July 21, 2022
A roundup of domestic and international news
Newsroom, 21.07.2022, 13:55
Rome. Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi has today submitted his resignation and that of his government to President Sergio Mattarella, who has asked him to remain in office for the interim management of the current affairs. The announcement was made by the head of states office in a statement taken over by international news agencies. The prime minister won a vote of confidence in the Senate on Wednesday, but three parties, the most important in the ruling coalition – the Five Star Movement, Lega and Forza Italia – did not take part in the vote, even though the senators were present. The technocrat, appointed in 2021 to lead a government of national unity during the recovery from the impact of the pandemic and a vast program of reforms, has been very popular. Two thousand mayors and business leaders across the country have publicly asked him to continue his term.
Protest. Trade unionists from the national air transport company TAROM are organizing, today, for an hour, a protest rally in front of the companys headquarters in Otopeni, near Bucharest. They are dissatisfied with the fact that the companys administration does not want to approve the required salary increase. Employees say they want a decent salary but have been treated superficially by the companys management during collective bargaining. They demand an increase in the salary budget of 35%. Some of the employees will be fired in the following days, as they failed the professional evaluation test.
Extreme weather. Romanian authorities have established a set of measures valid this summer, during periods when weather alerts are issued. Starting today, a response team is operational and first aid shelters equipped with drinking water have been set up. Also the population will be regularly informed, and the authorities will coordinate together with non-governmental organizations actions to help vulnerable people. The Secretary of State with the Ministry of Interior, Raed Arafat, spoke about banning the use of open fire for burning stubble and dry vegetation, but also about the monitoring of forest area, in particular those frequented by tourists. The authorities recommend avoiding traveling or alternating it with rest in air-conditioned spaces, especially for people suffering from certain diseases and the elderly. Environment Minister Tánczos Barna has pointed out that in the current drought conditions watering gardens with drinking water is a terrible waste, arguing that some local governments will have to impose restrictions in this regard. The Minister of Transport, Sorin Grindeanu, has also stated that the National Railway Company CFR Călători could reduce, during the heat wave, the number of passengers in the carriages that have no air conditioning. In some counties, temporary restrictions have been imposed for heavy road traffic (over 7.5 tons).
Heat. Spain continues to be the country hardest hit by the heat wave that has affected western and southern Europe. Nearly 700 deaths have been reported as being caused by the extreme heat. Also, thousands of hectares of forest are still on fire, and the wind hampers the firefighters efforts. The fire in Zamora, in the community of Castilla y León, the largest ever reported, continues to burn mainly due to the wind. In France, the southwestern Gironde region has been hit by heat waves and fires that have destroyed more than 200 square kilometers of land. In Portugal, authorities extended the alert after temperatures began to rise again. About 900 firefighters are involved in extinguishing the fires in Vila Real, in the north of the country, where two people lost their lives due to the fires. After a few days of bearable temperatures, the thermometers rose again to 40 degrees Celsius in Portugal.
Football. Four Romanian football teams are playing today in the second preliminary round of the Europa Conference League. The CFR Cluj champion will meet, at home, the Inter Club dEscaldes team, from Andorra, and the winner of the Romanian Cup, Sepsi OSK Sfântu Gheorghe, will also play at home with Olimpija Ljubljana (Slovenia). FCSB and Universitatea Craiova will play away from home with FC Saburtalo (Georgia) and Vllaznia Shkoder (Albania), respectively. The return game is scheduled this week.
Tennis. Romanian Irina Begu (45 WTA) has qualified for the quarterfinals of the WTA 250 tournament in Palermo, Italy, with total prizes of over 200 thousand euros, after defeating the French Oceane Dodin (77 WTA), in 3 sets. In the next round, she will face the winner of the match between Diane Parry (86 WTA) of France and Yulia Putintseva (39 WTA) of Kazakhstan. Begu is sixth seed at the tournament in Italy. The Romanian is close to equaling her best performance in Palermo. In 2012, she reached the semifinals. (MI)
