BERLIN, GERMANY - German industry is ramping up efforts to dissuade Chancellor Angela Merkel from imposing tough new economic sanctions on Russia over Ukraine, warning of lasting damage to domestic firms and the broader economy if Moscow is hit hard. Although German companies have toned down their public criticism of sanctions since the CEO of Siemens was vilified in the press for meeting Russian President Vladimir Putin in late March, a behind-the-scenes lobby effort remains in full force. A confidential paper from the German-Russian chamber of foreign trade, which was sent to the government last week, shows the extent of the concern in German business circles as a May 25th presidential election in Ukraine nears.

BANDERA COUNTY, TEXAS, USA - Joe Mooneyham no longer grows any flowers or plants in his backyard. Instead, the Pebble Beach resident in Bandera County is nursing a quiet optimism that it will all come back. "I haven't watered since September of last year," Mooneyham said. "Everything was just emerald green." He misses the greenery, the deer and the water. Medina Lake, which used to send gentle waves lapping at his backyard dock, has receded more than a mile and a quarter away. Pebble Beach is on the list, and so are 33-others which could be out of water within three months. A dozen municipalities are reporting they could go dry in 45 days or less.

UK - The combination of olive oil and leafy salad or vegetables is what gives the Mediterranean diet its healthy edge, say scientists. When these two food groups come together they form nitro fatty acids which lower blood pressure, they told PNAS journal. The unsaturated fat in olive oil joins forces with the nitrite in the vegetables, the study of mice suggests. Nuts and avocados along with vegetables should work too, they say. Inspired by traditional cuisine of countries such as Greece, Spain and Italy, the Mediterranean diet has long been associated with good health and fit hearts. Typically, it consists of an abundance of vegetables, fresh fruit, wholegrain cereals, olive oil and nuts, as well as poultry and fish, rather than lots of red meat and butter or animal fats.

USA - It's widely used nationwide as a germ-killing ingredient in soaps, deodorants and even toothpaste, but it's being banned in Minnesota. Governor Mark Dayton on Friday signed a bill to make Minnesota the first state to prohibit the use of triclosan in most retail consumer hygiene products. The Minnesota House and Senate passed it earlier last week because of health and environmental concerns about the chemical. The ban isn't due to take effect until January 1, 2017, but one of its lead sponsors, state Senator John Marty, predicted Monday that the odds are good that most manufacturers will phase out triclosan by then anyway. While triclosan hasn't been shown to be hazardous to humans, studies have raised concerns that it can disrupt hormones critical for reproduction and development, at least in lab animals, and contribute to the development of resistant bacteria.

SOUTH AFRICA - Catholic and Anglican ecumenical experts have concluded a 10 day meeting in Durban, South Africa, making "a great deal of progress" towards an agreed statement on authority in the Church and the ethical decision-making process. The 18 members of the group, known as ARCIC III, also agreed to hold next year’s meeting at a Catholic seminary close to Rome. For the fourth session of their talks, which concluded on May 20th, the group focused on the Church as Communion at local, regional and universal levels, reflecting on the impact of culture and the role of lay people in decision making. The group, hosted by the Anglican bishop of Natal, also visited local ecumenical initiatives, including an AIDS centre and a project working for justice and development amongst the poorest and most vulnerable.

USA - Authorities are trying to determine what caused tens of thousands of fish to turn up dead in the waters off Marina del Rey over the weekend. The first report came in just after 9 pm Saturday at the A-Basin in the 13000 block of Tahiti Way, officials said. When Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department deputies arrived, they discovered an estimated 70,000 dead anchovies floating in the water, along with other sea life, including sting rays and angel sharks. On Sunday afternoon, workers hauled away about 175 garbage bags worth of fish, weighing an estimated 7,000 pounds.

JERUSALEM, ISRAEL - A plan by Pope Francis to celebrate mass in a Jerusalem room believed by Christians to have hosted the Last Supper has brought criticism, controversy and conspiracy theories worthy of a Dan Brown novel. The pope’s first official visit to the Holy Land this month was meant to showcase interfaith tolerance and the improved ties between Israel and the Holy See. But the plan to hold mass in the room, known as the Cenacle, has sparked an ugly disagreement that is threatening to undermine the visit.

