Brics was formed by Brazil, Russia, India and China in 2009 as a counterweight to the Group of Seven (G7) leading industrialised nations. South Africa was added in 2010.

Last year the bloc added Iran, Egypt, Ethiopia and the United Arab Emirates.

Nigeria becomes the ninth Brics partner country – joining Belarus, Bolivia, Cuba, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Thailand, Uganda, and Uzbekistan.

“With the world’s sixth-largest population – and Africa’s largest – as well as being one of the continent’s major economies, Nigeria shares convergent interests with other members of Brics,” Brazil’s Foreign Ministry, known as Itamaraty, said in a statement Friday.

“It plays an active role in strengthening South-South cooperation and in reforming global governance – issues that are top priorities during Brazil’s current presidency.”

With Brics expansion, China seeks a global counterweight to US

Brics now represents over half the world’s population and more than 45 per cent of global GDP, signalling its growing clout on the international stage.

As one of the world’s top oil producers, Nigeria brings significant economic weight to the group.

Last year President-elect Donald Trump threatened 100 percent tariffs against Brics if they attempt to undermine the US dollar. The bloc’s leaders say they’re committed to introducing an alternative payment system that would be independent of the dollar.

France’s TotalEnergies to invest billions in Nigeria

The partnership status, created in October 2024, allows Nigeria to participate in Brics meetings and events, but does not grant full membership privileges such as voting rights.

(with newswires)

The wild boar was found as a tiny piglet near the rubbish bins outside Elodie Cappé’s horse farm in Chaource, eastern France, in April 2023. She has since grown into a large sow with a bristly brown coat.

“Rillette” – who is named after a regional dish of shredded pork – now roams freely on the farm, interacting with horses and dogs, and enjoys cuddling with Cappé and her family.

After initial attempts to release the animal back into the wild were unsuccessful, Cappé took steps to ensure the boar’s wellbeing by having her sterilised and vaccinated, and providing her with an enclosure.

She also made several requests to the regional prefecture for permission to keep a non-domesticated animal, but all were rejected.

Local authorities threatened to remove or euthanise the animal, and Cappé faced potential prison time and a fine of up to €150,000 for “capturing or detaining wild animals”.

The case sparked outrage among animal rights activists and made headlines across France, with French film legend Brigitte Bardot joining those calling for Rillette to be allowed to stay on the farm. A petition was launched, and local demonstrations took place in support of the boar.

Brigitte Bardot slams ‘massacre’ of Chamois as Doubs approves culling of 594 animals

On Thursday, 16 January the Chalons-en-Champagne administrative tribunal ruled in Cappé’s favor, ordering the prefecture to reconsider the application to keep Rillette and awarding the owner €1,500 in damages.

Cappé called the decision a “great victory,” crediting media attention for helping to sway the court’s ruling. She announced that she would donate the damages to charity.

Despite the legal drama, Cappé says Rillette remains unconcerned by the news. “She is just playing, she does not care. She belongs with us.”

French lawmakers lock horns over bullfighting ban for children

(with Reuters)

As Humbert prepared for his clash on Sunday with second seed Alexander Zverev, Monfils, 38, advanced to the last-16 for the sixth time at the tournament after beating the fourth seed Taylor Fritz on Saturday 3-6, 7-5, 7-6, 6-4.

“I keep playing for those kind of matches,” said Monfils. “Big player, big stadium, good crowd, good energy. When you’re 38 years old, it’s what I want. I had it. It’s exactly why I’m playing.”

Monfils, ranked 41 in the world, entered the tournament on the back of the title at the Auckland Classic. His 13th crown on tour furnished him with the accolade of oldest man to lift a trophy at a senior level event since tennis was opened up to professional players in 1968.

“The strategy against Taylor was to hold the baseline and definitely change the tempo,” added Monfils. “Hit some big shots down the line and use different types of shots with my forehand, some slice with my backhand and serve well.”

On Monday, Monfils will take on another American, the 21st seed Ben Shelton, for a place in the last eight.

Humbert, the 14th seed, reached the fourth round at one of the four most prestigious events on the senior circuit, after beating his compatriot Arthur Fils on Friday evening.

Before the third round clash, Humbert said that win or lose, the match would be good for French tennis as it would guarantee one man in the last 16. “I will be doing my utmost to make sure it is me,” added the 26-year-old.

He prevailed when Fils, the 20th seed, retired due to an injured left foot at the start of the fourth set.

It was their fifth meeting on the senior ATP tour in 18 months. Humbert won their first encounter in the opening round at the Cincinnati Open in August 2023. He then claimed the next two ties in 2024 on the grass at  ‘s-Hertogenbosch in June and at the Canadian Open in August.

But in the final at the Tokyo Open in September, Fils saved a match point on his way to securing the crown.

There were no such heroics, however, on the John Cain Arena for the 20-year-old. “It’s never a good way to win when someone retires like that,” Humbert told the spectators in the stadium. “I hope it’s not too serious an injury and that Arthur is back and playing soon.”

Options

A sentiment likely shared by the France Davis Cup captain Paul-Henri Mathieu, who has selected the pair as his main players for next month’s first round tie against Brazil in Orléans, central France.

But, based on the performances at the Australian Open, Mathieu has options, and could lure Monfils back into the fray. 

Should Fils fail to recover, Mathieu could also call upon Benjamin Bonzi or Corentin Moutel who also fell by the wayside in the third round on Friday and Saturday respectively.

France’s female players 

The third round was, however, beyond the French women who started the tournament last Sunday.

Russian-born Varvara Gracheva, who has been competing under the French flag since June 2023, went out in the second round to complete a dismal showing at the tournament for the five players.

The world number 69 lost to 23-year-old German Eva Lys, who is 60 places beneath her in the WTA listings.

France’s top female player, Diane Parry, 66th in the world, succumbed to the 18th seed Donna Vekic in the first round. The country’s second best player, Caroline Garcia, was dispatched by former champion Naomi Osaka.

There were also first round losses for Chloé Paquet and Léolia Jeanjean.

Bright future

“It’s true that the men have a great bunch of players who are playing very, very well,” said Parry after her defeat. “Tennis is basically an individual sport and I’m not sure that it makes that much sense to analyse the performances of several players of the same nationality.”

But top French tenniswomen are still in the public eye.

Amélie Mauresmo, who won the Australian Open in 2006 and Wimbledon the same summer, has become the tournament director at the French Open in Paris.

And Marion Bartoli, winner of the women’s singles trophy at Wimbledon in 2013, operates as an on-court interviewer at the tournament.

The lack of a successor remains a concern for the bosses at the French tennis federation (FFT) which oversees the sport in the country.

FFT chief Gilles Moretton said patience was required during the search for a modern champion among French players.

“We’ve got good players. Let’s be careful,” he said in an interview with the French news agency AFP in December. “Let’s not get carried away when the French players win a match and let’s not destroy them when they lose. That’s life.”

Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard appeared to have taken Moretton’s message on board, following his first round defeat to Monfils on Tuesday.

After a spectacular year in which he rose 170 places up the rankings to finish 2024 at number 30 in the world, the 21-year-old started his first Grand Slam tournament as a seed for the first time.

He saved match points during the encounter before losing in the fifth set. “The match could have ended much earlier,” said Mpetshi Perricard. “But I did everything I could to turn it around. I’m young and I know I’m bound to improve. I’m not going to go into a depression because I lost to a good player.”

The exact time of the ceasefire’s start had been unclear, though Israel had said no Palestinian prisoners held by Israel would be freed before late Sunday afternoon.

Qatar and the United States, which mediated the deal along with Egypt, had announced it on Wednesday and said it would take effect Sunday.

Following that announcement, Israeli bombardment of the territory killed at least 113 people, Gaza‘s civil defence rescue agency said on Friday, after Israel’s military reported hitting about 50 targets in 24 hours.

On Saturday, AFP photos showed Palestinians in the southern city of Khan Yunis mourning four members of a family killed in another Israeli strike.

Explosions were heard over Jerusalem Saturday morning after warning sirens blared and the military said a projectile had been launched from Yemen, whose Iran-backed rebels say they support the Palestinians.

“As coordinated by the parties to the agreement and the mediators, the ceasefire in the Gaza Strip will begin at 8:30 am on Sunday, January 19, local time in Gaza,” Qatar’s foreign ministry spokesman Majed al-Ansari said on X.

“We advise the inhabitants to take precaution, exercise the utmost caution, and wait for directions from official sources.”

In more than 15 months of war between Hamas Palestinian militants and Israel, there has been only one previous truce, for one week, in November 2023. That deal also saw the release of hostages held by the militants in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.

“The government has approved the hostage return plan,” the office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said early Saturday after the cabinet held its vote.

Netanyahu’s office said the deal “supports achieving the objectives of the war”.

Israel’s justice ministry said 737 Palestinian prisoners and detainees will be freed as part of the first phase of the deal – none before 4:00 pm local time (1400 GMT) on Sunday.

Israel-Hamas ceasefire must lead to ‘political resolution’ in Gaza, Macron says

Trump

Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani, announcing the agreement on Wednesday, said an initial 42-day ceasefire would see 33 hostages released by militants in Gaza.

The truce is to take effect on the eve of Donald Trump’s inauguration for a second term as United States president.

Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas said the Palestinian Authority, which has partial administrative control in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, has completed preparations “to assume full responsibility in Gaza” after the war.

