Culiacán (Mexique) (AFP) – Police carry out checks at a roadside in Culiacan, Mexico, where the bodies of 20 people, several of them decapitated, were found earlier. Authorities say rival factions of the Sinaloa drug cartel are clashing in the area. Violence has soared in the northwestern state since the capture of cartel co-founder Ismael “El Mayo” Zambada almost a year ago. IMAGES
London (AFP) – Tennis fans queue to enter the Wimbledon Championships, with temperatures expected to climb to at least 33 degrees Celsius. On the competition’s opening day, organisers urged people not to travel without a ticket, as the queue already contained thousands hoping to get in.
Mexico City (AFP) – The only known giant panda not owned by China, Xin Xin, celebrates her 35th birthday at the Zoo of Chapultepec in Mexico City. She is the last in a line of giant pandas brought to Mexico in 1975. Since 1980, China has operated a different policy in which it only lends pandas for a short time and in return for a payment towards wild panda conservation efforts.
Seville (Spain) (AFP) – UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres urges leaders to “get resources flowing, fast” at the opening of a UN aid conference in Spain, as US-led cuts jeopardise the fight against poverty and climate change. Guterres tells delegates that two-thirds of UN sustainable development goals set for 2030 are “lagging” and more than $4.0 trillion of annual investment is needed to achieve them.
Bizanet (France) (AFP) – Firefighters battle a wildfire by air in the Aude region of southern France. The fire broke out yesterday and is now under control, according to authorities. Southern Europe has been in the grips of an intense heatwave now for several days – as southern Spain yesterday recorded highs of 46 degrees Celsius, a record June high for the country.
McLeod Ganj (India) (AFP) – Exiled Tibetan spiritual leader, the Dalai Lama, joins thousands of Buddhist followers for prayers to celebrate his 90th birthday which falls on July 6. The ceremony took place in McLeod Ganj in India, where he has lived in exile for decades since Chinese troops crushed an uprising in the Tibetan capital Lhasa in 1959.
Hong Kong (AFP) – One of Hong Kong’s last remaining opposition parties has officially disbanded, citing “immense political pressure” as Beijing presses on with its years-long crackdown on dissent. The League of Social Democrats (LSD), founded in 2006, championed democratisation and grassroots issues in Hong Kong’s legislature and on the streets.
Santiago du Chili (AFP) – People cast their votes in Chile’s primaries to choose the ruling coalition’s candidate for November’s general election. Polls opened at 8:00 a.m. local time (12:00 GMT), and on the ballot are two lawmakers and two former ministers from Gabriel Boric’s government, whose term ends in March 2026. IMAGES
Venice (AFP) – Amazon founder and billionaire Jeff Bezos travels by boat with his wife Lauren Sanchez Bezos to their wedding party in Venice. The newlyweds kissed during the boat ride, escorted by police and numerous photographers. The wedding has also attracted its fair share of criticism, with many protesting against what they see as the couple’s harmful economic and environmental footprint on the city.
Belgrade (AFP) – Clashes erupt between police and protesters in Belgrade following a rally that drew tens of thousands calling for the populist government to hold early elections, with dozens arrested.
Lisbon (AFP) – The Portuguese capital wakes up to a second day of heatwave, as climate change pushes thermometers on the world’s fastest-warming continent increasingly into the red. The Portuguese Meteorological Institute is forecasting a temperature of 42 degrees later today.
Waterloo (Belgium) (AFP) – Two hundred and ten years after the French were defeated at the Battle of Waterloo, marking the final defeat of Napoleon Bonaparte, the decisive clash is re-enacted. The event brought together more than 2,600 history enthusiasts from around the world and was narrated by French presenter Stephane Bern.
