Tokyo (AFP) – Thousands of thankful, sobbing fans flock to a Tokyo zoo to bid an emotional farewell to a pair of beloved pandas before their imminent return to China. Ri Ri and Shin Shin were due to stay until February 2026, but Japan and China agreed it would be better for the 19-year-olds to return to their home country in light of their declining health.
Guainía (Colombia) (AFP) – When Ruben Dario Carianil began cultivating the unusual, pointy Inirida flower in the Colombian Amazon ten years ago, his relatives made fun of him for growing “weeds.” Today, he grows tons of the curious blooms who are soon to become the emblem of COP16, a UN biodiversity conference.
Sao Paulo (AFP) – In just over two decades, Helio da Silva has single-handedly planted about 40,000 trees in the urban jungle that is Sao Paulo. The former food industry executive says he was called “crazy” when he started his quest to transform what used to be a hangout for drug users. Today, there stands the Tiquatira Park with thousands of trees.
Aboard the Papal Plane (AFP) – Pope Francis condemns the use of force in Lebanon and Gaza as “immoral”. Responding to a question aboard the Papal plane as he returns from a visit to Belgium, the pontiff says that any country that “acts in such an excessive way” lends itself to “immoral actions.” His comments come after recent intensification in Israeli strikes on Hezbollah strongholds in Lebanon, killing more than 700 people in a week.
Tel Aviv (AFP) – Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel appears to be at a “historic turning point” after the killing of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah in an air strike in Beirut. “His elimination advances the return of our residents to their homes in the north and (…) the return of our captives in the south”, he says, warning against any retaliation stating “whoever strikes us, we will strike them.”
Solok (Indonesia) (AFP) – A landslide at an illegal mine in western Indonesia has killed 13 people, as search efforts for any further victims end. Heavy rains caused the disaster, with rescue workers having to walk for hours from the nearest village to reach the area.
Beirut (Lebanon) (AFP) – In Lebanon’s Beirut, citizens grieve the death of Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah, who was killed in an air strike on the capital’s southern suburbs. Nasrallah was the militant group’s leader for 32 years. His death deals a seismic blow to Hezbollah, engaged in a year of escalating cross-border hostilities with Israel since Hamas’s October 7 attack on the country.
Shiraz (Iran) (AFP) – Conservationists at Persepolis, Iran’s most iconic ancient site, are waging a delicate battle against an unlikely adversary: tiny but persistent fungi eroding the millenia-old monuments. “In about 50, 100, or 200 years, they will turn the stone into soil,” explains Shahram Rahbar, head of renovation at the site where he and his team are working relentlessly to combat the infestation.
Touwsrivier (South Africa) (AFP) – A South African woman who could be the oldest living person in the world celebrates what is said to be her 118th birthday with a small party at her care home in Touwsrivier. Margaret Maritz was born on September 27, 1906, according to a copy of her identity card. The document has not been independently verified.
Kathmandu (AFP) – Torrential rain causes the Bagmati river in Nepal’s capital Kathmandu to swell, inundating houses and cars close to its banks. Floods and landslides caused by the heavy downpours have killed at least 10 people across the Himalayan country.
