Rome (AFP) – A dozen faithful from Bolivia pray outside Rome’s Gemelli Hospital where Pope Francis was admitted last week for bronchitis. The Vatican says the pontiff has since developed pneumonia in both of his lungs, but added that the 88-year-old was in “good spirits”.
Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) (AFP) – Rio de Janeiro swelters under extreme heat, with maximum temperatures expected to exceed 40ºC for a second consecutive day. As residents and tourists seek relief from the oppressive conditions, authorities have implemented public health measures and urged everyone to stay hydrated.
Brasilia (AFP) – Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva welcomes and meets with Portuguese President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa at Planalto Palace in Brasilia. IMAGES
Madrid (AFP) – Real Madrid coach Carlo Ancelotti says his Manchester City counterpart Pep Guardiola is deliberately underestimating the English side’s hopes of reaching the Champions League last 16.
Ankara (AFP) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says talks on ending the war in Ukraine should not take place “behind the backs” of those affected by “Russian aggression”. Speaking in Ankara at a press conference alongside Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Zelensky urges the involvement of Ukraine and its European allies in the “development of the necessary security guarantees.”
Aadaïssé (Lebanon) (AFP) – Residents of the southern Lebanese village of Odaisseh return to destroyed homes as the army deploys to border villages vacated by Israeli troops. Israeli forces withdrew from all but five points in south Lebanon, allowing displaced residents to return to border villages largely destroyed in more than a year of hostilities.
Belle-en-Ile-en-Mer (Morbihan) (France) (AFP) – Much has been written about suspected sabotage of undersea cables in the Baltic Sea, but the UN says fishing trawlers, not spies, are causing most of the damage. “Generally, around 80 percent of cable cuts are attributed to fishing and anchoring,” explains Tomas Lamanauskas, deputy head of the United Nations’ International Telecommunications Union.
Beijing (AFP) – China says it hopes “all parties and stakeholders can participate” in talks aimed at ending the war in Ukraine, ahead of a meeting in Saudi Arabia between top US and Russian diplomats.
Paris (AFP) – European leaders at an emergency meeting in Paris Monday were divided on how to respond to US President Donald Trump’s dramatic policy shift on Ukraine, with France and Britain pushing for security guarantees and Germany bristling at suggestions troops could be deployed.
Toronto (Canada) (AFP) – A Delta Air Lines jet with 80 people onboard crash-landed Monday at Toronto’s main airport, officials said, flipping upside down and leaving at least 18 people injured but causing no deaths.
Mexico City (AFP) – Mexico will take Google to court if it insists on changing the Gulf of Mexico’s name to “Gulf of America” for Maps users in the United States, President Claudia Sheinbaum says during her daily press conference. She said her government had written again to the US company arguing that President Donald Trump’s executive order on the subject only applies to the part of the continental shelf belonging to the United States.
Berlin (AFP) – Veterans of the German anti-fascist movement, the “Omas Gegen Rechts”, or “Grannies Against The Right”, have ramped up their demonstrations ahead of the federal election on February 23, with the far-right AfD party performing well in the polls.
