Some 600 dignitaries attended the flame-lighting ceremony headed by Greek President Katerina Sakellaropoulou and International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Thomas Bach.

The ceremony was held at the ruins of the 2,600-year-old Temple of Hera, and sets off the Olympic torch relay that marks the countdown for each Games.

Actresses in the role of ancient priestesses coaxed the flame into life with the help of a parabolic polished mirror in Olympia, south-western Greece, where the Games were born in 776 BC.

American mezzo soprano Joyce DiDonato delivered the Olympic anthem.

Sacred tradition

The torch harks back to the ancient Olympics, when a sacred flame burned throughout the Games. The tradition was revived in 1936 for the Berlin Games.

The first relay runner was Greece’s 2020 Olympics rowing champion Stefanos Douskos.

The Hellenic Olympic Committee (HOC) confirmed Monday that retired French swimmer Laure Manaudou, who won her first gold medal at the 2004 Athens Olympics, will follow Douskos as France’s first torchbearer in Olympia.

European Commission vice president Margaritis Schinas will follow as the third torchbearer, the HOC said.

For the first time since the Covid pandemic imposed toned-down events for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and the 2022 Beijing Winter Games, spectators will be able to attend the torch relay events.

During the 11-day relay on Greek soil, some 600 torchbearers will carry the flame over a distance of 5,000 kilometres through 41 municipalities.

• A dozen people excluded from Paris Olympic torch relay for drugs, Islamism

Carried by ship

The Olympic flame will be handed over to Paris 2024 organisers in a ceremony at the all-marble Panathenaic Stadium in Athens, site of the first modern Olympic Games of 1896, on 26 April.

Nana Mouskouri, the 89-year-old Greek singer with a worldwide following, has been invited to perform at the ceremony.

On 27 April, the flame will begin its journey to France on board the 19th-century three-masted barque Belem, which was launched just weeks after the Athens 1896 Games.

A French historical monument, the Belem carried out trade journeys to Brazil, Guyana and the West Indies for nearly two decades.

France’s last surviving three-mast steel-hulled boat, it is expected to arrive in Marseille on 8 May.

• Hundred-year-old French cycling champion to take part in Olympic torch relay

Ten thousand torchbearers will then carry the flame across 64 French territories.

It will travel through 400 towns and dozens of tourist attractions during its 12,000-kilometre journey through mainland France and overseas French territories in the Caribbean, Indian Ocean and Pacific.

In the French capital, the Olympic flame will pass by the site of the 2015 Islamist attack on the Bataclan concert hall as well as the Shoah Memorial, Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo said on Tuesday from the Olympia ceremony.

“This torch is a message of peace, a message of friendship between peoples, which is all the stronger at a time when the world is in such bad shape,” Hidalgo told France 2 TV.

On 26 July, the flame will form the centrepiece of the Paris Olympics opening ceremony on the river Seine – the first time it has not been held inside the Games’ main stadium.

(with AFP)

Damien Guerot has been dubbed “bollard man” and a “hero” of Saturday’s attack that killed six people and wounded a dozen more.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese singled Guerot out for praise, thanking him for his “extraordinary bravery” in confronting Joel Cauchi on an escalator and preventing the 40-year-old from reaching more victims.

“I say this to Damien Guerot, who is dealing with his visa applications, that you are welcome here. You are welcome to stay for as long as you like,” Albanese said.

“This is someone who we would welcome becoming an Australian citizen, although that would of course be a loss for France. We thank him for his extraordinary bravery.”

“It says a lot about the nature of humanity at a time when we are facing difficult issues, that someone who is not a citizen of this country stood bravely at the top of those escalators and stopped this perpetrator from getting onto another floor and potentially inflicting further carnage on citizens,” Albanese said.

French President Emmanuel Macron also took to social media to congratulate two French nationals who intervened. Guerot was at the mall with compatriot Silas Despreaux, who repotredly also confronted Cauchi with a bollard. 

“Two of our compatriots behaved like true heroes. A source of great pride and gratitude,” Macron wrote on X, addressing his “condolences” to the “Australians struck by the attack”.

Australians have been shocked by the Saturday attack that took place in a busy shopping mall in the city’s eastern suburbs.

Five women and one Pakistani security guard were killed during the rampage, which has not been blamed on terrorism.

Police are investigating whether Cauchi, who had a history of mental illness, targeted women specifically.

But Australians and Albanese took some succour from strangers aiding each other during the attack and from the bravery of policewoman Amy Scott, who tracked Cauchi down and shot him dead.

“I think that on Saturday we saw some of the best of human character at the same time as we saw such devastating tragedy,” Albanese said.

Second knife attack

Meanwhile, locals in a different suburb, west of Sydney, are reeling after a separate knife attack.

Two people were stabbed when a 16-year-old suspect rushed the dais at an Assyrian church in Wakeley late Monday, injuring a bishop who was giving a sermon.

The teen was immediately subdued by outraged congregants and taken into police custody.

Australian police on Tuesday said it was a religiously motivated “terrorist” act, as they urged calm from the angered local community.

The alleged perpetrator was “known to police” but was not on any terror watchlists, senior officers said.

(with AFP)

“This support will be able to respond to the most urgent needs” for Sudan’s population ranging from a food crisis to education, Macron said late Monday, adding that European Union countries had pledged nearly half the humanitarian aid total.

“It is a conflict imposed on the people that only produces grief and suffering, provoking one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world,” Macron also said.

“There is a terrible cynicism behind this war,” he added, accusing regional powers of seeking to exploit the situation for their own interests.

With the conference “our duty was to show that we are not forgetting what is going on in Sudan and there are no double standards” as the world focuses on other crises.

Macron, who in May 2021 had hosted a conference in Paris on Sudan’s democratic transition, paid tribute to the 2018 uprising against authoritarian rule that many hoped would usher in a new future for the country.

“No one forgot the revolution of 2018 which raised up so much hope. It was ruined by cynicism… We will get there,” he said.

Act together now

The EU has pledged €350 million, while France has added €110 million, three sources said.

Germany already pledged €244 million earlier on Monday.

The United States said it will invest a total of $147 million (€138 million).

• Sudan conference opens in Paris to try and fix ‘forgotten’ crisis

“We can manage together to avoid a terrible famine catastrophe, but only if we get active together now,” German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said, adding that, in the worst-case scenario, one million people could die of hunger this year.

The internal conflict has killed over 14,000 people and displaced over 10 million people, according to the UN.

Humanitarian catastrophe

Efforts to help millions of people driven to the verge of famine by the war have been held up by continued fighting, restrictions imposed by the warring sides for a year, and demands on donors from other global disasters.

• Sudan on its knees after one year of brutal civil war
• France pledges billion euro loan to Sudan’s transitional government

Yet, this conflict in Sudan is threatening to expand, with fighting heating up in and around al-Fashir, a besieged aid hub and the last city in the western Darfur region. Hundreds of thousands of displaced people have sought refuge in the area.

Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch are among the many NGOs that have been raising alarm.

“It is obvious that the series of crises – I am thinking of Gaza and Ukraine – have pushed the Sudanese crisis into the background,” French Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné said at the Paris conference.

The United Nations is seeking $2.7 billion (€2.5 billion) this year for aid inside Sudan, where 25 million people need assistance. An appeal that was just 6 percent funded before the Paris meeting.

It is seeking a further $1.4 billion for assistance in neighbouring countries that have housed hundreds of thousands of refugees.

The international aid effort also faces obstacles in gaining access to the country due to problems obtaining visas and permits from the army and allied government authorities, and the risk of looting in RSF-controlled areas.

The UN chief added at the end of the conference that “crimes against humanity” may have been committed in the acts of war.

 (with newswires) 

French jets at an air force base in Jordan intercepted Iranian drones and missiles over Jordan’s air space, “at Jordan’s request”, Macron said in an interview with BFM TV on Monday.

Israel “managed to stop almost all of these missiles and drones. Only seven drones landed,” Macron said, calling the operation a “victory for Israel.”

He called Iran’s attack, sending more than 300 drones, cruise and ballistic missiles towards Israel, a “disproportionate response” to a strike on the Iranian consulate in Damascus, Syria, earlier this month, which Tehran blamed on Israel.

“Instead of targeting Israeli interests outside Israel, they went after Israel on its soil, and attacked from their own soil, which is a first,” he said, calling it a “deep rupture”. 

Edge of a cliff

However, he said France does not want to see Israel retaliate, and “will do everything to avoid a conflagration” in the region.

Announcing plans to speak with Israeli Prime Minister Bejamin Netanyahu later Monday, Macron said Israel “should not respond by escalating, but rather by isolating Iran, convincing countries in the region that Iran is a danger, increasing sanctions, reinforcing pressure on nuclear activities, and then finding a path to peace in the region”.

“We need to be by Israel’s side to ensure its protection to the maximum, but also to call for a limit to avoid an escalation,” Macron said.

Iran claimed the attack “achieved all its objectives”.

The United States, which Macron tasked with “containing” Iran, has already warned Israel that it would not take part in any retaliatory action.

The European Union’s foreign policy chief joined calls for restraint.

“We’re on the edge of the cliff and we have to move away from it,” Josep Borrell, the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, told the Spanish Onda Cero radio station. “We have to step on the brakes and reverse gear.”

(with newswires)

“We will do everything to have an Olympic truce, we will work on it,” Macron said in an interview with BFM television on Monday, just over 100 days before the Games’ opening ceremony on 26 July.

The idea of a an Olympic truce dates back to ancient Greece, when warring rulers agreed to lay down arms – ékécheiria – during the games so that athletes and spectators could travel safely to and from the host country.

“The Games are also a time for diplomacy, for peace,” said Macron.

• International sports stars join forces in Paris to promote peace

“We will work on an Olympic truce. It is something on which I will actually try to engage many of our partners,” he said, referencing Israel’s war in the Gaza strip, the war in Ukraine and the ongoing conflict in Sudan.

Opening ceremony ‘plan B’

Macron, who was being interviewed from the Grand Palais exhibition hall, which has just reopened after three years of construction to get it ready to host the fencing and taekwondo competitions, also announced that France has alternatives to the opening ceremony, planned to be held on the Seine river, if there are security concerns.

The planned ceremony will have some 160 barges set off on a six-kilometre route on the river through the heart of the capital, in front of thousands of spectators, the first opening ceremony to be held outside a stadium setting.

• France seeks help from allies to bolster security during Paris Olympics

Macron said security forces will be mobilised at an exceptional level to ensure security, but he said that France is not naïve.

“If we think there are security risks we’ll have plan Bs, and even plan Cs,” he said.

In the face of security concerns, organisers could decide to shorten the itinerary of route, and just hold the ceremony around the Eiffel Tower, or even change the venue, and hold the ceremony indoors, in the Stade de France stadium.

Swimming in the Seine

Regardless of what happens on the Seine with the opening ceremony, Macron said he would still swim in the river, which he promised would be clean enough for the Olympics.

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo has also promised to swim in the Seine, despite sewer problems that have cancelled or delayed pre-Olympic events.

(with newswires)

“We are meeting deadlines and budget,” Philippe Jost, who heads the public body overseeing the project, told a French Senate committee last week.

Jost praised the work of the 250 companies and artisan groups involved in the reconstruction, which began in spring 2022 after rubble had been cleared and the foundations secured.