Israel has no definitive stance on post-war governance beyond rejecting any role for both Hamas and the Palestinian Authority.

Outgoing US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Gaza should be under PA control.

Even before the truce begins, displaced Gazans were preparing to return home.

“I will go to kiss my land,” said Nasr al-Gharabli, who fled his home in Gaza City for a camp further south. “If I die on my land, it would be better than being here as a displaced person.”

In Israel, there was joy but also anguish over the remaining hostages taken in the Hamas attack.

Kfir Bibas, whose second birthday falls on Saturday, is the youngest captive.

Israel’s cabinet endorsement of the deal came despite eight ministers voting against it, including far-right ministers Itamar Ben Gvir and Bezalel Smotrich.

Hamas’s armed wing warned that continued Israeli strikes risked the lives of hostages and could turn their “freedom… into a tragedy”.

Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel triggered the war and resulted in the deaths of 1,210 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally of Israeli official figures.

Of the 251 people taken hostage, 94 are still in Gaza, including 34 the Israeli military says are dead.

Israel’s retaliatory campaign has destroyed much of Gaza, killing 46,876 people, most of them civilians, according to figures from the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry that the United Nations considers reliable.

Israel intensifies strikes on Gaza as world leaders hail Hamas ceasefire deal

Aid-starved

Mediators had worked for months to reach a deal but the efforts were fruitless until Trump’s inauguration neared.

Brett McGurk, the pointman for outgoing President Joe Biden, was joined in the region by Trump envoy Steve Witkoff in an unusual pairing to finalise the agreement, US officials said.

On Friday, Qatar’s Sheikh Mohammed said: “We seek a full implementation of the first phase, and for the second phase to be the final.

“We are waiting for the Security Council to issue a binding resolution to implement the agreement.”

Israeli authorities assume the 33 captives to be released in the first phase are alive, but Hamas has yet to confirm that.

Also in the first phase, Israeli forces would withdraw from Gaza’s densely populated areas and allow displaced Palestinians to return “to their residences”, the Qatari prime minister said.

An Israeli military official said reception points had been established at Kerem Shalom, Erez and Reim, where hostages would be joined by doctors and mental health specialists before being “transported via helicopter or vehicle” to hospitals in Israel.

Israel “is then expected to release the first group of Palestinian prisoners, including several with high sentences”, a source said on condition of anonymity.

During talks on Friday, negotiators agreed to form a joint operations room in Cairo to “ensure effective coordination” and compliance with the truce terms, Egyptian state-linked media reported.

Biden said the second phase could bring a “permanent end to the war”.

In aid-starved Gaza, humanitarian workers caution a monumental task lies ahead.

On Friday, British lawmakers warned that Israeli legislation banning the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, UNRWA, threatens the truce deal. The ban on the main aid agency in Gaza is to take effect by the end of January.

Both Monaco and PSG will feature in the Champions League next week, the fourth game for each club during a punishing January schedule of six games in 19 and 17 days respectively.

In the fixtures played so far, PSG have fared better.

Monaco started their travails on 10 January with a 2-2 draw at Nantes in Ligue 1. They lost their last-32 Coupe de France tie against Reims four days later.

And they went down to Montpellier after taking the lead in the first-half through Thilo Kehrer. But the hosts hit back with a brace from the Jordan international Mousa al-Tamaari.

After beating Monaco 1-0 on 5 January in Doha to claim the 2025 French Super Cup, PSG resumed their Ligue 1 campaign with a 2-1 win over Saint-Etienne on 12 January to restore their seven-point advantage over Marseille at the top of Ligue 1. 

Three days later, goals in the last five minutes from Bradley Barcola and Gonçalo Ramos gave them a 4-2 win in the Coupe de France to spare their blushes against fifth tier Espaly and continue the defence of their crown.

On Saturday afternoon, Lens, who lie seventh in the table, will be a tricky encounter before the Champions League clash against Manchester City at the Parc des Princes next Wednesday.

“We’re on a good run of form,” said PSG boss Luis Enrique on the eve of the visit to the Stade Bollaert-Delelis.

Significance

“Obviously, we can see the importance of the City game, which we’ve been talking about for several weeks,” Enrique noted.

“But I don’t think that will have any impact on the game at Lens. That said, we’d rather go into the Champions League match with a win in our bag.”

A draw or defeat on Saturday afternoon in northern France would not be catastrophic in the quest to notch up a record-extending 13th top flight crown.

A similar result on Wednesday night, though, could be fatal to their hopes of reaching the last-16 of European football’s most prestigious club competition.

Under the old format of the Champions League – six games against three other teams in the pool – PSG flourished. They progressed to the last-16 knockout stages every season from 2013 and they reached the final and semi-finals in 2020 and 2021 respectively.

But this year in the reconfigured competition, they have struggled.

With only seven points from six of their eight games, they lie 25th in the 36-team league. They have no chance of surging into the top eight places guaranteeing automatic qualification for the last-16 and they are in danger of failing to occupy one of the 16 slots which lead to a two-leg play-off for a place in the last-16.

Visitors

Wednesday’s visitors to the Parc des Princes also languish in the table. They are 22nd with eight points and in need of points to progress. 

“We’re not running away from the situation,” said Enrique of the clash with Manchester City. “We’re in trouble because of our performances. But we’re prepared and very optimistic about what’s to come.”

Just before the Super Cup final against Monaco, Enrique said he relished the array of games. “The more matches the better,” he told PSG TV. “That means we are alive in many competitions.”

A home game against Reims in Ligue 1 comes after the match against City and then a trip to Stuttgart for the final match in the Champions League group stages. 

Monaco, out of the Coupe de France and way off the lead in Ligue 1, are in a far healthier state in the Champions League.

They lie in 16th with 10 points from their six games. Victory over the English Premier League outfit Aston Villa on Tuesday night should be enough to carry them into the berths for the play-offs for the last-16.

Slump

But Monaco have not won since beating fifth division Union St Jean in the last-64 of the Coupe de France on 22 December.

“We’re not in the best of situations on the pitch,” said Monaco boss Adi Hütter. “But we have to stay positive, communicate positively, believe in ourselves and our style of play.

“I’ve been in this situation in the past and it makes no sense to want to punish players, because it’s a young team. It’s a difficult phase and I’m not the kind of coach who is going to abandon them.”

After Villa on Tuesday and a Ligue 1 game at home to Rennes on 25 January, Hütter’s men travel to the San Siro to face Inter Milan on 29 January in their final game in the group stages of the Champions League.

“We needed to beat Montpellier to get our confidence back,” Hütter added. “Tuesday against Aston Villa will be a completely different game. It will be the Champions League at home.”

Amid the flurry of games, PSG merely underlined their financial muscle with the announcement on Friday night that they had drafted in the coveted 23-year-old Georgia international Khvitcha Kvararskhelia for 70 million euros from Napoli on a four-year deal.

“I know what the club wants to achieve and how it works with players,” he told PSG TV. “A lot of great players have played here, so I didn’t think much about it when I had the opportunity to come to Paris.”

“Tomorrow, they want us to go on a suicide mission. I’m going to drop the gun so I don’t have to go. I’ll probably be tortured and sent to prison, but I’d rather save my life.”

This was one of the last messages Samuel (first name changed) sent RFI, in mid-December.

A few weeks earlier, when we first made contact with him, he was in the infirmary of his unit’s camp in a region of eastern Ukraine, which we will not specify for security reasons. He was suffering yet another injury, having recently also been treated in a military hospital for a serious arm wound, following a drone attack.

But, Samuel told us: “Here, as soon as we can walk, they send us to the front. And the Africans are on the front line. The Russians stay in the camp, sending the blacks and internationals to the front to occupy and advance. But every time we win, there’s a cost, especially the mines, which decimate us.”

‘A trip to the valley of the shadow of death’

Samuel’s story began in May 2024. Trained as a scientist and having worked for the Ministry of Lands, Cadastre and Land Affairs in Cameroon, he received a call from one of his friends, with whom he had shared his dreams of working abroad.

“Patrice [first name changed] asked me how I was doing, if I still wanted to leave the country and work abroad.” Tired of his poorly paid job in Yaoundé, he didn’t hesitate. “In my room that day, I didn’t know that I had just accepted a trip to the valley of the shadow of death.”

“[Patrice] told me it was in Russia but that he didn’t have any details, apart from the salary, which was promised to be enormous,” said Samuel. “He was in contact with a woman who was taking care of the paperwork, so all I had to do was send a photo of my passport. She told me that once I was in Moscow they would exchange my passport for a Russian passport that would allow me to travel and work.”

He continued: “She explained that it was in a military camp, and that I would be like a caretaker with tasks like cleaning and cooking. When she told me about the salary and bonuses, my eyes lit up. My mother and I put together 2.5 million CFA francs [€3,830], and I left with Patrice, who had also quit his job, and three other people.”

Samuel shared with us the name and telephone number of the agency in question. He also shared a photo of a group of people wishing him a “bon voyage” behind the agency’s banner at Yaoundé airport. On its Facebook page, created in January 2024, this agency offers a wide range of assistance for visas to several destinations, including Russia, “without a language test” and “at affordable rates”.

But once in Russia, Samuel was in for a surprise. Instead of cooking utensils and cleaning products, he was given a Kalashnikov – which he accepted very reluctantly. In the camp, where he stayed for a few weeks of classes, he rubbed shoulders with many North Africans and sub-Saharans.

