The pair – the first ministers from the EU to travel to the Syrian capital since al-Sharaa’s forces seized control on 8 December – held talks with the Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) chief at the People’s Palace in Damascus on Friday.

Baerbock said she and Barrot had made clear that Europe would support a new Syria. “But Europe will not be a financier of Islamist structures,” she added.

HTS remains for many western governments part of the international terrorist network even though it has tried to renounce its affiliations with al-Qaida.

Baerbock said all Syrians — regardless of ethnic or religious group — must have a place in the political process as well as rights and protection.

“I have heard from Syrians often that women’s rights are a yardstick for the future for everyone in a free society,” Baerbock said. “Not only us but many Syrians will therefore judge the new rulers by their actions.

“Germany wants to help Syria become a safe home for all its people and a functioning state, with full control over its territory.”

Before meeting al-Sharaa, Barrot called for the destruction of the chemical weapons stockpiles built up by Assad’s regime. He also urged a political solution with the Kurds in the north of the country.

Despite the list of suggestions, Baerbock and Barrot were at pains to highlight what Baerbock hailed as a political new beginning for Syria and Europe after insurgents swept through the country to topple Assad.

Opening

On Saturday, the Syrian news agency SANA reported the reopening of Damascus airport.

Quoting Achhad Al-Salibi, head of Syria’s Civil Aviation and Air Transport Authority, it said international flights to and from Damascus would resume on Tuesday.

Commercial services were suspended following the HTS takeover of power following 13 years of civil war.

More than 500,000 people are estimated to have died during the conflict which aslso left millions displaced.

The new authorities have asked for sanctions imposed on Syria under Assad to be lifted so that reconstruction can begin. That request is likely to be agreed as diplomatic missions return to the capital.

Syrian asylum seekers in limbo as European countries suspend claims

On Friday, Barrot said the French government would start the process for the formal return of the French embassy in Damascus.

“In the coming weeks, depending on how security conditions evolve, we will gradually prepare the arrangements for re-establishing the French presence here in Damascus,” he said.

A fragile transition

Speaking at the French embassy compound, Barrot added: “A little less than a month ago, new hope was born thanks to the mobilisation of Syrians. It was the hope of a sovereign, stable and peaceful Syria

 “It is a real hope, but it is a fragile hope.”

(with newswires)

President Emmanuel Macron announced plans in 2020 for a House of Press Cartoons during his New Year’s address to the nation.

But the proposals to open the collection in 2022 were held up due to the coronavirus pandemic.

And as France prepares to mark 10 years since terror attacks targeting satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo and a Jewish supermarket left 17 people dead in Paris, Dati said on social media that the idea proposed by one of the victims in the slaughter would see the light of day in 2027.

“Press cartoons are an elaborate and precious form of democratic impertinence that we must defend,” Dati added. “In 2025, the commitment made by the President of the Republic will be kept.”

Georges Wolinski, who had been advocating a similar museum since 2007, was among the 11 people who were murdered when brothers Chérif and Saïd Kouachi attacked the offices of Charlie Hebdo in Paris on 7 January 2015.

A 12th person was killed as the duo made their getaway. A day later, Amedy Coulibaly killed a policewoman in Montrouge to the south of Paris and on 9 January shot dead four hostages at a Jewish supermarket in Porte de Vincennes, eastern Paris. The three men, who died in shoot-outs with police, claimed allegiance to terrorist organisations. 

The Kouachis said they carried out a revenge assault after the magazine published cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed. 

In September 2021, a few months before her death, Wolinski’s widow, Maryse, and six other cartoonists including survivors of the attack, called on Macron to honour his promise.

Dati said on Saturday she would submit architectural plans to her officials. “Work will then begin,” she added. “Under my authority, the Ministry of Culture will oversee the project and its financing. The aim is to open to the public in 2027.

“This house of press cartoons will be a place of remembrance for those who fell in the service of freedom of expression, freedom to draw, freedom to caricature. It’s up to us not to forget them.”

As part of the events to commemorate the attacks, Charlie Hebdo will release a special double issue on Tuesday featuring results of a competition asking readers to draw God, alongside a poll on French attitudes to religious caricatures, blasphemy and free speech.

The National Audiovisual Institute (INA) is also showcasing archival footage of the events online.

Legacy of provocation

Since its founding in 1970, Charlie Hebdo has been known for pushing the boundaries of free speech, often attracting censure for its provocative tone.

Critics accuse the magazine of Islamophobia, pointing to caricatures of the Prophet Mohammed that some argue associate Islam with terrorism.

Free speech defenders in France regard the ability to criticise and ridicule religion as a fundamental right acquired through centuries of struggle to reduce the influence of the Catholic Church.

In December 2020, 14 people were convicted for helping the Kouachi brothers and Coulibaly plan and carry out the attacks.

At the picture-perfect beach of La Perle, in the north of the French overseas region of Guadeloupe, authorities have a two-year plan to remove some of the palm trees that fringe its turquoise waters – and replace them with native species with roots that will better stem coastal erosion.

“The coconut palm is an exotic species,” explained Julien Lorthios, from the French Office of Biodiversity (OFB).

It does not have the same capacity as some endemic species to put down deep roots, as even tall palms have a tiny root system, spreading less than one square metre from the base of the trunk. This means they cannot fix sand in place to stop it being washing away by powerful waves, according to Guadeloupe’s department of the environment.

Lorthios recommends, along with other experts, replanting more endemic species in order to slow down coastal erosion – a natural phenomenon which is accelerating with climate change.

Coral threatened by chemicals, including several in sunscreen, French study confirms

Palm disease

Native species may also be more resilient to a disease called lethal yellowing, which is ravaging the exotic coconut palm.

“The disease is spread by a tiny insect that looks like a cicada,” explains Fabian Pilet of the French Agricultural Research Centre for International Development (CIRAD).

Lethal yellowing is highly contagious and requires the immediate removal of the palm tree to prevent contamination. “It’s curtains for the palm the minute the first symptoms appear,” added Pilet.

French overseas territory Guadeloupe declares dengue epidemic

Coconut palms in other countries have also been decimated by the disease, including in the Caribbean island of Jamaica in the 1980s.

So far, nine cases have been identified in Guadeloupe, in various parts of the archipelago and on several types of palm trees.

Role in tourism 

“We don’t know how to cure or control the disease, but we can mitigate its effects by replanting, for every tree that is cut down,” said Pilet.

The effects of the disease on Guadeloupe’s coconut palms has not yet raised major concerns among French authorities. The coconut industry in the region remains entirely informal, although it plays a role in attracting tourism, with vendors selling fresh coconut water by the roadside.

Maison Gaston, the virtual art gallery promoting Caribbean creativity

(with newswires)

In a historic year for democracy – with elections taking place in more than 50 countries around the world in 2024, bringing more than 1.5 billion people to the polls – the African continent was no exception. 

With 18 elections taking place, including Senegal’s in March, South Africa’s in May, Algeria’s and Tunisia’s in September and October respectively, and Ghana’s in December, some regions, particularly in West Africa, saw significant progress through democracy, while others still face significant challenges.

Lessons from West Africa

Political scientist Mathias Hounkpe is the co-author of a comparative analysis of electoral commissions in West Africa, which saw elections in Senegal and Ghana this year. 

According to Hounkpe, both set examples of well-run and effective polls. 

“In Senegal, the results reflect the ability of the institutions in the countries concerned to perform their roles properly, as well as the citizens’ ability to organise themselves to protect democracy and safeguard the elections,” he told RFI.

Having been delayed by former president Macky Sall, the presidential election held in March saw Bassirou Diomaye Faye elected with 54 percent of the vote. The ruling Pastef party then managed a landslide majority in snap parliamentary elections in November.

Senegal ruling party wins parliamentary majority, paving way for reforms

In Ghana in December, the presidential election marked the return to power of former president John Mahama.

“I believe that Ghana could be an example for the entire sub-region,” Hounkpe said. “It is the country where the electoral commission makes significant efforts to earn the trust of the citizens.”

He added: “The loser conceded victory based on the results collected by the party itself. They didn’t even wait for the provisional results to be announced by the commission. It was based on the results they gathered themselves. So, for me, it’s a lesson for political parties in the sub-region.”

