AFP UK

Tallinn (AFP) – European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen says that Russian President Vladimir Putin has “failed to achieve a single” goal after his invasion of Ukraine.

Najaf (Iraq) (AFP) – Tombstones stretch as far as the eye can see across Iraq’s Wadi-al-Salam cemetery, often described as the world’s biggest, which bears silent witness to life and death over 14 centuries.

Salisbury (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Ukrainian soldiers undergoing six weeks of training with British troops in England take part in a commemoration ceremony at a training centre near Salisbury on the anniversary of the Russian invasion.

Al Qanayyah (Syria) (AFP) – Places of worship were damaged by the recent deadly earthquakes in Syria’s rebel-held northwestern Idlib province, including the Saint Joseph’s church in the town of al-Qanayyah and the only mosque in the village of al-Maland.

Al-Ula (Saudi Arabia) (AFP) – Andy Warhol’s iconic portraits of stars are on display in AlUla, the Saudi desert town which is hosting the first exhibition in Saudi Arabia of works by the Pop Art giant.

Big Bear (United States) (AFP) – Handout images show two bald eagles switching places to keep their two eggs warm during a snowstorm in Big Bear Valley, California.

Washington (AFP) – The United States will announce “sweeping” new sanctions against Russia a year after President Vladimir Putin ordered the ongoing invasion of Ukraine, the White House says.

Zaslawye (Belarus) (AFP) – In authoritarian Belarus, allied with Moscow, fears have grown its troops, too, will be sent to fight alongside Russia in the fighting in neighbouring Ukraine. Yet ordinary Belarusians, deeply worried about the fighting, hope for peace between neighbours.

Moscow (AFP) – Nearly a year on from when Moscow sent troops to Ukraine, Russian President Vladimir Putin vows to continue increasing Russia’s nuclear arsenal, just days after suspending Moscow’s participation in the sole remaining arms control treaty between Russia and the US. Putin made the comments at a televised address for Defender of the Fatherland Day, a holiday commemorating the founding of the Red Army during the Russian Civil War.

Old Trafford (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Ahead of the second leg of Barcelona’s Europa League play-off against Manchester United, Barcelona coach Xavi hails the job his opposite number Erik ten Hag has done at Old Trafford, calling United “one of the best teams in Europe.”

Aleppo (Syria) (AFP) – Sitting by a bed strewn with rubble in Syria’s second biggest city, Umm Mounir refuses to leave her home even though the deadly earthquake has torn a gaping hole into the room. Aleppo, once a major commercial hub, had already been battered by over a decade of war when the 7.8-magnitude quake struck in early February.

Kyiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – One year on from the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24, residents in the capital Kyiv take stock. One Kyiv resident describes it as “the most difficult year of my life”, explaining that “my boyfriend is a serviceman, so I haven’t seen him for a year”.