https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Austria in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed Countries across Europe were battling a wave of new wildfires Friday as blistering temperatures and tinder-dry landscapes made for dangerous conditions. https://www.thelocal.at/20260814/europe-battles-new-wave-of-wildfires Fri, 14 Aug 2026 14:49:54 +0200 europe-battles-new-wave-of-wildfires Millions of people across Europe -- particularly in France, Italy, Spain and Britain -- baked through a new wave of extreme temperatures Thursday as the continent's latest heatwave picked up. https://www.thelocal.at/20260812/europes-latest-heatwave-more-than-90-million-set-for-plus-35c-temperatures Wed, 12 Aug 2026 13:42:33 +0200 europes-latest-heatwave-more-than-90-million-set-for-plus-35c-temperatures Vienna's S-Bahn switches to an emergency timetable after a cable fire, while Austria faces another very hot day before cooler weather arrives next week, plus more stories from Austria on Friday. https://www.thelocal.at/20260814/today-in-austria-a-roundup-of-the-latest-news-on-friday-254 Fri, 14 Aug 2026 08:51:50 +0200 today-in-austria-a-roundup-of-the-latest-news-on-friday-254 Eurovision Song Contest organisers announced Wednesday that they were excluding any country in an armed conflict from hosting the competition, as the Bulgarian Black Sea city of Burgas will host Eurovision 2027. https://www.thelocal.at/20260813/eurovision-to-bar-countries-at-war-from-hosting Thu, 13 Aug 2026 09:35:09 +0200 eurovision-to-bar-countries-at-war-from-hosting New EU restrictions on toxic substances known as "forever chemicals" in food packaging kicked in Wednesday along with broader rules on cutting packaging waste in the bloc. https://www.thelocal.at/20260812/eu-curbs-on-forever-chemicals-in-food-packaging-kick-in Wed, 12 Aug 2026 16:28:43 +0200 eu-curbs-on-forever-chemicals-in-food-packaging-kick-in Travel giant TUI said Wednesday that bookings were returning to normal levels despite the ongoing Mideast war, as it presented its latest financial results. https://www.thelocal.at/20260812/war-impact-on-european-travel-bookings-fading Wed, 12 Aug 2026 15:47:05 +0200 war-impact-on-european-travel-bookings-fading With scorching temperatures breaking records across Europe this summer, The Local has put together tried and tested tips for surviving heatwaves from southern Europe, where locals have had decades of practice coping with the heat. https://www.thelocal.at/20260810/gelato-for-lunch-bedlinen-in-the-freezer-heatwave-tips-from-southern-europe Mon, 10 Aug 2026 15:46:06 +0200 gelato-for-lunch-bedlinen-in-the-freezer-heatwave-tips-from-southern-europe Western Europe experienced its hottest June-July on record as climate change fuels an historic summer of heat, drought and wildfires across the region, the EU's global warming monitor said Monday. https://www.thelocal.at/20260810/western-europe-experienced-hottest-june-july-on-record Mon, 10 Aug 2026 10:35:47 +0200 western-europe-experienced-hottest-june-july-on-record The EU's tech chief called on Meta and TikTok to "act decisively" to stem disinformation at times of crisis, saying the European Commission held talks with both platforms Friday following last week's Ceuta migrant surge. https://www.thelocal.at/20260808/eu-tells-meta-tiktok-to-boost-monitoring-fact-checking Sat, 08 Aug 2026 16:00:28 +0200 eu-tells-meta-tiktok-to-boost-monitoring-fact-checking After four demanding competition seasons and her Olympic debut, Canadian halfpipe skier Dillan Glennie tells The Local why she came to Innsbruck for a European summer experience. https://www.thelocal.at/20260804/why-canadian-olympian-dillan-glennie-chose-austria-for-a-different-kind-of-summer Tue, 04 Aug 2026 11:11:29 +0200 