Fabrice Aidan, a former French foreign affairs employee, is mentioned in more than 200 files released by the US Department of Justice last month as part of its ongoing Epstein probe. His current employer, energy provider Engie, told French press agency AFP that Aidan “was suspended from his duties, due to information brought to the company’s attention and reported in certain media outlets, relating to a period prior to his joining the group.”

The documents reportedly include emails exchanged between Aidan and Epstein from 2010 to 2016, some involving the transfer of United Nations briefings and reports.

Former French culture minister Lang summoned to explain Epstein ties

Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot said he had referred the allegations to prosecutors and ordered an internal inquiry, calling the revelations “staggering” and “extremely serious”.

A search of the Epstein files, published by the US Department of Justice, reveals that Aidan’s name appears 211 times in different documents and emails, many of them in connection to Terje Rod-Larsen, a former Norwegian and president of the International Peace Institute (IPI), who also features in the Epstein files.

As a result, Rod-Larson is currently also under investigation on suspicion of complicity in gross corruption, together with his wife, Mona Juul, who was Norway’s ambassador to the United Nations in 2022. Both Norwegians were part of a small group of diplomats working on the 1993-1995 Oslo accords. According to Norwegian medai, Epstein left $10 million in his will to the children of Juul and Rod-Larsen.

President Emmanuel Macron is said to be “appalled” by the findings.

Aidan is alleged to have sent UN Security Council documents and meeting notes — including a readout of a call between former Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon and Turkey’s foreign minister — to Epstein while posted at the UN headquarters in New York. In one exchange, he reportedly requested the access codes to Epstein’s Paris apartment.

Former French minister Lang resigns from Arab World Institute over Epstein ties

Gerard Araud, France’s UN ambassador at the time, told French press agency AFP the diplomat had been recalled to Paris in 2013 after the FBI informed UN security services that Aidan had accessed child pornography websites.

Aidan later worked for UNESCO and French energy group Engie, which said it has terminated his employment “in light of information reported in the media”.

The latest disclosures come amid widening fallout from the US release of Epstein-related material, which has already prompted former French minister Jack Lang to resign from the Arab World Institute.

(With newswires)

The crew will launch aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft on a Falcon 9 rocket. Adenot will be joined by NASA astronauts Jessica Meir (mission commander), Jack Hathaway (pilot), and Russian cosmonaut Andrey Fedyaev (mission specialist). 

Who is Sophie Adenot, the French engineer destined for space?

Adenot, 43, holds the rank of colonel in the French Air and Space Force. She will become only the second Frenchwoman in space in more than 30 years, following Claudie Haigneré’s historic missions in the 1990s and early 2000s.

France’s first woman in space in 25 years counts down to trip to the ISS

Haigneré first flew to space in August 1996 aboard Soyuz TM-24, spending 16 days on the Russian space station Mir during the Cassiopée mission. In October 2001, she became the first European woman to visit the International Space Station during the Andromède mission.

The Crew-12 mission will be Adenot’s first spaceflight. The European Space Agency has named her mission εpsilon (Epsilon). Selected as an ESA astronaut in November 2022 from a pool of 22,500 applicants, she became the first member of her class to receive a flight assignment.

Adenot earned an engineering degree from ISAE-SUPAERO in Toulouse, France, specialising in spacecraft and aircraft flight dynamics. She also holds a master’s degree in human factors engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the United States.

France’s Sophie Adenot to spend nine months on ISS after medical evacuation

Before joining ESA, she became France’s first female helicopter test pilot in 2018, accumulating over 3,000 flight hours on 22 different types of helicopter.

Adenot’s experiments

Josef Aschbacher, Director General of the European Space Agency, said Adenot’s mission is very important for Europe as she will be conducting experiments during her six-to-eight-month stay on the International Space Station.

The aim is to develop space science and technology through these experiments. This forms a vital part of exploration work and is crucial for developing expertise in space, Aschbacher told RFI English following his press briefing in January.

According to CNES, France‘s space agency, Adenot will contribute to approximately 200 experiments during her stay. Seven have been specifically prepared for the Epsilon mission by CADMOS, CNES’s centre for the development of microgravity applications and space operations in Toulouse.

ESA at 50: looking back and launching forward

The experiments will focus on physiology, technology testing for future Moon and Mars missions, and educational outreach.

The mission name, Epsilon, is the fifth Greek letter and follows the French tradition of naming human spaceflight missions after celestial bodies.

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The move would add to a small US team already in the West African nation after the first publicly acknowledged US ground presence there since carrying out strikes on Christmas Day.

The troops are expected to deploy in the coming weeks to provide training and technical support, a US official told Reuters on Tuesday. The official said the 200 troops will supplement a handful of US military personnel already in Nigeria to help local forces.

They will be assigned to locations across the country to provide training and technical expertise but will not be involved in combat operations, the official said.

The US military said last week it had sent a small team of troops to Nigeria without specifying a number, marking the first acknowledgment of US forces on the ground since Washington struck by air on 25 December.

Trump has said there could be more US military action in Nigeria, while Reuters has reported that the United States had been conducting surveillance flights over the country from Ghana since at least late November.

Spotlight on Africa: US strikes in Nigeria and fear among the African diaspora

‘Christian genocide’

Relations between Nigeria and the United States shifted after Trump late last year threatened to enter Nigeria “guns-a-blazing” to avenge what he has called a “Christian genocide”.

Weeks later, on Christmas Day, US Navy warships aided by Nigerian intelligence launched 16 Tomahawk missiles at what Trump said was the “terrorist scum” responsible for killing Nigerian Christians.

US military officials are still assessing the damage from the strikes in northwest Nigeria but said more than three dozen Islamic State-affiliated fighters were flushed out and later arrested by Nigerian authorities.

Residents have said the missiles hit empty fields and vacant militant hide-outs.

Nigeria has come under intense pressure from Washington to act after Trump alleged the country was failing to protect Christians from Islamist militants operating in the northwest.

The Nigerian government denies any systematic persecution of Christians, saying it is targeting Islamist fighters and other armed groups that attack and kill both Christians and Muslims.

US Africa Command, the US military command responsible for operations in Africa, said it was helping Nigeria in its campaign against several extremist groups, including Boko Haram and Islamic State’s West Africa Province.

(with Reuters)

Attal, who leads Renaissance – the centrist party founded by President Emmanuel Macron – said participating states would strengthen sanctions, identify officials linked to repression and prepare for a possible political transition to avoid chaos.

“France must take the lead of a coalition of states ready to fully commit to bringing down the regime of the mullahs,” Attal told France Inter.

He said the proposed coalition would work to “strengthen sanctions wherever possible and make them truly effective” against Tehran.

Iran’s exiled opposition fractures amid climate of fear online

Lists of regime operatives

Participating countries would also publish “extremely precise lists of all the regime’s operatives” so they could face prosecution in the future, Attal added.

The coalition would also prepare for “the aftermath”, aiming to avoid “chaos” if Iran’s leadership were to fall. Attal did not explain how such a change might happen.

The member of parliament repeated that if a state chose to intervene militarily in Iran, he would “be careful not to condemn it”.

US President Donald Trump issued repeated threats in January to intervene militarily in Iran in response to the repression of protests.

EU blacklists Iran’s Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist organisation

Protests spread across Iran

Large anti-government demonstrations began on 28 December over rising living costs in Iran before turning into a broader protest movement against the authorities.

On Tuesday, residents of the capital Tehran again chanted slogans against the Islamic regime, according to videos shared on social media.

The Human Rights Activists News Agency, a US-based NGO monitoring rights violations in Iran, said it had confirmed 6,964 deaths, mostly protesters, and was investigating 11,730 additional cases.

(with AFP)

The Loi Duplomb, named after conservative senator Laurent Duplomb who proposed it, claims to ease pressure on farmers by loosening rules on pesticide use, large-scale livestock farming and water storage projects.

Backed by the government and major farming unions, the law was passed on 8 July 2025.

It was immediately contested by some scientists, health experts and environmental groups because it reauthorised acetamiprid, part of the neonicotinoid group of pesticides banned in France in 2018 for harming bees and other pollinators.

Within days, a student-led petition denouncing the law as a “public health and environmental aberration” gathered more than 500,000 signatures. By the end of 2025, more than 2 million people had signed the petition – a record in France.

In August, opponents of the law brought it before France’s constitutional council, which ruled against reintroducing the pesticide, arguing it flouted France’s environmental charter, which guarantees the “right to live in a balanced and healthy environment”. 

However, all the other provisions in the law, such as easing authorisations for livestock farming and irrigation reservoirs, remained in place.

France’s top constitutional court rejects return of bee-killing pesticide

Brain disorders

Senator Duplomb is continuing to push for a derogation on pesticides. In early February, he submitted a revised version of the censured article maintaining the reintroduction of acetamiprid, along with another insecticide, flupyradifurone, in a limited number of cases.

“No serious study has shown that acetamiprid is carcinogenic,” Duplomb told French public radio on Monday, defending the measure and underlining that France is the only country in the EU to have banned acetamiprid.

“We are banning molecules that are authorised in Europe whereas independent agencies have shown that [acetamiprid] was dangerous neither for people nor the environment. Today in France, through a particular kind of obscurantism, we would like to have people believe the opposite.”

Chemist and toxicologist Jean-Marc Bonmatin said the lack of studies means there is no “formal proof” that acetamiprid causes cancer. However, “there are serious indications showing acetamiprid could be carcinogenic, notably for breast and testicular cancer because all neonicotinoids have been found to be endocrine disruptors,” he told RFI.

French health experts oppose bill that could reintroduce banned pesticides

There is no doubt, however, about the molecule’s impact on the brain.

“The main concern with neonicotinoids, and acetamiprid in particular, is the action of these neurotoxic molecules on the central nervous system”, Bonmatin said – adding that they affect neurodevelopment, notably in unborn babies and young children.

He pointed to “extremely important diseases” such as autistic spectrum disorders in children, and neurological disorders in the elderly.

“That’s why we scientists and doctors are taking action on this issue,” the chemist said.

In 2021, Bonmatin and colleagues at France’s Centre for scientific research (CNRS) published a list of the effects of neonicotinoids, including acetamiprid, on human health “so that doctors can recognise the symptoms of poisoning and the cases”.

While scientists often invoke the principle of precaution when studies are not clear, Bonmatin says that in this case the principle of prevention has to apply.

“We know very well what these pesticides will do to the population, to biodiversity, to the environment, so we have an obligation to protect people from future illnesses,” he said.

Even the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) – often cited by supporters of acetamiprid – said in 2024 that there were “major uncertainties in the body of evidence for the developmental neurotoxicity (DNT) properties of acetamiprid”.

It proposed reducing the acceptable daily intake by a factor of five.

French health watchdog warns of pesticide dangers to young children

Existing alternatives 

Duplomb said the revised law would allow the use of the pesticide only where farmers have no alternative.

“We have focused on those sectors that INRAE considers to be in a complete dead end – where plant protection products are the only solution, such as hazelnuts, apples, cherries and sugar beet,” he said on Monday – referring to the National Research Institute for Agriculture, Food and the Environment.

The Loi Duplomb is backed by France’s largest farming union, the FNSEA, which is dominated by large cereal and sugar beet farmers and agribusinesses. It says sugar beet farmers in particular have no alternative to neonicotinoids when faced with the jaundice virus transmitted by aphids.

Bonmartin cites a 2021 report by Anses – France’s food, environmental and occupational health and safety body – which specifically adressed the sugar beet issue and which found there were in fact around 20 alternatives.

“There are even varieties of sugar beet that resist the jaundice disease transmitted by flies,” he said. “So saying there is no alternative amounts to fake news to allow the reintroduction of neonicotinoids.”

“When the FNSEA says there is no alternative what they mean is that there is no alternative as easy as using pesticides.

“So the choice is either I take the easier solution through pesticides – the worst in terms of poisoning people – or I use alternatives and I preserve the environment, biodiversity and public health.”

France moves to ease pesticide ban to save sugar beet farmers

‘Farmers are main victims’

The Loi Duplomb was presented as a way to “lift the constraints on the profession of agriculture” in response to farmers’ protests in January 2024. One of their key demands was simpler rules and less paperwork.

Supporting the law, the FNSEA has denounced unfair competition linked to France’s ban on some pesticides and weedkillers allowed in other EU countries.

Other unions, including the Confédération paysanne, which represents smaller farmers and supports an agroecological transition, oppose the bill.

Eve Fouilleux, a researcher at the Centre for Agricultural Research for Development (Cirad), says farmers themselves are the main victims of pesticides, but they’re not always aware of the danger.

She said the issue is not regulations but agricultural economics.

“The root of the problem is income – the price paid to farmers – the economic system is crushing them,” she told RFI. “When you spend €100 on food in the supermarket, only €6.90 goes to the farmer.

“It’s a system where farmers are being asked to produce more and more with very little added value. So for them, pesticides are a guarantee of being able to produce a few percent more yield. And what is tragic is that this few percent means a little more money for them, but it’s a disaster for the groundwater, for water quality and for taxpayers’ bills.”

Fouilleux cited surveys showing farmers are “overwhelmingly in favour of the ecological transition in agriculture, but they’re asking for support”.

While the French government is spending a lot of money on the food system, 60 percent goes to manufacturers, supermarkets and commercial caterers, she explained.

