Gaza City (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) – Images of the aftermath of an Israeli air strike on Gaza City. The Israeli military said its warplanes struck what it called a Hamas weapons manufacturing facility in the Gaza Strip following rocket fire against Israeli territory. The exchange of fire came hours after US President Joe Biden visited Israel and the occupied West Bank. IMAGES
San Marcos Atesquilapan (Mexico) (AFP) – In the Mexican state of Veracruz, family and friends bid farewell to brothers Jair Valencia Olivares (19), Yovani Valencia Olivares (16) and their cousin Misael Olivares (16), who were among the migrants found dead after being abandoned in a sweltering tractor-trailer in San Antonio, Texas. Mexicans were the largest group of victims in this tragedy, which left 53 dead in total, including citizens of Honduras and Guatemala.
Rhodes (France) (AFP) – It’s a rather special snack for the animals in the Sainte-Croix wildlife park in Moselle, north-eastern France. Along with much of southwest Europe, the animals are enduring an extreme heatwave and, in a bid to keep them cool, animal keeper Anais Huard is hanging fruit ice lollies from trees.
Algiers (AFP) – In a house in Algiers, three cousins, Wassim, Chafik and Nouceiba, immersed in Algeria’s rich musical culture since their childhood, pick up their instruments and play a composition inspired by their country’s classical music. Next, they upload the video onto social media in a bid to share their culture with the rest of the world.
Aguadulce (Panama) (AFP) – Demonstrators block the Pan-American highway as protests against corruption and the rising price of fuel, basic food products and medicine continue in Panama. ‘We can’t stand it any longer,’ says truck driver Arnulfo Sarmiento.
Paris (AFP) – French President Emmanuel Macron blames the fires which have burnt thousands of hectares across the country’s Southwest on an “exceptional season” and high temperatures. Scientists forecast that these “exceptional” weather events will become more frequent and more intense due to climate change.
Guachalá (Ecuador) (AFP) – Ecuador’s flowers are one the South American country’s top exports – yet mass protests, fuel price rises and the impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine are proving a thorn in the industry’s side.
La Teste-de-Buch (France) (AFP) – A restaurant burnt to the ground, houses incinerated and vehicles charred: this is the damage done in Cazaux, in southwest France, by the wildfires that have raged for three days.
Colombo (AFP) – Sri Lanka’s parliamentary speaker says Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s resignation as president has been accepted. Mahinda Yapa Abeywardana says Rajapaksa has “legally resigned” after notifying him from Singapore, where the now former president has fled after leaving Sri Lanka earlier this week.
Paris (AFP) – July 14 fireworks light up the Paris sky as the Eiffel Tower shines with the yellow and blue of the Ukrainian flag. It’s the first time since the Coronavirus outbreak that the fireworks marking the storming of the Bastille prison at the beginning of the French Revolution were allowed to go ahead.
Larache (Morocco) (AFP) – Moroccan firefighters battle to put out at least four fires ripping through forests in the north of the kingdom. The blazes, fanned by strong winds, have not resulted in any casualties so far, but officials say nearly 500 families were evacuated “as a precaution” in the provinces of Larache and Taza.
Bethlehem (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) – Palestinians require a political path towards peace with Israel, even if a two-state solution to the conflict appears far off, US President Joe Biden says during his first visit to the Palestinian Territories as president.