Ukraine’s French-trained brigade rocked by scandal

Embassy ‘covering up’ human trafficking

Samuel found himself in uniform without knowing exactly who he was fighting for, or in which unit. “The contracts they made us sign are doctored. We don’t have a copy of the document, so we don’t get the salary we were supposed to. Apparently, the Russian commander who made us sign gets part of it back, so it’s a whole chain.”

Samuel said he contacted the Cameroonian embassy to discuss his situation, to no avail. “They deny any knowledge of our presence here, even though there are so many of us. They’re covering up human trafficking.”

He considers his country’s diplomatic service complicit, and pointed out that India has obtained the repatriation of 45 of its citizens who were victims of similar deception, after publicly denouncing this type of recruitment. “Our governments don’t give a damn about us and they’ll never come looking for us.”

Contacted by RFI, the Cameroon Ministry of External Relations has not yet responded to our request for comment or further details.

First in training and then at the front, Samuel befriended other Cameroonians and forwarded us messages from the wife of one of them, who begged him for news of her husband.

When we spoke to her by phone, as she held a baby not yet a year old in her arms, she explained: “His parents had major health problems, so he wanted to leave to try and find ways of helping his family. He found an agency that told him about a job in Russia. He left in June, without giving any further details.

“Then I realised that he’d been offered a job in the army, and that he’d signed a one-year contract. He was supposed to do four months of training, except that at the end of July he told me that he was in Ukraine and that he was going on a mission for 10 days and that he’d let me know when he got back. He told me to pray for him. I haven’t heard from him since.”

Russia strikes Ukraine energy sites in ‘massive’ barrage

‘If you back out, you’re tortured’

Samuel described several photos showing him in small groups with “Malians and Gambians” in one photo, and between “two Egyptians” in another. “One died in a bombing, the other I don’t know what his current situation is.”

Finally, he told us what became of Patrice, “his friend of many years”. He had also died, “leaving behind four children”. Samuel added: “His wife calls me, I don’t know what to tell her, he was like a brother, it hurts so much.”

Of the group of five who boarded the same plane in Yaoundé, three had died and another escaped after sustaining an injury.

The reality of the fighting came as a shock to a man who says he “never fired a shot in my life before I came here”.

The Ukrainians, Samuel said, are avoiding contact in order to save their forces, against a Russian army that has no qualms about sending foreign auxiliaries into the fray. “I’ve never seen a Ukrainian since I’ve been here. I know people who have been here for two years, they’ve never seen a Ukrainian with their own eyes, they’ve never fired a bullet at anyone, there aren’t even any enemies. They [the Ukrainians] are hiding, they’re running away from us, they’re sending us drones with huge bombs, that’s what kills you, along with the mines.”

He continued: “And we have to move forward, we’re not allowed to retreat. The Russians don’t back down, they say. If you back out, you’re tortured. We have to move forward to occupy the ground. But we’re very poorly equipped. The Russians have machines to jam the waves of drones, but they keep them to themselves. They send us to fight and die with nothing at all.”

Although it is difficult to verify the figures for human losses in the Ukrainian conflict, the ratio is clearly unfavourable to Russia and its “cannon fodder” strategy. The United Kingdom’s Ministry of Defence estimates that 45,680 Russians died in November 2024, more than during any other month since the war began.

Former Wagner media operative lifts the lid on Russian disinformation in CAR

‘I hid among the dead to avoid drones’

Pushed to the front line by their officers, in paramilitary groups contracted by the Kremlin, gun in hand but themselves at gunpoint, African “recruits” are taking desperate measures to save themselves. “I’ve seen people shoot themselves in the hand to avoid going to the front and get to hospital,” said Samuel. “I even hid among the dead to avoid the drones. We spent weeks without food, hiding. That’s why I’m speaking out.”

How many have found themselves in this situation, lured under false pretences? An exact figure is impossible to ascertain, but multiple reports are emerging. 

In May last year, a Ukrainian intelligence report on Moscow’s recruitment of foreign citizens to its army – including those from Nepal, India and Cuba as well as Somalia, Rwanda, Burundi, Congo and Uganda – was published by the news site Kyiv Independent.

It reported that these troops “are being recruited as assault troopers by a specially created unit of the Russian Defence Ministry,” adding: “The mercenaries are lured by a starting payment of $2,000 for signing a contract, promised a monthly allowance of $2,200, health insurance, and Russian passports for them and their families.”

In September, the same media outlet published video testimonies by a Somali and a Sierra Leonean taken prisoner by the Ukrainian army.

The same month, a Ghanaian TV channel broadcast the testimony of a group of 14 Ghanaian nationals who claimed to have been deceived into joining the Russian army by one of their compatriots, a former footballer. They arrived in Russia expecting to take up security jobs, and instead had their passports confiscated and were forced to sign contracts written in Russian. 

In another report by Jeune Afrique, published in October, a Central African who managed to flee to Latvia claimed to have been recruited in Bangui by Wagner mercenaries while in police custody. A paramilitary allegedly “bought” his release for several hundred thousand CFA francs, in exchange for his signing a contract for a “security company”.

In December 2023, he flew to Russia with other Central African ex-detainees, as part of a group of 300 to 400 sub-Saharan Africans, according to his testimony.

His account prompted condemnation from the Central African Republic’s public prosecutor’s office, which declared the information it contained was “devoid of any plausibility or legal basis” and stated that there had “never been any recruitment of persons in police custody in the Central African Republic’s judicial police units”.

‘No more Africans coming here to die’

Alongside recruits lured to the front line under false pretences, there are also reports of volunteers – such as Jean Claude Sangwa, a Congolese man studying in Lugansk, in a region of eastern Ukraine occupied since 2014.

Then there are those who were involved in rebel groups in their home countries. In March 2022, Nigerian journalist Philip Obaji wrote in US publication the Daily Beast that some 200 so-called “Black Russians”, ex-rebels from the Central African Republic who had switched allegiance and been trained by Wagner, had been sent to Russia.

Obaji also claims that Central African detainees, including those guilty of serious crimes, have been released to serve on the Ukrainian front, following the example of mass recruitment from Russian prisons by the Wagner Group.

Voluntary or not, conditions for these fighters remain perilous on the Eastern Ukrainian front. And there’s no question of complaining: Russian mercenaries do not hesitate to publish videos of what happens to deserters, including death by sledgehammer, the favourite tool of Wagner’s men.

Samuel knows that if it is discovered he has spoken out, he will be killed. But he is prepared to take the risk.

“What I want is to mobilise the Africans who are travelling to Russia, so that they understand that they are being used. I want to tell people what’s going on… so that it stops, so that Africans stop coming here to die. I’ve lost loved ones. We come here to die in a war that we don’t know where it came from or why it started. I’d like to tell my part of the story when it’s over.”

Eric de Moulins-Beaufort, president of the French Bishops Conference (CEF), told French radio on Friday that he had filed a formal request with the Paris prosecutor’s office to investigate potential cover-ups of sexual abuse and assault.

Nine new accusations emerged this week in a report commissioned by Emmaüs, bringing the total number of testimonies to 33 since initial revelations surfaced in July. The allegations span from the 1950s to the 2000s.

Among the latest accusations, a family member reported experiencing “sexual contact on her breasts and mouth in the late 90s”, while another testimony described “sexual act with penetration on an underage boy”.

De Moulins-Beaufort said he was horrified by the latest revelations and therefore had put his request for a legal investigation into writing.

“Only the justice system has the means of investigation necessary to allow all the possible truth to be revealed about the silences and non-denunciations from which Abbé Pierre could have benefited,” he said.

French church knew of sexual abuse by late priest Abbé Pierre, bishop says

Renowned priest

Born Henri Grouès in 1912, Abbe Pierre was known across France for his work with the poor through Emmaüs and the Abbé Pierre Foundation. He died in 2007 at age 94.

This is the third report from the firm mandated by Emmaüs to shed light on the accusations against him.

While criminal prosecution of Abbé Pierre is no longer possible due to his death, investigators could examine potential accomplices or those who failed to report abuse at the time.

De Moulins-Beaufort said the request for an investigation was an opportunity to “get to the bottom” of the story and to determine how “the facts were not reported to justice for all these years”.

Since the revelations began in July 2024, the church has faced mounting criticism for its silence on the allegations. De Moulins-Beaufort expressed “immense sorrow” to victims and encouraged others to come forward.

“Anyone who has experienced sexual violence at the hands of Abbé Pierre should feel free to contact church support services or Emmaüs’ listening platforms,” he said.

In September, the church took the unusual step of opening its archives on Abbé Pierre to researchers and journalists, bypassing the typical 75-year waiting period.

French church unlocks archives early on priest accused of sexual abuse

Rebrand

In the wake of the allegations, French cities have taken steps to distance themselves from Abbé Pierre.

In September, the mayor of Lyon said “the name Abbé Pierre would be removed from the public space” at a plaza in the city centre.

The Abbé Pierre Foundation said it would change its name, and a memorial centre in Normandy, where the priest resided for many years, will close permanently.

A statue of Abbé Pierre was removed from the village of Norges-la-Ville in Eastern France, where the second largest Emmaüs community centre is located.

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.

WORLD RADIO DAY is coming up – it’s on 13 February. As we do every year, we’ll have a feast in The Sound Kitchen, filled with your voices.

Send your SHORT recorded WRD greetings to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr by 1 February. This year’s theme is “Radio and Climate Change”, but you don’t have to talk about the theme – if you just want to say “hello!”, that’s fine, too.

