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Beijing (AFP) – China warns that Washington would “bear the consequences” if US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi visits Taiwan, with tensions soaring between the two countries. Beijing has hit back hard against the United States after reports emerged last week that Pelosi, a Democrat who is second in line to the presidency, could visit the self-ruled island of Taiwan in August. “We are firmly opposed to Speaker Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan,” says Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian during a regular press conference in Beijing.

Rome (AFP) – More than ten thousand enthusiastic AS Roma fans pack the street in front of the Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana, also known as the Square Colosseum, to welcome Argentinian forward Paulo Dybala who has recently transferred from Juventus to the Roman club.

Vienna (AFP) – Every Thursday morning, a group of residents in a Viennese retirement home come together to make beer. The home on the outskirts of Vienna started to offer the activity two years ago as a way to keep its residents busy. The pensioners began with brewing their “Grandma and Grandpa” beer, and it went down so well they have now expanded into a light lager called “Hellmut and Hellga”, a pun on the German word for light beer, “helles”.

Washington (AFP) – Donald Trump returns to Washington for the first time since leaving the White House 18 months ago, delivering a fiery speech sprinkled with strong hints he may run for president again in 2024. The 76-year-old Trump stops short of declaring his candidacy but says that “we may just have to do it again” in remarks at the right-wing America First Policy Institute.

Moscow (AFP) – Russia has decided to quit the International Space Station “after 2024”, the newly-appointed chief of Moscow’s space agency Yury Borisov tells President Vladimir Putin. Russia and the United States have worked side by side on the ISS, which has been in orbit since 1998.

Yaoundé (AFP) – During his visit to Cameroon, French President Emmanuel Macron blames Russia for using “food and energy” as “weapons of warfare” and says that it shows that “we must help Africa to produce more for itself.”

Velký Šenov (Czech Republic) (AFP) – Firefighters in the Czech Republic battle to contain a forest fire in the Bohemian Switzerland National Park, which sits on the country’s northern border with Germany. The blaze comes as record temperatures for the region were broken on Monday. While there are no reported casualties, Czech Environment Minister Anna Hubackova has said the situation is “critical”. The cross-border park is home to rare species such as the Eurasian lynx and the peregrine falcon.

Yaoundé (AFP) – French President Emmanuel Macron Macron meets his Cameroonian counterpart Paul Biya in Yaounde, as he seeks to reboot France’s post-colonial relationship with the African continent. The two leaders are expected to discuss security in Cameroon, which has been riven by ethnic violence and an insurgency by anglophone separatists who have been fighting for independence for two English-speaking provinces since 2017. Northern Cameroon has also seen attacks by Boko Haram jihadists.

Khartoum (AFP) – Sudanese protesters demanding an end to military rule chant slogans in the streets of the capital, Khartoum. Last year’s coup plunged Sudan into deepening turmoil with a spiralling economic crisis, violent crackdown on the regular anti-coup protests, and a spike in ethnic clashes in the country’s far-flung regions. IMAGES

Los Angeles (AFP) – Laura Linney receives the 2,727th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The actress has starred in hit movies like Primal Fear, The Truman Show, and Love Actually during her 30 year-long career, but her part as Wendy Byrd in “Ozark” really stuck with the audience. Her star is located right besides Jason Bateman’s, her partner in the Netflix show.