North Macedonia battles wildfires as Venice tourism experiment ends

It happened while you were sleeping. Here's what world agencies reported on the night from Sunday to Monday.

• The Government of North Macedonia announced the introduction of a state of emergency for 30 days. Firefighters, the military, and police are battling seven fires in the country. The prime minister announced the arrival of international aid, reported the "Kurir" daily. The fires have affected hard-to-reach mountainous regions. Planes and helicopters have been engaged in extinguishing them. Authorities noted that there is currently no significant threat to the local population. "We are fighting the elements caused by the heatwave. We are in contact with several friendly countries to whom we have asked for help extinguish the fires," said Hristijan Mickoski, Prime Minister of North Macedonia, on Sunday.

• The experiment conducted in Venice in April, charging an entry fee to the city, has concluded. Tourists who stayed in local hotels were exempt from the payment. Venice authorities explained that this first-of-its-kind initiative in the world aims to implement a system for managing the influx of tourists. From Monday, as reported by the Italian press, the Venice authorities will start analysing the experiment results, conducted over 29 selected days. Based on these findings, they will develop new entry rules for the city that will apply from next year.

• In response to the attack on Donald Trump, Serbia's Deputy Prime Minister Aleksandar Vulin called on Sunday for increased security measures for President Aleksandar Vucic and his family. Vulin emphasised that the head of state "must prepare for a similar scenario," reported the Serbian daily "Danas".

• Buckingham Palace confirmed on Sunday evening that King Charles III of the United Kingdom and Queen Camilla will visit Australia and Samoa in October. This will be the 75-year-old monarch's second overseas trip since he was diagnosed with cancer and the farthest visit he has undertaken as king.