Latest news bulletin | August 13th – Morning
Catch up with the most important stories from around Europe and beyond - latest news, breaking news, World, Business, Entertainment, Politics, Culture, Travel.
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00:00Russian President Vladimir Putin has promised that the Russian army will prevail following
00:10Ukraine's incursion of Kursk, and says that the focus lies on driving out the enemy from
00:15Russia's territories.
00:19The Russian President spoke with top security and defence officials as Ukraine has made
00:24headway into Russian territory.
00:45Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky also confirmed for the first time since the incursion
00:49that troops are conducting an operation in the Kursk region.
00:53The Ukrainian armed forces now reportedly control about 1,000 square kilometres within
00:58Russian territory in the largest Ukrainian incursion since the start of the war.
01:06This is footage from the Greek capital, Athens, surrounded by smoke as firefighters battle
01:13wildfires.
01:14Strong winds are complicating their efforts, prompting evacuation orders.
01:19Hundreds of firefighters and dozens of water-dropping planes are on the scene, fighting to control
01:25the blaze, whilst police helped evacuate the most vulnerable.
01:50The European Civil Protection Mechanism have been activated in order to send air and ground
01:58assistance to help deal with the wildfires affecting the region since Sunday afternoon.
02:05So far, France, Italy and the Czech Republic have responded to the Greek request, with
02:11supplies varying from helicopters to firefighters and canadairs.
02:17Resistance from Spain and Turkey is also expected.
02:21June and July of this year were the hottest months ever recorded in Greece.
02:30Serbia's president has slammed the recent country-wide demonstrations against his approval
02:36of a new mining project, describing the issue as only impacting a minority.
02:41For days, tens of thousands of campaigners flooded Belgrade and other cities to protest
02:47a new lithium mining project spearheaded by Rio Tinto and tapped for the verdant Jadar Valley.
03:18Serbia's interior minister said 14 individuals were arrested at the recent demonstration,
03:25with prosecutors expected to bring felony charges to others once identified.
03:31It comes as the EU recently inked an agreement with Serbia to supercharge acquiring raw materials
03:38for sustainable technologies from the mineral-rich country.
03:46This is Excessland, one of SIGET's festival's most unique venues.
03:51Here, festival-goers can experience what it's like to live as a person with a disability.
03:58There are a range of activities, from wheelchair fencing to painting without hands.
04:03I like this experience, it's fun to try something else, but it also makes you realize, wow,
04:10without my hands it's really hard to do something that in daily life it would be, you know,
04:15really easy and, yeah, you don't think about that in daily life.
04:21As well as providing entertainment, the participating NGOs also aim to shape the attitudes surrounding disability.
04:46The games range from individual activities to dual and larger group sports.
04:54Excessland offers a different take on these popular sports and activities.
05:01Playing brings both people together while simultaneously benefiting the NGOs.
05:16The most popular activities include two obstacle courses by the I Won't Give Up Foundation.
05:28One is a wheelchair obstacle course and the other is a maze where participants need to
05:32find the exit blindfolded.
05:33Honestly, at the beginning I thought I was doing very well, but after you go to the very
05:38small spaces, I was completely lost.
05:43So it's, I mean, it's fun for us and it's a ludic way to put ourselves in their shoes,
05:49but I cannot imagine how hard it is to do this every day.
05:52In addition to playful learning, the venue has another very important function.
06:01In Excessland, there are also those who live with special needs.
06:05Here, for example, you can rent a wheelchair and the visually impaired can ask for an accompanist.
06:11Magyar Ádám, Euronews, Budapest Island Festival.
06:19Over 100 protesters have taken to the popular Belario Six Beach on the Balearic Island of Mallorca
06:26to host a protest.
06:28The coastline, visited yearly by tourists, is also a reminder that locals have difficulties enjoying it.
06:35Demonstrators, part of the Ocupem les Nostros Plages, also known as the Beach Occupy Movement,
06:42demand tourism limits and solutions to problems such as the saturation of public services
06:48or the difficulties of access to housing.
06:51The Balearic government has created a joint committee with the tourist sector and civil society
06:57to put a limit on tourism by redoubling controls against illegal tourist flats and fines going up to 80,000 euros.
07:062023 was a record year for the island with almost 14 million visitors,
07:12but this year that number has already been exceeded by 6 million.
07:19Restoring old houses to attract tourism.
07:23This is what local people of the central Romanian village of Simarna are doing.
07:28As more and more people wish to experience life in a traditional home,
07:33century-old houses are being refurbished or even moved into more quiet scenic areas.
07:39One of the owners explains what the attraction is all about.
07:44This specificity creates for a tourist a lot of intimacy.
07:49I mean, once you enter the door, you are with the people you wanted to come with.
07:55An intimacy, so to speak, comfortable and romantic.
07:59You can wake up in pajamas to drink coffee, if you feel like it, make a barbecue,
08:04if you want, make a beach, if you want, walk through the garden, which is generous.
08:11It's very pleasant to stay here and I know a lot of stories.
08:15Tourists say why they love this place.
08:18You can feel the energy of the place.
08:22We like the silence and the nature is very beautiful.
08:27Many of the owners of the traditional houses are also collectors,
08:32keeping pieces of art like ancient irons, cast iron stoves
08:36and old kitchen items used by their grandparents.
08:40In a place that seems to be cut off from the world, time can almost feel like it has stopped.
08:54In Romania, the farmers who own land of sunflower or corn are devastated.
08:59The heat waves from July, when the temperature exceeded 40 degrees Celsius, destroyed most of their crops.
09:06Here, in a land of sunflower, I can see that the plants are really tall, but they are dry and the flowers are really small.
09:13The farmers say their losses might reach even 90%.
09:19If in a good year, let's say, we were somewhere at 2,500-3,000 kilograms per hectare,
09:26this year we hope to reach 1,000 kilograms,
09:30although from what can be seen here in this soil, we will certainly not reach it.
09:35Farmers from Oltenia started harvesting sunflowers three weeks earlier than in previous years.
09:41The plants can no longer be left in the fields because they are drying out due to the drought.
09:47In fact, some farmers have had their crops completely compromised.
09:52It's a disaster. It rained, and now it's raining again.
09:57I don't even know if I'll be able to pay for it.
10:00Approximately 300 applications have been registered regarding the calamities to the flower and corn culture.
10:06The cultures are affected, people are dissatisfied with the current situation, and they continue to make applications.
10:14According to agricultural authorities, about 65% of all sunflower crops in Dolj County have been affected by the drought.
10:23Romania's National Meteorological Administration warns that severe and extreme drought will persist.
10:35The Olympic Games in Paris have officially ended, with the city lighting up in a magnificent ceremony.
10:42The next Olympics is scheduled for 2028 and will take place in Los Angeles.
10:47However, Americans who spoke to Euronews expressed some concerns about how that might happen.
10:54I do think traffic is going to be a major concern because I think Paris is a little bit more easier with public transportation.
11:03I'm not sure about L.A. because I don't live there, but I do think that might be an issue, but I'm going to go anyway and have fun.
11:10I live in L.A. and New York. L.A. is building the trains. They're going to figure it out. I think it's going to be simple and easy.
11:16It was really, really easy to get from one side of town to the other side of town in Paris.
11:20I was able to make all the games. I did some games, three games in a day.
11:25But I think L.A. is going to figure it out. I can't wait to be there.
11:31This year, the U.S. finished top of the table for the fourth consecutive Olympics.
11:36Can they make it a fifth on their home territory? We'll have to wait and see.