Shooter Veikko Tihvan has made Estonian sports history by winning the FITASC Compak Sporting World Championships in Rio Salso, Italy.

Kino Sõprus cinema chain showed its first film at Priisle Park in Tallinn's Lasnamäe district last week and is planning several outdoor screenings across the city in the coming weeks.

A bill aimed at clarifying the Financial Intelligence Unit's (FIU) access to banking data and restoring its ability to conduct on-site inspections has passed its first reading in the Riigikogu.

The government will begin discussions on next year's budget and the state budget strategy at Stenbock House on Tuesday.

Sunday marked 87 years since the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact was signed. The agreement, between the Soviet Union and Nazi Germany, paved the way for Estonia's over 50 years of occupation.

Saaremaa Municipality has preserved a key piece of local heritage by completing a €3.4 million renovation of the over 200-year-old Laimjala manor house, which now brings a local district center, library, school, and kindergarten together under one roof.

Eeloleval talvel võib kaugküte paljudes Eesti piirkondades olla mullusest kallim, kuid üle-eestilist suurt hinnahüpet praegused andmed ei näita. Seal, kus soojuse piirhind on viimase küttehooajaga võrreldes tõusnud, jääb kallinemine sageli 5–10 protsendi vahele. Üksikutes võrkudes ulatub hinnatõus üle kümne protsendi, paljudes piirkondades pole hind aga üldse muutunud.

Ukraina sõjavägi ründas ööl vastu teisipäeva Venemaa Krasnodari kraid, kus tabas sotsiaalmeedia seirekanalite andmetel Afipski naftarafineerimistehast, vahendas varahommikul ajaleht Kyiv Independent.

It comes after Moscow warned of "consequences" over the reported use of British drones by Ukraine.

UK Prime Minister Andy Burnham is handing over blueprints so Kyiv can build its own long-range missiles.

Experts have warned that he and Chancellor John Healey will have little room to manoeuvre in their first Budget.

The coin has been designed to feature King Charles III and a Scottish grouse close to extinction.

ATHENS — Greece’s government and tourism officials are determined not to squander the opportunities created by a resurgence of interest in everything Greek kindled by Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster movie version of Homer’s epic poem, the Odyssey. Conservative Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis was quick to organize a videoconference with Nolan to thank him and praise the film’s “contribution to stimulating global interest in ancient Greek culture.” Since a significant part of the filming took place in Greece — showcasing some of the country’s most iconic sites like Nestor’s Cave, Voidokilia Beach, Methoni Castle and Acrocorinth — he also noted that “such productions bridge Greece’s rich cultural heritage with contemporary creativity.” Perhaps most crucially for the Greek economy, officials are now seeking to translate that renewed interest in the Cyclops and man-eating Laestrygonians into tourist revenue. The Greek National Tourism Organization organized a press trip to Odysseus’ home island of Ithaca — to which he struggled to return after the Trojan War — that resulted in a 162-page publication by Le Figaro magazine, titled “In the Footsteps of Odysseus.” The Peloponnese region is creating a thematic travel program, called “The Odyssey Route — Homer’s Peloponnese,” which will likely be ready by November. The regional authorities are currently designing the signs and website that will guide tourists. “The aim is to link Homer’s epics and the film production, connect the production locations with other locations in the Peloponnese, associated with the myth itself,” said the deputy regional governor for tourism in the Peloponnese region, Thanasis Michelongonas. Such locations include the islet of Cranae, where, according to legend, Paris of Troy took Helen for their first night after abducting her from Sparta. Or the tiny islet of Pefnos, where Zeus took refuge in the form of a swan and seduced (or assaulted) Leda, who subsequently gave birth to the famous egg from which Helen of Troy hatched. “We want to capitalize on the hype created,” Michelongonas said. “Expectations are probably greater than reality. Of course, that doesn’t change the fact that we’ve received a great deal of publicity, worth millions and it’s up to us to make the most of it.” A statue of Homer, the Greek epic poet who is credited with the “Iliad” and the “Odyssey,” circa 850 B.C. | Hulton Archive/Getty Images The initial signs are that Greece is indeed enjoying an Odyssey surge. Data from easyJet holidays in early August revealed a spike, with overall bookings to the Greek mainland and island breaks rising 18 percent week-on-week. Unforgettable Greece, a tour operator, told Travel Weekly that bookings to Greece increased 76 percent year-on-year. The company launched 22 new thematic itineraries linking Athens, Corfu and Ithaca. The film has also sparked renewed interest in Homer’s classics, with a 70 percent increase in U.K. sales and a 76 percent rise in the U.S. since the start of the year, according to data from Circana BookScan. According to Google Trends data, analyzed by language-learning platform Preply, online searches for “learn Greek” surged by as much as 5,000 percent in the fortnight following the film’s release. Still, Angelos Chaniotis, professor in the school of historical studies at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, noted that Greece needed to look beyond the “quick wins” from a blockbuster movie to develop a more sustained strategy. “Of course, there are instances where a film has led to the discovery of Greece, as happened with ‘Boy on a Dolphin’ and ‘Hydra’ in 1957, but often the impact of films is short-lived,” he said. “To ensure sustained interest in Greek culture, Greek archaeology and classical studies, Greece needs a long-term strategy linked, for example, with the internationalization of relevant study programs, the strengthening of the archaeological service, and a specific policy to improve the presentation of archaeological sites and museums.”