why-canadian-olympian-dillan-glennie-chose-austria-for-a-different-kind-of-summer Austrian writer Stefan Zweig, who fled his homeland as Nazi leader Adolf Hitler began his rise to power, has been honoured with a blue plaque at his former London home. https://www.thelocal.at/20260807/austrian-writer-stefan-zweig-who-fled-nazis-honoured-with-london-plaque Fri, 07 Aug 2026 12:35:56 +0200 austrian-writer-stefan-zweig-who-fled-nazis-honoured-with-london-plaque Spain and fellow EU nations moved to bury the hatchet Tuesday after a mass influx of migrants into the North African enclave of Ceuta laid bare fault lines on migration within the 27-nation bloc. https://www.thelocal.at/20260803/eu-chief-urges-united-action-on-borders-after-spains-ceuta-migrant-rush Mon, 03 Aug 2026 15:09:23 +0200 eu-chief-urges-united-action-on-borders-after-spains-ceuta-migrant-rush AI watermarking and deepfake labelling will soon be required by law in the EU as the transparency part of the bloc’s sweeping AI Act comes into force on August 2nd. https://www.thelocal.at/20260727/explained-eus-new-rules-on-ai-deepfakes-and-chatbots Mon, 27 Jul 2026 11:38:09 +0200 explained-eus-new-rules-on-ai-deepfakes-and-chatbots The European Union will from Sunday have the power to enforce landmark artificial intelligence rules and hit any companies breaking the law with fines. https://www.thelocal.at/20260801/eu-gets-new-powers-over-powerful-ai-from-sunday Sat, 01 Aug 2026 16:30:47 +0200 eu-gets-new-powers-over-powerful-ai-from-sunday Three wildfires that broke out within days of each other in Spain and France this month are among the 15 largest recorded in the European Union since 2016. https://www.thelocal.at/20260801/three-of-eus-15-largest-wildfires-since-2016-occurred-in-july Sat, 01 Aug 2026 14:06:16 +0200 three-of-eus-15-largest-wildfires-since-2016-occurred-in-july A majority of EU countries called on Saturday for emergency talks on the sudden inflow of tens of thousands of migrants into Spain's enclave of Ceuta in North Africa. https://www.thelocal.at/20260801/eu-countries-call-for-talks-over-migrant-influx-into-spanish-enclave Sat, 01 Aug 2026 14:00:35 +0200 eu-countries-call-for-talks-over-migrant-influx-into-spanish-enclave Several EU countries have caused a stir when they called to shut Spain out of the EU's visa-free Schengen travel zone after the Spanish enclave of Ceuta in Morocco was overwhelmed this week by thousands of migrant arrivals. Is that possible? https://www.thelocal.at/20260731/can-an-eu-member-state-be-kicked-out-of-schengen-zone Fri, 31 Jul 2026 15:18:33 +0200 can-an-eu-member-state-be-kicked-out-of-schengen-zone As firefighters struggle to contain some of the worst European wildfires in living memory with reduced numbers of aerial water bombers, production of the iconic aircraft creaks along half a world away in a Canadian factory. https://www.thelocal.at/20260730/why-europe-wont-get-any-new-canadair-water-bombers-any-time-soon Thu, 30 Jul 2026 13:23:51 +0200 why-europe-wont-get-any-new-canadair-water-bombers-any-time-soon Croatia launched a vast search operation on Sunday for an Austrian skipper who fell into the sea while sailing in the Adriatic during severe weather. https://www.thelocal.at/20260727/croatia-searches-for-missing-austrian-skipper Mon, 27 Jul 2026 09:09:47 +0200 croatia-searches-for-missing-austrian-skipper European holidaymakers worn down by recurrent heatwaves are currently snubbing Mediterranean destinations for northern climes in hopes of cooler temperatures, but it remains to be seen whether it is just a fad or a durable shift in the tourism market. https://www.thelocal.at/20260726/will-heatwaves-push-european-holidaymakers-to-coolcations Sun, 26 Jul 2026 14:18:09 +0200 will-heatwaves-push-european-holidaymakers-to-coolcations