“Our aim is to reduce the deficit to five percent [of GDP] in 2025, on the right path to reach the three-percent ceiling in 2029,” meeting the European Union target two years later than previously planned, Barnier said as he laid out his government’s policy programme.

He called France’s “colossal” debt of over 3.2 trillion euros – more than 110 percent of GDP – “the true sword of Damocles […] hanging over the head of France and of every French person”.

He said that two-thirds of deficit reduction would come from slashing spending from its present 57 percent of GDP – far above the 49-percent European average.

However, while France has “among the highest taxes in the world,” there would be “a time-limited effort that must be shared, with an insistence on tax justice” or equitably sharing the burden, Barnier added.

Highly-profitable big companies and wealthy individuals would both be called on to pay more, he said.

France to consider corporate tax increase to lower budget deficit

‘Red lines’

He called out “a second sword of Damocles that is just as terrible: the environmental debt we are leaving as a legacy to our children”.

France would bet on both its traditional strength in nuclear power and renewables to reduce carbon emissions, he said.

Barnier opened the door to tweaking last year’s hugely unpopular pension reform that raised the retirement age.

French trade unions stage nationwide strikes as PM Michel Barnier delivers first address

And in a list of red lines, he vowed “zero tolerance for racism and anti-Semitism” and protection for “freedoms achieved over the years” including on abortion, gay marriage and in-vitro fertilisation.

Barnier’s pledges directed at far-right voters included greater “security in daily life”, where “the public will be reassured by the presence of law enforcement”.

He added that “France will continue to re-establish checks on its own borders for as long as necessary, as is allowed under European rules and as Germany has just done”.

In talks with major countries of origin for irregular migration, France would threaten reductions in the number of visas issued for legal travel, Barnier warned.

His comments on immigration follow the rape and murder of a 19-year-old Paris student where a Moroccan man due to be deported was named as the suspected attacker.

MPs observed a minute of silence for the victim, named as Philippine, as the parliamentary session opened.

(with AFP)

Rwamucyo, 65, stands accused of spreading propaganda against Rwanda’s Tutsi population, who made up most of the 800,000 estimated victims of the 1994 massacres.

He is also alleged to have helped destroy evidence of the killings, including by burying victims’ bodies or even finishing off those wounded.

He faces charges of genocide and crimes against humanity, as well as complicity in and conspiring to prepare those crimes.

If convicted, he could face life in prison.

Denial

Rwamucyo, who moved to France in 1999, denies the charges. 

His lawyer, Philippe Meilhac, argues the accusations are politically motivated.

While his client acknowledges organising the burial of bodies in mass graves, he was seeking to avoid the “health crisis” that could have resulted if they were left in the open, Meilhac said.

But lawyers representing the plaintiffs in the case – an alliance of genocide victims and rights watchdogs – allege Rwamucyo was a known extremist.

They accuse him of holding public meetings while he was teaching at the university of Butare in southern Rwanda during the genocide to relay hate speech from the Hutu authorities overseeing the killings and incite violence against Tutsis.

In one instance in May 1994, he is alleged to have given an inflammatory speech alongside Jean Kambanda, the prime minister at the time.

Seventeen-year saga

The trial opened at the Paris assize court on Tuesday morning and is expected to continue until the end of October.

It comes 17 years after representatives of genocide victims first filed a complaint against Rwamucyo in France in April 2007.

Rwanda issued an international warrant for his arrest four months later, but Rwamucyo remained at liberty in northern France, where he worked at a hospital.

French police detained him in May 2010, as he attended the funeral of one of the masterminds of the Rwandan genocide, Jean-Bosco Barayagwiza, at a cemetery near Paris.

A French court subsequently denied Kigali’s request that he be returned to Rwanda to face trial. 

He was freed and moved to Belgium, but judges in France continued to investigate.

After Rwamucyo’s appeals to have the case dismissed were rejected, a criminal trial was finally ordered at the beginning of 2023.

Universal jurisdiction

Some 60 witnesses have been called to testify at the trial, which is due to conclude on 29 October. 

It is one of several dozen pursued by the Collective of Civil Parties for Rwanda (CPCR), an association founded in 2001 to seek the prosecution of genocide suspects in France.

The principal of universal jurisdiction allows the country’s courts to try cases of crimes against humanity even if they were committed outside its borders. 

Many people accused of participating in the Rwandan genocide later fled to France, a long-time ally of the Hutu regime. 

Rwanda marks 30 years since France’s contested mission to stem 1994 genocide

Seven have been tried so far, most recently Sosthene Munyemana, another former doctor who was sentenced to 24 years in prison in December 2023 for his involvement.

