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Dhanbad (India) (AFP) – Raging non-stop for a century, underground fires pose a serious threat to those working on coalfields in the Indian state of Dhanbad. The fires, which scientists believe started in a 1916 mining accident, cause sinkholes which swallow people and homes. Coal pickers say that hundreds have died over the years, but for many whose livelihoods depend on the in-demand fuel, leaving the danger behind is not an option.

Tokyo (AFP) – Cinemagoers in Tokyo express their excitement following the release of Studio Ghibli’s new film “How Do You Live?” The movie is the first by Ghibli co-founder and celebrated animator Hayao Miyazaki in 10 years. “How Do You Live?” is also likely to be the 82-year-old’s last film, which he came out of retirement to make.

Istālif (Afghanistan) (AFP) – Noor Agha Faqiri and Abdul Hameed Mehran are among a dozen potters left in Qarya-e-Kulalan (potter’s village), a small village in the picturesque Afghan Istalif district. Since the Taliban’s 2021 return to power, the country’s faltering economy has led sales to plummet, pushing many to forego this centuries-old craft. But Faqiri and Mehran are determined to carry on.

San José de las Lajas (Cuba) (AFP) – Two years ago, Marta Perdomo and Liset Fonseca were two Cuban women with little interest in politics and no social media footprint. That changed overnight when their sons were arrested in a mass roundup that followed the biggest anti-government protests in the history of the communist island. Today, they are fervent activists.

Los Angeles (AFP) – “Digital has overtaken the industry” says Fran Drescher, president of the Screen Actors Guild, as she explains the concerns over the use of artificial intelligence that led Hollywood actors to go on strike. “We can’t accept that a background performer would get paid for one day, they scan their likeness, and they’re never needed again” she says, after acting professionals joined TV and film writers in the first industry-wide walkout for 63 years.

Naples (United States) (AFP) – Python hunters in Naples, Florida, tackle the largest snake ever captured in the state: a 19-foot Burmese python weighing 125 pounds (56 kilograms).

San Andres (Colombia) (AFP) – Colombians react to the UN’s top court dismissal of Nicaragua’s claims against Colombia, in a decades-long Latin American legal battle over an oil- and fish-rich swathe of the Caribbean Sea.

DONETSK REGION (Ukraine) (AFP) – From their boltholes in the trenches in the frontlines of Ukraine’s battle to resist the Russian forces, Kyiv’s troops express frustration that they could not join NATO immediately. They argue that they are all that stands between the Russian aggressors and the rest of Europe.

Sriharikota (India) (AFP) – India launches a rocket seeking to land an unmanned spacecraft on the surface of the Moon, its second attempt to become only the fourth country to do so. The Chandrayaan-3 (“Mooncraft”) rocket lifted off from Sriharikota in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh, as thousands of enthusiasts clapped and cheered. IMAGES

New York (AFP) – Members of the Screen Actors Guild joint writers on a picket line outside of Warner Bros. Discovery offices in New York City, ahead of a potential strike announcement over dwindling pay and the threat posed by artificial intelligence.