https://feeds.thelocal.com/ Read the latest news and views from Europe in English en-us news@thelocal.com (TheLocal) webmaster@thelocal.com (TheLocal) TheLocal RSS Feed Europe saw at least 30,000 excess deaths across a blistering summer of back-to-back heatwaves and drought which scientists have blamed on man-made climate change, according to provisional figures. https://www.thelocal.com/20260822/heatwave-hit-europe-logs-over-30000-excess-summer-deaths Sat, 22 Aug 2026 10:53:02 +0200 heatwave-hit-europe-logs-over-30000-excess-summer-deaths With France preparing to go back to work, politicians are now turning their attention to the challenges ahead - and there are some big ones looming in la rentrée. https://www.thelocal.com/20260821/the-5-big-challenges-that-france-faces-in-september Fri, 21 Aug 2026 14:20:38 +0200 the-5-big-challenges-that-france-faces-in-september Wine harvesting season is underway in Austria, and that means the time window is open to try the sweet and semi-fermented alcoholic drink called Sturm. The Local spoke to a wine expert to find out more about Sturm season. https://www.thelocal.com/20230918/sturm-why-you-should-try-austrias-traditional-autumn-drink Mon, 18 Sep 2023 16:06:02 +0200 sturm-why-you-should-try-austrias-traditional-autumn-drink The head of Sweden's anti-immigration Sweden Democrats is eyeing the post of prime minister in 2030, he told AFP, less than a month ahead of a general election the right-wing bloc is seen losing. https://www.thelocal.com/20260819/sweden-democrats-leader-jimmie-akesson-eyes-prime-minister-job-in-2030 Wed, 19 Aug 2026 14:39:35 +0200 sweden-democrats-leader-jimmie-akesson-eyes-prime-minister-job-in-2030 Germany plans to keep controls at all nine land borders until March 2027. The move comes among an on-going debate over migration policy and the future of Europe's border-free Schengen area. https://www.thelocal.com/20260819/europes-free-movement-in-question-as-germany-extends-border-controls Wed, 19 Aug 2026 11:51:59 +0200 europes-free-movement-in-question-as-germany-extends-border-controls Indian engineer Niranjan Nithyanandam tells The Local how he and another passenger brought a careening bus to a halt, despite not even having a driving licence. https://www.thelocal.com/20260818/crazy-and-surreal-passengers-help-avert-disaster-after-swedish-bus-driver-faints Tue, 18 Aug 2026 16:33:18 +0200 crazy-and-surreal-passengers-help-avert-disaster-after-swedish-bus-driver-faints French prosecutors have opened a probe into a suspected Russian disinformation campaign targeting centrist candidates in next year's presidential elections, the office of the Paris prosecutor said on Tuesday. https://www.thelocal.com/20260818/france-probes-russian-disinfo-campaign-against-centrist-candidates Tue, 18 Aug 2026 16:06:19 +0200 france-probes-russian-disinfo-campaign-against-centrist-candidates With less than one month to go until the general election in Sweden, we are again asking you to tell us how The Local can serve you best. https://www.thelocal.com/20260326/how-would-you-like-the-local-to-cover-the-swedish-election Thu, 26 Mar 2026 07:10:47 +0100 how-would-you-like-the-local-to-cover-the-swedish-election Dozens of residents on Monday jeered the French prime minister as he arrived in an area hit by wildfires earlier this summer, in a show of anger over the government's handling of the worst such crisis in France in decades. https://www.thelocal.com/20260817/residents-jeer-french-pm-on-visit-to-fire-hit-region Mon, 17 Aug 2026 12:58:34 +0200 residents-jeer-french-pm-on-visit-to-fire-hit-region Scandinavian airline SAS has launched a new route between Mumbai and Copenhagen with five flights a week, making it the airline's first direct route between the two countries in 17 years. https://www.thelocal.com/20260817/sas-launch-direct-route-from-denmark-to-india-for-first-time-in-17-years Mon, 17 Aug 2026 12:45:56 +0200 sas-launch-direct-route-from-denmark-to-india-for-first-time-in-17-years Countries across Europe on Sunday continued to battle wildfires amid blistering temperatures and tinder-dry landscapes. https://www.thelocal.com/20260816/latest-europes-battle-with-wildfires-continues Sun, 16 Aug 2026 12:56:48 +0200 latest-europes-battle-with-wildfires-continues The EU pushed back Friday at renewed trade pressure from the United States, as Washington said the bloc was enabling Chinese evasion of US tariffs and stepped up calls for it to roll back flagship green rules on businesses. https://www.thelocal.com/20260815/eu-pushes-back-as-us-revives-trade-pressure-on-bloc Sat, 15 Aug 2026 14:54:42 +0200 eu-pushes-back-as-us-revives-trade-pressure-on-bloc Countries across Europe on Saturday battled wildfires amid blistering temperatures and tinder-dry landscapes, with thousands of people evacuated. https://www.thelocal.com/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.com/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 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.com/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 Spectacular images of lava flowing down the slopes of an erupting Mount Etna have drawn flocks of sometimes ill-equipped tourists to the Italian volcano – drawing concern from local guides. https://www.thelocal.com/20260813/safety-warnings-as-tourists-rush-to-erupting-mount-etna Thu, 13 Aug 2026 09:26:10 +0200 safety-warnings-as-tourists-rush-to-erupting-mount-etna 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.com/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.com/20260812/war-impact-on-european-travel-bookings-fading Wed, 12 Aug 2026 15:47:05 +0200 war-impact-on-european-travel-bookings-fading France on Wednesday recorded a more than 20 percent shortfall in nuclear power production capacity, a record deficit caused by environmentally related outages linked to drought, extreme heat and a jellyfish invasion. https://www.thelocal.com/20260812/extreme-weather-and-jellyfish-knock-one-fifth-of-frances-nuclear-capacity-offline Wed, 12 Aug 2026 15:10:32 +0200 extreme-weather-and-jellyfish-knock-one-fifth-of-frances-nuclear-capacity-offline The smell of warm bread hangs in the air at one of Benoît Castel's patisseries in Paris, where the newly crowned world's best pastry chef was hard at work testing new recipes. https://www.thelocal.com/20260811/breton-born-world-patisserie-champion-reveals-secret-of-his-success Tue, 11 Aug 2026 14:14:21 +0200 breton-born-world-patisserie-champion-reveals-secret-of-his-success