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In the rolling hills of Israel’s occupied West Bank, Airbnb hosts such as Dalit Ohana offer serene stays to visitors, nestled in Biblical mountains southwest of Nablus. Her farm is ecological, boasting a ceramic studio within walking distance from a heated pool.

But beneath the tranquil veneer this settlement of 2,600 people called Yakir lies a darker reality - one intertwined with international law violations and human rights abuses. According to the International Court of Justice (ICJ), multinational corporations like Airbnb, Caterpillar, and European financial institutions such as BNP Paribas and HSBC are actively complicit in supporting Israel’s illegal settlement activity in these territories. Some companies like Volvo and Hyundai also play a significant role in perpetuating these violations by supplying the machinery used to displace entire communities and families. By discounting their legal and ethical obligations, these companies are flouting international law and directly contributing to the systemic abuse of Palestinian rights. They are also disregarding equally binding legislation on social, economic, and labour rights.

A 2024 report by Pax for Peace revealed that European banks, pension funds, and other financial institutions continue to invest heavily in the Israeli arms industry. The top 20 European creditors alone have provided over €36.1 billion in loans and underwritings to these companies. The financial backing of European banks like BNP Paribas, HSBC, and Société Générale has become crucial in keeping Israel’s military well stocked and active. Their support also facilitates the military protection Israel provides for its settler movement. As of writing, they have helped 700,000 settlers to live in the 279 settlements established across the West Bank and Jerusalem.

Without the financial backing of European banks, Israel’s settlement enterprise would struggle to survive.

The settlements are not self-sustaining; they rely on a continuous flow of European investments to maintain their infrastructure, expand their populations, and secure their place in the region. This economic dependence highlights how deeply Israel’s occupation is tied to European capital.

While many companies in Europe remain deeply invested in Israel’s occupation, there are signs of change. In June 2024, Norwegian pension fund KLP divested £69 million from Caterpillar, citing the company’s involvement in the destruction of Palestinian homes in Gaza. This decision sets an important precedent for other financial institutions to follow and demonstrates that divestment can be a powerful tool in holding companies accountable. Meanwhile, an initiative by the Starbucks Workers United group, expressing solidarity with Palestinians, led to a widespread boycott of the company, and resulted in Starbucks losing almost $11 billion in shares. More anecdotally, Puma announced it would end its sponsorship of Israel’s Football Association in 2024 following consumer boycott calls over the illegal West Bank settlements.

The ICJ’s recent ruling on the illegality of Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories provides a clear legal framework for enforcing accountability. Countries and companies that continue to invest in settlements are not only ignoring UN resolutions: they are also violating the Fourth Geneva Convention on the protection of civilians in conflict zones and occupied territories.

The southern African nation has been rocked by violence since the Frelimo party was announced winner of the October 9 elections with more than 70 percent of votes. The party has been in power for almost 50 years.

Opposition leader Venancio Mondlane, who won 20 percent of the vote according to the election authority, claims the vote was rigged. In social media posts, he has called his supporters onto the streets in protest. In the biggest demonstration yet, thousands of opposition supporters marched through Maputo on Thursday.

Human Rights Watch did not have a toll for Thursday's protests but said it had counted at least 30 dead between October 19 and November 6 across the country. This includes two opposition figures shot dead on October 19. Mozambique's Centre for Democracy and Human Rights (CDD) said at least 34 were killed, according to its tally.

The victims, aged between 13 and 53, were part of a group of 17 people reported missing days ago in the town of Chilapa. They were reported to be traveling merchants. Their bodies were found on Wednesday night in a pickup truck on an avenue in Guerrero's capital Chilpancingo, whose mayor was beheaded last month less than a week after taking office.

General Pedro Nieto, head of the armed forces in the region, said they were believed to have been kidnapped by the Los Ardillos drug cartel. The military had been deployed to search for them.

The bodies had been dismembered, complicating efforts to identify them. On October 22, ten of the victims disappeared, with the remaining seven going missing four days later when they went looking for their loved ones. Guerrero has endured years of bloodshed linked to turf wars between drug cartels, with residents often getting caught in the middle.

Criminal gangs in Mexico often use so-called "hawks" who identify and pursue strangers in the territory they control. Last week, three other dismembered bodies were found in a vehicle in Chilpancingo.

Last year, 1,890 murders were recorded in Guerrero, which is home to drug production and trafficking routes, including through Pacific seaports. On October 24, armed clashes between alleged criminals and security forces left 19 people dead, including two police officers, in the southern state. And this Monday, gunmen killed five members of the same family in a suburb of Acapulco.

The incident which occurred on Thursday, is like "seven other similar incidents" carried out by the Israeli army, the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon said in a statement. It "is not a matter of peacekeepers getting caught in the crossfire, but of deliberate and direct actions by the" Israeli army, it said.