EUROPE - Europe is bracing itself for a howl of rage. Populists promise to steal the show in elections to the European Parliament next week. Unashamedly anti-EU parties – mostly of the extreme right, but joined by a handful from the left – may well garner 30 per cent of the vote. The result will probably be read as a damning verdict on European integration. This is a mistake. The mistake is to see these parties as resembling a homogeneous group. They may now be marching under the same eurosceptic banner, but, as narrow-minded nationalists, they have little inclination to collaborate. Some, as in Golden Dawn and Jobbik, are unreconstructed fascists. Ms Le Pen downplays her party’s antisemitic heritage to promote a racist islamophobia. All of this will make life in the region unpleasant and unstable. That's disconcerting, as is the prospect of far-right political parties winning close to a quarter of the vote in a long list of European countries.

EUROPE - Anti-Semitism is still prevalent in Germany with some 19 million adults harbouring negative sentiments towards Jews, according to a new study. The Anti-Defamation League's Global 100 Index found that 27 per cent of German adults answered 'probably' or 'definitely' true to six or more of 11 stereotypes about Jews in the survey. The finding places Germany - which has an adult population of around 69 million - among the countries with the highest levels of anti-Semitism in western Europe. Austria (28%), Spain (29%), France (37%) and Greece (69%) were higher.

GIBRALTAR - The deployment of additional sailors to the Rock will, sources say, allow the Royal Navy to operate patrol boats 24 hours a day, and man fast-moving Rigid Inflatable Boats to challenge nighttime incursions by Spanish fishing trawlers. It follows a public commitment by Europe minster David Lidington that Whitehall would “rule out no option” in upholding British sovereignty over the overseas territory and its waters. Last night senior Royal Navy sources also confirmed the additional personnel would include more electronic eavesdropping specialists to meet the challenge of Spain’s decision to allow Russian warships to refuel at its North African territory, Ceuta.

GERMANY - Gunther Krichbaum, one of German chancellor Angela Merkel's closet allies, has poured cold water on Mr Cameron's hope of achieving his stated desire of EU reform. Mr Krichbaum, head of the country's committee on EU affairs, was backed by other senior German politicians. Last week, Mr Cameron said he would insist on the UK no longer being bound by the EU's principle of "ever closer union" – one of the core principles of its rulebook. However Mr Krichbaum, a Christian Democrat, told Mr Cameron that other EU countries would not agree to his demand.

EUROPE - Everything is weird about this week’s Euro-election, and nothing weirder than the possibility that the party that comes top of the poll will be one that hasn’t got a single seat in Parliament. Our other parliament, in Brussels and Strasbourg, plays an important part in producing a huge proportion of the laws we must all obey. Yet on Thursday we shall only be choosing a bunch of unknown nonentities to represent us there, commanding just 9 per cent of the votes that can pass or reject those laws – and, hardly surprisingly, the majority of the British electorate will not even bother to turn out to vote for something they don’t begin to understand.

CHINA - China is stockpiling oil for its strategic petroleum reserve at a record pace, intervening on a scale large enough to send a powerful pulse through the world crude market. The move comes as tensions mount in the South China Sea, and the West prepares possible oil sanctions against Russia over the crisis in Eastern Ukraine. Analysts believe China is quietly building up buffers against a possible spike in oil prices or disruptions in supply. The International Energy Agency (IEA) said in its latest monthly report that China imported 6.81 million barrels a day in April, an all-time high. This is raising eyebrows since China’s economy has been slowing for months, with slump conditions in the steel industry and a sharp downturn in new construction.

ISRAEL - Hundreds of Palestinians attending the funerals of two Palestinians on Friday rioted and clashed with Israeli security forces near the Beitunia checkpoint, north of Jerusalem. The two Palestinians had been shot dead on Thursday when demonstrators clashed with Israeli security forces during a "Nakba Day" protest marking the "catastrophe" of Israel's inception. Riots also erupted on the Temple Mount on Friday after the weekly prayer services, as dozens of Arab youths clashed with Israeli security forces stationed at the volatile holy site.

TEMPLE MOUNT, ISRAEL - Member of Knesset Issawi Farij (Meretz) sharply attacked Secretary-General Hilik Bar of the Labor Party, Sunday, after Bar expressed support for a bill by Likud Beytenu Knesset member Miri Regev to regulate Jewish prayer on the Temple Mount in Jerusalem's Old City. Farij said Bar's "populist statement ignores the explosiveness of the site and the inherent dangers" in the proposal, citing steps by Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu during his first term and afterward by then opposition leader Ariel Sharon in 2000. Calling the status quo of Muslims praying on the Temple Mount and Jews praying at the Western Wall the key to preserving quiet, he called Bar's support a "dangerous provocation" reserved until now for "Regev and her friends," and cited Labor leadership for not condemning it.