30 March 2026 – 5 April 2026

A fire broke out Saturday afternoon in a restaurant located on Rua Morais Soares in the Arroios area of Lisbon, leading to the evacuation of the building and temporary traffic closures. Emergency services, including the Lisbon Sapador Fire Regiment (Regimento de Sapadores Bombeiros de Lisboa), extinguished the blaze by late afternoon with no injuries reported. Authorities are currently investigating the cause, which initial reports suggest may have originated from a barbecue grill.

Update: Lisbon restaurant fire extinguished with no injuries

The fire was reported at 17:04 and extinguished by 17:51, according to the Lisbon Sapador Fire Regiment. Traffic on Rua Morais Soares has since reopened, and residents evacuated from adjacent buildings were permitted to return once safety checks were completed.

The Public Security Police (Polícia de Segurança Pública or PSP) and the National Republican Guard (Guarda Nacional Republicana or GNR) reported 13 deaths and nearly 2,000 accidents during their respective Easter road safety operations. The GNR recorded ten fatalities, including a family of four, while the PSP reported three deaths in over 1,300 accidents. Authorities also conducted extensive driver inspections, resulting in numerous arrests for driving under the influence of alcohol.

Update: Easter road fatalities rise to 16

The death toll from the Easter road safety operations has risen to at least 16, according to the latest reports from the PSP and GNR. Authorities also noted over 600 drivers were caught speeding and 81 individuals were detained for driving under the influence of alcohol.

Fuel prices are scheduled to rise again this coming Monday across Portugal. Diesel is expected to increase by seven to eight cents per litre, while petrol will see a rise of 2.5 cents per litre.

João Almeida Lopes, president of the Portuguese Association of the Pharmaceutical Industry (Associação Portuguesa da Indústria Farmacêutica or APIFARMA), warned that medicine prices may soon increase. He cited rising costs for transport and raw materials, alongside international economic pressures, as primary drivers for the potential adjustments.

TAP Air Portugal has resumed direct flights to Caracas, Venezuela, following a six-month suspension due to a United States-issued security alert. The resumption marks the airline's 50th anniversary of operating the route, which officials describe as vital for the Portuguese diaspora. TAP plans to increase service in July with a new weekly direct flight to Funchal.

A head-on collision involving three vehicles on the IC1 road in Santiago do Cacém resulted in four deaths on Friday. The victims, all members of a German family, included two parents and their two minor children. A 69-year-old individual was also seriously injured and transported by helicopter to a hospital in Lisbon.

Four hospital emergency departments, including obstetrics and paediatrics units, are closed this Saturday according to the National Health Service (Serviço Nacional de Saúde or SNS) portal. The affected facilities include hospitals in Santarém, Abrantes, Portimão, and Torres Vedras. Health authorities advise the public to contact the SNS 24 health line before traveling to any emergency department.

Update: Emergency department closures continue across four hospitals

Latest updates from the SNS portal confirm that the gynaecology and obstetrics departments at hospitals in Santarém, Abrantes, and Portimão remain closed. Additionally, the paediatric emergency unit at the Torres Vedras District Hospital is also unavailable to the public.

The race to privatise the national airline TAP Air Portugal has narrowed to two bidders, Lufthansa and Air France-KLM, following the withdrawal of the International Airlines Group (IAG). IAG, which owns Iberia and British Airways, stated that pursuing a minority stake in the Portuguese carrier did not align with its shareholders' interests. The government agency Parpública now has 30 days to review the remaining proposals.

The Social Democratic Party (Partido Social Democrata or PSD) and CDS-PP have submitted new proposals to amend the Nationality Law (Lei da Nacionalidade) following a rejection by the Constitutional Court (Tribunal Constitucional). The revised text maintains the loss of nationality (perda de nacionalidade) as a penalty for certain crimes but reduces the number of applicable offenses and raises the required sentence length. Chega leader André Ventura stated his party will not support the measure, accusing the government of being too similar to the socialists.

Update: PS submits proposals to fix unconstitutional nationality law

The Socialist Party (Partido Socialista or PS) has submitted three sets of amendments to address the court's concerns and introduce a transitional regime. The PS proposes that a prior criminal conviction should not automatically block the acquisition of nationality and maintains its opposition to the penalty of loss of nationality. Parliament is scheduled to debate the various proposals this Wednesday.

Ricardo Reis, a Chega MP, argues that the other political parties are currently “afraid” to accept the need for a constitutional review.

At the 25th National Congress of the Socialist Party (Partido Socialista or PS) in Viseu, leader José Luís Carneiro pledged to lead a “responsible opposition” to the government. Carneiro challenged the Democratic Alliance (Aliança Democrática or AD) to choose between moderate cooperation with the PS or alignment with the far-right party Chega. He also warned that the PS would reject any labor reforms that undermine workers' rights.

Fuel prices will rise again on Monday, with diesel increasing by eight cents per litre and petrol by three and a half cents. The increase in diesel will thus exceed 50 cents since the war began, and a 50-litre tank will cost, on average, €26 more than it did a month ago.