Stories from Austria

An Austrian court has scheduled a prosecution hearing for May 14.

Austria has issued a protest regarding the participation of Israel in the Eurovision 2026 competition. Austria has protested Israel's participation in Eurovision. Lawyers representing officials involved in protests against Israel's participation in the Eurovision 2026 contest presented defenses during week-long sessions. The defense argued that alleged errors and violations in the reports were addressed and removed. A court session is scheduled for May 14. The prosecution has requested the court to prepare for prosecution within one week. This follows previous reports of Austrian protests regarding the event. Five countries are boycotting the Eurovision Song Contest in protest against Israel's participation, citing the ongoing Gaza war. Multiple protests against Israel's involvement are also registered in Vienna, where the event is taking place.

Entrepreneur Lisa-Marie Fassel has founded a new venture capital fund named Fonds F. The fund is designed to support early-stage companies that include at least one woman on their founding team.

A 5-kilometer memorial run took place in Vienna to honor Ukrainian hero Nazariy Grintsevich, known by the call sign Grenka. Grintsevich died two years ago on April 6. The event involved 100 students from an Interior Ministry school named after the fallen defender.

Russian opposition members and Ukrainians organized a protest at the entrance to an exhibition in Vienna. The protesters displayed dates of Russian aggressions against various countries and peoples on posters at the entrance.

A Foodwatch Austria test found that most fish products lack clear origin information. Only three out of 84 tested products provided complete traceability. Twenty-six products offered no way to determine origin, while 55 products yielded ambiguous results.

An author won the main prize in the prose category at the Orange Maus awards. The literary prize aims to increase the visibility of authors with learning disabilities in public spaces. The award ceremony took place at the end of March at the Wiener Reifhausenhaus in Vienna.

Caroline List, the President of the Graz Regional Court for Criminal Matters and widow of Christian Pilnaček, is accused of destroying evidence. List allegedly used a Bunsen burner to destroy Pilnaček's smartphone.

The Austrian Ministry of Justice has decided to update espionage laws to protect the interests of international organizations, such as the European Union and the United Nations. Currently, espionage in Austria is only punishable if it directly harms the country's own interests, according to reports from ORF, Kronen Zeitung, and Kurier. The move aims to counter Russian espionage activities targeting these international bodies. The decision was reported by the Austrian public broadcaster ORF. Austria has expanded its espionage laws, following a terrorist attack that occurred on December 14, 2025, during a Jewish traditional festival. The new measures aim to counter growing intelligence operations.

A 12-kilometer stretch of road has been identified as affected by asbestos contamination, according to a local mayor. The mayor has filed a report against unknown perpetrators regarding the incident.