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Caracas (AFP) – Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro appears at a public event in Caracas following his phone call with US President Donald Trump, amid soaring tensions between the two countries. The United States is piling the pressure on Venezuela, with a major military buildup in the Caribbean, the designation of an alleged drug cartel run by Maduro as a terrorist group, and an ominous warning from Trump that Venezuelan airspace is “closed.” IMAGES

Tegucigalpa (AFP) – Votes cast in Honduras’ presidential election arrive at a logistics center under heavy military guard. Conservative candidate Nasry Asfura, who is backed by US President Donald Trump, holds the slenderest of leads with just over half the votes counted. IMAGES

Harissa (AFP) – Dozens wait for Pope Leo XIV to arrive at the Our Lady of Lebanon shrine in Harissa, north of Beirut, on the second day of his trip to the multi-confessional country. The pope arrived from Turkey on Sunday on his inaugural visit abroad as pontiff, aiming to bring a message of hope, particularly to young people in Lebanon whose faith in their crisis-hit country has dwindled.

Genf (AFP) – A range of weight-loss and diabetes drugs could help shift the trajectory of the global obesity epidemic, which affects over one billion people worldwide, says the World Health Organization. “Obesity is one of the most serious public challenges of our time,” explains WHO Director General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. “But let me be clear: medication alone will not solve the obesity crisis,” he adds.

Padang (AFP) – Pernandi returns to where his house used to stand after surviving deadly flooding in Indonesia. Relentless rains have caused floods and landslides across parts of Asia, with Indonesia and Sri Lanka the hardest hit. Much of the region is currently in its monsoon season, but climate change is producing more extreme rain events and turbocharging storms.

London (AFP) – In a yearly tradition going back to 1947, a Norwegian spruce arrives in London, where it will “grace” Trafalgar Square during the Christmas period, with a lighting ceremony planned for Thursday evening. Paul Dimoldenberg, Lord Mayor of Westminster, says, “It really is the start of Christmas for many people in London”.

Hongkong (AFP) – Hong Kong official Woo Ying-ming describes how a substandard “batch of netting” was installed on scaffolding on Wang Fuk Court, the scene of Hong Kong’s deadliest fire in decades which days earlier killed 151 people. 13 people have been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter as investigators work to piece together what led to the catastrophic fire taking hold so fast in a complex of high-rise apartments.

Kongens Lyngby (AFP) – A rare magnum of Dom Perignon vintage 1961 champagne, served at the wedding of King Charles III and Princess Diana in 1981, is set to go on auction in Denmark. The bottle is estimated to be worth between 500,000 and 600,000 kroner (between 77,600 and 93,000 US dollars). The current owner of the magnum, a collector who does not want his identity to be made public, obtained the bottle from a London dealer.

Sydney (AFP) – Mia Bannister’s skin is inked with a eulogy to her teenage son Ollie, whose suicide after a battle with anorexia and online bullying pushed her to fight for world-first laws in Australia to get kids off social media.

Tel Aviv (AFP) – Hundreds of Israelis protest outside President Herzog’s residence following Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s announcement that he had submitted a pardon request. Netanyahu is on trial for corruption, and argues the long-running cases are tearing the country apart. IMAGES

Tegucigalpa (AFP) – Election officials count votes after polls closed in Honduras’ general election following a campaign dominated by US President Donald Trump’s threat to cut aid if a conservative candidate loses. IMAGES

Tegucigalpa (AFP) – People cast their ballots for Honduras’ next president in the final hour of a tight election, after a campaign dominated by threats from US President Donald Trump to cut aid if his preferred conservative candidate loses. IMAGES