REYKJAVÍK — Pro-EU campaigners have a handy boogeyman to win over Icelandic voters ahead of a crunch referendum on Saturday: U.S. President Donald Trump. Trump’s threats to annex Greenland — Iceland’s closest neighbor — have added a strong geopolitical dimension to a referendum on resuming membership talks with the EU, which might otherwise have focused on long-standing gripes with Brussels, such as mackerel quotas. And Trump is not the only security risk in the North Atlantic. With Russia and China both pushing to secure Arctic resources, questions about global alliances are becoming increasingly vital to the 270,000 Icelandic voters heading to the ballot boxes across the weather-beaten volcanic island. Reykjavík’s former mayor, Dagur Eggertsson, a prominent figure in the pro-EU “Yes” campaign, said that Trump’s threats to Greenland were weighing on voters’ minds and sparking debate about Iceland’s strategic position. “This issue is not settled,” the Social Democrat member of parliament said of U.S. ambitions to control Greenland, whose coast is less than 300 kilometers from Iceland. “Trump has been quite outspoken, not only last year, but again and again. This is something that people on the streets think about.” While Trump has rowed back on some of his more bellicose posturing to seize Greenland at the beginning of the year, he still insisted at a NATO summit in Ankara in July that the territory “should be controlled by the United States, not by Denmark.” Facing that kind of regional tension, Eggertsson, who also chairs Iceland’s delegation to the NATO Parliamentary Assembly, echoed Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney in mapping out the stakes: “Small and middle powers need to stick together.” In the case of Iceland, he insisted this meant closer ties to Europe. “The matter is more urgent now than before,” he said. A question of sovereignty The key theme looming over the Icelandic referendum is sovereignty. But it’s an issue that cuts two ways, and polls suggest the referendum is on a knife-edge. A Gallup poll in mid-August gave the “Yes” camp a wafer-thin advantage, with 51.5 percent support. While “Yes” campaigners like Eggertsson stress the regional implications of threats to Greenland’s sovereignty, the “No” camp argues the EU could impinge on Icelandic sovereignty, particularly within the politically crucial spheres of fisheries and farming policy. Indeed, it was fisheries quotas that were key to scuppering Iceland’s previous bid to join the EU, which was definitively halted in 2015. Thirty-five-year-old musician Tumi Árnason says he will vote “yes” in the referendum. He’s worried about the international situation the country finds itself in. | Carlo Martuscelli/POLITICO Eiríkur Bergmann, a professor of politics at Bifröst University, explained that national sovereignty has been the core issue animating political debate in Iceland since its independence from Denmark in 1944. “There are two camps, both tapping into the same heritage,” said Bergmann. “One is arguing that Iceland needs to join the European Union to enhance its sovereignty and guard its heritage of its independence struggle. Another camp, equally vocal, is cautioning against EU membership on the exact same grounds, arguing that it threatens Iceland’s sovereignty.” Those sentiments on national independence and identity have a long pedigree. Iceland’s parliament, the Althing, is one of the oldest electoral assemblies in the world, dating back more than a millennium. Strategically, the island is a NATO member and has a bilateral defense agreement with the U.S. dating back to 1951. At the same time, Iceland is a member of the European Economic Area, and it’s estimated that it already adopts about three-quarters of the EU’s rules through this. It’s also part of the Schengen Area, allowing for passport-free travel with most EU countries. The core consideration, then, for the referendum is whether it is worth moving beyond that EEA relationship. Tumi Árnason, a 35-year-old musician living in the capital, said he was planning to vote in favor of entering into talks for EU membership. “I am for seeing what kind of deal we can get,” said Árnason, citing the economy as his primary concern. But the international situation did worry him: “I think that at this point siding with the EU would be preferable in this political climate. With the U.S. on one hand, and then Russia on