‘Like heaven’: Saudis enjoy sun, sea with the opposite sex

In the northern Senegalese city of Saint-Louis, excavators are ripping up the beach to lay giant blocks of basalt, to keep the sea at bay. Dire warnings about the risk of rising sea levels due to climate change are already a grim reality in Saint-Louis, where seafront residents in the historic fishing quarter are abandoning their homes to the encroaching Atlantic Ocean.

Somalia comes out on top in its long-running sea border row with Kenya. The two nations disagree over where the line should be drawn, in a part of the Indian Ocean believed to be rich in oil and gas. The UN's top court has awarded Somalia control of the disputed area. Also, the first paragliding wheelchair is now in use in Cape Town. Our reporters take you along for the ride.

The global population of California Sea Lions has declined dramatically in recent years, mainly due to an increase in water temperatures, but at one sanctuary in northwestern Mexico, the species is bucking the trend.

In northern Senegal, a sea barrier is being thrown up in the hopes of holding back coastal erosion. Also, we meet Richard Odjrado, an emerging star of the African tech world whose company is priming Benin's rise as an entrepreneurial hub. And adventure sports in South Africa are becoming more inclusive as the country's first paragliding wheelchair goes into use.

While tourists have long been able to mingle freely unofficially at parties in and around Jeddah, known as Saudi Arabia's most open-minded city, Saudis were confined to single-sex beaches. But now, four years into a reform drive aimed at improving the country's image and creating new opportunities for its oil-reliant economy, they are enjoying more freedoms.

Through a series of compelling characters, our guest's book vividly evokes the teeming, sweltering city of Bangkok and captures the lush history of Thailand. Pitchaya Sudbanthad, author of "Bangkok Wakes to Rain", joined us on Perspective to discuss his vision for the book, how it sounds the alarm over climate change and what that could mean for Bangkok.

Two Philippine boats carrying food supplies for soldiers to the disputed Second Thomas shoal were blocked by the Chinese coast guard, who allegedly fired water cannons on them. No injuries were reported in the incident.

July 12 marks the fifth anniversary of a landmark ruling by the independent Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague that rejected China's claims to contested islands in the South China Sea. Despite the 2016 ruling, Beijing has deployed forces to prevent fishers from the Philippines from accessing the waters.

July 12 marks the fifth anniversary of a landmark ruling by the independent Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague that rejected China's claims to contested islands in the South China Sea. Despite the 2016 ruling, Beijing has deployed forces to prevent fishers from the Philippines from accessing the waters.

Scientists hope to understand about solar winds and the sun's magnetic field that holds the galaxy together. The Parker Solar Probe set off from earth in 2018 before it "touched" the sun earlier this year.

Java's northern coast is slowly subsiding into the sea — mainly because of groundwater exploitation. Without a wholesale change in the provision of water, the city of Pekalongan could be submerged by ocean waves by 2030.

French adventurer Jean-Jacques Savin, who set off in a rowboat from Portugal on January 1 to cross the Atlantic solo, has vanished at sea with his boat found overturned and empty near the Azores archipelago, Portugal's navy said. The 75-year-old Savin's support team had said in a Facebook post on Saturday that his body had been found inside the cabin of his sleek, purpose-built boat Audacious, but late on Sunday issued another statement signed by his daughter Manon that the body had not been recovered.