Signs the that project is nearing completion are clear. In February, some of the scaffolding was removed to unveil the cathedral’s new spire, adorned with a golden rooster and a cross.

The rooster, reimagined as a dramatic phoenix with licking, flamed feathers, symbolises resilience amid destruction after the devastating fire, officials said.

An anti-fire misting system is also being added under the cathedral’s roof.

The installation of the lead roof itself, which melted during the fire, is ongoing. The outer layer will be laid on a solid oak frame, rebuilt with dowelled wood and no metal bolts using techniques dating back hundreds of years.

Behind the remaining scaffolding, hundreds of workers are still racing against the clock to restore the rest of the cathedral in time for it to reopen its doors to the public.

• Notre-Dame fire revealed hidden marvels of Gothic building technique

Multiple delays

Rebuilding was delayed by decontamination efforts, after more than 300 tonnes of lead from the roof melted in the fire.

Authorities then had to halt work several times over the first winter due to high winds, before France went into Covid lockdown in early 2020.

Another setback came when the French army general in charge of the restoration, Jean-Louis Georgelin, died suddenly in August 2023 during a mountain hike. Jost replaced him last year.

• France pays tribute to General Georgelin, who led reconstruction of Notre-Dame

The budget for the reconstruction is expected to stay below the €550 million allocated, leaving another €150 million unspent.

The surplus will go towards “urgent” restoration of the cathedral’s stone exterior to be carried out from 2025, Jost said.

Unforgettable fire

The cathedral was built over two centuries between 1163 and 1345.

It was first restored in the 19th century under the planning of French architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, who also helped design the internal structure of the Statue of Liberty.

The fire broke out on the evening of 15 April 2019, beginning in the roof space and raging for around three hours.

More than 400 firefighters battled to save the monument. While they couldn’t save the spire from collapsing, the cathedral’s two towers remained standing.

• Notre-Dame fire: ‘I never expected to see something like this’

Major religious and artistic treasures kept inside the cathedral were carried to safety as the fire began.

Authorities have not found any evidence to suggest that the blaze was anything other than an accident.

An initial investigation conducted in the months after the fire concluded it may have been caused by an electrical malfunction. 

“We are firmly convinced that we will turn the score around,” said the 53-year-old Spaniard ahead of the second leg in Barcelona.

“The first match was hard fought by both teams but the result did not reflect what we deserved,” added Enrique who led Barcelona to their last Champions League crown in 2015.

During the first leg on 10 April at the Parc des Princes, PSG scored twice early in the second-half to lead 2-1.

Enrique’s men appeared to be stretching Barcelona down the flanks and set to extend their advantage.

But the Ligue 1 pacesetters were undone by lackadaisical defending to allow Raphinha’s equaliser and Andreas Christiansen’s winner in the 77th minute.

“The 3-2 scoreline means we have to go for the game,” added Enrique.

Return

Barcelona boss Xavi Hernandez – who won the Champions League trophy four times during his playing days at Barcelona – said in the immediate aftermath of the first leg that the tie was far from concluded.

On the eve of the return at the Estadio Olimpico Lluis Companys, Xavi said his players would seek another victory.

“We’re not a team that will sit on our lead. We want to take the ball off PSG and win the game.

“It’s the Champions League. It’s Paris Saint-Germain and a game in which no one will be holding back. I hope we will be at our best because they will test us to the limit.”

Barcelona will be without Christensen and Sergi Roberto who are both suspended for the match.

PSG welcome the return of defender Achraf Hakimi on the right. The 25-year-old Morocco international was suspended for the first leg and his ability to combine incisively with star striker Kylian Mbappé robbed the Parisians of a powerful offensive weapon.

Hunt

“We’ve come to Barcelona to bring the victory back to Paris,” Hakimi said. “We’ve  coming with a lot of desire, the desire to change what happened in the first leg.

“We’ve been talking to each other and we’ve been motivating each other. We want to stick together and win.”

Should the aggregate score remain level after extra-time, a penalty shoot-out will determine who plays Borussia Dortmund or Atletico Madrid in the semi-final.

“We have this slender lead but we have to go out as if we didn’t have that advantage,” said Pedri who set up Raphinia’s equaliser shortly after entering the fray during the second-half in Paris.

PSG will be the fresher of the two squads. Three days after the first leg in Paris, Barcelona played Cadiz in La Liga while PSG – along with Lille and Marseille – were given the weekend off by Ligue 1 organisers in order to prepare for their ties in the European competitions.

“The days after the game were difficult for us,” said Enrique. “But the good thing about this competition is that there is another game against the same opponent and now we have the idea of what we have to do.

“We are in a very good moment and we are ready.”

In a telegram sent to police prefects, Darmanin asked for “static and visible” security forces to be stationed in front of synagogues and the most “sensitive and emblematic buildings”, to be reinforced by the military’s Sentinelle mission.

The decision was made in the context of a “very high level of terrorist threat”, wrote Darmanin, and the presence of a “high level of anti-Semitic acts” as well as “international tensions”, including Iran’s attack on Israel on Saturday night.

As of Monday, “static, systematic guards” will be posted in front of Jewish schools at opening and closing times, and police will regularly patrol kosher stores and other “specialised businesses”.

A week ahead of the start of Passover, on 22 April, Darmanin asked for particular vigilance around locations that traditionally bring in crowds for the Jewish holiday.

(with AFP)

Tsitsipas began the tournament as world number 12 but produced sustained sequences of the dazzling tennis that have taken him as high as number three and to the French Open and Australian Open finals.

He claimed one of the most prestigious crowns on the men’s tour on Sunday with a 6-1, 6-4 victory over Casper Ruud.

The 25-year-old Greek swept through the opening set in 36 minutes on the back of punishing forehands.

He stayed strong towards the end of the second set as his Norwegian opponent increased his intensity in an effort to level the encounter.

The triumph over the two-time French Open finalist moved Tsitsipas up five places in the ATP listings to seventh – his highest ranking since February. Ruud also rose four slots to sixth following his surge to the final.

“It’s been very difficult,” said Tsitsipas who has not won a tournament since beating Alex de Minaur in the final at Los Lobos in Mexico in August 2023.

Return

“So, to be back on the podiums and winning tournaments, it just feels amazing. I can’t thank enough my family, my friends for making this moment possible.”

During his run, Tsitsipas beat world number five Alex Zverev in the last eight and the world number two Jannik Sinner in the semi-final.

“Winning a third title is even more special than the first or the second time,” Tsitsipas added. “This is unbelievable for me.”

His victory in 96 minutes also allowed him to join Ilie Nastase, Bjorn Borg, Thomas Muster and Rafael Nadal as the only players to have won three or more titles in Monte Carlo since the tournament was inaugurated in 1968.

“I had to go out onto the court and show my tennis as I promised every single one of my team that I would make the most out of the occasion,” Tsitsipas added.

“I am glad I could do that. I showed some ruthless tennis. From the beginning to the end my play was cohesive and I was able to blend in a lot of different shots.”

The war between Sudan’s army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) has sparked widespread hunger in the country after destroying infrastructure and markets and displacing more than eight million people.

The InterAgency Working Group (IAWG), a consortium of both local and international humanitarian organisations, is alerting the international community to the unfolding crisis as France hosts an international summit in Paris.

• France to host humanitarian conference for Sudan

The United States  has already promised to add more than a hundred million dollars in additional funding to spur an international response at the donor conference, the US Special Envoy to the North African country Tom Perriello said on Wednesday.

Sudan’s vast western region of Darfur was still struggling with the aftermath of the conflict which started in 2003 and only finished with a peace agreement in August 2020. This new war broke out in April 2023.

The first salvos were exchanged on 15 April 2023 between Abdel Fattah al-Burhan’s army and Mohammed Hamdan Daglo’s (RSF).

Diplomats and aid workers immediately left Sudan.

More than 10 million children in Sudan have been caught in an active warzone and less than five kilometres away from gunfire and shelling during the past year of war, according to the NGO Save the Children.

Looting, fighting, air strikes between warring factions have isolated every region of the African country located in the northeast of the continent and which is more than three times the size of France.

Refugees and displaced people

The conflict has uprooted eight million people in Sudan, displacing 6.7 million inside the country, and 1.8 million in neighbouring countries.

Some 3.4 million refugees are now in urgent need of humanitarian help in Chad alone following the arrival of large numbers of Sudanese fleeing war.

• Chad, WFP warn of ‘catastrophic’ food insecurity amid influx of Sudan refugees

In all, more than 400,000 Sudanese refugees had already fled to Chad between 2003 and 2020, according to the UN.

“Provinces in the east of Chad are among the country’s most vulnerable zones with poor access to basic services, and the arrival of refugees drastically exacerbates the need,” French NGO Action Contre La Faim (ACF, or Action Against Hunger), said in a statement in April.

“It is urgent for donors to guarantee sustainable financing of the humanitarian response,” said ACF’s Chad director Henri-Noel Tatangang.

Only 4.5 percent of requirements are currently covered, he added.

Chad‘s transitional president Mahamat Idriss Deby Itno declared a “state of food and nutritional emergency” throughout the country in February.

Hundreds of thousands refugees are also fleeing the conflict to South Sudan and even Egypt. 

The United Nations had warned in March that life-saving food aid for hundreds of thousands of people pouring out of war-torn Sudan would grind to a halt in April without international funding.

It added it has been able to reach only ten percent of Sudan’s 48 million people, with the country on the brink of famine.

‘Catastrophic hunger’

The World Food Programme (WFP) recently said it had negotiated the delivery of the first two convoys of food aid into Sudan’s Darfur region in months.

One convoy, with 1,300 tonnes of supplies, has already arrived via the Adre border crossing with Chad into West and Central Darfur, two areas already experiencing ‘catastrophic hunger’ after being overrun by the Rapid Support Forces. Catastrophic hunger is the the term used for famine conditions by aid agencies.

Catastrophic hunger is also expected in Khartoum and West Darfur, which have seen the fiercest fighting, according to the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS Net), as well as in many other areas of Darfur that house millions of displaced people.

More than 18 million people facing acute hunger need assistance, the WFP says.

“I fear that we will see unprecedented levels of starvation and malnutrition sweep across Sudan this lean season,” said WFP Sudan Country Director, Eddie Rowe, said in his latest statement, referring to the upcoming planting months.

The last cereal harvest only produced half of previous levels, the Food and Agriculture Organisation said, while prices of some goods have doubled.

Complicated access to aid

The belligerents are accused of using hunger as a weapon of war and diverting humanitarian aid.

This worries donors around the world, and could impact the quantity of aid obtained by humanitarians, according to Anette Hoffmann, an international relations researcher in The Hague, Netherlands.

She told RFI that she asks actors to adapt their methods. 

After decades of Omar al Bashir rule, which saw the manipulation and diversion of large amounts of aid, NGOs have learned lessons. 

“Channeling aid to local responders minimises the risk of seeking aid weaponised by both parties, which is definitely a practice that is ongoing,” she said.

“Using multiple entry points through the various borders by, cutting out middlemen, working with smaller portions or less concentration of aid, are all mechanisms that can, maybe not eliminate but mitigate the risk of aid diversion and starvation as a weapon of war.”

“This is the positive note on the 30 years of al-Bashir’s dictatorship, these learnings and this is the time to apply them.”

Meanwhile, drones hit the Sudanese city of al-Gadaref during the second week of April, eyewitnesses and the local governor said, bringing the country’s devastating war to a calm farming state.

