The Today Radio News team brings you the latest news headlines for Thursday, 31 August.

Luxembourg

LUXAIR DESTINATION - Flag carrier Luxair has announced a brand new destination as of April 2024: Manchester. The airline will commence with 3x weekly flights on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. It is Luxair's second destination besides London in the UK.

MOTORCYCLE ACCIDENTS - 3 motorcyclists were involved in three separate accidents on Wednesday evening. The air rescue helicopter was dispatched to one of them.

PEDESTRIAN STRUCK - At approximately 4.45am on Wednesday, an incident unfolded on the N5B near the Pétange football stadium, where a pedestrian was hit by an overtaking car. Preliminary information suggests that the pedestrian was on the road when a car - engaged in an overtaking manoeuvre - struck them. Both drivers immediately stopped and gave the injured pedestrian first aid. Subsequently, paramedics arrived and took the injured individual to hospital. The police are now looking for the two drivers. Anyone able to provide information about this accident is asked to contact the Differdange police station.

WRONG WAY DRIVER - On Tuesday evening, at around 9.55pm, the police were informed of an accident on the A13 towards Sanem. Initial findings from the investigation reveal that a driver travelling in the wrong direction collided with three vehicles moving in the correct lane, situated between the Ehlerange tunnel and the Differdange exit. The collision resulted in minor injuries sustained by the four individuals involved. Two of them had to be extricated from their vehicle. And following initial on-site medical assistance, they were subsequently transported to a hospital for further evaluation. The wrong-way driver tested positive for alcohol, and her license was immediately revoked.

World

ITALIAN TRAIN TRAGEDY - Five railway workers were killed in northern Italy after being hit by a train while conducting overnight maintenance works, Italian media reported Thursday. The train, which was transporting wagons on the Milan-Turin line, was travelling at 160 kilometres per hour when it hit the team replacing parts of the track near Brandizzo, on the outskirts of Turin, the AGI and Ansa news agencies have said. The workers were said to have been dragged for several metres. Two of their colleagues working nearby managed to escape, include the foreman. The train driver was in shock but otherwise unharmed.

US TAIWAN AID - President Joe Biden's administration has for the first time approved direct US military aid to Taiwan under an assistance program aimed at foreign governments, officials said Wednesday, as worries grow over China. The State Department informed Congress on Tuesday of the $80 million package, which is small compared with recent sales to Taiwan but marks the first assistance to Taipei under the Foreign Military Financing program, which generally involves grants or loans to sovereign countries. China and the United States in recent months have resumed dialogue with hopes of bringing greater stability to the turbulent relationship between the world's largest developed and developing nations.

RUSSIAN MALI VETO - Russia on Wednesday vetoed an attempt to keep inside military-run Mali a team of UN experts who had charged that foreign forces -- a veiled reference to Moscow-linked Wagner mercenaries -- were involved in widespread abuses. Thirteen of the UN Security Council's 15 members backed a proposal that would have extended by one year targeted sanctions in Mali, which are due to expire this week, and would have kept the experts in place. But Russia exercised its veto power to block the proposal led by Mali's former colonial power France and the United Arab Emirates. China abstained.

NOTH KOREA TEST - North Korea said it fired two short-range ballistic missiles as part of a "tactical nuclear strike drill" prompted by US-South Korean military exercises, state media reported Thursday. The launches came hours after Washington deployed B-1B bombers for combined air drills with Seoul, and a day before the allies wrap up their annual Ulchi Freedom Shield exercises, which always infuriate Pyongyang. The missiles flew around 360 kilometres before landing in the water, and the launches are now being analysed by South Korean and US intelligence officials.

Sports

CHAMPIONS LEAGUE DRAW - Holders Manchester City and the cream of European football will learn their Champions League fate for this season when the draw for the group stage takes place in Monaco later today. The first matches in the group stage will take place on September 19th and 20th, with this season's final being held at Wembley in London on June 1st, 2024. This will be the final season of the Champions League in its existing format, which has been in place for two decades. Next season will see UEFA introduce a new, expanded group stage featuring 36 teams, up from the current 32, with everyone playing eight matches instead of the current six in a format known as the "Swiss system".

US OPEN - Caroline Wozniacki's fairytale return to Grand Slam tennis carried her into the third round of the US Open on Wednesday as the former world number one upset 11th seed Petra Kvitova in straight sets. Wozniacki, who only returned to tennis in August - after retiring following the Australian Open in 2020 to start a family - booked her place in the last 32 with a 7-5, 7-6 victory.

Weather

Today starts off with light cloud and temperatures of around 9 degrees before further cloud cover moves in throughout the morning and temperatures rise to an expected peak of 18 degrees by mid afternoon. Rain and light winds will then move in and are expected to persist throughout the evening.