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German High Court Strikes Down Smoking Ban in Pubs (Update1) 

Germany must lift smoking bans in small pubs, the top constitutional court ruled, dealing a blow to Chancellor Angela Merkel's attempts to bring German anti- smoking laws into line with other European countries.

Laws in the states of Baden-Wuerttemberg and Berlin that ban smoking in small pubs that don't have an extra room that can be designated for smokers are discriminatory, the Karlsruhe- based Federal Constitutional Court ruled today.

``Lawmakers could totally ban smoking in all bars and restaurants,'' the court said in an e-mailed statement. ``But if they decide to allow exceptions for some barkeepers, then these exceptions must also apply to small pubs which are most hit by the ban.''

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