Ghana’s former president Mahama wins election after ruling party concedes defeat

Alternance in South Africa and Botswana

As in Ghana and Senegal, in November Botswana’s President Mokgweetsi Masisi peacefully conceded defeat after preliminary results showed his ruling Botswana Democratic Party had lost its parliamentary majority, having been in power since the country’s independence in 1966.

The opposition Umbrella for Democratic Change party garnered more than half of the parliamentary seats, with its leader Duma Boko becoming the new president.

Masisi concedes defeat in Botswana’s presidential election

Its neighbour to the south saw the African National Congress lose its majority for the first time since the end of apartheid 30 years ago, in South Africa’s 29 May vote.

While it remains the country’s largest party, controlling 159 of the 400 seats in the new National Assembly, it agreed to form a coalition with its main opposition, the Democratic Alliance – all achieved peacefully.

Ramaphosa re-elected as South African leader after historic coalition deal

South Africa also took over the rotating presidency of the G20 and will host its summit in November 2025 before handing over to the United States – the first time an African nation has held the role.

Somaliland’s success

While the Horn of Africa region continues to grapple with insecurity and the conflict in Ethiopia and Somalia, a presidential election was held in November in Somaliland, the breakaway region of Somalia, following weeks of uncertainty.

The results saw the leader of the opposition, Mohamed Abdullahi of the Waddani party, also known as “Cirro”, secure the presidency with 64 percent of the vote, defeating the incumbent candidate, Muse Bihi.

Somaliland, on the northwest point of Somalia, unilaterally declared independence in 1991 and has been notably more stable than the rest of the country since then.

Its latest election result represented peaceful political alternance for the sixth time in a row, attracting praise from political analysts and renewing hope for international recognition.

With a new president, Somaliland seeks international recognition

Human rights in North Africa

However, other parts of the continent saw less success in terms of democracy.

In Algeria and Tunisia, re-elected Presidents Tebboune and Saied received 95 and 89 percent of the votes respectively – amid low turnout in both countries.

If Algeria has enjoyed economic and social stability over the past decade, human rights organisations including Amnesty have warned of a decrease in freedom of expression, assembly and religion, and women’s, workers’ and LGBT people’s rights.

In Tunisia, both the economy and the democracy have been weakened, and the country has cracked down on citizens’ rights to dissent, free speech and peaceful protest.

Algeria heads to polls: Tebboune favoured amid rights concerns

Mozambique’s deadlock

The highest court in Mozambique on 23 December confirmed the disputed election results of 9 October that extended the Frelimo party’s 50-year grip on power, and have thrown the country in chaos.

For the three months since the poll, the country has seen unprecedented protests and violent clashes. Frelimo leader Daniel Chapo’s main challenger, exiled opposition leader Venancio Mondlane, maintains that the election was rigged.

Mozambique post-election violence kills 125 in three days, NGO says

Postponed polls

Malians were due to vote in February 2024, in an election that had been postponed from July 2022, but the country’s military junta, which seized power in a coup in 2021, postponed the vote again “for technical reasons”.

Alexandre Didier Amani, from the NGO Tournons La Page, says the Sahel region has seen widespread regression since the coups that ousted the governments of Mali, Niger and Burkina Faso – now united in a confederation under the label the Alliance of Sahel States.

He told RFI: “The closure of civic spaces, silencing of voices and also abductions. We can see that there is a real regression in democracy.”

Ecowas bloc extends six-month grace period for departing Sahel states

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.

Here’s the music you heard on this week’s program: “Be Our Guest” by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman; “Auld Lang Syne”, performed by the Glenn Miller Orch, and “New Year Resolution” by M. Cross, R. Catron, and W. Parker, performed by Otis Redding and Carla Thomas.

The quiz will be back next Saturday, 11 January, with the answer to the question about the legislative elections in Senegal. Be sure and tune in! 

Since 1980, tropical cyclones – also commonly known as hurricanes and typhoons – have been occurring at an average of 47 per year, according to global data coordinated by the United States National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and recognised by the World Meteorological Organization (WMO).

But while the frequency of these storms has remained relatively steady, new findings show that their intensity is increasing.

Data comparing the period from 1981 to 2010 with the last decade reveals a rise in the average maximum wind speed of cyclones, from 182kph to 192kph – a 5 percent increase.

Previously, around one in 10 tropical cyclones surpassed 250kph, but that figure has increased to 1.4 in 10 over the past decade – representing a 40 percent rise in the number of category five cyclones on the Saffir-Simpson scale.

Storms, floods and fires: Have planetary conditions really become more extreme?

Climate change

These figures support the conclusions of the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), which has warned that climate change is likely to increase the frequency of the most destructive cyclones, particularly categories four and five.

“If one can assume climate change is responsible for these trends, make no mistake, the humanitarian catastrophes generated by cyclones are largely due to poverty, vulnerability and a lack of protection for the affected populations,” Robert Vautard, climatologist and IPCC official, told French news agency AFP.

‘Dangerous new era’: climate change spurs disaster in 2024

In 2024, up to 15 December, there were 42 tropical cyclones, including 19 that made landfall.

The most powerful of the year was Hurricane Milton, which hit the US coast on 10 October, with wind speeds reaching 278kph.

The West Pacific was the hardest-hit region, enduring 15 typhoons – six in the Philippines alone.

On 16 December, Cyclone Chido hit the French territory of Mayotte in the Indian Ocean.

The latest official death toll – given by authorities on 24 December – was 39, with 124 people seriously injured and more than 4,000 slightly injured.

Cyclone-hit Mayotte reopens airport but displaced families remain in limbo

(with AFP)

When France’s top flight paused on 18 December, Nice lay in sixth spot with 24 points from 15 games. Rennes were further down the food chain in 12th with 17 points – four points from the relegation places to Ligue 2.

Nice’s 3-2 victory at the Allianz Riviera took them up to fourth to keep Franck Haise’s men in the mix for one of the spots in next season’s European competitions. 

“The break has been good for everyone,” said Haise on the eve of the game.

Three Ligue 1 games take place on Saturday and four more on Sunday, including second-placed Marseille’s match against second from bottom Le Havre.

Marseille will be expected to beat a team who lost five of their seven matches on the road before the Christmas break.

Should they take all three points they will move to within seven of Ligue 1 pacesetters PSG, who beat Monaco 4-2 in Ligue 1 just before Christmas.

Just over a fortnight on from the match at the Stade Louis II in Monaco, the teams meet again at the 974 Stadium in Doha for a game that traditionally pits the Ligue 1 champions against the winners of the Coupe de France.

Since PSG won both trophies last season, Monaco – who came second in Ligue 1 – will play for a title known as the Super Cup in several other leading European leagues.

Lee and Mbappé on target as PSG stroll past Toulouse to lift French Super Cup

Last January, Kang-in Lee and Kylian Mbappé scored in the 2-0 win over Toulouse at the Parc des Princes to furnish PSG with the 2024 Trophée des Champions  – a record 12th success in a competition played in various guises since 1949.

It was also the first trophy for Luis Enrique, who took over at PSG in July 2023. Adding Ligue 1 and the Coupe de France gave the Spaniard a domestic clean sweep.

A fourth success would come at the start of a month in which PSG will play seven matches in Ligue 1, the Champions League and the Coupe de France.

“We’ve obviously been looking at the last game against Monaco,” Enrique told PSG TV. “It is marvellous that we will play so many games. The more matches the better. That means we are alive in many competitions.”

New PSG boss Enrique vows to put youth and offence at centre of vision for glory

PSG resume their Ligue 1 campaign on 12 January with a home game against Saint Etienne. A Coupe de France tie against fifth-tier Espaly follows three days later, before another Ligue 1 match at Lens.

This will be followed by a clash in the group stages of the Champions League against Manchester City.

Lying 25th in the 36-team league, PSG need a victory to secure a place among the 16 teams who will feature in a two match play-off for the eight of the berths in the last 16. 

City, who won the trophy in 2023, are also scrabbling for one of those play-off places.

“Now everything is coming together,” added Enrique. “I’m looking forward to the next month.”

PSG boss Enrique embraces underdogs tag in crunch Champions League tie at Bayern

The war over so-called “conflict minerals” is more than two decades old, but the fight to prevent their exploitation by global tech companies is much newer.

In the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), various armed groups – including both Congolese army and rival armed rebel groups, among them the M23 – occupy mines and trading routes, forcing miners to work for free.

Minerals from these mines, including tungsten, tin and tantalum (often referred to as the 3Ts), have been illegally smuggled through Rwanda for several years, and eventually exported to tech companies such as Apple, Tesla and Samsung. 

