Successive early summer heatwaves, which many scientists blame on human-driven climate change, have pushed temperatures to unprecedented levels in large swathes of the continent

International News via Reuters:

Firefighters backed by 30 aircraft struggled on Friday to contain a wildfire in northeastern Spain that has ripped through an area the size of San Francisco, forcing the evacuation of more than 1,000 people, as recent heatwaves left vegetation tinder-dry across much of Europe.

Successive early summer heatwaves, which many scientists blame on human-driven climate change, have pushed temperatures to unprecedented levels in large swathes of the continent, causing water shortages, crop damage, wildfires, and thousands more deaths than normal.

According to the Reuters Climate Monitor, the average high across Western Europe on Friday was forecast to be 27.5 degrees Celsius (81.5 degrees Fahrenheit), which is 4.2 C above the normal high for July 17 from 1961-1990.

In France, a drought has worsened day after day since the end of May, even as the latest heatwave continued to recede, with high temperatures expected to be mostly confined to the southeast by the weekend, according to MeteoFrance.

A gas-fired power plant in southern France was at risk of going offline as high temperatures in the Mediterranean Sea limited access to cooling water, piling further pressure on an energy system already facing reduced nuclear output due to warmer river waters.

In Germany, shallow water on the key Rhine River has hindered shipping, leading to rising transport costs, though rain has helped bump up levels, with more expected in the coming days.

STORMS ADD TO WORRIES

As the heat receded, giving way to violent storms in some places, two people died in central and eastern France and one in Germany’s southern state of Baden-Wuerttemberg as a result of falling trees or a lightning strike.

A “supercell” thunderstorm brought strong winds and hailstones measuring up to 5 cm (2 inches), with drivers seeking shelter under a motorway bridge outside Stuttgart due to the hail. Residents in the state were told to continue to expect severe weather on Friday.

In northeast Germany, firefighters were hoping for rain to help quell a wildfire at the Mueritz National Park that has been burning for nearly a week, their efforts hindered by unexploded ammunition at a former military training facility.

SPAIN BURNING

Spain’s weather agency AEMET warned temperatures would start rising again on Saturday, with highs potentially reaching 42-44 C in parts of the Andalusia and La Mancha regions next week. Forecasters also warned of an extreme wildfire risk as hot, dry air from North Africa advances across much of the country.

The wildfire near Ores in the northeastern region of Aragon expanded overnight to more than 12,000 hectares (46 square miles), with 300 military emergency responders deployed to contain the fire and helicopters operating in continuous rotations, at times with up to five aircraft loading water simultaneously.

“The houses have been saved, as have the people, but everything else has gone up in flames,” evacuee Maria Pilar Arregui told Reuters outside a sports centre turned into a temporary shelter in Ejea de los Caballeros.

Firefighters were also tackling wildfires near Madrid and in Guadalajara province, where around 1,500 hectares have burned and a summer camp was evacuated as a precaution. A week ago, one of Spain’s deadliest wildfires on record killed at least 13 people, mostly foreigners, in the southern province of Almeria.

In Greece’s metropolitan area of Athens, authorities went on high alert for wildfire risks, with drones equipped with thermal cameras patrolling over forests and water cannons stationed outside campsites.

EXCESS DEATHS

Earlier this month, the World Health Organization warned that Europe could face “more deadly weeks ahead” from new heatwaves forming over the Atlantic.

Scientists monitoring so-called excess deaths said there were thousands more fatalities recorded than normal during a heatwave that swept through Europe and Britain at the end of June.

“Nearly 10,000 excess deaths, and the summer is not yet over,” said Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO Regional Director for Europe, criticising governments for “still treating heat as a weather event rather than a health emergency”, despite existing tools and WHO guidance to prevent most of these deaths.

Reporting by Emma Pinedo in Madrid, Miranda Murray in Germany, Dominique Vidalon and Forrest Crellinin in Paris, Jennifer Rigby in London and Angeliki Koutantou in Athens, Writing by Andrei Khalip; Editing by Alexandra Hudson

Canada has more active wildfires than it had as of mid July for the past two years and a larger area has burned compared to 2025

International News via Reuters:

Ontario requested federal assistance to evacuate people from remote northern communities ravaged by wildfires on Thursday, as smoke brought poor air quality to Toronto and much of the Northeastern U.S.

