AFP UK

Charkiw (AFP) – Residents of Kharkiv search for their relatives who were in the hardware store when it was hit by a Russian missile on Saturday 25 May and who have gone missing since. “I am looking for my mother and sister,” says a survivor of the attack, in tears. “I think it was impossible to survive there. They were laying there.” The death toll from Russian strikes on the store has risen to 16, according to the regional governor, as rescuers search the charred debris for bodies.

Vilnius (AFP) – Lithuania’s President Gitanas Nauseda wins re-election in a vote marked by defence concerns over neighbouring Russia. The count published by the electoral commission shows that Nauseda won 74.6 percent of votes with 90 percent of ballots counted after polls closed in the second-round vote.

Paris (AFP) – At the foot of the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, 4,000 lucky diners enjoy packed lunches offered by one of the avenue’s eight restaurateurs, seated on a large checkered tablecloth over 200 metres long, unrolled for the occasion. Nearly 273,000 people have applied to take part in the event, which features the “world’s largest tablecloth,” made from 25 pieces of recycled fibre, and assembled by 150 people.

Tiflis (AFP) – Georgian President Salome Zurabishvili calls for “preservation of peace and stability” amid a political crisis over a ‘foreign influence’ law denounced as repressive by rights groups. At loggerheads with the governing Georgian Dream conservatives, the pro-Western Zurabishvili is looking to forge a united opposition front as the country prepares for parliamentary elections in October.

Lima (AFP) – A collision between a passenger bus and a freight train has left four people dead and 36 injured at a railroad crossing in eastern Lima, according to local authorities. IMAGES

Cannes (France) (AFP) – US indie director Sean Baker pays tribute to the world’s sex workers after his Palme d’Or win at the 77th Cannes film festival, his film ‘Anora’ winning over the jury — and giving a tiny American movie distributor, Neon, its fifth consecutive Palme d’Or win on the Croisette.

Beirut (AFP) – In a Beirut car park, migrant workers from countries including Sri Lanka, India and the Philippines cheer as their teams face off in a cricket tournament, a moment of respite in crisis-hit Lebanon, where working conditions are often tough. “On Sunday, we are so happy because we’re together,” says Pradeepa Silva, a housekeeper from Sri Lanka, as she and her teammates prepare coconut rice and other traditional food to share at the game.

Qāzigund (India) (AFP) – Locals in Indian-administered Kashmir celebrate the spring festival of Rohan Posh, when people go fishing in the water using traditional wicker baskets and mosquito nets. Fishing helps to remove weeds and silt from the river, locals say. “The main purpose of this festival is to clean the water bodies. The cleaning ensures more water supply throughout the year,” says Abdul Salam, on of the participants. Kashmir has been divided between India and Pakistan since their independence in 1947. Both claim it in full and have fought two wars over control of the Himalayan region.

Brussels (Belgium) (AFP) – The Spanish Minister for Foreign Affairs, EU and Cooperation, José Manuel Albares, says during a press conference in Brussels with the Prime Minister of the Palestinian Authority, Mohamed Mustafa, that “Spain will recognise the Palestinian state next Tuesday, May 28th, joining the 143 other countries in the world that have already done so.” EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell is hosting Palestinian prime minister Mohammed Mustafa for international talks on building up the Palestinian Authority to eventually take over Gaza rule from Hamas.

Benoni (South Africa) (AFP) – South Africa’s main opposition party has vowed to unseat the ANC in the general election, with the party in power since the end of apartheid likely to suffer a historic setback in what is billed as the most hotly contested election in thirty years. “On Wednesday, the ANC will lose the outright majority that it has abused for decades, it will lose the majority that it has abused to push this country into unemployment, to commit corruption and misrule,” says Democratic Alliance party leader, John Steenhuisen. Opinion polls suggest the DA will not overtake the ANC to become South Africa’s biggest single party, but it hopes to unite with a coalition of smaller outfits to take power.

Taipei (AFP) – Tens of thousands of Taiwanese protesters rally day and night outside parliament, as lawmakers inside traded insults, blows and theatrics over a series of bills to expand the legislature’s power.

Veracruz (Mexico) (AFP) – In Veracruz, residents find ways to cool down as a deadly heatwave grips much of the country. The extreme heat has killed 14 people in the city and 48 across Mexico since March, with scientists warning of new records.