Around 20 percent goes to farmers through subsidies from the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy (CAP), but these are paid per acre. “So the bigger you are, the more support you get.”

Fouilleux said the existing productivist system contributes to the economic marginalisation of farmers in the food system. “That’s the problem, it’s not about standards at all. It’s really a discursive strategy by the FNSEA union, which is in fact run by agri-food industrialists,” she said.

Why are French farmers angry and who will reap the rewards?

Economic interests

Duplomb himself is a large dairy farmer and a senior member of the FNSEA union. He is also a former agro-industry executive.

From 2014 to 2017 he was regional president of the dairy group Sodiaal – a major French cooperative that owns brands such as Yoplait, Candia and others – and has been a member of Candia’s supervisory board.

“There’s a conflict of interest. He defends bills that will benefit his farm,” said Guillaume Gontard, president of the Senate’s environmentalist group. “He’s a representative of agribusiness who lives off exports.”

The environmental NGO Terre de Liens has described the Duplomb law as “tailor-made for FNSEA and agro-industry”.

“Duplomb has very strong ties to the agrochemical industry,” Bonmatin said. “There’s a denial of scientific facts in favour of economic interests.”

“He’s chosen private economic interest, he’s not defending the farming community at all. To do so, you just have to help it make the necessary transitions.”

Opponents of the Iranian regime living abroad say that rather than uniting in an effort to change realities on the ground, they are splitting and turning on each other.

A minority has created what some describe as a climate of fear – particularly on social media – targeting anyone who voices disagreement.

“It’s tough right now,” British-Iranian anthropologist Pardis Shafafi, who researches state violence and political repression in Iran, told Norwegian news site Filter Nyheter.

Shafafi, a member of the EHESS, a Paris-based academic research centre, said she did not expect her comments to trigger attacks from a pro-monarchist group in Europe.

She described heightened activism from radical fringes of the opposition in exile.

“When you post things online, it’s very common for a stranger to question you about yourself and the people you follow,” she said. “And it very often spirals into accusations of espionage.”

Shafafi is not the only one reporting this pattern: blacklists and death threats issued against journalists or researchers accused of being propagandists.

EU blacklists Iran’s Revolutionary Guard as a terrorist organisation

Hiding in silence

Whether monarchist, left-wing, nationalist or Islamist, opposition figures abroad continue to tear each other apart.

In France, several public figures of Iranian origin have described – publicly or anonymously –receiving threats after speaking out in ways seen as too sympathetic to the Iranian regime. One filed a complaint against unknown individuals over death threats but declined to give an interview.

Reza Pahlavi, the son of Iran’s former king and the best-known opposition figure abroad, has tried to distance himself from the most radical voices in the monarchist camp. But those voices have succeeded in creating a toxic climate.

Self-censorship is spreading among opponents.

“The majority is hiding in silence, out of fear,” said Aïda Tavakoli, a French-Iranian activist and founder of We Are Iranian Students, a non-partisan secular organisation linked to student opposition groups in Iran.

The activist told RFI she can detect in the most extreme positions taken by some – “a minority”, she said – the immense pain of experiencing grief from a distance, mixed with survivor’s guilt and the absence of a place to channel anger.

How much is China willing to risk to protect its ties with Iran?

Prison scars

“Many activists now in exile were imprisoned by the Islamic Republic,” Shafafi said. “For these people, contradiction is not just a narrative disagreement. It is the denial of the most traumatic event that happened to them.”

Shafafi is the author of The Long Iranian Revolution – State Violence and Silenced Histories, due to be published in June.

Extreme polarisation within the opposition is also fuelled by an inability to agree on the legacy of the 1979 Islamic Revolution. But after the worst repression ever experienced by modern Iran, some want to believe in a resurgence.

“I have many more people from all political sides – monarchists, republicans, left-wing, right-wing, feminists and non-feminists – contacting me to ask whether we could find unity because we don’t recognise ourselves in the extremes on either side,” Tavakoli said.

At a conference in Paris last week, Tavakoli recognised some of the people behind violent comments posted on social media. “They came to thank me and said it helped them to understand that our disagreement is not personal violence,” she told RFI.

Iran declares European armies ‘terrorist groups’ in tit-for-tat move

Cyber pressure

It is all the more important to work to overcome disagreements, Shafafi said, because the authorities exploit them.

“A large part of these conflicts is a smokescreen created by trolls working for the regime,” she said. “It equips and finances this cyber-army to ensure the opposition remains fragmented and to discredit anyone who manages to rally support.

“We saw this pattern in 2022 and it is important to remember it. What the regime fears most is a popular and united movement that is coherent and capable of opposing it.”

This story was adapted from the original version in French by Aabla Jounaïdi

The Berlin-based TI said the global average score had fallen to its lowest level in more than a decade.

US President Donald Trump, since returning to the White House early last year, has upended domestic and foreign politics while ramping up pressure on institutions ranging from universities to the Federal Reserve.

Fed Chairman Jerome Powell is currently under investigation by Trump’s Department of Justice after resisting pressure from the president to reduce interest rates.

TI raised concerns over “actions targeting independent voices and undermining judicial independence” in the US.

“The temporary freeze and weakening of enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act signal tolerance for corrupt business practices,” the watchdog’s research says.

The Trump administration’s gutting of overseas aid has also “weakened global anti-corruption efforts”, it added.

The group’s index assigns a score between zero (highly corrupt) and 100 (very clean), based on data reflecting the assessments of experts and business executives.

Data sources have previously included the World Economic Forum and the Economist Intelligence Unit.

One year of Trump: the ‘far-right revolution’ testing America and the world

Global average lowest in a decade

Overall, the number of countries scoring above 80 has shrunk from 12 a decade ago to just five this year.

In particular, there is a worrying trend of democracies seeing worsening perceived corruption – from the United States (64), Canada (75) and New Zealand (81), to various parts of Europe, like the United Kingdom (70), France (66) and Sweden (80).

The global average score was 42, its lowest level in more than 10 years.

“The vast majority of countries are failing to keep corruption under control,” the report said, with 122 countries out of 180 posting scores under 50.

The US case illustrates a trend in democracies experiencing a “decline in performance” in battling corruption, according to the report, a phenomenon it also said was apparent in the UK and France.

While such countries are still near the top of the index, “corruption risks have increased” due to weakening independent checks, gaps in legislation and inadequate enforcement.

“Several have also experienced strains to their democracies, including political polarisation and the growing influence of private money on decision-making,” the report noted.

France accused of restricting protests and eroding democracy

Protecting civic space

The report also pointed out that corruption tends to be tackled better in countries where civic space is guaranteed and protected.

“Those where the freedoms of expression, assembly and association are duly safeguarded are generally more resilient against corruption and score better on the CPI,” the report said.

But countries where these freedoms are lacking are more likely to lose control of corruption: 36 of the 50 countries where the CPI scores have significantly declined have also seen a reduction in civic space.

The worst-performing countries in the European Union were Bulgaria and Hungary, both scoring just 40.

The report said the government of Hungary’s nationalist leader Viktor Orban, in power since 2010 and facing a tough battle for re-election in April, “has systematically weakened the rule of law, civic space and electoral integrity for over 10 years”.

“This has enabled impunity for channelling billions – including from European Union funds – to groups of cronies through dirty public contracting and other methods,” the report said.

The watchdog noted that the government of Prime Minister Robert Fico in neighbouring Slovakia, with a score of 48, is “weakening investigations of corruption and organised crime, especially those involving senior officials”.

EU strips Hungary of €1bn in frozen funds over corruption concerns

Denmark top of the class

The highest-ranked nation in the index for the eighth year running was Denmark with a score of 89.

Among the more positive stories of progress in the report was Ukraine, which scored 36.

The government of President Volodymyr Zelensky has faced widespread public anger over graft allegations against those close to him, even as the country is hammered by Russian attacks.

However, TI noted that “the fact that these and many other scandals are being uncovered … shows that Ukraine’s new anti-corruption architecture is making a difference”.

It hailed the “civil society mobilisation” last year, which prompted Zelensky to backtrack in an attempt to curb the independence of anti-graft bodies.

At the bottom of the index, the countries scoring below 25 are mostly conflict-affected and highly repressive countries, such as Venezuela (10) and the lowest scorers, Somalia and South Sudan, which both score nine.

(with AFP)

Svalbard is often described as the fastest-warming place on the planet. Located close to the North Pole, the archipelago sits on the front line of climate change, a position that has drawn scientists from around the world for decades.

For years, a unique legal status allowed Svalbard to function as a model of global cooperation. But as Arctic ice retreats and geopolitical competition intensifies, the territory is newly vulnerable.

Recent tensions linked to the possibility of a US annexation of Greenland, less than 500 kilometres to the west, have fuelled concern in Norway’s media and political circles. Could Svalbard be next?

“Norway has not faced a security situation this serious since 1945,” Eivind Vad Petersson, a senior official at Norway’s foreign ministry, told The New York Times. “When Greenland is hit by a political storm, Svalbard is inevitably splashed as well.”

Svalbard’s sensitivity lies in its legal framework. The Spitsbergen Treaty, signed in Paris in 1920 after the First World War, recognises Norwegian sovereignty over the archipelago, located more than 900 kilometres north of mainland Norway.

At the same time, the treaty strictly limits Oslo’s authority. Citizens of signatory states are placed on an equal footing when it comes to access and activity in Svalbard – including hunting, fishing, mining and land ownership.

Initially signed by around 10 countries including France, Denmark, the United States, the United Kingdom, Japan and Italy, the treaty now counts nearly 40 signatories. They include Russia, China and North Korea, whose citizens can settle in Svalbard without a visa.

For decades, this system underpinned what many saw as an Arctic laboratory of cooperation. Nowhere symbolised this more than Ny-Alesund, a small research community hosting Chinese, Korean, Franco-German and Japanese scientific stations.

“Svalbard became a hub for research, exchange and the study of climate change. It’s a place where international scientific cooperation can really happen,” Florian Vidal, a researcher at the Arctic Institute of Norway in Tromso, told RFI.

Today, the archipelago – roughly the size of Croatia – has about 2,700 residents, mainly in Longyearbyen, the world’s northernmost town. A study published in January found there are fewer people there than polar bears.

France to step up Greenland deployment with land, air and sea forces

Strategic ambitions take shape

In recent years, the Arctic as a region has become more politically charged. Once seen as remote, it has become a key arena of international competition at a time when the global order is shifting.

Security concerns, new maritime routes and access to resources have all raised Svalbard’s profile. Seabeds around the archipelago are believed to contain copper, zinc, cobalt, lithium and rare earths – seen as strategic for new technologies and the energy transition.

While extraction is limited by moratoriums, several major powers, including China and the US, are already looking further ahead.

Russia has played a central role in the rising pressure. “Tensions around Svalbard have existed since the 2010s, but they clearly accelerated after the annexation of Crimea and then with the war in Ukraine,” Vidal said.

In February 2024, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Yury Trutnev warned that Moscow would fight for its “rights” in Svalbard, invoking the need to defend its “sovereignty” over the archipelago, in rhetoric echoing language used to justify the war in Ukraine.

The message was repeated in November, when Trutnev again stressed Svalbard’s strategic importance for Russia and the need to maintain a stronger presence, particularly through the state mining company Arktikugol.

Russia maintains two settlements on Svalbard – Barentsburg and Pyramiden, home to several hundred Russian citizens. Officially tied to coal mining, the sites are remnants of the Soviet era, with the mine in Pyramiden closing at the end of the 1990s.

“The Russians are artificially maintaining the Barentsburg mine to justify keeping a presence,” Vidal said.

Why Greenland’s melting ice cap threatens humanity, and could serve Trump

Testing Norway’s red lines

In recent years, these communities have become the stage for symbolic gestures viewed by Oslo as provocative.

In Barentsburg, where the Russian flag flies, a parade was held in 2023 to mark Victory Day on 9 May, celebrating the defeat of Nazi Germany. There were no weapons, but the military-style staging and symbols were seen by Norwegian authorities as a political message.

Vidal also pointed to the use of security vehicles with visual codes close to those of Russian forces, and to the growing prominence of the Russian Orthodox Church. A full-time priest has been permanently based in Barentsburg since March 2025.

This helps anchor Svalbard in an image of “Russian land”, Vidal said. “These episodes fit into a logic of hybrid warfare. The Russians are testing the limits of Norway’s sovereignty over the archipelago.”

The message, he added, is unambiguous: “The Russians are there, and they are not leaving.”

Svalbard also holds military significance for Moscow. Nuclear submarines from Russia’s Northern Fleet, the country’s main Arctic naval force, are based in Severomorsk in northwest Russia and must pass near the archipelago to reach the Atlantic, making it a key transit point.

France to open Greenland consulate amid Trump takeover threats

Oslo reasserts control

Faced with these signals, Norway has moved to reassert its authority without formally challenging the 1920 treaty. In a strong symbolic move, King Harald V visited Svalbard in June for the first time in 30 years.

“America has gone mad in the Arctic and Russia does not respect the independence of its neighbours. It is very important to send the king to mark the kingdom’s supremacy over its distant territories,” Norwegian daily newspaper Verdens Gang said.

“There is a form of nationalism around Svalbard on the Norwegian side, it’s a very sensitive issue,” Vidal said.

Norway has also strengthened coastguard patrols around the archipelago. Moscow has protested, arguing this violates the treaty’s ban on military use.