Almost half a million displaced people have taken refuge in around Gadaref, the capital of al-Gadaref State.

Eyewitnesses said at least two drones had targeted military installations in Gadaref, which is located just to the east of Gezira.

They said they heard explosions as well as anti-aircraft missiles being fired from the ground.

The RSF has taken control of the capital Khartoum, neighbouring Gezira state as well as most of the Darfur and Kordofan regions in the west, while the army holds the north and east of Sudan including its main Red Sea port.

 (with newswires) 

With the economies of both China and Germany currently under performing, Scholz will travel with a bumper delegation of ministers and business executives.

While much of the focus will be on inking new business deals with the Chinese, he is also expected to raise the issue of Chinese subsidies.

Chinese subsidies

Just this week, for example, Brussels opened an investigation into alleged unfair competition involving Chinese wind turbine producers who are flooding the EU market with their products while receiving financial support from Beijing.

• Brussels aims to remove Chinese energy giants from the EU market

A recent study by the EU Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee (AFET) concludes that Brussel’s approach to China has been “largely defensive”.

It points out that the international system “is in a state of flux and [with] the liberal rules-based order being called into question, the EU must develop a strategic vision of its own preferred international order and a guiding foreign policy vision.” 

A 2019 EU policy paper declared China a “systemic rival”  which led to the  opening of discussions among EU member states about how to deal with Beijing.

There were two options options discussed. The first is “decoupling”, which means pulling away from China as far as possible and moving economic ties to other regions.

The second option is to prevent sensitive industries from engaging with China, but enabling the development of ties for the rest.

In its latest China Strategy, published last year, the German foreign ministry watered down the core EU strategy and changed its position on China. China, the paper argues, should still be seen as a a “systemic rival,”  but also as a “partner” and “competitor”.

France too is taking a slightly milder approach towards Beijing.

If Brussels is still seems to be wielding a stick, France is holding a carrot. Last year Macron visited to Beijing, where he said, in a now controversial interview, that Europe should have its own strategic autonomy and “avoid the trap [of being] caught in crises which are not ours,” –  a reference to Taiwan, which is at the core of the current China-US stand-off.

• French Foreign Minister expects ‘clear messages’ from China to Russia on Ukraine

Europe, Ukraine, and China

And then there is the issue of Ukraine. Speaking about it earlier this month during a visit to China,  French foreign minister, Stéphane Séjourné said, “We are convinced that there will be no lasting peace if it is not negotiated with the Ukrainians.

“There will be no security for Europeans if there is no peace in accordance with international law.”

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte also visited China at the end of March. 

The Netherlands and China are at loggerheads over Dutch company ASML, one of the world’s leading manufacturers of semiconductors.

Earlier this year, it announced that it had been blocked from exporting “a small number” of its advanced machines to China.

• Netherlands lands in crossfire in US-China trade war

Chinese president Xi Jinping told Rutte recently that China’s technological progress could “not be held back,” in spite of a US and EU export ban on semiconductors.  

Rutte told told reporters at a press conference that he couldn’t share details of what had been discussed about the issue.

Ending the war?

However,  the main reason for France, Germany and the Netherlands want to maintain good relations with China may be because it hopes Beijing can exert pressure on Russia to stop the war in Ukraine.

With the possibility of a Trump presidency after US elections in November and the likelihood of less US support for NATO and Ukraine if this happens, the costs for EU member states of maintaining financial and military support for Kyiv would increase substantially.

The only country Russia might listen to is China. 

Last month, Wang Yi, meeting the press during the yearly session of China’s parliament, underlined the ties between the two countries, saying that “political mutual trust” between the two countries “is deepening.”

Putin and China’s leader Xi Jinping met each other on several occasions since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and Putin has been looking at China as an alternative market after Western sanctions hit its oil and gas industry.

Both leaders talk about the “ironclad” relationship between their countries on a regular basis.

Rutte, the Dutch leader, is also pushing Xi on Russia. “Russia [can] not win. I talked about this with the Chinese leaders and I hope they understand what this means for Europe,” he told students during a visit to Beijing University. 

But he also admitted that repeated requests by EU leaders to Beijing to exert pressure on Moscow to end the war, as well as complaints about subsidies of Chinese products and violations of intellectual property rights, are not being acted upon.

“It is not improving, or it improves very slowly,” he was quoted as saying by Dutch daily De Volkskrant. 

(With newswires)

As a tifo depicting Darth Vader in a Barcelona shirt was unfurled at one end of the stadium, the interstellar hitman’s Imperial March blared out of the public address system’s weapons-grade speakers.

Naturally, the tifo of Yoda, the pocket-sized Jedi guru cum galactic do-gooder, was with the diehards down at the other end of the arena as a PSG star striker brandishing a light sabre in each hand in the PSG colours.

The unfettered zaniness ahead of one of the most prestigious night’s in the European football calendar also seemed incongruous with the air of caution and carefulness promulgated by Darmanin as he toured the river police forces in Paris on Tuesday.

But PSG during its big spending era has often operated as a hyper space where decorum and logic appear to have been zapped.

Following the tussle at the Parc des Princes, Vader’s boys will take a 3-2 advantage to Spain where PSG will attempt to stage a rebellion in order to pursue their Champions League destiny.   

Fortunately, Tony Estanguet, the chief of the Paris Olympics organising committee, struck the right note amid Darmanin’s exhortations.

Work

“I can tell you that an enormous amount of extremely detailed work is being done at the highest levels of government to guarantee the safety of the athletes from all the delegations, and also the spectators from all the countries,” said Estanguet during a press conference to highlight the state of Olympic affairs just over 100 days from the opening ceremony on 26 July.

Looking well-clipped and relaxed in a black T-shirt and dark chinos, the 45-year-old has developed into a well-versed and polished performer. And why not? He was holding court just yards from his offices at the organisers’ nerve centre in Aubervilliers on the northern fringes of Paris.

“Never before has France been so proactive and deployed so many security resources,” the three-time Olympic gold medallist said.

“I have every confidence in our country’s law enforcement agencies to ensure the security of these Games.

“There is a lot of talk about the opening ceremony,” he added. “The reality is that it’s a whole Olympic area that needs to be made safe.

“If there is no safety, everything else is pointless. So if there’s one subject on which we’ve never taken a risk or ever put ourselves at risk, it’s this one.”

Teams

Around 45,000 law enforcement personnel will be deployed along the six-kilometre stretch of the river Seine that will stage the first Olympics opening ceremony to be held outside the main athletics stadium.

And for the rest of the Games, there will be 30,000 placed around the various Olympic venues in the city centre and just outside in places such as La Defense Arena to the west where the swimming races will be held and to the north at the Aquatics Centre in Saint Denis – the site for the synchronized swimming and diving. 

Ever the showman, Estanguet used his powwow with reporters to announce that 250,000 tickets will go on sale on 17 April when the 100-day countdown begins with another splash of activities.

“The tickets will be in all price categories and at all competition venues,” he beamed. “So for those who have missed out so far, there will still be a few opportunities left for all of the sports. “

In an attempt to deflect criticism about the costs, around half of the tickets will be less than 100 euros. Around 13,000 tickets will be more than 400 euros.

And to underline the universal nature of the games, Estanguet added: “I note that there are some good prices for the women’s football match between the United States and Germany in Marseille.

Chance

“What a wonderful and rare chance to see a high quality encounter on our soil.  I really hope that people take the chance to see these kind of games.

“We’re facing the final straight,” Estanguet added. “The Paris 2024 teams have been working for several years to organise this wonderful event and we’ve got 100 days to fine-tune the celebration to which all the world will be coming.”

Sandwiched in between Estanguet’s blandishments and PSG’s bumptiousness, senior French politicians produced their six-month long inquiry into whether the country was actually capable of handling the Games.

During their travels, senators Agnès Canayer and Marie-Pierre de La Gontrie met nearly 100 people involved in the organisation of the games from private security trainers to operators of video surveillance equipment.

They also made a half a dozen trips to logistics centres as well as the headquarters of Estanguet’s committee.

Canayer, like Estanguet, was at pains to highlight the importance of security beyond the opening ceremony. She said the torch relay, which starts on 8 May from Marseille, posed particular problems.

Range

“It will pass through more than 400 towns and cities,” she added. “It will have 10,000 torchbearers crossing the route, throughout mainland France and even overseas. This too is a major safety issue.”

But the team declared that – with one of two pieces of fine-tuning – the land was in good shape to lay on the feast.

“We believe that we are on the right track,” added Canayer. “We believe that we will be ready when the time comes to ensure that these Olympic and Paralympic Games are a true celebration of sport and that the major risks, whether terrorist, cyber, drone, chemical or nuclear are anticipated as far as possible.”

France was put on its highest state of alert following Islamic State’s attack on a concert hall just outside Moscow last month which left 144 dead and hundreds wounded. And the vigilance is likely to remain at least until the end of the Paralympic Games in Paris on 8 September as politicians and organisers concede it is impossible to guarantee total security.

“We take a positive view of everything that has been achieved,” added de La Gontrie. “We have noted the very strong investment of all the state and local authority structures.”

And yet for all the assertions of diligence, dynamism, confidence and rigour, a Star Wars leitmotiv will overhang the Games – hope.

Washington said it preferred a hands-off policy, but that it hoped India and Pakistan would try and resolve the latest row without further trouble.

“We’re not going to get in the middle of this situation [but] we encourage both sides to avoid escalation and find a resolution through dialogue,” US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller told reporters.

The UK’s Guardian newspaper, quoting unnamed operatives, recently reported that officials in Delhi had ordered the murder of nearly 20 individuals in Pakistan since 2020 – around 15 of them last year alone.

“Interviews with intelligence officials in both countries, as well as documents shared by Pakistani investigators, shed new light on how India’s foreign intelligence agency allegedly began to carry out assassinations abroad as part of an emboldened approach to national security after 2019,” said the article, published last week.

‘False and malicious’

The Guardian claimed that India drew inspiration from spy services in Israel and Russia, and put plans into action after a 2019 suicide attack on an army convoy in Kashmir killed 40 soldiers.

The lengthy investigation does not have a single named source, but is purportedly based on confidential interviews and “detailed documentation” alleging links between the attacks and an Indian spy agency.

India’s foreign ministry rejected the report as “false and malicious anti-India propaganda”.

“The Pakistan intelligence agency is very good at creating narratives… This is another one they have tried,” claimed civil aviation minister VK Singh.

“The Guardian is a paper which lost its credibility a long time back,” he added.

Sikhs targeted?

The newspaper’s investigation followed allegations in September by Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau that Delhi was likely involved in the killing of a Canadian citizen.

It sparked a row that prompted Canada to withdraw 41 diplomats after India threatened to revoke their chartered privileges.

• India freezes visas for Canadians amid row over murder of Sikh separatist

In November, US prosecutors accused an Indian intelligence official of plotting to kill a Sikh dissident in New York.

Advocacy groups including Human Rights Watch demanded a probe after members of the overseas Sikh community staged protests in Britain, Canada and the US.

War of words

Amid the latest tensions, Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh added fuel to the fire by saying that India would enter Pakistan and kill cross-border fugitives who have staged terror attacks in India.

“If any terrorist disturbs the peace in India, we will give a befitting reply. If they run back to Pakistan, then we will go there and kill them,” Singh declared.

