Security forces raid Sri Lanka’s main protest camp
Colombo (AFP) – Hundreds of Sri Lankan soldiers and police raided the main anti-government protest camp in the capital early Friday and began tearing down tents of unarmed activists.
AFP UK
Trump outtakes from address to nation speech after Capitol riot
Washington (AFP) – ‘I don’t want to say the election’s over,’ former US president Donald Trump says in outtakes from his speech given after the January 6 riot. The footage was presented by a bipartisan panel of US lawmakers.
Funeral for Mexican mother and activist who was burned alive
Guadalajara (Mexico) (AFP) – Relatives and friends attend the funeral of Mexican activist and mother, Luz Raquel Padilla, who died after being set on fire in Zapopan, Jalisco state. Her death has sparked protests, condemnation and demands for justice.
Japan’s baby hatch hospital offers mothers ‘last resort’
Kumamoto (Japan) (AFP) – When the alarm sounds at Jikei hospital in southern Japan, nurses race down a spiral staircase. Their mission: to rescue an infant left in the country’s only baby hatch. For 15 years, the clinic has been the only place in Japan a child can be anonymously and safely abandoned.
Macron joins in with traditional choir in southwestern France
Argelès-Gazost (France) (AFP) – Emmanuel Macron visits a village in southwestern France, a region where part of his family comes from and where the Tour de France is passing through. During the visit, the French President joined in with a local choir singing songs from the region.
Gunfire and smoke at Mali army depot during ‘suicide’ attack
Kati (Mali) (AFP) – Smoke rises and shots are heard at the garrison town of Kati as Mali announces it has repelled a suicide raid by Al-Qaeda-linked jihadists on a base used by the ruling military, 15 kilometres (nine miles) from Bamako.
Pop culture fans flock to first Comic-Con since the pandemic
San Diego (AFP) – Tens of thousands of people converge on San Diego for the first full-scale Comic-Con in three years, where new “Lord of the Rings” and “Game of Thrones” TV series will be unveiled.
Riders show off their skills at World BMX Day in Chile
Santiago (AFP) – Hundreds of BMX riders gather in Chile’s capital Santiago to celebrate World BMX Day. ‘For me, being a rider is being free,’ says Diego Galdames, Chile’s top BMX rider.
US hails Turkish-brokered Ukraine grain deal, urges Russia to act
Washington (AFP) – The United States hails a Turkish-brokered deal to export grain from Ukrainian ports and urges Russia to implement it.
The West ‘fomented’ the war in Ukraine, says Lukashenko
Minsk (AFP) – The West is behind the war in Ukraine, says the President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, in an exclusive interview with AFP. “You have fomented the war and are continuing it,” he adds.
Italy’s Draghi resigns after coalition implodes
Rome (AFP) – Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi tells the parliament he intends to hand in his resignation after efforts to bring the country’s fractious parties to heel failed, kicking off a snap election campaign which could bring the hard right to power. While making his announcement in the lower house of parliament, Draghi was moved by the warm round of applause he received from MPs, saying, ‘Thank you. Sometimes even central bankers’ hearts are touched.’
Queen’s royal portraits on display as Buckingham Palace reopens to public
London (AFP) – Buckingham Palace is reopening its doors to visitors for the first time since the Covid-19 pandemic with an exhibition of twenty-four original photographs of Queen Elizabeth II’s official portraits — a celebration of the Queen for her Platinum Jubilee.