While permanent militarisation is prohibited, naval patrols are not explicitly banned – a legal grey area Norway now relies on.

Administrative controls have also tightened. Local voting rights have been restricted to foreigners who have lived for several years on mainland Norway, and land sales to non-Norwegians have been banned.

Scientific research is now more closely supervised, with projects requiring approval from Oslo. “We are seeing a gradual extension of Norwegian prerogatives,” Vidal said, describing a “Russian-Norwegian ping pong game”.

Rare earths mining feud at heart of Greenland’s snap elections

Pressure from multiple sides

China’s presence is also viewed with growing caution. Beijing has been a signatory to the Spitsbergen Treaty since 1925, and has operated a research station in Ny-Alesund since 2004.

Officially dedicated to polar science, the station is suspected by Norwegian and US authorities of carrying out research with potential dual use.

Two granite lion statues have become a symbol of friction, with China refusing Oslo’s requests to remove them. In summer 2024, more than 180 Chinese tourists arrived in Ny-Alesund, displaying national symbols.

One woman posed in military-style clothing in front of the statues, triggering diplomatic unease.

Norwegian authorities have also, for the first time, denied Chinese students access to the University Centre in Svalbard, citing security risks.

Svalbard has also long been a point of tension between Norway and the European Union. Several EU member states contest fishing quotas and permits imposed by Oslo around the archipelago, arguing they breach the treaty’s principle of equality.

The EU has also raised concerns over Norway’s seabed prospecting campaigns near Svalbard.

Against this backdrop, tensions surrounding Greenland have revived fears of imitation. If US President Donald Trump were to seize Greenland in defiance of international law, could Russia feel justified in challenging the status quo in Svalbard?

“We are not in a critical phase, but in a crisis that is gradually building,” Vidal said.

One strategic question remains unresolved. In the event of an attack, would NATO’s Article 5 – its collective defence clause – apply to an archipelago with demilitarised status?

Aware of this uncertainty, Norway has stepped up political signalling in recent years, including hosting delegations from NATO’s parliamentary assembly in Svalbard, without ever securing a formal guarantee.

This article has been adapted from the original version in French by Aurore Lartigue

The Malian Shippers’ Council, a body attached to Mali’s transport ministry, this week said the situation has become a major concern for national and regional supply chains.

It warned that empty containers are running dangerously low at the port of Dakar, threatening supplies to Mali and putting pressure on Malian businesses.

The authorities demanded the return of more than 4,000 containers still inside the country, most of them owned by shipping giants MSC and Hapag-Lloyd. It is not clear how long the containers have been blocked.

RFI contacted the Malian Shippers’ Council and the transport ministry for an explanation on why the containers remained blocked, but neither responded.

US looks to revitalise relations with Mali with envoy visit to Bamako

Route too dangerous

A Malian entrepreneur, who said he also has containers waiting to be returned to Dakar, told RFI that while the authorities wanted to send a positive signal to shipping companies, “they have no solution to offer”.

“We can’t find a transporter willing to make the journey,” the business owner said – pointing to a rise in jihadist attacks in recent months in the Kayes region near the Senegalese border.

The risk, he said, became brutally clear last Thursday, when at least a dozen truck drivers were killed after their convoy was ambushed, despite being escorted by the army. “You can’t force people to take that risk.”

He added that empty containers are not escorted on return journeys and warned of the threat posed by homemade mines and the very poor state of the road, which forces trucks to travel slowly and leaves them exposed for longer.

Another Malian business owner said trucks have also been stuck in the capital, Bamako, because of fuel shortages.

The disruption has been linked to an embargo imposed in early September by the jihadist group JNIM, which has been gradually contained by the Malian army but continues to heavily disrupt supplies of petrol and diesel.

The Fulani women living under the control of JNIM jihadists in the Sahel

Customs hold-ups

Operators have also complained about delays at customs in Bamako.

“Containers can wait several days before being taken off a truck, then several weeks or even months before all the formalities are completed,” one of them told RFI, while also alluding to problems of corruption.

“Angry drivers sometimes just leave without the containers,” the man said.

Customs procedures in Bamako have recently been sped up, but only for fuel tankers entering the country, to make fuel distribution easier and limit the impact of the jihadist embargo.

Meanwhile shipping companies are also facing a major financial hit. The price of a new container is around €5,000 – so 4,000 of them unreturned adds up to some €20 million worth of equipment.

Economists say logistics costs are quickly passed on to consumers, who are at risk of being hit hard given that nearly 70 percent of Mali’s imports pass through the port of Dakar.

With Ramadan approaching, Mali’s transitional authorities have repeatedly said they are working to secure supplies and fight price hikes.

Month-long blackout leaves Mali’s Mopti in the dark amid jihadist fuel blockade

Two-way street

The current blockage comes just months after tensions flared in the opposite direction. In November, full containers were stuck at the port of Dakar, waiting to be transported to Mali beyond the allowed storage period.

Mali later secured a full cancellation of storage penalties for Malian companies and was granted a three-month deadline to clear the containers. At the time, more than 2,000 were blocked at the port.

Mali’s transport minister, Dembélé Madina Sissoko, travelled to Dakar to plead the country’s case. According to the Malian Shippers’ Council, only 304 containers are now still waiting at the port.

The council has given their owners until 24 February to collect them, warning that no exemption will be granted after that deadline.

Shipping companies have not spoken publicly on the issue and have allowed Mali’s transitional authorities to relay their concerns, raised during a meeting in Dakar on 20 January.

Three months ago, shipping lines CMA CGM and MSC briefly suspended deliveries to Mali, citing insecurity and fuel shortages. The measures were later lifted after talks with Mali’s transitional authorities, although the details of those negotiations were not made public.

This story was adapted from the original version in French by David Baché.

The US Justice Department last week published nearly 3 million government documents related to Epstein, who was convicted in 2008 for soliciting a minor and died in 2019 while awaiting trial for sex trafficking.

The mere mention of someone’s name in the files does not, in itself, imply wrongdoing. However, the documents show connections between Epstein or his circle and some public figures who had downplayed or denied such ties.

Political contacts

Several French personalities appear in the latest files, reflecting Epstein’s repeated efforts to build links with political leaders.

He asked several contacts whether they had connections to President Emmanuel Macron, former economy minister Bruno Le Maire or former president Nicolas Sarkozy.

A review of emails by the French news agency AFP showed that businessman Olivier Colom, an adviser to Sarkozy from 2007-2012, corresponded regularly with Epstein from 2013-2018 while working at a bank.

Colom sought to facilitate political networking and organised a 2013 meeting between Epstein and his superior at the bank.

In a June 2013 exchange, Epstein compared women to “shrimp”, saying “you throw away the head and keep the body”.

AFP said it was not immediately able to reach Colom for comment. An initial search of the archive found no direct correspondence between Epstein and Sarkozy.

France uncovers Russian disinformation campaign falsely linking Macron to Epstein

Film director meeting

French film director Michel Hazanavicius first met Epstein at a dinner in Paris in March 2012, one month after his film The Artist won the top prize at the Oscars.

They exchanged emails until January 2014, with Epstein suggesting meetings in Paris or New York, though the director often replied that he was busy.

Hazanavicius said he “twice met the guy”, after being introduced through director Woody Allen.

“At one point he asked me if I knew a nice, smart girl, and that’s when Berenice told me ‘never again, you have to run away from that guy’,” he said.

The director said he and his partner, actor Bérénice Bejo, decided not to see Epstein again, adding he had “no idea who he was”.

Public explanations

French mathematician and former MP Cédric Villani told the newspaper Libération this week about meeting Epstein in October 2017.

“He presented himself as a close friend of Donald Trump,” Villani said. Epstein wanted to fund “a mathematics prize related to biology and complexity.”

Villani said he did not know about Epstein’s earlier conviction at the time.

On Thursday, former culture minister Jack Lang was summoned to the Ministry for Europe and Foreign Affairs to explain his links with Epstein.

Lang’s daughter Caroline resigned Monday as head of a film producers’ union after revelations about the family’s connections to Epstein.

No charges have been brought against the Lang family. On Wednesday, Lang ruled out stepping down as head of the Institut du monde arabe (Arab World Institute), a cultural institution he has led since 2013.

A source close to President Macron said Lang should “think of the institution”.

Jack Lang’s daughter steps down from film post over Epstein revelations

Disinformation claims

French authorities said Friday they had detected a Russia-linked disinformation campaign alleging Macron’s involvement with Epstein.

France’s Viginum agency, which counters foreign disinformation campaigns, detected Wednesday the operation involving a fabricated article “accusing President Emmanuel Macron of being involved in the ‘Epstein affair'”, a government source told AFP.

The article appeared on a website falsely using the identity of the French media organisation France-Soir. The source said the Storm-1516 project was behind the operation spreading fabricated content.

(with newswires)

“Emmanuel, you’ve been taking advantage of the United States for the last 30 years,” Trump said at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January, referring to a discussion with Macron in which he allegedly convinced him to raise the price of medications in France.

Trump had made a similar claim a few weeks earlier during an address in which he imitated Macron allegedly agreeing to triple the price of drugs in France after Trump threatened tariffs.

The French presidency rejected the claim, posting an image of Trump and the words “fake news” on social media, saying that drug prices in France are negotiated and regulated by the public health system, not set by presidential decree.

“Anyone who has set foot in a French pharmacy knows this,” the post said.

Price negotiations

Drug prices in the US are nearly three times higher than in other wealthy countries, according to a study by the Rand Corporation, an American policy think tank.

One key reason for this discrepancy is structural. France has a single negotiator, the public healthcare system or Assurance Maladie, while the US system is fragmented among many private insurers, each negotiating on their own.

Two independent public bodies are involved in the process of negotiating prices in France: the National Health Authority (HAS), which assesses a drug’s efficacy, and a committee linked to the finance ministry which negotiates prices within a budget approved annually by parliament.

“Technically, and in theory, the French government has no say in the price of this or that drug,” explains Théo Bourgeron, a sociologist at the University of Edinburgh who studies the politics of the pharmaceutical industry.

Listen to this story on the Spotlight on France podcast:

Bourgeron argues that Trump’s focus on prices for patients is a way of deflecting from his real objective: pushing foreign governments to pay more for US-made drugs, while lowering prices on the American market.

“It’s more about creating an asymmetry in the way that corporations are treated in the US and other countries that is part of a broader mercantilist project,” he said.

Boosting ‘big pharma’

European and US drug companies have been pitted against each other for decades. In the 1980s and ’90s, France increased drug spending to help support local companies and build a competitive European pharmaceutical industry.

Drugmakers on both sides of the Atlantic received a boost in 1994 with the World Trade Organization’s TRIPS agreement, which introduced 20-year global patents on medicines.

The agreement favoured US companies, which already dominated the industry, and allowed them to charge higher prices by delaying the development of generics.

GlaxoSmithKline to stop seeking patents in world’s poorest countries

While the US pays more for drugs than elsewhere, Bourgeron points out that prices are rising everywhere.

“The responsibility for high prices lies with pharmaceutical corporations and their tendency to use their monopoly over drugs to redistribute a lot of money to shareholders,” he said, pointing to research showing that the industry pays out most of its profits in dividends and share buybacks.

“It’s very profitable and this money doesn’t go to research, innovation. It goes mostly to asset managers, to investors.”

European concessions

As Trump has been bragging about supposedly pressuring Macron, his administration has been negotiating with European pharmaceutical companies – which are scrambling to counter Trump’s threats to impose tariffs on exports to the US, their largest market.

In December executives from several companies went to the White House and agreed to invest more in the US and to lower prices on some drugs for Medicaid, the public insurance programme for low-income Americans.

Although Medicaid is only a small part of the US drug market, and many of the most profitable medications are not part of these agreements, lowering costs will impact the companies’ bottom line.

Drugmakers could seek to offset the loss by raising prices in other large markets, such as Europe – helping to explain Trump’s pressure on Macron and other European leaders.

Bourgeron says French drug prices could go up, but only within limits.

Increasing overall pharmaceutical spending would require a vote in parliament, which would be difficult given the current budget crisis. Tripling prices, for example, would push drug spending from 1.4 percent of GDP to 4.2 percent, requiring “an unprecedented austerity policy”, Bourgeron says.

More radical changes, like dismantling France’s public healthcare system to introduce more private insurance, are politically untenable.

“There is no way people would vote for this; it would require a new political regime,” Bourgeron says, adding that could well be Trump’s aim.

Drugs shortage sees France restart local production

New technologies

The spotlight on drug prices in the US has exposed flaws in the global pharmaceutical system, in which worldwide patent monopolies force states to negotiate with companies for access to essential medicines.

Bourgeron says the current system is relatively recent, and could be revised to give the public sector a larger role, while still rewarding innovation.

New drug technologies, such as personalised immunotherapy – often used in cancer treatment, and based on patients’ own cells – are putting intellectual property rules to the test, he noted.

“There are discussions over whether these new processes can be patented,” Bourgeron said. 

Adapting opens up a way to challenge the status quo, “to promote a system which would be more based on commonality, based on state funding, and less on multinational private corporations having monopolies”.

Listen to this story on the Spotlight on France podcast, episode 139.

Nearly 15 years after the fall of his father, former Libyan leader Muammar Kadhafi, Saïf al-Islam was shot dead on Tuesday at his home in the city of Zintan, north-western Libya.

