AFP Video

Beijing (AFP) – A growing number of animals are being signed up for traditional medicine in China. In one Beijing practice, pets of all shapes and sizes come for acupuncture.

Vatican City (AFP) – Pope Francis calls for international help for Somalia to fight a “deadly” drought that the UN says has displaced one million people. The 85-year-old pontiff drew attention to what he called the “serious humanitarian crisis” in Somalia and parts of surrounding countries after his weekly Angelus prayer at the Vatican.

Imatra (Finland) (AFP) – A crowd of people gathers in the Eastern Finnish city of Imatra on a bridge overlooking Imatrankoski rapids. At the same time every day, the river’s almost century-old dam is opened and water rushes under the bridge, to the sound of music. It is a popular attraction especially for Russian tourists. But since the end of July, the show has kicked off with the Ukrainian national anthem, to protest the Russian invasion.

Gaza City (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) – Zookeepers assist a lioness in feeding its three newly-born lion cubs at Nama zoo in Gaza City, amid fears that they will die due to nutritional factors. The zoo’s staff took several precautionary measures to ensure that the cubs were safe once they were born. Each cub needs to be breastfed every hour.

Chibayish (Iraq) (AFP) – As drought devastates swathes of the Mesopotamian Marshes, Iraqi locals, whose livelihood depends on the resources of the southern marshlands, struggle to make ends meet, with many forced to leave in search of different jobs.

Jerusalem (AFP) – Israeli security inspect a bus after an attack outside Jerusalem’s Old City. Israeli police say they have arrested a suspect after a shooting attack on the bus in Jerusalem’s Old City that wounded eight people, two critically, including a pregnant woman.

Paris (AFP) – The French capital is full of summer tourists who are braving long queues and soaring temperatures to visit the Ville Lumiere’s most iconic sites.

Kaub (Germany) (AFP) – The Rhine river in Germany has fallen below a key waterline level used as a reference for judging its accessibility for shipping. The water dropped below the 40-centimetre (15.7-inch) reference level in Kaub, a noted bottleneck for shipping where the Rhine runs narrow and shallow. That level is considered necessary for much of the transport along the river.

Schwedt (Germany) (AFP) – Thousands of fish have washed up dead on the Oder river running through Germany and Poland, sparking warnings of an environmental disaster as residents are urged to stay away from the water.

Havana (AFP) – Colombia’s government gives the green light to resume peace talks with the country’s largest remaining rebel force, a key electoral promise that brought leftist President Gustavo Petro to power earlier this week. Colombian government officials met with members of the National Liberation Army (ELN) in Havana, where they have been based since 2018, with Bogota saying it officially recognizes the “legitimacy of dialogue… in the search for peace.”