DRONE SIGHTINGS – Luxembourg's High Commission for National Protection says its interministerial drone unit has convened, after residents reported possible drone sightings near Medernach over the past two days. Prime Minister Frieden met with relevant ministers to take stock. The type of drones and number of incidents remain unclear, and authorities say they're now carrying out checks. Medernach's own municipal administration says it's heard nothing on the matter.
ACCIDENTS – Rescue services are reporting that two pedestrians were hit by vehicles last night, one in the capital and one in Esch. Just before 6pm, three cars collided on the Trier motorway between the Howald tunnel and Sandweiler, injuring four people. Just before 5pm, two cars collided in Niederanven, injuring one.
FAKE MASTERS – A private school in Wiltz has been accused of handing out master's degrees it had no right to award. Reporting by the German magazine Der Spiegel found around 500 foreign dentists were given qualifications from the DTMD, despite the school never being recognised as a higher education institution. Luxembourg's Higher Education Minister says the case has now been referred to prosecutors, with some students reportedly paying over 30,000 euros for the invalid diplomas.
PETROL PRICES – After Wednesday's steep hike at the pump, 95-octane petrol drops to €1.85 a litre and 98-octane to €2.07, according to the latest update.
RUSSIA ELECTION – Russia goes to the polls today to elect a new parliament, in the middle of its war on Ukraine. Voting runs until Sunday, with 450 seats up for grabs and 110 million Russians eligible across 11 time zones. A win for Putin's United Russia party is considered certain, with the opposition effectively shut out and no foreign observers allowed. For the first time, voting is also taking place in the annexed Ukrainian regions of Luhansk, Donetsk, Kherson, and Zaporizhzhia.
GERMANY MEMORIAL – Germany unveils a memorial today in Mannheim to a train conductor killed in February. Serkan Calar was attacked by a Luxembourg resident travelling without a ticket, and died two days later from severe bleeding. The attacker, a Greek national living in Luxembourg, was jailed for 10 years in July. Deutsche Bahn is now boosting security on its trains.
FRANCE BUDGET – French PM Sebastien Lecornu has revealed the main elements of next year's budget to Le Figaro, ahead of its filing deadline this month. France plans to save €54 billion, warning the deficit could otherwise top 6.5% of GDP in 2027. Bond yields are already at an 18-year-high of 4.5%. Lecornu insists the plan still falls well short of austerity.
IRAN WAR – Iran's Revolutionary Guard has seized another tanker in the Strait of Hormuz. Tehran says the Togo flagged vessel took an illegal route through waters requiring Iranian authorisation.
MUSIC BOYCOTTS – Ireland's public broadcaster RTE says it won't take part in or air next year's Eurovision, citing the ongoing loss of lives in Gaza and the humanitarian crisis there. It follows a similar move over this year's contest, and puts Ireland alongside the Netherlands in skipping the event.
Meanwhile, Ed Sheeran is facing his own backlash, after dropping rapper Macklemore from his US tour over comments backing Palestinian rights. Several support acts have since walked out, accusing Sheeran of putting profit over principle.
TENNIS – Davis Cup action gets under way tonight, with Luxembourg hosting Hungary. Singles start at 6pm, Alex Knaff against world number 116 Zsombor Piros, then Louis Van Herck against Hungary's top player, Fabian Marozsan, ranked 60th. Luxembourg number 1 Chris Rodesch is out injured. Doubles follow tomorrow at 2pm.
FOOTBALL – In the Europa League: Among last night’s games, Besiktas beat Marseille 4-1, Juventus hammered Nijmegen 5-0, Celtic were beaten 3-1 by Budapest, and Crystal Palace were 4-0 winners over Lech Poznan.
Tonight in the Bundesliga, Bayern host Union Berlin. In France, Monaco face Lens, and in England, Brentford take on Chelsea.
CYCLING – Dutch cyclist Marijn van den Berg leads the Tour de Luxembourg after winning yesterday's sprint into Junglinster. Today's queen stage runs 180km from Wiltz to Diekirch, with over 3,000m of climbing. The finish is expected at around 6.15pm.
Cloud-filled skies for Luxembourg today, with some sunny intervals breaking through both morning and afternoon. Not much to write home about, weather-wise, but mild temperatures and next-to-no rain make for a pleasant, autumnal day. Temperatures will start off at between 9–13°C this morning, rising to a maximum of 20°C in the afternoon.
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