But after the DRC filed criminal charges against Apple over the use of conflict minerals, there is renewed hope that this illegal mining could be brought to an end. 

A criminal complaint was filed earlier in December against Apple’s subsidiaries in France and Belgium, where the Congolese government alleges Apple uses conflict minerals laundered through international supply chains – which the American tech giant denies.

DRC files complaint against Apple over alleged illegal mineral exploitation

It is now up to judiciaries in France and Belgium, where the complaints were filed, to decide whether investigations will be initiated, which could set a legal precedent.

Public awareness

For Alex Kopp, senior campaigner on the NGO Global Witness’s transition minerals team, the case signals positive change. He told RFI that there has been some progress, at least in terms of public awareness and consensus building.

The United States, France and Belgium say they have put regulations on conflict minerals in place, and the European Union passed a regulation in May 2017 to stop conflict minerals and metals from being exported to the EU, and to prevent EU smelters and refiners from using them.

Brussels lawyer Christophe Marchand said: “These complaints filed against Apple are a matter of great public interest at a time when European countries, consumers and non-governmental organisations are increasing their scrutiny of international supply chains.”

But, Kopp added, the regulations “are not sufficiently enforced, and I don’t think they’ve had a real impact on the ground”.

He hopes the upcoming Apple trial will create awareness of the need to legislate against illegal mining, and “push the international community to take appropriate measures”.

According to the United Nations Group of Experts on the DRC, legitimate public and private players lack the resources to implement the traceability requirements necessary for access to the international market.

They say the EU strategy on mineral supply chain due diligence should include regulation, coupled with practical measures to support transparency, traceability and law enforcement in high-risk and conflict areas.

UN experts call for global system to trace critical minerals

That way, “EU companies and consumers could ensure that their purchases are promoting better governance and economic development in eastern DRC, rather than fuelling war,” according to a report co-written by Gregory Mthembu-Salter, a former consultant on conflict minerals due diligence to the UN Group of Experts.

Groundbreaking case

The DRC alleges that Apple bought contraband supplies from its conflict-racked eastern region and from Rwanda, zones in which the materials are alleged to be mined illegally before being integrated into global supply chains.

According to a statement from lawyers representing the DRC, Apple’s French and Belgian subsidiaries also deployed deceptive commercial practices in order to persuade consumers that its supply chains were clean.

Apple said in a statement that suppliers were told earlier this year to stop purchasing those minerals from the DRC and Rwanda.

Lawyers for the DRC called Apple’s statement vague, but welcomed the company’s decision to stop sourcing minerals from the region – although they added that the company’s statement about changes to its supply chain will have to be verified on the ground.

Kigali has dismissed the accusations, which the Rwandan government described as “a repetition of baseless allegations and speculation aimed at generating media interest about one of the world’s largest companies”.

“This is just the latest move by the DRC government, which constantly seeks to shift attention towards Rwanda with false accusations,” spokesperson for the Rwandan government, Yolande Makolo, told news agencies.

A wider issue

According to Kopp, Apple is not alone in these practices. “Global Witness has reported that, along with Apple, Tesla, HP, Nokia, Blackberry, Motorola, Samsung and Intel may also have sourced conflict minerals from the African Great Lakes Region.”

Outside Europe, the pressure is also mounting in the US on American companies.

In July, the US State Department issued a statement saying: “The United States remains concerned about the role that the illicit trade and exploitation of certain minerals, including artisanally and semi-industrially mined gold and tantalum, from the African Great Lakes Region continues to play in financing conflict.”

It continued: “In many cases, these minerals directly or indirectly benefit armed groups and move out of the eastern DRC through Rwanda and also to Uganda before moving to major refining and processing countries.  These supply chains facilitate illicit exploitation and taxation of these minerals, often involving acts of corruption.”

DRC’s own failings

There is also a lot the DRC’s government should do or should have done, Kopp said.

“I’m not referring now to the areas in North Kivu which are occupied by M23 and Rwandan forces, where the Congolese government has lost effective control over its territory, but to other areas in DRC where minerals have in the past been connected to armed conflict.”

According to reports from Global Witness, the Congolese army has itself often illegally profited from minerals.

“The DRC hasn’t sufficiently implement its regulation how to deal with conflict minerals. DRC officials are running the ITSCI traceability scheme through which conflict minerals have been laundered over and over again over the last decade. Congolese are often involved in smuggling minerals over the border and DRC officials do little to stop them,” Kopp told RFI.

Reports demonstrate that the Congolese authorities are in fact using this “scheme that’s meant to ensure traceability” to do quite the opposite.

“The ITSCI traceability scheme has been used to launder conflict minerals in DRC,” Kopp explains, citing evidence from the Global Witness 2022 “ITSCI Laundromat” report.

“Large amounts of minerals from unvalidated mines, including ones with militia involvement or that use child labour, enter the ITSCI supply chain and are exported, evidence suggests. ITSCI’s incident reporting frequently appears to downplay or ignore incidents that seriously compromise its supply chain,” it reads.

For the years 2023 and 2024, UN Group Expert reports appear to provide evidence for continued conflict minerals laundering, which Global Witness are in the process of verifying.

Hope for change

For William Bourdon, one of the lawyers representing DRC against Apple, it’s a case that should bring hope, tempered with caution.

“It is unprecedented for a company as powerful as Apple to publicly commit to ‘cleaning up’ the conditions of its mineral sourcing,” he told RFI.

“However, we must remain extremely vigilant. Companies sometimes make commitments that excite everyone but fail to deliver. That is why we are calling for Apple to commit to a full process of verification and transparency.”

While a number of studies have already focused on how microplastics contaminate the oceans, we know far less about the extent to which they pollute the soil.

A recent study led by the French Agency for Ecological Transition (ADEME) analysed 33 soil samples from forests, meadows, vineyards, orchards and large-scale crop areas.

Microplastics were detected in 25 of the samples, or 76 percent.

Forest soils were the least affected, with only a quarter showing contamination.

Study reveals microplastics can enter human brain through nasal pathway

Tiny particles, big problem

Microplastics are particles smaller than five millimetres, created as plastic materials break down in landfills or the natural environment.

On average, the contaminated soils contained 15 microplastic particles per kilogram of dry soil.

The study identified polyethylene and polypropylene as the most common types of microplastics.

These materials, typically found in plastic packaging, are known to disrupt hormones and may pose risks to human and environmental health.

According to ADEME, the data does not pinpoint the source of the microplastics, but suggests that “part of their origin is linked to farming practices”.

Plastic mulch, agricultural films and wastewater irrigation are among the practices that may contribute to soil contamination.

Urgent call for action

“The almost systematic presence of microplastic particles in the studied soils shows that it’s urgent to continue these studies in order to provide monitoring data for microplastic particles in the soil,” said the researchers.

They emphasised the importance of limiting soil degradation and minimising health risks.

The study’s authors also called for further research, including in urban areas and French overseas territories, to gain a clearer picture of the scale of the problem.

Cote d’Ivoire this week announced the withdrawal of French troops from the 43rd marine infantry battalion camp (BIMA) in Port-Bouët by the end of January as part of shift towards strengthening its own military forces.

“We can be proud of our army, whose modernisation is now complete,” President Alassane Ouattara said in his New Year address to the nation.  “We have therefore decided on the coordinated and organised withdrawal of French forces.”

Around 500 of the original 900 French forces are still stationed in Port-Bouët – a 10km-long coastline suburb of Abidjan that houses the international airport and autonomous port.

For the 150 shopkeepers around the 43rd BIMA craft village near the base, the withdrawal of French troops has been met with dismay. Many rely on the soldiers as their primary customers.

“When the president made the announcement, I was with my wife and I told her ‘we’re dead’,” a man by the name of Gaucher, who sells souvenirs, told RFI. “2025 is off to a very bad start for us.”

Life goes on

The craft village includes dressmakers, bicycle repairers, market gardeners, hairdressers and restaurant owners who have already seen customer numbers fall.

Restaurant owner Nadia, who also heads the shopkeepers’ association, said she is considering leaving the area.

“The clientele won’t be the same. It’ll be more difficult to sell stuff because there won’t be many people buying,” she told RFI. “Staying is going to be complicated, and without customers, it’s going to be even harder.”

Some, like Kébé, are more philosophical about the changes. A long-time resident of the area, he has seen plenty of ups and downs over the past 35 years.

