AFP UK

(AFP) – Divers clutch wooden spears as they hunt hordes of hungry starfish destroying the coral reefs around the Cook Islands already weakened by climate change.

(AFP) – Divers clutch wooden spears as they hunt hordes of hungry starfish destroying the coral reefs around the Cook Islands already weakened by climate change.

Bulacan (Philippines) (AFP) – Hours after Typhoon Co-May made landfall, residents of Bulacan in the Philippines wade through knee-high floodwaters and ride through the streets on boats. Co-May, which has been downgraded to a tropical storm, caused flooding in towns and villages north of Manila before heading to the west coast province of La Union.

Batken (Kyrgyzstan) (AFP) – Residents of the Kyrgyz region of Batken discover the benefits of rice for home building. “Over the past five years, we have sold materials for the construction of 300 houses”, says Nursultan Taabaldyev, owner of a rice blocks production shop.

Paris (AFP) – Montmartre is getting ready for a historic moment: the Tour de France will pass through the hilltop Paris district for the first time, making three circuits of the steep 1.1 km slope during Sunday’s final stage. “We’re obviously expecting a massive crowd,” says waiter Maxim Robillot. “It’ll be a great experience for Montmartre.”

Taguatinga (Brazil) (AFP) – Brazil’s ex-president Jair Bolsonaro, wearing an electronic monitoring device, attends an evangelical mass after a Supreme Court judge rules out imposing preventive detention for the alleged coup attempt. The judge warned that he will apply it “immediately” if judicial orders are violated. Bolsonaro is subject to precautionary measures since July 18 for alleged obstruction of the process. Among other restrictions, he is ordered to wear an electronic ankle bracelet. IMAGES

East Molesey (AFP) – The London Vegetable Orchestra performs at the RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival, surprising bystanders with instruments carved from vegetables and fruit. Their success follows a jam session with King Charles III in Buckingham Palace in April, a video of which went viral online, where the King participated with a carrot recorder.

Bangkok (AFP) – Thailand’s acting Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai condemns Cambodia’s use of heavy weaponry and defends the Thai air strikes launched on Cambodian military positions, describing the escalation as “just a conflict”, rather than a war. He adds that he hopes to open a dialogue with Cambodia to “solve the problem”.

Unknown (AFP) – Waxworks museum chain Madame Tussauds is to display 13 new figures of US pop megastar Taylor Swift at venues around the world. In honour of Swift’s lucky number, 13 of the museum’s 22 branches will each receive a statue of the “Love Story” and “Blank Space” singer, in what it calls the “most ambitious project” of its 250-year history.

Chester (AFP) – Hidden camera images show a rare snow leopard cub, the first to be born in the UK’s Chester Zoo in its 94-year history. First-time mum Nubra gave birth to the cub on 10 June, and the pair have been virtually inseparable since. Nubra and the cub’s father Yashin were carefully matched together in 2024 as part of an international conservation breeding programme. Snow leopards are classed as vulnerable to extinction by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature, with just 4,000 remaining in the wild.

Peking (AFP) – China’s foreign ministry says it is “deeply concerned” over deadly clashes between Cambodia and Thailand, which mark a dramatic escalation of a long-running border row between the two neighbours over an area known as the Emerald Triangle. Thailand has launched air strikes on Cambodian military targets while Cambodia has fired rockets and artillery, killing at least 11 civilians.

(AFP) – A 1,000-tonne ship is exploring the far-flung South Pacific for riches buried beneath the waves, spearheading efforts to dredge the tropical waters for industrial deep-sea mining. But plans to mine the Cook Islands’ seabed have drawn condemnation from activists who fear damage to the environment.