Kinshasa (AFP) – Residents of the DRC capital, Kinshasa, are cleaning up and assessing the damage after one of the worst floods to strike the area in years killed an estimated 120 people on Tuesday. “I find it hard to bear” says Robert, who lost a relative, “(I have) no strength to bury the dead bodies”.
Kyiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – The speaker of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, Oleksandr Zaruba, says that almost all components of “Russian unmanned aerial vehicles are of foreign production”. Speaking at a presentation of attack drones deployed by Moscow, Zaruba highlights the role of Iran in supplying vehicles used in strikes on Ukrainian infrastructure and civilian areas.
Moscow (AFP) – Yaroslav Leonov has been living in exile since President Vladimir Putin announced Russia’s partial mobilisation in September. Back in Moscow, his wife, Yekaterina Filimonova, and their three sons have to get by on their own. “The first month was very sad” says Filimonova, “it was very hard for me and it was hard for the kids”. They are not the only ones divided by the conflict, with the chaotic and hurried exodus of tens of thousands of military-aged men tearing apart families and piling pressure on mothers across Russia.
Beijing (AFP) – “The UK has failed to fulfil its obligations under relevant international law” says Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson, Wang Wenbin, placing the blame for the violent outbursts at an October demonstration outside the Chinese Consulate in Manchester squarely at Westminster’s door. According to Wenbin, a member of Consulate staff “temporarily lost consciousness” after being attacked during the protest.
Brussels (AFP) – French President, Emmanuel Macron, stands by his decision to visit Qatar to support France’s World Cup team, saying he’s “totally comfortable with it”, despite allegations linking the Gulf monarchy to corruption in the European Parliament. Macron was in Qatar on Wednesday night to watch France’s semi-final victory over Morocco before flying to Brussels to attend an EU summit.
London (AFP) – Images show nurses in front of London’s St Thomas’ Hospital amidst unprecedented walkouts. Up to 100,000 nurses around the UK are staging a one-day strike as a “last resort” in their fight for better wages and working conditions. IMAGES
Casablanca (Morocco) (AFP) – They may have fallen just short of reaching the World Cup final, but Moroccans on Wednesday hailed their team’s historic run as it ended with a 2-0 defeat to reigning champions France. Fans expressed pride in the Lions of the Atlas.
James Collins, 73, is one of Ireland’s last remaining Traveller tinsmiths, a traditional craft passed from generation to generation but lost today. “My father done it and his father before him done it. It run the generations and then it all just died out,” he explains. Today, only two are left — in large part due to the arrival of different materials: “the plastic came in and that’s when the plastic took over.” N°32W482R
New Delhi (AFP) – Ten years ago the brutal gang-rape and murder of a young woman on a Delhi bus horrified the world and shone a spotlight on high rates of sexual violence in India. But a decade after the assault, many women are still scared to travel at night in India’s capital, a sprawling metropolis of 20 million people.
Paris (AFP) – French supporters wave tricolour flags and let off flares to celebrate the win over Morocco which put Les Bleus into the World Cup final.
Hanoi (AFP) – In a small corner of a once grand villa in the heart of Hanoi, Nguyen Manh Tri surveys the home he has loved since childhood but is now giving up as its foundation cracks, roof crumbles and staircase buckles.
Marseille (AFP) – French fans celebrate in the Old Port (Vieux-Port) of Marseille after the holders qualified for their second consecutive World Cup final, beating Morocco 2-0 in the semi-finals.
