Average prices of liquid fuels increased in Finland in August this year compared to the previous month, according to Statistics Finland. The average price with taxes for diesel was EUR 2.3 and for petrol 95, EUR 2.1 per litre. The equivalent average price for petrol 98 was EUR 2.2 and for light fuel oil EUR 1.8. The annual rise of the average price for diesel was 39.8 per cent, for petrol 95 was 23.7 per cent and for petrol 98 was 23.0 per cent in August 2026. The annual increase of the average price for light fuel oil was 45.9 per cent. The monthly increase of the average price was biggest for light fuel oil (9.2%) and smallest for petrol 98 (1.9%).

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At least 7 people have died, and 23 others remained missing after a passenger ship capsized off Kyrenia in northern Cyprus on Sunday afternoon, reported Xinhua, quoting local media. The vessel, identified as the Express and operated by Filo Jet, was carrying 267 people when it was caught in a storm and capsized off the coast of Kyrenia shortly after departing the port, according to Cyprus media outlet Philenews. Turkish Cypriot officials confirmed that the vessel was carrying 259 passengers and 8 crew members. Totally 237 people have been rescued so far, while 7 bodies have been recovered. Search and rescue operations are ongoing for 23 missing individuals. The cause of the vessel's capsizing remains under investigation.

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U.S. forces on Sunday struck two Iranian launchers on Larak Island, U.S. Central Command spokesperson Tim Hawkins said, marking the first known U.S. strike against Iran since late July, reported Xinhua. "Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces were observed preparing to launch rockets with sea mines into Strait of Hormuz," Hawkins said in a statement, adding that the U.S. military was "monitoring the area closely and remains prepared to protect the free flow of commerce" through the strategic waterway. Larak Island is a small Iranian island located off the coast of Bandar Abbas, east of Qeshm Island and south of Hormuz Island. Iran's Islamic Revolution Guard Corps (IRGC) said multiple military personnel and civilians were killed or wounded Sunday night in the attack on Larak Island. In a statement published by its official news outlet, Sepah News, the IRGC vowed that the attack would be met with "punishment for the aggressor."

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Two Israeli teenagers, aged 14 and 16, were charged with spying and carrying out other paid assignments for an Iranian intelligence agent, Israel's police said Sunday, reported Xinhua. The two, from the Haifa area in northern Israel, contacted the Iranian agent after one of them responded to a job offer on Telegram. Police said the teenager later recruited his friend and the pair carried out tasks, including photographing sites in central Israel, gathering information on security arrangements, spraying anti-government graffiti, and trying to recruit other minors. They were paid several thousand shekels in cryptocurrency, according to police. Israel's state-owned Kan TV news reported that they also sent information on entrances and exits, as well as the number of security guards, at shopping malls in Tel Aviv and Herzliya, a city north of Tel Aviv. The case follows a series of arrests over alleged Iranian efforts to recruit Israelis online. Israeli authorities have previously warned that Iranian operatives were approaching minors through social media with offers of payment for spying tasks. In 2025, 25 Israelis and foreign residents were indicted for spying for Iran in 2025, and 120 Iranian espionage attempts were thwarted, according to the Shin Bet domestic security agency.

