Armed with an ice-cold water bottle and a wet cloth, the 35-year-old Egyptian was doing his best to stay cool while wearing his mandatory mask and hair cap.
"It's hot outside, but inside, it's like fire," he said, shoving a board loaded with flatbreads into a large wood-fired oven.
"Standing here in front of the fire is like hell," he added as customers waited in the shade outside the small Riyadh bakery.
In arid Saudi Arabia, summer temperatures regularly reach 50C, leaving streets empty for much of the day.
To protect labourers, the kingdom bans work under direct sunlight and outside during the hours of most intense heat from mid-June until mid-September.
But these rules do little for indoor workers, many of whom, like Ahmed, have no choice but to toil near manmade sources of heat even at midday -- the hottest time of the day, which also coincides with busy lunch breaks.
"Here by the fire, I suffer on both sides," he said, caught between the oven and the bakery's door, which does not shut properly and allows in hot air from outside.
In June, Human Rights Watch called on Gulf countries to extend protections for workers toiling in the heat, considering current measures "insufficient".
A spokesperson for the human resources and social development ministry told AFP the kingdom had "clear occupational safety and health regulations to protect workers from heat stress across all sectors".
The ministry "conducts targeted inspection campaigns, acts on public reports through its hotline and mobile app, and enforces penalties for non-compliance", they added.
Ahmed left Egypt five years ago after he was offered 3,000 riyals ($800) to work in Riyadh -- a sum the struggling baker could not refuse.
"I keep working and I endure for the sake of my family", who now have a better life thanks to his higher pay, he said.
He works from 11:00 am to midnight, but fatigue sets in early.
"By midday, I'm completely exhausted," he said.
He cannot walk after his shift and has to "lie down for at least 30 minutes to get back to normal".
- Heat exhaustion -
Across the city, workers in bakeries, restaurants and laundries labour near indoor sources of heat all day long.
Karim Elgendy, who heads the Carboun Institute think tank, warned they were just as exposed to health risks as those working outdoors.
"Exposure to direct sunlight at 40C temperatures for an hour is comparable to being in front of an oven at 200C for a similar period," Elgendy said, warning that heat exhaustion and excessive sweating "can lead to severe dehydration, which puts pressure on vital organs".
People working by an oven should take frequent breaks away from the heat, he added.
But Hani al-Duaisi, who manages a grilled chicken shop, said that was impossible as the restaurant was packed with customers for most of the day.
Along with three employees, the 26-year-old Yemeni toils in a cramped kitchen packed with a grill, a charcoal stove and large pots filled with steaming rice.
"Even if you turn 10 air conditioners on, it won't cool the kitchen," he said, wiping away some sweat.
Nearby, some customers began complaining about slightly delayed orders.
"I feel like people outside live in one world, and we live in another," said Duaisi.
"Our world here is hell."
CORRECTED: Portugal reports first death from heatwave fires
Lisbon (AFP) Aug 15, 2025 -
The president offered "heartfelt condolences to the mayor of Guarda for the death of former mayor Carlos Damaso, victim of a fire he was fighting in his parish, asking that he pass them on to his family", said the president's statement.
Rebelo de Sousa added that he had cut short his holidays and returned to the presidential palace, joining a meeting of the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority.
For several days now, several thousand firefighters have been battling fires in various parts of the country.
Like its neighbour Spain, Portugal has invoked the EU's civil protection mechanism to ask for help, requesting four firefighting aircraft to use until Monday, the presidency said on X.
After devastating fires in 2017 that killed 119 people across the country, Portugal boosted investment on fire prevention tenfold, doubling its budget for fighting forest fires.
It subsequently managed to reduce the amount of land lost to 54,000 hectares (134,000 acres) between 2018 and 2023, a third of what was lost between 2001 and 2017, according to government figures.
Fleeing the heat, tourists explore Rome at night, underground
Rome (AFP) Aug 15, 2025 -
At a refreshing 15C, the catacombs were a popular place to hide this week as temperatures in the Eternal City reached almost 40C, while other visitors sought out evening tours and 2:00 am walks.
"If we could have postponed our trip, we would have done it, but everything was already booked," said Ansari, 32, visiting Italy with her mother and an aunt.
Instead, they adapted. "We booked our earliest tour starting at 7:30 am, and aim to be home before midday," she told AFP, taking refuge on a shaded stone bench near the Appian Way next to her aunt, who appeared overwhelmed by the heat.
They do not venture out again before 4:00 pm or 5:00 pm, and, as in many Mediterranean countries, they pushed back their dinner time by three hours to 9:00 pm.
In central Rome, Rafael Falcao also headed underground, to the Crypt of the Capuchin Friars on the Via Veneto, which he found relatively cool.
He too, had to change his plans as a heatwave punishing southern Europe pushed up Rome's already high August temperatures.
"Yesterday, we rented a small car to visit the city because it was too hot to walk," the 42-year-old Brazilian said.
Patricia Kolodziej, a 41-year-old Polish woman living in Britain, said she struggled to find things to do with her toddler in the heat.
But she managed to get tickets for the last entry to the Colosseum, the ancient Roman amphitheatre that's a must-see for tourists -- but which can be a furnace during the day.
"We have chosen more sightseeing in the evening," Kolodziej told AFP.
A few steps away, under the shadow of the Colosseum, an Asian tourist who declined to give her name, seemed close to fainting, her forehead sweating.
"We came late on purpose, but it's no use," she said.
- Nobody out -
Online travel portal Booking.com predicted last October that "noctourism" -- nighttime tourism -- will be one of the trends of 2025.
It blamed rising temperatures due to climate change, as well as overtourism.
Several Rome sites offer evening activities, including the Circus Maximus and the Colosseum which opens late at night twice a week.
Tickets quickly disappear but Madison Thibert, from the US state of North Dakota, secured one, allowing her to enjoy the sight of the ancient monument bathed in moonlight.
Thibert said she and her boyfriend had been exploring the city after hours, when temperatures reduce, and so do the crowds.
"We just walked around, we saw the Trevi Fountain, came by the Colosseum. We took some of the scooters around on the roads," Thibert said.
"It was a lot cooler," she noted, and, "nobody was out. It was perfect."
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