MISSING PERSON - Police are appealing for information relating to the disappearance of 52-year-old Nancy Pater, was last seen nine days ago in northern Luxembourg. The last confirmed sighting of was on 23 August in Lipperscheid. Descriptions of her physical appearance include an approximate height of 1.70 metres, a slender build, short brown hair, and a mole on her left cheek. Anyone able to provide information on the missing person is asked to contact the Diekirch/Vianden police station.
TRAFFIC INCIDENTS - Two people were injured in traffic incidents on Thursday, according to the Grand Ducal Fire and Rescue Corps. In Hobscheid, a driver crashed into a parked car at around 10am on Thursday, leaving one person with injuries. And at around 1.35pm, two cars collided in Nothum, leaving two people injured. The Clervaux and Nordstad ambulance services treated the victims at the site of the incident.
FUEL PRICE DROP - Despite the beginning of this week seeing an increases to fuel prices, it has been announced that a considerable reduction in price has now taken place. From midnight last night, the price per litre of diesel decreased by five cents, and is now available at €1.604 per litre. And the decline in prices isn’t limited to diesel alone; with heating fuel also seeing a reduction in cost. For 10 ppm, there will be a noticeable reduction of 4.8 cents per litre, with 50 ppm seeing a drop of 4.9 cents per litre.
Are you looking for something to do this weekend? Check out our events guide.
TRUMP PLEA - Former US president Donald Trump pleaded not guilty on Thursday to charges that he led a criminal conspiracy to overturn his 2020 election loss in the southern state of Georgia. The Republican presidential frontrunner, who faces 13 felony counts including racketeering, entered his plea in a court filing waiving his right to appear at an arraignment next Wednesday. Trump surrendered to the Fulton County jail in the state capital Atlanta last week and was the first former US president pictured in a police mug shot.
PROUD BOYS - Two senior members of the Proud Boys militia were handed hefty prison sentences on Thursday for their role in the 2021 assault on the US Capitol by supporters of Donald Trump. Joe Biggs, the Florida leader of the self-styled paramilitary group, was sentenced to 17 years in prison for seditious conspiracy and other charges, one year shy of the longest sentence given to a participant in the January 6, 2021 riot. Zachary Rehl, leader of the Philadelphia Proud Boys arm, received 15 years in prison on the same charges. Prosecutors called them key figures in the attack, which involved thousands seeking to forcibly overturn Joe Biden’s November 2020 election victory, after Trump repeatedly claimed without any basis that there was massive fraud in the vote.
ECUADOR UNREST - Ecuador’s capital Quito was rocked by attacks with grenades and two car bombs overnight, followed hours later by inmates in six prisons taking hostage 57 prison guards and police officers. The wave of attacks was an apparent show of force by organized crime gangs that claimed no victims, while the uprising in the prisons was believed to be a riposte to a police sweep of jails to confiscate weapons the day before. The car bombs targeted the violence-hobbled country’s SNAI prisons authority -- one exploding outside its headquarters and the other at a building that formerly housed the SNAI offices.
CONGO CRACKDOWN - At least 48 people have been killed in a crackdown at an anti-UN protest in eastern DR Congo, according to sources and official documentation reviewed by AFP on Thursday, raising a previously reported death toll. On Wednesday, Congolese soldiers stopped a religious sect from holding a demonstration against United Nations peacekeepers in the city of Goma. Some 10 people were initially reported killed after the troops entered a radio station and a place of worship, according to local sources. A policeman was also lynched in the violence. But an internal army document consulted by AFP on Thursday, and verified by security officials, gave a toll of 48 people killed in the incident -- in addition to the slain policeman -- and 75 people wounded.
US OPEN - Ons Jabeur overcame a bout of flu that has left her feeling like a “zombie” to battle into the third round of the US Open on Thursday. The Tunisian fifth seed has struggled to produce her best form since arriving in New York, having been laid low by illness which struck on the eve of the tournament. After finding it difficult to breathe during her opening round victory on Tuesday, Jabeur once again found the going tough on Thursday, labouring to a 7-6, 4-6, 6-3 victory over Czech teenager Linda Noskova.
World number one Carlos Alcaraz edged closer to a US Open rematch with Italy’s Jannik Sinner on Thursday. Defending champion Alcaraz eased into a last 32 meeting with Britain’s Dan Evans after dispatching South Africa’s Lloyd Harris 6-3, 6-1, 7-6. It means Alcaraz is just two wins away from a potential quarter-final collision with Italian sixth seed Sinner, who continued his progress through the draw with a 6-4, 6-2, 6-4 defeat of compatriot Lorenzo Sonego.
TROPHY DEDICATION - England women’s coach Sabrina Wiegman has dedicated her Uefa women’s coach of the year award to the Spanish women’s football team, after the controversy surrounding the actions of Spanish football president Luis Rubiales. Collecting her award at the men’s Champions League draw in Monaco, Weigman stated, “We all know the issues around the Spain team at the moment and it really hurts me as a coach, as a mother of two daughters, as a wife and as a human being. I would like to dedicate this award to the Spanish team, who played such good football. This team deserves to be celebrated and listened to.”
This morning begins wet and warm with temperatures of around 15 degrees and steady downpours. The rain will persist throughout the afternoon as temperatures rise to around a maximum of 20 degrees, but the evening will be dry as skies clear and temperatures sit at around 17 to 18.
