July 29, 2026
A roundup of local and world news
Newsroom, 29.07.2026, 13:55
HEALTHCARE The interim government of Romania has approved hiring procedures for over 6,850 positions in the public healthcare sector. The decision was made amid all-out strikes in the healthcare system, initiated on Tuesday by the Sanitas Federation in nearly 500 public hospitals in Romania. The unions are unhappy with the acute personnel shortage, and with the draft unified salary law, which they claim will reduce the income of healthcare workers. PM Ilie Bolojan says the strike is based on misinformation related to this law and promises no incomes will be cut.
PARLIAMENT Parliament continues its work in the extraordinary session convened on Monday. The Chamber of Deputies Wednesday endorsed the draft approval of the SAFE Loan Agreement between the European Union and Romania, amounting to EUR 16,680,055,394, intended for defence. Signed in May, the agreement was approved by the Deputies in its original form, without amendments. The draft is next to be reviewed by the Senate, which is the decision-making body in this case.
DROUGHT A severe drought hit the entire Danube basin. In Romania, the water flow is 3 times lower than the average for this period, and experts say that in early August it will get very close to the all-time low of 1,400 cubic meters per second reached in 1985. Irrigation restrictions are in force in the area, but water supply to the public is not affected. Due to the extremely low level of the Danube, Unit 1 of the Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant was shut down and disconnected from the national energy system on Tuesday. A Danube cruise ship with 186 passengers on board ran aground, with the tourists later taken to the Bulgarian port of Vidin while the ship remained stuck in a sandbar on the Romanian shore.
ANTHEM DAY Military ceremonies were scheduled today in Bucharest and in military units across the country to celebrate the National Anthem Day. In a message on this occasion, president Nicuşor Dan says the anthem preserves its social cohesion force and acts as a common denominator of the Romanian identity, represented by citizens within the borders and by communities in the diaspora. National Anthem Day was proclaimed by law in 1998 and is celebrated every year on July 29. Romania’s anthem, “Deşteaptă-te române” (Awaken, ye Romanian), written by Anton Pann on lyrics by Andrei Mureşanu, was officially performed for the first time in 1848, in the city of Râmnicu Vâlcea, a landmark in national history to this day.
EARTHQUAKE The president of Romania Nicuşor Dan Wednesday sent a message of compassion for the victims of the earthquake in Japan. “I am deeply saddened by the deaths caused by the earthquake in Japan. My heartfelt condolences to the families affected and a speedy recovery to the injured. Romania stands with Japan in these difficult times,” the head of state says in a social media post. At least one person died and dozens have been injured after a 7.1 earthquake struck southwestern Japan yesterday, where authorities are carrying out rescue operations and assessing the extent of the damage caused by collapsed buildings, fires, power outages and transport disruptions.
WILDFIRES A new unit of 40 Romanian firefighters left for France today to help fight wildfires. It is the third unit in the mission carried out by Romania within the framework of the European Union Civil Protection Mechanism. Romania has extended its participation in the firefighting support mission in France by two weeks. Until mid-August, Romanian firefighters will be ready to step in, at the request of the French authorities, alongside the other European teams taking part in the mission. (AMP)
