Aug 1, 2026, 01:00 PM UTC

Renowned mountaineer and former British Army soldier Nirmal Purja has died alongside nine other expedition members following a massive avalanche on Pakistan's Broad Peak, according to his company, Elite Expeditions.

The avalanche struck the 8,047-metre mountain in the Karakoram range around midday on Thursday, severing all contact with the ten-person international team. Search and rescue operations initially recovered three bodies—identified as mountaineers from Oman, Nepal, and the United States—while search teams continued high-altitude efforts for the remaining missing members.

However, Elite Expeditions later confirmed via social media that Purja and all nine other members of the expedition perished in the slide. Purja gained global prominence after climbing all 14 of the world's 8,000-metre peaks in under seven months, a feat documented in the film "14 Peaks: Nothing Is Impossible".

Sources: BBC News, FAZ, Sweden Herald

Members of Croatia's Most party, Zvonimir Troskot and Marin Miletić, have announced plans to file several criminal charges regarding illegal waste management in the Lika region.

Speaking on Saturday, the opposition lawmakers stated that analysis from the "Dr. Andrija Štampar" Teaching Institute for Public Health confirmed that the illegally dumped material is hazardous waste. Troskot emphasized that Most was the first political group to raise the issue of unlawful waste disposal in Lika, elevating the topic to national prominence.

The lawmakers argued that the dumping poses serious environmental and public health risks, demanding accountability from responsible authorities and requesting urgent judicial intervention to address the site.

Sources: HRT Vijesti.

The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has extended operational licenses for Serbia's oil company NIS, Hungary's MOL, and Croatia's pipeline operator JANAF until August 28.

The short-term extension allows NIS to maintain its business operations and continue importing crude oil through the Adriatic Pipeline system managed by JANAF. Additionally, the decision provides a temporary regulatory window for ongoing negotiations concerning the potential ownership transfer or sale of NIS.

The move offers temporary relief for regional energy supply logistics in the Western Balkans and Central Europe while broader regulatory and ownership issues remain unresolved.

Sources: Dan

Unison, Scotland's largest trade union, has made its initial intervention in the contest to succeed Anas Sarwar as the leader of Scottish Labour. The union demanded that leadership candidates pledge to halt the Scottish Government's plan to cut up to 20,000 public sector jobs.

Unison announced it would condition its endorsement in the race on a candidate's ability to oppose the proposed reductions put forward by the ruling Scottish National Party. The move places public sector employment and union relations at the center of the party's internal leadership debate.

Sources: The Herald