Europe faces a heatwave
Polar bear Nanook jumps into the water at the zoo in Gelsenkirchen, Germany, June 25, 2019. Germany faces a heatwave with temperatures up to 40 degrees Celsius.
Fans flew off store shelves and public fountains offered relief from the heat as temperatures soared in Europe, with officials urging vigilance ahead of even hotter conditions forecast later in the week.
Meteorologists blamed a blast of torrid air from the Sahara for the unusually early summer heatwave, which could send thermometers up to 40 degrees Celsius (104 Fahrenheit) across large swathes of the continent.
Authorities have issued warnings against dehydration and heatstroke, in particular for children and the elderly, and hospitals have been placed on high alert.
Preparations for Amarnath Yatra begin
Workers set tents at Nunwan near Pahalgam in South Kashmir Tuesday, 25, June 2019. Nunwan acts as a base camp for the people who wish to undertake the Yatra through Pahalgam route.
Additional central paramilitary forces have been made available to Jammu and Kashmir this year to ensure peaceful pilgrimage to the 3,880-metre high holy cave shrine of Amarnath in south Kashmir Himalayas, scheduled to begin next month, a senior police officer said Monday.
Inspector General of Police, Jammu, M K Sinha said the availability of more forces compared to previous years have resulted in strengthening of counter-infiltration grid, deployment of road-opening parties all along the highway and strengthening of the security around camps housing the pilgrims.
Six special teams comprising police, the SDRF and magistrates would be deployed in landslide prone areas along the Jammu-Srinagar national highway in Ramban district to ensure minimum disruption during the yatra, he said.
SpaceX launches hefty rocket with 24 satellites
A SpaceX Falcon heavy rocket lifts off from pad 39A at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., early Tuesday, June 25, 2019. The Falcon rocket has a payload military and scientific research satellites
SpaceX launched its heftiest rocket with 24 research satellites on Tuesday, a middle-of-the-night rideshare featuring a deep space atomic clock, solar sail, a clean and green rocket fuel testbed, and even human ashes.
It was the third flight of a Falcon Heavy rocket, but the first ordered up by the military.
The Defense Department mission, dubbed STP-2 for Space Test Program, is expected to provide data to certify the Falcon Heavy — and reused boosters — for future national security launches. It marked the military’s first ride on a recycled rocket.
Padayatra to demand reservation
Members of the Valmiki community gather in front of the Vidhana Soudha, after a padayatra, to demand 7 to 7.5% reservation.
Members of Karnataka's Valmiki community, on Tuesday, gathered in front of the Vidhana Soudha to demand 7 to 7.5% reservation.
The community undertook a padayatra from Davanagere's Harihar taluk, beginning June 9.
Congress MPs protest at Parliament House
Congress MPs from Keraela staging a protest demonstration demanding farm loan waiver at Parliament House in New Delhi on Tuesday, June 25, 2019.
Kerala Congress MPs staged a demonstration at Parliament House on Tuesday, demanding farm loan waivers.
Click here for Live updates on Parliament session
Three astronauts safely return to Earth
A search and rescue team approaches the Soyuz MS-11 capsule shortly after the landing about 150 km south east of the Kazakh town of Zhezkazgan, Kazakhstan, Tuesday, June 25, 2019.
Three astronauts safely returned to Earth on Tuesday after spending more than six months aboard the International Space Station.
The Soyuz capsule with astronauts from Canada, Russia and the United States landed in the steppes of Kazakhstan at 8-47 a.m. (0247GMT), less than a minute ahead of the scheduled time, on Tuesday after a 3 hour flight from the orbiting lab.
Pompeo in Mideast talks on building a coalition against Iran
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, right, walk with Shihad Al Faheem, Assistant Foreign Ministry Undersecretary for Protocol Affairs, to his plane as Pompeo departs Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, Tuesday, June 25, 2019.
U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo held talks Monday with leaders in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates about countering the military threat from Iran by building a broad, global coalition that includes Asian and European countries.
While M.r Pompeo has seemingly willing and wealthy partners in the two Arab allies, he is likely to face a tough sell in Europe and Asia, particularly from those nations still committed to the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran that President Donald Trump repudiated last year.
With tensions running high in the region after Iran shot down a U.S. surveillance drone on June 20 and Mr. Trump said he aborted a retaliatory strike, Iran’s naval commander warned that his forces won’t hesitate to down more U.S. drones that violate its airspace. The U.S. has been building up its military presence in the Persian Gulf.
Nissan shareholders meet
Shareholders arrive for Nissan's general meeting of shareholders in Yokohama, near Tokyo, Tuesday, June 25, 2019.
Nissan shareholders began a fractious annual meeting Tuesday to discuss revamping operations at the crisis-hit Japanese automaker after the Carlos Ghosn scandal, amid lingering tension with French partner Renault.
The meeting will see votes on a series of reforms to the Japanese car giant, designed to put Nissan on a more stable footing after the shock caused by former boss Ghosn's arrest on multiple financial misconduct charges.
(With inputs from agencies)
