Oceania New Zealand A women meeting in Wellington marked a year since changes to pay equity extinguished some 180.000 claims for equal work of equal value; a request to the UN was made to investigate whether the move amounted to systemic discrimination towards women
Africa Benin American filmmaker Spike Lee and wife, producer and author Tonya Lewis Lee, have been appointed ambassadors for African-Americans in the US; their role aims to strengthen ties, promote cultural tourism and support reconnection of diaspora to their roots
America Costa Rica A 41% funding cut has severely affected Costa Rica’s ability to support over 222.000 asylum seekers, mainly Nicaraguan, delaying essential services and putting its longstanding refugee protection system at serious risk
Europe Russia Despite its 8,8 magnitude, damage caused by the earthquake that struck the Kamchatka peninsula on 30 July was relatively minor; lack of devastation and fatalities was attributed by Kremlin spokesperson to high-quality construction and local preparedness
Asia Uzbekistan High spending and shady contracts for national and international artists led the Anti-Corruption Agency to launch a probe into Khanabad “Echoes of the World” music festival, at its 3rd edition later this month in Andijan
America Colombia Driven by a growing tech sector and strong digital marketing demand, Colombia has seen companies embrace AI-generated virtual influencers to enhance brand engagement, following global trends like digital model cloning
Asia Laos In the village of Ban Nam Deua, a Swiss-backed initiative is helping residents secure legal land rights; Through training, mapping and community engagement, the project empowers villagers to manage their land sustainably and avoid disputes or exploitation
Asia Afghanistan Nearly 20.000 Afghans have been crossing from Iran to Afghanistan every day, driven out by targeted crackdowns and xenophobia: 1,5 million since January, fled or deported, make one of the worst displacement crises of the past decade, UN data reports
Asia Bhutan Desi High School has launched a five-year forest restoration project with WWF-Bhutan and the Thimphu Forest Division; Students will restore and manage two hectares of degraded forest near the school, planting native trees and ensuring long-term care
Asia Indonesia “Beyond Unsettled Past,” now open at Erasmus Huis in Jakarta, revisits Dutch colonial legacy through works by six contemporary artists; art, archives, storytelling explore how colonial time still influences culture and its relevance to today’s Indonesia
America Chile A high-level summit has been hosted in Chile, where leftist leaders from Latin America and Spain launched a joint strategy to counter authoritarianism, disinformation and far-right extremism, calling for UN reforms and stronger multilateral cooperation
Asia Sri Lanka The first Kumbal Perahera of the historic Senkadagala Esala Perahera began its journey in the streets at auspicious time 7:05 PM; the honour of carrying the casket in the first Kumbal Perahera was given to Indijata, the elephant of the Sri Dalada Maligawa
Africa Nigeria The Yelwata axis of the Benue–Nasarawa highway was blocked as Internally Displaced Persons staged a protest demanding immediate return to their ancestral homes; protesters, victims of attacks by suspected herdsmen, were chanting “We want to go back home”.
America Argentina Argentina's Catholic Church expressed solidarity with evicted Mapuche communities and urged authorities to end violence and criminalization of protests while demanding full respect for indigenous rights enshrined in law