Media reports said Saïf al-Islam, 53, was at home alone when four armed men broke into the residence and opened fire.

He remained, for many Libyan tribes and especially for his own clan, a powerful symbol of a possible Kadhafi comeback.

His assassination is expected to have lasting consequences for Libya’s political future. No other member of the clan, experts say, can match his level of popularity or influence.

Son of former Libyan dictator Moamer Kadhafi shot dead in home

Rival political camps in Libya could also be affected. The loss of a figure seen as capable of bringing different factions together is widely viewed as unlikely to serve the country’s broader interests.

However, Saïf al-Islam’s death benefits a number of political actors who viewed him as a rival, said Virginie Collombier, a political scientist at Luiss Guido Carli University in Rome.

“Saïf al-Islam Kadhafi was carrying the torch of a united Libya, brought together around a major project of national reconciliation,” she told RFI.

“That was not well received by the two main centres of power, which saw the emergence of a third force as a potential threat to their ability to reach agreement and share power and resources.”

Reconciliation hopes fade

National reconciliation appears to be the first casualty of Saïf al-Islam Kadhafi’s murder. Efforts to bring Libyans into a genuine national dialogue have repeatedly failed.

So far, seven United Nations special envoys have been unable to make progress, blaming a lack of willingness among those in power to commit to reconciliation.

In 2019, the United States administration gave Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar the green light to attack Tripoli 10 days before a planned meeting. That episode led to the resignation of the UN envoy at the time, Ghassan Salamé.

Saïf al-Islam Kadhafi, the heir apparent without a crown

Saïf al-Islam was the third high-profile Libyan figure to be killed in recent months. Observers say a series of political assassinations risks destabilising the country’s internal balance and undermining the political process under way.

His death also comes at a sensitive moment, as the UN attempts to relaunch a new format for national dialogue – with a possible deadline mooted for November.

“The risk now is that this dialogue process will be seriously disrupted,” Collombier warned, adding that renewed tensions cannot be ruled out.

Regional and international players could also benefit from Kadhafi’s demise. He had frequently criticised the way Libya is currently run, which he believed was heavily influenced by foreign powers, including the US and Turkey.

Saïf al-Islam was wanted by the International Criminal Court for crimes against humanity, linked to his alleged role in the suppression of opposition protests in 2011.

This article was adapted from the original version in French.

“I’m not anti-alcohol, I just want more tolerance,” says journalist and writer Claire Touzard, who stopped drinking in 2020 and later published a best-selling book about her experiences.

“It’s a norm to drink in France. And if you don’t fit in, there’s suspicion. ‘Are you anti-French? Do you have psychiatric issues?’ We don’t like people who don’t drink because they disturb the French party.”

Touzard grew up in a family of bon vivants where alcohol, especially wine, had a very positive image. After all, it wasn’t until 1956 that the French government finally banned wine in school canteens, and even then it was only for the under-14s.

 At the height of her drinking, she was downing a bottle and several beers a day. She decided to quit when she realised it was all about forgetting pain, rather than enjoyment.

She describes drinking as “a nationalist thing – we have to drink, we have to eat saucisson”.

“It’s a test for some communities who don’t drink because of their religion or culture. It becomes a way to judge whether you’re ‘really’ French,” she says, pointing to increasing intolerance on the part of the far right.

“We like to think drinking alcohol is about conviviality, but for me it’s a tool of exclusion.”

People make a living out of wine, but it’s also killing them: welcome to the French paradox

Cultural backlash

France’s drinking culture is changing – some 4.5 million people say they tried out Dry January last year, while one in five say they never drink and more than 60 percent no longer drink on a weekly basis.

However, unlike many EU countries, France has never endorsed Dry January – where people try and abstain for a month. In 2023, President Emmanuel Macron even publicly declined to support it, affirming that he drinks wine daily.

France is Europe’s largest wine producer, and wine remains its second most valuable export after luxury goods, so there’s also economic pressure to defend the industry.

With wine consumption falling by 22 percent between 2022-2024 and worries over tariff hikes on exports to the US, calls to put the brakes on drinking are seen by some as a both an economic and cultural threat. 

This year, Vin et Société, the main wine and spirits lobby, launched a counter-Dry January campaign “French January” promoting moderation rather than abstinence, and warning of the dangers of  “health moralism”.

Some trade groups have gone further, accusing Dry January of undermining France’s famed joie de vivre.

Vintage moment as French wine magazine crowns Macron ‘personality of the year’

Listen to a report on this story in the Spotlight on France podcast

Pressure to drink

Le Social Bar in central Paris offers a glimpse of a different, but no less social, drinking culture.

Throughout January the venue went alcohol-free, serving beers, fruit shots, and playful mocktails while hosting DJ sets, karaoke and debates.

“The aim is to prove that we can have great parties, without alcohol,” says project manager Cécile Cabon.

Le Social Bar opened a decade ago and Cabon says they’ve noticed every day “that when people get together and sociability is really a the heart of the experience, it has the same effect as alcohol“. 

While a group of 20-somethings enjoy a karaoke session in the basement, Laurène, 32, is having an elderflower spritz in the bar.  “It’s such a difference – they have real alcohol-free cocktails, not just a virgin mojito,” she says. 

She gave up alcohol six months ago for mental health reasons and appreciates being taken seriously as a non-drinker.

But, she says, that’s not the case at work, where she feels under pressure to drink.

“In French corporate culture, you’re expected to be social, to chat. So people often drink a lot at work.” Since she quit, colleagues who once saw her as “the party girl” feel awkward around her.

Binge drinking still a worry in France despite drop in daily consumption

National blind spot

Journalist Vincent Edin tried his hand at Dry January and hopes to cut down his heavy alcohol consumption. He believes French society still indulges heavy drinking.

“We don’t have alcoholics in France,” he says, sarcastically. “Alcoholics are people lying on the street. Everyone else is just a shiny, happy person who likes to party.”

Although official guidelines say more than 10 drinks a week is problematic, he says few people are ever challenged. “No one ever told me I had a problem,” he says, even when he was drinking two or three times that amount.

The most recent data shows 41,000 deaths a year in France are linked to alcohol-related diseases, including 11,000 among women.

The cost of this is an estimated €102 billion annually when factoring in healthcare, lost productivity, accidents and other costs, according to the Observatory for Drug and Alcohol Addiction (OFDT).

Alcohol also aggravates gender-based and sexual violence. “Rape culture is a problem. Alcohol doesn’t help – it’s present in femicides, in rapes, in all gender-based violence,” says Touzard.

While public health experts confirm that alcohol impairs judgment and self-control and is a major risk factor in domestic and sexual violence, “it’s really hidden by our government because they want us to be the country of wine,” Touzard believes.

Campaigns on the dangers of heavy drinking tends to focus on pregnant women and young people, she says, rather than being aimed at men – and yet middle-aged male professionals are the biggest drinkers. “It’s protecting patriarchy, men and French values.”

France has committed to the fight against tobacco addiction, but Edin argues it lacks the political will to tackle alcoholism head on. 

“You can’t be a major political figure without drinking,” he says, noting not only Macron’s public enthusiasm for wine, but that all recent French presidents, barring Nicolas Sarkozy, openly supported France’s wine and beer industries.

Dilemma for French winemakers as alcohol content rises while consumption falls

Generational shift

Edin describes France as an “increasingly polarised society”, with a growing generational divide around the issue of alcohol.

“I see that 43 percent of 25 to 34-year-olds are doing Dry January and they’re saying they’re very aware that they have to slow down,” while the older generation remains attached to alcohol in the name of tradition.

However, he says he has seen progress in terms of tolerance. “It used to be only Muslim people and pregnant women who didn’t drink. Now, when we see young men and women who don’t want to drink, we don’t make as many jokes.”

Touzard also takes heart in the younger generation’s willingness to cut down. “It’s also a way of saying they want French culture to evolve. I see it as a political movement.”

When Le Social Bar went “dry” in January, it noticed its clientele was a bit younger – people in their 20s to 30s – and more female. It aims to become permanently alcohol-free, but will have to work on its business model, since takings for January were down by 40 percent.

“We had the same number of people, but they [drink] less,” notes Cabon. “And that’s OK  – you don’t need to drink 10 pints of ‘dry’ beer.”

The venue will continue to be alcohol-free on Wednesdays and is exploring partnerships and ticketed events to support a full transition.

Listen to a version of this story on the Spotlight on France podcast, episode 139.

His remarks were made in an interview published on Tuesday, ahead of a meeting of EU heads of state scheduled for 12 February.

“Today, our Europe faces an immense challenge in a world in turmoil,” the French leader said, urging the bloc to respond to what he called a “wake-up call”.

US ‘threats and intimidation’

He warned against complacency, stressing that US “threats” and “intimidation” were not over.

His comments were part of an interview with several European publications including France’s Le Monde, English language publications The Economist and The Financial Times, and Germany’s Suddeutsche Zeitung.

Ahead of an EU meeting on competitiveness on Thursday, he advocated for “simplifying” and “deepening the EU’s single market”, and for “diversifying” trade partnerships.

“We are currently in a phase I would call a ‘Greenland moment’,” Macron said.

US President Donald Trump last month threatened to annex the autonomous Danish territory of Greenland and impose tariffs on any European countries that opposed him, but then performed a U-turn.

EU seeks stability after Trump steps back on Greenland and tariffs

“There are threats and intimidation. And then, suddenly, Washington backs down. And we think it’s over. But don’t believe it for a second. Every day, there are threats against pharmaceuticals, digital technology…” he said.

“When there is blatant aggression…we must not bow down or try to reach a settlement,” he said.

“We tried this strategy for months, and it’s not working. But above all, it strategically leads Europe to increase its dependence.”

He hailed the establishment of new trade partnerships such as the one recently signed between the EU deal and India, which he said provided the EU with a growth driver.

Power in numbers

But he admitted that Mercosur [treaty] is “a bad agreement”, referring to the trade agreement with several Latin American countries.

“It is an old agreement that was poorly negotiated. In any case, Mercosur will have neither the dramatic impact on our agriculture that some fear, nor the positive impact on our growth that others imagine.”

He spoke of Europe‘s sheer size in terms of population – 450 million inhabitants – and how this could act in the bloc’s favour.

“We came together to stop waging war, we came together to create a market, but we always refused to think about power together. For one simple reason: because until 1945, power meant civil war between us,” he said.

EU and India seal ‘mother of all trade deals’ as leaders meet in New Delhi

Macron listed three major arenas in which he feels the EU needs to invest more heavily: security and defence, ecological transition technologies and artificial intelligence and quantum computing.

“In all these areas, we are investing much less than China and the United States. If the EU does nothing in the next three to five years, it will be swept out of these sectors,” he outlined.

“If we want this investment to preserve the internal market and not fragment it further, we must not leave it to individual nations. It must be a joint investment,” he said, adding that the European Union’s public and private investment needed around €1.2 trillion per year.

He renewed his call for common European debt, an idea France has championed for years, but other countries have rejected.

“Now is the time to launch a common borrowing capacity for these future expenditures, future-oriented Eurobonds,” he said.

“The EU is under-indebted compared to the United States and China. At a time when there is a race to invest in technology, it is a serious mistake not to use this borrowing capacity.”

Several manufacturers, such as giants Nestlé, Danone and Lactalis, have issued recalls of infant formula in more than 60 countries, including France, since December due to a risk of cereulide contamination.

Cereulide, a toxin produced by certain bacteria, is “likely to cause primarily digestive problems, such as vomiting or diarrhoea,” according to the French health ministry.

Two criminal investigations have already been opened in Angers and Bordeaux following the deaths of two infants who consumed infant formula recalled by Nestlé due to “possible contamination” by a bacterial substance.

The French health ministry said that no “causal link” has yet been established.

According to information and testimonies gathered by Radio France’s investigative unit, other families have come forward to criticise what they say are inadequate health investigations.

The families – members of the Intox’Alim collective – filed a legal complaint on Tuesday, accusing both the French state and manufacturers of “deliberate endangerment, continued supply of dangerous goods, unintentional injury, and obstruction of justice”.

They are demanding that the  milk powder be analysed by an independent laboratory to establish a link between the consumption of this milk and their children’s hospitalisations or episodes of illness.

More infant formula recalled over contamination after France lowers threshold

Families denounced the fact that the health authorities referred them to Nestlé which then asked families to return the milk powder to them so that they can carry out their own analyses.

“This procedure raises serious issues. By asking parents to return the powder to Nestlé, the manufacturer is effectively conducting a health investigation that directly concerns it,” says Nathalie Goutaland, the lawyer representing 24 families in this case.

When contacted by Radio France’s investigative unit, the Ministry of Agriculture assured that manufacturers’ laboratories are adequate, adding that official assessments may be carried out at a later date.

Ignoring the risks

The National Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health and Safety (Anses) is the only public laboratory in France capable of detecting and quantifying cereulide toxin, but with limited capacity.

A similar lawsuit was filed on 29 january on behalf of eight French families by European consumer association Foodwatch. They said their babies suffered severe digestive problems after drinking formula named in the December recall.

The complaint, while not naming the manufacturers or government agencies, calls for a legal investigation.

Foodwatch believes that producers could not have ignored the risks to babies by leaving their milk on sale in France and in more than a dozen European countries, as well as in Australia, Russia, Qatar or Egypt.

