Italy on Red Alert as New Heatwave Grips Major Cities

Italy is putting nearly all of its major cities on the highest "red" alert for high temperatures, as a new heatwave grips the country.

Health officials say 19 cities from north to south - including the capital Rome, Milan, Venice and Naples - are already at red alert, and by Monday all but two cities will be.

Temperatures hit mid-30s C in many places on Saturday, and authorities are warning of risks to even healthy and active people - not just groups including the elderly, very young children and people with chronic illnesses.

The warnings come as several European nations battle devastating wildfires after a succession of heatwaves that have created favourable conditions for blazes.

In its latest heatwave bulletin published on Saturday, the Italian health ministry says that by Monday, some 25 of the country's 27 major cities will be on red alert.

It says it expects only two - Reggio Calabria in the southern tip of Italy's "boot" and Messina, facing it across on the island of Sicily - to be on the second-highest "amber" alert.

The ministry urges residents in the affected areas to avoid exposure to heat and direct sunlight during the hottest hours between 11:00 and 18:00, stay indoors and drink plenty of fluids.

The extreme heat is being caused by a subtropical anticyclone from North Africa that is now strengthening over the Mediterranean.

Meanwhile, firefighters in Greece, France, Portugal and Spain are still tackling blazes spanning thousands of hectares.

In France, some 2,500 people were evacuated in the south-eastern Var region on Friday evening after a blaze - which had been contained for several days - reignited, local officials said.

But a massive fire in the south-western Gironde region is now under control, and some 200,000 local evacuated residents have been able to return to their homes.