Heavy floods continue to pile misery on the Russian city of Orenburg on the banks of the Ural River, with local officials announcing that the water levels rose 81 centimetres in a day. Vast swathes of southern Russia and northern Kazakhstan have been battling overflowing rivers caused by fast-melting snow and ice, with both Moscow and Astana saying the floods are the worst in decades.
Mecca (Saudi Arabia) (AFP) – Muslims around the world perform morning prayers to celebrate the holiday of Eid al-Fitr marking the end of the Ramadan, Islam’s holy fasting month. The timing of Eid al-Fitr is determined by the sighting of the crescent moon, in accordance with the Muslim lunar calendar.
Rafah (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) – In the southern Gazan city of Rafah, Palestinians have been forced to mark the end of the holy month of Ramadan in the streets amid the rubble of destroyed buildings. Outside the city’s flattened Al-Farooq Mosque, worshipper Khairi Abu Singer complains that Israel’s relentless bombardment had even “deprived Palestinians from praying inside their mosques” on the Eid al-Fitr holiday.
Madrid (AFP) – Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez warns that Israel’s “disproportionate response” in the Gaza war with Hamas risks “destabilising the Middle East, and as a consequence, the entire world”. Since the start of the war in Gaza more than six months ago after the deadly October 7 attacks by Hamas, Sanchez has been a frequent critic of Israel’s conduct of the war, and has pushed for recognition of a Palestinian state.
Halle (Belgium) (AFP) – For a couple of weeks every spring, millions of blooming bluebells form a breathtaking violet-blue carpet on the forest floor of the Hallerbos wood just outside Brussels. Tens of thousands of visitors from as far afield as India, Finland and Japan flock each year to what was once one of Belgium’s best-kept secrets.
French athlete Anouk Garnier has broken the world rope-climbing record with her 110-metre ascent to the second floor of the Eiffel Tower, telling AFP she “can’t even believe it actually happened”. The previous records were held by South African Thomas van Tonder in the men’s category – 90 metres – and Denmark’s Ida Mathilde Steensgaard – 26 metres – in the women’s category.
Buenos Aires (AFP) – Hundreds of protesters paralyze 9 de Julio Avenue in Argentina’s capital, Buenos Aires, as crowds gather in defiance against the recent economic measures introduced by the government of President Javier Milei. IMAGES
Tegucigalpa (AFP) – Authorities in Honduras incinerate 1,350 kilos of cocaine, seized from drug traffickers, at the headquarters of the Military Police of Public Order (PMOP) in Tegucigalpa. The drugs were seized on March 24 when ten Hondurans were captured by the country’s naval force in the Caribbean.
Jakarta (AFP) – Muslims celebrate the end of Ramadan on the eve of Eid al-Fitr, lining the streets of Indonesia’s capital Jakarta to bang drums and chant in a tradition called “takbiran” where followers of Islam express joy after completing one full month of fasting.
Kharkiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky inspects defensive fortifications in the northeastern Kharkiv region on 9 April amid an intensification of Russian aerial attacks in the area which saw Russia fire a guided bomb on the city of Kharkiv just as Zelensky announced his visit to the region.