"We also note with concern the destruction and removal this week of two of the blue barrels that mark the UN-delineated line of withdrawal between Lebanon and Israel," it said, noting that peacekeepers "directly observed" the Israeli army removing one of them.

UNIFIL, currently with more than 9,300 troops, has been stationed in southern Lebanon since 1978 and is tasked with monitoring the "Blue Line" of demarcation with Israel. UN Security Council Resolution 1701, which ended the 2006 war between Israel and Hezbollah, stipulated that only the Lebanese army and UN peacekeepers should be deployed in south Lebanon.

Last month, a UNIFIL spokesman said the force had recorded more than 30 incidents in October resulting in property damage or injury to peacekeepers, about 20 of them from Israeli fire or action.

A four-hour drive south of the smog-filled capital New Delhi, among fields bristling with brickyard smokestacks, the small town of Barsana welcomes pilgrims who come to honour the Hindu goddess Radha. But Sardana is also proud because his methanisation plant that opened in March is the "most technologically advanced and the largest biogas facility" in India.

It was built in Barsana to be as close as possible to its raw fuel -- cattle dung and harvest stubble

Cows have been blamed for contributing to global warming because they produce methane -- a powerful greenhouse gas -- in their manure or when they belch. But in this case, the region is finding a creative use for the waste produced by the cattle, which are used for their milk. Eating them is taboo for many Hindus.

Long lines of tractors dump dung and straw in the factory's tanks, from which 10 tonnes of gas and 92 tonnes of fertiliser are produced each day.

Biogas is considered a clean energy because the waste used to produce it is completely natural, said Suneel Pandey of The Energy and Resources Institute.

But the contribution of biogas to India's transition away from heavily polluting coal -- currently fuelling nearly 70 percent of electricity

will be relatively small. India plans to more than double the share of gas in its energy mix -- from six to 15 percent by 2030.

Burning gas to produce electricity also releases damaging emissions, although less than coal and oil.

the investments required are vast. The Barsana plant cost $25 million, while the price of biogas remains uncompetitive: $14 per cubic metre, compared to $6 for LNG.

LNG : liquefied natural gas

The 2.2 metre (7.5 feet) portrait "A.I. God" by "Ai-Da", the world's first ultra-realistic robot artist, smashed pre-sale expectations of $180,000 when it went under the hammer at London auction house Sotheby's Digital Art Sale.

Ai-Da Robot, which uses AI to speak, said: "The key value of my work is its capacity to serve as a catalyst for dialogue about emerging technologies." Ai-Da added that a "portrait of pioneer Alan Turing invites viewers to reflect on the god-like nature of AI and computing while considering the ethical and societal implications of these advancements."

The ultra-realistic robot, one of the most advanced in the world, is designed to resemble a human woman with a face, large eyes and a brown wig. Ai-Da is named after Ada Lovelace, the world's first computer programmer and was devised by Aidan Meller, a specialist in modern and contemporary art.

Ai-Da generates ideas through conversations with members of the studio, and suggested creating an image of Turing during a discussion about "A.I. for good". The robot was then asked what style, colour, content, tone and texture to use, before using cameras in its eyes to look at a picture of Turing and create the painting.

Fierce seasonal winds had cast embers up to three miles (five kilometers) from the seat of the fire around Camarillo, with new spots burning on hillsides, farmland and in residential areas.

The Mountain Fire grew rapidly from a standing start early Wednesday, and by the following day had consumed 20,485 acres (8,290 hectares), with towering flames leaping unpredictably and sending residents scrambling. The fire was only five percent contained as of Thursday evening, authorities said, although wind patterns were expected to favor firefighters through the night.

Authorities said that based on initial inspections, at least 132 homes had been completely destroyed, with 88 more damaged by the fires.

Ventura County Fire Department officials said they were throwing resources at the blaze in an area that is home to 30,000 people, but that changing wind patterns meant there was hope the fire could die down in the coming days.

At least 400 homes had been evacuated, Ventura County Sheriff Jim Fryhoff said, adding that 250 residents had chosen to stay behind.

The cause of the fire was not immediately known, but meteorologists had raised a Red Flag Warning and a rare Particularly Dangerous Situation (PDS) warning in the area, indicating dangerous fire conditions.

The Sanctuary of the Eleona sits in a Jerusalem compound owned by France, and along with three other sites in Israel makes up the French national domain in the Holy Land. The sites have been the focus of diplomatic incidents in the past.

The national domain was attributed to France before Israel's creation and is administered as a private property by the French consulate in Jerusalem.

The AFP journalist saw Israeli police surround the two French gendarmes before pushing one of them to the ground. The gendarme identified himself and shouted "Don't touch me" several times, according to the journalist. Both gendarmes were then led into police cars. They were later released.

"The Eleona Domain... has not only belonged to France for more than 150 years, but France also ensures its security, maintains it," Barrot said.

