BERLIN (Al Jazeera) – For the first time in well over a decade, German voters will enter polling booths for federal elections on Sunday with no clear idea which party will win, who will be the next chancellor, or what governing coalition will be formed. Only a razor’s edge separates the center-left Social Democratic Party (SPD) from the conservative Christian Democratic Union (CDU) and its Bavarian sister party, the Christian Social Union (CSU), according to the latest poll by the Allensbach Institute, which puts the archrivals at 26 percent and 25 percent, respectively. Other polls released in recent days put the SPD’s lead at two to four points, with a margin of error of about 3 percent. Experts have urged caution when interpreting polling data due to the uncertain influence of a historically high number of undecided voters, as well as an expected surge in postal voting. Exit polls will be released when voting ends at 6pm local time (16:00 GMT) on Sunday, and results will emerge throughout the night. Angela Merkel’s decision to depart as chancellor after 16 years has upended German politics and led to the most unpredictable race in years. At various points in the campaign, the SPD, CDU/CSU and the Greens have each been leading the polls.

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SEOUL (AP) – The powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said Saturday that her country will take steps to repair ties with South Korea, and may even discuss another summit between their leaders, if the South drops what she described as hostility and double standards. The comments by Kim Yo Jong followed a similar statement she issued Friday that the North was willing to resume talks with the South if certain conditions were met. In her latest statement, Kim, a senior official who handles inter-Korean affairs, criticized Seoul for describing the North’s recent weapons tests as provocations when it’s trying to expand its own military capabilities. North Korea has often accused the South of hypocrisy for introducing modern weapons while calling for talks on easing tensions on the divided peninsula. Kim urged South Korea to abandon its “unfair double-dealing standards, hostile policies (toward North Korea), various prejudices and hostile comments destroying trust,” if it wants Pyongyang to respond to its calls to improve ties. If the Koreas are able to build mutual trust, Kim said North Korea could possibly respond to Seoul’s calls for a declaration to formally end the Korean War, restore an inter-Korean liaison office the North destroyed in 2020, and discuss another summit.

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MADRID (AFP) – Clouds of thick black ash from volcanic eruptions in Spain’s Canaries archipelago forced the closure of the airport on La Palma island on Saturday, authorities said. The Cumbre Vieja volcano came to life a week ago and has intermittently spewed out lava and ash leading to the cancellation of all seven flights on Friday. “The airport is closed because of the accumulation of ash,” said state-owned airport operator Aena. “Clean-up operations have begun but the situation can change at any moment,” it added. More evacuations were also ordered at the town of El Paso as large explosions and new openings were reported at the volcano. “Given the increased risk for the population due to the current eruptive episode”, the regional government said, an obligatory evacuation order was issued for several districts. That pushed the number of people forced to leave their homes so far to more than 6,200, including 400 tourists.

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MOGADISHU (Reuters) – A car bomb killed at least eight people in the Somali capital on Saturday at a street junction near the president’s palace, police said, and Al Qaeda-linked al Shabaab said it was behind the attack which targeted a convoy going into the palace. Police spokesperson Abdifatah Aden Hassan told reporters at the scene of the blast the casualties could be higher, since some of the dead and wounded had been taken away by their relatives. “Al Shabaab is behind the blast. They killed eight people including a soldier and a mother and two children. Al Shabaab massacres civilians,” he said. Al Shabaab, which wants to overthrow the government and frequently carries out such bombings, confirmed the group was behind the attack. A Reuters witness at the scene of the attack reported seeing seven cars and three rickshaws destroyed by the blast, and the whole junction covered in blood.

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BOGOTA (AFP) – Thousands of shark fins were confiscated by Colombian authorities before they could be illegally shipped to Hong Kong, officials said. Bogota “seized 3,493 shark fins and 117 kilos of fish bladders that were en route to Hong Kong”, environmental ministry head Carolina Urrutia said. The haul highlights the continued demand for shark fin, served at wedding banquets in some Chinese communities and falsely believed to have medicinal properties. The fins, removed from 900 to 1,000 sharks measuring up to five meters, were found in five boxes in Bogota’s busiest airport El Dorado. Taken “more than three species” of shark, the fins were likely harvested in “illegal fishing”, said Urrutia, condemning “the irreversible environmental damage to Colombia’s marine ecosystem”.