“We’re bowing to the president’s decision,” he says. “As the old saying goes, there was life before BIMA, and life will go on after BIMA too.”

French hands over first military base as part of withdrawal from Chad

This article was adapted from the original version in French.

Mali’s ruling military junta this week accused its neighbour Algeria of “interference” and supporting “terrorist groups”, according to a government statement. 

The Malian Foreign Ministry said it had learned through the press of remarks made by Algerian Foreign Minister Ahmed Attaf “once again commenting on Mali’s strategy for combatting terrorism”.

The statement did not reproduce the comments attributed to Attaf, but accused Algerian authorities of bias in favour of the Tuareg rebels in the north of Mali.

The Tuareg people are among the indigenous Berber groups populating the Sahara, in the south of Algeria and the north of Mali and Niger. They took up arms in 2012, following previous rebellions, seeking independence or autonomy for the region, which they call Azawad.

Ecowas exit

The ministry accused Algeria of “proximity and complicity with terrorist groups that destabilise Mali and to whom it has offered shelter and support”.

It also strongly condemned what it calls “this new interference by Algeria in Mali’s internal affairs” and demanded that Algiers “stop using Mali as a tool for its international positioning”.

In late September 2024, the Malian representative at the United Nations accused Algerian diplomats of harbouring terrorists. 

Mali’s military regime also used the statement to affirm that “strategic decisions in the fight against armed terrorist groups, supported by foreign state sponsors, are exclusively the sovereign prerogative of Mali” and its neighbours Burkina Faso and Niger – with which it has formed the Alliance of Sahel States (AES). 

The AES announced in January 2024 that its countries would be leaving the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) in January 2025, which it views as subservient to France.

Ecowas extended a six-month grace period for the three departing states, but this offer was rejected in December.

West Africa bloc meets as military rulers vow to quit

Reports have shown that extremist violence in the Sahel has increased, threatening to exacerbate the humanitarian crisis and spread instability in the region, and across Africa.

The Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) reports that the continuing collapse of international counterterrorism support, as well as weakening leadership in regional efforts, has created “a vacuum in which violent extremism can expand”.

The think tank’s report also shows that the influx of extremists into northern Mali reignited the dormant Tuareg rebellion from 2012.

As Mali’s ruling junta, and its Russian partners, claim to have improved security in the northern part of the country, the rebellion at the border with Algeria appears to be a thorn in the side of the fight against increasing violence.

A series of ruptures

The Malian junta announced on 25 January, 2024 the “immediate termination” of the Algiers Peace Agreement signed in 2015, long regarded as crucial for stabilising the country – especially in the northern region populated and controlled by Tuareg groups, known to them as Azawad.

The agreement had been seen as moribund since 2023, when the predominantly Tuareg separatist groups reopened hostilities in the north against the central government and the Malian army.

This resurgence of conflict also coincided with the withdrawal of the United Nations stabilisation mission in Mali (Minusma), which was pushed out by the junta after a decade of operations.

Mali peace deal under threat following increase in attacks by armed Tuareg groups

The decision to abandon the 2015 Algiers Peace agreement was part of a series of ruptures initiated by the military rulers who seized power in Bamako in 2020.

Mali’s junta had set up a committee to organise a national peace dialogue in January 2024, after it scrapped the key 2015 peace deal with the northern separatist groups following months of hostilities. But no dialogue, or timeframe for this, materialised in 2024.

Meanwhile, the Malian junta also ended the country’s longstanding alliance with France and other European partners in favour of a partnership with Russia.

Six months after Mali banned French funding for NGOs, how are aid groups coping?

The Tuareg uprising is considered by some in Bamako to have paved the way for radical Islamist groups to surpass the separatists and seize control of much of the north.

This prompted a French military intervention in 2013, plunging the Sahel into protracted conflict.

Despite the 2015 peace agreement, jihadist groups continued to fight the state under the banners of Al-Qaeda or the Islamic State organisation.

(with AFP)

Each week since September, a group of Tibetans in Paris have been gathering across the street from the city’s Guimet Museum of Asian Arts to protest against its decision to change the name of its Tibet Nepal collection to the more general – and they say, inaccurate – term, “Himalayan World”.

On a day in mid-December, Yangchen, president of Students for a Free Tibet (SFT) France, which has been organising the weekly demonstrations, picked up a megaphone and turned to face the museum building, starting a call-and-response chant with the protesters around her.

“Shame on…” she shouted. “Guimet!” the other demonstrators, many wrapped in Tibetan flags, answered.

“Tibetan art…” she yelled. “Deserves its real name!” they called back. “Tibetan culture is not negotiable.”

More on this story in the Spotlight on France podcast, episode 121, listen here: 

Yangchen said there is more at stake than just a label in a museum.

“It’s a very subtle erasure,” she said of the name change, which she found shocking in France. “We are in a free country here in France, and Chinese pressure comes even here.”

‘Erasing’ Tibet

The Tibetan independence movement dates back to 1913, although China has claimed control over the region for centuries.

After the 1949 Communist takeover of China, the army became more heavy-handed with Tibet, triggering protests that were met with a brutal crackdown. Chinese troops then invaded Tibet in 1950.

Despite 70 years of Chinese oppression, Tibet continues to resist

Tens of thousands of Tibetans left, and today live in exile, while in Tibet the Chinese government has been accused of trying to erase the culture and language through mandatory Mandarin Chinese education.

China has recently shifted to using the Chinese term “Xizang Autonomous Region” instead of Tibet in official documents.

Tibet scholar Katia Buffetrille noticed in March 2024 that the Musée du Quai Branly in Paris, a public museum dedicated to non-European art, had started using the term Xizang to identify its Tibetan objects.

This was around the same time that the Guimet Museum – also a public museum, which houses Europe’s largest collection of Asian art – changed its labels, which coincided with commemorations of the 60th anniversary of Franco-Chinese relations and Chinese leader Xi Jinping’s visit to Paris in May 2024.

Franco-Chinese relations

“I’m not privy to insider knowledge, but there was the coincidence that the change occurred just before Xi Jinping came, and we know that Xi Jinping does not want to see the name Tibet,” Buffetrille said.

She and her colleagues wrote an open letter criticising the name changes and denouncing what they believe to be China’s influence.

The Musée du Quai Branly eventually backtracked and went back to using the name Tibet, but the Guimet Museum has continued to use the term “Himalayan World”.

In an email to RFI, the museum dismissed “unfounded accusations” of China’s influence on its decision to change the term used, and defended its use of the term “Himalayan World” as this includes Tibet.

Director Yannick Lintz said that the term has been used in other museums, such as the Metropolitan Museum in New York.

Chinese minorities fear Beijing’s efforts to crush local languages, cultures

Supporters of China

However, Buffetrille considers including Tibet under the umbrella term “Himalayan World” to be inaccurate.

“Tibet is not the Himalayan world,” she insists. “The Himalayan world is countries like Nepal, Bhutan, Laos, and includes the southern range of Tibet, but Tibet is 2.5 million kilometers long, and it doesn’t belong to the Himalayan world.”

“The word Tibet has not disappeared from the Guimet Museum,” Lintz told Radio France, which investigated claims that China was pressuring museums to change their labels.

Their reporting pointed to Lintz’s appointing of well-known supporters of China to the museum’s board – including Henri Giscard d’Estaing, the son of former French President Valéry Giscard d’Estaing and president of Club Med, which is now owned by a Chinese company, and former French Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin. Raffarin has had close ties to China for decades, with Xi Jinping awarding him China’s Friendship Medal in 2019.

Tibet’s exiled leaders visit Paris as Chinese repression continues

In November the Chinese embassy in Paris published its response to the Radio France investigation, saying that while Xi Jinping agreed to cultural exchanges and mutual exhibitions with the Guimet Museum, the Chinese government does not interfere with France’s “internal affairs” and is not involved in the details of the exchanges.

“Nevertheless, a cooperation on exhibitions must respect the will of the party that provides the collections to put on display,” it wrote.

‘Tubo’ 

Buffetrille points out that the name Tibet has also been erased from the Tang China exhibition currently running at the Guimet Museum, which features “works from more than 30 Chinese museums” and, according to the Radio France investigation, was financed in large part by China.

The Tibetan Empire, which was a rival to the Tang Dynasty at the time, is referred to as “Tubo” – the ancient Chinese term for Tibet.