Islamabad responded sharply to the statement.

‘India’s assertion of its preparedness to extrajudicially execute more civilians, arbitrarily pronounced as ‘terrorists’, inside Pakistan constitutes a clear admission of culpability,” Pakistan’s foreign ministry said.

“History attests to Pakistan’s firm resolve and ability to protect and defend itself,” it said, and warned that Delhi’s “myopic and irresponsible behaviour” could derail regional peace.

Ties between the two testy neighbours nosedived after India revoked Kashmir’s special status and split the state into two in August 2019.

• A mixed bag three years after scrapping of Kashmir’s special status

India accuses Pakistan of fomenting trouble in Kashmir, where a separatist drive has claimed thousands of lives since 1989.

Pakistan holds a northern third of Kashmir, but seeks the rest of the Himalayan territory which is under Delhi’s control.

Turkish Airlines announced that it will not resume flights to Israel until March next year.

At the same time, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan announced sanctions on Israel after aid deliveries to Gaza were blocked by Israel.

“We have submitted our request to join this aid operation with cargo planes belonging to our air force. We learned today that our request – which had been approved by Jordanian authorities – was rejected by Israel,” Fidan told a press conference.

“There can be no excuse for Israel preventing our attempts to send aid from the air to our Gazan brothers who are fighting hunger. In response to this situation, we have decided to take a series of new measures against Israel,” he said.

Ankara has banned the export of 54 products to Israel, including aviation fuel, steel, and cement.

Fidan said the export ban would remain in force until Israel declares a ceasefire and allows aid to be delivered unhindered.

• Turkey under fire after declaring Hamas a ‘liberation’ group
• Iran leader to visit Turkey as rapprochement continues over Gaza war

‘Hypocritical stance’

Israel’s Foreign Minister Israel Katz condemned the Turkish sanctions, accusing Ankara of supporting Hamas, and warned of retaliation.

The trade restrictions come amidst growing criticism in Turkey of the ruling AKP party’s stance of condemning Israel’s war on Hamas but maintaining trade relations, which the opposition claims supports the Israeli military war effort.

The government’s stance had become untenable, argues Soli Ozel, a lecturer in international relations at Istanbul’s Kadir Has University.

There is “pressure from the public over this hypocritical stance on Israel”, he says. “You have all these AKP-related businesses or AKP politicians very closely, intimately trading with Israel and stuff. They [the government] had to respond somewhat; they had to show that they were doing something.”

Suspending Turkish Airlines flights was the “best, most effective, and most visible way of doing it”, according to Ozel.

“I think there must be over 30 daily flights, and this was supposed to be one of the most profitable lines that Turkish Airlines operate.”

Electoral meltdown

Last month, President Erdogan‘s AKP suffered its worst electoral defeat to date in nationwide local elections.

The Islamist Yeniden Refah Party – led by Fatih Erbakan, son of Erdogan’s former political mentor Necmettin Erbakan – targeted the AKP’s religious base, focusing his campaign on condemning the Turkish president for continuing to trade with Israel.

“Fatih Erbakan is once again an important figure apparently,” observes Istar Gozaydin, a specialist on Turkish religion and state relations at Istanbul’s Istinye University.

“I think the sort of end is near for AKP, but I guess it will be replaced by the Yeniden Refah Party,” he adds.

Crucial relations

Protests in Turkey are continuing against relations with Israel. However, Israeli analysts say trade and travel are vital to maintain bilateral ties at times of diplomatic tension. 

“It’s unprecedented; there’s for so long no flights from Turkey to Israel and from Israel to Turkey, and that’s a damage to the relationship,” warns Gallia Lindenstrauss, an expert with the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv.

“Also for business relationships, it’s very important to have a regular transport route.” 

• With spy raids, Turkey warns Israel not to seek Hamas revenge on Turkish soil
• Turkey talks tough on Israel but resists calls to cut off oil

“There were things that kept the relations going, even though the political relations were in crisis,” she explains.

“And one element was the economic relations, and part of this was also the travel connections and the transport connections between Turkey and Israel, and the fact that people-to-people relations were enabled.”

All eyes on Gaza

Even when Israeli forces in 2010 killed 10 Turkish citizens delivering aid by ship to Gaza, flights and trade between the countries were unaffected.

But analysts warn given the magnitude of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and Israel’s ongoing war against Hamas, this time could be different.

“This is a goddamn massacre that’s going on for six months that people are watching live,” says international relations expert Ozel.

“People are watching live, and this is truly unconscionable; that’s why the level of protest on this particular issue of trading with Israel has increased as the devastation became even worse.”

With Israeli forces poised to launch a new offensive into Gaza, protests against ongoing Turkish trade with Israel are predicted to grow – and add further pressure on Erdogan.

Bate Urgessa was shot at point-blank range and his body was found the next day on the side of a road outside the town of Meki, south of Addis Ababa.

“They could not break him, so they killed him,” French journalist Antoine Galindo told RFI on the day of Bate’s funeral, in his hometown of Meki.

“Bate was picked up late on Tuesday 9 April and he was found dead on Wednesday 10 April, on a road outside Meki, his hands tied behind his back, face down, shot point blank in the head,” said Galindo, the East Africa editor for Africa Intelligence magazine.

Forty-one-year-old Battee Urgeessaa – the Oromo spelling of his name – was jailed and assaulted on numerous occasions because of his vocal defence of the rights of Oromo people.

Galindo, who was arrested himself in February on charges of “conspiracy to create chaos”, spent eight days with the Oromo politician in a crowded cell of 30 people in a city police department in the capital.

‘Fearless’

Bate was a veteran member of the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), fighting for the Oromo’s rights to self-determination and to establish an independent state of Oromia.

A widely respected political figure, he was said to be a highly educated, peaceful man, who chose not to take arms to fight the federal government even after the 2018 failed peace agreement between the OLF and the Ethiopian Federal Government.

“He firmly believed in one thing: the power of the mind over that of the gun,” said Galindo, who shared the “same mattress, same blanket, same food, same clothes” as Bate in prison.

“He was fearless and unbroken despite countless arrests, attacks on his person and nearly dying in prison in 2022 because he did not receive medical treatment,” the journalist said.

“They did everything they could, over the years, to break this man and they never managed to.”

Galindo recalls their first encounter on a sunny terrace at a hotel in Addis on 22 February, where they met for a conversation on background.

“I asked him if he was aware of the risks to be seen talking to a foreign journalist. He replied that I shouldn’t worry about that.”

They were arrested together later the same day, charged with “conspiracy to create chaos in Ethiopia” and “working to incite unrest”.

• French journalist arrested in Ethiopia ‘assault on press freedom’ says RSF

Snowball effect

The OLF says its struggle is about inclusion and redress for historical injustices.

“The Oromo people are far from having their grievances addressed,” according to Galindo.

“Their anger, whether at home or in the diaspora, is not going to fade away. Of course there is a risk of protests – this man has done nothing wrong, and he has been gunned down, his body thrown in a ditch.”

He added that large parts of the Oromia region have been incommunicado since Bate’s killing and information is only slowly trickling out.

“This could feed the ranks of the Oromo Liberation Army, snowball into more unrest which will trigger pressure from the regime,” Galindo commented.

But, Bate’s death is also mourned by all Ethiopians, across the political spectrum and ethnic groups.

The French journalist, who lived in Ethiopia from 2013 to 2017, assumes that there will be no proper independent investigation into Bate’s death, “in light of what happened with the death of musician and Oromo activist Hachalu Hundessa in 2020, and many others”.

“Unfortunately, the killing of the [Oromo] people is the only way to silence them,” Galindo said.

• Hachalu Hundessa: the Oromo singer who helped transform politics in Ethiopia

International condemnation

Daniel Bekele, head of the Ethiopian Human Rights Commission, has called for “a prompt, impartial and full investigation by both the Oromia regional and Ethiopian federal authorities to hold perpetrators to account”.

Foreign governments, including that of the United Kingdom and the United States, echoed the sentiment.

The chairman of the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee, Senator Ben Cardin, urged Ethiopian authorities to allow “a credible, neutral international body to conduct a thorough investigation” into Bate’s death.

“Extrajudicial killings, harassment, and political repression have, for far too long, been common place in Oromia,” he said in a statement.

Historically, the ANC was associated with Nelson Mandela and the liberation of black people in the “Rainbow Nation”.

But the party’s name has since been tarred by a string of corruption cases.

In his book The Enemy Within: How the ANC lost the battle against corruption, journalist and political commentator Mpumelelo Mkhabela argues that the ANC is “consumed by corrupt cadres with the party”.

According to him, the story started with Mandela and went all the way to former president Jacob Zuma.

Mkhabela says that ANC, which has governed South Africa since the formal end of Apartheid in 1994, has tolerated corrupt practices and failed to hold wrongdoers to account – even going so far as to shield them.

Zuma’s return

Former president Zuma, 81, was forced out of office in 2018 under a cloud of corruption allegations, but he continues to hold sway in South African politics.

He declared in December that he would campaign for the opposition uMkhonto we Sizwe (MK) party – a blow for the ANC, as Zuma remains popular with Zulu voters, a key bloc in the upcoming polls.

Then a court ruled on 9 April that he would be able to stand in next month’s general elections, overturning a decision by electoral authorities to bar him over a criminal conviction.

• South Africa’s Zuma wins court bid to run in May election
• Turmoil in South Africa’s ANC party after suspension of former president Zuma

Fresh scandal

Earlier in April, prosecutors in charged former parliament speaker Nosiviwe Mapisa-Nqakula with corruption and money laundering.

She was granted bail by a court in the capital Pretoria shortly after the charges were made public, and denied any wrongdoing.

An ANC veteran and former defence minister from 2012 to 2021, Mapisa-Nqakula is accused of receiving millions of rand in cash as bribes from a former military contractor.

She resigned the day before the charges were filed.

“My resignation is in no way an indication or admission of guilt regarding the allegations being levelled against me,” she insisted.

The next hearing in her case is scheduled on 4 June, a few days after the general elections.

Suspicions ignored?

“We are against any form of corruption or criminality,” insisted Zama Khanyase, a spokesperson for the ANC’s youth wing, “so we welcome the fact that the former speaker has surrendered, so that she can be judged guilty or innocent.”

But opposition MP Bantu Holomisa, who alerted parliament to suspicions of wrongdoing in March 2021, said the party should have acted sooner.

“The arrogance of power led the ANC to appoint her speaker of the National Assembly while knowing that she was under serious suspicion,” he told RFI.

Karam Singh, director of the South African NGO Corruption Watch, agreed. “It does not reflect well on the ANC that an eminent figure is facing such charges when the party has not taken any sanctions against her,” he said.

Meanwhile the Anti-Corruption Trust for Southern Africa said that it was “gravely concerned” by the case.

‘Betrayed’

A 2022 inquiry into corruption during Zuma’s presidency exposed massive government graft by leaders of the ANC, as well as attempts by wealthy business owners to buy political and economic influence.

Since then, experts say, the party – now led by President Cyril Ramaphosa, Zuma’s former deputy – has failed to root out the problem.

In March, six ANC officials facing accusations of corruption were included on its list of candidates for this year’s elections.

Ramaphosa “has betrayed Nelson Mandela’s legacy of human rights and social justice”, declared law professor Orde Kittrie in a recent opinion piece for US-based politics website The Hill.

