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Brussels (Belgium) (AFP) – Hundreds of tractors clog the streets of Brussels as European farmers protest against EU plans for a trade deal with South American bloc Mercosur. The agreement, if signed, would create the world’s largest free-trade area, but the EU’s farmers are worried that they could be undercut by the flow of cheaper products. Thousands of farmers were expected in the Belgian capital, some from neighbouring France, where opposition to the Mercosur deal is widespread. “We’re here to say no to Mercosur,” says Belgian dairy farmer Maxime Mabille.

Beijing (AFP) – China tells the United States to “immediately stop” arming Taiwan, after Taipei said Washington had approved the sale of $11 billion of weapons to the island. “China urges the United States to abide by the one-China principle,” says foreign ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun, adding that the move “gravely undermines China’s sovereignty, security and territorial integrity.”

New Delhi (AFP) – New Delhi lies shrouded in smog, as cooler winter air keeps pollutants near to ground level in the Indian capital. The city, with its sprawling metropolitan region of 30 million residents, is regularly ranked among the world’s most polluted capitals.

Kandahar (Afghanistan) (AFP) – On any Friday, when the Afghan weekend begins, dozens of drivers gather in the Kandahar desert to charge their SUVs up steep ochre dunes, kicking up rooster tails of sand to the delight of spectators.

Dhaka (AFP) – Police in Bangladesh stop a group of protesters marching towards the Indian High Commission in Dhaka. They’re angry about India’s influence in Bangladesh and demand the return of Bangladesh’s longest-serving prime minister Sheikh Hasina, who fled the country after being overthrown in August 2024, ending her 15-year autocratic rule.

Brasília (AFP) – Brazil’s Senate passes bill to cut former President Jair Bolsonaro’s sentence from 27 to 2 years for coup plot attempt. Bolsonaro, 70, began a 27-year prison sentence in November, and under current rules was expected to serve at least eight years behind bars before becoming eligible for a looser regime. IMAGES

Kyiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says Russia is preparing to wage a new “year of war” on his country in 2026, after his counterpart Vladimir Putin said Moscow would “certainly” achieve its objectives. “Today, we heard yet another signal from Moscow that they are preparing to make next year a year of war,” Zelensky says in his regular evening address.

Parco Nazionale dello Stelvio (Italy) (AFP) – Hundreds of metres of dinosaur footprints have been discovered in the Italian Alps in a region that will host the 2026 Winter Olympics, according to authorities. The tracks, which are roughly 210-million-years-old, have been found in the Stelvio National Park, in an area between the towns of Bormio and Livigno. “They were bipedal with long necks and small heads, herbivores that walked in large herds,” says Cristiano Dal Sasso, a palaeontologist at the Natural History Museum of Milan, adding that they were up to 10 metres long and weighed as much as 4 tons.

Strasbourg (France) (AFP) – EU chief Ursula von der Leyen says the bloc must make a decision on financing Ukraine at a crunch summit this week, with leaders under pressure to agree on a plan to use frozen Russian assets. “There is no more important act of European defence than supporting Ukraine’s defence,” von der Leyen tells EU lawmakers. 

Sydney (AFP) – The coffin of Rabbi Eli Schlanger, one of the victims of the Bondi Beach shooting, arrives at the Chabad of Bondi Synagogue in Sydney. Huge crowds are expected to pay their respects to Schlanger, the first of 15 victims to be laid to rest. IMAGES

Paris (France) (AFP) – Paris Saint-Germain have been ordered to pay former star striker Kylian Mbappe around 60 million euros ($70.60 million) in unpaid wages and bonuses by a labour court in Paris. The footballer’s lawyers hail the outcome a “long-awaited victory”.

The Hague (AFP) – Addressing the Dutch parliament ahead of a Council of Europe summit, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says Russian President Vladimir Putin “publicly lied” when claiming Moscow’s forces had captured the city of Kupiansk. Russia said it had captured Kupiansk in November but Ukraine later claimed it had retaken several areas of the city in a “breakthrough” operation, prompting Zelensky to publish a video of him visiting the city’s outskirts on Friday.