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Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said Wednesday that "more than 500 people" died during a 10-day heatwave in Spain, one of the most intense ever recorded in the country, NDTV reported.

Sanchez cited figures released Monday from the Carlos III Health Institute which estimates the number of heat-related deaths based on the number of excess deaths when compared to the average in previous years.

The institute has stressed that these figures are a statistical estimate and not a record of official deaths.

"During this heatwave, more than 500 people died because of such high temperatures, according to the statistics," Sanchez said.

"I ask citizens to exercise extreme caution," he said, noting that the "climate emergency is a reality".

Spain was gripped by a heatwave affecting much of Western Europe which pushed temperatures as high as 45 degrees Celsius (113 degrees Fahrenheit) in some regions last week, sparking dozens of wildfires, according to NDTV.

The blazes forced the evacuation of thousands of people and claimed at least two lives -- that of a firefighter and a shepherd who got caught up in the flames in northwest Spain.

The July 9-18 heatwave was one of the most intense ever recorded in Spain, meteorological agency AEMET said Wednesday.

"At a minimum, it is the third most intense heatwave in terms of its geographic extension and duration" since modern records began in 1975, AEMET spokeswoman Beatriz Hervella said.

Only two other heatwaves lasted longer -- one in July 2015 that lasted 26 days and another in August 2003 that went on for 16 days, she added, NDTV reported.

Ethnic clashes in Sudan's Blue Nile state in a deadly land dispute killed 105 people and wounded 291, the state's health minister said, providing a new toll Wednesday, NDTV reported.

Fighting broke out in the southern state on the borders with Ethiopia and South Sudan on July 11 between members of the Berti and Hausa ethnic groups.

"The situation is now calm," state health minister Jamal Nasser told AFP by telephone from the state capital al-Damazin, some 460 kilometres (285 miles) south of Khartoum.

The deployment of the army had eased the fighting since Saturday, he said.

"The challenge now is in sheltering the displaced," Nasser said.

The United Nations said Tuesday that more than 17,000 people have fled their homes from the fighting, with 14,000 "sheltering in three schools in al-Damazin."

Between January and March this year, the UN said aid was provided to 563,000 people in Blue Nile.

Sudan, one of the world's poorest countries and mired in an economic crisis that has deepened since an October coup led by army chief Abdel Fattah al-Burhan, has seen only rare interludes of civilian rule since independence, according to NDTV.

In Sudan, deadly clashes regularly erupt over land, livestock and access to water and grazing, especially in areas still awash with weapons left over from decades of civil war.

Fighting in Blue Nile reportedly broke out after Bertis rejected a Hausa request to create a "civil authority to supervise access to land", a prominent Hausa member said.

But a senior Berti leader said the group was responding to a "violation" of their land by the Hausas.

While fighting is reported to have stopped and relative calm returned to Blue Nile, tensions have escalated in other states, where the Hausa people have taken to the streets demanding "justice for the martyrs."

Thousands protested Tuesday in Khartoum, North Kordofan, Kassala, Gedaref, and Port Sudan, according to AFP correspondents, NDTV reported.

Wildfires are raging across Europe, where a heatwave has intensified drought conditions, BBC reported.

Though temperatures have cooled in France and the UK, firefighters are still tackling blazes in Greece, Spain and Italy.

The fires in France's badly hit south-west have started to be brought under control.

And as the heatwave moves north-east, low water levels are hampering transport on rivers in Germany.

Heatwaves have become more frequent, more intense, and last longer because of human-induced climate change. The world has already warmed by about 1.1C since the industrial era began and temperatures will keep rising unless governments around the world make steep cuts to emissions.

More than 1,000 deaths have been linked to the extremely high temperatures in Portugal while in Spain it is at least 500.

In Greece, firefighters were tackling a blaze on Mount Penteli, to the north-east of the capital Athens.

In the nearby town of Pallini, state electricity workers were scrambling to remove burnt pylons, the BBC's Kostas Koukoumakas reports.

Panagopoulos, 87, woke up at 03:00 (00:00 GMT) to a red sky. "The fire surrounded the house and I managed to leave the area by car," he said.

Mr Panagopoulos, who was for many years an amateur actor, said his house could be rebuilt but his collection of more than 1,200 theatre books had been turned to ashes.

Firefighting helicopters were dropping water, one after the other. Winds in excess of 80km/h (49mph) have made it harder to contain the fire.

