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Egypt Independent
30-06-2025
- Climate
- Egypt Independent
Severe heat waves hit southern Europe as local authorities warn against wildfire risks
Rome AP — Major heat waves across southern Europe have pushed temperatures above 104 degrees Fahrenheit (40 degrees Celsius) in countries including Italy, Spain and Greece, as local authorities issued fresh warnings against the risk of wildfires. Experts link the rising frequency and intensity of these heatwaves to climate change, warning that such extreme weather events are becoming increasingly common across Europe's southern region. Severe heat waves were recorded in Italy, Greece, Spain and Portugal before the weekend, with locals and tourists alike taking shelter from the sweltering conditions. Two-thirds of Portugal were on high alert on Sunday for extreme heat and wildfires, with temperatures expected to top 107 Fahrenheit (42 Celsius) in Lisbon. In Italy, a few regions – Lazio, Tuscany, Calabria, Puglia and Umbria – were planning to ban some outdoor work activities during the hottest hours of the day in response to the record-high temperatures. Italian trade unions pushed the government to expand such measures at a national level. On Sunday, the Italian Health Ministry placed 21 out of 27 monitored cities under its highest heat alert, including top holiday destinations like Rome, Milan and Naples. In Rome, tourists tried to seek shade near popular spots like the Colosseum and the Trevi Fountain, using umbrellas and drinking from public water fountains to stay cool. Similar scenes were reported in Milan and Naples, where street vendors sold lemonade to tourists and residents to offer some refreshment from the heat. People fill their bottle at a fountain on a hot summer day in Rome, near the Vatican, on Saturday. Tiziana Fabi/AFP/Getty Images Greece was again on high wildfire alert because of extreme weather, with the first summer heat wave expected to continue throughout the weekend. A large wildfire broke out south of Athens on Thursday, forcing evacuations and road closures near the ancient Temple of Poseidon. Strong winds spread the flames, damaging homes and sending smoke across the sky. Greek authorities deployed 130 firefighters, 12 planes and 12 helicopters to battle the blaze, while police evacuated 40 people, with five areas under evacuation orders. In Spain, locals and tourists were desperately trying to keep cool this weekend, as the country sizzled in temperatures as high as 107 Fahrenheit (42 Celsius) in the southern city of Seville along with other locations in southern and central parts of the country. Southern regions of Spain recorded temperatures above seasonal averages, prompting health alerts and safety recommendations from authorities. The country's national meteorological service Aemet has said that June is set to break yet another record, becoming the hottest such month since records started. Experts warned that intense heat can affect daily life, especially for vulnerable populations such as the elderly and children. Local authorities advised against physical activity during the hottest hours of the day, and recommended drinking plenty of fluids. A Lancet Public Health study published last year highlighted the increasing risk of heat-related deaths because of climate change. The study predicted that heat-related deaths could more than quadruple by mid-century under current climate policies. While more people die from cold than heat, the study stressed that rising temperatures will offset the benefits of milder winters, leading to a significant net increase in heat-related mortality.
GMA Network
29-06-2025
- Climate
- GMA Network
Cold baths, ‘climate shelters' as southern Europe heatwave intensifies
People fill up water bottles at a fountain at Piazza Pio on a hot summer day, in Rome near the Vatican on June 28, 2025. Italy's health ministry warned of soaring temperatures across the country, issuing a red alert for 21 cities including Rome, Milan, and Venice. Tiziana Fabi/ AFP ROME — Authorities across southern Europe urged people to seek shelter Sunday and protect the most vulnerable as punishing temperatures from Spain to Portugal, Italy and France climbed higher in the summer's first major heatwave. Ambulances stood on standby near tourist hotspots and regions issued fire warnings as experts warned that such heatwaves, intensified by climate change, would become more frequent. Peaks of 43 degrees Celsius (109 Fahrenheit) were expected in areas of southern Spain and Portugal, while nearly all of France is sweltering in heat expected to last for several days. In Italy, 21 cities were on high alert for extreme heat, including Milan, Naples, Venice, Florence and Rome. "We were supposed to be visiting the Colosseum, but my mum nearly fainted," said British tourist Anna Becker, who had traveled to Rome from a "muggy, miserable" Verona. Hospital emergency departments across Italy have reported an uptick in heatstroke cases, according to Mario Guarino, vice president of the Italian Society of Emergency Medicine. "We've seen around a 10 percent increase, mainly in cities that not only have very high temperatures but also a higher humidity rate. It is mainly elderly people, cancer patients or homeless people, presenting with dehydration, heat stroke, fatigue," he told AFP. 