AFP UK

Kaboul (AFP) – The all-enveloping blue burqa with a face mesh has long been a symbol of the Taliban’s oppression of women in Afghanistan, but the trend is slowly changing.

Unknown (AFP) – Some 175 Russian soldiers have returned to Russia after an exchange with Ukraine in the latest prisoner swap, brokered by the United Arab Emirates. The Kremlin announced the swap on Tuesday, following talks between US President Donald Trump and Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin.

Téhéran (AFP) – Lighting fireworks and dancing around fires, Iranians in Tehran are celebrating “Chaharshanbe Suri”, or “Fire Festival”. The celebration is held annually on the night of the last Tuesday of the Iranian calendar year.

Istanbul (AFP) – “There is no justice, there is no law”: Istanbul residents take to the street as the city’s popular opposition mayor Ekrem Imamoglu is detained in connection with two investigations into graft and “supporting terror”. The arrest comes just days before Imamoglu, considered President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s main political rival, was to be named the opposition candidate for the 2028 presidential election.

Helsinki (AFP) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says that Kyiv’s allies should increase their support for Ukraine, after Russian President Vladimir Putin’s demand that the West halt their military and intelligence support. “I do not believe that we should make any concessions in terms of assistance for Ukraine, but rather there should be an increase,” he states during a press conference with his Finnish counterpart Alexander Stubb.

Cártama (Espagne) (AFP) – Members of the Spanish Civil Guard rescue dogs as Storm Laurence hits southern Spain, causing flooding after heavy rainfall. Spain, which went through a long period of drought between 2021 and 2024, has been facing a series of intense rainfall for several weeks.

Aéroport international d’Alep (Syrie) (AFP) – The first commercial flight lands at Aleppo International Airport as it reopens after being out of service since Islamist-led rebels took over the city and toppled longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad.

Phnom Tamao (Cambodge) (AFP) – Important conservation efforts in Cambodia have brought back the critically endangered Siamese crocodile from near-extinction. The species is one of the rarest reptiles in the world, and was feared extinct in the wild only 25 years ago.

Russie (AFP) – Shouting into a phone, Olga Shkuratova is speaking to her son for the first time in months. The 73-year-old is one of those being evacuated from fighting in the Russian Kursk region, where Moscow’s forces are rapidly pushing Ukrainian soldiers out. “What I’ve been through, not even in your worst nightmare,” she says.

Jérusalem (AFP) – Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Oren Marmorstein says Israel “is operating with full force against the Hamas terrorist organisation” as the country resumes striking the Gaza Strip. “Hamas repeatedly refused proposals”, Marmorstein adds during a press briefing. The Israeli army has carried out a wave of deadly overnight strikes on Gaza, the most intense since a ceasefire began last January, killing more than 400 people according to the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry.

Khan Yunis (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) – Israel has unleashed its most intense campaign on the Gaza Strip since a January ceasefire, prompting Hamas to accuse Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of deciding to “resume war.”

Rabat (AFP) – During the holy fasting month of Ramadan, tables across the Maghreb region are adorned with “essential” traditional sweets. In Morocco, a table isn’t complete without shebakia. In Algeria, zlabia takes the spotlight, and in Tunisia, people travel for kilometres to buy makroud.