COPENHAGEN: As Europe reels from the effects of a prolonged heatwave that has caused a series of ferocious wildfires and escalating record-breaking high temperatures, the World Health Organization (WHO) has urged regional governments to implement the Paris climate agreement, whose position has been reinforced "as a health treaty" by the COP26 Health Programme.

"Governments must exhibit political will and genuine leadership in implementing the global Paris Agreement on climate change," WHO Regional Director for Europe Hans Kluge said in a statement on Friday.

According to Kluge, 1,700 people have died in Spain due to ongoing  heatwave, and flames have spread from southern Europe to as far north as Scandinavia, as per reports. Fires in London had burned 41 homes this week, with the "scorching summer season scarcely halfway done," he noted.

"Ultimately, this week's events highlight the critical need for pan-European action to successfully address climate change, the overriding catastrophe of our time that threatens both individual health and humanity's very existence." In response to the current heatwave's dramatic consequences, the WHO has produced recommendations for national and local authorities on "saving lives and strengthening the resilience of communities and people to manage amid extreme heat."

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