Europe’s intense summer heatwaves are exposing severe overcrowding and poor conditions in ageing prisons across France, Italy, and Belgium. Inmates, prison officials, and rights groups say extreme temperatures inside overcrowded cells have made living conditions increasingly unbearable, with many facilities lacking proper ventilation, air conditioning, or cooling
The Russian defense ministry has reportedly taken over the practice of recruiting prisoners to fight in Ukraine, assuming the role previously held by the Wagner mercenary group. These units are informally known as Storm-Z, with the letter Z symbolizing Vladimir Putin’s “special military operation” against Ukraine and referencing the Russian word