“South Africa’s citizens suffer through daily power blackouts of up to 12 hours, days at a time without running water and one of the world’s worst-performing school systems. This is all credibly alleged to be caused by corruption,” Kittrie wrote, urging the US government to impose sanctions.

How the scandals will affect South African voters remains to be seen at the ballot boxes next month.

(with Reuters)

The constitutional bill, which allows residents who have lived at least ten years in the territory to be elected, is currently under parliamentary review fuelling tensions between supporters and opponents of the island group’s independence from France.

The demonstrators gathered in Nouméa’s city centre, and were kept separated by law enforcement officers.

Increasing democratic participation of local inhabitants has put pro-independence groups at loggerheads with those who want to keep strong ties with Paris, and communication between the groups has stalled, in spite of Paris’ efforts for intensified dialogue.

“This is France,” said Guillaume (17,) a resident of Koumac, in the north of Grande-Terre. “We’ve voted ‘no’ to independence three times. If the independence supporters didn’t want to vote, that’s their problem,” referring to the 2021 referendum that was boycotted by the opposition.

“Peace is threatened because the State has lost its impartiality,” says Roch Wamytan, one of the leaders of the Union Calédonienne, the main independence party of the FLNKS (Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front). “It has touched a taboo and we must resist. Relaxing the electoral roll means death.”

Independence supporters, claim that the law “breaks with the fundamental rules that have established peace in this country,” according to Dominique Fochi, the general secretary of the Union Calédonienne.

• France mulls New Caledonia electoral reform ahead of key vote
• New Caledonia says Non! to breakaway from France for third time

The relaxation of electoral regulations embedded in the constitutional bill could disrupt political balance set in 1998 after a period of violence and civil war.

The provincial elections determine party representation in New Caledonia’s Congress, the territory’s legislative body, and Paris delayed them in March to allow the constitutional changes to take effect, until “15 December (2024) latest.”

According to a Senate report, introduction of the bill means that the electoral roll will increase by 14.5%, adding 12,441 native New Caledonians and 13,400 French citizens who have been living in the territory continuously for at least ten years.

(With newswires)

Zambia, Malawi and Zimbabwe declared national disasters within weeks of each other after insufficient rains wiped out crops including the staple maize harvest. 

The severe dry spell – exacerbated by the El Nino weather pattern that triggers higher global temperatures – has reached Botswana and Angola to the west, and Mozambique and Madagascar to the east. 

The World Food Programme (WFP) said that some areas had suffered their driest February in 40 years. 

As many as 50 million people are facing food insecurity. 

Authorities in Zambia have ordered the army to support food production, with 84 of the country’s 116 districts stricken by a drought that has also wrought havoc on electricity supplies. 

Zambia is highly reliant on hydroelectric power. 

• Global climate change driving drought in Horn of Africa

Harvest write-off

Almost three-quarters of Zambia has gone without any rain since January, said Chris Mzembé of the Lusaka branch of the NGO Care International.  

In places where it has rained, the water came in violent storms that destroyed crops, Mzembé told RFI – adding that many maize farmers, especially the smallest, lost everything. 

“They spent all their money on buying seeds and fertilisers and paying for labour and then their crops died,” he said. “Their entire investment is therefore gone.”

Like in Zimbabwe, maize production drives the country’s agricultural sector and is at the heart of the local diet. 

It’s also used as livestock feed and in various industrial processes including the production of maize flour, maize starch, corn oil and ethanol.  

• Experts fault UN climate plan for overlooking ‘obvious’ need to eat less meat

Coupled with rising food prices and an unstable local currency, the plummeting maize yields have caused widespread panic. 

“Both individuals and companies have started holding back (maize-based) goods because they anticipate they’ll be able to sell for more tomorrow,” Mzembé said. 

“This could aggravate the crisis and further increase prices.” 

This year’s harvest write-off means that millions of people in southern Africa won’t be able to feed themselves until well into 2025.  

USAid’s Famine Early Warning System estimated that some 20 million people would require food relief in the first few months of this year. 

While these are normally “lean months” as families wait for the new harvest, this year there will be little hope for replenishment. 

Aid appeals

Malawi says it needs more than €200 million in immediate humanitarian assistance, having declared a state of emergency in 23 of its 28 districts. 

Zimbabwean leader Emmerson Mnangagwa says the country needs €2 billion in aid. Families have been urged to conserve food as authorities work with charities and UN agencies to bring in supplies.

Nearly 20 percent of Zimbabwe’s population – 2.7 million people in rural areas – benefits from food aid already. 

• Green credentials at stake as EU scrambles to save nature restoration law

Meanwhile Zambia has also appealed for international help. 

With the next crop growing season a year away, the British charity Oxfam has warned of acute food shortages and malnutrition for more than six million Zambians – or 30 percent of that country’s population. 

But humanitarian agencies including WFP say resources are stretched as it is because of funding cuts by governments, despite growing demand for food aid in many parts of the world badly affected by climate shocks. 

Scientists have warned that extreme weather will continue to become more frequent and more damaging, and that vulnerable communities will be worst hit. 

Mini Maousse is a small-scale design competition for students of architecture, art, design and landscaping that has been running for the past 20 years.

Fiona Meadows, the architect in charge of the competition, told RFI that for the 2024 edition, “the challenge was to create a nomadic mini fan zone that would move around the city of Saint-Denis during the Olympic Games”.  

Among the 200 entries, 30 were selected for the exhibition “When the city plays games”, now on show at Paris museum the City of Architecture and Heritage.

Olympics in Saint-Denis

Saint-Denis is a working-class suburb in the north of Paris that will host competitions during the Olympics and Paralympics Games, as well as the new Olympic Aquatic Centre and Athletes’ Village. 

Despite its involvement, the suburb is still far from fan zones – centres for wider community access to the Games outside official venues. Thirty are planned across the Paris region.

“The idea was to create something that would be very close to neighbourhoods in the areas furthest away from the fan zones or the stadium to encourage people to do sport,” explains Meadows of this year’s competition.

This summer, four student prototypes will be brought to life as mobile fan zones for the Games. 

• A million free Paris Olympics tickets to go to locals in bid for inclusive Games

Moveable fan zone

Meadows said that Paris-Malaquais School of Architecture student Martin Lichtig won the competition “unanimously because his project, called The Shuttle, is extremely effective”. 

“It’s a trailer carried by a car with three cabins, which are then lowered down and placed to mark out the space. And then balloons are attached to them,” she explains.

“One is used as an information desk, another as a refreshment bar and the other for storage.

“Then the trailer folds out into a stage and can be used for performances, boxing or breakdancing. Then you fold it up and go.”

• Paris suburb gets France’s first inclusive sports complex thanks to Olympics

Engineering students from the Ecole du Bois College will develop the prototypes into reality with wood as a way to share “ecological values”, says Meadows.

“You can make very contemporary things with wood,” she says.

The portable fan zone will belong to Saint-Denis and be used by the Dessine-moi 24 sports charity during the Games.

The community will continue to use the zones after the Games.

Similarly, the Olympic Village, designed by architect Dominique Perrault, will be repurposed as housing for residents after serving as athlete accommodation.

Mini Maousse 9. Quand la ville se prend aux jeux runs from 20 March to 16 September 2024 at the Cité de l’architecture et du patrimoine in Paris.

The 77th edition of the festival on the French Cote d’Azur, considered the most prestigious in the film industry, runs from May 14 to 25. 

This year’s competition for the Palme d’Or, the festival’s top prize, includes another team-up between Emma Stone and Greek director Yorgos Lanthimos – Kinds of Kindness – just weeks after Stone’s Oscar win for their Frankenstein-style satire Poor Things.

The Apprentice, a biopic about the early years of Donald Trump by Iran-born director Ali Abbasi, is also expected to draw attention. 

And there’s sure to be a buzz around Coppola’s Megalopolis, that marks the return of The Godfather director to Cannes at the age of 85. 

‘Honoured’ to premier Coppola

Coppola has twice won the Palme d’Or – for The Conversation (1974) and, controversially, for Apocalypse Now, which was not even finished when it premiered at the festival in 1979.

The self-funded Megalopolis is said to be a Roman political drama transplanted to modern-day New York, featuring Adam Driver and Forest Whitaker. 

“We are overjoyed that he has done us the honour of coming to present this film,” festival director Thierry Fremaux told reporters.

Just 4 female directors

The festival opens with Le Deuxième Acte (Second Act) by Quentin Dupieux, out of competition.

This year’s jury is led by Barbie director Greta Gerwig, who “embodies perfectly the soul of the festival”, said Cannes president Iris Knobloch.

Two highly topical films will have special screenings –La Belle de Gaza follows transsexual Palestinians moving to Israel, while The Invasion by Sergei Loznitsa centres on the war in his native Ukraine. 

The much-awaited Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga by George Miller is among those premiering, but out of competition.

Only 19 entries competing for the top prize were announced Thursday – there are usually around 22 – though more may be added. 

While the festival set a record last year in terms of female representation, with seven female directors in the official competition, this year only four out of the 19 entries are directed by women. 

Films in competition for Palme d’Or (Golden Palm):

• The Apprentice by Ali Abbasi
• Motel Destino by Karim Ainouz
• Bird by Andrea Arnold
• Emilia Perez by Jacques Audiard
• Anora by Sean Baker
• Megalopolis by Francis Ford Coppola
• The Shrouds by David Cronenberg
• The Substance by Coralie Fargeat
• Grand Tour by Miguel Gomes
• Marcello Mio by Christophe Honore
• Caught By The Tides by Jia Zhang-Ke
• All We Imagine As Light by Payal Kapadia
• Kinds of Kindness by Yorgos Lanthimos
• L’Amour Ouf (lit. Crazy Love) by Gilles Lellouche
• Wild Diamond by Agathe Riedinger
• Oh Canada by Paul Schrader
• Liminov – The Ballad by Kirill Serebrennikov
• Parthenope by Paolo Sorrentino
• The Girl With The Needle by Magnus von Horn   

Premiering at Cannes but out of competition:

• Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga by George Miller
• Horizon, An American Saga by Kevin Costner
• A Second Act by Quentin Dupieux
• She’s Got No Name by Peter Ho-Sun Chan
• Rumours by Evan Johnson, Galen Johnson and Guy Maddin

Competing in the Un certain regard festival, presided by Xavier Dolan:

• Norah by Tawfik Alzaidi
• The Shameless  by Konstantin Bojanov
• Le Royaume by Julien Colonna | 1^st film
• Vingt Deux ! by Louise Courvoisier | 1^st film
• Le procès du chien by Laetitia Dosch | 1^st film (Who let the dog bite?)
• Gou Zhen by Guan Hu (Black Dog)
• The village next to paradise by Mo Harawe | 1^st film
• September says by Ariane Labed | 1^st film
• L’histoire de Souleymane by Boris Lojkine
• The Damned by Roberto Minervini
• On Becoming a guinea fowl by Rungano Nyoni
• Boku No Ohisama by Hiroshi Okuyama (My Sunshine)
• Santosh by Sandhya
• Suri Viet and Nam by Truong Minh Quý
• Armand by Halfdan Ullmann Tondel | 1^st film

(With AFP)

The probe is just the latest move by Brussels targeting the country over green tech subsidies suspected of undermining fair competition.

The European Commission will look into conditions for the development of wind parks in France, Spain, Greece, Romania, and Bulgaria.

