6.2 billion: Over the past decade, China has lent nearly $6.2 billion to Venezuela, representing around 40 percent of its total financing in Latin America. Beijing is still waiting for about $2 billion of that to be paid back.

16 million: In war-ravaged Yemen, some 16 million people, more than half the population, lack access to drinking water and sanitation.

17,200: This week, France's parliament passed new measures to crack down on Yellow Vest protests that show no sign of losing steam heading into their 12th week. One controversial provision allows fines of up to $17,200 (€15,000) for demonstrators who cover their face with a "helmet, mask, or scarf."

45: Just 45 percent of Russians say they are proud of their government's annexation of Crimea in 2014.

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Iran war threatens water access in Middle East
Natalie Johnson, Eileen Zhang

As missiles fly and oil prices soar, the Iran war is exposing another major resource vulnerability in the Middle East: water. Fresh water has been a scarce commodity in a region defined by a dry climate and low rainfall, but attacks on the region’s desalination plants, which convert seawater into drinking water, threaten to open a new front.