MUNICIPAL ELECTIONS - Luxembourg has voted. Almost 330,000 people were invited to cast their vote in 99 municipalities across the country yesterday.
The overall winner was unquestionably the DP, the party of Prime Minister Xavier Bettel, which increased its vote share by 2.5% to finish at 20.6% with 134 seats (+26). The DP also won in Luxembourg City with a vote share of 31.4%, which should earn the party 10 out of 27 seats on the municipal council.
The CSV retains the lead in terms of the overall number of seats won, at 193 across the country. However, they also stand out as the party that lost the most seats compared to the last elections, losing 16 seats.
It was a disappointing night for the LSAP (21.3%), which retained 155 seats but saw its vote share fall by 2.7%. The big losers on the night, in contrast to 2017, were the Greens. They lost 13 seats, seeing their share of the vote collapse from 16.1% to 12.7%, and losing four seats in Differdange alone in the wake of the garden shed scandal.
UKRAINE OFFENSIVE - Ukraine says it has liberated three villages in the south-east of the country, the first reported gains of their new counter-offensive. Ukraine’s ground forces said in a statement that soldiers had “liberated the settlement of Blagodatne” in the eastern region of Donetsk and released a video showing soldiers hoisting a Ukrainian flag over a destroyed building.
NATO EXERCISE - A big NATO exercise is taking place over Europe today. During the exercise Air Defender 23, 10,000 soldiers from 25 countries will be deployed in the next two weeks. NATO is training for a joint defence against an attack from the east in what NATO calls the biggest drill of its type since the alliance was formed. Germany will serve as the host and logistical hub. However, the manoeuvre is not directly related to the Russian invasion of Ukraine as it has been in the planning for four years.
In the context of the Ukraine war, there is a meeting in Paris today between French President Macron, German Chancellor Scholz and Polish President Duda. Topics include the next NATO summit and how Ukraine can be more closely integrated into the alliance.
STURGEON ARRESTED - Former Scottish leader Nicola Sturgeon was arrested as part of an investigation into financial irregularities yesterday. Police Scotland, investigating the funding and finances of the Scottish National Party, questioned Sturgeon for seven hours. She was released without charge and has released a statement denying all wrongdoing.
CHILDREN RESCUE - Rescuers, who found the four children missing for 40 days in the Colombian jungle have told a television interview that the first words uttered by the children were “I’m hungry” and “my mom is dead” . After wandering alone for more than a month, the children -- ages 13, nine, five, and one -- were rescued and airlifted out of the Amazon on Friday and are recovering in a military hospital in the capital Bogota.
TENNIS - Novak Djokovic has won the French Open at Roland Garros, clinching a record-breaking 23rd men’s Grand Slam title. Djokovic defeated Casper Ruud in straight sets, making him the only man to win all four Slams on at least three occasions. He return to the world number one ranking today. In the women’s category, Polish Number 1 Iga Swiatek won her third French open title after beating Karolina Muchova on Saturday.
CYCLING - Jonas Vinegaard won the Criterium du Dauphine cycling race yesterday to warm up for his Tour de France title defence in three weeks.Vingegaard finished second behind Italy’s Giulio Ciccone in the eighth and final stage to seal his 11th win of the season.
Another hot day awaits, with blazing sunshine throughout until the afternoon, when the clouds start to roll in. The sweltering temperatures will continue despite an overcast sky. The morning will start off at 18-20°C, rising to highs of 26-28°C in the afternoon.
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