'Climate shelters' Hospitals like the Ospedale dei Colli in Naples have set up dedicated heatstroke pathways to speed access to vital treatments like cold water immersion, Guarino said. In Venice, authorities offered free guided tours for people over 75s in air-conditioned museums and public buildings. Bologna has set up seven "climate shelters" with air conditioning and drinking water, Florence has called on doctors to flag up the lonely and vulnerable, Ancona is delivering dehumidifiers to the needy, and Rome has offered free access to city swimming pools for those over 70. Scientists say climate change is stoking hotter and more intense heatwaves, particularly in cities where the so-called "urban heat island" effect amplifies temperatures among tightly packed buildings. "The heat waves in the Mediterranean region have become more frequent and more intense in recent years, with peaks of 37 degrees or even more in cities, where the urban heat island effect raises the temperatures even further," said Emanuela Piervitali, a researcher at the Italian Institute for Environmental Protection and Research (ISPRA). "A further increase in temperature and heat extremes is expected in the future, so we will have to get used to temperatures with peaks even higher than those we are experiencing now," she told AFP. Invasive species In Portugal, several areas in the southern half of the country, including the capital Lisbon, are under a red warning for heat until Monday night due to "persistently extremely high maximum temperature values," according to the Portuguese Institute for Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA). Two-thirds of Portugal was on high alert Sunday for extreme heat and forest fires, as was the Italian island of Sicily, where firefighters tackled 15 blazes Saturday. In France, experts warned that the heat was also severely impacting biodiversity. "With this stifling heat, the temperature can exceed 40 degrees in some nests," said Allain Bougrain-Dubourg, president of the League for the Protection of Birds (LPO). "We are taking in birds in difficulty everywhere; our seven care centers are saturated," he said. It is also attracting invasive species, which are thriving in the more tropical climes. Italy's ISPRA launched a campaign this week urging fishermen and tourists alike to report sightings of four "potentially dangerous" venomous species. The lionfish, silver-cheeked toadfish, dusky spinefoot and marbled spinefoot are beginning to appear in waters off southern Italy as the Mediterranean warms, it said. — AFP
IOL News
02-05-2025
- General
- IOL News
A Man of the People: Hamba Kahle Papa Francisco
Pope Francis was a man of the people. Image: Tiziana Fabi / AFP Pope Francis died and asked to be buried as a simple man. A man of the people. The pope was humorous and funny and loved football - rumoured to be a supporter of San Lorenzo de Almagro FC. On their website, the club simply said: 'Hasta siempre, Santo Padre!' – with these words, meaning 'Farewell forever, Holy Father,' . He was a socio - a card carrying member (Member N°88235) el El Ciclón - from his early days as a priest in Buenos Aires. The club's Instagram page waxed poetically about Papa Francisco and it is worth a watch here: He not only had a common touch, but in life sought to remain in touch with people. It was reported that every night for 18 months the pope would phone the Holy Family Church in Gaza City around 8pm to speak to Father Gabriel Romanelli, the pastor of the besieged Gaza strip's parish. Most calls lasted about 15 minutes as he enquired about the well-being of those sheltered there. Video Player is loading. Play Video Play Unmute Current Time 0:00 / Duration -:- Loaded : 0% Stream Type LIVE Seek to live, currently behind live LIVE Remaining Time - 0:00 This is a modal window. Beginning of dialog window. Escape will cancel and close the window. Text Color White Black Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Background Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Opaque Semi-Transparent Transparent Window Color Black White Red Green Blue Yellow Magenta Cyan Transparency Transparent Semi-Transparent Opaque Font Size 50% 75% 100% 125% 150% 175% 200% 300% 400% Text Edge Style None Raised Depressed Uniform Dropshadow Font Family Proportional Sans-Serif Monospace Sans-Serif Proportional Serif Monospace Serif Casual Script Small Caps Reset restore all settings to the default values Done Close Modal Dialog End of dialog window. Advertisement Next Stay Close ✕ The last call apparently lasted only 30 seconds and was a quick check in, but it affirmed his direct moral and spiritual support and leadership to Christians, and the embattled people of Gaza. It helped to keep hope alive. He was buried last Saturday. Pope Francis was the first Jesuit priest to become pope and at birth he was named Jorge Mario Bergoglio. He was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on December 17, 1936. The book taken from his interview, and written by Hernán Reyes Alcaide, is entitled Hope Never