Buffetrille says that while it might be historically accurate, using the term is another way of erasing Tibet. “Nobody knows what Tubo is,” she said. “Ask anyone in the street, and they will not know. So it effectively erases Tibet.”

‘Who benefits from these changes?’

“This change from Tibet to Himalayan World… Tibet experts are not happy about it, Tibetans – who are the first to be concerned about these things – are not happy about it, French people are confused by it. So in the end, who benefits from these changes? The only one who is happy is China. That’s why I ask these questions,” said Tenam, a Tibetan who has been living in France since 2005.

The Tibetan community in France has grown from a few hundred people two decades ago to around 20,000, many of whom arrived from India, where a large Tibetan diaspora settled with the Dalai Lama in exile in 1959.

Even if, like Tenam, they are not regular visitors to the Guimet Museum, the idea of the objects – some of them centuries-old sacred artefacts – being stripped of their Tibetan name is another reminder of what is facing those who are still in Tibet.

Uyghurs, Tibetans urge France to tackle human rights with Chinese president

Tenam found out about the name changes from the open letter signed by Buffetrille, and he and other Tibetans subsequently wrote to the museum demanding it revert to using the name Tibet, and requesting a meeting.

This took place in December, but the director, Lintz, told those present that the labels would remain and that her decisions were not influenced by China.

The demonstrators have vowed to continue their protests.

“To see the name of my country in a cultural institution like this one, it represents not just the art from Tibet, but also the entire Tibetan people,” said SFT president Yangchen.

“This is not just about a museum,” added Tenam. “If we are not able to stop this kind of thing here, it could be too late. There is a Tibetan saying that you have to build the dyke before the flood comes. I think this is what it is about.”

Find more on this story in the Spotlight on France podcast, episode 121. Listen here.

The fire swept through the bustling Kantamanto Market early on Thursday morning, reducing much of it to ashes.

Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) deployed 13 fire tenders to bring the flames under control.

Goods worth millions of the local cedi currency have been destroyed, the GNFS said.

“This is devastating,” said Alex King Nartey, a GNFS spokesperson. “We’ve not recorded severe casualties, but the economic loss is enormous.”

“Preliminary investigations suggest faulty electrical connections might have sparked the blaze, although we are not ruling out arson,” Nartey told France’s AFP news agency.

Little remains of the more than 2,000 shops in the open-air market – a hub of Ghana’s informal economy. 

People were flocking, many in tears, to assess the damage, RFI correspondent Victor Cariou reported.

In the middle of the ruins, a large crowd of young scrap metal dealers were trying, on Thursday, to salvage anything they could to try and sell it on.

‘I feel empty’

Around 10,000 people depend on the market to earn a living, local business associations estimate. Hundreds of traders, many specialising in the resale of used clothes, now face an uncertain future.  

Isaac Ofori lost both his shops in the fire, along with all his merchandise. “My shops burned, I feel empty, he told RFI, estimating the value of his losses at more than 10 times his annual income.

Like many traders, Ofori is calling on the government for help.

Koffi Poku, who also lost all his stock in the blaze says it will be impossible to face this crisis alone.

“I have no idea where I can find the money to launch another business, so the government has to help and support us. Everything’s been spoiled,” he told RFI.

‘Whole community is gone’ after deadly explosion in western Ghana

Call for emergency funding

Richard Amo Yartey, an official with the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), said they were investigating the cause of the incident in collaboration with other agencies.

“The scale of destruction is heart-wrenching, but we are committed to identifying the root cause and providing immediate relief to affected traders,” he said.

The president of the Traders Advocacy Group Ghana (TAGG), David Kwadwo Amoateng, urged the government to act swiftly, adding that the “market is a vital part of our economy”.

“The traders here need emergency funding to get back on their feet. Without immediate intervention, thousands of livelihoods are at risk,” he said.

Kantamanto Market, which is home to over 30,000 traders, has been a lifeline for many in Accra’s Central Business District. 

The government is yet to announce a formal response to the tragedy.

About 15 million items of second-hand clothing arrive in Ghana each week, mainly from Europe. However, nearly half cannot be resold.

Ghana grapples with crisis caused by world’s throwaway fashion

(with AFP)

A report from the National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (Insee), published in December, shows Paris had 2,113,705 residents in January 2022, with the population falling 0.9 percent between 2021 and 2022.

The city lost an average of 12,800 people yearly between 2016 and 2022 – a decline of 0.59 percent.

The 10th and 7th arrondissements saw the sharpest decreases, with drops of 1.8 percent and 1.4 percent, respectively. Only the 2nd, 4th, and 14th arrondissements saw slight population increases.

Insee attributes the decline to a shortage of rental properties, soaring housing costs and a growing desire for better quality of life outside the city.

Alexandra Cordebard, mayor of the 10th arrondissement, said the population drop is tied to “the explosion of vacant homes” rather than property prices.

“Rent controls have been quite effective, helping stabilise rents in many neighbourhoods, but we first need to find properties to rent,” Cordebard told Le Parisien.

Paris hails success of tough rules for short-term lets on Airbnb

Experts have also pointed to a rise in rarely-used second homes, often owned by wealthy foreigners, and an increase in short-term rentals, such as those listed on Airbnb.

As a result, rents have soared, and the availability of rental units for newcomers has dwindled.  

Another factor in the population decline is the prevalence of small apartments in Paris, said Éric Pliez, mayor of the 20th arrondissement.

“In Paris, there are many small apartments. At some point, residents opt for the suburbs,” Pliez said.

With the imminent threat of fines amounting to €15 billion, manufacturers are now compelled to accelerate the shift towards electric vehicles – or EVs – in the midst of a sluggish market.

Under the new regulations, at least 20 percent of vehicles sold must be electric to avoid penalties. This target presents significant challenges, with EVs making up just over 13 percent of total sales in Europe during 2024.

The drop comes after a strong 2023, when EVs represented nearly 23 percent of new registrations across the EU.

Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) accountied for 15 percent of the market, with 2.4 million electric cars registered that year – a 20 percent increase from 2022.

With EU targets aiming for a drastic reduction in vehicle emissions in 2025 – in tandem with a zero-CO2 goal by 2035 – a continuous rise in the adoption of zero-emission vehicles will prove essential for Europe to achieve its climate objectives.

France to pour €200m into more charging stations for electric cars

Fear of losses

However, the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA) has raised concerns over the financial implications of these new standards.

According to the ACEA lobby group, financial penalties could severely impact investment, potentially leading to a total of €16 billion in losses.

This strain on the purse-strings could also be compounded by external market pressures including the reduction in ecological incentives – like the cut in France’s ecological bonus effective from 1 January – further impeding growth in EV sales. 

European automakers have been coping with emissions regulations through adopting advances in technology – such as improvements in combustion engines and the adoption of electric powertrains – falling into line with Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards.

Record number of electric, hybrid cars sold in France in 2023

Euro 7 challenges ahead

Along with the latest set of emissions standards this new year, stringent Euro 7 rules being implemented between now and 2029 will pose further challenges for the motor industry when it comes to compliance.

These include managing non-exhaust emissions – such as brake dust and tire particles – along with tough requirements for the management of vehicle emissions over their lifecycle.

In particular, Euro 7 mandates the durability of battery performance for EVs, that aims to standardise the battery’s longevity and efficiency. 

So as of 2025, manufacturers must now significantly scale up their infrastructure and innovate their vehicles to align with this new set of regulations.

The rescued and dead passengers, who were found off the Kerkennah Islands, aimed to reach Europe and were all from sub-Saharan African countries, said Zied Sdiri, head of civil defence in the nearby city of Sfax.

Tunisia, as well as neighbouring Libya, is a key departure point for irregular migrants seeking to reach Europe for a better life. Italy‘s island of Lampedusa is only 150 kilometres (90 miles) from Tunisia.

Totalling 110, the migrants were on board two makeshift boats that set sail off “the coast near Sfax on the night of 31 December to 1 January,” a National Guard official said on condition of anonymity.

Searches were still underway for other possible missing passengers, said the official.

Sdiri said 15 out of the 83 rescued were taken to a hospital, without providing further details.

Worst year for migrant deaths on Spanish maritime routes, NGO warns

The National Guard, which oversees the coast guard, later confirmed the death toll in a statement, adding that a baby was among the dead.

It was the latest such tragedy off Tunisia over the past month.

