AFP UK

Malaysia has returned nearly 1,500 Myanmar migrants to their war-ravaged home country under an opaque scheme that rights monitors say cannot assure their safety. 

Nadi (Fiji) (AFP) – Pacific leaders push for the world to stick to a target of limiting global warming to 1.5C, enhance access to climate finance and give more attention to the impact on oceans as the UN “pre-COP” climate gathering kicks off in the Fijian city of Nadi.

Tehran (AFP) – Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi says that there is no military solution to his country’s conflict with the United States, with talks on ending the war apparently at an impasse. “If our enemies again choose the path of military confrontation, our response will be stronger than before, and we will defend ourselves with even more force,” Araghchi says at a gathering of foreign ambassadors in Tehran. “There is no military solution, nor is there a solution based on new sanctions.”

Quito (AFP) – Hundreds of people bring their pets to be blessed in front of the Church of San Francisco in Ecuador’s capital Quito’s historic center during celebrations marking the Feast of Saint Francis of Assisi. “I come here every year to have my pets blessed; I feel like it’s a way to baptize them and bring them closer to God,” says Karla Vilana.

Vilanova del Valles (Spain) (AFP) – Two people have died and one is missing following torrential rain in northeast Spain’s Catalonia region, according to the authorities. The city of Barcelona and its surrounding areas are on high alert, authorities say, whilst warning of flooding and rivers bursting their banks.

Sanaa (AFP) – Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree announces that the Iran-backed group carried out an attack using ballistic missiles and drones against Saudi Aramco in Riyadh, describing the operation as retaliation for recent strikes on Sanaa and other Houthi-held areas.

Paris (France) (AFP) – French President Emmanuel Macron says that the G7 countries will draw “up to 100 million barrels” of diesel and crude oil from their reserves “within the next four months” to ease pressure on prices at the pump. They have agreed not to restrict their exports of these products, he adds. The announcement comes after G7 leaders held a video conference chaired by French President Emmanuel Macron, as the United States stepped up pressure on Europe to release strategic reserves and threatened a diesel export ban.

Khasab (Oman) (AFP) – Drone footage shows ships anchored off the coast of northern Oman near the strategic Strait of Hormuz, as shipping through the vital waterway continues to face major disruption impacting oil and energy prices globally amid the ongoing US-Iran war. The Hormuz passage, through which a fifth of the world’s oil and LNG passed before the US and Israel launched strikes against Iran in late February and sparked the war, remains at the heart of the conflict.

Backa Topola (Serbia) (AFP) – Ireland manager Heimir Hallgrimsson’s press conference ahead of their Nations League clash against Israel is cut short after questions about the flydubai attack and allegations that an Irish player made racist remarks, which Ireland’s press officer denies.

Berlin (AFP) – Hundreds of people take part in a protest rally against military service and rearmament in central Berlin. “If the government or those old men decide once again that they have to go to war, they can go themselves,” says one protester. German lawmakers backed a new military service scheme in December 2025 in a bid to bolster its understaffed armed forces. The scheme does not include conscription but does involve mandatory screening of all 18-year-old men.

Panama City (AFP) – Fishermen along the eastern Pacific say they are feeling the impact of ocean warming from the El Nino phenomenon, which is forcing several species to migrate to deeper waters, leaving nets half empty and communities in crisis. Small-scale fishermen in Panama struggle with extra fuel and ice costs amid the rising temperatures as fish move away in search of cooler waters.

Jerusalem (AFP) – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warns that Israel will impose a “very heavy price” on any power behind the flydubai incident, without offering evidence that any country was responsible. Israeli officials and witnesses say the co-pilot of the Tel Aviv-bound flight stabbed the Indian pilot, who let passengers come into the cockpit to overpower the attacker. The plane made an emergency landing in Saudi Arabia with no deaths.