Election season

Angela Merkel's main rival in Germany's election has prompted a storm of protest after giving the middle-finger during a photo shoot. Peer Steinbrück, the leading candidate for the Social Democrats, has appeared on the front cover of the Süddeutsche Zeitung (SZ) magazine delivering the gesture after being asked whether he minded having several negative nicknames. The gaffe-prone politician, whose campaign has been bogged down by a series of scandals and blunders, later defended the gesture, saying it demonstrated that he "has a sense of humour".