Kyiv is scrambling to up the pressure on its allies for more support in its fight against Moscow following the victory of Donald Trump in this week's US presidential election. Trump has boasted he could end the conflict within hours and repeatedly criticised American aid to Kyiv.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has demanded Ukraine cede swathes more territory in its east and south as a precondition to peace talks, while Kyiv has repeatedly ruled out ceding any land to Moscow in exchange for peace. Ukraine and many in the West fear any settlement that rewards Putin would only embolden the Kremlin leader and lead to more aggression.

"There has been much talk about the need to yield to Putin, to back down, to make some concessions," Zelensky said, according to a copy of the address provided to AFP by the Ukrainian presidency. "It's unacceptable for Ukraine and suicidal for all Europe," he added.

He also blasted some European leaders, without specifying who, of "strongly" pushing Ukraine to compromise. "We need sufficient weapons, not support in talks. Hugs with Putin won't help. Some of you have been hugging him for 20 years, and things are only getting worse," Zelensky said.

The head of Russia's Security Council Sergei Shoigu said the West faced a choice between opening direct talks with Moscow or the continuing "destruction" of Ukraine's population. "Now, when the situation in the theatre of combat is not in Kyiv's favour, the West is faced with a choice," Shoigu said at a meeting with defence officials of other former Soviet states.

Zelensky has previously said that without US aid, Ukraine would lose the war.

Ukrainian media reported that Donetsk region authorities were preparing to announce mandatory evacuations from seven more villages in the region that the Kremlin claimed in 2022 was part of Russia. Moscow's overnight drone attack on Ukraine damaged buildings in the southern Black Sea city of Odesa where AFP journalists saw residents inspecting destroyed cars and residential buildings as dawn broke.

Deforestation fell by 30.6 percent in the year-to-year period beginning in August 2023, according to the National Institute for Space Research (INPE). During that time, 6,288 square kilometers (2,427 square miles) of forest were destroyed, which INPE Director Gilvan Oliveira said was "the lowest result in the last nine years."

Over the last century, the Amazon rainforest -- which covers nearly 40 percent of South America -- has lost about 20 percent of its area to deforestation, due to the spread of agriculture and cattle ranching, logging and mining, and urban sprawl. Scientists warn that continued deforestation will put the Amazon on track to reach a point where it will emit more carbon than it absorbs, accelerating climate change.

In addition to the Amazon, destruction of the Cerrado, the most species-rich savanna in the world, which is located in central Brazil, was reduced by 25.7 percent or 8,174 square kilometers, INPE reported.

Deforestation dramatically worsened under Lula's far-right predecessor Jair Bolsonaro, whose administration saw Amazon deforestation shoot up 75 percent compared to the average of the previous decade.

Ethiopia, an East African country with a population of around 120 million, is the continent's largest producer of honey. Nectar is particularly important in Ethiopian culture, with yellow honey used to produce tej, a popular local mead.

Goshu Welealeabzgi, a specialist for the Tigray authorities' Bureau of Agriculture and Natural Resources, says 40 to 60 percent of hives were destroyed by the war.

War in Tigray between federal government troops and Tigrayan rebels that raged from 2020 to 2022

Before the conflict, he estimates there were 500,000 colonies in Tigray, with 200,000 people directly dependent on beekeeping, in a region of around six million inhabitants.

Bees were also victim to the environmental damage caused by the conflict, especially as desperate locals were forced to cut down trees, particularly the acacias that covered the hills, to sell or use for firewood.

"The conflict harmed everybody," he (Beekeeper Amanuel Hiluf) adds. "The sound of bullets has stopped, but there is still the sound of misery."

The tech giants would be held responsible for enforcing the age limit and face hefty fines if regulators notice young users slipping through the cracks, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said. Australia is among the vanguard of nations trying to clean up social media, and the proposed age limit would be among the world's strictest measures aimed at children.

The new laws would be presented to state and territory leaders this week, before being introduced to parliament in late November. Once passed, the tech platforms would be given a one-year grace period to figure out how to implement and enforce the ban.

Once celebrated as a means of staying connected and informed, social media platforms have been tarnished by cyberbullying, the spread of illegal content, and election-meddling claims.

Communications Minister Michelle Rowland said social media companies were repeatedly "falling short" in their obligations. [...] Rowland said companies like Instagram, Facebook, TikTok and Elon Musk's X would face financial penalties if they flouted the laws. While Rowland did not detail how big these would be, she suggested fines of US$600,000 (Aus $1 million) were well below the mark for companies boasting yearly revenues in the tens of billions of dollars.

Analysts have expressed doubt it would be technically feasible to enforce a strict age ban. "We already know that present age verification methods are unreliable, too easy to circumvent, or risk user privacy," University of Melbourne researcher Toby Murray said earlier this year.

Australia has in recent years ramped up efforts to regulate the tech giants, with mixed success. A "combating misinformation" bill was introduced earlier this year, outlining sweeping powers to fine tech companies for breaching online safety obligations.