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Dozens of Palestinians held a protest in Gaza City on Sunday to demand information about the fate of people who have been missing since the outbreak of the conflict between Hamas and Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, reported Xinhua. The protest, organized by the Palestinian NGO Network outside the International Committee of the Red Cross headquarters in western Gaza City, coincided with the International Day of the Disappeared on Aug. 30. Participants held photos of missing people and banners reading, "The Missing: Stories Awaiting the Truth." Mohammed Saleh, director of the network, said the issue of missing persons was "not merely a matter of statistics," but involved the names, dreams and stories of families seeking truth and justice. Speaking at the protest, Saleh said the network had documented more than 11,200 registered missing persons, adding the actual number was believed to be higher. He called for the establishment of an independent and transparent mechanism to search for missing persons, a unified national database, and greater support for forensic medicine and specialized laboratories to identify human remains. Separately, Palestinian groups on Sunday condemned Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir's visit to the women's section of Damon Prison, during which he filmed female Palestinian prisoners and posted a video of the visit on his X account. The Palestinian Prisoners' Club, a non-governmental organization, said in a statement that Ben-Gvir's visit and filming of prisoners reflect a systematic policy of targeting Palestinian detainees and exploiting their suffering for political propaganda. In the 1-minute-44-second video, an unidentified Palestinian female prisoner described detention conditions, saying they had gone three days without showers, lacked medical treatment, and wore unclean clothes. Ben-Gvir responded through a translator, saying, "The good conditions that used to exist in the prisons are over." The Islamic Jihad Movement said in a statement that the Israeli government bore full responsibility for the safety of the female prisoners, urging international institutions to act to end violations against them. Hamas, in a separate statement, warned against turning prisons into arenas for "violations, humiliation, threats, torture, and murder," and called for effective action to support Palestinian prisoners. 2 Palestinians, including child, killed in Israeli strike in Gaza An Israeli airstrike killed at least two Palestinians, including a child, in Deir al-Balah in central Gaza on Sunday, Palestinian media reported, while Israel's military said the attack targeted a Hamas militant, reported Xinhua. In a statement, the military identified the man as Hassam Osama Hussein Nasir, whom it said belonged to Hamas' armed wing and had been planning attacks against Israeli troops. It did not comment on the reported death of the child. Meanwhile, a senior official of the Palestinian National Liberation Movement (Fatah) urged the international community to take practical steps to halt Israeli violations in the Gaza Strip. Munzer al-Hayek, Fatah spokesman in Gaza, told Voice of Palestine radio that the spread of diseases, coupled with shortages of medicines and medical treatment, has turned daily life into a continuous struggle for residents in the strip. He also urged the international community to take Israel to international courts and support accountability efforts for alleged violations and crimes against the Palestinian people. According to Gaza's health authorities, 1,318 Palestinians have been killed and 4,375 others injured in the Gaza Strip since the ceasefire between Israel and Hamas took effect in October 2025. The overall death toll in the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7, 2023, has risen to 73,454, with 174,486 others injured, according to the authorities.

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Rescuers are racing against time and the odds in search of survivors after a devastating mudslide, triggered by an ice-rock avalanche in Nepal, hit the border port of Gyirong in southwest China's Xizang Autonomous Region, reported Xinhua. According to a press conference held by the information office of the regional government on Sunday, the disaster, which occurred on Aug. 26, has claimed the lives of 16 and left 546 people missing as of 6 p.m. Saturday. Despite difficulties such as high-altitude terrain, steep valleys and volatile weather, rescuers are pushing forward into the core disaster area, carrying out road mud removal, search and rescue operations, hazard identification, disinfection and epidemic prevention, as well as clearing and restoring damaged routes. The conditions at the heart of the rescue area are especially tough. Rescuers there told Xinhua that the site was covered in mud and scattered rocks, with turbulent water currents. The mud was about one meter deep in some places, enough to sink in up to half a person's body, and even in shallower areas, the mud was generally above ankle level. Video footage showed that the Gyirong Port building was reduced to its steel frame. On Sunday morning, the People's Liberation Army Xizang Military Command mobilized an epidemic prevention team to the disaster-hit area to carry out environmental disinfection, food and water quality testing, emergency vaccinations, and routine medical rounds for injuries and illnesses. This relief mission also included psychological support personnel, who will regularly provide psychological counseling for rescuers and the disaster-affected local residents. So far, a total of 2,141 personnel have joined search and rescue operations, including personnel from the People's Liberation Army, the People's Armed Police Force, and China Anneng. And 269 rescue vehicles and 3,922 sets of rescue equipment have also been dispatched to the front line. Communications have been restored at the core rescue site, as successful phone calls have been made with rescuers at the port via a newly-built base station on Sunday, according to the regional communications administration. The first emergency base station adjacent to the border gate of the Gyirong Port was put into operation at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday. Up to now, telecom operators in Xizang have restored one damaged base station and built eight new ones near the port. Rescuers with China Anneng are carrying out clearing and restoration operations on the damaged road sections, striving to restore the vital access route to Gyirong Port. They had pushed forward 285 meters on Sunday, leaving some 1.25 kilometers to go before reaching the port. The barrier lake above the Gyirong Port has basically drained, forming a flowing state of the river channel, China's Ministry of Water Resources said Sunday, citing drone footage and panoramic images captured in the morning and reports from emergency response teams. At the press conference, the regional government also noted that the mudslide was triggered by an ice-rock avalanche originating from a high-mountain glacier in Nepal. A glacier on Mount Langtang Lirung in Nepal fractured at an altitude of about 5,200 meters, triggering the ice-rock avalanche. The avalanche plunged rapidly to an altitude of around 4,000 meters, scouring the mountainside and developing into a massive debris flow, which surged about 22 kilometers before reaching Gyirong Port at an altitude of around 1,800 meters. The disaster flattened an area of about 0.7 square kilometers, destroying 27 buildings and related facilities in the port area.