Be sure you include your name and where you live in your message.

Most importantly, get under a blanket to record. This will make your recording broadcast quality.

Bombard me with your greetings !!!!

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!

This week’s quiz: On 7 December, I asked you a question about the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which had just begun to hear evidence from 98 countries and 12 organizations about climate change, and how to establish rules for rich nations to support poorer ones, who are on the frontlines of climate change.

It’s a landmark case: brought by students in 2019 from the University of Vanuatu – the Pacific Island nation heavily impacted by climate change – led to a UN General Assembly resolution in 2023, asking the ICJ for a formal opinion on the legal obligations of states to protect the climate system. The court will also consider whether large polluting nations can be held liable for damages to vulnerable countries like small island states.

You were to re-read Paul Myer’s article “Small island nations lead fight for climate justice at UN’s top court”, and send in the answer to this question: In addition to the small island states and developing countries, who else will the ICJ hear from?

The answer is, to quote Paul’s article: “The court will also hear from the United States and China – the world’s top two emitters of greenhouse gases. The oil producer group OPEC will also give its views.

The 15 judges at the ICJ will hear submissions until 13 December and deliver their decision next year.”

In addition to the quiz question, there was the bonus question, suggested by Liton Ahamed Mia from Naogaon, Bangladesh: What do you remember about your first boat journey, and how did you feel when you were back on land?

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

The winners are: Fatematuj Zahra, the co-secretary of the Shetu RFI Listeners Club in Naogaon, Bangladesh. Fatematuj is also this week’s bonus question winner

Congratulations on your double win, Fatematju!

Also on the list of lucky winners this week is A. K. M. Nuruzzaman, the president of the RFI Amour Fan Club in Rajshahi, Bangladesh, and two RFI Listeners Club members from India: Babby Noor al Haya Hussen from Baripada, and Radhakrishna Pillai from Kerala State.

Rounding out the list of this week’s winners is RFI English listener Liton Islam Khondaker from Naogaon, Bangladesh.

Congratulations, winners!

Here’s the music you heard on this week’s programme: Hungarian Folk Dances by Bela Bartok, performed by the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra; “Dance With Pennons” from Three Japanese Dances by Bernard Rogers, performed by the Eastman Wind Ensemble conducted by Frederick Fennell; “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 “The Intrepid Fox” by Freddie Hubbard, performed by Hubbard and the Freddie Hubbard Quintet.

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 “’Exhausted’ Frenchman held in Iran since 2022 reveals identity in plea for help”, which will help you with the answer.

You have until 10 February to enter this week’s quiz; the winners will be announced on the 15 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.   

Macron’s announcement on Friday came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said that the release of hostages held in Gaza since Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel is expected to begin on Sunday.

The release is part of the ceasefire deal agreed between Israel and Hamas, announced on Wednesday and agreed by Israel’s security cabinet in a vote on Friday.

Under the deal struck by Qatar, the United States and Egypt, the coming weeks should also see the release of hundreds of Palestinian prisoners from Israeli jails.

The agreement, which must now go to the full cabinet for a final green light, would halt fighting and bombardment in Gaza’s deadliest war.

Israeli strikes have killed dozens of people since the ceasefire – due to come into effect on Sunday – was announced. Israel’s military said on Thursday it had hit around 50 targets across Gaza over the previous day.

Israel intensifies strikes on Gaza as world leaders hail Hamas ceasefire deal

“Our fellow citizens Ofer Kalderon and Ohad Yahalomi are on the list of 33 hostages to be freed in the first phase of the Gaza accord,” Macron wrote in a social media post. “We remain relentlessly committed to ensuring their return to their families.”

Kalderon, 53, was kidnapped alongside his two children Erez, 12, and Sahar, 16, who were released after 52 days in captivity.

Families await news of French hostages as Gaza truce deal advances

Yahalomi, 49, was taken with his 12-year-old son Eitan, who was freed during November’s temporary ceasefire.

Since the conflict began, 48 French citizens have died. Eight were taken hostage, of whom two died in captivity and four were released during previous negotiations.

The new truce between Israel and Hamas could see the release of 33 captives.

(with AFP)

The law to decriminalise abortion was proposed by then-health minister Simone Veil in November 1974. She was one of only nine female MPs at the time and faced enormous pressure – and abuse – during the 25-hour parliamentary debate.

“I never imagined the hatred that I would unleash,” Veil later said, recalling how some lawmakers likened abortion to the Holocaust – of which Veil was a survivor, having been deported to the Auschwitz-Birkenau and Bergen-Belsen concentration camps.

After concessions on adding a conscience clause for doctors who refused to perform the procedure, the bill was adopted with 284 votes for and 189 against.

It was enacted after approval by the Senate on 17 January, 1975, becoming what was known as the Veil Act. It was initially adopted for a period of five years, then prolonged indefinitely in 1979.

France marks 50 years since journey to decriminalise abortion began

There were originally two sets of circumstances under which abortion was accepted by the law – the first for an elective abortion due to a woman’s “distress” and the second for medical reasons.

Veil herself said that abortion should only be carried out as an exception, hence the inclusion of a seven-day waiting period and a “psycho-social” interview among the conditions for a termination, both of which have fallen by the wayside in recent years.

An evolving law

Fifty years on, the legacy of the Veil Act continues to mark French society. The technical aspects of the law have significantly evolved over time, with six major modifications between 1979 and 2024, when it was enshrined in the French constitution.

In 1975, elective abortion was initially authorised up to the 10th week of pregnancy. This limit was extended to 12 weeks in 2001 and to 14 weeks in 2022.

In 1975, terminations had to be performed surgically by a physician in a hospital. Under today’s legal framework, they can be performed in a range of settings, by both physicians and midwives, using various methods.

France set to make history by enshrining abortion rights in constitution

One of the biggest changes in the last 50 years is access to medical abortions, those in which medications are used rather than surgery, which accounted for four out of five abortions in 2023, according to a November report by the National Institute for Demographic Studies (INED). The figure for surgical abortions went down to one in five the same year.

Initially administered in hospitals, these drugs also became available in physicians’ offices, clinics and sexual health centres in the 2000s. Since the Covid-19 pandemic, women seeking medical abortions can also access health practitioners remotely.

Increase in abortions

France is among the European Union countries with the highest abortion rate. In 2023, in France as a whole (including its overseas departments) there were 17 elective abortions (16 in mainland France) per 1,000 women aged 15-49, according to the INED report.

It also shows that France has seen an increase in abortions. Stable at around 220,000 per year for the last three decades, the figure began rising sharply in the early 2020s, reaching 241,700 in 2023.

The report’s authors suggest that the increase in elective abortions may be “in response to greater social and economic insecurity and increasing uncertainty about the future”.

Despite the legal and logistical advances in the law, access to abortion remains fragile in practice and unequal across the country.

Why changing the constitution doesn’t guarantee access to abortion in France

Planning Familial (“Family Planning”), an advocacy group, found in a survey commissioned by polling group the IFOP Institute in July 2024, that 27 percent of women who sought an abortion over the last five years had been faced with a refusal.

Some of these refusals may have been linked to the “conscience clause” which has been part of the law from the outset. It states that a medical practitioner has the right to refuse to carry out an abortion, but must immediately refer the patient to a service that can perform the procedure.

Furthermore, the survey found that 31 percent of women who terminated their pregnancy before its eighth week said they were given no choice of method – medical or surgical – even if the right to this choice is inscribed in the law.

Planning Familial also reported that 130 abortion centres have been closed over the last 15 years in France, and others are under threat.

Geographical discrepencies

A Senate report from October 2024 also pointed to geographical discrepancies when it came to accessing abortion.

In France’s overseas departments and regions the rate reaches close to double that of mainland France. However, it was these same departments – including Guyana, Guadeloupe and Réunion Island – where women found it difficult to access health centres due to distance and lack of transport.

Rural areas in France were also subject to similar difficulties, as well as long waiting times and under-equipped regional health facilities.

The Senate report stated that the number of medical staff willing to carry out abortions was not sufficient and that this was perhaps due to a lack of training, poorly updated information campaigns and in some cases, too much red tape.

Stigma

Both the Senate report and Planning Familial survey also pointed to the need to counter the stigma associated with abortion, which stemmed from aggressive disinformation campaigns and activism online.

In its July survey, Planning Familial found that 41 percent of women who recently had an abortion stated that they felt “the right to abortion was taboo”, and 63 percent feared being judged by those around them or by health professionals.

Meanwhile, 37 percent said they felt pressure over their choice to have an abortion, either from their entourage or society at large.

This concern was also highlighted in a 2024 report from the La Fondation des Femmes (Women’s Foundation), which pointed to a change in public opinion following the June 2022 ruling of the Supreme Court of the United States, which rolled back the Roe vs Wade decision that had guaranteed abortion rights on a federal level.

Should France guarantee supply of abortion drugs by producing its own?

According to the Fondation, this gave anti-abortion groups in France a sense of legitimacy in carrying out “attacks against the premises and organisations fighting for reproductive rights” and campaigns such as putting anti-abortion stickers on hire bikes in Paris.

Planning Familial said that while 85 percent of people questioned in the IFOP poll said they are very strongly attached to the right to abortion, 89 percent of people were aware that obstacles persist in France.

