Cairo (AFP) – Egyptian jewellery, fashion and high-end home ware makers are trying to bring their age-old designs to a global luxury goods markets, while the sector suffers severe modern-day restraints. Many struggle to keep alive traditional craftsmanship and to crack into a highly competitive international market at a time of deep economic crisis at home and a lack of government support.
Mhamid el Rhozlane (Morocco) (AFP) – In a Moroccan oasis town on the edge of the Sahara, nomads in turbans and tunics thwack a camel-wool ball across the desert in a traditional pastime: sand hockey.
Beit Lahia (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) – After his family home was levelled by an Israeli strike, Belal Nabhan wonders what will become of her and dozens of relatives left homeless by the latest fighting to hit Gaza. “Forty-five family members need shelter… they sleep here under the house” says Belal. Dozens of residences were destroyed during five days of fighting between Israeli military and the Islamic Jihad.
Reykjavik (AFP) – Participants in the 4th Summit of the Heads of State and Government of the Council of Europe pose for a family photo in Reykjavik, Iceland. IMAGES
Tanthirimale (Sri Lanka) (AFP) – Angry villagers brandishing placards storm the office of divisional secretary Manjari Chandradasa in Sri Lanka, a day after a herd of up to 50 elephants ravaged farmers’ fields near a wildlife reserve. Local farmers say the incident is the biggest involving the protected animals in recent memory, as the elephants munch through nearly half their crops across seven villages in the island’s north. “They destroyed much of what I have planted. It is very difficult to earn a living like this,” explains one of the local farmers.
Vienna (AFP) – At an environmental summit in Vienna founded and hosted by Arnold Schwarzenegger, the Austrian-born actor and former Governor of California calls for urgent action on the climate “emergency”, adding that “lives depend” on tackling the issue. Schwarzenegger, a seven-time Mr Olympia champion widely recognised as one of the greatest bodybuilders of all time, founded the annual Austrian World Summit in 2017 to bring together a broad coalition for climate action.
Sittwe (Myanmar) (AFP) – Rohingya in Myanmar bury their loved ones as the death toll from Cyclone Mocha rose to at least 41 among the persecuted Muslim minority, with more than 100 still missing, according to local leaders. Packing winds of up to 195 kilometres (120 miles) per hour, Mocha made landfall on Sunday, downing power pylons and smashing wooden fishing boats to splinters. Rohingya villagers say they have yet to receive government assistance or humanitarian aid.
Kyiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – Friends and colleagues of Arman Soldin, the AFP journalist killed last week in east Ukraine, gather in Kyiv to commemorate his empathy, spirit and dedication to journalism. “He represented the very best of AFP” says the agency’s Global News Director, Phil Chetwynd. Soldin died when an AFP team came under fire by Grad rockets while they were with a group of Ukrainian soldiers near Bakhmut, the epicentre of the fighting for months.
Cape Town (AFP) – At a press conference alongside Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong in Cape Town, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa says that he spoke to Vladimir Putin and Volodymy Zelensky, who both agreed “to receive a mission of the African heads of states in both Moscow and Kyiv”
Washington (AFP) – Sam Altman, the chief executive of ChatGPT’s OpenAI, tells US lawmakers that regulating artificial intelligence is essential, after his chatbot stunned the world. SOUNDBITE
