Beijing and several other provinces are being affected by thick, dense sandstorms that are severely affecting visibility. Deforestation has escalated already rampant air pollution in the Chinese capital.

NBA Hall of Famer Willis Reed has died at the age of 80, the New York Knicks have confirmed. Reed spent his entire 10-year career, which spanned from 1964 to 1974, with the Knicks. Reed began his playing career at Grambling State before being selected by New York in the second round of the 1964 draft.

Taha Siddiqui is an award-winning former FRANCE 24 journalist who fled Pakistan after escaping a kidnapping attempt. He's now exiled in France and has since discovered he's on a kill list in Pakistan and can never return to his home country.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Kyiv have reached a staff-level agreement for a $15.6 billion loan which should be finalised in the coming weeks.

Desalination is highly energy intensive and environmentally toxic. But the unconventional freshwater resource is now vital for human survival in dry regions.

The French papers look ahead to Emmanuel Macron's live TV interview amid ongoing nationwide anger over pension reforms. In the UK, former PM Boris Johnson is to defend his actions over the Partygate scandal in front of a parliamentary committee that could decide his political future.