The recent addition of abortion rights to the constitution does not seem sufficient to reassure people moving forward, the group said. “The fear of a possible challenge to the right to abortion in France is present, and particularly among women who have already had an abortion – 51 percent compared to 30 percent of the general public.”

“We, activists, researchers, elected officials, demand the rehabilitation of women unjustly convicted of abortion,” they wrote in a petition published on the Libération website.

The law, first debated by MPs in 1974, was championed by health minister Simone Veil and adopted for a trial period of five years before being made permanent in 1979.

Abortion had been criminalised in France since the 1800s, with convictions rising dramatically under the Vichy regime during World War II. Between 1940 and 1943, it was punishable by death.

Even in 1946, French courts ruled on 5,151 cases of clandestine abortions, the petition states.

“We cannot forget those who suffered, those who died as a result of clandestine abortion and even more, those who were condemned by unfair laws,” the group wrote.

France’s Veil abortion law leaves positive but fragile legacy, 50 years on

Restoring dignity

Notable signatories include Nobel Prize-winning author Annie Ernaux, Fondation des Femmes (Women’s Foundation) president Anne-Cécile Mailfert, and actresses Laure Calamy and Anna Mouglalis.

“It is about restoring their dignity, but also giving them a worthy place in the history of women and their rights,” the petition says.

The group proposes creating an independent commission to oversee the recognition and compensation of women convicted of abortion under previous laws. Compensation could be material or symbolic.

The petition cites a recent precedent: a bill passed by the National Assembly on 6 March 2024, which recognised and sought to repair harm caused by discriminatory laws against homosexuals between 1942 and 1982.

The signatories argue that exonerating women convicted of abortion would be a “strong political gesture” in line with recent moves to enshrine abortion rights in the constitution, which was approved in March 2024.

(with AFP)

After more than two years of a political vacuum at the top, Joseph Aoun was elected president on January 9 and chose Nawaf Salam as prime minister-designate.

They now face the daunting task of leading Lebanon after a devastating war between Israel and Lebanese militant group Hezbollah last year, on of the country’s worst economic crisis in history.

“Come, come,” he said, leading nursery children in uniforms by the hand to take a picture with him and other students after arriving at a central Beirut school to excited cheers early in the afternoon.

Shortly before, Macron strolled along the lively Beirut neighbourhood of Gemmayzeh near the coastal city’s port, posing for photos and selfies with eager members of the public, and downing small cups of coffee offered to him along the way.

He had been the first foreign leader to visit the devastated district after a massive explosion of fertilizer at the Beirut port ravaged it on August 4, 2020.

Later in the day he was set to meet Aoun at the presidential palace, and hold a meeting with Salam.

He might meet UN chief Antonio Guterres, a French diplomatic source said, as a January 26 deadline to fully implement a Hezbollah-Israel ceasefire deal approaches.

Macron’s visit aims to “help” Aoun and Salam “to consolidate Lebanon’s sovereignty, ensure its prosperity and maintain its unity”, the French presidency said before his arrival.

France administered Lebanon for two decades after World War I, and the two countries have maintained close relations even since Lebanon’s independence in 1943.

From protector to onlooker: how France lost its influence in Lebanon

‘Hope for possible redress’

Analysts say Hezbollah‘s weakening in the war with Israel last year allowed Lebanon’s deeply divided political class to elect Aoun and to back his naming of Salam as premier.

Islamist-led rebels overthrowing the Iran-backed group’s ally Bashar al-Assad on December 8 has also contributed to the ushering in of a new era for tiny Lebanon.

“In Lebanon, we have gone in a matter of months from a situation of dramatic escalation to a situation of hope for possible redress,” a French diplomatic source said on condition of anonymity.

Salam, a former presiding judge at the International Court of Justice, has launched delicate consultations to pick a government, with Hezbollah continuing to play an important role in Lebanon’s political scene despite its weakening on the battlefield.

The new government must “bring together Lebanon’s diverse people, ensure the ceasefire between Israel and Lebanon is respected and carry out the reforms necessary for the prosperity, stability and sovereignty of the country”, the French presidency said on Thursday.

The UN Security Council called Thursday for Lebanese leaders to rapidly form a new government, describing it as a “critical” step for stability in the war-battered country and region.

Ceasefire

Earlier on Friday, Macron met with UN peacekeeping mission chief Aroldo Lazaro and the heads of a committee tasked with monitoring any violation of a ceasefire that took effect on November 27 after more than a year of war.

“Things are moving forward, the dynamic is positive” on the implementation of the ceasefire, he told journalists after the talks.

Under the November 27 ceasefire accord, the Lebanese army has 60 days to deploy alongside UN peacekeepers in the south of Lebanon as the Israeli army withdraws.

At the same time, Hezbollah is required to pull its forces north of the Litani river, around 30 kilometres (20 miles) from the border, and dismantle any remaining military infrastructure it has in south Lebanon.

Speaking to UN peacekeepers in south Lebanon, Guterres urged an end to Israel’s “continued occupation” and “military operations” in south Lebanon.

He also said that UN peacekeepers “uncovered over 100 weapons caches belonging to Hezbollah or other armed groups since the November 27 ceasefire.

He added that the “presence of armed personnel, assets and weapons” other than those of the Lebanese army and the UNIFIL peacekeeping force violated terms of a UN resolution that formed the basis for the deal.

Hezbollah is the only group in Lebanon that refused to surrender its weapons to the state following the 1975-1990 civil war.

Backed by Syria under Assad, it played a central role in politics for decades, flexing its power in government institutions while engaging in fighting with the Israeli military.

Fils, the French number two, took the first set 6-4. But Humbert, seeded 14th, wrestled control of the tie after claiming the second 7-5 and edging the third 6-4.

Visibly incapacitated by the injury, Fils, the 20th seed, conceded the encounter at the start of the fourth set.

On Sunday Humbert will play the second seed Alexander Zverev, a straight sets winner over the Briton Jacob Fearnley, for a place in the last eight at one of the most prestigious tournaments on the circuit.

The pair met last November in the final at the Paris Masters, where Zverev triumphed in straight sets.

Elsewhere in the bottom half of the men’s draw, 10-time champion Novak Djokovic, seeded seventh, advanced 6-1, 6-4, 6-4 past Tomas Machac from the Czech Republic.

Third seed Carlos Alcaraz needed four sets to see off Nuno Borges from Portugal and the 24th seed Jiri Lehecka dispatched the unseeded Frenchman Benjamin Bonzi 6-2, 6-3, 6-3 to reach the last-16 in Australia for the second time in four visits.

The 23-year-old will take on Djokovic who is seeking a record 25th Grand Slam singles title.

Marathon

For the second match running, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina came from two sets down to prevail. The 25-year-old Spaniard saved a match point in the third set tiebreaker against the unseeded Czech player Jakub Mensik before winning it nine points to seven.

And 72 minutes after facing doom, Davidovich Fokina claimed the match to reach the last-16 in Australia for the first time in five visits.

In the women’s draw, the top seed and defending champion Aryna Sabalenka dismissed Clara Tauson from Denmark 7-6, 6-4.

Third seed Coco Gauff also progressed in straight sets and the 17-year-old Russian Mirra Andreeva moved into the fourth round for the second consecutive year at the expense of Pole Magdalena Frech.

The 14th seed beat the 23rd seed 6-2, 1-6, 6-2 to set up a Sunday showdown with Sabalenka for a place in the last eight.

Since Monday, rescuers have used a cylindrical metal cage to pull up 78 bodies and 248 survivors, some of them emaciated and disorientated, in a court-ordered operation at the mine near the town of Stilfontein, southwest of Johannesburg.

The cage was sent down to 1,280 metres with cameras on Thursday for a final sweep.

“We couldn’t see any person still left behind and we couldn’t hear any voices on the recording,” head of Mines Rescue Services, Mannas Fourie, told reporters at the site.

The police operation, “Vala Umgodi” (“close the hole” in Zulu), started in August. Over the course of the siege, 1,907 miners resurfaced, while 87 bodies were retrieved.

Most of the survivors are foreign nationals, including 1,125 Mozambicans and 465 Zimbabweans. Only 26 are South Africans, according to police.

They have been arrested and charged with illegal immigration, trespass, illegal mining and other offences. 

Investigators now face “a mammoth task” in identifying the dead as some of the bodies were already decomposing, and in some cases just bones, police spokeswoman Athlenda Mathe told journalists.

Among the dead, only two have been identified so far, Mathe said.  

Death toll rises as more bodies pulled from disused South African gold mine

Deaths could have been averted

No longer viable for commercial extraction, the mine – known as Shaft 11 – was entered illegally by the men trying to eke out a living.

Locally known as “zama zamas” – or “those who try” – illegal miners frustrate mining companies and are often accused of criminality by residents.

To force the miners out, police had restricted supplies of food and water that the surrounding community had been dropping down the shaft.

In November, a court ordered police to end all such restrictions.

UN panel seeks to stem mining abuses in global rush for critical minerals

But local community members, civil society groups and labour unions have denounced the Stilfontein crackdown.

Zinzi Tom told France 24 her brother had been down the mine for six months and she still didn’t know what had become of him. 

“Even if they’re saying he’s a criminal, does he deserve to die?” she said.

Community leader Johannes Qankase told French news agency AFP on Thursday that “the site had been turned into a mass grave by the government” and he believed most of the men starved to death.

Thembile Botman, a community leader in Khuma, told Reuters news agency that local residents had been warning for months that people would die, and the deaths could have been averted had the rescue operation taken place sooner.