French health watchdog warns of pesticide dangers to young children

The recall of potentially contaminated infant formula has heaped scrutiny on Chinese firm Cabio Biotech, the supplier of an ingredient used in infant formula which is suspected of being tainted.

Headquartered in the central Chinese city of Wuhan, Cabio Biotech is one of the world’s largest producers of ARA, a fatty acid used primarily in baby formula and food products.

Cereulide was discovered in ARA manufactured by Cabio Biotech.

Last Monday the EU’s food safety agency proposed new reference doses for the toxin, prompting a further recall of products.

Exports to the United States slumped by 21 percent, the French Federation of Wine and Spirits Exporters (FEVS) said.

The United States is the biggest importing country for French wines and spirits, accounting for 21 percent of the overall export market last year.

French winemakers say ‘nightmare’ Trump tariffs could cost industry €1bn

“Geopolitical tensions, commercial conflicts, exchange rate fluctuations, and a loss of confidence by households weighed on our exports,” said the Federation’s president, Gabriel Picard.

French and European wines are also suffering from the increase in tariffs — first 10 percent, then 15 percent — imposed on European alcoholic drinks by US President Donald Trump in 2025.

“In the United States, the imposition of customs duties and an unfavourable exchange rate have heavily impacted the overall result,” FEVs said in a statement.

Economic uncertainty weighing on consumer spending, as well as stockpiling by wholesalers, also contributed to the fall, it said.

Overall, the value of French wine and spirits exports fell by 7.9 percent to 14.3 billion euros ($17.0 billion).

They slid 3.3 percent by volume.

Wine exports, which account for the overwhelming majority of the total, slid by 4.1 percent by value.

Under pressure

Meanwhile, spirits exports slumped 17.4 percent, with Chinese anti-dumping measures playing a major role.

Beijing launched an investigation into EU brandy after the bloc undertook a probe into Chinese electric vehicle (EV) subsidies and producers agreed to hike prices to avoid anti-dumping taxes.

Sales of cognac dove 23.8 percent to 2.3 billion euros.

EU winemakers left exposed after missing US tariff exemption

“The anti-dumping duties have severely penalised exports of cognac, armagnac and other wine-based French spirits,” the FEVS said.

The release of 2025 export data coincided with the annual Wine Paris trade show.

French President Emmanuel Macron visited the show on Monday, where he insisted that ripping up unprofitable grape vines was a necessary part of revitalising the flagging wine sector.

Winegrowers are dealing with over-production caused by falling demand as a result of changing drinking habits, fierce competition and export difficulties.

EU differs over US tariffs as France eyes tech clampdown and Ireland resists

Efforts to help the crisis-hit industry include the government’s latest 130-million-euro “arrachage” fund that opened last Friday, offering subsidies to loss-making owners to uproot their vines.

“It has to be done… so that the others (producers) retain their value,” Macron said.

The wine and spirits sector supports 600,000 jobs in France and generates around 32 billion euros in revenue annually.

(with AFP)

The findings come from the UK prison inspectorate’s first review of the scheme, which was launched in July and is intended to deter dangerous small-boat crossings, while opening a limited legal route for migrants from France to the United Kingdom.

Inspectors examined the removal of 20 people on a flight to France in November and found significant communication failures.

Those being deported were offered access to a translator who spoke Arabic and French, but hardly any of the group understood either language.

UK struggles to reduce migrant crossings after near-record in 2025

While the migrants were aware they were being sent to France, they had little idea of what would happen to them on arrival.

Inspectors said this lack of information increased anxiety for some of those removed.

Migrants were provided with phone numbers for law firms, but many reported that solicitors were unwilling to take on their cases. As a result, access to meaningful legal advice was limited at a crucial moment.

Under the “one in, one out” agreement, people arriving in the UK on small boats can be detained and returned to France. In exchange, an equal number of migrants are authorised to travel legally from France to the UK through a newly created route.

Surge in Channel crossings puts UK-France migrant deal under pressure

Scrutiny from rights groups and UN

The government says the policy is designed to discourage risky Channel crossings and disrupt people smuggling gangs.

Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood said last week that 305 people had been removed from the UK under the scheme, while 367 had entered through the legal pathway.

However, rights groups have repeatedly criticised the arrangement, arguing that it is arbitrary, lacks due process and fails to safeguard migrants’ wellbeing.

Last year, a group of experts – including seven UN Special Rapporteurs – urged the UK and France to halt the programme.

In a letter to both governments, they warned that the scheme “may result in serious violations of international human rights law” and raised concerns that indicators of trafficking were not being properly identified.

The UK Home Office and the French Ministry of the Interior did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

(with newswires)

Congolese lawyers and human rights defenders filed a petition on 21 January arguing the agreement should have been approved by parliament and may even require a referendum under the constitution.

Last Thursday, Trump praised Tshisekedi at the annual National Prayer Breakfast in Washington – a gathering of US political leaders and foreign dignitaries – calling him a “good guy”.

Asking Tshisekedi to stand up and be applauded as a strong partner to the United States, Trump added that he was a “very brave and wonderful man”.

The praise came two months after Congo and the United States signed a Strategic Partnership Agreement on critical minerals, linked to the Washington Accords, a US-brokered peace deal between Congo and Rwanda signed on 4 December by Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame.

Minerals and security

The move gives the US preferential access to Congolese minerals including cobalt and coltan – which are essential for batteries, electronics and defence manufacturing.

Washington says the arrangement will help stabilise eastern Congo while reducing US reliance on China for critical minerals.

In early February, the United States stepped up efforts to secure critical mineral supply chains. Secretary of State Marco Rubio convened 54 countries and the European Commission for talks on critical minerals, attended by Tshisekedi and six other African delegations.

Last December, while celebrating his “America First” foreign policy, Trump told supporters: “I actually stopped the war with Congo and Rwanda. And they said to me, ‘Please, please, we would love you to come and take our minerals.’ Which we’ll do.”

The agreement has triggered debate in Congo about sovereignty, oversight and who benefits from the country’s mineral wealth.

RFI spoke to Maurice Carney, who heads Friends of the Congo, a Washington-based organisation supporting the Congolese lawyers and civil-society groups behind the constitutional challenge.

RFI: The Trump administration is selling this agreement as a big win for both the Americans and the Congolese. Trump said Tshisekedi and he signed the largest minerals deal in US-Africa history. How is it violating the Congolese constitution?

Maurice Carney: It violates various aspects of the constitution, in particular section 214, which states that international agreements should go through the Congolese parliament and may even be subjected to a referendum. The lawyers are arguing that this never happened.

It hasn’t been presented to parliament, even though the agreement calls for changes in Congo’s laws, fiscal policy, mining laws and quite possibly constitutional changes.If you look at what has unfolded over the past year in Congo’s market, the Congolese government instituted a ban on cobalt because it felt the Chinese were flooding the market and wanted to rein in cobalt exports, which it was able to do successfully.

Now, according to this agreement with the United States, if Congo wanted to do that again in the future, it would be required to report quarterly to the US ambassador in Kinshasa about any fiscal or trade policy changes it would like to make. It would also have to be presented to the Joint Steering Committee for discussion and consensus.

The Joint Steering Committee of this agreement is made up of five US representatives and five DRC representatives.

RFI: Is Trump or the Trump family personally gaining from the strategic partnership agreement with DRC, given reports documenting how Trump and his family have profited since his accession to the White House, reaping billions shadowed by conflicts of interest?

MC: I know there are groups here in Washington doing investigative work to see whether Trump and his family are benefiting, but they haven’t released their reports yet.

We do know that people close to him are lined up to benefit from some of these investments. For example, Bloomberg News has reported that former campaign finance co-chair Gentry Beach, who runs a company in Texas, is preparing to invest in the Rubaya coltan mines currently under occupation by the M23 and Rwandan soldiers.

RFI: China is made to look like a big bad wolf, thriving in eastern DRC’s unstable environment, according to Congressman Ronny Jackson, keeping American companies out by colluding with Kinshasa to impose unreasonable taxes on them. How fair and sustainable do you think the US will be compared with China?

MC: That’s a good question. I think the characterisation of China is really a mischaracterization because China has just been ahead of the United States. It has been willing to go into the Congo where the United States has not.

The United States had one of the largest copper and cobalt mines in the Congo through its company Freeport McMoRan and had ownership of the Tenke Fungurume mines. They sold them on the market and China bought them.

So the US is trying to play catch up. We don’t know the extent to which it will be successful. But certainly, China hasn’t been a bad actor.

It has done business with the Congolese government and negotiated with the Congolese government. That’s what there is to it.

As for the agreement that’s been signed, the United States has laws and standards, and we don’t see them being applied. For example, when entering into agreements abroad around minerals, we usually seek prior and informed consent from local communities. Local communities in Congo have been excluded from all these discussions.

There are questions of labour rights, human rights and environmental rights, and we haven’t seen any of those pursued by the United States before any of these deals have been signed or money has been distributed.

Some 50 members of Congress wrote to Trump in 2025 calling on the administration to address how the minerals-for-security agreement would deal with labour, human rights, environmental protections and informed consent from local communities. We haven’t seen a response to that letter.

RFI: How is Congo’s rapprochement with Washington affecting relations with China?

MC: China hasn’t said much, and I’m not sure there’s much that can be said.

The Chinese do business differently on a global scale than the United States. They confine themselves mostly to business transactions, economics and trade, whereas the United States gets involved in politics.

RFI: How is that going to translate on the ground, in terms of China’s presence in DRC?

MC: At the moment, it’s a status quo. China got its deals.

The deals aren’t being challenged by the DRC government. In fact, one of the big questions before the agreement was made public was what the DRC had to offer, considering China controls about 80 percent of the copper and cobalt mines in the Congo.

You see that the United States is not able to encroach on those deals, other than the aspect of the strategic partnership agreement that says Congo can offer its minority stake in existing deals.

If you look at the deals being established, the US government has had to, for example with the Orion and Glencore deal, establish joint partnerships.

In fact, the US doesn’t even have mining companies there. They’re setting up and trying to catch up. China is in the pole position, so to speak.

The big question is whether the United States will be able to catch up. China is far ahead, not only in minerals extraction but also in processing and refining across the supply chain.

RFI: Is the US government investing more than American private companies in DRC through this agreement?

MC: Absolutely. The US government is taking the lead and investing in two areas. One is the mines for critical minerals. The second is infrastructure to ship those minerals out, particularly through the Lobito Corridor in Angola.

What we see unfolding is not just memorandums of understanding and agreements, but money and investment flowing directly from the US government. We’re up to around 3.8 billion dollars lined up to be invested through the International Development Finance Corporation.

This interview has been lightly edited for clarity

The institution backed a 2022 claim by Nigeria’s National Commission for Museums and Monuments (NCMM) calling for the return of 116 objects looted by British armed forces during the 1897 sacking of Benin City.

The term “Benin bronzes” refers to objects crafted from brass and ivory as well as bronze, which were seized during the colonial-era military expedition.

Among the returned bronzes that will travel in the coming months are wood and ivory sculptures, as well as commemorative heads of King Oba and Queen Mother Lyoba Idia.

The decision follows the formal request from the National Commission for Museums and Monuments in Nigeria (NCMM), made in January 2022, for the return of artefacts.

The University’s Council supported the claim and authorisation from the UK Charity Commission was subsequently granted.

“Physical transfer of the majority of the artefacts will be arranged in due course,” the university’s council added.

Seventeen pieces will remain on loan and on display at the museum for three years in the first instance, to be accessible to museum visitors, students and researchers in the UK.

‘Pride and dignity’

A return that contributes to “restoring the pride and dignity” of the Nigerian people, according to Olugbile Holloway, Director General of the NCMM.

“By agreeing to cede some of its approximately 500 works from Benin City, the British institution has decided to respond favorably to a request made in 2022 by the Commission,” he said.

He added that “the return of cultural items for us is not just the return of the physical object, but also the restoration of the pride and dignity that was lost when these objects were taken in the first place.”

Professor Nicholas Thomas, Director of the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, in Cambridge said: “It has been immensely rewarding to engage in dialogue with colleagues from the National Commission of Museums and Monuments, members of the Royal Court, and Nigerian scholars, students and artists over the last ten years.”

Over the period, support has mounted, nationally and internationally, for the repatriation of artefacts that were appropriated in the context of colonial violence, he added.

“This return has been keenly supported across the University community.”

Blood and Bronze: unveiling the British Empire’s brutality in Nigeria

European move

The university’s decision is in line with similar commitments made by other UK, US and European museums. The Netherlands also announced last year the restitution of more than 100 Benin bronzes to Nigeria.

Netherlands agrees to return 119 Benin statues to Nigeria

Other institutions in the Uk also agreed to return stolen artefacts to Ghana.

These returns come as pressure mounts on Western museums and institutions to address the restitution of African artefacts plundered during colonial times by the USA, France, Germany and Belgium.

French senators adopted a bill in January to simplify the return of artworks looted during the colonial era to their countries of origin.

However, the British Museum still refuses to return part of its collection.

(with newswires)

France has been an important ally for Ukraine since Russia launched its invasion nearly four years ago, supplying Kyiv with military aid and political backing.

The two countries signed a letter of intent paving the way for “large-scale joint projects in the defence-industrial sector”, Defence Minister Mykhailo Fedorov wrote on Telegram after meeting his French counterpart Catherine Vautrin in Kyiv.

