SCIENCE

Terrified residents caught in blazing neighbourhoods, influencers ignoring the ban on drones and the frightening unpredictability of the wildfires are just some of what journalists covering the fires ravaging Los Angeles for AFP have had to manage.

US President Joe Biden urged Americans Wednesday to stand guard against a "dangerous" oligarchy forming under Donald Trump as he delivered a dark farewell address before stepping down next week.

When the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles went up in smoke, Alexander Swedelson lost his apartment, but also a bit of his identity: the flames ravaged the businesses he loved, the trails he ran, and even the place he fished.

CO2 emissions from road transport could peak worldwide this year thanks to rapid growth in electric vehicles and stricter new regulations, a German think tank said Tuesday.

Search teams looking for people killed in devastating Los Angeles blazes moved from house to house Monday, as firefighters girded for hurricane-force winds that could spark further flare-ups.

In the shadow of Seoul's centuries-old Gwanghwamun Gate, young businesswoman Shin Ji-young wears a rainbow headband and waves a flag criticising South Korea's impeached president alongside thousands of protesters.

US officials warned "dangerous and strong" winds were set to push deadly wildfires further through Los Angeles residential areas Sunday as firefighters struggled to make progress against the flames.

The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party set out a radical programme on Saturday at a party congress ahead of next month's snap general election as thousands of protesters took to the streets to voice their opposition to the party.

Aneesa Haroon drops off her tattered school bag at her rural home in Pakistan and hurriedly grabs lunch before joining her father in the fields to pick vegetables.

The last two years exceeded on average a critical warming limit for the first time as global temperatures soar "beyond what modern humans have ever experienced", Europe's climate monitor said Friday.

When nature calls, Masana Izawa has followed the same routine for more than 50 years: heading out to the woods in Japan, dropping his pants and doing as bears do.

Denmark's prime minister said Thursday she had reached out to US President-elect Donald Trump following his remarks about taking control of Greenland, which Denmark said were being taken seriously.

Shell-shocked Los Angeles residents on Thursday surveyed the devastation from fast-moving fires that have claimed at least five lives, as officials warned the largest blazes remained totally uncontained.

US greenhouse gas emissions barely decreased in 2024, leaving the world's largest economy off track to achieve its climate goals, according to an analysis released Thursday, as the incoming Trump administration looks set to double down on fossil fuels.

Giovana Serrao was not home when a fire lit in a neighboring agricultural field got out of control and destroyed her acai palms on the island of Marajo in the Brazilian Amazon.

Rampaging wildfires around Los Angeles have killed at least two people, officials said Wednesday as terrifying blazes leveled whole streets, torching cars and houses in minutes.

Thousands of rescuers were searching for survivors in freezing conditions Wednesday after a devastating earthquake in China's remote Tibet region killed at least 126 people.

In the frigid night of China's Qinling mountains, hunters with huge social media followings scour the landscape in pursuit of wild boars menacing local farmers' livelihoods.

In the Brazilian Amazon, workers use metal tubes to sow seedlings in rapid succession, as part of an effort to reforest the jungle with millions of trees.

A fast-moving wildfire in a Los Angeles suburb burned buildings and sparked panic, with thousands ordered to evacuate Tuesday as "life threatening" winds whipped the region.

Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced his resignation Monday, saying he will leave office as soon as his party chooses a new leader as slumping polls and internal division took their toll.

With bunches of lettuce and bucketloads of nuts, London Zoo kicked off its annual animal count Friday, coaxing everything from goats to gorillas out of their enclosures for the celebrated stocktake.

US president Jimmy Carter, who died on Monday, left an enduring legacy when he brokered historic peace between Egypt and Israel -- tepid and shaky, but unbroken even by the nearly 15-month long Gaza war.

Crowds will marvel at fireworks and toast champagne to greet 2025 on Tuesday, waving goodbye to a year that brought Olympic glory, a dramatic Donald Trump return, and turmoil in the Middle East and Ukraine.

NASA's pioneering Parker Solar Probe is poised to make its closest-ever approach of the Sun on Christmas Eve, a record-setting 3.8 million miles (6.2 million kilometers) from the surface.

A French court on Friday was expected to deliver a verdict against eight people charged in connection with the jihadist beheading of schoolteacher Samuel Paty in 2020, a murder that horrified France.

Yemen's Iran-backed Huthi rebels said Israeli air strikes on Thursday killed nine people, after the group fired a missile toward Israel, badly damaging a school.

Japan's government voiced dismay on Wednesday over the release of anti-whaling activist Paul Watson after Danish authorities refused Tokyo's extradition request.

Authorities announced a nighttime curfew Tuesday to curb looting after a devastating cyclone hit the French overseas territory of Mayotte, with the country's prime minister warning the death toll could rise.