Vilnyansk (Ukraine) (AFP) – Workers dig through the rubble searching for survivors after a Russian missile hit a maternity ward in the city of Vilniansk, just east of Zaporizhzhia. Authorities say that a newborn baby was killed in the strike on the southern Ukrainian region which Moscow claims to have annexed.
Ankara (AFP) – Turkey is more determined than ever to secure its border with Syria and prevent attacks by Kurdish forces, says President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who claims his country’s “operations with planes, cannons and drones are only the beginning” with a ground operation planned “when convenient”.
Norte de Santander (Colombia) (AFP) – On a highway in northeast Colombia, near the border with Venezuela, in a region where local police say both ELN guerrillas and FARC dissidents operate, Roberto Pinto recounts how armed men stopped his truck and burnt it down along with four others.
Kolwezi (DR Congo) (AFP) – Once prosperous and pretty, one Kolwezi neighbourhood, in the southeast of the Democratic Republic of Congo, is now almost completely destroyed, separated from a sprawling open-cast pit by a concrete barrier. The Chinese-owned cobalt mine next door wants to expand, and many residents have taken buy-outs.
Zaporizhzhia Oblast (Ukraine) (AFP) – Ukrainian emergency services rescue a man from rubble after a rocket struck a maternity ward in Ukraine’s southern Zaporizhzhia region. Ukrainian emergency services say Russian rockets smashed into a building overnight in Vilniansk, killing a newborn baby.
Moscow (AFP) – Backstage at a bar in Moscow, a troupe of drag queens surrounded by make-up palettes and sparkling costumes join hands before taking to the stage for what could be one of their last legal shows. Russian lawmakers are on the verge of widening a package of notorious legislation from 2013 that broadly targets LGBTQ communities.
Kaohsiung (Taiwan) (AFP) – A new political party in Taiwan has emerged with an unusual and singular platform — to make mahjong great again. The Mahjong the Greatest party wants the game, which is especially popular among the elderly, to be declared a “legitimate recreation” and for gambling and prize money to be allowed.
Cianjur (Indonesia) (AFP) – Survivors of Indonesia’s deadly earthquake on Monday continue with their daily routines surrounded by rubble and makeshift homes. At least 268 people were killed in the quake. IMAGES
Washington (AFP) – Anthony Fauci, the United States’ top infectious disease doctor who was a constant prescence during the Covid-19 pandemic, gives his final White House briefing before retiring at the end of the year.
Madrid (AFP) – With a secure job as a bricklayer, Hugo Ramirez never thought he would need the help of charity to feed his family. But with the cost of living soaring across Europe, the 44-year-old father of three is one of a growing number of people in Spain turning to food banks to make ends meet.
Buenos Aires (AFP) – “If we don’t put our lives in each play, we won’t win,” says Norberto Protzmann, a waiter in Buenos Aires, after watching Argentina’s first game of the Qatar 2022 World Cup. The match saw Lionel Messi’s team fall in a 2-1 defeat to Saudi Arabia in one of the biggest upsets in World Cup history. “I feel very sad” says Llanca Salvi, who also watched the match in the Argentinian capital, “the game started to euphoric, with so much desire to win and suddenly the game turned.”
Kyiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – Ukraine’s security services search cars and people at the entrance of Kyiv’s historic Pechersk Lavra Orthodox monastery, formerly under Moscow’s jurisdiction, over suspected connections to Russia’s secret services.