On December 31, the National Guard said two Tunisian migrants, one of them a five-year-old, died after their boat broke down off Tunisia’s northern coast.

Days earlier on December 18, the National Guard said at least 20 migrants from sub-Saharan Africa died in a shipwreck off Sfax, with five rescued.

And on December 12, the coast guard rescued 27 African migrants near Jebeniana, north of Sfax, but 15 were reported dead or missing.

‘Hundreds of children’

Each year, the perilous Mediterranean crossing is attempted by tens of thousands of people.

Among them are also thousands of Tunisians seeking to leave their country which is grappling with economic woes marked by high inflation, unemployment, and sluggish growth.

Under a 2023 agreement, Brussels has given 105 million euros ($108 million) to debt-ridden Tunisia to help it curb irregular migration, in addition to 150 million euros in budgetary support.

The deal, strongly supported by Italy’s hard-right government, aimed to bolster Tunisia’s capacity to prevent boats leaving its shore, with some money also going to United Nations agencies assisting migrants.

Supporters of Tunisia’s Saied celebrate his landslide election win

It has contributed to an increase in irregular migration interceptions off the North African country’s shores and a marked drop in arrivals in Europe.

The Tunisian Forum for Economic and Social Rights (FTDES) had counted “between 600 and 700” migrants killed or missing in shipwrecks off Tunisia in 2024, compared with more than 1,300 in 2023.

Overall, the United Nations children‘s fund, Unicef, said in a statement on Wednesday that, “The death toll and number of missing persons in the Mediterranean in 2024 have now surpassed 2,200, with nearly 1,700 lives lost on the central Mediterranean route alone.”

It added that the tally included “hundreds of children, who make up one in five of all people migrating through the Mediterranean. The majority are fleeing violent conflict and poverty.”

Frontex, the EU’s border agency, has said that irregular border crossings were down 64 percent last year through September for the central Mediterranean route.

Scurvy is caused by a severe deficiency in vitamin C – most commonly found in citrus fruits and leafy green vegetables. The disease causes bone pain, fatigue and bleeding gums and, in very rare cases, death.

It was known as “sailor’s disease” as it was rife on board ships in the 16th to 19th centuries, when sailors were deprived of fresh fruit and vegetables for months on end.

While improved nutrition has made scurvy virtually extinct in high-income countries, new research has shown a resurgence in France, particularly among young children from low-income families.

Hospital doctors and researchers from France’s public health research body (Inserm) and Université Paris Cité analysed trends among nearly 900 children hospitalised with scurvy in France over a nine-year period, until November 2023.

The study, published in the medical journal The Lancet, found the biggest increase in cases was among children aged four to 10, and largely those from low-income families.

“There would seem to be a link with poverty,” said Ulrich Meinzer, the study’s coordinator and a paediatrician at Robert-Debré Hospital in Paris.

He underlined that 32.9 percent of the hospitalised children came from families receiving universal medical cover – an indicator of very low income. 

“Nurses noted that some of the infected children had not eaten for several days,” Meinzer told French news magazine Le Nouvel Obs.

Iftar for All: Ramadan handouts highlight food insecurity in Paris

Post-pandemic inflation

While the increase in the number of cases remained relatively slow until 2019, researchers noted a “significant” increase – 34.5 percent – in hospital admissions since March 2020, coinciding with the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

“The post-pandemic period has intensified vulnerabilities in food security, driven by lasting effects of Covid-19 and major socio-geopolitical conflicts, such as the war in Ukraine,” the report reads. “In France, this led to increased reliance on public and voluntary food aid.”

The study noted that food inflation in France had reached 15 percent in January 2023, more than double the overall inflation rate, and found that the “significant increase in scurvy and severe malnutrition among children [is] linked to the escalation of food prices”.

The recent increase in cases also reflects the challenges in accessing nutritious food and an increase in cheaper, highly processed foods.

“Poorer families cannot, or can no longer, afford to buy products that provide enough vitamin C, such as vegetables or fruit,” Meinzer said.

More French people turn to food banks as inflation bites

‘Public health issue’

Combatting the resurgence of scurvy means ensuring that children have a balanced diet “starting with fresh food and cooking it gently,” Meinzer noted. 

The report said its findings underscored a “critical need to intensify food and social assistance programmes” to reduce malnutrition and food insecurity.

It recommended conducting similar studies in other high-income countries to provide a better overview of the problem, improved clinical training to ensure early detection of scurvy, and proactive screening of at-risk populations. 

“It’s [unthinkable] that children in France don’t have enough to eat, it’s a public health issue,” Meinzer said, adding that he was hopeful health professionals, social workers and politicians could work together on finding solutions since “there is a consensus in our society where children are concerned”. 

This article was adapted from the original in French

In 2022, Brussels began “conditionality” proceedings against Hungary, seeking to block disbursements because of alleged infringements linked to public procurement as well as a lack of control and transparency.

Budapest did undertake reforms that allowed some funds to be unblocked, but a total of €19 billion remain frozen. 

Under timelines laid out in the EU’s conditionality regulation, “the first tranche of suspended commitments” – which amounted to €1.04 billion – expired at the end of 2024 without the suspension being lifted, the commission said this week.

This means Hungary has now lost that funding.

Poland takes helm of EU with pledge to counter Russian influence

Democratic ‘backsliding’

Since his return to power in 2010, nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban has strengthened his grip on power, allowing some of his allies to become very wealthy. 

In July, the European Commission concluded in a report that Hungary did not meet EU democratic standards – notably on corruption, political financing, conflicts of interest and media independence.

Orban has promised to fight to protect money “that is ours”. 

In December, Orban threatened to veto the EU’s budget to pressure it into relenting, saying: “They constantly try to take the money of Hungarians by a variety of means and a variety of methods.” 

EU launches punitive measures against Hungary over ‘anti-democratic’ laws

Opposition on the rise

With Orban under pressure amid an economic downturn, his new political rival Peter Magyar called for early legislative elections on Wednesday, with several opinion polls showing his party in the lead.

The vote is currently scheduled for the spring of 2026.

“Time is running out. Let’s bring forward the election date so that the country does not unnecessarily lose another year,” Orban said in his new year wishes for 2025. 

“We will bring home the billions that the European Union owes us.”

Since 2018, Hungary has also been targeted by an Article 7 procedure, which sanctions member states for “serious violations” of the rule of law and can in theory result in the suspension of a country’s voting rights in the EU Council.

The driver, 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Bahar Jabbar, a US citizen and Army veteran from Texas, sped through crowds in the French Quarter early on New Year’s Day.

Authorities said he steered around a police blockade before driving into revellers on Bourbon Street at around 3.15am.

Jabbar was killed in a shootout with police after the attack. Two officers injured in the exchange are in stable condition, police said.

French President Emmanuel Macron wrote on X, posting in both French and English: “New Orleans, so dear to the hearts of the French, has been struck by terrorism.

“New Orleans was initially founded by colonists from France and the attack took place in the Louisiana city’s famed French Quarter.

“Our thoughts are with the families of the victims and the injured, as well as with the American people, whose sorrow we share.”

‘Full solidarity’

The leaders of the UK, Germany, Israel, China, Turkey and Ukraine have all passed on their condolences, while the European Union’s top diplomat, Kaja Kallas, posted on X: “I am deeply saddened by the deliberate attack on those celebrating New Year’s in New Orleans.

“There is no excuse for such violence… We stand in full solidarity with the victims and their families during this tragic time.”

Meanwhile, Christian Estrosi – mayor of the southern French city of Nice – which suffered a car-ramming attack in 2016 that killed 86 people, also sent condolences.

“The tragedy in New Orleans, a sister city of Nice, very painfully recalls our own… Our thoughts go out to the families and the lives mowed down in mid-New Year’s celebrations,” he said on social media.

French court convicts all 8 suspects in 2016 Nice terror attack trial

Act of terrorism?

The FBI is investigating the attack as an act of terrorism and said it does not believe the driver acted alone.

It unfolded on Bourbon Street – known worldwide as one of the largest destinations for New Year’s Eve parties.

Large crowds also gathered in the city ahead of the College Football Playoff quarterfinal at the Sugar Bowl that had been scheduled for later Wednesday at the nearby Superdome.

The game was postponed until Thursday afternoon following the attack.

Police say the driver steered around a police blockade and raced through a crowd along Bourbon Street around 3:15am Wednesday as revellers gathered to celebrate the New Year.

