The June heat wave caused an exceptionally high excess mortality rate in Belgium: 47.8 percent, accounting for 1,747 additional deaths. According to Sciensano, the Belgian National Institute for Public Health, this is the highest mortality rate during a heat wave since records began in 2000.
No seaside resort in Belgium is more fashionable than Knokke, just across the border with the Netherlands, but its status as a fashionable seaside resort is increasingly threatened by the disturbances caused mainly by young people from Brussels and northern France.
During the NATO summit in Ankara, Donald Trump once again caused tensions by stating that Greenland should be “under the control of the United States” rather than Denmark. In doing so, the U.S. president reignited a long-standing and highly sensitive issue, just as the alliance is already under pressure from discussions about defense spending, Iran, and the division of roles between Europe and the U.S.
Marine Le Pen is, in principle, eligible to run for the 2027 French presidential election after an appeals court upheld her conviction in the case involving the misuse of European Parliament funds but reduced the ban on her eligibility to run for office.
According to the Estonian public broadcaster ERR News, Estonia is fed up with Russian influence on its territory and has issued an ultimatum to the Orthodox Church.
Fear of an imminent Russian threat appears to be growing in many countries. And this is also translating—primarily due to some pressure from U.S. President Trump—into increased defense spending. Following the NATO summit in Ankara with the leaders of the 32 NATO Member States, the Ukrainian president warns that Russia could indeed attack a NATO country in the near future.
Speaking to the press from the NATO summit at the presidential complex in the Turkish capital of Ankara, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte shared his views on the heavy attacks the United States carried out against Iranian targets last night.
Things didn’t turn out the way some fans had expected. They feel they didn’t get their money’s worth—in this case, 300 euros. But the organizer is defending himself against the criticism. According to him, it was clear from the start that this was an afterparty at a nightclub and not a full-fledged concert.
Volodymyr Zelensky plans to once again urge NATO to provide more air defense for Ukraine at the NATO summit in Turkey, as Russian airstrikes continue to intensify the pressure on Kyiv. The Ukrainian president wants to convince his allies that additional interceptor missiles and Patriot systems are essential to protect civilians and cities from the escalating missile and drone attacks.
It's not yet clear whether she will actually officially declare her candidacy, as she previously stated she would not run for the French presidency if she were required to wear an ankle monitor. However, the court has already ruled that Marine Le Pen is indeed allowed to run for the Élysée.