AFP UK

Paris (AFP) – Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed arrives at the Elysee Palace where he is welcomed by French President Emmanuel Macron. IMAGES

London (AFP) – UK Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood tells MPs that 20 prisons will be involved in a “national roll-out” of the use of “so-called medication to manage problematic sexual arousal” — also known as chemical castration — in sex offenders.

Lyman (Ukraine) (AFP) – For around three years, 86-year-old Lidia Isayeva has been living alone in a cellar to shelter from Russian strikes that have destroyed her apartment and part of her hometown. Despite the risks, some Ukrainians choose to stay at home in the ruins, holding on to a lifetime of memories in towns where many have lived forever. “It’s an optimism that can lead to death,” says Roman Bugayov, from East SOS, which helps people evacuate from the front.

Langemark (Belgium) (AFP) – Belgian deminers have been picking up World War I munitions for over a century and believe they still have another century’s worth of work. British, German and French shells and munitions are turning up at the surface in Flanders by the thousands every year. Each year, the teams respond to more than 2,000 requests from farmers or construction crews to remove munitions, and have built up an expertise that they share across the world.

Sanaa (AFP) – Yemen’s Iran-backed Huthi rebels claim responsibility for a missile attack on Israel, the second in less than 12 hours. The group’s military spokesman Yahya Saree says they targeted Tel Aviv’s Ben Gurion airport “using a hypersonic ballistic missile”.

Jerusalem (AFP) – Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar accuses European governments of incitement against his country after the fatal shooting of two embassy staffers in Washington.

Taree (Australia) (AFP) – Rising floodwaters have stranded more than 50,000 people in eastern Australia, as torrential rain pummels water-logged towns for a second day and engorged rivers swallowed roads, leaving two dead. Rising floodwaters stranded more than 50,000 people in eastern Australia on Thursday, as torrential rain pummelled water-logged towns for a second day and engorged rivers swallowed roads, leaving two dead.

Beijing (AFP) – China’s foreign ministry calls for a “full investigation” after Israeli troops fired what they called “warning shots” as foreign diplomats visited the occupied West Bank.

Ulaanbaatar (AFP) – Hundreds of young Mongolians turned out in the country’s capital calling for the prime minister’s resignation on allegations of corruption, a longstanding source of deep public anger in the landlocked democracy.

Washington (AFP) – Police officers set up a cordon near the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington after two Israeli embassy staffers were shot dead late Wednesday. IMAGES

Jenin (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) – Several nations that have backed Israel voiced outrage after Israeli troops fired what they called “warning shots” as foreign diplomats visited the occupied West Bank. The Palestinian Authority accused troops of “deliberately” shooting at the delegation near the flashpoint city of Jenin.

Ushuaïa (Argentine) (AFP) – Thousands of electronics workers and union members marched in the streets of Ushuaia to protest President Javier Milei’s decision to lower tariffs on cellular phone imports. In the remote southern province of Tierra del Fuego, where electronics manufacturing is a key economic pillar, many fear the free-market policy could cripple local industry and wipe out jobs. IMAGES