He did not specify which arms would be produced with France, or when manufacturing would be launched.

“We are moving from supplies to joint production and long-term solutions that systematically strengthen our defence,” Fedorov wrote.

Russia accuses France of ‘fuelling war’ following Ukraine fighter jet deal

Ukraine and France also discussed new shipments of French weapons and military equipment to Kyiv – including of Aster missiles, Mirage 2000 fighter jets and SAMP-T air defence systems.

“France stands and will remain by the Ukrainian people’s side,” Vautrin wrote on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) on Sunday.

France said last year it would release €2 billion ($2.4 billion) in military aid for Kyiv.

In November, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Emmanuel Macron signed a letter of intent for the possible provision of up to 100 Rafale fighter jets – the crown jewel of French combat aviation – to Ukraine.

Talks in Florida

Meanwhile, Zelensky told reporters at the weekend that the United States has offered to host peace talks between the two sides in Florida this week, with a goal of “ending the war by June”.

US-led efforts to end Europe’s deadliest conflict since the Second World War have stepped up a gear in recent weeks, but Moscow and Kyiv remain at odds over the key issue of territory.

Russia, which occupies around 20 percent of its neighbour, is pushing for full control of Ukraine’s eastern Donetsk region as part of any deal, and has threatened to take it by force if talks fail.

France now supplies most of Ukraine’s intelligence, Macron says

But Ukraine says ceding ground will embolden Moscow and has signalled it will not sign an agreement that fails to deter Russia from invading again.

Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, describing it as a “special military operation” to prevent the expansion of NATO – a war aim that Kyiv has called a pretext for an illegal land grab.

The conflict has resulted in a wave of destruction that has left entire cities in ruins and killed tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians, while forcing millions to flee their homes.

(with AFP)

The anti-terrorism investigating judge looking into the assassination of the journalists sent the request last month to the French Ministry of the Armed Forces.

This comes after a request from the plaintiffs in the civil lawsuit.

“There have already been several declassifications, but they were limited, with documents heavily redacted,” Danièle Gonod, president of the Association of Friends of Ghislaine Dupont and Claude Verlon, told French news agency AFP.

According to Gonod, authorities had previously invoked the top-secret nature of the documents, citing the need to protect French sources in Mali.

French forces had been supporting Mali against insurgents for nearly a decade, but were pulled out in the wake of a military takeover in August 2020.

“Today, there is no longer a single French soldier in Mali, so there are no sources left to protect,” Gonod said.

Ghislaine Dupont, 57, and Claude Verlon, 55, were abducted while reporting for RFI and killed on 2 November, 2013 near the town of Kidal, just months after France launched Operation Serval to counter jihadist groups threatening to seize the Malian capital of Bamako.

Unanswered questions

While the group al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb had previously claimed the murders of Dupont and Verlon, the precise circumstances surrounding their deaths have never been fully clarified.

According to French authorities, a convoy of French soldiers discovered the journalists’ bodies near the pick-up truck driven by their abductors. Investigators said the vehicle had broken down, bolstering the theory of a failed hostage-taking carried out by a jihadist group. The reporters were said to have been slain by gunfire.

However, Danièle Gonod says that telephone data gathered during the investigation points to “a real jihadist network, political and organised, with ties to Algeria“.

Discrepancies in French Army account on 2013 murder of RFI reporters in Mali

The judge is now requesting intelligence on two suspects believed to be still alive: Sidan Ag Hita, one of the alleged masterminds, and Hamadi Ag Mohamed, one of four men said to have carried out the abduction.

The judge noted that Sidan Ag Hita had since become “an important jihadist leader”, reportedly negotiating directly with the Malian state over hostage releases.

The judge also requested information on Cheikh Ag Haoussa, a Tuareg leader who was due to meet the journalists in Kidal.

According to the judge, Haoussa was allegedly seen hours before the abduction in the company of Baye Ag Bakabo, identified as the head of the team that kidnapped and killed the two journalists.

(with newswires)

Portugal has elected a new president, following a campaign shaped as much by extreme weather as by politics, with centre-left veteran Antonio Jose Seguro winning a decisive run-off victory over far-right challenger Andre Ventura.

With more than 99 percent of ballots counted on Sunday, Seguro secured just under 67 percent of the vote, comfortably ahead of Ventura on just over 33 percent.

The result means the 63-year-old Socialist will succeed conservative incumbent Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, whose second and final term ends later this year.

European leaders were quick to welcome the outcome.

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said Portugal had shown that support for shared European values remained strong, while French President Emmanuel Macron congratulated Seguro and said he hoped to strengthen ties between the two countries.

Portugal votes in presidential election battered by deadly storms

Storm-hit campaign tests democracy

The presidential contest unfolded against the backdrop of two weeks of violent storms that battered Portugal, killing at least seven people and causing an estimated four billion euros in damage.

Flooding and power cuts disrupted daily life across wide areas of the country and inevitably upended the election campaign.

In around 20 of the worst-affected constituencies, voting was postponed by a week, though the election went ahead for the vast majority of Portugal’s nearly 11 million eligible voters, including those living abroad.

Ventura, leader of the Chega party, criticised the government’s handling of the crisis and unsuccessfully called for the entire vote to be delayed.

Despite the disruption, turnout held up well. As results came in, Seguro struck a conciliatory tone. “The winners tonight are the Portuguese people and democracy,” he said, pledging to serve as a president for all Portuguese.

Ventura conceded defeat but highlighted what he described as a historic result for his party. Addressing supporters, the 43-year-old said Chega now led the Portuguese right and would one day govern the country.

Veteran returns as the far right advances

Seguro’s victory marks a significant political comeback. A long-time Socialist and former party leader, he began his career in the party’s youth wing and rose steadily through its ranks.

In 2014, he lost an internal power struggle and was pushed out as secretary general by Antonio Costa, who later became prime minister and is now president of the European Council.

For much of the past decade, Seguro remained largely out of the public eye, though he continued to argue for what he has called a modern and moderate left. He launched his presidential bid without the initial backing of the Socialist Party leadership, but most senior figures gradually rallied behind him as his poll numbers improved.

Portugal marks 50 years of democracy with far right on rise

Casting his ballot in Caldas da Rainha, where he lives, Seguro urged voters to take advantage of a brief lull in the storms. “Come and vote. Make the most of this window of good weather,” he said.

Ventura campaigned on a promise to break with what he described as the parties that have governed Portugal for the past 50 years. In the January first round, contested by 11 candidates, Seguro finished first with over 31 percent – ahead of Ventura on 23.5 percent – making him the first far-right candidate to reach a presidential run-off in Portugal.

Since then, Chega – only founded in 2019 – has continued its rapid rise, becoming the leading opposition force at the May 2025 general election.

Prime Minister Luis Montenegro, whose minority centre-right government depends on support from either the Socialists or Chega, declined to endorse either candidate.

(with newswires)

The nine officers, from France’s riot police division, the CRS, aged between 30 and 52, face charges of “wilful violence by a person holding public authority”. Some are also accused of “aggravated violence”.

The events in question took place on 1 December, 2018, during the anti-government Yellow Vest protest movement, when protestors tried to ransack the Arc de Triomphe.

A group of protesters and at least one journalist covering the unrest entered a nearby Burger King restaurant to escape tear gas, after violent clashes broke out between police and demonstrators.

CCTV footage on the premises, along with videos captured by journalists and bystanders, showed members of the CRS entering the premises and using batons to strike several people who were already on the ground or had their hands up.

Multiple victims reported physical injuries and psychological trauma.

If found guilty, the officers face up to seven years in prison and a €100,000 fine.

French police watchdog calls for action against officers who beat protesters

‘Police violence is a major issue’

Natan Arthaud, 32, is one of the victims of the Burger King assault.

CCTV footage showed him curled up on the ground, protecting himself with his arms as a group of riot police surrounded him.

Arthaud, from the Loire region, was signed off work for five days after receiving 27 blows to his arms and legs. 

“Police violence is a major issue,” he told local media in an interview in August 2024.

“I hesitated a great deal [before filing a complaint]. I was aware that by bringing a civil action against the riot police, I wasn’t taking on just anyone.”

In July 2024, after lengthy proceedings, the Paris public prosecutor requested a criminal trial, noting that some riot police officers “armed with batons and shields” had “repeatedly struck non-hostile demonstrators” who were on the ground or “trying to come out with their hands raised”.

In late February last year, an investigating judge referred nine officers to the criminal court on charges of aggravated intentional violence by a person holding public authority.

The officers are expected to argue that they were operating under extreme stress and “insurrectional” conditions, following hours of being targeted with projectiles by rioters.

French MPs unanimously vote to publish Yellow Vests’ 2019 public grievance log books

Long investigation

The case, which has taken seven years to come to trial, is one of the largest collective trials of police officers arising from the Yellow Vest protest movement. 

Triggered by fuel hikes and the cost of living crisis, the movement mushroomed into a wider protest against President Emmanuel Macron and his pension reform.

Some 212 cases of alleged police brutality have been investigated by the IGPN police oversight body in relation to the protests.

In December 2019 a CRS officer was handed a two-month suspended sentence for wilful violence, after he was filmed hurling a paving stone at a protester during Yellow Vest protests on 1 May that year. He continued in his post.

The trial at the Paris Judicial Court is scheduled to run until 12 February.

Lang, 86, one of the most recognisable cultural figures of the French left, submitted his resignation over the weekend ahead of a planned summons to the foreign ministry, which oversees the Arab World Institute.

The decision follows days of intense scrutiny after the United States Department of Justice published a tranche of Epstein-related documents on 30 January.

According to his lawyer, Laurent Merlet, Lang is “very sad and deeply hurt” to be leaving a role he cherished, but chose to step aside to protect the institution.

In a letter to Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, he insisted the accusations against him were inaccurate and said he would prove his innocence.

The foreign ministry confirmed his departure and said the process of appointing a successor had begun.

French former minister Jack Lang offers to resign from Arab World Institute amid Epstein probe

Preliminary investigation

Lang is the highest-profile French figure to be affected by the release of the Epstein files.

His name appeared 673 times in correspondence dated between 2012 and 2019, alongside that of his daughter, Caroline.

French investigative outlet Mediapart has reported alleged financial and business links between the Lang family and Epstein via an offshore company registered in the US Virgin Islands.

On Friday, France’s national financial prosecutor opened a preliminary investigation into Lang and his daughter over suspected aggravated tax fraud laundering. No charges have been filed at this stage.

Lang, a former Socialist heavyweight and culture minister under President François Mitterrand in the 1980s and 1990s, has led the Arab World Institute since 2013.

He is also widely credited with launching the Fête de la Musique, which has since spread around the globe.

Jack Lang’s daughter steps down from film post over Epstein revelations

Political pressure

Reaction to his resignation was swift and unified across France’s political spectrum.

Government spokesperson Maud Bregeon said the situation had become untenable, describing Lang’s departure as “the only possible decision” and stressing the moral dimension alongside the judicial process.

Socialist Party leader Olivier Faure echoed that view, arguing that responsibility and setting an example required Lang to step down, even as the courts determine any legal responsibility.

From the opposition benches, former prime minister Michel Barnier warned against a sense of impunity among the powerful, calling it “unbearable” and a driver of populist anger.

Green MP Sandrine Rousseau said the resignation was overdue, while Sébastien Chenu of the far-right National Rally remarked that it was “about time”, citing both the tax investigation and Lang’s apparent proximity to Epstein.

The Elysée Palace and the prime minister’s office had privately urged Lang to consider the reputation of the institute, with President Emmanuel Macron’s entourage keen to avoid further damage to one of France’s flagship cultural bodies.

The presidency said it had simply “taken note” of his resignation.

(with newswires)

Addis Ababa, Feb 8, 2026 (AFP) – A bitter war of words has escalated further after Ethiopia ordered neighbouring Eritrea to “immediately withdraw its troops” from Ethiopian territory, with the pair seemingly inching towards a new conflict.

Relations between the two Horn of Africa countries have long been fraught.

In recent months, Addis Ababa has accused Eritrea of supporting insurgents on Ethiopian soil — allegations Asmara denies.

“Developments over the last few days indicate that the government of Eritrea has chosen the path of further escalation,” Ethiopian Foreign Minister Gedion Timothewos told his Eritrean counterpart in a letter dated Saturday.

He demanded that Asmara “withdraw its troops from Ethiopian territory and cease all forms of collaboration with rebel groups”.

The “incursion” along its northwestern borders and joint military operations there were “not just provocations but acts of outright aggression”, he said.

Timothewos added, however, that he believed the “cycle of violence and mistrust” could still be broken through diplomacy.

“If we receive a positive response to our legitimate demand for respect for Ethiopia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity” then Ethiopia will be “willing to engage in good-faith negotiations”, he said.

World leaders urge restraint as clashes in western Tigray resume

The Eritrean government did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Eritrea, one of the world’s most closed countries, gained independence in 1993 after decades of armed struggle against Ethiopia.

They later fought a 1998-2000 border war in which tens of thousands died.

Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed initially sought rapprochement with Eritrea when he came to power, earning him the Nobel Peace Prize in 2019.

The two governments cooperated against rebels from Ethiopia’s Tigray region during the 2020-2022 conflict but fell out over the peace accord, from which Eritrea was excluded.