Almost all the water carriers in the region have been deployed. Greece's fire service said additional support was expected from other regions.

Hundreds of people have been evacuated from surrounding areas, including eastern Gerakas, which is home to nearly 30,000 people. A paediatric hospital and the National Observatory of Athens have also been vacated.

France has had some of the worst fires, particularly in the southwest region of Gironde, though conditions for tackling them have improved. Temperatures fell from 40C (104F) on Tuesday to the mid-20s on Wednesday.

"The conditions are favourable" to tackle the blazes, the mayor of La Teste-de-Buch - one of the affected areas in Gironde - told the BBC. Patrick Davet added, however, that it was necessary to stay "humble" as conditions could change.

Visiting fire crews in Gironde, French President Emmanuel Macron said the shift in climate, which is leading to more wildfires, would force the EU to take "structural decisions". 

Ahead of his arrival, one firefighter told BBC News he thought France had been underprepared. While he understood the planes needed were very expensive, similar fires would happen in the future and France needed to bite the bullet and invest, the unnamed firefighter said.

Spain has also been battling multiple wildfires. 

Though one in the central province of Zamora has been brought under control, according to the local government, two large wildfires are still out of control in the north-western region of Galicia. A fire in the Gredos mountain range is also spreading east towards the Madrid region, the BBC's Guy Hedgecoe reports.

Some 5,600 hectares (13,800 acres) of land have also been burnt in the north-eastern region of Aragon. 

In Portugal, some 900 firefighters were fighting two active fires in the country's far north.

Major fires have also affected Italy in the past days, causing the country to be put on its highest heatwave alert for Thursday. Italian infrastructure has also been heavily impacted, with temporary closure of a key rail route between Rome and Florence, Italian media report. 

As the heatwave moves north-eastwards, parts of Germany have recorded 38C (100.4F) on Wednesday, according to its national weather service, DWD. 

Despite the hot temperatures, heavy rain, strong gusts of wind of around 100km/h and even hail are forecast.

Thunderstorms are also expected in Belgium. 

On Wednesday, Sweden recorded its hottest day of the year, with temperatures in the south-west reaching 32C.

On April 26, the government banned the import of 10 luxury items for three months, citing the economic crisis. Now the Ministry of Industries, Commerce and Supplies is planning to extend the ban period, a highly placed source at the ministry tells ApEx. 

Some economists and businesspersons say such a move goes against the spirit of free trade.

“The ban was imposed for a certain period. If this government believes in free trade and a competitive economy, it has no right to ban import of some select items,” says economist Ramesh Poudel.

He adds prohibiting imports means the risk of informal market proliferation, which will ultimately hurt the revenue collection. This risk is more present in a country like Nepal, which shares an open border with India.  

Out of 5,012 listed items of import, the government had banned only 10 items deeming them luxury goods. 

The source at the Supplies Ministry says a proposal to stay the ban is due to be tabled before the Cabinet. “It is now up to the Cabinet to make the decision,” the source tells ApEx. 

Rajesh Kumar Agrawal, vice-president of the Confederation of Nepalese Industries, says the government is promoting black-marketeering by banning imports of goods.

“The goods that are supposedly banned are still available in the market. Where are they coming from if not from illegal channels,” he says. 

Former Commerce Secretary Purushottam Ojha says it is not right to discriminate and ban certain goods without any valid reason.

“If the government was so concerned, why didn’t it ban the import of items like Guthka that are harmful to health?” 

Concerned importers and traders have urged the government to review its decision, or at least the items on the ban list. They say the decision was made without any study.

Dinesh Shrestha, vice-president of the Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry, says the government should review the list if it is planning to ban the so-called luxury goods.

“It should conduct a thorough study and consult the concerned importers before deciding to impose a ban,” he says.

Finance Ministry Spokesperson Dhundiraj Niraula says if a certain good is cheaper for Nepal to import than to manufacture in the country, there is no point banning its import. 

“The Supplies Ministry should study all aspects and implications of prohibiting import of goods before taking further decisions,” he says.

Kamalesh Agrawal, senior vice-president of Nepal Chamber of Commerce, suggests that the government come up with a strategy that is a win-win for all.  

“Nepal’s largest import is petroleum products. This is the right time for the government to curb their consumption by adopting electric vehicles,” he says. “I understand luxury goods are unnecessary during bad economic times. But that doesn’t give the government the right to enforce arbitrary bans without any study.”