European Commission - Daily News Daily News 10 / 03 / 2026 Brussels, 10 March 2026 EU mobilise s emergency humanitarian aid for Lebanon In light of the escalating situation in the Middle East and the evolving humanitarian situation in Lebanon, the EU has mobilised emergency humanitarian aid consisting of food and medical kits, shelter materials, recreation kits and winter clothing kits, to meet the urgent, rising hum...
European Commission - Daily News Daily News 10 / 03 / 2026 Brussels, 10 March 2026 EU mobilise s emergency humanitarian aid for Lebanon In light of the escalating situation in the Middle East and the evolving humanitarian situation in Lebanon, the EU has mobilised emergency humanitarian aid consisting of food and medical kits, shelter materials, recreation kits and winter clothing kits, to meet the urgent, rising humanitarian needs in Lebanon. Due to ongoing hostilities, around 680,000+ people have been displaced there in recent days. The aid will be delivered via our humanitarian partners, the World Food Program (WFP) and UNICEF. The WFP will deliver 404 metric tonnes of food assistance to more than 90,000 people. The operation is funded by a flexible EU-WFP funding modality that allows for faster mobilisation of pre-positioned food stocks and rapid provision of cooked meals in the Middle East, North Africa and Eastern Europe. This is the first time this emergency method of funding is used. A Humanitarian Airbridge Flight will deliver medical and non-food items to UNICEF from the EU's warehouse in Copenhagen, to cover the needs of more than 100,000 vulnerable people. Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management Hadja Lahbib said: “ The people of Lebanon can count on the European Union. Hundreds of thousands of people have been forced from their homes almost overnight. Europe is moving fast to help. Through our partners WFP and UNICEF, we are delivering food, medicine, and emergency supplies to people who have lost their homes and jobs. Our new Emergency Preparedness Trust Fund allows us to move more quickly than ever and be even more effective. We stand ready to scale up support for the most vulnerable at this difficult time.” President Ursula von der Leyen , together with President Antonio Costa, expressed yesterday deep concern about the impact of the regional crisis on Lebanon and its severe impact on civilians, triggering large scale displacement. They underscored the need for the protection of civilians, and the respect of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Lebanon. (For more information: Eva Hrnčířová – Tel.: +32 2 298 84 33; Quentin Cortès – Tel.: +32 2 296 47 35) Commission unveils new AI tool to fight agri-food alerts and food fraud The European Commission has unveiled a new artificial intelligence (AI) platform, TraceMap, to accelerate the detection of food fraud, contaminated food and foodborne disease outbreaks across the EU. In line with the EU's high safety standards for food and imported products, this new tool will reinforce consumer safety and help national authorities work more effectively , by innovating on how we assess, detect and respond to food safety risks and fraudulent activity. TraceMap will use AI to improve food safety risk assessments by streamlining access and analysing critical data; rapidly identify links between operators and consignments; monitor the entire agri-food supply chain , once a risk is identified, enabling faster recalls of unsafe or fraudulent products. As of today, TraceMap is accessible to national authorities in all Member States, allowing them to better target controls and carry out more thorough investigations, without requiring additional resources. It will use the extensive data in the existing EU agri-food systems to track trade patterns and production flows at a fast pace. The platform will improve screening accuracy, speed up the detection of suspicious operators and help investigators to detect food fraud and food borne outbreaks and remove non-compliant products from the market quickly. TraceMap empowers Member States to close gaps, address vulnerabilities and strengthen their anti-fraud measures in the agri-food sector. It will also enable better control of imported goods, in line with the strengthened measures set out in the Vision for Agriculture and Food . More information is available to the press release . (For more information: Eva Hrnčířová — Tel.: +32 2 298 84 33; Eirini Zarkadoula - Tel.: +32 2 295 70 65) Commission clears acquisition of CMT by TPG, Vitality and SoftBank Investor The European Commission has approved, under the EU Merger Regulation, the acquisition of joint control of Cambridge Mobile Telematics Inc. (‘CMT') by TPG Inc., Vitality Group International, Inc. (‘Vitality'), all of the US, and SoftBank Vision Fund (AIV M2), L.P. (‘SoftBank Investor') of the UK. The transaction relates