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Nepal's National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Authority said that as of 6:00 p.m. local time on Sunday, 781 bodies had been recovered from mudslide-hit areas, with 2,502 people still missing, reported Xinhua. Meanwhile, the Nepal Tourism Board said that a total of 591 foreign nationals are still out of communication as of the same time. It said in a statement that 289 foreigners have been rescued and five are now in contact, including three Spanish nationals, one American and one Belgian. News agency ANI adds: A total of 19,895 security personnel have been deployed for search, rescue and relief operations. The deployment includes 8,399 Nepal Army personnel, 7,293 Nepal Police personnel and 4,203 personnel from the Armed Police Force Nepal. The authorities said 8,186 people have so far been rescued, including 2,974 by the Nepal Army, 2,699 by Nepal Police and 2,513 by the Armed Police Force Nepal. The Government of Nepal has provided NPR 10 million each to Rasuwa and Nuwakot, NPR 5 million to Dhading and NPR 67.5 million to 15 local municipalities as cash assistance. Meanwhile, 37 trucks carrying food and non-food relief materials have been dispatched to affected areas, while seven helicopter flights have been conducted to transport relief supplies. Communication sets and radios have also been sent to affected regions. Two tonnes of food supplies along with rescue materials were transported by helicopter to Uttargaya and Dhunche. The NDRRMA also said that Bhairabi, Suryamati and Panchakanya oil stores in Nuwakot currently have 36,000 litres of diesel and 24,000 litres of petrol in stock. Aviation fuel stocks stand at 14,000 litres, against consumption of 25,000 litres. The status update comes as Nepal Home Minister Sudan Gurung visited the flood-affected area in Nuwakot and gave instructions to rescue teams as rescue and relief operations continue in the flood-hit region on Sunday. Meanwhile, flow in the Bhote Koshi River in Rasuwa has reportedly increased further, urging personnel involved in search, rescue and relief operations to exercise utmost caution. In a post on X, NDRRMA said, "Alert: The flow of the flood in the Bhote Koshi River in Rasuwa has reportedly increased further The authority urged all personnel engaged in search, rescue and relief operations in affected areas, including Rasuwa, Nuwakot, Dhading and Chitwan, as well as surrounding regions, to remain vigilant. NDRRMA further said, "Therefore, all personnel engaged in search, rescue, and relief operations in affected areas including Rasuwa, Nuwakot, Dhading, Chitwan, and surrounding regions, as well as those in riparian zones and other relevant parties, are requested to exercise utmost caution." The disaster management authority said it would continue to monitor the situation and provide further information. "We will provide updates as soon as further information is received," NDRRMA said.

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Afghanistan's Taliban authorities have temporarily sent more personnel to Germany under an agreement with the government in Berlin aimed at facilitating the planned deportation of hundreds of Afghans to their home country, reported dpa. "In order to achieve the objective agreed in the coalition agreement of carrying out repatriations to Afghanistan, documents must be issued that are recognized by the de facto government," the Foreign Office in Berlin stated on Saturday. To this end, in addition to sufficient staff, the technical requirements must also be in place, particularly if the number of repatriations is to increase, the office said. "To establish these technical requirements swiftly, a technical support team has entered the country on a short-term basis." Only men deported so far According to the German Interior Ministry, a total of 228 men - mainly offenders - have been deported to Afghanistan since the start of the current legislative period in March last year. The latest group deportation by plane, carrying 23 people required to leave the country, took off from Leipzig Airport on Tuesday bound for Kabul. To facilitate the process, the German government had authorized the temporary posting of individual Taliban-appointed diplomats to Afghanistan's diplomatic missions in Germany. Previously, the missions had been staffed only by diplomats appointed under Afghanistan's former government. In early June, a planned mass deportation was cancelled because the Taliban authorities refused to cooperate. They had expressed dissatisfaction with what they saw as a lack of willingness by Foreign Office representatives to engage in dialogue. Critics, including some from the Green Party, have repeatedly reproached the German government for making concessions to facilitate deportations, despite not recognizing the Taliban government, partly because of its human rights violations, especially those affecting women and girls. (By Anne-Beatrice Clasmann and Marie Kerres)

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A 35-year-old prisoner staged a dramatic escape from a jail in western Germany early on Sunday, apparently scaling the outside of the building before fleeing across the roof. The man escaped from Duisburg-Hamborn prison at around 3:20 am (0120 GMT), the Justice Ministry of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia said. He remained at large on Sunday afternoon, with authorities saying there was still no trace of him. Investigators have since discovered that the prisoner had created a hiding place beneath the linoleum floor of his cell that had apparently gone unnoticed during cell inspections, a ministry spokesman said. No tools were found in the concealed space. Authorities believe the man sawed through a bar covering the window of his third-floor cell, which faced an inner courtyard. He then used his cell table as a lever to force open a second, finer security grille covering the window. The prisoner squeezed through the narrow opening and apparently climbed the facade on the courtyard side of the building to reach the roof. He then made his way down the outside of the prison by means that remain unclear, the spokesman said. "Today's escape is absolutely unacceptable. The top priority now is the swift apprehension of the fugitive remand prisoner," North Rhine-Westphalia Justice Minister Benjamin Limbach said. "We will fully establish how this security breach was possible so that the necessary consequences can be taken immediately based on the findings," Limbach said. The man had been remanded in custody on suspicion of theft since February 10. At the end of May, he was sentenced to six years in prison for two residential burglaries involving substantial losses, although the verdict is not yet legally binding. According to information from judicial sources, he is accused of stealing valuable jewellery as well as more than €200,000 in cash.