Two police officers who were wounded in the shootout with the suspect are believed to be in stable condition.

Suspected Christmas market attacker charged with murder, attempted murder by German court

Suspect explosive devices 

Authorities also found potential explosive devices in the French Quarter.

According to a Louisiana State Police intelligence bulletin, surveillance footage has shown three men and a woman placing one of multiple improvised explosive devices. 

The FBI say the driver was 42-year-old Shamsud-Din Bahar Jabbar, a US citizen and Army veteran from Texas.

A flag representing the Islamic State group was reportedly found on the vehicle’s trailer hitch.

The bureau is trying to determine if Jabbar was associated with any terrorist organisations.

The decision follows through on a promise made by Akufo-Addo at the Africa Prosperity Dialogues a year ago to enhance regional integration and ease movement across the continent.

Previously, Ghana provided visa-free access to citizens of 26 African nations and visas on arrival for travellers from 25 others. Only visitors from two African countries required a visa before entering Ghana.

“This is about building stronger ties across Africa,” Akufo-Addo said in a statement, adding that “Ghana’s future is tied to a united continent”.

Ghana joins Rwanda, Seychelles, Gambia and Benin in offering visa-free entry to all African passport holders.

Ghana’s president faces tough start as economic crisis drives people to leave

Economic integration

The policy aligns with the African Union’s vision of greater economic integration under the African Continental Free Trade Area, based in Ghana.

Experts have long cited visa restrictions as a significant barrier to trade, tourism and cultural exchange.

The African Development Bank has noted that restrictive visa policies in countries like Libya, Equatorial Guinea and Sudan continue to hinder free movement on the continent.

Meanwhile, some foreign nations enjoy visa-free access to various African countries, creating what the bank called a “paradox of unity”.

Ghana’s former president Mahama wins election after ruling party concedes defeat

Diaspora ties

Ghana’s Tourism Authority is also promoting regional and global engagement through the “Beyond the Return” initiative, which aims to strengthen ties with the African diaspora.

The initiative includes a Non-Pre-Approval Visa policy, available from 1 December 2024 to 15 January 2025, to encourage tourism and economic connections.

The new visa-free policy is expected to boost Ghana’s standing as a hub for African travel, trade, and tourism.

As of 2023, Ghana ranked fifth in the Visa Openness Index, trailing only Rwanda, the Seychelles, Gambia and Benin.

President Akufo-Addo’s approval comes just weeks before the end of his tenure on 7 January, when President-elect John Mahama will assume office.

Immigration, both irregular and regular, was a major issue at July’s general election, which brought Labour to power but also saw a breakthrough for Nigel Farage‘s hard-right Reform UK party.

Some 36,816 people were detected in the Channel last year, a 25 percent increase from the 29,437 who arrived in 2023, provisional figures from the interior ministry showed.

The 2024 total, however, was still well below the record 45,774 undocumented migrants who arrived on the UK’s shores in flimsy inflatable boats in 2022.

At least 76 deaths were recorded in about 20 accidents last year, making it the deadliest year for migrants who are taking ever greater risks to evade Britain‘s border control.

According to French officials, at least 5,800 people were rescued at sea last year and authorities prevented more than 870 attempted crossings.

Worst year for migrant deaths on Spanish maritime routes, NGO warns

Crackdown pledge

Starmer has pledged to crack down on the crossings after his election win returned Labour to government after 14 years in opposition.

Upon entering office, he scrapped the previous Conservative government’s controversial scheme to send irregular migrants to Rwanda, branding it a “gimmick”.

Instead, he has promised to “smash the gangs” of people traffickers running the crossings and has signed a number of agreements with foreign countries to co-operate on law enforcement.

He has described the smuggling networks as a “global security threat similar to terrorism”.

The latest figures mean last year had the second highest number of annual arrivals since data on the crossings began to be collected in 2018. More than 150,000 people have arrived by boat in the last seven years in total.

In the first nine months of last year, Afghan migrants accounted for the single largest group of arrivals, making up 17 percent of the total. People from Vietnam, Iran and Syria were the next largest groups.

Vietnamese migrants appeared to fuel the surge in crossings in 2024. They made up just 5 percent of arrivals in 2023, well below the January-September 2024 figure of 13 percent.

Personal stories paint rich portrait of France’s immigration through time

New border command

“It’s often not possible to pin down a specific reason,” for why the numbers fluctuate, Madeleine Sumption, director of the Migration Observatory at Oxford University told AFP.

“The reason that brought numbers a bit higher this year is partly there was some increase in the first half of the year, and then we’ve seen this kind of sustained increase from October, November, December, which is usually when the numbers start to settle down because the weather’s not as good”.

More than 3,200 arrived in December alone, including several hundred over Christmas.

Starmer has also set up a new Border Security Command and strengthened cooperation with European partners, including Europol.

Britain has signed joint action plans with Germany and Iraq aimed at tackling the smuggling gangs. They build on earlier agreements signed under the previous Conservative government, including with France and Albania.

Starmer’s government also points to an increase in the return of irregular migrants to their countries of origin.

Some 29,000 people were returned between January and early December, a quarter more than in 2023, and a level not seen since 2017, according to the Migration Observatory.

“In terms of what the current government is doing, it’s too early to tell you know whether their approach is having an impact on the numbers,” said Sumption.

Starmer is also under pressure to reduce legal migration as he tries to fend off growing support for arch-Eurosceptic Farage’s hard-right Reform UK, which won roughly four million votes during the July 4 poll – an unprecedented haul for a far-right party.

Net legal migration is running at historically high levels, and was estimated at 728,000 for the year to June 2024.

The surge has come despite Britons being told during the 2016 Brexit referendum that leaving the European Union would allow the country to “take back control” of its borders.

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.

Here’s the music you heard on this week’s program: “Be Our Guest” by Alan Menken and Howard Ashman; “Auld Lang Syne”, performed by the Glenn Miller Orch, and “New Year Resolution” by M. Cross, R. Catron, and W. Parker, performed by Otis Redding and Carla Thomas.

The quiz will be back next Saturday, 11 January, with the answer to the question about the legislative elections in Senegal. Be sure and tune in! 

Hello everyone! Welcome to The Sound Kitchen weekly podcast, published every Saturday. This week, you’ll hear what Helmut Matt, your fellow RFI English listener, has found to be true in his life. Don’t miss it!

Here’s the music you heard on this week’s program: “Butterfly Lovers” by He Zhanhao and Chen Gang, performed by the National Cinema Symphony Orchestra.

Next week, be sure and tune in for a special program featuring your New Year Resolutions and Wishes for 2025.

The Syrian National Army, supported by Turkish air power, is pushing against the US-supported People’s Defense Units (YPG), which Ankara claims is linked to the Kurdistan Workers’ Party, the PKK, which has been fighting Turkey for decades. 

The YPG controls a large swathe of Syria bordering Turkey, which Ankara says poses a security threat.

Turkish foreign minister Hakan Fidan says Turkey is determined to prevent the YPG and its affiliate the PKK from exploiting a power vacuum following the fall of former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad.

As Erdogan celebrates Turkish role in ousting Assad, uncertainty lies ahead

“We are in communication with the groups to make sure that terrorist organisations, especially Daesh [Islamic State] and the PKK, are not taking advantage of the situation,” he said. “Turkey is committed to continuing the fight against terrorism. All minorities – non-Muslims, Christians, non-Arabs, Kurds – should be treated equally.”

Opportunity for Ankara

Ever since the YPG took over control of the Syrian territory at the beginning of the Syrian civil war, Ankara has been seeking to remove it. 

With the ousting of the Assad regime and the withdrawal of its Iranian and Russian backers, which had in the past blocked Turkish military interventions, analysts say Ankara now sees an opportunity to finally remove the YPG threat.

“The current situation creates an opportunity for its [Turkey’s] fight against PKK and YPG because there is now no Russia, there is no Iran,” explains Bilgehan Alagoz, a professor of international relations at Istanbul’s Marmara University.

“Turkey was facing the Russian forces, the Iranian forces, and Assad’s regime forces while it was combatting the PKK and YPG,” she added. “We can name it as an opportunity for its fight against PKK and YPG.”

Success of rebel groups in Syria advances Turkish agenda

However, the YPG is still being supported by a small US military force, as part of the war against the Islamic State (IS). The YPG is also detaining thousands of IS militants.