Canada has more active wildfires than it had as of mid July for the past two years and a larger area has burned compared to 2025. Most of the fires are in remote areas of the central provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Ontario.

“In response to the significant threat of wildland fire activity in northern Ontario, the province has issued a formal Request for Assistance to the Government of Canada to be prepared to expedite the deployment of federal resources to support evacuations,” Ontario’s minister of emergency preparedness, Jill Dunlop, said on X. She said help sought included Canadian Armed Forces deployments.

Prime Minister Mark Carney said in prepared remarks that the federal government is in close communication with provincial and municipal counterparts and will provide additional assistance as needed.

Wildfires in recent years have overwhelmingly impacted remote indigenous communities. Indigenous Services Canada said 1,600 individuals had been evacuated from First Nations communities due to fires this season, as of July 15.

Some 859 active fires were burning in the country on Thursday, and 113 were considered out of control, according to the government. So far, 2.384 million hectares (5.89 million acres) have burned.

“The wildfire situation has escalated significantly over the last three weeks across the country, and particularly in Northwestern Ontario,” Carney said on Wednesday night. “Thousands of people have been forced to evacuate their communities, not knowing if their homes will survive.”

Canadian National Railway said employees in the area and residents of the town of Armstrong were evacuated on Monday night after a viral video shared on social media showed a CN train surrounded by fire in the area.

CN said it had suspended rail operations near Armstrong, more than 500 kilometers (310 miles) north of Toronto, as a precaution due to the wildfires.

Vancouver-based Fury Gold Mines said on Wednesday that it had temporarily suspended exploration and drilling at its Eau Claire project in northern Quebec after evacuating all personnel due to a nearby forest fire.

Australia-listed Green Technology Metals, which is focused on lithium exploration, has a mine located near Armstrong. Green Technology did not respond to an email query by Reuters on whether it had evacuated its staff.

Most northern Ontario gold mines are located far from the current fires.

Reporting by Wa Lone, David Ljunggren, Nivedita Balu and Divya Rajagopal; Writing by Caroline Stauffer; Editing by Mark Porter

The visit comes against the backdrop of growing speculation the United Nations will launch a fresh push to resolve the decades-old split of Cyprus before his term expires at the end of the year

International News via Reuters:

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres will travel to divided Cyprus at the end of July to discuss peacebuilding efforts between the Greek and Turkish Cypriots, a U.N. spokesperson said on Thursday.

• The visit comes against the backdrop of growing speculation the United Nations will launch a fresh push to resolve the decades-old split of Cyprus before his term expires at the end of the year.

• Guterres was due to meet with the Greek and Turkish Cypriot community leaders during his visit from July 27 to 29, spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said, underlining his “strong demonstrated commitment to the Cyprus issue”.

• “He will meet with the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leaders, as well as other stakeholders, and discuss efforts to advance the peace process and support stability on the island, including through the work of the U.N. peacekeeping mission on the ground there, UNFICYP,” Dujarric said.

• A diplomatic source in Nicosia said the itinerary included a joint meeting with the two leaders in a U.N.-administered buffer zone which has separated the two communities for decades.

• Cyprus was divided in 1974 after Turkey invaded parts of the island’s north following a Greek-backed coup. Seeds of division were sown shortly after independence from Britain in 1960, when a power-sharing administration of Greek Cypriots and Turkish Cypriots collapsed amid violence.

• Greek Cypriots run Cyprus’s internationally recognised government in the south with Turkish Cypriots administering the north.

• The last meaningful negotiations on Cyprus collapsed in 2017 amid disagreements on whether Turkey should have a role in a future federated Cyprus with two self-governing regions linked by a strong central government.

Reporting by David Brunnstrom; Writing by Michele Kambas; Editing by Ros Russell