TOBACCO SMUGGLING - Two people have tried to smuggle more than 130 kg of tobacco and 15,000 tobacco filters, worth more than €30,000 from Luxembourg, into France. The driver and passenger of the van were arrested by French police and taken into custody. French prices for tobacco and cigarettes are double and sometimes even triple of the going rates in Luxembourg.
FUEL PRICES - Both diesel and petrol prices in Luxembourg have risen again this weekend. The price of diesel now stands at €1.61. This increase brings diesel closer to the price of petrol. Unleaded 95 remains unchanged at €1.63 per litre. Unleaded 98, on the other hand, has seen its price rise by 2.6 cents to €1.89. This is the highest fuel price since November 2022.
CITY TOURISM - Tourism in Luxembourg is booming. According to the City Tourist office, more than 2000 visitors a day visit the country’s capital. A major highlight over the summer are the tours of the Grand Ducal palace, but also the newly opened Petrusse casemates, as well as guided city promenades. Most visitors from abroad come from Germany, but also from France, Holland, Spain and Portugal.
HAWAII WILDFIRES - Hawaii is bracing itself for a significant rise in casualties, following deadly wildfires in which 93 people are known to have died so far. Teams are continuing to scour the remains of burnt-out buildings and vehicles on the island of Maui. Locally organised relief efforts are trying to get supplies to people in the historic town of Lahaina, which has been devastated. Volunteers are calling for more federal aid.
CANADA WILDFIRES - Meanwhile troops have been deployed to Canada’s remote far north to help contain hundreds of wildfires burning there. Several communities are under evacuation orders.
MOROCCO RECORD - A new all-time heat record has now been measured in Morocco. The country’s meteorological service recorded the new national record of 50.4C in Agadir on Friday. Morocco has experienced a series of heatwaves over the summer with record-breaking temperatures.
NIGER COUP - Niger’s military leaders say they are prosecuting the deposed President Mohamed Bazoum for high treason and undermining the security of the country. In a televised statement, an army spokesman said they had been gathering evidence against Bazoum who is being held in the basement of his residence.
RYANAIR STRIKES - Ryanair pilots are striking in Belgium this week, starting today and tomorrow. Agreements about an increase in salaries have not been reached. Flights from Charleroi will be affected, in particular flights heading south.
CYCLING - Yesterday was the final day in the World Championships in Glasgow. Lotte Kopecky won the women’s road race for a third gold medal at the championships after she also claimed two track titles.
FOOTBALL -
Neymar - According to a source close to AFP, Neymar is “probably leaving” Paris Saint-Germain, with an offer from Saudi Arabia said to be on the table. The Brazil international joined the French champions for a record 220 million euros from Barcelona in 2017. But the 31-year-old forward was missing from PSG’s season-opener on Saturday.
Kane - Harry Kane said on Sunday that he did not want to finish his career with any “regrets” following his move to German giants Bayern Munich from Tottenham. Kane left Spurs in a deal worth an initial 100 million euros on Saturday after spending his whole career with his boyhood club. The 30-year-old leaves as Tottenham’s record goalscorer with 280 goals and is also England’s all-time top scorer at international level.However, he is yet to win a single trophy for club or country. Bayern have won the Bundesliga for the past 11 years.
Women’s World Cup - The semi-finals will see Spain facing Sweden tomorrow morning and Australia and England will clash on Wednesday in Sydney. England are the European champions and will be favourites to reach the final of the World Cup.
Weather
Starting off with a bit of cloud and sun, the sky will get increasingly cloudy with a potential for showers during the day. From late evening onwards, the probability of thunderstorms is considerably high. Morning temperatures average between 14 and 16°C, rising to 24-26°C in the afternoon.
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