COALITION NEGOTIATIONS - Luc Frieden from the Christian Social People’s Party (CSV) has announced that this week will be marked by “intensive discussions” as the coalition negotiations between the CSV and the Democratic Party (DP) continue to take shape. Addressing the press late yesterday, Frieden said the coalition negotiations will reach their conclusion by next week. In the coming days, negotiations will continue, with delegation heads Xavier Bettel and Claude Wiseler participating for the next two days. Frieden did not disclose any details on ministerial or post allocations, despite the fact that this aspect is of particular public interest.
THAILAND ACCIDENT - A 19-year-old woman from Luxembourg has lost her life in a traffic accident on the island of Phuket at the weekend. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed to RTL that the young Luxembourg national was a passenger on a scooter when it was struck by a car. The driver of the scooter, a 21-year-old man from the US, also succumbed to his injuries.
NATIONAL LOTTERY - Luxembourg’s National Lottery has kicked off its latest game, “EuroDreams,” with the first draw last night. It’s the first time that the lottery is offering an annuity-based prize structure, meaning participants have the opportunity of winning €20,000 every month for 30 years. Over the course of three decades, this accumulates to a sum of €7.2 million. The draw will take place twice a week, on Mondays and Thursdays.
ISRAEL HAMAS WAR - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that Israel would consider “tactical little pauses” in fighting to facilitate the entry of aid or the exit of hostages from the Gaza Strip, but has again rejected calls for a ceasefire, despite international pressure. He also said that Israel will take control of “overall security” of Gaza after the war, as the Hamas-run health ministry said the death toll has surged past 10,000. With international criticism of Israel’s conduct of the war mounting, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said Gaza was becoming a “graveyard for children”.
G7 MEETING - US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has arrived in Japan for a meeting of G7 foreign ministers set to seek a common line on Gaza. Blinken made no public comment as he arrived for the two days of discussions in Tokyo following his latest whirlwind tour of the Middle East. Another major topic at will be the Ukraine war, with Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba set to join by video conference.
KING’S SPEECH - Charles III gives the first King’s Speech in more than 70 years today, formally opening the UK parliament with a run-down of his government’s legislative plans as an election looms. The 74-year-old head of state will outline Conservative Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s wish list of new laws that are expected to underline differences with the main opposition Labour Party. The address from a golden throne in the House of Lords comes as the Tories, in power since 2010, trail Labour by double-digits in most opinion polls before an election widely expected next year.
STOLEN TOILET - Four men are facing charges in relation to the theft of an 18-carat gold toilet that was stolen from an English country house. The fully functioning convenience, dubbed “America” and valued at £4.8 million ($5.9 million), was stolen from Blenheim Palace in Woodstock, near Oxford, southern England, in September 2019. The men will appear in court on November 28.
FOOTBALL - It’s the start of the fourth matchday in the Champions League. Among tonight’s games, Borussia Dortmund face Newcastle, Shakhtar Donetsk play Barcelona, Lazio host Feyenoord, Porto take on Antwerp, Man City play Young Boys Bern and AC Milan host Paris St Germain.
TENNIS - Poland’s Iga Swiatek thrashed Jessica Pegula to win the WTA Finals yesterday, sealing her return to world number one.Second seed Swiatek dominated Pegula from start to finish to clinch a 6-1, 6-0 victory in a 59-minute masterclass. The 17th win of Swiatek’s career ensures that the four-time major singles champion from Warsaw will finish the season as world number one for a second straight year.
RUSSIA OLYMPICS - Russia’s Olympic body has launched an appeal against its suspension by the International Olympic Committee at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). The IOC suspended the Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) on October 12 for violating the territorial integrity of the membership of Ukraine by recognising illegally annexed territories.
It will remain cloudy to very cloudy with a few clear sunny spells. We can expect some localised rain showers, especially in the afternoon and early evening. Temperature-wise, the day will bring a relatively cool feel, with temperatures ranging between 7 and 10 degrees Celsius.
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