The Tigray civil war killed at least 600,000 people and the resulting peace deal, known as the Pretoria Agreement, has never fully resolved the tensions.

Ethiopian authorities say Eritrea is “actively preparing for war” and funding armed groups fighting federal forces.

Eritrea meanwhile accuses Ethiopia of seeking to seize its port at Assab as part of the landlocked country’s efforts to gain sea access.

(With newswires)

Kakuyu, in Malawi’s central district of Nkhotakota, provides hundreds of farmers with their livelihoods. Close to both the Dwangwa River and Lake Malawi, its swampy delta land makes it easy to grow crops such as rice and maize twice a year, without the need for fertilisers.

But a heavy downpour in December displaced these farmers and washed away their crops, which were about to be harvested.

Authorities say Nkhotakota and the surrounding districts received continuous rainfall from 25 December straight through to the end of the month, leading to rising water levels in rivers and streams which culminated in flooding of low lying areas.

Malawi’s Department of Disaster Management Affairs (DoDMA) said on 22 January that “at least 40 people have died while more than 36,000 households have been affected by rain-related disasters during the 2025/26 rainfall season”, the Malawi News Agency reported.

The statement, by Wilson Moleni, commissioner for Disaster Management Affairs, added that “209 people have sustained injuries, while 23 deaths were caused by lightning strikes and 17 by collapsing walls”.

DoDMA and its humanitarian partners have responded by providing maize flour, clothes, blankets and medical supplies, while the Malawi Defence Force has been involved in search and rescue operations.

Relentless rains and floods leave Africa reeling as UN seeks help

Global warming

For Julius Ng’oma, national coordinator for the country’s Civil Society Network on Climate Change (CISONECC), the cause of the disaster is clear: “The recent flooding in Malawi follows a pattern that can be attributed to climate change, suggesting that this is likely being amplified by the global warming phenomenon.”

Leah Phiri, 53 who has lived in the Kakuyu area for 30 years, educating her seven children with the proceeds of her crops, said she had never seen anything like the downpour.

The waters had reached shoulder height before officials from the Red Cross sounded the alarm and boats arrived to rescue residents.

“We were told that only people and no possessions were allowed in the boat,” said Phiri, who is still sheltering at a former school along with 700 others.

She had watched as her maize, rice and beans – which were almost ripe – were submerged in the water.

Now, she’s sharing a room with 50 other people and relying on beans and flour, along with other necessities, donated by the government, the Red Cross and other donors. She is afraid that an outbreak of cholera could erupt due to the overcrowding and lack of hygiene facilities.  

“We’ve stayed in that area for decades and it became our home. It hosts over 800 people and is composed of dambos [wetlands] which are ideal for growing different crops like rice and maize. We can’t go back now, and all our possessions have been destroyed.”

For 62-year-old Nancy Nthali, Kakuyu was like “a place God gave us to make a living”.

For her and her six children – including two orphans she looks after – the disaster has plunged their future into uncertainty.

Climate change ‘supercharging’ deadly floods in southern Africa

Livelihoods lost

This is not the first time Kakuyu and the surrounding areas have experienced rising water levels due to rains. But for the first time, residents have seen the water create gullies and streams which make it almost unusable for farming.

Leonard Chiphwanya, who has lived in the area for almost a decade, said families have been torn apart. His own four children were taken in by relatives while he stayed at the camp, agonising over the family’s next move. He should have been in the field working, he said.

Chiphwanya recalled how the district had an abundance of rice and maize, in an area that has now been destroyed – and said this plentiful supply meant an affordable price for these commodities compared to in other areas. There were excess harvests, he says, because people were able to “grow crops twice, during rainy season and dry season”.

Malawians face food insecurity and soaring unemployment as they head to polls

He added: “We were growing crops due to the type of soil and proximity to the water. In the past, the area was neglected… until [people] discovered its worth and one by one, they stayed permanently. Imagine people harvesting between 30, 50 up to 100 bags of rice and maize. This has been a source of livelihood to our families.”

For Ng’oma of CISONECC: “Malawi needs to ensure that tangible adaptation measures to the impact of heavy rains and flooding are put in place to secure property, livelihoods and lives in the near and long term. Careful planning in consideration of climate hazards and risk is essential. Climate proofing is key for infrastructure.”

Wednesday’s meeting in Ankara between Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is the latest in a series aimed at improving relations.

It stems from the 2023 Athens Declaration, a formal statement of friendship that led to better economic cooperation and a cooling of military tensions over the disputed Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean Seas.

Mitsotakis’s visit comes at a critical time for the process. “I think it’s very important, the meeting has been postponed twice in the past,” says former Greek foreign ministry advisor Panayotis Ioakimidis, who now teaches at the University of Athens.

“There are some people within the [Greek] governing party, and outside it, who have serious reservations about improving or even talking about relations with Turkey,” he notes. “So it’s very important for the meeting to happen, to keep cooperation going; otherwise, relations risk sliding into conflict.”

Claims on the Aegean

The talks come as tensions over the Aegean Sea – believed to have vast untapped energy reserves – are on the rise.

In January, the Greek foreign minister, George Gerapetritis, announced Greece’s intent to exercise its right under international law to extend its territorial waters in the Aegean from six to 12 nautical miles, to create a marine park.

Erdogan is expected to remind his Greek counterpart that any extension of territorial waters is a red line for Turkey. “Mitsotakis will get some lectures in Ankara,” predicts international relations professor Huseyin Bagci of Ankara’s Middle East Technical University.

In 1995, the Turkish parliament passed a motion declaring that Greece unilaterally extending its waters beyond six miles was a casus belli – cause for war. “Twelve miles [of] territorial waters for Greece means the Turkish ships cannot go one kilometre outside of Turkish territory. Turkey cannot accept this,” says Bagci.

In response, Athens is using Greece’s European Union veto to prevent Turkey from joining the EU’s SAFE defence procurement programme until Turkey withdraws its threat of war.

Turkey and Egypt’s joint naval drill signals shifting Eastern Med alliances

Alliance with Israel

Adding to tensions, last December Greece and Cyprus signed a series of defence agreements with one of Turkey’s fiercest rivals – Israel.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan accused Israel of seeking to encircle Turkey, while Turkish media dubbed it an “axis of evil”.

Mitsotakis is expected to try to allay such concerns during his visit to Ankara. “The Greek side thinks it can separate these issues and keep them quite separate from the bilateral issues between Greece and Turkey,” says Ioakimidis. “But it’s a very likely scenario to take the countries into very dangerous waters.”

Israel’s military support of Greece is to blame for Athens’ more assertive stance in the Aegean, argues Murat Aslan of the Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research, a Turkish pro-government think tank. He says that Greece acts more boldly when backed by others: “Once they enjoy the support of another, material or narrative, they are much more courageous to challenge.”

If Greece maintains this approach, Aslan suggests, Turkey will likely go back to increasing its military activity.

Prior to recent attempts at rapprochement, Turkish and Greek warplanes often challenged each another in mock dogfights in the disputed airspace over the Aegean.

Turkey flexes naval muscles as neighbours fear escalating arms race

Trump effect

However, Trump could provide an impetus to contain tensions.

With the American ambassador to Greece announcing this week that the US president will visit Athens, both Erdogan and Mitsotakis will be wary of Trump’s involvement in their bilateral affairs.

“I think both countries are concerned about this destabilisation to the international order that the Trump administration has brought,” says Ioannis Grigoriadis of Ankara’s Bilkent University, a specialist in Greek-Turkish relations.

“It may be a strong incentive for both sides to declare that things are OK, so let’s keep Trump’s intervention away from Turkish-Greek relations. I don’t think that any side would like that to happen, given the circumstances and the unpredictability of such an intervention.”

Wednesday’s meeting is set to emphasise the economic benefits of rapprochement and regional cooperation. However, amid persistent Aegean tensions and Turkey’s concerns over Israel’s role, expectations for progress remain low.

Wednesday’s meeting in Ankara between Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is the latest in a series aimed at improving relations.

It stems from the 2023 Athens Declaration, a formal statement of friendship that led to better economic cooperation and a cooling of military tensions over the disputed Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean Seas.

Mitsotakis’s visit comes at a critical time for the process. “I think it’s very important, the meeting has been postponed twice in the past,” says former Greek foreign ministry advisor Panayotis Ioakimidis, who now teaches at the University of Athens.

“There are some people within the [Greek] governing party, and outside it, who have serious reservations about improving or even talking about relations with Turkey,” he notes. “So it’s very important for the meeting to happen, to keep cooperation going; otherwise, relations risk sliding into conflict.”

Claims on the Aegean

The talks come as tensions over the Aegean Sea – believed to have vast untapped energy reserves – are on the rise.

In January, the Greek foreign minister, George Gerapetritis, announced Greece’s intent to exercise its right under international law to extend its territorial waters in the Aegean from six to 12 nautical miles, to create a marine park.

Erdogan is expected to remind his Greek counterpart that any extension of territorial waters is a red line for Turkey. “Mitsotakis will get some lectures in Ankara,” predicts international relations professor Huseyin Bagci of Ankara’s Middle East Technical University.

In 1995, the Turkish parliament passed a motion declaring that Greece unilaterally extending its waters beyond six miles was a casus belli – cause for war. “Twelve miles [of] territorial waters for Greece means the Turkish ships cannot go one kilometre outside of Turkish territory. Turkey cannot accept this,” says Bagci.

In response, Athens is using Greece’s European Union veto to prevent Turkey from joining the EU’s SAFE defence procurement programme until Turkey withdraws its threat of war.

Turkey and Egypt’s joint naval drill signals shifting Eastern Med alliances

Alliance with Israel

Adding to tensions, last December Greece and Cyprus signed a series of defence agreements with one of Turkey’s fiercest rivals – Israel.

Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan accused Israel of seeking to encircle Turkey, while Turkish media dubbed it an “axis of evil”.

Mitsotakis is expected to try to allay such concerns during his visit to Ankara. “The Greek side thinks it can separate these issues and keep them quite separate from the bilateral issues between Greece and Turkey,” says Ioakimidis. “But it’s a very likely scenario to take the countries into very dangerous waters.”

Israel’s military support of Greece is to blame for Athens’ more assertive stance in the Aegean, argues Murat Aslan of the Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research, a Turkish pro-government think tank. He says that Greece acts more boldly when backed by others: “Once they enjoy the support of another, material or narrative, they are much more courageous to challenge.”

If Greece maintains this approach, Aslan suggests, Turkey will likely go back to increasing its military activity.

Prior to recent attempts at rapprochement, Turkish and Greek warplanes often challenged each another in mock dogfights in the disputed airspace over the Aegean.

Turkey flexes naval muscles as neighbours fear escalating arms race

Trump effect

However, Trump could provide an impetus to contain tensions.

With the American ambassador to Greece announcing this week that the US president will visit Athens, both Erdogan and Mitsotakis will be wary of Trump’s involvement in their bilateral affairs.

“I think both countries are concerned about this destabilisation to the international order that the Trump administration has brought,” says Ioannis Grigoriadis of Ankara’s Bilkent University, a specialist in Greek-Turkish relations.

“It may be a strong incentive for both sides to declare that things are OK, so let’s keep Trump’s intervention away from Turkish-Greek relations. I don’t think that any side would like that to happen, given the circumstances and the unpredictability of such an intervention.”

Wednesday’s meeting is set to emphasise the economic benefits of rapprochement and regional cooperation. However, amid persistent Aegean tensions and Turkey’s concerns over Israel’s role, expectations for progress remain low.

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

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 for the RFI English Listeners Forum banner to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr

More tech news: Did you know we have a YouTube channel? Just go to YouTube and write RFI English in the search bar, and there we are! Be sure 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”, and you’ll be counselled on the best-suited activities for your level according to your score.

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

Be sure you check out our wonderful podcasts!

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

There’s 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 excellent staff of journalists. You never know what we’ll surprise you with!

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

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

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

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

This week’s quiz: On 13 December, I asked you a question about Paul Myers’ article “Nigeria power past Mozambique into quarterfinals at Africa Cup of Nations”.

Nigeria had just beaten Mozambique 4 to 0. Paul noted in his article that the win was the biggest winning margin in a Cup of Nations knockout tie since the Africa Cup in 2010. And that was one of your questions: you were to tell me which countries played in the Africa Cup semi-finals in 2010, and who won that knockout tie by 4 to 0.

The second question was: In the Nigeria/Mozambique match, what is the name of the Nigerian player who scored the fourth goal?

The answer is, to quote Paul’s article: “Akor Adams, fed by Lookman, thrashed in Nigeria’s fourth goal 15 minutes from time to notch up the biggest winning margin in a Cup of Nations knockout tie since Egypt battered Algeria 4-0 in the semi-finals at the 2010 tournament in Angola.” So, Egypt/Algeria, and Akor Adams are the correct answers.

In addition to the quiz question, there was the bonus question, suggested by RFI Listeners Club member Pradip Basak from West Bengal, India: “How do you deal with jealousy when your friend achieves something you secretly wished for?”

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

The winners are: Amir Jameel, the president of the RFI Online Visitors Club in Sahiwal, Pakistan.  Amir is also the winner of this week’s bonus question. Congratulations on your double win, Amir.

