Montevideo is currently 10 C (49 F) under partly cloudy skies, feeling like 6 C (42 F) with moderate winds of 18 km/h (11 mph). Today's high reached 10 C (50 F), but wind chill made it feel as low as 1 C (35 F) early this morning. Humidity stands at 75 percent. The cold snap that settled over the country yesterday continues through tonight.

Tomorrow (Wednesday) will bring light drizzle and slightly warmer temperatures, with a high of 15 C (58 F) and a low of 7 C (44 F), though it will still feel as cold as 3 C (38 Fri) in the morning. Expect about one millimeter of rain and winds up to 22 km/h.

Thursday brings the week's main weather event: thunderstorms are forecast for both morning and afternoon, with 6.7 millimeters (0.3 inches) of rain expected in Montevideo and significantly more — 27 millimeters (one inch) — in Punta del Este. Inumet forecasts overcast skies, storms, and southwest winds of 20–40 km/h with strong gusts associated with the storms. High temperatures will reach 13 C (56 F) in Montevideo and 17 C (63 F) on the coast, with overnight lows around 11 C (52 F). Friday through Sunday remain overcast and cool, with highs between 11 C and 12 C (52–54 F) and no significant precipitation.

Four armed men raided the Banco República (BROU) branch on General Artigas and Solís in Pando (Canelones) yesterday at approximately 5 p.m., escaping with an estimated US$70,000, €90,000 and $10 million in Uruguayan pesos, according to police sources. The figures have not yet been confirmed by bank authorities. The robbers, carrying shotguns and 9-mm pistols, threatened and assaulted security guards before taking the cash from teller stations.

Video captured the four men, three with covered faces and one with his face visible, leaving the branch with garbage bags filled with cash and speeding away in a black Mercedes-Benz. Police were alerted via the branch's panic button near the end of the robbery. The getaway car was later found crashed and abandoned in Barros Blancos. The robbers broke into a family's home, threatening them at gunpoint to demand their car keys; when that failed, they carjacked a passing pickup truck and continued their escape. A firearm was recovered inside the abandoned Mercedes.

Authorities are working to identify the man whose face was captured on camera; police sources told Montevideo Portal he is believed to be a foreign national under 30 years old and was wearing Adidas Niteball sneakers. The bank workers' union AEBU has called for increased security resources following the robbery.

The Noche de la Nostalgia (Night of Nostalgia) celebration on Monday night and into this morning saw no traffic fatalities nationwide, according to preliminary data from the Sistema de Información Nacional de Tránsito (SINATRAN). Between 7 p.m. Monday and 8 a.m. today, authorities recorded 23 crashes, one involving a person with serious injuries and 22 with minor injuries. In Maldonado, nearly 1,800 vehicle checks were conducted, yielding 10 positive breathalyzer tests.

Nationwide, more than 13,000 breathalyzer tests were administered during the coordinated operation by the Unidad Nacional de Seguridad Vial (UNASEV), the Interior Ministry, and departmental governments. A total of 267 drivers tested positive for alcohol. The Noche de la Nostalgia, celebrated each year on Aug. 24 (the eve of Uruguay's Independence Day), is one of the country's biggest nightlife events, comparable in scale to New Year's Eve.

Israel's embassy in Montevideo lodged a verbal protest with Uruguay's Foreign Ministry after Subsecretaria (deputy minister) Valeria Csukasi said in a streaming interview that Uruguay would be obligated to arrest Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu if he entered the country, according to El País. The International Criminal Court issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu earlier this year. Csukasi, speaking on the Al Weso show hosted by journalist Jorge Balmelli, said Uruguay's obligation under its ICC commitments is "indiscutible" (indisputable), though she added Netanyahu would never visit knowing such warrants exist.

Csukasi also said the Israeli government has committed human-rights violations and abused the concept of self-defense, noting the response has been disproportionate "in time and intensity." However, she reiterated the Orsi administration's position that what is happening in Gaza does not meet the legal definition of genocide because "not all the characteristics" of the Genocide Convention are met. President Orsi later told the press that officials should avoid making statements "on something that is not a fact," and coalition president Alejandro Sánchez defended Csukasi, saying the government is "very tranquil" about the minister's conduct.