Dehumanisation

The General Industries Workers Union of South Africa (Giwusa) condemned what it called “the dehumanisation and criminalisation of these poor, desperate miners”.

“This is a bloody culmination of treacherous policies pursued by the government. This was a campaign of lies,” its president Mametlwe Sebei told reporters.

The police have denied blocking the miners’ exit and said more than 1,500 miners did get out by their own means between the start of the siege in August and the rescue operation.

Africa takes centre stage as South Africa maps ambitious G20 agenda

Authorities said they were investigating the broader criminal networks that orchestrate the mining activity, recruit miners and traffic the illicit gold. 

“Those ringleaders who are controlling what happens underground… some of them have been retrieved, some already in police custody, but we are looking for the real kingpins,” Mathe said.

Illegal mining cost South Africa over $3 billion last year.

(with newswires)

The NGO’s 2025 World Report, published on Thursday, 16 January, calls into question the integrity of democratic institutions in terms of human rights around the world, with those in France no exception.

Human Rights Watch (HRW) reports that President Emmanuel Macron’s gamble to hold snap elections to stem the rise of the far-right, following significant gains by Marine Le Pen’s National Rally (RN) party in June’s European Parliament election, in fact led to the amplification of racist and xenophobic rhetoric across the country.

This also coincided with a rise in hate crime targeting minorities and growing economic inequality, highlighting the political and social fractures to be found in France.

Homeless charities warn of ‘social cleansing’ ahead of Paris Olympics

Behind the Olympic dream

The much lauded Paris Olympic Games – while showcasing French panache on the global stage – also unveiled human rights concerns.

Preparations for the Games involved controversial “social cleansing” strategies which targeted marginalised groups, specifically migrants, while during the event discrimination against athletes – specifically bans on the hijab – spurred criticism from the United Nations and civil rights groups.

Reports also revealed abuse against homeless people and the deployment of intrusive surveillance technology, sparking fears over privacy violations and discrimination.

Human Rights Watch also condemned racial profiling in police identity checks, highlighting systemic racism issues.

Meanwhile, alarming statistics on hate crime – including a sharp increase in anti-Semitic and Islamophobic incidents – illustrated a normalisation of hate speech across political and media platforms in France.

France sees ratings plunge in global freedom of expression report

Erosion of freedoms

The report also reveals that environmental activists have faced increasing pressure as the government deployed excessive police force, restrictive bans and anti-terrorism laws to crack down on protests.

Press freedom has also suffered, Human Rights Watch says, after journalists investigating French arms sales to Israel and environmental issues were arrested, drawing condemnation from various press freedom groups.

Last year also saw the resumption of the destruction of informal settlements in Mayotte, France’s poorest and least developed department.

Before the devasatation of the Indian Ocean island by Cyclone Chido in December, France’s approach to irregular migration, crime and disease on the island had failed to address urgent social issues.

New Caledonia separatists in Paris court over alleged role in deadly riots

New Caledonia overlooked

HRW reports a litany of failings in France over the rule of law, excessive police force and the right to protest. However, there is no mention in the report of how these issues have manifested in New Caledonia, the French territory in the South Pacific.

Following weeks of deadly clashes in 2024, separatist leaders were deported to the French mainland and incarcerated.

When questioned on this omission by RFI, Human Rights Watch said it would respond in due course.

The challenge in the National Assembly came after Bayrou’s statement this week on his government policy agenda, in which he opened the door to fresh talks on a 2023 pension reform “without taboo” but also said that France‘s “excessive” deficits needed to be cut in this year’s budget.

The speech sparked condemnation from most of the opposition in parliament where Bayrou – in the job only since last month – is well short of an absolute majority, making his government highly vulnerable to any no-confidence vote that, if successful, would force it to resign.

Jordan Bardella, the leader of the far-right National Rally (RN), dismissed it as “idle talk” by “a man of spineless continuity”.

But the backers of the no-confidence motion, submitted by the hard-left France Unbowed (LFI) party, failed to win the RN’s backing.

“We don’t think a no-confidence vote should be a gadget to create a buzz,” RN deputy Jean-Philippe Tanguy said ahead of the vote.

The RN’s vice-president, Sebastien Chenu, added before the vote that his party would judge the government “not by its words, but by its actions”.

Tanguy warned, however, that the RN might still come for Bayrou over his budget for 2025, which is overdue after the previous government of Michel Barnier was toppled over its austerity plans.

The new government’s budget announcement would be a “moment of truth”, Tanguy said.

French PM vows to reopen pension reform talks amid growing debt crisis

‘Another path’

The near-certainty of defeat as the vote neared did little to diminish LFI’s combativity.

“Mr Prime Minister, the days of your government of unhappiness are numbered,” said LFI coordinator Manuel Bompard as the debate on the no-confidence motion began.

“And when it falls, the monarch will follow,” he said, in a reference to President Emmanuel Macron, who only last month appointed Bayrou as France’s fourth prime minister within a year.

Bayrou, meanwhile, accused the hard left of trying to take France down the path of “infighting”.

The prime minister welcomed the decision of the Socialists to deny the LFI motion their backing, despite having been allied with the LFI since last year’s general election.

The Socialists’ defection showed that “another path towards understanding is opening up”, Bayrou said.

The LFI’s firebrand leader Jean-Luc Melenchon on Thursday evening vented that Bayrou “has just scored a point” thanks to “those who are running the Socialists today and have weakened us”.

But he denied that the leftist New Popular Front (NFP) alliance had cracked despite the Socialists’ refusal to back toppling Bayrou.

For their part, the Ecologists and Communists, who are both part of the NFP, made it clear that they intended to continue discussions with the government despite voting in favour of the motion.

The no-confidence vote won the backing of 131 deputies, well short of the 288 it needed to pass.

French politics was plunged into chaos last year when Macron called an election to break political deadlock but the vote returned a hopelessly divided lower chamber.

Macron has acknowledged his decision to dissolve the National Assembly had led to “divisions” and “instability”.

Constitutional rules mean new legislative elections cannot be called until July.

The French presidency said the visit aims to boost cooperation between the two countries while addressing major regional and international issues. President Lourenço is preparing to take over the presidency of the African Union in February, a key topic for discussions.

One of the key issues on the agenda is the conflict between Rwanda and Democratic Republic of Congo.

Macron, who visited Angola in March 2023, has reiterated his support for Lourenço’s efforts as key mediator. 

Since November 2021, the armed M23 movement, has seized large swathes of territory in the east of the DRC, rich in natural resources and torn apart by conflicts for 30 years. 

Rwanda denies supporting the M23 and says its aim is to tackle the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR), an armed group primarily composed of Hutu militants formed in the wake of the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

In December, Congolese Presidents Félix Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame were to meet in Luanda for peace talks but the two parties failed to agree on the terms, leading to a last-minute cancellation.

DR Congo, Rwanda peace talks in Angola cancelled after hitting ‘deadlock’

Diversify the economy

On the economic front, more than 430 million euros worth of contracts are due to be signed during Lourenço’s visit to Paris.

While trade between France and Angola has been dominated by the hydrocarbon sector, Angola is now turning to France to help it diversify its economy.

Lourenço will attend the Angola-France Business Forum which will bring together companies from both countries at the headquarters of Medef, the French employers’ organisation, on Friday.

The French company Suez is expected to formalise the signing of a major contract in the treatment of wastewater in Angola.

Financing is also expected to be concluded between French bank Société Générale and Angolan authorities for the purchase of an Earth observation satellite to be manufactured by Airbus in Toulouse, southwest France.

For Angola, the objective is to map its oil and mineral resources but also water for agriculture.

A preliminary agreement is due to be signed with the French Development Agency concerning a huge irrigation project while cooperation continues to rebuild the coffee sector.

Discussions will also focus on the Lobito corridor rail line project, intended to transport minerals extracted in the DRC and Zambia to the Atlantic Ocean.

France’s Macron hails renewed economic ties with Angola

Potential and risks

For Sergio Calundungo, the coordinator of the Political and Social Observatory of Angola, the Lobito Corridor has great potential and represents an economic advantage not only for Angola, but for countries in the region, especially for the DRC and Zambia.

He however warns that there are potential risks associated with this type of development, that has attracted the interest of both American and European investors.

“We are talking about risks of an environmental nature, because it will have a lot of infrastructure, a lot of equipment, in an area that was left to its own devices and for such a long time and didn’t have much human intervention,” he told RFI’s Portugese service.

There is also a risk of social unrest he explains. “I believe that we must ensure that all these investments do not translate into land invasion, conflicts, disputes over access to land, access to water, access to other resources with local communities,” he says.

In a separate development, Angola is considering asking the French Hospital Equipment Company to open an ophthalmological hospital in the capital.

“The agreement must be respected. The hostages freed. Gazans aided. A political solution must happen,” Macron posted on X

His reaction comes after Qatar’s prime minister said Wednesday that Israel and Hamas had agreed to a ceasefire in Gaza starting on Sunday and a hostage and prisoner exchange after 15 months of war.

The agreement follows months of on-off negotiations brokered by Egyptian and Qatari mediators, with the backing of the United States, and came just ahead of the 20 January inauguration of US President-elect Donald Trump.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres while welcoming the deal said  it was “imperative” that the ceasefire removes obstacles to aid deliveries as he welcomed the deal that includes a prisoner and hostage exchange.