‘The Euphrates is a line’

With the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army now approaching the Euphrates River, analysts say further eastward advances could put Ankara on a collision course with both Washington, and Syria’s new rulers – Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS. 

“The Euphrates now is like a line perhaps for the US military,” explains Aydin Selcen, a former senior Turkish diplomat who served in the region and is now a foreign policy analyst for Turkey’s independent Medyascope news outlet.

“If that [military advance] goes on as such, it could bring Turkey indirectly head to head with the US, with even perhaps HTS, and it could put Ankara in a delicate diplomatic position again,” warned Selcen.

Tensions with Israel

The Israeli military’s advance into Syria is adding to Ankara’s concerns over the threat posed by the PYG and its political wing, the Democratic Union Party (PYD). Israeli foreign minister Gideon Saar last month described the Kurds as a “natural ally” of Israel, a comment that came amid growing Israeli-Turkish tensions.

Turkey seeks Gaza ceasefire role despite US criticism over Hamas ties

“Israel is now carving out a corridor [in Syria] between the PKK/PYD-controlled territories, and its own territories,” explained Hasan Unal, a professor of international relations at Ankara’s Baskent University.

“That suggests that this is what they [Israel] are trying to do – [to create] a Kurdish puppet state east of the Euphrates. And this is something that is likely to create lots of problems with Turkey,” he added.

With Israel’s presence in Syria, Ankara is likely to step up pressure on the YPG, and on the incoming Trump administration to end US military presence in Syria.

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.

The RFI English team is pleased to announce that Saleem Akhtar Chadhar, the president of the RFI Seven Stars Listening Club in District Chiniot, Pakistan, won the RFI / Planète Radio ePOP video contest, in the RFI Clubs category. Bravo Saleem! Mubarak ho!

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: Be sure to send your photos to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr for the RFI English Listeners Forum banner!

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 to 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 bilingual 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 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 Spotlight on France, Spotlight on Africa, The International Report, and of course, The Sound Kitchen. We also have an award-winning bilingual series – an old-time radio show, with actors (!) to help you learn French, called Les voisins du 12 bis. 

Remember, podcasts are radio, too! As you see, sound is still quite present in the RFI English service. Please keep checking our website for updates on the latest from our 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!

We have a new RFI Listeners Club member to welcome: Himangshu Mukharjee from West Bengal, India. Welcome, Himangshu! So glad you have joined us!

This week’s quiz: Paris Photo – the largest international art fair dedicated to photography – is held every November at the magnificent Grand Palais. RFI English journalist Isabelle Martinetti wrote an article about it: “Paris Photo fair focuses on photo books and their publishers”.

You were to re-read Isabelle’s article and send in the answers to these questions: What is the name and nationality of the photographer who won the First Book prize at this year’s Paris Photo fair?

The answer is, to quote Isabelle: “The first book prize was awarded to Taiwanese photographer Tsai Ting Bang for “Born From the Same Root”, a self-published work, awarded with a $10,000 cash prize.”

In addition to the quiz question, there was the bonus question:  “What do you like to eat in the winter? Why?” The question was suggested by Liton Hissen Mia from Naogaon, Bangladesh.

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

The winners are: RFI Listeners Club member Dipita Chakrabarty from New Delhi, India. Dipita is also the winner of this week’s bonus question. Congratulations, Dipita!

Also on the list of lucky winners this week are Ferhat Bezazel, the president of the Butterflies Club Ain Kechera in West Skikda, Algeria, and Zaheer Ayiaz, a member of the Naz Radio France and Internet Fan Club in Faisal Abad, Pakistan. There’s also RFI Listeners Club member Shaira Hosen Mo from Kishoreganj, Bangladesh, and last but not least, RFI English listener Sadman Shihabur Rahaman, from Naogaon, Bangladesh.

Congratulations, winners!

Here’s the music you heard on this week’s programme: “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” by J. Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie, performed by Johnny Bregar; “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane, performed by the Dexter Gordon Quartet; “The Flight of the Bumblebee” by Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov; “The Cakewalk” from Children’s Corner by Claude Debussy, performed by the composer, and “Un flambeau, Jeannette, Isabelle”, attributed to Nicolas Saboly and Emile Blémont, performed by Les Petits Chanteurs de Mont-Royal.

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, listen to Melissa’s 15 December International Report podcast – “Gaza’s powerful war narratives make their way to the Oscars”, which will help you with the answer.

You have until 27 January to enter this week’s quiz; the winners will be announced on the 1 February podcast. When you enter be sure to 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

Click here to learn how to 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.   

Tibetans and Tibetan scholars are alarmed at how Paris’ Guimet museum of Asian art has categorised its art and artefacts from Tibet. Tenam and other Tibetans in exile, who have been demonstrating regularly outside the museum, talk about the importance of using the name Tibet, and scholar Katia Buffetrille questions the role of China in putting pressure on a French public institution. (Listen @2’48”) 

Like many residents in the town of Malakoff, just south of Paris, Vincent Chévrier had an olive tree in his garden but wasn’t doing much with it. So he federated a group of fellow local olive tree owners and together they’ve made Born to be Olive – the first olive oil “made in Ile de France”. Their collective project isn’t just about making a locally grown, organic product, it’s brought people together in a unique way. (Listen @17’37”)

On 22 December 1974, the people of the Comoros in the Indian Ocean voted overwhelmingly for independence from France. But the island of Mayotte did not, and became France’s 101st department. It’s created an immigration conundrum, straining the island’s already sparse resources  which were laid bare by Tropical Cyclone Chido last week. Listen @13’40”)

Episode mixed by Hadrien Touraud. 

Spotlight on France is a podcast from Radio France International. Find us on rfienglish.com, Apple podcasts (link here), Spotify (link here) or your favourite podcast app (pod.link/1573769878).

The project, overseen by Palestinian filmmaker Rashid Masharawi, includes 22 short films spanning documentary, animation, and drama.

The films aim to share the voices of people living through the conflict in Gaza, offering a glimpse into their fears, dreams and hopes.

“The idea for From Ground Zero came immediately, in the second month of this ongoing war, to try to pick up films and stories from Gaza,” Masharawi told RFI.

He explained that the goal was to give filmmakers in Gaza the chance to make their own films.

As a recent report from Reporters Without Borders (RSF) underlines the toll of the war on Palestinian journalists, RFI spoke with him and his team in Paris.

RSF says Israel responsible for one-third of journalist deaths in 2024

The shorts, ranging from three to six minutes, are “a mix between fiction, documentaries, video art and even experimental films,” he said.

“We are filmmakers, we are dealing with cinema. Even if it’s a catastrophe, it’s very tough with all the massacres. But we were also trying to make cinema, to add life, to be optimistic and to add hope.”

The 112-minute collection is presented as a feature film in two parts. Contributors include Reema Mahmoud, Muhammad Al Sharif, Tamer Nijim and Alaa Islam Ayou.

From film festivals to the Oscars

After premiering at the Toronto Film Festival in September, From Ground Zero toured film festivals across Europe, North Africa and South West Asia in November and December.

Screenings have taken place at the French Arab Film Festival near Paris, the Bristol Palestine Film Festival and in London. Additional showings are scheduled for Morocco and Egypt.

Earlier this year, Masharawi held an outdoor screening of the film during the Cannes Film Festival to protest its exclusion from the event.

Now, the collection has been selected to represent Palestine at the Oscars in March 2025, with hopes of a wider release in the United States, Europe and the Middle East.

UN rapporteur says Israel’s war in Gaza is ’emptying the land completely’

Emerging voices

The project was made possible by the Masharawi Fund for Gaza Filmmakers, launched in November 2023 to support creative talent from the territory.

Masharawi, who is from Gaza, is one of the first Palestinian filmmakers to have directed cinema projects in the occupied Palestinian territories.

His first film, Travel Document, was released in 1986, followed by The Shelter in 1989 and Long Days in Gaza in 1991.

The executive producer of the film, Laura Nikolov, who is French and based in France, is travelling with Masharawi to promote the film around the world.

“It’s a very unique project,” she told RFI. “We have now translated it into 10 different languages. We made this to allow the voices of the Gazan people [to be heard] and it’s working. I think we’ve reached more than 60, perhaps 80 screenings and festivals.”

With its selection for the Oscars, Nikolov is hopeful that the film will reach even wider audiences.

“This means it will be shown in cinemas in the United States,” she said, adding that they hope to expand its reach across Europe and the Middle East.

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.