The Today Radio news team brings you the latest headlines for Monday, 25 August.

Luxembourg 

NEW MURAL – Artist Rafaela Bermond is currently working on a new mural on the walls of the Red Cross' Hariko centre in Ettelbruck. Bermond joined the Hariko project in 2023 and has her own workshop in Ettelbruck. Hariko is a youth programme run by Luxembourg's Red Cross and aims to provide an artistic outlet for young people aged 12–26, supplying workshops for dance, graffiti, jewel creation, musical instruments, and much more. Bermond, a visual artist, illustrator, and art educator, is currently at the helm of the ongoing mural project, in which she hopes to highlight themes such as youth, creativity, society and culture through her art.

LUXEMBOURG TOPS EU FOR FOREIGN STUDENTS – Latest figures released by Eurostat show that in 2023, 52.3% of students enrolled in higher education in Luxembourg were from outside the country. Across the EU, the average figure was 8.4%, with 1.76 million students from abroad undertaking studies. Luxembourg's reliance on foreign students is significantly higher than the next two member states, Malta (29.6%) and Cyprus (22.3%). The data underline the Grand Duchy's position as a small state with limited domestic student numbers but strong international ties. Luxembourg's multilingual higher-education system – taught in English, French, and German – has become a draw for students across Europe and beyond.

GREVENMACHER TO CROWN 75th WINE QUEEN – The Grevenmacher wine festival, a 75-year-old Luxembourgish tradition that crowns a new 'Wine Queen' each year, will see 20-year-old Jill Wagner ascend to the role after a shortened term as princess. Jill Wagner's path to the crown has been anything but ordinary. After just one year as a wine princess, she will officially be crowned Luxembourg's 75th Wine Queen on 12 September in Grevenmacher. Now 20, Wagner views the role as being an "ambassador for Luxembourg's wine". She stressed that the queen represents the entire Moselle region, both at home and abroad.

World

AUSTRALIAN MUSHROOM KILLER SURVIVOR SPEAKS – The only guest to survive a toxic mushroom lunch with Australian murderer Erin Patterson said Monday he feels "half alive" without his wife – one of the killer's three poisoning victims. Pastor Ian Wilkinson wept in court as he spoke of the loss of his wife Heather after she ate a beef Wellington dish laced with death cap mushrooms – the world's deadliest fungi. Patterson, 50, was convicted in July of triple murder for serving the poisonous fare to her estranged husband's parents, aunt and uncle during a sumptuous lunch at her home in rural Leongatha in the state of Victoria in 2023.

VIETNAM TYPHOON EVACUATION – Tens of thousands of residents were being evacuated from coastal Vietnam on Monday, as Typhoon Kajiki barrelled towards landfall expected to lash the country's central belt with gales of around 160 kmh. The typhoon – the fifth to affect Vietnam this year – is currently at sea, roiling the Gulf of Tonkin with waves of up to 9.5 metres (31 feet). More than 325,500 residents in five coastal provinces have been slated for evacuation to schools and public buildings converted into temporary shelters, authorities said.

'UNACCEPTABLE' ACCUSATIONS – France's foreign ministry said Sunday it would summon the US ambassador after he criticised the government for what he said was its insufficient action against antisemitism in a letter to President Emmanuel Macron. The letter from Charles Kushner, dated August 25 but leaked to the media on Sunday, echoed Israel's criticism of France days earlier, which provoked a sharp response from Paris.  He wrote: "I write out of deep concern over the dramatic rise of antisemitism in France and the lack of sufficient action by your government to confront it... In France, not a day passes without Jews assaulted in the street, synagogues or schools defaced, or Jewish-owned businesses vandalized."

ISRAEL STRIKES YEMEN – Israeli strikes in Yemen's capital Sanaa on Sunday killed at least six people, according to the country's Iran-backed Huthi rebels, who have repeatedly launched missiles and drones at Israel throughout the Gaza war. The Huthi-run Saba news agency reported six people killed and 86 wounded in the Israeli raid, with more than 20 in critical condition, citing the health ministry. A Huthi security source told AFP the strikes had targeted a building in central Sanaa. The group's Al-Masirah TV reported they had also hit an oil company facility and a power station in Sanaa's south which was already struck last Sunday.

Sport

TENNIS – Novak Djokovic fears his lack of physical conditioning may come back to haunt him as he chases a record 25th Grand Slam singles title at the US Open. The 38-year-old Serbian superstar made a winning start to his latest tilt at glory on Sunday, defeating US teenager Learner Tien 6-1, 7-6 (7/3), 6-2 in 2hr 25min on the Arthur Ashe Stadium court.

Aryna Sabalenka launched the defence of her US Open crown with a victory on Sunday. World number one Sabalenka, who is bidding to become the first woman to claim back-to-back US Open titles since Serena Williams completed a hat-trick of wins in 2014, was made to work hard en route to a 7-5, 6-1 victory over Switzerland's Rebeka Masarova. Masarova, ranked 108th in the world, pushed Sabalenka out of her comfort zone with a gutsy performance on the Billie Jean King National Tennis Center's main Arthur Ashe Stadium showcourt.

FOOTBALL – Kylian Mbappe was again on target for Real Madrid as they overcame Real Oviedo 3-0 in La Liga on Sunday. For Oviedo, returning to Spain's top flight after an absence of almost a quarter of a century, the arrival of the 15-time European champions was a gala occasion, and the Asturian fans made their presence heard. Star turns Mbappe and Vinicius Junior made the difference in the north of Spain. "It was a very serious, very complete game," said Coach Xabi Alonso. "With and without the ball. Playing as a team. "And Vini came on and had a role in those two goals that gave us peace of mind. There will be games for everyone. "Decisions are made with the team in mind, and that's how it was today."

Weather

A cool start is expected, with morning temperatures of 9–12°C, before rising to a sunny 21–23°C in the afternoon.

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