Ceasefire deal

The deal, not yet formally announced, outlines a six-week initial ceasefire phase and includes the gradual withdrawal of Israeli forces from Gaza and release of hostages held by Hamas in exchange for Palestinian detainees held by Israel, an official briefed on the negotiations told Reuters news agency.

Israel’s government is expected to vote on the deal on Thursday.

A Palestinian official, who asked not to be named, told Reuters earlier that Hamas had given verbal approval to the ceasefire and hostage return proposal under negotiations in Qatar and was waiting for more information to give final written approval.

As celebrations spread in Gaza’s Khan Yunis, Israel said several clauses in the ceasefire deal with Hamas remain “unresolved”.

The statement from Netanyahu’s office reads: “Due to Prime Minister Netanyahu’s firm stance, Hamas backed down at the last moment from its demand to alter the deployment of forces along the Philadelphi Corridor.

“However, several clauses in the framework remain unresolved, and we hope the details will be finalized tonight.”

Egyptian state media said talks were under way to open the Rafah crossing to allow aid into Gaza.

Israel pushed to sign

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu was reportedly compelled to accept the Gaza ceasefire agreement following pressure from a team appointed by incoming US president Donald Trump.

According to reports, Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, met with Netanyahu in Israel after participating in ceasefire negotiations in Doha.

These efforts were said to be instrumental in achieving the recent breakthrough, which had been 15 months in the making.

Israel’s President, Isaac Herzog, also met with Mirjana Spoljaric, president of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), in Jerusalem. The discussions focused on preparations for a potential hostage release agreement, his office announced.

Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said he was cutting a visit to Europe short and flying back to Israel overnight to take part in security cabinet and government votes on the deal – meaning the votes would likely be by or on Thursday.

Israeli troops invaded Gaza after Hamas-led gunmen broke through security barriers and burst into Israeli communities on 7 October 2023, killing 1,200 soldiers and civilians and abducting more than 250 foreign and Israeli hostages.

Israel’s campaign in Gaza has killed more than 46,000 people, according to Gaza health ministry figures, and left the coastal enclave a wasteland of rubble with hundreds of thousands surviving the winter cold in tents and makeshift shelters.

  (with newswires)

The International Energy Agency (IEA) has announced that 70 gigawatts of new generating capacity are currently under construction worldwide, marking one of the highest levels in the past three decades.  

In its latest report, the IEA forecasts that nuclear power production will reach a record 2,900 terawatt hours by 2025. 

AI, data centres

IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol called it a “new era for nuclear energy,” driven by the growing demand for electricity to power advanced technologies like artificial intelligence and data centres.  

While China has led the charge in nuclear energy expansion, the United States and France have faced challenges due to the high costs of building nuclear plants. 

Birol said nuclear power could help the world transition to non-carbon energy sources to curb climate change.

(with AFP)

The often fraught relations between France and its former colony Algeria have hit an all-time low after a series of disagreements over Western Sahara, the detention of a French-Algerian writer and a French-Algerian blogger accused of inciting violence. Both countries have spoken of “humiliation” and “dishonour”. Arab world specialist  Adlene Mohammedi talks about bilateral relations being polluted by internal affairs – notably Algiers’ lack of democratic legitimacy and the increasing influence of the far right in France. And while the sorely needed level-headed diplomacy  is more needed than ever, it’s been run down in both countries.   (Listen @2’05”)

France’s remarkable geological diversity means the country is prime dinosaur territory – home to fossils from all three periods of the dinosaur age.  The first dinosaurs were discovered in France in the 19th century, but as paleontologist Eric Buffetaut explains, many of the major finds have been in the last 40 years, thanks to amateur paleontologists around the country. (Listen @21’25”)

France enacted a law decriminalising abortion on 17 January 1975. Ollia Horton talks about the legacy of that right and how despite being  enshrined in the constitution, access 50 years later is still not guaranteed. (Listen @14’40”)

Episode mixed by Cecile Pompeani. 

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 parties did not reveal the value of the “multi-year” contract nor its precise duration.

It was the first such deal struck by AFP and for Mistral AI, a European competitor to American giants like ChatGPT creator OpenAI.

Tie-ups between news organisations and AI developers remain relatively rare worldwide, despite a pick-up in activity last year.

OpenAI has struck the most deals, including with British business daily the Financial Times, French centre-left paper Le Monde and Germany‘s Axel Springer group, which publishes conservative broadsheet Die Welt and tabloid-style Bild.

“This is the first deal between two players with global ambitions, indeed a global footprint as far as AFP is concerned, but with well-anchored European roots,” the agency’s chief executive Fabrice Fries told AFP journalists in an interview.

He added that the contract would offer the agency “a new revenue stream”.

On Mistral’s side, “AFP brings a verified, journalistic source that we think is very important”, founder Arthur Mensch said.

Verified information

AFP articles in six languages – French, English, Spanish, Arabic, German and Portuguese – will be available to Mistral’s Le Chat chatbot from Thursday.

The product works similarly to ChatGPT, the first such tool to reach a broader audience: users type in a question and receive a response within seconds.

France bets on AI-powered traffic cameras to catch drivers who break rules

Le Chat will answer questions about current events using AFP articles – the text news the agency typically sends to its subscription-paying clients in the media, government and other institutions, and businesses.

The AFP integration will undergo a test period during which it will be available only to a segment of Mistral users.

Le Chat can draw on the agency’s text archives going back to 1983, but has no access to AFP’s photo, video or infographics production.

The records amount to around 38 million articles, Fries said, adding that the agency publishes a further 2,300 every day.

Access via Mistral’s Le Chat could be useful to “professionals or managers in large businesses” for “writing memos” or other documents related to current affairs, Fries suggested.

Among the broader public, many people are using generative AI tools in different ways. Some ask questions about daily life, receiving answers the bots have plucked from the internet.

The two user styles are “complementary”, Mistral boss Mensch said.

Where users’ questions “require verified information, AFP will provide” the inputs. “Concerning shopping or the weather, it will come more from the web,” Mensch added.

‘Recurring revenue’

Thursday’s AFP-Mistral deal comes just over a week after Facebook and Instagram parent company Meta said it would end its fact-checking programme in the United States.

Worldwide, AFP is a major participant in fact-checking content on Meta’s platforms.

“Our discussions with Mistral began just under a year ago, so there’s no link to Meta’s decision,” Fries said.

AFP had actively chosen a “strategy of diversification” in tie-ups with digital platforms as traditional media is wracked by crisis.

In 2023, AFP booked its fifth annual profit in a row, bringing in 1.1 million euros.

Beyond its income from selling content, AFP also receives compensation for its public-interest objectives from the French state, which amounted to 113.3 million euros in 2023, out of a revenue of 320.1 million euros.

In a departure from similar media-AI deals, AFP text articles will not be used to train and develop Mistral’s language models.

Instead, the agency’s content will form “a module that connects to our system and can be disconnected” when the contract expires, Mensch said.

“This isn’t a one-and-done payment, as is often the case in deals for training models, but development of recurring revenue” for AFP, Fries said.

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.

WORLD RADIO DAY is coming up – it’s on 13 February. As we do every year, we’ll have a feast in The Sound Kitchen, filled with your voices.

Send your SHORT recorded WRD greetings to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr by 1 February. This year’s theme is “Radio and Climate Change”, but you don’t have to talk about the theme – if you just want to say “hello!”, that’s fine, too.

Be sure you include your name and where you live in your message.

Most importantly, get under a blanket to record. This will make your recording broadcast quality.

Bombard me with your greetings !!!!

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!

This week’s quiz: On 7 December, I asked you a question about the International Court of Justice (ICJ), which had just begun to hear evidence from 98 countries and 12 organizations about climate change, and how to establish rules for rich nations to support poorer ones, who are on the frontlines of climate change.

It’s a landmark case: brought by students in 2019 from the University of Vanuatu – the Pacific Island nation heavily impacted by climate change – led to a UN General Assembly resolution in 2023, asking the ICJ for a formal opinion on the legal obligations of states to protect the climate system. The court will also consider whether large polluting nations can be held liable for damages to vulnerable countries like small island states.

You were to re-read Paul Myer’s article “Small island nations lead fight for climate justice at UN’s top court”, and send in the answer to this question: In addition to the small island states and developing countries, who else will the ICJ hear from?

The answer is, to quote Paul’s article: “The court will also hear from the United States and China – the world’s top two emitters of greenhouse gases. The oil producer group OPEC will also give its views.

The 15 judges at the ICJ will hear submissions until 13 December and deliver their decision next year.”

In addition to the quiz question, there was the bonus question, suggested by Liton Ahamed Mia from Naogaon, Bangladesh: What do you remember about your first boat journey, and how did you feel when you were back on land?

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

The winners are: Fatematuj Zahra, the co-secretary of the Shetu RFI Listeners Club in Naogaon, Bangladesh. Fatematuj is also this week’s bonus question winner

Congratulations on your double win, Fatematju!

Also on the list of lucky winners this week is A. K. M. Nuruzzaman, the president of the RFI Amour Fan Club in Rajshahi, Bangladesh, and two RFI Listeners Club members from India: Babby Noor al Haya Hussen from Baripada, and Radhakrishna Pillai from Kerala State.

Rounding out the list of this week’s winners is RFI English listener Liton Islam Khondaker from Naogaon, Bangladesh.

Congratulations, winners!

