Adiyaman (Turkey) (AFP) – Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan admits that rescue efforts from this week’s earthquake were “very difficult” as the “devastating effect of the earthquake spread to 10 provinces and an area of 500 kilometres”. Anger has mounted over the government’s handling of the quake, the largest Turkey has seen since 1939, when 33,000 people died in the eastern Erzincan province.
Tokyo (AFP) – The Japanese capital is blanketed with snow on Friday as an icy low pressure system hits the country’s central Honshu island. No more heavy snow is forecast for the weekend – Japan’s weather agency downgraded the snow alert on Friday afternoon.
Seoul (AFP) – South Korea’s iced Americano fans are dedicated to drinking it all year round. The humble coffee, with shots of espresso served over ice and topped up with water, is outselling its hot counterpart even during the depths of winter.
Juliaca (Peru) (AFP) – Protesters clash with police near Juliaca airport in the southern Puno region as they take to the streets demanding justice for 18 civilians killed in clashes with the security forces on January 9, when a mob of about 2,000 attempted to storm the airport there. IMAGES
Bawku (Ghana) (AFP) – Standing near the dried river bed marking Ghana’s northern border, Alima can see her old hamlet, lying in Burkina Faso –- less than two kilometres (1.2 miles) away. But she says she will never go back after gun-toting jihadists killed two watchmen in her village last year. The number of families crossing the border reinforces what Ghana’s government already knew: Ghana along with Gulf of Guinea neighbours Benin, Togo and Ivory Coast are quickly becoming the new frontline in the Sahel jihadist war ravaging their northern neighbour.
Idlib (Syria) (AFP) – Syrian families take refuge in a makeshift displacement camp, run by the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) jihadist group in the city of Idlib, after their homes were destroyed in the deadly 7.8-magnitude earthquake that struck Syria and neighbouring Turkey on Monday.
Salqīn (Syria) (AFP) – Water floods the village of al-Taloul near the town of Salqin in the countryside of the northwestern Syrian Idlib province, after a dam collapsed following the deadly earthquake.
Gaziantep (Turkey) (AFP) – Speaking in the southern city of Gaziantep, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan says “the number of our citizens who lost their lives in the devastation caused by the earthquake has reached 14,014 in total”. Search and rescue operations are ongoing across the affected region as the combined death toll in Turkey and neighbouring Syria hits 17,100.
Beijing (AFP) – Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning condemns US President Joe Biden for his “extremely irresponsible” remarks in which he said his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping faced “enormous problems”. The comment comes days after the US shot down a Chinese balloon.
Brussels (AFP) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky meets with Roberta Metsola, President of the European Parliament upon his arrival in Brussels, ahead of the EU summit meeting. Zelensky is in Brussels to rally EU leaders to step up support for his war-ravaged country on the third leg of his European tour.
Vélizy-Villacoublay (France) (AFP) – French President Emmanuel Macron and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky fly together from Paris to a summit of EU heads of state and government in Brussels.
Sequilé (Colombia) (AFP) – Flower growers in Colombia are busy preparing exports for Valentine’s day, with varieties ranging from roses and carnations to chrysanthemums and hydrangeas.
