Rise in Afghans returning home threatens overstretched resources, U.N. says
Pakistani government has stepped up pressure to send people back amid growing local animosity towards Afghan refugees
Malawi hit by armyworm outbreak, threatens maize crop
Malawi's outbreak follows one in neighbouring Zambia, where the military has been deployed to battle the bugs, and Zimbabwe
China detains 720, imposes $21.8 mln of fines in pollution crackdown - media
China is in the third year of a "war on pollution" aimed at containing the damage done to its air, soil and water after decades of rapid economic growth
Aid watchdog says UK cash transfer schemes effective in tackling poverty
"Cash transfers have the potential to be one of the best, fastest and safest ways to help people raise themselves out of poverty by investing in their own, and their family's future"
Trump, rising populism threaten to slow climate action, analyst says
Dismantling of environmental rules likely to be met by lawsuits, expert says
Photo of dead Syrian boy boosts fundraising 100-fold - study
Shots of Syrian boy Aylan Kurdi circulated worldwide and galvanised several governments into policy changes
Homeless activists defy eviction order in Ireland
Group aimed to turn a commercial building on one of Dublin's best-known streets into long-term accommodation for the homeless
Mali eradicates Guinea worm in global milestone against parasitic disease
Disease can cause worms up to a metre long to grow before emerging through the skin
Aid agencies sound alarm over freezing Balkans weather as migrant deaths reported
"The snowstorms are still going on and the situation is getting increasingly desperate as thousands are exposed to freezing conditions"