According to diplomatic sources cited by El País, the Israeli embassy's protest was verbal and not recorded in writing. The embassy confirmed to the paper that the matter was handled through the proper diplomatic channels in a framework of open and professional dialogue with Uruguayan authorities.

Legislators from the Partido Nacional, Partido Colorado and Partido Independiente announced they will file a criminal complaint this week against Defense Minister Sandra Lazo for alleged abuse of office (abuso innominado de funciones) in connection with the Cardama case. The opposition says two of Lazo's advisers — Daniel Marsiglia and Damián Rojas — interrogated senior Navy officers, recommended sanctions, met with Cardama and other shipyard representatives, and prepared reports used to cancel the patrol-boat contract, all while working under oral instructions from the minister but without formal appointments to the ministry. The complaint will also charge the advisers with the crimes of "pesquisa" (unauthorized investigation) and usurpation of functions.

The five-month parliamentary investigative commission into the 2023 purchase and 2025 cancellation of a contract with the Spanish shipyard Cardama for two offshore patrol vessels concluded its work. In a press conference Monday, Partido Nacional deputy Gabriel Gianoli said the opposition found no corruption or illegality in the original contracting process under the Lacalle Pou government, and accused the current administration of conducting "a political operation of very bad faith." Coalition president Álvaro Delgado and other legislators participated in the announcement.

Government spokesman Alejandro Sánchez responded that the administration is "very tranquil about the minister's conduct." The dispute centers on whether Lazo's team overstepped legal boundaries in investigating alleged contract irregularities. Uruguay has about $30 million in payments tied up in the dispute, and Cardama has initiated international arbitration against the Uruguayan state.

The Instituto de Regulación y Control del Cannabis (IRCCA) — the Cannabis Regulation and Control Institute — raised prices for the four legal cannabis strains sold in pharmacies starting Aug. 1. Alfa rose from $485 to $500, Beta from $505 to $510, Gamma from $565 to $580, and Épsilon from $615 to $630. The adjustments follow earlier increases in August 2025 and February 2026, driven by rising demand and cultivation costs.

As of April 30, 120,083 people were registered to access cannabis through one of Uruguay's three legal channels: pharmacy purchase (88,955 users, or 74 percent), cannabis clubs (20,798 members) or home cultivation (10,330 registered growers). Pharmacy sales continue to grow, with 60 pharmacies now dispensing cannabis nationwide. Home cultivation registrations, by contrast, have stalled or declined slightly. Épsilon, the highest-THC variety (up to 20 percent), remains the most popular strain, accounting for about 75 percent of December 2025 pharmacy sales.

Uruguay's legal cannabis market continues to consolidate more than a decade after the landmark 2013 regulation, according to the Instituto de Regulación y Control del Cannabis (IRCCA) first-quarter 2026 report released in May. By April 30, 120,083 people were registered to access cannabis through one of three legal channels, with pharmacy purchases (88,955 users) accounting for 74 percent of the total, cannabis clubs at 20,798 members, and home cultivation (autocultivo) at 10,330 — the only channel showing stagnation or slight decline.

The pharmacy network has expanded significantly, adding 20 new dispensaries between January 2025 and April 2026 to reach a total of 60 locations nationwide. Montevideo has 26, Canelones eight, and Maldonado seven. Only Colonia, Durazno, Florida, Soriano and Treinta y Tres lack pharmacy access. First-quarter 2026 sales were substantially higher than the prior year; March 2026 recorded 525 kilograms sold compared to 348 kilograms in March 2025. Épsilon, the highest-THC strain (up to 20 percent), remains the most popular variety.

Prices rose Aug. 1 across all four strains — Alfa, Beta, Gamma and Épsilon — the third increase in a year. Analysts suggest former home growers may be migrating to pharmacies as the retail network improves and the novelty of cultivation fades. The law restricts access to Uruguayan citizens and permanent residents over 18; tourists and temporary residents remain excluded, though reform proposals to allow visitor access have been discussed.