EU anti-trust commissioner Margrethe Vestager said on Tuesday that the Commission is putting into effect a law that was designed to decrease imports of products by companies that are subsidised by their home countries.

Vestager did not name the Chinese companies which will be investigated by the European Union’s executive during a lecture delivered on Tuesday at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey, in the United States.

An investigation carried out under the Foreign Subsidies Regulation (FSR,) which was introduced on 12 July 2023, allows Brussels to probe companies bidding in public tenders in the bloc larger than €250 million. 

French energy companies

“We fully understand the Commission’s rationale,” says Giles Dickson, the CEO of WindEurope, a lobby group for the industry.

“Chinese wind turbine manufacturers are offering much lower prices than European manufacturers and incredibly generous financing terms with up to three years deferred payment,” he says.

“You can’t do that without unfair public subsidy. What’s more the European manufacturers aren’t allowed to offer deferred payment like that under OECD rules.”

The investigation and steps that may follow, are likely to affect the French energy companies in their choice of material.

In November, S&P Global Market Intelligence reported that French energy provider Neoen was “waiting for ‘green light’ from banks to buy Chinese wind turbines,” as turbines manufactured by western companies are “persistently expensive due to inflated raw materials costs.”

Quoting Neoen’s CEO Xavier Barbaro, S&P said that “Neoen is already dependent on China for its supply of solar panels and, as such, is on board with the prospect of Chinese turbines and their bankability.”

But this may change if the EU investigation points out that prospective Chinese partners are receiving state subsidies.

Angry reaction

China doesn’t agree. In a first, angry reaction, the Brussels-based China Chamber of Commerce to the EU (CCCEU) Beijing issued a statement, saying that they “firmly oppose” the investigation.

“While deliberately ignoring the significant subsidies granted by certain countries to their emerging green industries, the European side has imposed obstacles and market barriers against Chinese enterprises operating in the green sector,” according to the CCCEU.

“This not only contravenes the principles of fair market competition, but also undermines the EU’s commitment to enhancing international cooperation in global emission reduction and low-carbon coordination.

In Beijing, foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning criticised EU “protectionism”, telling journalists it “protects backwardness… and causes multiple losses”.

“China is highly concerned about the discriminatory measures taken by the European side against Chinese enterprises and even industries,” she added, “protectionism does not solve one’s own problems.”

• Expansion of North Sea wind farms tops the agenda at Ostend energy summit

• EU seeks to protect sensitive technology from Chinese buyers

Solar panels and EV’s

It is the third time that Brussels is applying the FSR against China.

Earlier FSR investigations targeted Chinese subsidies for solar panels, electric cars and trains.

The EU opened its first probe under the FSR in February, targeting a subsidiary of Chinese rail giant CRRC, the world’s largest rolling stock manufacturer in terms of revenue.

That investigation was closed after the subsidiary withdrew from a tender in Bulgaria to supply electric trains.

A second probe announced last week targets two Chinese-owned solar panel manufacturers seeking to build and operate a photovoltaic park in Romania, partly financed by European funds, Longi Green Energy Technology, the world’s biggest solar panel manufacturer and the state-owned Shanghai Electric group.

Earlier on, the EU carried out investigations into the imports of Chinese electric vehicles (evs.)

Last month, the EU Commission said it found evidence of “massive imports” of the Chinese electric vehicles in a relatively short period of time, including a “substantial increase” of 14% since the investigation was launched in September, and on March 5, Brussels published rules to limit the import of evs from China.

Turkish Airlines announced that it will not resume flights to Israel until March next year.

At the same time, Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan announced sanctions on Israel after aid deliveries to Gaza were blocked by Israel.

“We have submitted our request to join this aid operation with cargo planes belonging to our air force. We learned today that our request – which had been approved by Jordanian authorities – was rejected by Israel,” Fidan told a press conference.

“There can be no excuse for Israel preventing our attempts to send aid from the air to our Gazan brothers who are fighting hunger. In response to this situation, we have decided to take a series of new measures against Israel,” he said.

Ankara has banned the export of 54 products to Israel, including aviation fuel, steel, and cement.

Fidan said the export ban would remain in force until Israel declares a ceasefire and allows aid to be delivered unhindered.

• Turkey under fire after declaring Hamas a ‘liberation’ group
• Iran leader to visit Turkey as rapprochement continues over Gaza war

‘Hypocritical stance’

Israel’s Foreign Minister Israel Katz condemned the Turkish sanctions, accusing Ankara of supporting Hamas, and warned of retaliation.

The trade restrictions come amidst growing criticism in Turkey of the ruling AKP party’s stance of condemning Israel’s war on Hamas but maintaining trade relations, which the opposition claims supports the Israeli military war effort.

The government’s stance had become untenable, argues Soli Ozel, a lecturer in international relations at Istanbul’s Kadir Has University.

There is “pressure from the public over this hypocritical stance on Israel”, he says. “You have all these AKP-related businesses or AKP politicians very closely, intimately trading with Israel and stuff. They [the government] had to respond somewhat; they had to show that they were doing something.”

Suspending Turkish Airlines flights was the “best, most effective, and most visible way of doing it”, according to Ozel.

“I think there must be over 30 daily flights, and this was supposed to be one of the most profitable lines that Turkish Airlines operate.”

Electoral meltdown

Last month, President Erdogan‘s AKP suffered its worst electoral defeat to date in nationwide local elections.

The Islamist Yeniden Refah Party – led by Fatih Erbakan, son of Erdogan’s former political mentor Necmettin Erbakan – targeted the AKP’s religious base, focusing his campaign on condemning the Turkish president for continuing to trade with Israel.

“Fatih Erbakan is once again an important figure apparently,” observes Istar Gozaydin, a specialist on Turkish religion and state relations at Istanbul’s Istinye University.

“I think the sort of end is near for AKP, but I guess it will be replaced by the Yeniden Refah Party,” he adds.

Crucial relations

Protests in Turkey are continuing against relations with Israel. However, Israeli analysts say trade and travel are vital to maintain bilateral ties at times of diplomatic tension. 

“It’s unprecedented; there’s for so long no flights from Turkey to Israel and from Israel to Turkey, and that’s a damage to the relationship,” warns Gallia Lindenstrauss, an expert with the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv.

“Also for business relationships, it’s very important to have a regular transport route.” 

• With spy raids, Turkey warns Israel not to seek Hamas revenge on Turkish soil
• Turkey talks tough on Israel but resists calls to cut off oil

“There were things that kept the relations going, even though the political relations were in crisis,” she explains.

“And one element was the economic relations, and part of this was also the travel connections and the transport connections between Turkey and Israel, and the fact that people-to-people relations were enabled.”

All eyes on Gaza

Even when Israeli forces in 2010 killed 10 Turkish citizens delivering aid by ship to Gaza, flights and trade between the countries were unaffected.

But analysts warn given the magnitude of the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and Israel’s ongoing war against Hamas, this time could be different.

“This is a goddamn massacre that’s going on for six months that people are watching live,” says international relations expert Ozel.

“People are watching live, and this is truly unconscionable; that’s why the level of protest on this particular issue of trading with Israel has increased as the devastation became even worse.”

With Israeli forces poised to launch a new offensive into Gaza, protests against ongoing Turkish trade with Israel are predicted to grow – and add further pressure on Erdogan.

Hello everyone! Welcome to The Sound Kitchen weekly podcast, published every Saturday – here on our website, or wherever you get your podcasts. You’ll hear the winner’s names announced and the week’s quiz question, along with all the other ingredients you’ve grown accustomed to: your letters and essays, “On This Day”, quirky facts and news, interviews, and great music … so be sure and listen every week.

Erwan and I are busy cooking up special shows with your music requests, so get them in! Send your music requests to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr  Tell us why you like the piece of music, too – it makes it more interesting for us all!

Facebook News: There’s a “new and improved” Facebook page for you, the RFI English Listeners Forum. 

It’s for everyone who reads and listens to us and wants to connect with others, so ask to join, and I’ll sign you up!

The RFI Listeners Club page and the RFI English Clubs page no longer exist; if you belonged to the RFI English Clubs page and not the RFI Listeners Club page, you’ll need to ask to join. I promise I won’t click “Decline” 😊 

Here’s your job: send me your photos for the banner! Send them to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr

More tech news: Did you know we have a YouTube channel? Just go to YouTube and write RFI English in the search bar, and there we are! Be sure and subscribe to see all our videos.

Would you like to learn French? RFI is here to help you!

Our website “Le Français facile avec rfi”  has news broadcasts in slow, simple French, as well as bi-lingual radio dramas (with real actors!) and exercises to practice what you have heard.

Go to our website and get started! At the top of the page, click on “Test level”. According to your score, you’ll be counselled to the best-suited activities for your level.

Do not give up! As Lidwien van Dixhoorn, the head of “Le Français facile” service told me: “Bathe your ears in the sound of the language, and eventually, you’ll get it”. She should know – Lidwien is Dutch and came to France hardly able to say “bonjour” and now she heads this key RFI department – so stick with it!

Be sure you check out our wonderful podcasts!

In addition to the breaking news articles on our site with in-depth analysis of current affairs in France and across the globe, we have several podcasts that will leave you hungry for more.

There’s Paris Perspective, Spotlight on France, and of course, The Sound Kitchen. We have an award-winning bilingual series – an old-time radio show, with actors (!) to help you learn French, called Les voisins du 12 bis. And there is the excellent International Report, too.

As you see, sound is still quite present in the RFI English service. Keep checking our website for updates on the latest from our staff of journalists. You never know what we’ll surprise you with!

To listen to our podcasts from your PC, go to our website; you’ll see “Podcasts” at the top of the page. You can either listen directly or subscribe and receive them directly on your mobile phone.

To listen to our podcasts from your mobile phone, slide through the tabs just under the lead article (the first tab is “Headline News”) until you see “Podcasts”, and choose your show. 

Teachers, take note!  I save postcards and stamps from all over the world to send to you for your students. If you would like stamps and postcards for your students, just write and let me know. The address is english.service@rfi.fr  If you would like to donate stamps and postcards, feel free! Our address is listed below. 

Another idea for your students: Br. Gerald Muller, my beloved music teacher from St. Edward’s University in Austin, Texas, has been writing books for young adults in his retirement – and they are free! There is a volume of biographies of painters and musicians called Gentle Giants, and an excellent biography of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., too. They are also a good way to help you improve your English – that’s how I worked on my French, reading books that were meant for young readers – and I guarantee you, it’s a good method for improving your language skills. To get Br. Gerald’s free books, click here.

Independent RFI English Clubs: Be sure to always include Audrey Iattoni (audrey.iattoni@rfi.fr) from our Listener Relations department in your RFI Club correspondence. Remember to copy me (thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr) when you write to her so that I know what is going on, too. N.B.: You do not need to send her your quiz answers! Email overload!

This week’s quiz: On 24 February, I asked you to listen to the Spotlight on France podcast 106 – Alison Hird did a story on French girls and mathematics, and how they are not doing well in the subject – in fact, they’re failing maths at an astonishing rate.

As Alison noted, the reasons for girls not doing as well in maths as boys are multitudinous, most having to do with taught gender roles – but also because there are so few role models.

She cited a recent but rare type of film about a young Frenchwoman working on her doctorate in mathematics, in a film that made it to Cannes. You were to write in with the name of that film.