primarily to telematic services. The Commission concluded that the notified transaction would not raise competition concerns, given that the joint venture has negligible activities in the European Economic Area and that the companies are not active in the same or vertically related markets. The notified transaction was examined under the simplified merger review procedure. More information is available on the Commission's competition website , in the public case register under the case number M.12287 . (For more information: Ricardo Cardoso – Tel.: +32 2 298 01 00; Paula Clara Ritter-Moschütz – Tel.: +32 2 296 40 83) ANNOUNCEMENTS Executive Vice-President Fitto in Austria to discuss the future cohesion policy On 11-12 March, Executive Vice-President Rafaelle Fitto will be in Austria to discuss the future of the EU's cohesion policy with national and regional authorities. He will meet the Austrian federal ministers of European Affairs, Claudia Bauer; Finance, Markus Marterbauer; and Agriculture, Forestry, Regions and Water Management, Norbert Totschnig. He will also engage with the association of municipalities, cities and towns, and the governors of federal states. The visit is an opportunity to exchange on key topics such as the role of regions in the new National and Regional Partnership Plans (NRPPs). In the next EU budget, the NRPPs will bring together key EU funds under one unified strategy, providing a streamlined and more flexible framework tailored to the specific needs of regions. Executive Vice-President Fitto will also discuss EU support for rural areas and farmers, alongside the EU Agenda for Cities designed to equip them for future challenges, including climate change and affordable housing. Additionally, he will touch upon the upcoming Right to Stay strategy, which will seek to combat demographic decline in vulnerable regions. Lastly, the Executive Vice-President will visit a renovated building for vulnerable and low-income households funded by the Recovery and Resilience Facility. (For more information: Maciej Berestecki - Tel: +32 229-66483; Isabel Arriaga e Cunha – Tel: +32 229-52117) Commissioner Brunner hosts 22nd European Remembrance Day for Victims of Terrorism On 11 March 2026, the Commissioner for Internal Affairs and Migration, Magnus Brunner , will host the 22nd European Remembrance Day for Victims of Terrorism, in Brussels. The annual ceremony honours the victims and survivors of terrorist attacks across Europe and reaffirms the European Union's solidarity with those affected. Opening remarks will be delivered by Commissioner Brunner and the Prime Minister of Belgium, Bart De Wever. The programme will include testimonials from victims and survivors of some major terrorist attacks, including the 2016 Brussels and Nice attacks, the 2003 attack against the UN headquarters in Baghdad, and the 09/11 attacks in 2001. A minute of silence will be observed, followed by closing remarks by Commissioner Brunner and Prime Minister De Wever. Like every year, an olive tree ceremony provides the opportunity to share a message of hope. This year, there is also the possibility to participate virtually for anyone wishing to share a message of support. Executive-Vice President Virkkunen said: “Today we remember the victims of terrorism and the lives forever changed by it. Their memory calls on us to remain united and steadfast in defending our open societies against those who seek to undermine them. We will continue to stand with victims and step up our efforts to prevent and combat terrorism across the Union.” Commissioner Brunner said: “We stand united in remembrance of those whose lives were taken and those whose lives were forever changed by terrorism. Their stories are a solemn reminder of what is at stake. Our responsibility is not only to honour their memory, but to ensure that victims remain at the heart of our policies. Europe will continue to act with determination against those who seek to divide us through violence and hatred.” Established following the 11 March 2004 Madrid attacks, the European Remembrance Day for Victims of Terrorism is commemorated annually on that date. It reflects the European Union's continued commitment to supporting victims of terrorism, strengthening their rights and access to justice, and including them in reinforcing cooperation to prevent and combat radicalisation and terrorism. Journalists can register in the form available online. (For more information: Markus Lammert – Tel.: +32 2 296 75 33; Elettra Di Massa - Tel.: +32 2 298 21 61) Tentative agendas for forthcoming Commission meetings Note that these items can be subject to changes. Upcoming events of the European Commission Eurostat press releases Calendar items of the President and Commissioners Individual calendars of the President and Commissioners MEX/26/585
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