HAMBURG, Germany, May 15 (Reuters) - A German court on Tuesday rejected Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan's appeal to ban outright a satirical poem recited by a comedian on German television, which had soured already-strained ties between Berlin and Ankara.

But judges also upheld a ban by a lower court in 2017 on certain passages of the poem, read out two years ago by German comedian Jan Boehmermann, and which suggested Erdogan engaged in bestiality and watched child pornography.

The higher regional court of Hamburg confirmed the ruling of the district court of Hamburg that parts of the poem could be banned because they contained degradations of an intimate and sexual nature for which there was no evidence.

Boehmermann had appealed for the partial ban to be lifted.

The court ruled the poem could not be completely banned because of Germany's free speech laws.

"Satire can be art but it doesn't have to be," said Judge Andreas Buske. "If satire is not art, it is protected by the freedom of opinion."

It decided that in view of developments in Turkey under Erdogan's leadership, criticism - including severe criticism - is admissible and Erdogan must accept that.

Years of progress towards European Union standards in human rights, freedom of expression and the rule of law are being reversed in Turkey, an EU official warned in April.

In a separate case, German prosecutors in Mainz in October 2016 dropped an investigation into Boehmermann, who was accused of offending a foreign leader after reciting the poem.

They said they had not found sufficient evidence to suggest that any criminal offences had been committed by Boehmermann or anyone else involved in making or broadcasting the piece. (Reporting by Jan C. Schwartz in Hamburg Writing by Michelle Martin in Berlin Editing by Alexandra Hudson)

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</s>A German court on Tuesday rejected Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s appeal to ban outright a satirical poem recited by a comedian on German television, which had soured already-strained ties between Berlin and Ankara.

According to a report by Reuters, judges, however, upheld a ban by a lower court in 2017 on certain passages of the poem, read out two years ago by German comedian Jan Boehmermann and which suggested Erdoğan engaged in bestiality and watched child pornography.

The higher regional court of Hamburg confirmed the ruling of the district court of Hamburg that parts of the poem could be banned because they contained degradations of an intimate and sexual nature for which there was no evidence.

Boehmermann had appealed for the partial ban to be lifted. The court ruled the poem could not be completely banned because of Germany’s free speech laws. “Satire can be art but it doesn’t have to be,” said Judge Andreas Buske. “If satire is not art, it is protected by the freedom of opinion.”

It decided that in view of developments in Turkey under Erdoğan’s leadership, criticism, including severe criticism, is admissible and that Erdoğan must accept that.

In a separate case, German prosecutors in Mainz in October 2016 dropped an investigation into Boehmermann, who was accused of offending a foreign leader after reciting the poem. They said they had not found sufficient evidence to suggest that any criminal offences had been committed by Boehmermann or anyone else involved in making or broadcasting the piece.</s>BERLIN — A German court has dismissed a television comedian's appeal of a ruling that prohibits him from repeating elements of a crude poem he wrote about Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Comic Jan Boehmermann recited the poem last year on public television to illustrate something he said wouldn't be allowed even in democratic Germany. The poem described Erdogan as "stupid, cowardly and uptight" before descending into sexual references.

Chancellor Angela Merkel granted a Turkish request to allow possible prosecution for insulting a foreign head of state. A Hamburg court issued an injunction ordering Boehmermann not to repeat most of the poem.

On Tuesday, an appeals court upheld that decision, rejecting both Boehmermann's appeal and a bid by Erdogan's lawyers to have the ban extended to the whole poem.

Both sides are entitled to seek a federal court appeal.</s>A court in Hamburg ruled Tuesday that selected passages from German satirist Jan Böhmermann's poem lampooning Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan would remain barred from re-publication.

The ruling by the Hanseatic Higher Regional Court upheld a lower court's decision from February 2017.

The continuation of the partial ban was a defeat for both Erdogan, who had demanded the entire poem be censored, and for Böhmermann, who had called for the partial banned to be lifted.

