall

Thousands of curious Berliners in the center of the German capital have been sizing up over 1,000 giant dominos set to topple on Monday to mark the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.  »

 
 
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Dossier: What life was like in communist East Germany

East Germans worked, cooked dinner and spent time with family and friends just like West Germans did. But they were also spied on by the Stasi and kept from leaving by the inner-German border. Click here to learn more.  »

 
 
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Politics

Peter Ramsauer of the CSU

Lingering divide?

A German minister makes controversial remarks on the eve of the Berlin Wall anniversary.»

 
 

Bundesliga

Berlin's Arne Friedrich and Cologne's Lukas Podolski struggle to control the ball during Sunday' Bundesliga match

Leverkusen leads

Hamburg and Werder Bremen lost ground to Bundesliga leaders Bayer Leverkusen on Sunday.»

 
 

Auto Industry

Chancellor Merkel testing an Opel at the Frankfurt Auto Show

Opel Survey

Most Germans are not supportive of fresh financial aid to bail out ailing carmaker, Opel.»

 
 
 
A banner reading 'climate chaos' hangs from a statue during a demonstration against global warming

Growing doubts about new climate accord

Who should pay for environmental protection? That question is proving difficult to answer. The upcoming climate conference in Copenhagen could fail, warns Germany's development minister, Dirk Niebel. »

 
 
DW-WORLD.DE
German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble, left, US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, and British Treasury chief Alistair Darling at the G20 meeting in Scotland

G-20 nations decide to continue stimulus measures

The G-20 agreed to bolster the global economic recovery by continuing stimulus measures even as Britain threw its weight behind a proposal to impose a global levy on banks to fund future bailouts.  »

 
 

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Learning by Ear

Three children

 
 

Weather

A person carries a red umbrella

 
 
 
 
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