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Rain forces changes to 2026 Winter Olympics flame ceremony
Rainy weather has forced a running change to Wednesday's ceremony in ancient Olympia for the lighting of the sacred flame for the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics, organisers said.
Russia hammers Kyiv as talks over US plan rumble on
Russia rained missiles and drones on Kyiv overnight, killing six people, as frantic diplomatic efforts over a draft US plan to end the war intensified.
NGO links major chocolate brands to Liberia deforestation
Some of the world's best-known chocolate, from Mars to KitKat, is likely linked to deforestation in Liberia's rainforest despite many brands' claims of sustainability, according to research published by NGO Global Witness Tuesday.
France bids farewell to beloved pandas bound for China
Two pandas at a zoo in central France are to return to China on Tuesday after the female was diagnosed with kidney failure, drawing hundreds of visitors for a final goodbye.
Rivers of salt: life on Bangladesh's climate frontline
On Bangladesh's coast, where mighty Himalayan rivers meet the sea, water defines every rhythm of life, and every struggle.
Rhino horn sales, shark protection on wildlife talks agenda
Global wildlife talks open Monday, with debates set to take on questions ranging from protection of sharks, a bid to allow limited rhino horn sales and a push to restrict the trade in eels.
Amazon climate deal a 'win' for global unity but fossil fuels untouched
Nations sealed a modest agreement at the UN climate summit in the Brazilian Amazon on Saturday as many countries swallowed weaker terms on a fossil fuel phaseout to preserve unity.
UN climate summit nears end as EU accepts watered-down deal
Nations neared a deal at the UN climate summit Saturday after the EU accepted a text with only an implicit nod to phasing out fossil fuels following fraught negotiations with oil producers and emerging countries.
Climate activists dye Venice's Grand Canal green
Climate activists dyed Venice's Grand Canal green Saturday, as countries at a UN climate conference in Brazil struggled to agree on the crucial issue of phasing out of fossil fuels.
UN climate talks deadlocked as EU pushes fossil-fuel phaseout
The UN's COP30 climate talks spilled into overtime on Saturday, with the European Union in a standoff with oil producers and emerging countries over its push for a renewed commitment to a fossil-fuel phaseout.
Fossil fuel fight threatens to sink COP30 as negotiations run into overtime
Negotiations at COP30 climate talks in Brazil ran into overtime on Saturday with no agreement struck and delegates still locked in a bitter fight over whether to mention fossil fuels in the final text.
UN climate summit pushes into overtime as nations clash over fossil fuels
Negotiators pushed into overtime Friday to salvage UN climate talks in Brazil as a bitter fight over whether to mention fossil fuels threatened to derail a final agreement.
COP30 deal under threat as nations clash over fossil fuels
The European Union warned Friday that the UN's climate talks could end without a deal as oil-producing nations were accused of blocking any mention of a roadmap to phase out fossil fuels.
Thailand's last hunter-gatherers seek land rights
Deep in a Thai forest a young man sprints through the undergrowth, blowpipe in hand, before pumping a poisoned dart at a monkey.
Japan's eel delicacy faces global conservation pressure
At an eel restaurant near Tokyo, four friends sit down to eat a Japanese delicacy now the subject of a heated international debate as its numbers decline.
Fossil fuel showdown looms on UN climate summit's final day
A breach, a blockade, and a blaze: tumultuous UN climate talks head into their final day Friday in the Brazilian Amazon, with countries still sharply split over fossil fuels.
30-plus nations oppose COP30 draft over fossil fuel omission: Colombia
More than 30 countries have co-signed a letter opposing Brazil's draft proposal at the UN climate conference because it fails to include a roadmap phasing out fossil fuels, the Colombian delegation told AFP on Thursday.
Scramble for Sudan's resources fuels brutal civil war
Behind the civil war tearing Sudan apart for more than two years lie the country's natural riches, with foreign powers vying for control of its gold, fertile farmland and coastline.
Fire breaks out at UN climate talks, forcing delay at critical phase
A fire broke out inside the UN climate summit venue in Brazil on Thursday, burning through the roof and causing a panicked evacuation and the suspension of talks entering a crucial phase.
UN chief calls for 'ambitious compromise' at climate talks
With UN climate talks nearing a close in Belem, the world body's chief on Thursday urged nations to reach an "ambitious compromise" that keeps alive the goal of limiting long-term planetary warming to the critical 1.5C threshold.
Greenpeace says clothes sold by Shein break EU chemicals rules
Clothing items sold by Asian e-commerce giant Shein contain dangerous chemicals at levels well in excess of EU rules, Greenpeace charged in a report published on Thursday.
EU moves to bar 'green' labels for fossil fuel investments
The European Commission said Thursday it wants to exclude companies involved in fossil fuels from financial products marketed as "sustainable" in the EU, a step long demanded by environmental groups and experts.
Giant spider web found in Greek-Albanian border cave: study
Scientists have discovered a giant spider web spanning about half the size of a tennis court and with some 111,000 spiders in a cave on the border between Greece and Albania.
COP30 dragged into clash over gender language
A row over the definition of gender risks complicating the outcome of COP30 climate talks in Brazil, after six governments moved to attach their own interpretations as footnotes to a key text.
EU states back new delay to anti-deforestation rules
EU member states Wednesday backed a new one-year delay to landmark anti-deforestation rules that have hit a wall of opposition from businesses and trading partners, diplomats told AFP.
White rhino born at Spain zoo in conservation success
A southern white rhino calf has been born at a zoo in eastern Spain, in a success for a European programme aimed at preserving the threatened species.
Lula lands in Amazon to press for climate deal
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva arrived in Belem on Wednesday to press negotiators to reach an early deal at UN climate talks as nations remain far apart on contentious issues.
Without US satellites, 'we go dark', climate monitor tells AFP
US budget cuts risk creating blind spots in Earth monitoring systems that would imperil weather forecasting and climate research for years to come, the deputy chair of a key UN-backed climate monitoring body warned in an AFP interview.
Ireland's data centres power digital age, drain the grid
Ireland hosts one of the world's fast-growing clusters of data centres, but is running headlong into the difficult consequences.
Lula to return to COP30 as nations under pressure to land deal
COP30 host Brazil pushed Tuesday for an early breakthrough at UN climate talks, with nations weighing a proposed deal that seeks to bridge major differences on fossil fuels, finance and trade barriers.
Lula says Germany's Merz should have 'gone dancing', after Belem criticism
Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said Tuesday that German Chancellor Friedrich Merz should have gone out dancing and enjoyed Belem more, in response to his criticism of the COP30 host city.
Lula to return to COP30 as first draft climate deal lands
COP30 host Brazil on Tuesday unveiled a first draft deal after UN climate talks stretched late into the night, seeking a compromise with nations at odds as the summit clock ticks down.