Italy has placed nearly all of its major cities on its highest heat alert as a heatwave brings temperatures in the mid-30s Celsius and poses risks even to healthy people. The alert highlights wider extreme-weather pressures across southern Europe, where heatwave conditions are also helping to fuel major wildfires.

Nineteen Italian cities, including Rome, Milan, Venice and Naples, are already on red alert; by Monday, 25 of 27 major cities are expected to be at that level, with Reggio Calabria and Messina on amber alert. Officials advise avoiding direct sun between 11:00 and 18:00, staying indoors and drinking fluids, while fires continue in Greece, France, Portugal and Spain; Spain has seen more than 200,000 hectares burn in 2026, about five times the usual area for this point in the year.