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.
Berlin (AFP) – Lithuania’s president says his country wants to be integrated into Western nuclear deterrence against Russia, at a time of heightened tensions between Moscow and its Baltic neighbours. “We would like to be an integral part of this nuclear deterrence,” President Gitanas Nauseda says at a press conference in Berlin, adding that Lithuania is taking steps to remove a constitutional ban on the deployment of nuclear weapons.
Mumbai (AFP) – Heavy rains lash India’s financial capital Mumbai, flooding parts of the city and disrupting traffic and daily life. The coastal metropolis has been hit by continuous rains since the start of the week, with the India Meteorological Department (IMD) forecasting continued downpours through the weekend.
Teheran (AFP) – Preparations for Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s funeral are underway in the Iranian capital Tehran, as banners hang from buildings and gardeners arrange plants near the city’s vast Grand Mosalla complex. The body of Iran’s late supreme leader is due to lie in state from 4 July, after he was killed in US-Israeli strikes on 28 February.
Moskau (AFP) – Russia says it will be ramping up the “pressure” on Ukraine after launching its largest ever attack on Kyiv overnight, firing waves of drones and missiles that killed 17. “Russia will continue to increase pressure on the Kyiv regime in order to achieve our set goals,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov tells reporters, when asked about the EU saying it would look at new sanctions on Moscow over the latest strikes.