Disappoints: Pilgrims towards a Better World (Nov 24). It was released ahead of the Jubilee Year 2025 with a similar theme, asking us to become pilgrims of hope, as he campaigned against displacement, migration and strife. An excerpt from La Stampa reads thus: "Something similar has happened in the Middle East, where the open doors of nations such as Jordan or Lebanon continue to be the salvation of millions of people fleeing the conflicts in the area: I am thinking especially of those who leave Gaza in the midst of the famine that has struck their Palestinian brothers and sisters in the face of the difficulty of getting food and aid to their territory." According to some experts, what is happening in Gaza has the characteristics of genocide. It would be necessary to investigate carefully to determine whether it fits within the technical definition formulated by jurists and international bodies. This echoes the call that South African lawyers made before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in December 2023 when the South African government took the bold step of taking the Israeli regime to The Hague. South Africa filed the papers on 29 December 2023 at the ICJ requesting the court, asking it to declare "on an urgent basis that Israel is in breach of its obligations in terms of the Genocide Convention, should immediately cease all acts and measures in breach of those obligations and take a number of related actions". When the book was released the number of Palestinians killed by Israel stood at about 43,846 people, most of them civilians, according to the Ministry of Health in Gaza. The number of those killed today stands at 51,240 Palestinians - mainly civilians. These figures exclude those under the rubble. History will judge both Pope Francis and South Africa favourably, but in the meantime the haters will continue to fight for space… but we cannot stop now. We have to do more and take our provisional measures placed before the ICJ to the International Criminal Court. The Pope's love for Palestinians as part of the wretched of the earth is unmatched by today's clergy or leaders of all faiths and doctrines. He symbolised and lived with hope and solidarity and believes as we all must: Hope Never Disappoints. The pope was inspired by hope and compassion, campaigning against what he defined as the globalisation of indifference, which he said is an ugly disease. Howard Zinn wrote: "We cannot be neutral on a moving train". We must stand for the poor, the marginalised, the voiceless against those who usurp all the resources like the environment. In his famous encyclical, Pope Laudato si' (2015), Pope Francis' encyclical on ecology, climate change, and care for our common home he educated us on the importance of caring for mother earth, and urged action against global warming, stating that "the Earth, our home, is beginning to look more and more like an immense pile of filth.". He railed against global inequality and excessive consumerism, waste and greed. But he never forgot the refugees, the victims of political, military and environmental abuses of power. The pope consistently spoke out against Israel's terrorism and genocide against Palestinians. The UNRWA (United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees) wrote this shattering reminder: At least 100 children are reported killed or injured every day in #Gaza, since the strikes resumed (on 18 March) according to @UNICEF… Young lives cut short in a war not of children's making. Since the war began over a year-and-half ago, 15,000 children have reportedly been killed. The ceasefire at the beginning of the year gave Gaza's children a chance to survive and be children. The resumption of the war is again robbing them of their childhood. The war has turned Gaza into a 'no land' for children. This is a stain on our common humanity. To end, on 24 December 2024, I co-wrote a poem with Pope Francis (he did not know it)... *WALKING IN GAZAN SHOES* With pain I think of Gaza So much pain I think of Gaza I think of the children Machine gunned in gaza With pain I think of Gaza Of the bombings The bombings of schools and hospitals Oh Gaza What cruelty in Gaza Gaza So much cruelty Yesterday children Children were bombed(again) in Gaza Bombed in Gaza Bombed This is not war This is cruelty The pain of Gaza Touches deep into my heart Hassl (and Pope Francis, Christmas eve 2024) * Hassen Lorgat is a social justice activist who has worked in trade union and anti apartheid sports movements ** The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of IOL or Independent Media.
New York Times
21-04-2025
- Politics
- New York Times
Pope Francis Dies at 88, and Another Hegseth Signal Chat
Image Pope Francis' groundbreaking pontificate sought, however haltingly, to reshape the Roman Catholic Church into a more inclusive institution. Credit... Tiziana Fabi/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images Tune in, and tell us what you think at theheadlines@ . For corrections, email nytnews@ . For more audio journalism and storytelling, download the New York Times Audio app — available to Times news subscribers on iOS — and sign up for our weekly newsletter. Special thanks to Jesus Jiménez.
