Bolivia floods: Homes destroyed and animals rescued

The mayor of Cobija, a city in the north, declares the area a disaster zone because of heavy rain.

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UK gives £600m backing to Jim Ratcliffe’s ‘carbon bomb’ petrochemical plant

Campaigners say Ineos project in Antwerp will turbocharge plastic production on a scale not seen before in Europe

The UK government is providing a €700m (£600m) guarantee for the billionaire Jim Ratcliffe to build the biggest petrochemical plant in Europe in 30 years that will turbocharge plastic production.

The huge petrochemical plant has been described as a “carbon bomb” by campaigners. Being constructed in the Belgian city of Antwerp by Ratcliffe’s company Ineos, it will bring plastic production to Europe on a scale not seen before, just as countries are trying to negotiate a binding global treaty to tackle the growing problem of plastic pollution.

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Ugandan warlord's victims awarded share of $56m

Dominic Ongwen was convicted of crimes including rape, kidnapping and murder by the ICC.

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EU countries already hitting some of their sustainable energy targets for 2030

Study finds ‘systematic progress’ achieved in 2010s with some states reaching some targets a decade early

Several European countries hit some of their sustainable energy targets for 2030 a decade early, a study has found, but big gaps remain across the board.

All EU member states made progress in the 2010s toward reaching the UN’s seventh sustainable development goal, which calls for access to “affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all” by 2030. For some indicators, several countries had already reached the targets by 2021, the study by Polish economists published on Wednesday found.

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Dense fog transforms New York into a city on clouds

The fog seen on Tuesday morning was caused by easterly winds blowing over the cool waters of Long Island Sound.

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Australia politics live: Anthony Albanese hails tax cuts at unusual late press conference as Dunkley byelection looms

The prime minister holds evening media conference to spruik passing of reforms through Senate. Follow the day’s news live

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Victorians under threat from bushfires are facing their last chance to leave as catastrophic conditions descend on the state’s west, Australian Associated Press reports.

The Bayindeen bushfire, north-west of Ballarat, is still raging this morning and authorities released a map showing the fire could rip through areas including Beaufort, Elmhurst, Amphitheatre, Lexton, Learmonth and Clunes.

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Navalny lawyer reportedly arrested in Moscow

Vasily Dubkov, who represented the Russian activist, was arrested for "violating public order", reports say.

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Macron faces EU backlash after suggesting sending troops to Ukraine

EU and Nato leaders quick to distance themselves from French president’s comments that ground troops should not be ruled out

Emmanuel Macron has faced criticism from France’s Nato and EU partners and a warning of conflict from Russia after he suggested it might be necessary to send ground troops to Ukraine.

After a high-level meeting in Paris of mainly European partners to discuss what urgent steps could be taken to shore up Ukraine in the wake of Russia’s recent frontline advances, the French president told a press conference he did not rule out sending troops.

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US airman dies after setting himself on fire at Israeli embassy

Secret Service agents extinguished the flames during the incident on Sunday afternoon.

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At least 15 dead in Burkina Faso church attack

It the latest atrocity in the country to be attributed to Islamist militants.

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