Kharkiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – Firefighters work among the rubble of a household chemicals factory, destroyed by Russian missile strikes in the southern outskirts of Kharkiv. A three-storey building of the National Technical University in the centre of the city was also partially destroyed in a separate strike.
Begís (Spain) (AFP) – Spain’s Military Emergencies Unit tackles a forest fire near the pilgrimage destination of Cueva Santa Sanctuary in the Bejís area. So far this year, Spain has suffered nearly 400 wildfires following punishing heatwaves and long dry spells that have devastated more than 283,000 hectares of land, more than three times the total area destroyed in 2021.
Everglades National Park (United States) (AFP) – When not working at his job staging cultural events in Miami, Enrique Galan, regularly disappears into the Everglades to hunt down Burmese pythons, an invasive species that has been damaging Florida’s wetland ecosystem for decades.
Alcublas (Spain) (AFP) – Spanish firefighters struggle to control the fires in Alcublas, located in the east of Spain and near Bejís, where several fires have ravaged more than 10,000 hectares and led to the evacuation of 1,500 people. The blazes have been curbed by the emergency services, helped by the arrival of rain.
Guwahati (India) (AFP) – Hundreds of Hindu devotees in northern India participate in an annual dance festival dedicated to the snake Goddess Manasa. People flock to the Kamakhya temple in the Assam region to see believers paint their bodies red and perform dances with sacrificial pigeons and goats. Those participating in the festival believe they will receive power from the goddess.
Kharkiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – After multiple Russian strikes hit the southern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, killing at least six and destroying numerous buildings, the city’s firefighters and emergency services get to work on cleaning up the damage. One of the strikes hit Palats Zaliznychnykiv (Palace of Culture for Railway Workers), an architectural monument constructed in 1932.
Putrajaya (Malaysia) (AFP) – Malaysian ex-premier Najib Razak arrives Friday at the Putrajaya court just outside Kuala Lumpur to continue his final appeal against his conviction over the 1MDB corruption scandal before the country’s top court.
Beijing (AFP) – A robotic arm built to collect human samples for Covid-19 screening, a barista robot and dozens of dancing cyber-dogs were among the highlights of the annual World Robot Conference that opened on Thursday in Beijing.
Hualien (Taiwan) (AFP) – In the wake of China’s unprecedented military drills, and with tensions in the region at a peak, Taiwan has put on its own show of force. This week, the island’s air force displayed its most advanced fighter jet, the US-made F-16V, as well as its own, domestically produced, air defence equipment.
Churchill (Canada) (AFP) – Every summer, a mass migration of Beluga whales takes place, from the Arctic to Canada’s Hudson Bay. The beluga population here is the largest in the world. But the decrease in ice due to climate change, in an area that is warming three to four times faster than the rest of the planet, is a cause for concern for researchers.
Lenguazaque (Colombia) (AFP) – Nine miners are rescued after being trapped 40 meters from the surface for more than 15 hours in an illegal coal mine in central Colombia.
Holywell (United Kingdom) (AFP) – The United Kingdom’s cost of living crisis is having an unexpected effect on its pet-lovers: soaring fuel prices are pricing many families out of individual cremations for their beloved animal companions, forcing them to opt for mass cremations instead.
