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Stockholm (AFP) – EU Development Ministers pose for a group photo during an informal meeting in Stockholm. IMAGES

Tbilisi (AFP) – Georgia’s ruling party has announced it is halting plans to introduce a “foreign agent” law similar to Russia’s, but the opposition vowed to step up protests. Concern has been growing that the ex-Soviet nation, which aspires to join the EU and NATO, is taking an authoritarian turn and maintaining links with Moscow.

Brussels (AFP) – European Union interior ministers meet in Brussels to discuss migration and asylum. IMAGES

Kyiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – Emergency services are on scene after several explosions rocked Ukraine’s capital overnight. One of the missiles hit the Sviatoshynskyi district of Kyiv, setting multiple cars on fire. Kyiv mayor Vitali Klitschko said two people were injured and 15 percent of households were without power and 40 percent without heating following the explosions. IMAGES

Los Angeles (AFP) – Shirley Kurata, costume designer on Everything Everywhere All at Once, the unexpected Oscars favorite, is nominated in the Best Costume Design category.

Chasiv Yar (Ukraine) (AFP) – Tense despite the constant joking amongst themselves, a group of a dozen soldiers wait in Chasiv Yar for an armoured vehicle to take them to the Bakhmut frontline. In addition to their weapons – rifles and RPG rocket launchers – the soldiers also carry large shovels, to build trenches in the new position where they will be posted. “We don’t know where we go, it’s classified, we infantry soldiers are told right before we move,” a soldier with the call sign “Kit” says.

Hatay (Turkey) (AFP) – One month on from the catastrophic 7.8-magnitude earthquake which struck southeastern Turkey and Syria, among the ruins of an apartment complex now reduced to rubble, lie unclaimed family photo albums and children’s toys.

New Delhi (AFP) – Hindu devotees play with colourful powders (Gulal) in India’s capital New Delhi. The vibrant spring festival sees millions across India celebrate the end of winter and the triumph of good over evil.

Kyiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky praises Ukrainian women on International Women’s Day for taking a central role in defending their country against Russia’s invasion.”I think it’s important to say thank you today. To thank all the women who work, teach, study, save, treat and fight for Ukraine,” Volodymyr Zelensky says in a video uploaded by the presidency. ++ 33AR2HC TEXT

Abu Dhabi (AFP) – Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and Ukraine’s First Lady Olena Zelenska attend the Iconic Conversation session of the Forbes 30/50 Summit in Abu Dhabi in celebration of International Women’s Day. “Women and children are the primary victims of conflict and of climate change,” says Clinton, adding that “there is no place that, unfortunately, tragically shows us that more dramatically than Ukraine today.”

Tbilisi (AFP) – Hundreds of demonstrators march through the capital of Georgia to protest the Causasus government’s plans to introduce “foreign agent” laws, reminiscent of Russian legislation used to silence critics. Some protesters hold banners that nod to International Women’s Day. The march comes after more than sixty people were detained and dozens of police officers wounded in violent clashes that broke out in the capital Tbilisi, amid fears of democratic backsliding in Georgia.

Athens (AFP) – Clashes break out between police and protesters in central Athens, as police fire tear gas at firebomb-throwing protesters during a large demonstration to protest last week’s deadly train crash. Dozens of masked, black-clad protesters hurl Molotov cocktails and stones at riot police as more than 40,000 take to the streets of the capital.