The Today Radio news team brings you the latest headlines for Wednesday, 1 October.

Luxembourg 

GRAND DUKE FAREWELL – As part of a series of farewell engagements before his abdication, Grand Duke Henri paid a final visit to the Luxembourg Police force yesterday. The sovereign visited the police headquarters in Findel, where he was received by the Minister for Home Affairs, Léon Gloden, and the Director General of the Police, Pascal Peters. The  Grand Duke signed the police guest book, and a minute of silence was observed in memory of deceased police officers.

GUILLAUME PORTRAITS – As part of the throne accession on 3 October, official portraits of Grand Duke Henri will be replaced across Luxembourg with new images of his son Guillaume. The new official portraits of the future Grand Duke Guillaume were taken by Luxembourgish photographers Kary Barthelmey and Christian Aschman and there are three versions. So far around 2,500 orders have been placed, coming from ministries, public administrations, municipalities, businesses and even a few private people.

TRAFFIC RESTRICTIONS – Due to preparations for the weekend’s festivities, the speed limit on the bridge linking Kirchberg and the city has been reduced to 30km/h. A statement from Ponts et Chaussées also reminds cyclists that they must dismount to push their bikes.

YOU CAN SING –  Rockhal and RTL are now accepting registrations for the second edition of the "You Can Sing" contest, a competition for aspiring singers aged 10 to 15. Prospective contestants must register by 19 October and are required to submit a video of themselves performing a song of their choice. The selected finalists will receive mentorship from the two most recent winners of the Luxembourg Song Contest (LSC), Tali and Laura Thorn.

World

US SHUTDOWN – The US government has now shut down as lawmakers and President Donald Trump failed to break a budget impasse during talks that hinged on Democratic demands for health care funding. It is the first for almost seven years, and it will stop work at multiple federal departments and agencies, affecting hundreds of thousands of government workers.

PHILIPPINES EARTHQUAKE – Up to 60 people have been killed in a powerful earthquake in the central Philippines, with injured patients overwhelming hospitals on the island of Cebu. The shallow magnitude 6.9 quake struck just before 10pm local time on Tuesday, causing power outages and damaging buildings. Cebu’s provincial government has declared a state of calamity.


GAZA WAR – US President Donald Trump has given Hamas an ultimatum of "three or four days" to accept his plan to end the war in Gaza "for their own good" or face severe consequences. Trump's plan, backed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, calls for a ceasefire, the release of hostages by Hamas within 72 hours, a disarmament of the Palestinian militants and a gradual Israeli withdrawal from Gaza.

EU DEFENCE – EU leaders will discuss bolstering Europe's defences and Ukraine's financial firepower at today's summit in Denmark, where mysterious drone flights have ramped up fears about the threat from Russia.Thousands of police are on high alert, civilian drones have been banned and NATO allies have sent reinforcements as the continent converges on Copenhagen for the long-planned talks, followed by a broader gathering of European leaders on Thursday.

Sport

FOOTBALL – Kylian Mbappé’s hat-trick for Real Madrid, Victor Osimhen’s penalty winner against Liverpool and Harry Kane’s double for Bayern Munich headlined a dramatic second round of Champions League group fixtures last night. Among the results Galatasaray beat Liverpool 1-0, Bayern beat Pafos 5-1, Chelsea won 1-0 against Benfica, Real Madrid smashed Kairat 5.0 and Atletico also had a big win against Eintracht 5-1. Today also sees 9 matches, including Barcelona playing Paris St Germain.
RUGBY – The draw for an expanded 2027 Rugby World Cup will take place on December 3, with hosts Australia confirmed as kicking off the tournament at Perth Stadium. Twenty-four teams will be divided into six pools of four, with a bumper 52 games across six weeks. A round of 16 will be played for the first time. 
And Australia's most capped player James Slipper has announced his international retirement, with the Wallabies' Test against the All Blacks this weekend to be his last.

Weather

It looks set to be a dry and sunny day (with a few clouds too!), with the rain holding off to welcome in the new month. It will nonetheless be a chilly start to the day, with morning temperatures at around 3–6°C, rising to highs of 14°C in the afternoon.

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