BY-ELECTIONS – Voters in two communes went to the polls on Sunday for by-elections. In Larochette, Annette Feyerstein and Philippe Deischter were elected to the local council, while in Bech, Christian Turk and Rafael Fernandes take up seats.
DP CONGRESS – The Democratic Party held its national congress in Bertrange on Sunday, with party leaders rallying around themes of unity, democracy, cost of living concerns, and issues such as housing. Deputy Prime Minister Xavier Bettel defended the recent minimum wage increase agreed at the tripartite talks.
FRENCH IN SCHOOLS – Luxembourg is expanding French language teaching in secondary schools and vocational training programmes from next year, Education Minister Claude Meisch has announced. More than two thirds of pupils do not speak Luxembourgish or German at home, yet German remains the main language of instruction. The number of schools offering French language education will rise significantly, and the curriculum and qualifications remain unchanged.
IRAN WAR – Israel has struck targets across western and central Iran, defying calls from US President Donald Trump to hold back. The attacks came in retaliation for an Iranian missile barrage on Sunday. Asian markets have fallen sharply on the news, with oil prices rising.
PHILIPPINES EARTHQUAKE – The tsunami warning issued for the Philippines has been lifted, several hours after a magnitude 7.8 earthquake. Buildings collapsed and people fled into the streets in panic. Residents in coastal areas had been urged to move to higher ground. Warnings were also issued for Indonesia and Japan.
CHINA NORTH KOREA – Chinese President Xi Jinping is in North Korea for a two-day state visit, his first trip to Pyongyang in nearly seven years. He's there at the invitation of leader Kim Jong Un.
UKRAINE WAR – EU Defence Ministers are meeting informally in Nicosia today, with discussions centring on European support for Ukraine. Britain, France, and Germany have pledged to intensify efforts to end the war in Ukraine, following a meeting in London between Keir Starmer, Emmanuel Macron, and Friedrich Merz, joined by President Zelensky. The three leaders say they want direct talks with Vladimir Putin, despite his recent indication that he would refuse.
POPE SPAIN – Pope Leo continues his visit to Spain today, meeting Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and members of the Spanish Parliament. The pontiff will also pray at Madrid's Almudena Cathedral before meeting the city's catholic community at the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium.
TENNIS – Germany's Alexander Zverev says he hopes his French Open victory will open the door to more Grand Slam titles. The world number two beat Italy's Flavio Cobolli in five sets on Sunday to claim his first major after three previous final defeats
FORMULA 1 – Kimi Antonelli won a dramatic Monaco Grand Prix on Sunday, stretching his championship lead to 66 points over Lewis Hamilton. It was the 19-year-old's fifth consecutive victory of the season.
FOOTBALL – Luxembourg's football team have ended their international season with a 1-0 friendly win over Albania in Tirana on Saturday. Danel Sinani scored the only goal in the eighth minute.
Denmark's Christian Eriksen has been taken to hospital after collapsing during a friendly against Ukraine in Odense. The match was abandoned. Eriksen regained consciousness and the Danish football association says he is doing as well as can be expected. He famously suffered a cardiac arrest at Euro 2020 and had to be resuscitated.
ATHLETICS – Luxembourg's Patrizia van der Weken clocked a season's best of 11.05 seconds to finish third in the 100 metres at the Diamond League meeting in Stockholm on Sunday.
We have a bright but deceptive start to the week – sunshine filtered through high cloud, with temperatures climbing from around 10°C this morning to a pleasant 22°C this afternoon. But don't be fooled: cloud will thicken throughout the day, and rain moves in by evening, lasting into the early hours.
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