the other, it’s a bit of a precarious situation.” Hannah Sigurðardóttir, a 68-year-old employee of Iceland’s medicines agency, also raised concerns about the reliability of the U.S. as an ally. “We can’t count on the U.S., like we did for a long time. I think we should [have] better ties to our friends and allies in Europe. We have a similar history, culture,” she said. ‘Forward Iceland’ Not everyone agrees with the need to gravitate toward Brussels. A statue of Icelandic independence movement leader Jón Sigurðsson in Reykjavík. Sovereignty is a key concept in Icelandic politics. | Carlo Martuscelli/POLITICO Guðlaugur Þór Þórðarson, an MP with the conservative and pro-“No” Independence Party, thought that EEA membership was sufficient and that any swing closer to the EU would be misguided. Sporting a pin reading Áfram Ísland, or Forward Iceland, the slogan of the “No” campaign, on the lapel of his gray suit jacket, Þórðarson condemned the U.S. president’s comments on Greenland. “I think it’s, of course, outrageous what Trump is saying about Greenland,” said Þórðarson, who was Iceland’s foreign minister during Trump’s first term in office. But he cautioned that U.S. administrations come and go. “When it comes to defense and security, then the key things are the bilateral defense agreement with the U.S. and also being a member of NATO,” he said. Former Reykjavík Mayor Eggertsson from the “Yes” campaign stressed that the concerns about Arctic security were not just about Trump. “The Arctic has traditionally been described as a low-tension area when it comes to defense. This is changing because of climate change and melting ice caps, the possibility of new shipping routes opening up,” he said. While this newfound perception that Iceland could be more vulnerable than previously thought has entered the public consciousness, it is more prosaic concerns that continue to dominate the debate. Outside of the Reykjavík area, where about two-thirds of the country lives, voters are more likely to put a “No” on their ballots. Selfoss is a town of 10,000 people about an hour’s drive southeast of Reykjavík. Farmers cultivating the black volcanic soil along the road to the town adorn their bales of hay with the “No” campaign’s Áfram Ísland slogan. Ari Hrafn Elíasson, an 18-year-old builder from Selfoss, said he would vote against the accession talks. “I’m going to vote no because the farmers want to vote no. In my opinion, they are the backbone of this country, farmers and fishermen. I’m going to listen to them,” he said. Another Selfoss resident, 19-year-old fast food worker Dagmar Isabella, said she was in favor of the EU talks but stressed that foreign policy was not her main concern. She said she was worried about the cost of living, particularly for rents and mortgages. She thought joining the euro could help get galloping inflation under control. Iceland’s July inflation was running at an annual rate of 5.6 percent, nearly double the euro area’s. Talking about the euro, she said: “It’s a much more stable currency than the Icelandic krona.”

Muslims in Iraq, Libya and Morocco gathered for Mawlid al-Nabi, marking Prophet Muhammad’s birthday

The world’s largest open road bullfighting event turned deadly when a 29-year-old man was killed.

London and Kyiv in deal to help stop protesters and hostile states targeting military bases and critical infrastructureAI models trained on Ukrainian battlefield data will be used to stop protesters and foreign states targeting UK defence sites, railways and energy plants under a deal struck between London and Kyiv.Private companies will also be given access to the vast trove of data from Ukraine’s Avengers AI lab to help build new systems, the first agreement of its kind in the UK. Continue reading...

Huge hailstones prompt organisers to act 15km from endRiders seen heading into hotel on route to take coverA torrential hailstorm in the French Pyrenees forced the abandonment of the ⁠third stage of the Vuelta a España on Monday.With 15 kilometres (9.32 miles) remaining of the 174km route ⁠from Gruissan to Font-Romeu, the ​skies darkened as the peloton neared the top of the Col de Mont-Louis and huge hailstones began ⁠bouncing off the tarmac and pelting the riders. Continue reading...

Prime minister pledges to back Ukraine on long-range missiles

Trove of combat imagery used to train AI models to identify and strike Russian targets