Caracas (AFP) – Venezuelan presidential candidates walk into the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ) in Caracas after being summoned for a hearing regarding an appeal for the highest court to certify the election process. Opposition candidate Edmundo Gonzalez Urrutia, who claims to be the rightful winner, did not attend the hearing. IMAGES TO COMPLETE VIDI368D7AV_EN
Abuja (AFP) – At least 13 people have died during protests over economic hardship in Nigeria, according to rights group Amnesty International, which accused security forces of killing peaceful demonstrators. Conflicting accounts emerged on the number of deaths a day after thousands of protesters took to the streets in cities across Nigeria to demonstrate against government policies and the high cost of living.
United States (AFP) – Freed US journalist Evan Gershkovich speaks to reporters at Joint Base Andrews Air Force base, Maryland, after a major prisoner swap between Russia and the West. In footage filmed on August 1, Gershkovich says he would like to “potentially do something” to help other, less well-known, political prisoners still held in Russian jails.
Semboja (Indonesia) (AFP) – Experts fear the impact Indonesia’s new capital city may have on orangutans and other wildlife as Nusantara is being carved out of dense jungle on Borneo. The island is home to the Samboja Lestari Orangutan Rehabilitation Center, which the government has promised it will not move. The foundation which runs it says it will continue to manage the site despite concerns over potential environmental damage caused by the rapid development of the city.
Doha (AFP) – Hundreds of mourners perform Friday and funeral prayers for slain Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh on mats outside the largest mosque in Qatar, where the group’s political chief will be laid to rest. Haniyeh was killed in Tehran in an attack Iran blamed on Israel, and which deepened fears of a wider war.
Villepinte (France) (AFP) – “It’s not a black and white issue,” says IOC spokesman Mark Adams after Algerian boxer Imane Khelif’s 46-second win at the Paris Olympics sparked a furious row about gender eligibility rules. Khelif advanced to the quarter-finals of the women’s 66kg category after unloading two strong punches to the face of Italian Angela Carini, who had blood on her shorts and was unable to carry on because of a badly hurt nose.
Wayanad (India) (AFP) – Aaerial images show the extent of damage caused by India’s deadly landslides. More than 200 people are known to have died in the disaster which followed days of torrential moonsoon rains.
various (AFP) – US journalist Evan Gershkovich and a Russian intelligence colonel jailed for a Berlin murder were among two dozen prisoners freed in the biggest East-West prisoner swap since the Cold War.
Nanterre (France) (AFP) – “We’ve found the next flag bearer for Los Angeles” says one spectator at the Paris La Défense Arena, as France’s golden boy Leon Marchand was back in the pool after just four hours of sleep following his back-to-back golds. Marchand now has his sights set on a fourth title and the 200m medley, the final of which takes place on August 2.
Chasiv Yar (Ukraine) (AFP) – Once a vibrant industrial hub, Chasiv Yar in Ukraine’s east has been transformed into a smouldering wreck of mostly deserted streets and empty buildings. As Moscow’s troops close in on the town’s suburbs, unleashing non-stop bombardment since April, outgunned Ukrainian troops have turned to the drones to slow their enemy’s advance.
