Switzerland Today

Dear Swiss Abroad,

Banking is in the news again today – but this time, it’s positive news.

Also, we look at Switzerland’s connection to a drone attack on an American base on the Jordanian-Syrian border last year that killed three people. And while wolves kill around 1,000 sheep every year, what is responsible for the deaths of 56,000 others?

We also share an interview with a Swiss woman living in an area affected by the Los Angeles wildfires.

For all our readers living in California, or with friends or family in the state, we send our thoughts for your safety.

EPA/ABEDIN TAHERKENAREH

EPFL researcher connected to deadly drone attack

A suspected arms trafficker with links to Switzerland has been detained in Milan, Italy, for the past three weeks. The Iranian man previously worked as a part-time associate researcher in a laboratory at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL), and his company, Illumove, listed its commercial address at an innovation park on the EPFL campus.

A year ago, a drone attack on an American base on the Jordanian-Syrian border killed three people. In the aftermath, US authorities discovered that the drone’s navigation system had been manufactured by Illumove, prompting the US Department of Justice to request his extradition.

In an interview published today, his former supervisor spoke to the Swiss newspaper 24heures.

“If [he] used the skills he developed at our institute for military purposes, it was without our knowledge and, of course, without our support,” stressed the former manager. While he was aware of Illumove, he believed the company was focused on civilian applications, such as providing motion trackers for sports like horse racing.

However, EPFL was not the only institution unaware of the researcher’s dealings, writes 24heures. Innovaud, a canton Vaud programme supporting innovation and investment, had previously supported Illumove, though it clarified that its support was “limited, in the form of advice, and without any monetary exchange”.

In April, EPFL announced new criteria for monitoring foreign students and researchers, including security checks for those from certain countries.

• Read the full article on 24heures External link(paywall, in French)  

Keystone / Peter Klaunzer

Swiss National Bank expects profits of CHF80 billion in 2024

The Swiss National Bank (SNB) expects to close the 2024 financial year with a profit of around CHF80 billion ($87.7 billion). This profit will enable distributions amounting to CHF3 billion to the Swiss federal government and cantons.

“It’s easy money for the federal government and the cantons,” writes the Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ). There are no taxes or duties on the population, but there is a catch – the money will only flow if the SNB’s financial situation allows it.

For the past two years, financial circumstances have not permitted such distributions. However, the exceptionally high profit in 2024, coupled with an agreement with the Swiss finance ministry, means that CHF3 billion will be distributed to the public sector.

There are three key reasons for the positive balance sheet, according to the NZZ: gold, equities and the dollar. The SNB holds substantial currency reserves in euros and dollars. All three asset classes recorded rising prices, boosting the SNB’s annual profit. The dollar, in particular, has gained significantly against the Swiss franc. As the SNB’s financial investments are primarily in foreign currencies, exchange rates are the main factor determining profit or loss. Additionally, the SNB benefited from a strong year on the stock market, with markets reaching record highs.

Two-thirds of the CHF3 billion will be distributed among the cantons, with remainder going to the federal government.

Calculations are provisional. The exact returns on individual investments will not be published until early March.

• For a more detailed look at the SNB’s financial assessment, see the full Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ)External link article (paywall, in German)

Copyright 2025 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved

An interview with a Swiss Abroad in California

Marlène von Arx, an entertainment journalist who has lived in California for 30 years, finds herself in the middle of the fires.

“The sky is coloured by the fire and the smoke… It is quiet; not a car can be heard,” von Arx told Swiss public television, SRF.

She described the weather before the fires as “hurricane-like” conditions with strong winds. Combined with a prolonged dry spell, this created tinderbox conditions. California state authorities had warned of “life-threatening” situations.

Pacific Palisades, the neighbourhood where the fires broke out, is surrounded by mountains. The main road in and out, the Pacific Coast Highway, was closed, leading to traffic jams. Many people abandoned their cars and fled on foot, von Arx detailed.

At the time of the interview, she said residents were being advised to stay indoors due to poor air quality. Authorities have declared the entirety of Los Angeles County a danger zone.

Several events in the area have been cancelled, the destruction is devastating and the fires will have long-term consequences. Despite this, von Arx says that Californians often face such events with humour. “There is a saying, ‘Los Angeles has no seasons, only fires, earthquakes, and floods’,” she said.

• Read the full interview with Marlène von Arx on Swiss public television, SRFExternal link (in German)

Keystone / Urs Flueeler

Crying wolf: 56,000 dead sheep

Wolves often make headlines when they kill livestock, sparking outrage among farmers and calls to cull the wolf population. But for the first time, figures are available on the total number of sheep deaths each year – including those due to disease or neglect – and they tell a surprising story, according to the Tages-Anzeiger newspaper.

A farmer in canton Valais reported a sheep killed by a wolf. However, the inspector found a different story: the barn was filthy, and the sheep was severely emaciated and unkempt, its eyes eaten by maggots. The inspector determined that neglect, not a wolf attack, was the likely cause of death.

Since 2020, statistics on sheep deaths from neglect or illness have been reported in the Identitas animal traffic database. In 2021, 40,000 sheep deaths were recorded. Last year, the figure rose to 56,838. Sheep deaths far outnumber those of other livestock: 13% of Switzerland’s sheep population died in 2023, compared to just 3.5% of the cattle population.

In 2023, approximately 1,000 registered sheep deaths were attributed to wolf attacks. Cantons also include untraceable sheep deaths potentially linked to wolf attacks in their statistics.

Specialists cite bluetongue disease, rampant since 2024, parasites, epidemics, and the onset of winter as possible reasons for the high number of deaths.

“We are taking the trend in the sheep population and the increase in the number of dead animals very seriously,” the Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office told the Tages-Anzeiger.

• Read the full Tages-AnzeigerExternal link article (paywall, German)

Keystone / Jean-Christophe Bott

Picture of the day

In Bern, the weather this week has been bleak and rainy. But this aerial view of Crans-Montana in canton Valais is calling me to the mountains.