Ankara (AFP) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky tells a NATO summit in Ankara that his country’s forces would bolster the western military alliance’s defences, renewing his argument for Kyiv to join. Zelensky also uses a speech to ask leaders for “more air defence missiles”, which he says are Ukraine’s “top priority”.
Pamplona (Spain) (AFP) – Bulls charge through the narrow, packed streets of Pamplona in northern Spain during the first ‘encierro’ of the San Fermin festival. Dense crowds of runners try to stay close to the bulls without falling over or being gored.
Nairobi (AFP) – A formerly homeless man in Kenya’s capital, Rodgers Oloo Magutha, aka ‘Nairobi Birdman’, has gained a large social media following after years of rescuing and living with injured birds. “I am one of a kind in this country and Africa and the world,” he says. The bird enthusiast also dismisses health concerns raised by Nairobi’s authorities over his habit of eating with the birds. “I’ve been living on the streets where we’ve been eating together, we’ve been sleeping together in the cold, but nothing ever happened to me,” he says.
London (AFP) – Slowly coasting over the UK capital, the London Eye hosts the world’s first rotating tattoo parlour, with the artists inking a design within one of the attraction’s 30-minute turns. “I love to do something different and unique and that way when everybody asks I can brag that I got it done on the London Eye,” says Meg Gianforte.
Litochoro (Greece) (AFP) – At the foot of Mount Olympus, home of the Greek Gods, devotees of polytheism gather during the four-day-long Prometheia Festival. “We worship our Gods, we worship nature, as you can see all around us. Because for the ancient Greeks, their temple was nature itself”, says one worshipper.
Tehran (AFP) – Vast crowds gather for the funeral procession of Iran’s slain supreme leader Ali Khamenei in Tehran, with authorities estimating millions are on the streets in numbers that could rival those of his predecessor’s farewell nearly four decades ago.
Seattle (AFP) – The United States face the biggest day of soccer in their history as they take on Belgium for a place in the World Cup quarter-finals, after a dramatic reprieve for star striker Folarin Balogun thanks to the intervention of President Donald Trump. Balogun, who has scored three goals at the World Cup, had been set to miss the clash in Seattle after receiving a straight red card for stepping on a Bosnia-Herzegovina defender’s foot — until Trump called FIFA chief Gianni Infantino asking him to review the punishment, two sources familiar with the matter told AFP.
Praia (Cape Verde) (AFP) – Thousands of ecstatic fans parade Cape Verde’s football team through the streets of Praia as they return home from their first ever World Cup following a slender defeat to Argentina in the knockout stages.
Catia La Mar (Venezuela) (AFP) – Lines of graves are prepared for unidentified victims of the twin earthquakes that struck Venezuela on June 24. At least 3,300 people are confirmed dead and more than 16,700 injured as a result of the quakes.
Blackfoot (AFP) – As the United States prepares to mark the 250th anniversary of its independence, some members of the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes in Idaho say the celebrations hold a different meaning for Native Americans. “We as Native Americans, we have been here a lot longer than 250 years,” says Alonzo Coby, an Indian Relay coach and member of the Shoshone-Bannock Tribes. The milestone “feels a little odd” for tribal members because they “have always been here,” says Stephan Kniffin of the tribe’s Language and Cultural Preservation Department.
Toronto (AFP) – Cristiano Ronaldo greets the crowd outside his team’s hotel in Toronto after Portugal edged past Croatia for a 2-1 victory, securing them a place in the World Cup’s last 16. Ronaldo’s second-half penalty made him, at 41, the oldest man to score in a World Cup knockout match. Portugal will face Spain in Dallas on Monday.
Rio de Janeiro (AFP) – Rio de Janeiro’s Christ the Redeemer statue is illuminated in the colors of the Venezuelan flag in solidarity with the victims of the deadly twin earthquakes that struck Brazil’s neighbor on June 24. The official death toll from the disaster has risen to nearly 2,600 and huge numbers of people are still missing.
