Schönefeld (Germany) (AFP) – German Chancellor Olaf Scholz urges the European Union and United States to step up efforts to supply aid to war-torn Ukraine, ahead of a visit to Washington for talks with President Joe Biden. Scholz’s visit to key ally the United States comes as a $60 billion aid package for Kyiv pushed by Biden has become held up in the Senate amid Republican opposition.
Reykjavik (AFP) – Aircraft taxi on the tarmac near Reykjavik against a backdrop of a volcanic eruption from a new volcanic fissure on the Reykjanes peninsula, the third eruption to hit the area since December, with authorities raising the alert level as a key water pipe was threatened. Iceland is home to 33 active volcano systems, the highest number in Europe. Until March 2021, the Reykjanes peninsula had not experienced an eruption for eight centuries.
Kharan (Pakistan) (AFP) – Millions of Pakistanis go to the polls to vote in an election with Imran Khan, the country’s most popular politician, in jail and the military-backed Nawaz Sharif tipped to win. The vote has been mired by allegations of vote-rigging and a bloody election campaign, including two blasts on 7 February that killed 28 people.
Reykjanes (Iceland) (AFP) – A river of glowing lava flows from an erupting volcano on Iceland’s Reykjanes peninsula, the third to hit the area since December. Iceland is home to 33 active volcano systems, the highest number in Europe. Until March 2021, the Reykjanes peninsula had not experienced an eruption for eight centuries.
Bogotá (AFP) – Hundreds of Colombians rally in support of President Gustavo Petro in the capital of Bogota. IMAGES
Santiago (AFP) – Chileans walk around the casket of former President Sebastian Pinera to pay their respects inside the Former National Congress in Santiago, where he lies in state until the main funeral on February 9. The 74-year-old billionaire served two non-consecutive terms in office, leaving his final mandate in 2022. IMAGES
Kyiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – At least four people have been killed in Kyiv, while one person was killed in the southern Mykolaiv region following a wave of Russian strikes on Ukraine. “The windows were broken, there is no kitchen, no balcony. Total devastation,” says one Kyiv resident.
El Khiyam (Lebanon) (AFP) – Smoke billows after series of Israeli strikes hit the southern Lebanese village of Khiam. Since the outbreak of war between Hamas and Israel on October 7, the Lebanese-Israeli border has witnessed a near-daily exchange of fire between Israel’s army and Lebanon’s Shiite movement Hezbollah, a Hamas ally. TO COMPLETE VIDI34HU3RQ_EN
Tula (Russia) (AFP) – Four-time Russian weightlifting champion Oleg Musokhranov will sit out the Paris Olympics this summer after insisting he would only take part under the Russian flag. Following Russia’s military operation in Ukraine, the International Olympic Committee is requiring Russian and Belarusian athletes to compete in Paris under a neutral banner.
Pishin (Pakistan) (AFP) – At least 22 people have been killed in two separate bomb blasts outside the offices of election candidates in southwestern Pakistan, on the eve of a national vote marred by violence and allegations of poll-rigging. The run-up to the national vote has seen multiple security incidents, with at least two candidates shot dead and dozens more targeted in attacks across Pakistan.
