Refugees in Germany: The Jafaars, Angela Merkel and fleeing Syria

Since the start of the war in Ukraine, over 7 million people have fled the country. Multiple reports have outlined the specific difficulties that African refugees faced as they attempted to cross the Polish border and enter the European Union. Georgina Robertson and Sophie Samaille take a look at a Facebook post falsely claiming that refugees from Africa were shot at by Polish police.

Europe continues to struggle with a heat wave, though some have seen a respite from record high temperatures for the time of year. One of several wildfires has raged out of control on Greece's second-largest island.

Hackers breached the system used Germany's ruling Green Party and gained access to accounts previously used by Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and Economy Minister Robert Habeck, party officials said.

The far-right AfD party will stick with Tino Chrupalla and Alice Weidel as party leaders, after Chrupalla fended off a challenge from a slightly more moderate candidate and then endorsed Weidel.

In the first case of its kind, German prosecutors have seized several apartments belonging to a Russian lawmaker. So far other sanctioned assets have simply been frozen.

In a speech ahead of key summits, the German chancellor has told parliament that "we will defend every square meter of NATO territory." He also described a partnership with Russia under Vladimir Putin as "unimaginable."

The NGO Doctors without Borders is calling for humanitarian corridors to be created for asylum seekers stuck in Libya, who often face torture and abuse in Libyan detention centres. Now safely in Niger, two former detainees spoke to our correspondents about their harrowing ordeal. They were able to leave Libya thanks to the Emergency Transfer Mechanism, a programme set up by the UNHCR to evacuate migrants to Niger. Nearly 4,000 people have been evacuated from Libya through this mechanism since 2018.

Without Russian natural gas, Germany will be facing an energy crisis. Coal, nuclear, fracking or renewable energy — what are the most realistic and climate-friendly options?

Germany has taken a step towards rationing natural gas by activating the second of three stages in an emergency plan. Officials say that since Russia reduced supplies, gas is now a "scarce commodity". Also in the show: the UK is hit by a second day of rail strikes over job security, pay and the rising cost of living, and high inflation in France prompts a boom in demand for camping holidays.

German energy official Klaus Müller has said the country's gas situation is stable but predicted higher prices for consumers. He also said that Germany can last another 2 1/2 months without Russian gas.

The government is following through on its pledge to decriminalize abortion. Officials plan to abolish a law that subjects doctors who publish information on abortion procedures to prosecution.

Two localities in the German state of Brandenburg had to be evacuated as a large forest fire rages on the border with neighboring Saxony. Efforts to dampen the flames werre hampered because of old munitions in the area.