Peeling paint, rundown roundabouts and shuttered post offices: in recent years, local public services across the United Kingdom have been in steady decline. But in some communities, volunteers have decided to step in – filling the gaps where the state has fallen short. Our France 2 colleagues report from Yorkshire, with FRANCE 24's Lauren Bain.

Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday blessed the Sagrada Familia's soaring central Jesus Christ tower in Barcelona and celebrated Mass inside what is now the world's tallest church. The pope's visit during a week-long trip to Spain coincided with the 100th anniversary of architect Antoni Gaudi's death.

Pope Leo XIV on Tuesday urged greater attention to mental health after hearing emotional testimonies from young people at a prayer vigil in Barcelona, including a woman who described surviving a suicide attempt. He called on public health systems to address the "invisible and widespread malaise" of depression and warned that mental well-being is increasingly under threat.

Protesters on Tuesday set vehicles on fire and blocked several central roads in the Northern Ireland city of Belfast after police charged a Sudanese national suspected of violently stabbing another man in the street the night before. The attack was caught on video and prompted far-right figures to call for anti-migrant protests across the United Kingdom.

French singer and actor Patrick Bruel will be held in police custody until Wednesday as investigators questioned him over allegations of sexual assault and rape involving at least a dozen women, prosecutors said, adding that two new rape complaints had recently been filed.

Seven Georgian nationals are due in court in Paris on Tuesday for the theft of rare works by Russian literary giants including Alexander Pushkin from prestigious French libraries, in a case prosecutors say formed part of a Europe-wide organised theft operation.

Russian strikes killed four people and wounded 10 others in Ukraine’s northeastern Kharkiv region, according to local officials. The attack hit the city of Chuguiv, causing fires, damaging residential buildings and vehicles, and adding to a surge in civilian casualties amid intensified fighting in recent months.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky said he held a positive conversation with US envoys Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner on Monday, signalling renewed efforts to advance diplomacy over the war with Russia. The call came as European leaders backed a proposed meeting between Zelensky and Vladimir Putin to seek a ceasefire.

Under the leadership of Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, Armenia is moving to distance itself from Russia and forge closer ties with the European Union. Despite pro-Russian disinformation campaigns targeting the government, the pro-European candidate won the parliamentary elections held on June 7.

Pope Leo XIV told Spanish bishops on Monday to provide reparations and adopt a "culture of care" ahead of an expected meeting with survivors of clergy sexual abuse during his weeklong visit to the country. The Spanish hierarchy had largely dismissed the scale of abuse in their church for decades until a newspaper began documenting a legacy of abuse and cover-up.

A drone that entered NATO member Latvia's airspace from Russia on Monday was shot down by a French military fighter jet, as fragments of another drone were found in a field in Moldova after it entered from Ukraine earlier the same day. Military drones straying into the airspace of ​Russia's neighbours have stoked concerns that the war in Ukraine is spilling over NATO's borders.

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's ruling party has won parliamentary elections, according to preliminary results on Monday, setting the stage for a renewed mandate to pursue closer ties with the West after threats from Moscow.

Kosovo Prime Minister Albin Kurti's party emerged as the largest force in Sunday's snap election but failed to secure enough support to govern alone, setting the stage for difficult coalition negotiations. The vote, marked by low turnout and voter frustration, is unlikely to end the political deadlock that has gripped the country.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky won support from the leaders of Britain, France and Germany on Sunday for direct ceasefire talks with Russia, as diplomatic efforts to end the war remain stalled. The appeal came as Russian strikes reportedly damaged a nuclear fuel storage facility near the Chernobyl exclusion zone.

The world’s nuclear-armed states are increasingly moving warheads from storage onto operational delivery systems, raising the risk of conflict despite a gradual decline in overall stockpiles, researchers warned on Monday. SIPRI said geopolitical rivalry and a new arms build-up could reverse decades of reductions in nuclear arsenals.

More than 1.2 million people filled the streets of Madrid on Sunday to attend a mass by Pope Leo XIV at which he called for a renewal of the Catholic faith, saying Spaniards should not look at religion as "a museum of the past to be visited, but a school of faith from which to draw even today". 

Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan’s party took an early lead in parliamentary elections on Monday that could strengthen his push towards closer ties with the West, amid tensions with Moscow and accusations of Russian interference.

US Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth on Saturday marked the 82nd anniversary of the World War II D-Day landings in France with a speech that bemoaned the "invasion" of "boats and men" on Europe's beaches. In his address at a US military cemetery in Normandy, Hegseth also called on allies to contribute more to their defence. 

Protesters on Saturday gathered at the Vjosa-Narta lagoon, a nature reserve on the Albanian coast, to denounce a plan by US President Donald Trump's son-in-law, Jared Kushner, to build a ​luxury resort in an ‌environmentally sensitive area. Albanian Prime Minister Edi Rama has insisted that "top" experts will be involved in the project, which has yet to be approved.

Ukraine on Saturday fired hundreds of drones targeting the St. Petersburg region in the second such attack on Russia’s second-largest city in less than a week. The attack came on the final day of the St. Petersburg International Economic Forum, President Vladimir Putin’s annual investment forum known as “Russia’s Davos”.