Rafha (Saudi Arabia) (AFP) – A desert bloom triggered by heavier than usual winter rains has carpeted the sand dunes of northern Saudi Arabia in purple blooms, drawing sightseers from across the Arabian peninsula. “It’s magical…It’s like a painting,” says Qatari visitor Abdul Rahman Al-Marri.
Munich (Germany) (AFP) – At the Munich Security Conference, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg says that “the most important lesson to be learnt is the importance of North America and Europe standing together.”
Bakhmut (Ukraine) (AFP) – Officers from the State Border Guard of Ukraine fire mortars at Russian positions in embattled Bakhmut, which Russia has been trying to encircle and wrest ahead of February 24, the first anniversary of what Russia’s “special military operation” in the country. “We have to make sure that Russian soldiers don’t advance closer to our positions and that we push them out” says Artem, deputy commander.
Islamabad (AFP) – Images of a pet leopard inside a cage in a former zoo in Islamabad, after it escaped captivity at a house in the Pakistani capital. The leopard roamed the streets for hours before being shot with a sedation dart by officials, who took it to the city’s former zoo that was shut down in 2020 over its treatment of animals.
Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (Japan) (AFP) – Twelve years on since the nuclear catastrophe triggered by a massive earthquake and tsunami, workers at the Fukushima Daiichi plant in northeast Japan are preparing to release treated wastewater into the sea. The move faces local opposition, especially from the members of fishing community, who fear further reputational damage.
Napier (New Zealand) (AFP) – New Zealand Defence Force delivers supplies to towns near the east-coast city of Napier, where it was hit hard by Cyclone Gabrielle. Four days of violent winds and lashing rains caused landslides and widespread flooding, lacerating the road network of the country’s North Island.
Moscow (AFP) – Dmitry, whose name has been changed, was among the first group of men to be called up to fight in Ukraine when President Vladimir Putin announced a mobilisation in September last year. But he ignored his summons. “I believe that taking part in this disgrace is a stigma for life,” he says. Dmitry has now been hiding for four months, trapped in his own country and living in fear of being stopped by authorities. Exceptionally, he agreed to tell AFP his story, on condition of anonymity and that his location is not disclosed.
Kyiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – Although Ukrainian president Zelinsky’s approval ratings had plummeted before the war, his unwillingness to leave Kyiv and his role in leading the country through the war have now propelled his popularity again. In the capital Kyiv, Ukrainians stopped by AFP are full of praise for President Volodymyr Zelensky, a former comedian who quickly transitioned to wartime leader as Russian forces invaded Ukraine in February of 2022. Even those who admit doubts about his competence appear won over: “I will tell you frankly I did not vote for him, I did not vote for Zelensky. But during the war he showed himself as a mature politician, which I didn’t expect him to,” financier Sergiy says.
Minsk (AFP) – President Alexander Lukashenko says if any country commits an aggression against Belarus, the response will be ‘most cruel’, after saying that his country would only join Russia’s offensive in Ukraine if attacked first by Kyiv’s army.
Antakya (Turkey) (AFP) – Aerial shots show the destruction wrought in Antakya by the catastrophic 7.8 magnitude earthquake. Fourteen centuries of history crumbled in less than two minutes in Antakya, a fabled ancient Greek centre known throughout most of its history as Antioch.
Niger (Niger) (AFP) – In Soulefeta, a village in the remote Aiir Mountains of northern Niger, health care comes in the form of an empty building manned by a nurse with no equipment and no drugs. It lies about seven kilometres from Iferouāne, where there is a bigger health centre — but in this mountainous part of the Sahara, those few kilometres are long and gruelling.
Golbasi (Turkey) (AFP) – French doctors and first responders set up a field hospital in the Turkish town of Golbasi to take care of injured people in the wake of the February 6 earthquake.