Read more: German comedian Jan Böhmermann celebrates debut on US late night TV

Böhmermann had broadcast the poem on his late-night television show in March 2016. Much of the text criticized the Turkish president for his authoritarian political positions, but some sections also contained expletives and graphic sexual references, such as bestiality and child pornography.

Erdogan had accused Böhmermann of defamation while the satirist had defended the statements in his 2016 poem as permissible under artistic freedom.

Read more: German satirist Jan Böhmermann wants to shower online hate with love trolls

The higher court said that the politically critical sections of the poem could freely circulate because they pertained to Erdogan's factual behavior. However, the graphic and explicit sections would continue to be banned because they lacked a factual point of reference and were a libelous "attack" on Erdogan's "personal dignity."

Judge Andreas Buske also expressed doubt that Böhmermann's poem fell under the constitutional classification of art and was therefore subject to corresponding protections.

"Satire can be art, but it does not have to be," Buske said in the judgement. "If satire is not art, then it falls under the protection afforded by freedom of speech."

The ruling is not yet final. Both parties can appeal the ruling to the Federal Court of Justice in Karlsruhe, Germany's highest criminal court.

The poem's publication in 2016 fed tense diplomatic relations between Germany and Turkey at the time.

It even drew in Chancellor Angela Merkel, who had apologized to Erdogan for Böhmermann's actions.

Erdogan had previously tried and failed to sue Böhmermann in a separate legal action that made use of an obscure German law prohibiting foreign heads of state from being insulted. The law was revoked in June 2016.</s>BERLIN (Reuters) - Hamburg said on Wednesday it had begun putting up signs to enforce what will be the first ban on older diesel vehicles from streets in a major German city, after a court ruled in February that cities were entitled to impose such bans.

Hamburg’s environmental authorities said on Wednesday they had put up around 100 signs this week announcing the ban in two streets and offering directions for alternative routes.

German cities are under pressure to meet legal clean air targets to reduce illness caused by emissions. European car companies have invested heavily in diesel, which produces less of the carbon that causes global warming than gasoline engines, but more of other pollutants blamed for health problems.

The prospect that cities could ban dirtier diesel vehicles has wide implications for the future of Europe’s car industry.

Hamburg is still waiting to find out from the court whether it will be allowed to apply the ban to all cars with engines that fail to meet the 2014 “Euro 6” standard, or only to the far smaller number that fail to meet the 2009 “Euro 5” standard.

“We expect to put the driving ban into effect in May. Therefore, it’s necessary to receive a written statement of the ruling from the administrative court in Leipzig,” said Bjoern Marzahn, Hamburg environment authority spokesman.

Environmentalists say the measures in Hamburg do not go far enough because they target only selected streets where air monitoring stations are in place. They worry that diversions will only prompt car owners to drive longer distances.

“There are only four monitoring stations in Hamburg and it is evaluated according to their results, although the European Union limits are breached in many parts of the city,” Paul Schmid, spokesman for the Environment and Nature Conservation Association (BUND) in Hamburg, said.

The court has promised a final statement by the end of this week, Marzahn said, adding that no fines will be levied during an initial phase of the ban, allowing drivers to get used to it.

The city had considered other alternatives to improve air quality, such as deploying electric buses, but concluded that a partial diesel ban would be the most effective solution.

“We as environment authorities are responsible for air purity and it’s our responsibility to make sure inhabitants don’t get sick (because of pollution),” Marzahn said. “I believe there is sympathy for this from car drivers.”</s>A proud run of 55 season in Germany's top flight came to an ugly end as Hamburg fans set off a flurry of fireworks, releasing a cloud of black smoke across the Volksparkstadion, forcing play to be suspended just minutes from time.

"This is an enormously painful moment for everyone at the club, which has lost one of its defining characteristics," said Hamburg president Bernd Hoffmann.

The six-time German champions, who won the European Cup in 1983, are the only team to have played in every Bundesliga season since the league's inauguration in 1963, earning them the nickname "dinosaur".

Although Hamburg battled to victory over Mönchengladbach, they were doomed to relegation as Wolfsburg thrashed Cologne to finish third from bottom. Wolfsburg will go into a relegation playoff with Holstein Kiel, who finished third in Germany's second tier.