The answer is: The name of the film is Marguerite’s Theorem. It’s about a brilliant young female mathematician; she’s the only girl in a class of boys. A French-Swiss film co-written and directed by Anna Novion, and starring Ella Rumpf as Marguerite Hoffmann, it was featured at the 76th Cannes Film Festival in 2023.

In addition to the quiz question, there was the bonus question, suggested by Kashif Khalil from Faisalabad, Pakistan: “What human quality, or characteristic, do you think is necessary to equip you to live a full and honest life?”

Do you have a bonus question idea? Send it to us!

The winners are: RFI Listeners Club member Helmut Matt from Herbolzheim, Germany. Helmut is also the winner of this week’s bonus question. Congratulations, Helmut!

Also on the list of lucky winners this week are Ferhat Bezazel, the president of the RFI Butterflies Club, Ain Kechera in West Skikda, Algeria; Hasina Zaman Hasi, a member of the RFI Amour Fan Club in Rajshahi, Bangladesh; RFI Listeners Club members Anju Regmi from Biratnagar, Nepal; Zenon Teles, the president of the Christian – Marxist – Leninist – Maoist Association of Listening DX-ers in Goa, India, and RFI English listener Sima Paul from West Bengal, India.

Congratulations winners!

Here’s the music you heard on this week’s program: “Monta Re” by Amit Trivedi and Amitabah Bhattacharya, performed by the Hamelin Instrumental Band; The minuets I and II from French Suite No. 1 in d minor, BWV 812 by Johann Sebastian Bach, performed by Murray Perahia; “The Flight of the Bumblebee” by Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov; “The Cakewalk” from Children’s Corner by Claude Debussy, performed by the composer, and the traditional “El Suïcidi i el Cant”, arranged by Marta Torrella and Helena Ros, and performed by Tarta Relena. 

Do you have a music request? Send it to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr

This week’s question … you must listen to the show to participate. After you’ve listened to the show, re-read Paul Myers’ article “History of Olympic gold, silver and bronze glitters in Paris museum”, which will help you with the answer.

You have until 6 May to enter this week’s quiz; the winners will be announced on the 10 May podcast. When you enter, be sure you send your postal address with your answer, and if you have one, your RFI Listeners Club membership number.

Send your answers to:

english.service@rfi.fr

or

Susan Owensby

RFI – The Sound Kitchen

80, rue Camille Desmoulins

92130 Issy-les-Moulineaux

France

or

By text … You can also send your quiz answers to The Sound Kitchen mobile phone. Dial your country’s international access code, or “ + ”, then  33 6 31 12 96 82. Don’t forget to include your mailing address in your text – and if you have one, your RFI Listeners Club membership number.

To find out how you can win a special Sound Kitchen prize, click here.

To find out how you can become a member of the RFI Listeners Club,orform your own official RFI Club, click here. 

Turkey’s main opposition CHP (Republican People’s Party) gains in nationwide local elections are a significant reversal of the party’s fortunes after Erdogan’s resounding reelection last May.

“After the opposition’s loss in the May elections, everybody thought the opposition was in a state of despair,” explains Can Selcuki, head of Istanbul polling firm Economics Research.

“But that doesn’t seem to be the case, and it’s a turning point for the Turkish political landscape.

“It’s the first time since 1977 that CHP has managed to come out number one in the popular vote.”

Threat of authoritarianism

With much of the media under his control and the judiciary targeting dissent, critics claim Erdogan’s grip on power is tightening.

Addressing supporters on election night Ekrem Imamoglu, the re-elected CHP mayor for Istanbul who Erdogan personally tried to unseat, claimed his victory was a stand against the global threat of authoritarianism.

“Today is a pivotal moment not only for Istanbul, but for democracy itself. As we celebrate our victory, we send a message that will reverberate worldwide,” Imamoglu told thousands of jubilant supporters.

“Democracy’s decline is now ending,” continued the mayor, “Istanbul stands as a beacon of hope, a testament to the resilience of democratic values in the face of growing authoritarianism.”

• Deepfake videos used in local elections in Turkey as Erdogan battles for Istanbul
• Turkey’s embattled civil society fears worst as foreign funding dries u
• Prosecutor seeks prison terms for alleged PKK members on trial in Paris

Muted reactions

Despite this,Turkey’s Western allies’ response to the CHP’s resounding victory was muted.

“There were no congratulations extended, even to Turkey’s democracy, let alone to the opposition itself,” Sezin Oney, a commentator for Turkey’s Politikyol news portal, said.

“[This] is a big contrast compared to the May elections because right after the May elections, the Western leaders, one after the other, extended their congratulations to Erdogan.

“So there is a recognition that Erdogan is here to stay, and they don’t want to make him cross. And given that there is the Ukraine war on one side and the Gaza war on the other, they want a stable Turkey.”

Turkey’s location, bordering the Middle East and Russia, makes Ankara a critical ally for Europe and the United States in international efforts to control migration and contain Russia.

Ahead of the March polls, Erdogan had been engaged in rapprochement with his Western allies, with Washington even inviting the Turkish President for a summit in May.

However, Erdogan could still pose a headache to his Western allies as he ramps up his nationalist rhetoric in the aftermath of his defeat.

“We are determined to show that terrorism has no place in the future of Türkiye and the region,” Erdogan said Thursday. “With the recent elections, this determination has been further strengthened.”

Massive military offensive

Meanwhile, Erdogan has warned that his army is poised to launch a massive military offensive into Northern Iraq and Syria against the Kurdish group PKK, including affiliates that work with American forces in fighting the Islamic State.

A crackdown on the PKK, analysts say, will play well with conservative nationalist voters. Those voters were the ones with which the opposition scored its biggest successes in Central Turkey – a region known as Anatolia – for the first time in a generation.

“CHP has never been successful in those places before. These are places that are considered to be religiously conservative, or at least conservative,” Istar Gozaydin, a Turkish religion and state relations expert at Istanbul’s Istinye University, said.

“And that’s also valid for Central Anatolia. Central Anatolia is usually much more nationalist and much more religiously sensitive, but for the first time, they’ve been successful.”

It is not the first time Erdogan has sought to play the nationalist card. After the 2015 general election in which the president’s AK Party lost its parliamentary majority, Erdogan launched military operations against the PKK across Turkey’s predominantly Kurdish region, leveling many city centres.

Erdogan’s action resulted in his AK Party taking power in a second election later that year.

Fix the economy

“I’m sure there’s a temptation,” said analyst Can Selcuki, “but the facts on the ground do not allow it. Erdogan needs to fix the economy.”

Turkey’s near 70% inflation and 50% interest rates, were widely seen as key factors in AK Party’s defeat. But analyst Sezin Oney of Turkey’s Politikyol news portal says a new conflict could change the political rules of the game.

“The economy is a concern, but there is a war psyche, then he [Erdogan] might be propagating,” Oney added..

Some Turkish analysts say the opposition victory will be viewed privately as inconvenient by some of Turkey’s Western allies coming at a time of growing cooperation with Erdogan, with the fear now that Erdogan’s resounding defeat could make the Turkish leader unpredictable at a critical time in both the Middle East and Russia’s war with Ukraine.

Hello everyone! Welcome to The Sound Kitchen weekly podcast, published every Saturday – here on our website, or wherever you get your podcasts. You’ll hear the winner’s names announced and the week’s quiz question, along with all the other ingredients you’ve grown accustomed to: your letters and essays, “On This Day”, quirky facts and news, interviews, and great music … so be sure and listen every week.

Erwan and I are busy cooking up special shows with your music requests, so get them in! Send your music requests to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr  Tell us why you like the piece of music, too – it makes it more interesting for us all!

Facebook News: There’s a “new and improved” Facebook page for you, the RFI English Listeners Forum. 

It’s for everyone who reads and listens to us and wants to connect with others, so ask to join, and I’ll sign you up!

The RFI Listeners Club page and the RFI English Clubs page no longer exist; if you belonged to the RFI English Clubs page and not the RFI Listeners Club page, you’ll need to ask to join. I promise I won’t click “Decline” 😊 

Here’s your job: send me your photos for the banner! Send them to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr

More tech news: Did you know we have a YouTube channel? Just go to YouTube and write RFI English in the search bar, and there we are! Be sure and subscribe to see all our videos, and Erwan has even made a weekly Sound Kitchen promo for you to hear. Don’t miss out!

Would you like to learn French? RFI is here to help you!

Our website “Le Français facile avec rfi”  has news broadcasts in slow, simple French, as well as bi-lingual radio dramas (with real actors!) and exercises to practice what you have heard.

Go to our website and get started! At the top of the page, click on “Test level”. According to your score, you’ll be counselled to the best-suited activities for your level.

Do not give up! As Lidwien van Dixhoorn, the head of “Le Français facile” service told me: “Bathe your ears in the sound of the language, and eventually, you’ll get it”. She should know – Lidwien is Dutch and came to France hardly able to say “bonjour” and now she heads this key RFI department – so stick with it!

Be sure you check out our wonderful podcasts!

In addition to the breaking news articles on our site with in-depth analysis of current affairs in France and across the globe, we have several podcasts that will leave you hungry for more.

There’s Paris Perspective, Spotlight on France, and of course, The Sound Kitchen. We have an award-winning bilingual series – an old-time radio show, with actors (!) to help you learn French, called Les voisins du 12 bis. And there is the excellent International Report, too.

As you see, sound is still quite present in the RFI English service. Keep checking our website for updates on the latest from our staff of journalists. You never know what we’ll surprise you with!

To listen to our podcasts from your PC, go to our website; you’ll see “Podcasts” at the top of the page. You can either listen directly or subscribe and receive them directly on your mobile phone.

To listen to our podcasts from your mobile phone, slide through the tabs just under the lead article (the first tab is “Headline News”) until you see “Podcasts”, and choose your show. 

Teachers, take note!  I save postcards and stamps from all over the world to send to you for your students. If you would like stamps and postcards for your students, just write and let me know. The address is english.service@rfi.fr  If you would like to donate stamps and postcards, feel free! Our address is listed below. 

Another idea for your students: Br. Gerald Muller, my beloved music teacher from St. Edward’s University in Austin, Texas, has been writing books for young adults in his retirement – and they are free! There is a volume of biographies of painters and musicians called Gentle Giants, and an excellent biography of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., too. They are also a good way to help you improve your English – that’s how I worked on my French, reading books that were meant for young readers – and I guarantee you, it’s a good method for improving your language skills. To get Br. Gerald’s free books, click here.

Independent RFI English Clubs: Be sure to always include Audrey Iattoni (audrey.iattoni@rfi.fr) from our Listener Relations department in your RFI Club correspondence. Remember to copy me (thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr) when you write to her so that I know what is going on, too. N.B.: You do not need to send her your quiz answers! Email overload!

This week’s quiz: On 17 February, I asked you a question about Paul Myers’ final article on the Africa Cup of Nations, which he had been covering for us for a month in Côte d’Ivoire. Côte d’Ivoire won their third “continental crown”, as Paul put it – they beat Nigeria 2-1 in the final.

You were to send in the answer to this question: “What is the name of the Côte d’Ivoire player who was the first to hold the Africa Cup of Nations 2023 trophy?”

The answer is: Max Gradel. As Paul wrote in his article: “It was also a nice touch to allow Max Gradel – the oldest player in the Cote d’Ivoire squad – the honour of being the first player to hoist the 2023 Cup of Nations trophy.”

