Temperatures were climbing on Sunday as Europe braced for a blistering heat-wave with the mercury set to hit 40 degrees Celsius as summer kicks in on the back of a wave of hot air from North Africa. Europeans are set to bake in what forecasters are warning will likely be record-breaking temperatures for June with the mercury set to peak mid-week.
Around four million Britons will be heading overseas for the Christmas break, with those staying behind having to contend with packed roads and disrupted rail services.
Nearly 2,000 African migrants, many of them Eritrean and Somalis, have arrived on Italy's tiny, overcrowded Lampedusa Island in the past 24 hours. It is one of the biggest migrant waves to reach Lampedusa this year.