NORSTAD MERGER – The Bettendorf council has voted against the Nordstad merger. In a decisive vote, 8 out of 11 councillors voted against continuing the merger talks with Erpeldange, Diekirch, Ettelbruck, and Schieren. With this, the municipal council is going against the will of the people of Bettendorf, who in March voted with over 57% in favour of merging into a Nordstad municipality. According to Mayor Patrick Mergen, there are still too many unanswered questions. Meanwhile, the local citizens’ initiative expressed “huge disappointment” in a letter yesterday evening.
ARCELOR MITTAL – ArcelorMittal is planning to cut up to 1,600 jobs at its sites in Europe. 600 jobs in France and 140 in Belgium will be affected. The world’s second largest steel maker is reacting to a crisis in the European steel sector. In the last five years, demand has decreased by 20% and ArcelorMittal had already announced plans to shift several jobs to India. Unions have announced massive opposition.
POPE DEATH – A mass will be held in the cathedral on Sunday evening at 6pm to honour Pope Francis. The celebration will be led by Bishop Leo Wagener and broadcast live on cathol.lu. There is much speculation about who will be the next pope. American television channel CNN has become the latest media outlet to release a list of 13 possible successors, which includes Luxembourg’s Cardinal Jean-Claude Hollerich.
COVID-19 INQUIRY – Luxembourg’s parliament has rejected calls for a Covid-19 inquiry committee, dismissing a 5,000-signature petition that challenged official pandemic measures and vaccine policies during Wednesday’s debate.
SUPPORT HELPLINE – SOS Détresse is expanding its English-language helpline to include Sundays starting in May, responding to growing demand for emotional support among English speakers in Luxembourg. Additional support is also available through SOS Détresse’s OnlineHelp platform, which includes email and chat options.
UKRAINE WAR – President Trump has stepped up pressure on Ukraine to make territorial concessions to Russia to end the war. He claims a deal is imminent and has accused Volodymyr Zelensky of jeopardising the chances of peace. Ukraine wants a ceasefire before final terms are discussed. NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte is travelling to Washington today. He is due to discuss a ceasefire in Ukraine with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and US Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth as well as the preparations for the NATO summit in The Hague next week.
Meanwhile, Russia has attacked Kyiv with a wave of drones and missiles. The mayor said two people were killed and dozens wounded. The strikes caused fires in several locations.
ISTANBUL QUAKE – Hours after a 6.2 magnitude earthquake shook Turkey’s biggest city, sending panicked residents racing onto the streets, Istanbul remained on edge late Wednesday as a string of aftershocks continued to rattle nerves. Istanbul governor Davut Gul said nobody had died in the quake or the aftershocks but confirmed that hospitals were treating “151 people injured when they jumped or tried to jump from a height in panic”.
POPE DEATH – St Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican has stayed open throughout the night, so mourners could continue filing past the coffin of Pope Francis. At midnight when the church was supposed to close, there was still a long queue. The funeral will take place at St Peter’s square on Saturday and will be broadcast on RTL.lu.
KASHMIR KILLINGS – India has closed its main border crossing with Pakistan over the killing of 26 people by militants in Kashmir. It has also suspended a key water sharing treaty. A huge search is still underway for the attackers.
YOUTUBE TURNS 20 – YouTube is marking 20 years since its first upload with a milestone: over 20 billion videos now live on the platform, which has grown from a quirky startup into a global streaming giant poised to surpass US cable TV in paid viewership. According to market tracker Statista, the platform reached more than 2.5 billion viewers globally last year, and hit 100 million subscribers to its music and premium tier.
FOOTBALL – In Italy, in the Coppa Italia semi-finals, AC Milan beat Inter Milan 3-0 last night and are now in the final. Meanwhile in the English Premier League, the championship title has not yet been decided following Arsenal’s 2-2 draw with Crystal Palace. https://today.rtl.lu/sport/international/a/2296589.html
Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr are one of three big-spending Saudi Arabian clubs hunting AFC Champions League glory on home soil when the final knockout stages begin on Friday. The desert nation hosts the quarter-finals, semi-finals and the final of Asia’s premier club competition from 25 April to 3 May in Jeddah.
CYCLING – Tadej Pogacar powered up the steepest part of the final Ardennes hill on Wednesday to reclaim the Fleche Wallonne classic title after a cold and rainy 205km slog over 11 climbs. With a mud-splattered face, the three-time Tour de France champion could barely raise a smile at the finish line, as Frenchman Kevin Vauquelin emerged second and Briton Tom Pidcock third.
We’re expecting a cloudy day with occasional periods of rain in the morning – which might become more frequent later in the day. The sun could make an appearance, but don’t get your hopes up for a big day out. The temperature won’t be much different from yesterday: a minimum of 6–8°C, going up to a max of 12–14°C in the afternoon.
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