In addition to the quiz question, there was the bonus question, suggested by Debashis Gope from West Bengal, India: “What are you doing to prevent climate change?” 

Do you have a bonus question idea? Send it to us!

The winners are: Hari Madugula, the president of the Young Stars Radio Club in Hyderabad, India. Hari is also the winner of this week’s bonus question. Congratulations, Hari!

Also on the list of lucky winners this week is Kolimuddin, a member of the RFI International DX Radio Listeners Club in West Bengal, India, and RFI English listeners Bidhan Chandra Sanyal, also from West Bengal; Faiza Zainab, a member of the International Radio Fan and Youth Club in Khanewal, Pakistan, and Tara Regmi from Biratnagar, Nepal.  

Congratulations winners!

Here’s the music you heard on this week’s program: “Joy” by Avishai Cohen, performed by the Avishai Cohen Trio; “Smoking Guns” by Steve Shehan, performed by Steve Shehan and Friends; “The Flight of the Bumblebee” by Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov; “The Cakewalk” from Children’s Corner by Claude Debussy, performed by the composer, and “Setembro” by Gilson Peranzzetta and Ivan Lins, performed by the Ivan Lins Orchestra.

Do you have a music request? Send it to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr

This week’s question … you must listen to the show to participate. After you’ve listened to the show, re-read our article “French Foreign Minister expects ‘clear messages’ from China to Russia on Ukraine”, which will help you with the answer.

You have until 29 April to enter this week’s quiz; the winners will be announced on the 4 May podcast. When you enter, be sure you send your postal address with your answer, and if you have one, your RFI Listeners Club membership number.

Send your answers to:

english.service@rfi.fr

or

Susan Owensby

RFI – The Sound Kitchen

80, rue Camille Desmoulins

92130 Issy-les-Moulineaux

France

or

By text … You can also send your quiz answers to The Sound Kitchen mobile phone. Dial your country’s international access code, or “ + ”, then  33 6 31 12 96 82. Don’t forget to include your mailing address in your text – and if you have one, your RFI Listeners Club membership number.

To find out how you can win a special Sound Kitchen prize, click here.

To find out how you can become a member of the RFI Listeners Club,orform your own official RFI Club, click here. 

Hello everyone! Welcome to The Sound Kitchen weekly podcast, published every Saturday – here on our website, or wherever you get your podcasts. You’ll hear the winner’s names announced and the week’s quiz question, along with all the other ingredients you’ve grown accustomed to: your letters and essays, “On This Day”, quirky facts and news, interviews, and great music… so be sure and listen every week.

Erwan and I are busy cooking up special shows with your music requests, so get them in! Send your music requests to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr  Tell us why you like the piece of music, too – it makes it more interesting for us all!

Would you like to learn French? RFI is here to help you!

Our website “Le Français facile avec RFI”  has news broadcasts in slow, simple French, as well as bi-lingual radio dramas (with real actors!) and exercises to practice what you have heard.

Go to our website and get started! At the top of the page, click on “Test level”. According to your score, you’ll be counseled to the best-suited activities for your level.

Do not give up! As Lidwien van Dixhoorn, the head of “Le Français facile” service told me: “Bathe your ears in the sound of the language, and eventually, you’ll get it”. She should know – Lidwien is Dutch and came to France hardly able to say “bonjour” and now she heads this key RFI department – so stick with it!

Be sure you check out our wonderful podcasts!

In addition to the breaking news articles on our site, with in-depth analysis of current affairs in France and across the globe, we have several podcasts that will leave you hungry for more.

There’s Paris Perspective, Spotlight on France, and of course, The Sound Kitchen. We have an award-winning bilingual series – an old-time radio show, with actors (!) to help you learn French, called Les voisins du 12 bis. And there is the excellent International Report, too.

As you see, sound is still quite present in the RFI English service. Keep checking our website for updates on the latest from our team of journalists. You never know what we’ll surprise you with!

To listen to our podcasts from your PC, go to our website; you’ll see “Podcasts” at the top of the page. You can either listen directly or subscribe and receive them directly on your mobile phone.

To listen to our podcasts from your mobile phone, slide through the tabs just under the lead article (the first tab is “Headline News”) until you see “Podcasts”, and choose your show. 

Teachers, take note! I save postcards and stamps from all over the world to send to you for your students. If you would like stamps and postcards for your students, just write and let me know. The address is english.service@rfi.fr  If you would like to donate stamps and postcards, feel free! Our address is listed below. 

Another idea for your students: Br. Gerald Muller, my beloved music teacher from St. Edward’s University in Austin, Texas, has been writing books for young adults in his retirement – and they are free! There is a volume of biographies of painters and musicians called Gentle Giants, and an excellent biography of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., too. They are also a good way to help you improve your English – that’s how I worked on my French, reading books which were meant for young readers – and I guarantee you, it’s a good method for improving your language skills. To get Br. Gerald’s free books, click here. 

Independent RFI English Clubs: Be sure to always include Audrey Iattoni (audrey.iattoni@rfi.fr) from our Listener Relations department in all your RFI Club correspondence. Remember to copy me (thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr) when you write to her so that I know what is going on, too. NB: You do not need to send her your quiz answers! Email overload!

We have a new RFI Listeners Club member to welcome: Orlando Teamah from Monrovia, Liberia.

Welcome Orlando! So glad you have joined us!

This week’s quiz: On 3 February, I asked you a question about the French farmers and their political action campaign – which has not cooled off. You were to re-read our article “France seeks change to EU nature laws in bid to appease farmers” and answer this question: in which other European countries are farmers striking?

The answer is, to quote our article: “While farmers in Germany, the Netherlands, Romania and Belgium have also taken to the streets, those in France – Europe’s largest agriculture producer – complain they are being further penalised by restrictions on pesticides that are harsher than in neighbouring countries.”

Farmers in other countries than those above have been striking, too – Hans Verner Lollike noted that Denmark’s farmers were, but that there was too much snow for them to drive their tractors to the capitol or block roads!

In addition to the quiz question, there was the bonus question, suggested by Rodrigo Hunrichse from Ciudad de Concepción in Chile: “For you, which age is the best? Childhood? Teenager? Young Adult? Adult? Middle Age? Senior? Old Age? Why?” 

Do you have a bonus question idea? Send it to us! 

The winners are: RFI Listeners Club member Nasyr Muhammad from Katsina State, Nigeria. Nasyr is also this week’s bonus question winner. Congratulations, Nasyr!

Also on the list of lucky winners this week are Saleem Akhtar Chadhar, the president of the RFI Seven Stars Radio Listeners Club in District Chiniot, Pakistan, and Nuraiz Bin Zaman, who’s a member of the RFI Amour Fan Club in Rajshahi, Bangladesh.

There’s also RFI Listeners Club member Habib ur Rehman Sehal, who is also the president of the International Radio Fan and Youth Club in Khanewal, Pakistan.  Last but not least, RFI English listener Adiba Ava, from Munshiganj, Bangladesh.  

Congratulations winners!

Here’s the music you heard on this week’s programme: The “Prelude” to the Partita for Violin Solo No. 3 in E, BWV 1006 by Johann Sebastien Bach, performed by Philippe Honoré; “Take me home, country roads” by John Denver, arranged by Graham Byrd; “The Flight of the Bumblebee” by Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov; “The Cakewalk” from Children’s Corner by Claude Debussy, performed by the composer; “Happy” by Pharrell Williams, and “Hommage aux Chanteuses Kabyles Anciennes” by Ferroudja Saidani, performed by Saidani and her ensemble.

This week’s question … you must listen to the show to participate. After you’ve listened to the show, re-read our article “Scaled-back opening ceremony for Paris Olympics to offer 326,000 tickets” which will help you with the answer.

You have until 1 April to enter this week’s quiz; the winners will be announced on the 6 April podcast. When you enter, be sure you send your postal address with your answer, and if you have one, your RFI Listeners Club membership number.

Send your answers to:

english.service@rfi.fr

or

Susan Owensby

RFI – The Sound Kitchen

80, rue Camille Desmoulins

92130 Issy-les-Moulineaux

France

or

By text … You can also send your quiz answers to The Sound Kitchen mobile phone. Dial your country’s international access code, or “ + ”, then  33 6 31 12 96 82. Don’t forget to include your mailing address in your text – and if you have one, your RFI Listeners Club membership number.

To find out how you can win a special Sound Kitchen prize, click here.

To find out how you can become a member of the RFI Listeners Club, or form your own official RFI Club, click here. 

Hello everyone! Welcome to The Sound Kitchen weekly podcast, published every Saturday. This week, you’ll hear about a European “cook-off”: 20 young chefs from Europe compete for the chance to make it to the international finals of the cooking competition founded by the beloved French chef, Paul Bocuse. 

The quiz will be back next Saturday, 6 April. Be sure and tune in! 

Madhya Pradesh is often referred to as the Heart of India. Located right in the middle of the country, the Indian region shows everything India has to offer through its abundant diversity. The IFTM trade show, which took place in Paris at the end of September, presented the perfect opportunity for travel enthusiasts to discover the region.

Sheo Shekhar Shukla, Managing Director of Madhya Pradesh’s tourism board, sat down to explain his approach to sustainable tourism.

“Post-covid the whole world has known a shift in their approach when it comes to tourism. And all those discerning travelers want to have different kinds of experiences: something offbeat, something new, something which has not been explored before.”

Through its UNESCO World Heritage Sites, Shukla wants to showcase the deep history Madhya Pradesh has to offer.

“UNESCO is very actively supporting us and three of our sites are already World Heritage Sites. Sanchi is a very famous buddhist spiritual destination, Bhimbetka is a place where prehistoric rock shelters are still preserved, and Khajuraho is home to thousand year old temples with magnificent architecture.”

All in all, Shukla believes that there’s only one way forward for the industry: “Travelers must take sustainable tourism as a paradigm in order to take tourism to the next level.”

In partnership with Madhya Pradesh’s tourism board.

Also known as the Land of the Beautiful Islands, Malaysia’s landscape and cultural diversity is almost unmatched on the planet. Those qualities were all put on display at the Malaysian stand during the IFTM trade show.

Libra Hanif, director of Tourism Malaysia, explained the appeal of the country as well as the importance of promoting sustainable tourism today: “Sustainable travel is a major trend now, with the changes that are happening post-covid. People want to get close to nature, to get close to people. So Malaysia being a multicultural and diverse [country] with a lot of natural environments, we felt that it’s a good thing for us to promote Malaysia.”

Malaysia has also gained fame in recent years, through its numerous UNESCO World Heritage Sites, which include Kinabalu Park and the Archaeological Heritage of the Lenggong Valley.

Green mobility has also become an integral part of tourism in Malaysia, with an increasing number of people using bikes to discover the country: “If you are a little more adventurous, we have the mountain back trails where you can cut across gazetted trails to see the natural attractions and the wildlife that we have in Malaysia,” says Hanif. “If you are not that adventurous, you’ll be looking for relaxing cycling. We also have countryside spots, where you can see all the scenery in a relaxing session.”

With more than 25,000 visitors at this IFTM trade show this year, Malaysia’s tourism board got to showcase the best the country and its people have to offer.

In partnership with Malaysia Tourism Promotion Board. For more information about Malaysia, click here.