Colombo (AFP) – Before the dramatic ouster of Sri Lanka’s former president Gotabaya Rajapaksa last year, he was blamed for an economic crisis that brought food and fuel shortages, blackouts and runaway inflation to the island nation. But his departure did not conclude the island nation’s economic woes.
Hongphoi (India) (AFP) – Once, the way to get ahead among India’s Konyak warriors was by chopping off an enemy’s skull. Today, the last survivors of a past age mourn the changing times and a new generation they see as soft.
Yokohama (Japan) (AFP) – Seaweed has long been a staple food in Japan, but the chunky, slimy kelp hauled into fisherman Ryoichi Kigawa’s boat is also starting to attract international attention for its potential as an eco-friendly supercrop.
Santa Monica (United States) (AFP) – Barbie doll’s fans can walk into her life-size Dream House in Santa Monica at the “World of Barbie” exhibition.
Prague (AFP) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says that Kyiv wants “honesty” in ties with NATO as he speaks ahead of a key summit of the Western military bloc. “We need honesty in our ties,” Zelensky tells reporters alongside Czech leader Petr Pavel, speaking ahead of a key summit in Vilnius. He says it is time to demonstrate “the courage and strength of this alliance.” ++ 33MX3QQ URGENT
Kyiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – Ukrainian war veterans wounded in the war with Russia hold an open training session in preparation for the upcoming Invictus Games, an international sporting competition for disabled soldiers. The games will be held in Dusseldorf in September 2023. Mikhailo Drobotenko, who was wounded by a mine near Severodonetsk, says, “We need to attract more guys to do this. It distracts and helps in rehabilitation. Sport is life.”
Lake Issyk-Kul (Kyrgyzstan) (AFP) – On the shores of Lake Issyk Kul in Kyrgyzstan, a group of volunteer scuba divers show off their haul for the day: a boat engine, car tyres, bottles, clothes and a multitude of plastic items. Issyk Kul is a UNESCO heritage site and home to a diverse range of animal species, but the flow of visitors — and the waste they often leave — is endangering the lake.
Chibayish (Iraq) (AFP) – Dead fish lie on the banks of rivers and marshes in Iraq’s southeast in the floodplain of the Tigris river, already suffering from the effects of global warming. Largely arid Iraq is ranked by the United Nations as one of the world’s five countries most impacted by some effects of climate change.
Mazar-i-Sharif (Afghanistan) (AFP) – “It is very difficult to be a girl”, sighs Halima Mohammadi as she reacts to a new ban imposed by Afghanistan’s Taliban authorities: the beauty parlours were given a month to shut down. The order will force the closure of thousands of businesses run by women — often the only source of income for households — and outlaw one of the few remaining opportunities for them to socialise away from home.
Minsk (AFP) – Wagner chief Yevgeny Prigozhin is still in Russia, says Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko. Speaking to foreign media outlets in Minsk, the Moscow-allied leader explains “he is in Saint Petersburg. Perhaps he went to Moscow this morning. But he is not in Belarus”. Lukashenko’s comments come despite a deal between Prigozhin and the Kremlin for him to move to Belarus following his failed insurrection last month.
