The Today Radio news team brings you the latest headlines for Wednesday, 24 September.
Luxembourg
VOTING RIGHTS – Political parties and associations have once again begun debating voting rights for foreigners. 10 years after the referendum in which Luxembourgers rejected giving foreign nationals the right to vote in parliamentary elections, the population now stands at around 680,000, 47% of whom are foreigners. It is felt that the time is right to revisit the subject and a discussion took place Monday night between a number of parties at the Chamber of Employees.
SANCTIONS FRAMEWORK – Following Luxembourg's official recognition of the State of Palestine, Prime Minister Luc Frieden and Minister of Foreign Affairs Xavier Bettel have announced that the government is analysing the creation of a national sanctions framework in response to Israel's war conduct in Gaza. Minister Bettel clarified that Luxembourg currently lacks a legal basis for imposing national sanctions, but an analysis is expected to be completed by the end of the year.
YELLOW ALERT – As we reported yesterday, there is a yellow rain warning in place for Luxembourg, extended until midnight tonight, and the rain has caused huge issues on the road as expected. There are also flood warnings in place, so please be careful on the roads if taking your vehicle. Regular updates can be found on inondations.lu/alerts.
ROYAL MONOGRAM – Luxembourg will introduce a new royal monogram on 3 October 2025, coinciding with the change of throne. The stylised "H" of Grand Duke Henri will be replaced by a "G" for the future Grand Duke Guillaume. Designed by graphic artist Yolande Kaiser, the new monogram features two mirrored "G"s beneath the traditional Luxembourgish crown, creating a design described as modern, decorative, and historically inspired. Kaiser's work is based on a historical analysis of previous monograms and adheres to the court's official graphic charter.
World
CONGO GENOCIDE – The leader of the Democratic Republic of the Congo asked UN member states on Tuesday to recognize a "silent genocide" in his country, as France announced it will host an emergency conference on the conflict there next month. "All the signs of planned extermination are present... This is not just a conflict, it is a silent genocide that has been affecting the Congolese people for more than 30 years," DRC President Felix Tshisekedi said in his address to the UN General Assembly.
GUINEA REFERENDUM – Four years after the military seized power, voters in a Guinea referendum have resoundingly chosen to implement a new constitution, with 89 percent supporting the charter, after an election turnout of 86.4%, according to official provisional results announced yesterday evening. The constitution paves the way for elections in the west African country, but also permits General Mamady Doumbouya, its junta leader, to run for president.
JAPAN & PALESTINE – Japan's prime minister told the United Nations yesterday that Tokyo's recognition of the State of Palestine was only a question of time, saying he was "indignant" at recent comments by Israeli officials.
GSF ATTACKED – Ahead of their expected arrival to the shores of Gaza, yesterday volunteers of the Global Sumud Flotilla (GSF) have reported a series of explosions, drones, and dropped objects, although, so far, no casualties have been recorded
Sports
YANKEES PLAY-OFF – Yankees have clinched a MLB playoff berth after Jose Caballero hit a walk-off single to seal a 3-2 come-from-behind victory over the Chicago White Sox. The Yankees, who fell to the Los Angeles Dodgers in last year's World Series, are back in the playoffs for the eighth time in nine seasons.
MOTO GP – Marc Marquez will have the chance to clinch his seventh MotoGP world championship in Japan this weekend to underline a season of dominance and match the record of motorcycle great Valentino Rossi. The Spanish Ducati rider is on a whopping 512 points and needs just three points more than his brother Alex Marquez to win the title with five weekends to spare of the 22-race season.
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