Wildfires, driven by intense heatwaves, strong winds, and in some cases suspected arson, raged across southern Europe on Wednesday, torching homes, farmland, and factories while forcing thousands of residents and tourists to flee.
In Greece, flames swept through olive groves and forests near Patras, disrupting rail traffic and engulfing a cement factory in thick smoke.
Authorities ordered mass evacuations, including residents from two islands popular with tourists — Chios and Cephalonia.
In Spain, a volunteer firefighter died from severe burns while battling a blaze in the Castile and Leon region, bringing the country’s wildfire death toll this year to six. The extreme heatwave, now in its tenth day, has kept much of Spain at the highest fire risk level.
Other blazes were sparked by lightning strikes, such as in Los Romeros, Andalusia, and in Portugal’s Trancoso area, where a previously contained fire reignited.
Albania is also facing a 'critical week,' with 24 active wildfires threatening villages and forcing people to evacuate with their livestock. Across the region, experts warn that insufficient prevention measures are putting firefighters’ lives in danger and urge investments in forest management to avoid catastrophic losses.
Southern Europe’s extreme weather has also disrupted daily life — Pope Leo moved his weekly audience indoors to avoid dangerous heat, while Italy issued red alerts for 16 cities, with Florence expecting temperatures up to 39°C (102°F).
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Iran's Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad has resigned, with Hamid Bovard, chief executive of the state-owned National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), appointed as acting oil minister, according to Iranian state media.
Right-wing Brazilian Senator Flavio Bolsonaro will face leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in a runoff of the presidential election later this month, after he exceeded expectations in Sunday's first-round vote with a slight lead over the incumbent.
Candidates elected to Bosnia and Herzegovina's three-member presidency declared victory after preliminary unofficial results showed Denis Becirovic leading the Bosniak seat, Darijana Filipovic ahead in the Croat seat and Zeljka Cvijanovic likely retaining the Serb seat.
Uzbekistan’s grape exports have grown rapidly. In January-August 2025, the country exported 86,200 tonnes of fresh grapes worth $78.3 million to 19 countries but can it turn these crops into a recognisable international product?
Iran says the Strait of Hormuz will remain closed until the United States meets seven conditions agreed under a June memorandum, as President Donald Trump signals he may soon decide whether to resume military operations against Tehran.
Türkiye’s COP31 presidency has unveiled an action agenda designed to turn climate commitments into concrete projects and measurable results, focusing on clean energy, waste reduction, resilient cities and industrial decarbonisation.
Greenland and Antarctica have shed a combined 11.3 trillion tonnes of ice since 1979, according to the most comprehensive satellite study of the planet's ice sheets to date, with researchers warning the pace of loss has accelerated sharply in recent decades.
The European Union will continue allowing large-scale plastic waste exports to Türkiye despite concerns over recycling rates, environmental damage and the risk of illegal waste trafficking.
Hundreds of thousands of deep-diving turtles, known as olive ridley sea turtles, have arrived on Mexico’s southern coast for one of nature’s most striking nesting events. But conservation officials warn that climate change is making it increasingly difficult for their eggs to hatch.
August 2026 tied as the hottest month ever recorded globally, pushing average temperatures above the critical 1.5°C threshold as extreme weather swept across several regions, the EU’s Copernicus Climate Change Service said.
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