The Finnish Meteorological Institute has issued high temperature warnings for half of Finland today as Eastern and Southern parts of the country are expected to bear the brunt of the ongoing heat wave.
Southeastern Finland will likely experience the highest temperatures, with the mercury forecast to rise above 30°C. The warm weather (with an average temperature of 24 degrees) is expected to continue till Thursday, with Tuesday slated to be the hottest day of the week.
LEHTIKUVA / AFP
Here are the most eye-catching images of this week, from all around the world.
Environmental activists with Extinction Rebellion Finland (Elokapina) have gathered on Mannerheimintie as part of a protest that began on Thursday afternoon but continued overnight till Friday.
Around 120 demonstrators pitched tents and mattresses near the Parliament so they could sleep on the street on Thursday night. Police have been stationed at the spot and are directing the traffic on Mannerheimintie, which is the main thoroughfare in Helsinki.
The Helsinki and Uusimaa Hospital district (HUS) has revealed that there was a 8.9 per cent increase in the number of births in the region this Spring compared to the previous year. Uusimaa registered a total of 7,089 births from January to May this year, compared to 6,511 births during the same period last year.
The Women’s Hospital (Naistenklinikka) in Helsinki and Espoo Hospital accounted for 80 per cent of the births, and saw a 7.2 per cent increase (380 more) in births compared to last year.
A new study by the Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare (THL) and Kela found that over half the students studying at higher education institutions experienced feelings of loneliness during the ongoing COVID- 19 pandemic.
The preliminary results of the study indicate that young women in particular have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic, with as many as three out of four female university students aged 18–22 reporting that they felt lonelier than ever before.
Finland’s largest media group Sanoma has filed a complaint with the EU Commission regarding the services provided by national public broadcasting company Yle. The former made the details of the complaint public on Monday evening.
Sanoma’s main point of contention is Yle’s educational content and online streaming services, which, it argues, exceed the scope of public broadcasting and make it difficult for rival firms to compete.
Finland has claimed the top spot in an index that tracks and compares the progress made by UN member states in achieving sustainable development goals. The report, which is published annually by the UN and the Bertelsmann Foundation, ranks the performance of 165 countries.
This was the first time that Finland was ranked first; however, it has been in the top three multiple times, along with Denmark and Sweden. The report states that the country has met or is close to meeting the UN’s targets of alleviating poverty, reducing inequality and advancing education, health, water, energy, peace and the rule of law.
Achille the cat, one of the State Hermitage Museum mice hunters, poses for pictures next to the Italian national flag after attempting to predict the result of the first UEFA EURO 2020 football match between Turkey and Italy, during a ceremony in Saint Petersburg, on June 11, 2021. LEHTIKUVA / AFP
This week in pictures, featuring the most eye-catching news images of the week, from all around the world.
Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas/Lehtikuva
Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Kallas has written an open letter to Finnish premier Sanna Marin, in which she requests the latter to consider easing travel restrictions between Finland and Estonia.
In the letter, which was published by Helsingin Sanomat, Kallas states that the restrictions have forced thousands of Estonians to choose between work and family. Many have elected to remain in Finland since January, when the new regulations were first put in place, to avoid losing their jobs.
According to Ilta-Sanomat, the Finnish government intends to implement new road safety guidelines, which include extending 30 km/hr speed limits in densely populated urban areas across the country.
The tabloid reports that the Finnish Transport Infrastructure Agency has been tasked with issuing a report examining whether speed limits in built-up areas and highways comply with current guidelines.
Three young wolves play with the pack's leader near the Finland-Russia border/Lehtikuva
According to the Natural Resources Institute of Finland (Luke), there has been a steady rise in Finland’s wolf population since 2017. Latest estimates indicate 32–38 wolf packs and 18–25 pairs of wolves in Finland as of March 2021.
Of these, 28 packs (a family unit consisting of a couple and two pups) and 20 pairs are believed to reside in Finland permanently, while the rest frequently move across the border between Finland and Russia.
