Kuala Lumpur (AFP) – Thousands of Buddhists gathered to celebrate Wesak Day in Malaysia and Nepal, as colourful floats, monks and performers took part in parade through the capitals of Malaysia and Nepal.
Felicity (United States) (AFP) – In the Sonora Desert, Jacques-Andre Istel, 94, has been building his “Museum of History of Humanity in granite” for nearly four decades. Istel’s ambitious project stretches over 2,600-acre (1,052-hectare) and is not yet complete.
Melrose (United Kingdom) (AFP) – Beloved by the late Queen Elizabeth II, corgis have become an enduring symbol of the British royal family. But there is a new breed on the Buckingham Palace block — the plucky Jack Russell Terrier — with King Charles III and Queen Camilla owning two rescue dogs named Bluebell and Beth.
Geneva (AFP) – UNICEF spokesperson James Elder warns that large numbers of children are dying in the Sudan conflict, pointing to reports indicating that seven children were being killed or injured every hour. He says the agency has received reports from a trusted partner — not yet independently verified by the UN — that 190 children were killed and 1,700 injured in just the first 11 days of the conflict that began on April 15.
Belgrade (AFP) – Police close off areas in two different villages near Belgrade, Serbia, after a shooter killed at least eight people and injured 14 in the country’s second mass shooting this week. Following an hours-long manhunt throughout the nigh, the Serbian police have arrested a 21-year-old man over the shooting. The incident comes on the heels of the worst school shooting in Serbia’s recent history, after a 13-year-old killed nine people, including eight fellow students, at a school in downtown Belgrade on Wednesday. “First those kids in Belgrade, and now this. This is a disaster. Lowest as it gets,” says Dubona resident Zvonko Mladenovic.
Unknown (AFP) – Russian paramilitary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin threatens to pull his frontline fighters from Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine next week because of ammunition shortages. Prigozhin’s Wagner group has spearheaded the grinding, months-long Russian assault on Bakhmut, almost capturing the city in the longest and bloodiest battle of the campaign.
Unknown (AFP) – Russian paramilitary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin threatens to pull his frontline fighters from Bakhmut in eastern Ukraine next week because of ammunition shortages. Prigozhin’s Wagner group has spearheaded the grinding, months-long Russian assault on Bakhmut, almost capturing the city in the longest and bloodiest battle of the campaign.
Vatican City (AFP) – Jeremy and Paul, whose surnames cannot be published for security reasons, will soon be sworn in as Swiss Guards at the Vatican, becoming part of an ancient, prestigious body responsible for protecting the pope. The Swiss Guards, the world’s oldest practising army, was founded by Pope Julius II in 1506. Its admission requirements are stringent: unmarried, male, Swiss, a practising Catholic, aged between 19 and 30, at least 1.74 metres tall, and bearing, according to the rules, “an impeccable reputation”.
London (AFP) – UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak welcomes his New Zealander counterpart Chris Hipkins in 10 Downing Street, ahead of King Charles III’s coronation on May 6. The event will be attented by around 2,300 guests. IMAGES
London (AFP) – A dozen horsemen ride past police officers and barriers posted outside Buckingham Palace on the eve of the coronation of Charles III in London. IMAGES