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A woman was attacked with a knife and fatally injured overnight at a railway station in Germany's Bavaria region, police said on Sunday, reported dpa. A 27-year-old German man was detained at the scene on suspicion of carrying out the attack at the station in the city of Rosenheim, according to a police statement. The woman - a 31-year-old British national - was taken to hospital but died there from her injuries. The circumstances and motive behind the attack were not immediately known.

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Icelandic Prime Minister Kristrun Frostadottir said on Sunday that the current government would not pursue further talks on resuming Iceland's accession to the European Union (EU), after a Saturday referendum saw more voters against the accession negotiations, reported Xinhua. During a press conference, she said the outcome of the election will be respected and no further accession negotiations will be entered into during the term of the ruling government. Polling results published by Icelandic public broadcaster RUV on Sunday showed that 52.8 percent of voters opposed the negotiations, with 47.2 percent in favor. A total of 225,031 votes were cast, with the voter turnout reaching 82.5 percent, RUV reported. The prime minister said she has exchanged messages with Antonio Costa, president of the European Council, adding that the EU is aware that there is still a desire for a continued strong relationship between Iceland and the EU. Iceland applied for EU membership in 2009. Accession talks were suspended in 2013 after a Eurosceptic government took office. However, according to Icelandic parliamentary documents, the European Commission has maintained that the application was never formally withdrawn. Icelandic Foreign Minister Thorgerdur Katrin Gunnarsdottir has planned to convene the Foreign Affairs Committee on Aug. 31 to discuss the "next steps". The meeting will discuss whether the membership application will be formally withdrawn, RUV reported.

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Police said on Sunday that a 22-year-old woman was killed and five other people injured after one or more assailants opened fire at a rave in northern Switzerland. Four men and another woman, aged between 24 and 27, suffered injuries ranging from minor to serious, police in the Swiss canton of Aargau said. All six victims were residents of Switzerland. Numerous shots were fired early on Sunday at the rave on the grounds of the Aargau Racing Club in the town of Aarau. Police said the motive remained unclear and that they were conducting an intensive search for the perpetrator or perpetrators. Possible motives include a targeted settling of scores or a broader attack, a police spokesman said on Sunday afternoon. However, he said the timing appeared to weigh against the latter possibility. The event, which ran from Saturday afternoon until 2 am on Sunday, had already ended and only around 100 people were believed to have remained at the venue, the spokesman said. Police received the first emergency calls at around 2:30 am (0030 GMT) and deployed a large number of officers to the scene. The area remained extensively cordoned off on Sunday, although police said this was primarily to preserve evidence rather than because of an immediate danger to the public. Authorities appealed for witnesses to submit video and photographic material. Thousands expected at rave Organizers had expected around 3,500 people at the Aarauer Rave, a long-established event held on the grounds of the Aargau Racing Club. The event had been promoted in advance as the "largest rave in north-western Switzerland." The racing club expressed its condolences to the victims' families. The party "was overshadowed by a serious incident," the club said in a statement, adding that emergency services had been immediately alerted. Witnesses thought shots were fireworks Several witnesses told Swiss newspaper Blick that revellers initially mistook the burst of gunfire for fireworks. One woman said someone then shouted "Everybody down!" and her group hid beneath the DJ booth. A woman was struck by a bullet, she said. "It was terrible," the witness told Blick. Those still at the rave were taken by police to a nearby gymnasium. DJ Tekibo, who was performing at the event, described what had happened as "absolutely heartbreaking" in an Instagram story. "Techno and raves are supposed to be a place for freedom and safety," he wrote, adding that he had "lost an important friend" and would withdraw from performing for a period of time. German police join search Police across the border in Germany were also involved in the wider search operation following the shooting. A spokesman for police in Freiburg described the cross-border involvement as routine but gave no details of the specific measures being taken. Aargau borders Germany, and a police spokesman said the German border could be reached from Aarau in around 40 minutes. Aarau lies about 40 kilometres west of Zurich.

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