The day started disastrously for Hamburg, as Joshua Guilavogui fired Wolfsburg ahead in the opening minute against Cologne.

In Hamburg, Aaron Hunt put the home side in front before Josip Drmic equalised for 'Gladbach.

Jonas Hector brought Cologne level just after the half-hour mark with an exquisite chip, but Divock Origi, on loan from Liverpool, restored the lead for Wolfsburg and edged Hamburg closer to disaster.

Lewis Holtby's curling strike kept Hamburg's hopes alive, but when Robin Knoche headed in Wolfsburg's third, and when Josip Brekalo added a fourth in stoppage time, Hamburg's fate was sealed.

After a 15-minute delay due to crowd trouble, the game briefly resumed. The famous digital clock in the Volksparkstadion, which displays how long the club have been in the top flight, must now finally be switched off.

"I am so disappointed," said Hamburg coach Christian Titz. "I was convinced that we could win the game today, and that it would be enough to stay up. The team and most of the fans gave us a worthy send-off from the top flight."

READ ALSO: Hamburg named fourth best city to travel to by Lonely Planet</s>Since the beginning of the year the Port of Hamburg has offered an optimized service portfolio for handling ultra-heavy loads. With an unit load capacity of 600 tons, ‘Enak’ is the most powerful salvage/floating crane in Germany. This heavyweight was formerly stationed in Bremerhaven. The new owner Lührs Schifffahrt, who acquired ‘Enak’ from Bugsier Reederei, has transferred the floating crane to Hamburg.

As a universal port, Hamburg offers a wide range of waterside cargo handling services. Along with containers and bulk cargoes, these naturally also cover conventional general cargoes. With a volume of 1.4 million tons, these may constitute no more than 1.5 percent of total throughput, but their depth of added value and impact on jobs make them an important element in the Port of Hamburg’s cargo mix.

Several specialist multi-purpose handling facilities, including Wallmann & Co., C. Steinweg (Süd-West Terminal), Rhenus Midgard and Unikai Lagerei- und Speditionsgesellschaft are well equipped to handle project shipments, heavy and out-of-gauge cargoes. Ultra-heavy general cargoes are usually handled with the aid of ship’s own lifting gear or quayside crane capacities to a maximum of 400 tons. In Hamburg the two floating cranes HHLA III (100 tons) and HHLA IV (200 tons), which can lift up to 300 tons when working in tandem, are also available. The ‘Enak’ with its capacity of up to 600 tons now represents an even more powerful option.

The new arrival has already been a frequent guest in Hamburg when especially heavy cargoes had to be loaded. Yet its former base at Bremerhaven involved great effort in bringing the giant to the Elbe, so that again and again cargo has been routed past Hamburg and via other ports. “Stationing ‘Enak’ in Hamburg gives shippers, project forwarders and heavy-lift shipping companies fresh opportunities to exploit the Port of Hamburg’s strengths as a project shipment transhipment hub,” said Axel Mattern, Joint CEO of Port of Hamburg Marketing.

Technology giant Siemens is one example. When power supply equipment needs to be loaded, Hamburg with its specialized cargo-handling facilities is the most important port in the North Range for the group. Gas turbines from Berlin and transformers from Nuremberg are two examples. Such large transformers have a unit weight of 550 tons. It was impossible to shift them here with Hamburg’s crane capacities as they stood. ‘Enak’ now provides an option for shipping such mammoth transformers and other ultra-heavy cargoes via Hamburg.

Built in 1967, technically upgraded in 1993 and now classified by DNV GL, the crane is 55 metres long and 25 metres wide. It operates under the German flag and in Hamburg occupies a berth in Ellerholz docks. Recently this powerpack was deployed on a spectacular rescue: After a pedestrian bridge to the musical theatre showing ‘The Lion King’ collapsed into the River Elbe in March, ‘Enak’ raised it and spirited it away for repairs.

 Source: Port of Hamburg
A Hamburg court upholds a 2017 ban on passages of Jan Böhmermann's poem Schmähkritik.