Kyiv (Ukraine) (AFP) – Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky says that North Korean troops are back on the front line in Russia’s Kursk region, after reports that Moscow had withdrawn them after suffering heavy losses.
Bengaluru (India) (AFP) – Every morning Indian farmer R Murali follows the same routine, opening an app on his phone to check if his pomegranate trees need water, fertiliser or at risk from pests. The 51-year-old is one of a growing number of farmers in India’s vast agricultural sector turning to artificial intelligence. The country’s crops are often hit by water shortage, floods or extreme weather, and the new technology offers some respite to those who can afford it.
Bangkok (AFP) – Bangkok’s skyscrapers lie shrouded by a thick layer of pollution haze, which continues to cause health concerns for residents of the Thai capital. On 31 January, the city ranked seventh on a list of the world’s most polluted, with air monitor IQAir recording the level of cancer-causing PM2.5 particles at 86 micrograms per cubic metre, far above the measure of 15 considered unhealthy by the World Health Organization.
Miami (AFP) – Empty shelves and eye-watering price tags greet those looking for eggs in supermarkets across the United States, where bird flu has hit poultry farms and triggered a nationwide egg shortage. With various strains of the virus detected, including at least one causing severe symptoms in humans, mass culls have been carried out on flocks, severely reducing the supply of a staple product.
Beijing (AFP) – China says it “regrets” Panama’s decision to pull out of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), accusing the United States of using “pressure and coercion to smear and undermine” the project, a massive infrastructure initiative aimed at expanding Beijing’s clout overseas. On 6 February, Panama confirmed it had withdrawn from the BRI, following threats made by US Secretary of State Marco Rubio over Chinese influence on the Panama Canal. Since winning the US election in November, President Donald Trump has refused to rule out using force to seize the canal, built by Washington over a century ago and later handed over to Panama.
Washington (AFP) – Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu describes US President Donald Trump’s proposal to move Palestinians out of Gaza as “the first original idea to be raised in years”. Speaking in Washington DC, where he met with Trump, Netanyahu says “I think it is worth listening very carefully to this idea.”
Sao Paulo (AFP) – Two people were killed when a small plane crashed on a major avenue in Brazil’s economic capital Sao Paulo, narrowly escaping heavy traffic and skidding into a bus. Investigators are at the scene to establish the circumstances of the accident. IMAGES
Sao Paulo (AFP) – Emergency services attend the scene of a plane crash on a major avenue in the Brazilian city of Sao Paulo. After hitting a bus it exploded, leaving two people dead and six injured, according to authorities. The small plane crashed in the western part of Brazil’s largest city at around 7:20 a.m. local time (10:20 a.m. GMT). IMAGES
Sao Paulo (AFP) – Aerial shots of emergency services attending the scene of a plane crash on a major avenue in the Brazilian city of Sao Paulo. After hitting a bus it exploded, leaving two people dead and six injured, according to authorities. The small plane crashed in the western part of Brazil’s largest city at around 7:20 a.m. local time (10:20 a.m. GMT). IMAGES
Quito (AFP) – Images of Ecuador’s President and presidential candidate Daniel Noboa closing rally in Quito ahead of the weekend’s elections. The country’s dueling presidential hopefuls made a last-ditch pitch to late-deciding voters, wrapping a bitter campaign dominated by surging cartel violence and economic crisis. IMAGES
