At sea (AFP) – Images provided by the French Armed Forces General Staff show the French Navy’s intervention of the Grinch tanker, suspected of belonging to the Russian ‘shadow fleet’. The ‘shadow fleet’ is a clandestine network of tankers that carry oil for countries such as Russia and Iran in violation of US and EU sanctions.
Santa Barbara (United States) (AFP) – Ahead of the US midterm elections, the Republican Party is working hard to project an image of unwavering loyalty to President Donald Trump, despite his declining popularity in the polls. “We’re going to be successful in holding the majorities in both the House and the Senate [and] defy history because we have the best president that’s ever lived,” says Republican National Committee Chairman Joe Gruters at a party meeting in Santa Barbara, California.
Medellín (Colombia) (AFP) – “I’m really excited to see what Bad Bunny has in store for us at this Super Bowl,” says Cristina Velasquez, a Bad Bunny fan in Medellin, Colombia, where the Puerto Rican rapper will perform for three nights during his “Debi Tirar Mas Fotos” world tour. Having skipped the US in his world tour over fears of ICE raids at his concerts, the reggaeton star is set to perform the Super Bowl halftime show, despite opposition from US President Donald Trump.
Cisarua (Indonesia) (AFP) – A landslide has killed at least eight people and left more than 80 missing on Indonesia’s main island of Java on Saturday. Triggered by heavy rainfall, it struck villages in Java’s West Bandung region in the early hours and buried residential areas.
Erbil (Iraq) (AFP) – Dozens of women gather in Erbil, the capital of the Iraqi Kurdistan region, to braid each other’s hair in a show of support, after a Syrian soldier bragged in a video about cutting off a Kurdish fighter’s braid in Raqa. Thirty-year-old protester Darin Masoum, whose family is in northeastern Syria, says that the act is “for our sisters, whom we support. We will always stand by them.” Protesters were showing support for Syrian Kurds, as Syrian government troops have recently been retaking parts of the country held by the Kurds’ de facto autonomous administration, which administration has long touted the participation of women in its armed forces.
Kyiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – Firefighters from the State Emergency Services of Ukraine tackle blazes in Kyiv after the Ukrainian capital was attacked by Russian missiles and drones overnight. This comes as negotiators from Russia, Ukraine and the United States are to meet for a second day in Abu Dhabi to discuss a plan to end the almost four-year-long war.
Paris (France) (AFP) – Prized for a minimalist aesthetic and significantly lower costs than institutional venues, “raw” spaces are establishing themselves as a new playground for Parisian fashion shows. Rod Reynolds found the first floor of a building under construction in southern Paris for the presentation of Belgian label Dries Van Noten’s autumn-winter menswear collection. “These are surprising, new venues, not the usual event spaces we’re used to seeing,” says the venue hunter who heads the Records Collection agency.
Brussels (Belgium) (AFP) – European Council President Antonio Costa says the bloc “will continue to stand up for its interests” and defend itself “against any form of coercion” following US President Donald Trump’s climbdown on Greenland. Costa was speaking after an EU leaders summit in Brussels.
Sarajevo (AFP) – Sarajevo suffers from the worst air quality of any major city in the world for a second day straight, data shows, as Bosnian authorities issue an alert for the choked capital. Pollution spikes are common in the city, especially during thermal inversions when a layer of warm air sits above a layer of cold air, trapping smog over the city.
Karachi (AFP) – “We saw everything end in just one day, right in front of our eyes,” one shop owner tells AFP as he watches machinery clean debris from the charred remains of a shopping mall in Karachi. The death toll from the fire in Pakistan’s biggest city has risen to at least 67 people, an unnamed spokesperson from the local government said.
Davos (Switzerland) (AFP) – At his first-ever appearance at the World Economic forum in Davos, Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk says he sees his humanoid robots hitting the market next year. In front of a packed conference hall, Musk says to the audience: “Who wouldn’t want a robot to watch over your kids, take care of your pet?” He also predicts that “five years from now, AI will be smarter than all of humanity collectively.”
Copenhagen (AFP) – “There is now a wish to negotiate a solution” from the American side on Greenland, Danish Foreign Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen says. “It should be possible to find a solution,” he adds, “but this requires that calm now be restored to this process.” The comments come a day after US President Trump backed off from his threats to seize Greenland.