Also on the list of lucky winners this week are Sharifun Islam Nitu, a member of the RFI Amour Fan Club in Rajshahi, Bangladesh, and Faheem Noor, the president of the WULO RFI Club in Nankana Sahib, Pakistan. There are also two RFI Listeners Club members: Hans Verner Lollike from Hedehusene, Denmark, and S. J. Agboola from Ekiti State, Nigeria.

Congratulations winners!

Here’s the music you heard on this week’s programme: “Heer on Sarangi”, traditional music from Pakistan performed by Ustad Sultan Khan; “Water No Get Enemy” by Fela Kuti, performed by Fela Ransome Kuti & Africa 70; “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 traditional Andalucian “La Saeta del Larios”, sung by Diana Navarro.

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

This week’s question … you must listen to the show to participate. After you’ve listened to the show, re-read our article “French DJ wins Grammy for Lady Gaga remix”, which will help you with the answer.

You have until 2 March to enter this week’s quiz; the winners will be announced on the 7 March 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 find out how you can win a special Sound Kitchen prize.

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

Clashes in and around Aleppo have displaced around 170,000 people since mid-January, as the Syrian army seeks to extend its control over previously Kurdish-controlled areas.

Ongoing hostilities between government forces and armed groups continue to trigger displacement in several parts of the country, according to the UN.

While political transition is underway after the fall of Bashar al-Assad at the end of 2024, reconstruction and recovery efforts are hindered by instability and lack of funding. 

Access to healthcare remains unreliable, and basic services are severely disrupted. A harsh winter and long-term drought are exacerbating the crisis.

More than 16 million Syrians are expected to need humanitarian assistance in 2026 – yet the UN’s response plan is only 33.5 percent funded, leaving a $3.2 billion gap.

“It is an incredibly fragile moment for Syria,” said Slente, secretary-general of the Danish Refugee Council (DRC), speaking to RFI on a visit to the Syria, including areas in and around Damascus. 

“This is a country where two out of every three Syrians need humanitarian assistance, and 90 percent of the population lives below the poverty line.”

A year after Assad’s fall, Syrian hopes for transitional justice are fading

Returning to ruins, landmines

Around 3 million Syrian refugees and internally displaced people have returned home since the fall of the Assad regime, over 1 million from other countries and nearly 2 million from within Syria.

“Syria has had a new government in place for the last year,” Slente said, “and it’s time to sort of recap on our programming here and adapt our programming to the new realities on the ground. A vast percentage of the population here are in dire need of humanitarian assistance on the ground.”

Many people are returning to their homes to find almost nothing after more than 13 years of civil war, she added.

One of the DRC’s priorities now is to work on getting rid of the landmines that still litter areas where fighting took place, and pose a deadly threat to returnees.

The organisation recently finished training local teams to help clear mines, Slente said.

“We are helping build the capacity here of the National Mine Action Centre in the Ministry of Emergencies that needs to coordinate that very big endeavour of clearing Syria of unexploded ordinance and landmines. It means that now we can get more jobs done on the ground with the clearing of mines, getting them out of fields and villages, so that people can actually be safe when they move around the territory.”

As Syrian workers return home from Turkey, local businesses feel the loss

Upheaval in Kurdish north

In north-eastern Syria, near the border with Turkey, civilians say they are still fearful.

After months of tension, Kurdish-led forces have ceded swathes of territory to advancing government troops. Under a deal agreed last week, Kurdish forces and administrative institutions are to be integrated into the state.

It is a blow to the Kurds, who had sought to preserve the de facto autonomy they exercised after seizing swathes of territory in battles against the Islamic State jihadist group during the civil war.

“We are afraid that they will attack our regions and that massacres and genocide will occur,” one woman told RFI’s reporter in the Kurdish-majority city of Qamishli, where government forces entered on Tuesday.

Another resident said he was hoping for “a positive resolution to the conflict, so that no more bloodshed occurs”.

This episode was mixed by Nicolas Doreau.

This week, we discuss recent US airstrikes in northern Nigeria and the fact that many people of  African descent feel threatened by the recent enforcement actions by ICE in many US cities. 

The United States launched airstrikes in northern Nigeria in late December, saying it had targeted Islamic State jihadists – at Abuja’s request – to halt the killing of Christians. However, experts have challenged Washington’s claims that Christians are being massacred in Nigeria, arguing that the narrative, promoted by sections of the American right, oversimplifies far more complex conflicts.

US strikes on Nigeria set ‘deeply troubling precedent’ for African governance

First, we talk to Isa Sanusi, from Amnesty International Nigeria, to discuss the aftermath of the US strikes and of US President Donald Trump’s invasive strategy to fight jihadism in West Africa.

US to increase cooperation with Nigeria to pursue Islamic State militants

US African diaspora in Minneapolis

Meanwhile, within the United States, anti-immigration policies have intensified since the Trump administration took office a year ago, affecting even some people who are living in the country legally.

In Minneapolis in January 2026, two people were killed in shootings involving US federal immigration agents. On 7 January, 37‑year‑old Renée Nicole Macklin Good, an American woman, was fatally shot by an agent from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) during a federal enforcement operation.

Then, on 24 January, 37‑year‑old Alex Jeffrey Pretti, a United States citizen and intensive care unit nurse, was shot and killed by officers from United States Customs and Border Protection in a separate incident in Minneapolis.

US immigration agent’s fatal shooting of woman leaves Minneapolis in shock

Others were killed without making the headlines. Human rights lawyers have cited at least nine such cases, and possibly more, including Keith Porter, Parady La, Heber Sanchaz Domínguez, Víctor Manuel Díaz, Luis Beltrán Yáñez-Cruz, Luis Gustavo Núñez Cáceres, and Geraldo Lunas Campos.

Anti-immigration policies have particularly targeted Somali migrants and Somali Americans, among other immigrant communities.

Minneapolis is also the city where George Floyd, a Black American man, was killed by police in 2020, an event that sparked the global Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement.

Dr Rashad Shabazz joins us from the United States. He is a historical geographer specialising in race, culture and the built environment at Arizona State University.

He has recently published a series of studies on the diversity of Minneapolis, undertaken while working on a new book about one of the city’s most famous residents, the musician and singer Prince.

Music from us

Finally you’ll also hear music from the Cameroonian French duo, OKALI.

The song Gathering celebrates gathering and sharing; Traveler explores travel and cultural exchange.

Episode edited by Melissa Chemam and mixed by Erwan Rome.

Spotlight on Africa is produced by Radio France Internationale’s English language service.

With the end of the Syrian civil war, Turkey claims that nearly a million refugees who were living there have already returned home.

Their departure is being welcomed by the Turkish government, amid growing public animosity over the presence of more than 3 million refugees.

But for many Turkish companies, Syrians are an economic lifeline – as seen in Gaziantep, an industrial city close to the Syrian border. 

The Inci Boya company is one of hundreds of small factories and workshops in the city. With a couple of dozen workers, hundreds of pieces of furniture are spray-painted each day. With long hours in air thick with dust, it’s arduous, dirty work. As in many factories in Gaziantep, Syrians make up a large share of the workforce. 

“I can’t get people from my own community to work in my sector,” explains owner Halil Yarabay. “Many workshop owners and many businesses are unfortunately experiencing this.”

He blames societal changes, “Our children, our youth… they consider such work beneath them. They consider they’ve failed in their family’s eyes by working with their hands as a furniture maker or a mechanic.”

French journalist arrested in Turkey while covering pro-Kurdish protest released

Realities of returning

But local authorities claim nearly 100,000 Syrians have already left the city – including including several who worked at Inci Boya.

During a welcome tea break, the topic of going home is on everyone’s tongue. Ahmed Hac Hussein has been working there for more than five years. He, too, is thinking of leaving.

“Many people are returning,  I have a relative who moves a family back to Syria every day,” he said. “For me, I lived in Aleppo for 35 years. I have so many friends there, I haven’t seen them for 14 years. I have three sisters there, and I haven’t seen them either. I want to go.”

However, Hussein, who lost his home in the war, acknowledges that the economic realities in Syria make returning difficult.

“You need to have money to pay the monthly rent. You need a job, but there is no work. My brother went back to Aleppo, but he says business is too slow.”

Listening is Hussein’s son, Ibrahim, who started working here a year ago after leaving school. He feels differently: “I grew up here; this place became my second home. I love it here a lot. I was two years old when I came here, and I never went back. I don’t want to go back.”

Demographic time bomb

Turkish companies such as Inci Boya will be hoping many Syrians feel the same as Ibrahim, claims Atilla Yesilada, Turkey’s economic analyst for consultancy Global Source Partners.

He says around 900,000 Syrians work in small businesses and factories across Turkey.

“They’ve filled all the low-paying jobs. Without Syrians, business owners say they’ll go bankrupt, since that keeps costs down.”

This reliance on Syrian workers, and their departure, also comes as Turkey faces a demographic time bomb. “The birth rate has declined substantially. The Turkish birth rate is 1.5, and you know, replacement is 2.1,” Yesilada added.

He warns the outlook for Turkey is grim, given the experience of other countries. “[The birthrate is] coming down significantly, and it’s been going down for 20 years.… [the example of] China shows that there is nothing you can do about it.”

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan recently called on families to “serve the nation” by having at least three children. His minister of family and social services claimed nearly half of Turkish families didn’t have children.

To attract workers, visa and work permit restrictions were lifted last year for all Turkic Central Asian nations.

Turkey blocks calls for regime change in Iran as protests escalate

Rising costs

But at the Inci Boya factory, owner Halil Yarabay is already counting the cost of Syrians leaving, and says a bidding war to keep these workers is beginning.

“Labour costs are rising. Employees we paid 10,000 TL a week now cost up to 15,000,” he said.

Some larger companies in Gaziantep – such as Tat Holding, which makes furniture and sweets among many other products – are even considering following their workers back to Syria, says its CEO Salih Balta. 

“Syria is close to Gaziantep and allows us to produce and export at up to 35 percent lower cost,” he explained.

Balta claims that producing in Syria – a member of the Arab League – would allow his company to export tax-free to 17 Arab countries under its free trade agreement. “For us, the Gulf countries are a very important market,” he said.

Gaziantep, along with many cities across Turkey, has seen protests against Syrian incomers. Several polls have found that the majority of people want them to return. But this could ultimately prove a double-edged sword, as businesses face growing economic pain over the loss of their Syrian workforce.

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 just around the corner, so it’s time for you to record your greetings for our annual World Radio Day programme!

WRD is on 13 February; we’ll have our celebration the day after, on the 14 February show. The deadline for your recordings is Monday 2 February, which is not far off!

Try to keep your greeting to under a minute. You can record on your phone and send it to me as an attachment in an e-mail to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr

Be sure to record your greeting from underneath a blanket. Then the sound will be truly radiophonic – I mean, you want everyone to understand you, right?

Don’t miss out on the fun. 2 February is just around the corner, so to your recorders!

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 for the RFI English Listeners Forum banner to thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr

More tech news: Did you know we have a YouTube channel? Just go to YouTube and write RFI English in the search bar, and there we are! Be sure 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”, and you’ll be counselled on the best-suited activities for your level according to your score.

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

Be sure you check out our wonderful podcasts!

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

There’s 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 excellent staff of journalists. You never know what we’ll surprise you with!

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

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

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

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

This week’s quiz: On 13 December, I asked you a question about the then-new US security strategy, which presented Europe as lacking in “self-confidence” and facing “civilizational erasure” due to immigration.

You were to re-read our article “EU Council president rejects political influence in US security plan”, and send in the answer to this question: What did the EU Council president, Antonio Costa, say about the difference in the idea of “free speech” between Europe and the United States?

The answer is, to quote our article: “The United States cannot replace Europe in what its vision is of freedom of expression,” Costa said.

“There is no freedom of speech if citizens’ freedom of information is sacrificed to defend the techno oligarchs in the United States.”

In addition to the quiz question, there was the bonus question, suggested by RFI Listeners Club member Jayanta Chakrabarty from New Delhi, India. Jayanta’s question was: “What inspiring act have you witnessed that could motivate a nation or society?”

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

The winners are: RFI English listener Khizar Hayat Shah from Punjab, Pakistan. Khizar is also the winner of this week’s bonus question. Congratulations on your double win, Khizar.

Also on the list of lucky winners this week are Faheem Noor, the president of the World United RFI Listeners Organization in Nankana Sahib, Pakistan, and RFI Listeners Club members Solomon Fessahazion from Asmara, Eritrea, as well as Deekay Dimple from Assam, India.

Last but not least, there’s RFI English listener Liton Hossain Khan from Naogaon in Bangladesh.

Congratulations winners!

Here’s the music you heard on this week’s programme: “Scherzo” from the Piano Quintet in G minor, Op. 57, by Dmitri Shostakovich, performed by the Quintetto Chigiano; “What’s Going On?” by Marvin Gaye, Al Cleveland, and Reynaldo Benson, performed by Marvin Gaye; “The Flight of the Bumblebee” by Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov; “The Cakewalk” from Children’s Corner by Claude Debussy, performed by the composer, and “ Pithecanthropus Erectus” by Charles Mingus, performed by Mingus and his ensemble.

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, tune into Alison Hird’s report on alternative retirement living on the “Spotlight on France” podcast number 138 (Reinventing retirement, saving a Paris cinema, counting the French), which will help you with the answer.

You have until 23 February to enter this week’s quiz; the winners will be announced on the 28 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 find out how you can win a special Sound Kitchen prize.

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

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.