Dublin (AFP) – Catherine Connolly, a leftwinger, is inaugurated as Ireland’s new president following a landslide election win last month. Although Connolly’s role has limited political power, her tenure could nonetheless herald an era of increased friction between Ireland’s presidency and centre-right government.
Kfar Saba (Israel) (AFP) – People attend the funeral of Israeli officer Hadar Goldin, killed in Gaza in 2014, whose remains were returned from the Palestinian territory on Sunday. Since the US-brokered truce began on October 10, Hamas has returned all 20 living hostages and the remains of 24 captives, including 21 Israelis.
Lima (AFP) – Peruvian police seize “more than 6 tons of shark fins” in Callao, Lima, a highly sought-after ingredient for soups and aphrodisiac concoctions, which were to be illegally exported to Asia, according to the National Criminal Investigation Directorate.
Ayn Tarma (Syria) (AFP) – Syrians share their frustration following a recent decision to massively hike electricity prices, even as much of the country continues to face extensive outages. “We thought life would get better for everyone and we would have money,” says Alaa Mussa, a street vendor in Damascus, adding that the government is “suffocating us even more” than Assad’s regime.
Moscow (AFP) – Russia denounces as illegal and unacceptable US strikes on boats from Venezuela — a Moscow ally — that Washington says are transporting drugs. “This is how, in general, lawless countries act, as well as those who consider themselves above the law,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov says, accusing the US of using the “pretext of fighting drug trafficking.”
Islamabad (Pakistan) (AFP) – Islamabad is left reeling after a suicide bombing claimed by the Pakistani Taliban killed at least 12 people, a rare attack by the militant group on the country’s capital. “It was a massive, loud bang,” lawyer Rustam Saleem tells AFP near the crime scene. “I saw body parts strewn around and a few burnt corpses.”
Belém (Brésil) (AFP) – A future Democratic president would rejoin the Paris climate accord “without hesitation,” says California Governor Gavin Newsom, slamming President Donald Trump for pulling the United States out of the deal. “It’s an abomination that he has twice, not once, pulled away from the accord,” he adds from Belem, the Brazilian Amazon city hosting the UN’s COP30 climate summit. SOUNDBITE
New Delhi (AFP) – A car explosion near New Delhi’s historic Red Fort has killed at least eight people and injured 19 others. The police say that an investigation is ongoing, and the Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, has vowed to bring those responsible “to justice”.
Washington (AFP) – US President Donald Trump hails his Syrian counterpart Ahmed al-Sharaa after unprecedented talks at the White House, saying Sharaa’s “rough” past as a jihadist will help him rebuild the war-torn country.
Hoi An (Vietnam) (AFP) – Severe coastal erosion caused by Typhoon Kalmaegi exposed a centuries-old shipwreck in Vietnam, providing a narrow window to salvage what experts say could be a historically significant find. Initially discovered in 2023 off the coast of Hoi An, the at least 17.4-metre (57-foot) vessel — whose heavy wood-ribbed hull survived hundreds of years of rough seas almost perfectly intact — was resubmerged before authorities could reclaim it.
Belém (Brésil) (AFP) – COP30 attendees make their way through flooded outdoor corridors during a heavy but brief rainfall in Belem, attempting to stay dry as the downpour disrupts movement around the venue. IMAGES
Belém (Brésil) (AFP) – COP30 President Andre Correa do Lago speaks at a press conference during the UN Climate Change Conference in Belem, Brazil, which opens with pleas for the world to keep up the fight against global warming, even as the United States turns its back. IMAGES