Here’s the music you heard on this week’s programme: Hungarian Folk Dances by Bela Bartok, performed by the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra; “Dance With Pennons” from Three Japanese Dances by Bernard Rogers, performed by the Eastman Wind Ensemble conducted by Frederick Fennell; “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 “The Intrepid Fox” by Freddie Hubbard, performed by Hubbard and the Freddie Hubbard Quintet.

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 “’Exhausted’ Frenchman held in Iran since 2022 reveals identity in plea for help”, which will help you with the answer.

You have until 10 February to enter this week’s quiz; the winners will be announced on the 15 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.   

The often fraught relations between France and its former colony Algeria have hit an all-time low after a series of disagreements over Western Sahara, the detention of a French-Algerian writer and a French-Algerian blogger accused of inciting violence. Both countries have spoken of “humiliation” and “dishonour”. Arab world specialist  Adlene Mohammedi talks about bilateral relations being polluted by internal affairs – notably Algiers’ lack of democratic legitimacy and the increasing influence of the far right in France. And while the sorely needed level-headed diplomacy  is more needed than ever, it’s been run down in both countries.   (Listen @2’05”)

France’s remarkable geological diversity means the country is prime dinosaur territory – home to fossils from all three periods of the dinosaur age.  The first dinosaurs were discovered in France in the 19th century, but as paleontologist Eric Buffetaut explains, many of the major finds have been in the last 40 years, thanks to amateur paleontologists around the country. (Listen @21’25”)

France enacted a law decriminalising abortion on 17 January 1975. Ollia Horton talks about the legacy of that right and how despite being  enshrined in the constitution, access 50 years later is still not guaranteed. (Listen @14’40”)

Episode mixed by Cecile Pompeani. 

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).

Syrian refugee Hasan Sallouraoglu and his family have carved out a new life in Istanbul with a thriving pastry shop in Istanbul‘s Sultanbeyli district, home to around 60,000 Syrians.

With Assad gone, the question of whether to return to Syria now looms. “It’s been 10 years, and my shop has been open for the last eight years. We can start a shop there in Syria, too,” explained Sallouraoglu.

However, Sallouraoglu, with an ironic smile, acknowledges returning to Syria is a hard sell for his family. “There is not much excitement in my family. We see the news and we see that our country is completely destroyed on the ground. Ninety percent of it has been destroyed, so we need time to think,” said Sallouraoglu.

Across the road from Sallouraoglu’s pastry shop, the owner of a clothes shop, Emel Denyal, is considering returning to her home in Aleppo but says such a move could mean breaking up her family.

Nostalgia

“We are all thinking about returning. But the children aren’t interested. They love being here. They want to stay here,” said Denyal.

 ‘We still feel nostalgic for our land. We are still missing Syria because we were raised in Syria,” added Denyal, “The Syrian generation growing up in Turkey doesn’t think about going back. The elderly and my husband are considering returning, but my children aren’t. Can we find a solution?”

Since Assad fled Syria, Turkish authorities claim about 35,000 Syrians out of the nearly four million living in Turkey have gone home.

The Refugee Association in Sutlanebeyli provides assistance to some of Istanbul’s 600,000 Syrian refugees. Social welfare director Kadri Gungorur says the initial euphoria over Assad’s ousting is making way to a more pragmatic outlook.

“The desire to return was very strong in the first stage but has turned into this: ‘Yes, we will return, but there is no infrastructure, no education system, and no hospitals,’ said Gungorur.

Gungorur says with only 12 families from Sultanbeyli returning to their homes, he worries about the consequences if Syrians don’t return in large numbers. “If the Syrians do not return, the general public may react to the Syrians because now they will say that ‘Syria is safe. Why don’t you return?'”

Over the past year, Turkish cities, including Istanbul, have witnessed outbreaks of violence against Syrians amid growing public hostility towards refugees.

 Turkish authorities have removed Arabic from shop signs in a move aimed at quelling growing resentment made worse by an ailing economy.

Concerns for women

Turkish presidential adviser Mesut Casin of Istanbul’s Yeditepe University claims the government is aware of the Turkish public’s concern.   

“We all saw the civil war in Syria. Four million immigrant people in Turkey and that has brought a lot of problems in Turkey …even criminal actions. There’s also the problem of border security. Turkish public opinion is opposed to the Syrian people today,” said Casin.

Erdogan is promising to facilitate the quick return of Syrian refugees. However, such aspirations could well be dependent on the behaviour of Syria’s new rulers,

“The Syrians you have in Turkey are mostly women and children. So it has to be a government and administration friendly to women and children, specifically women,” says analyst Sezin Oney of the independent Turkish news portal Medyascope. 

“But we don’t know with these, Islamist, jihadist groups. Will they be really friendly towards these othe groups? So I don’t see the return of the Syrians who are in Turkey, really,” added Oney.

Erdogan is pledging that the return of the Syrians will be voluntary. However, analysts suggest more decisive action may be necessary, as the Turkish leader knows if the refugees do not return home quickly, it could have political consequences.

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.

WORLD RADIO DAY is coming up – it’s on 13 February. As we do every year, we’ll have a feast in The Sound Kitchen, filled with your voices.

Send your SHORT recorded WRD greetings to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr by 1 February. This year’s theme is “Radio and Climate Change”, but you don’t have to talk about the theme – if you just want to say “hello!”, that’s fine, too.

Be sure you include your name and where you live in your message.

Most importantly, get under a blanket to record. This will make your recording broadcast quality.

Bombard me with your greetings!!!!

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!

This week’s quiz: On the 23rd of November, I asked you a question about the legislative elections in Senegal, which were won by a comfortable margin by Pastef, the ruling party.

The win came just a few months after President Bassirou Diomaye Faye secured the presidency, pledging economic transformation, social justice, and a fight against corruption, so now the way is cleared for Faye and Pastef to carry out ambitious reforms. May they succeed!

You were to re-read our article “Senegal’s ruling Pastef party on track to get large majority in elections”, and send in the answer to these questions: How many registered voters are there in Senegal, how many members are there in the Parliament, and for how long do those MPs serve?

The answer is, to quote our article: “Senegal’s roughly 7.3 million registered voters were called to elect 165 MPs for five-year terms.”

In addition to the quiz question, there was the bonus question: “What is the best thing to wake up to?”

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

The winners are: RFI Listeners Club member Kashif Khalil from Faisalabad, Pakistan, who is also this week’s bonus question winner.

Congratulations on your double win, Kashif!

Also on the list of lucky winners this week are Nafisa Khatun, the president of the RFI Mahila Shrota Sangha Club in West Bengal, India, and Nahid Hossen, a member of the Shetu RFI Listeners Club in Naogaon, Bangladesh. There’s RFI Listeners Club member Sunil Dhungana from Braga, Portugal, and last but not least, RFI English listener Renu Sharma from Rajasthan, India.

Congratulations, winners!

Here’s the music you heard on this week’s programme: Slavonic Dance op. 46 No. 6 by Antonin Dvorak, performed by the Cleveland Orchestra conducted by George Szell; “Jarabi”, written and performed by Toumani Diabaté and Sidiki Diabaté; “The Flight of the Bumblebee” by Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov; “The Cakewalk” from Children’s Corner by Claude Debussy, performed by the composer, and “La Musette” by Léojac and René Flouron, performed by Berthe Sylva with the Orchestre des Concerts Parisiens conducted by André Cadou.

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 Melissa Chemam’s article “France’s ex-president Sarkozy on trial over alleged Gaddafi pact”, which will help you with the answer.

You have until 3 February to enter this week’s quiz; the winners will be announced on the 8 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:

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This week, we focus on the fight against the exploitation of ‘blood minerals’ or ‘conflict minerals’ in Central Africa, particularly in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Conflic minerals is the term used by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) to describe minerals sourced from conflict-affected and high-risk areas, such as tantalum, tin, tungsten (referred to as the ‘3Ts’), gold, cobalt, coltan, and lithium.

These minerals are essential for high-tech applications, including smartphones, electric batteries, and other advanced technology such as appliances, cars, and even wind turbines. They are predominantly found in the African Great Lakes region, especially in eastern DRC.

In an effort to combat the illegal and exploitative trade of these minerals, the NGO Global Witness established a transition team several years ago.

The May 2022 a report from Global Witness revealed that these minerals are used in products by international brands such as Apple, Intel, Samsung, Nokia, Motorola, and Tesla.

Now, with a trial underway in France and Belgium accusing Apple, many observers are hopeful that it could bring about meaningful change.

The Democratic Republic of Congo has filed a criminal case against European subsidiaries of the tech giant Apple, alleging the company has illicitly used conflict minerals in its supply chain.

The American company claims it no longer sources conflict minerals from Central Africa, but is it doing enough?

DRC case against Apple brings new hope in conflict minerals crisis

The complaints filed against Apple have been described by lawyers involved as a matter of significant public interest.

European countries, consumers, and non-governmental organisations are increasingly scrutinising the international supply chains of minerals, with calls for highly profitable companies to be held accountable.

This complaint could mark the beginning of a broader wave of legal actions targeting technology companies linked to the sourcing of conflict minerals.

To examine the implications of this trial, this week’s guest is Gregory Mthembu-Salter, a researcher specialising in Africa’s political economy and a former consultant to the UN Group of Experts on the DRC on due diligence regarding conflict minerals. He is based in South Africa.

Episode mixed by Erwan Rome.

Spotlight on Africa is a podcast from Radio France Internationale.

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! 

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.