Climate Threat Global Challenges

Ethiopia Declares National Mourning – 80 Dead After Massive Rains

Ethiopia has declared three days of national mourning after at least 80 people died in floods and landslides caused by massive torrential rains this week, the country's House of Representatives announced, according to the AP.

Rescue efforts are underway, and many are still missing. Police have previously said the death toll could rise to more than 100. Thousands have also been forced to flee the torrential rains. The Gamo region in southern Ethiopia has been the worst hit.

More rain is expected in the area, and authorities are urging people to be careful. In previous rainy seasons, hundreds of people have died in flash floods and landslides, and climate change has made the weather increasingly extreme.

German emissions fell just 0.1 percent in 2025

Germany missed its climate targets by a wide margin last year. Emissions fell just 0.1 percent compared to the previous year, the country's climate agency said, according to The Guardian.

At a conference in Berlin on Saturday, the Social Democratic climate minister, Carsten Schneider, was critical of the results.

Despite more widespread acceptance of electric cars and heat pumps, emissions reductions are going far too slowly, he says, and urges Germans to use more environmentally friendly energy sources.

“Every kilowatt-hour of renewable power makes our country less dependent on oil and gas and our energy supply more secure,” he says.