August 3, 2025

A roundup of local and international news.

Newsroom, 03.08.2025, 14:00

GAZA – The head of the EU diplomacy, Kaja Kallas, on Sunday denounced the ‘horrifying images of Israeli hostages’ in Gaza, demanding their ‘immediate’ release, following the publication of videos by Hamas and Islamic Jihad, France Presse reports. ‘Hamas must lay down its arms and end its domination of Gaza,’ said Kaja Kallas. ‘At the same time, large-scale humanitarian aid must be allowed to reach those in need,’ she said. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also expressed his ‘dismay’ at the videos and spoke to the hostages’ families, an official statement announced. On Saturday evening, tens of thousands of people gathered in Tel Aviv to support the families of the hostages and demand their release. Also in Tel Aviv, the US special envoy for the Middle East, Steve Witkoff, met with relatives of the Israeli hostages, whom he assured that changing the strategy of the negotiations and moving from releasing the hostages in stages to releasing them in a single phase is also President Donald Trump’s option.

RESTORE – The Minister of Investments and European Projects, Dragoş Pâslaru, announced, in a post on a social network, that he will activate the European RESTORE Mechanism, put in place for major natural disasters, in the context of the floods in the Romanian counties of Suceava and Neamţ. This is the first time that this instrument will be used in Romania and will allow the rapid relocation of millions of euros of European money to the affected areas, to support the restoration of infrastructure, housing and small entrepreneurs in the area, the minister said. Three people died, hundreds of houses were destroyed or damaged, and the road and electrical infrastructure in the affected localities suffered major damage. So far, humanitarian aid from the state reserve, food, drinking water, modular buildings, clothing, diesel and other essential products have been sent to the two counties. The government allocated amounts of up to 30,000 lei (6,000 euros) per family and deployed emergency personnel in the area.

AUSTERITY – The Romanian authorities remind that the package of fiscal measures that came into force at the beginning of this month also includes the elimination of some categories from the list of those who benefit from free health insurance. Thus, people who receive certain forms of support will have their contribution withheld, while for co-insured persons, that is, the husband, wife or parents without income of a person who pays the health contribution, an annual amount of 2,430 lei per year (about 500 euros) must now be paid, which covers 10% of the value of six minimum gross salaries in the economy. Also, some pensioners will now pay health insurance as 10% will be withheld from pensions higher than 3,000 lei (600 euros). Also from the beginning of this month, VAT has increased from 19% to 21% and there is a single reduced VAT rate of 11% for basic food, firewood, medicines, books, thermal energy or in the hospitality sector. Excise duties on alcohol, tobacco and fuels have increased by 10%. On the other hand, in education, the teaching norm has increased by 2 hours, the amount for hourly payment has decreased, and the school scholarship system has been modified, with a decrease in the number of beneficiaries.

CHILDREN – The Government in Bucharest has recently approved new measures to prevent the separation of children from their families, including those with parents working abroad. According to the Ministry of Labor, the initiator of the legislative changes, the concrete steps that underlie the procedure for identifying children at such risk have been established. Thus, all cases will be registered in the National Child Observatory, part of an IT system developed by the national authority in the field, for centralization and monitoring. If, following the assessment of a child and their family, the public social assistance service finds them in a situation of vulnerability, a service plan is drawn up for at least 12 months, a period during which it is mandatory to support the parents in raising and caring for the child, the Ministry of Labor also announced.

CORRUPTION – Ukrainian anti-corruption agencies said Saturday they had uncovered a major fraud scheme in which military drones and signal jamming systems were purchased at inflated prices. Four suspects were arrested, including a lawmaker from President Volodymyr Zelensky’s party. He called the corruption uncovered “absolutely immoral.” The independence of these anti-corruption agencies was restored on Thursday after the Kyiv parliament overwhelmingly voted in favor of a law promoted by President Zelensky, following the largest demonstrations in the country since Russia’s invasion in 2022. The new legislation repeals the previous one proposed last week, which provided for the transfer of the two agencies under political control. Ukraine’s European allies praised the move, after expressing concern over the initial modification of the agencies’ status.

VATICAN – Pope Leo XIV celebrated an open-air mass in Rome on Sunday in front of more than 1 million young pilgrims, at the close of the Jubilee of Youth, an event held as part of the “Holy Year” organized every 25 years by the Catholic Church and which has attracted believers from around the world, France Presse reports. The Vatican said that 450 bishops and about 700 priests took part in the mass. The pilgrimage of young Catholics took place about three months after the beginning of Pope Leo XIV’s pontificate and 25 years after former Pope John Paul II organized the previous similar gathering in Rome. (EE)