The CPCR has also filed a complaint against a third doctor, Charles Twagira, who it tracked down working at a hospital in Rouen. He was indicted in 2014 and remains under investigation, though not in custody.

Meanwhile former military policeman Philippe Hategekimana, who was convicted of genocide last year and sentenced to life in prison, is due to begin appealing that verdict in mid-November.

While Rwanda has welcomed efforts to hold “génocidaires” accountable, President Paul Kagame has objected to France’s repeated refusals to extradite suspects, as well as the slow progress of cases through its courts.

Thirty years after genocide, Rwanda’s relations with France are slowly mending

The CGT, the FSU, Solidaires and several student unions have joined forces for marches in several cities across France including Grenoble, Marseille, Rennes and Bordeaux in the morning, followed by afternoon rallies in Paris, Toulouse, Strasbourg, Lille and Dunkirk.

However, unions like the CFDT, the Force Ouvrière, the CFE-CGC, the CFTC (Christian workers) and the Unsa have said they will not join in this time because they felt it was “premature”.

While some railway workers are preparing to strike, the French national railway company, SNCF, announced on Sunday that traffic would be “normal” for high-speed trains (TGV) and there would be only slight disruptions for certain regional trains.

Teachers are expected to join the processions planned across the country, hoping to attract attention of the new National Education Minister, Anne Genetet.

The SNES-FSU teachers’ union said public service wages were “pitiful” and that no new measures were planned for 2024 and 2025.

It also pointed out that “at least [one] teacher was missing in 56 percent of middle and high schools” at the start of the school year, which began in September.

On Tuesday morning, three Parisian high schools were blocked by students who had called for a rallies in front of their establishments.

‘Enormous social anger’

Trade union leaders are keen to keep the pressure on the government with regards to their demands.

They want the unemployment insurance reform to be scrapped, a new negotiation on the employment of seniors, a repeal of the pension reform and an increase in wages.

“There is enormous democratic and social anger in the country. This is why the CGT is calling on employees to mobilise,” Binet told the daily Le Parisien on Sunday.

She also pointed to “the feeling of having been cheated in the last elections” which saw the far-right National Rally (RN) garner the most seats of any single political party in the new National Assembly.

Who is France’s new prime minister Michel Barnier?

Solidaires union described the government’s reaction to the elections and trying to force through its reforms as a form of “contempt”.

Nearly a month after cobbling together the minority government, Barnier will deliver his first general policy declaration as prime minister at 3pm local time (1 pm GMT) followed by a debate.

A key focus of the speech will be improving France’s budgetary position. Barnier has already indicated that he wants to increase certain taxes   and target “those who can contribute to this effort” while sparing “those who are on the ground, who work, who produce”.

(with newswires)

The ship will take “5 to 6 days” to reach the area in the eastern Mediterranean from the port of Toulon, according to army officials.

The vessel is equipped with helicopters and an onboard battle group, ready to be deployed if an evacuation of French nationals becomes necessary.

“We are strengthening our resources to deal with a deterioration of the situation,” a senior officer of the armed forces told French news agency AFP, adding that “there is no question of evacuation of nationals” at this stage.

Evacuating Lebanon?

Around 23,000 French and Franco-Lebanese residents live in Lebanon. The French embassy in Beirut has established a hotline and started coordinating evacuation options for civilians who wish to leave.

French Foreign Minister Jean-Noël Barrot, who was in Beirut on Monday said France was working in tandem with the Lebanese airline MEA for transport arrangements.

“We have initiated discussions with the Lebanese national airline to allow flights and places to be freed up for those of our nationals who wish to return to France,” Barrot told public broadcaster Franceinfo on Monday.

Foreign minister visits Lebanon as second French citizen confirmed dead

Other countries such as Canada and Britain have begun preparations for evacuating their nationals while many airlines – including Air France and Lufthansa – have suspended flights to and from Beirut.

Barrot met with Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati on Sunday night and urged Israel to refrain from any land incursions.

He insisted on the “urgent need to act, to call for a ceasefire to prevent the region from burning”.

France had already issued warnings to its nationals to leave Lebanon early August as tensions mounted in the region.

Hundreds of deaths have been reported – among them two French nationals –  since the Israeli army stepped up its campaign against the Iran-backed Hezbollah.

In the past week, Israeli bombardments have killed more than 700 people, including 14 paramedics over a two-day period, Lebanon’s health ministry said.

The United Nations on Tuesday launched an urgent appeal for $426 million (€383 million) to assist one million Lebanese people who have been displaced due to the airstrikes.

Military zone

The call came as Israel declared a military zone around its northern border with Lebanon and started ground raids into the country’s south, backed by airstrikes and artillery.

Hezbollah, whose leader Hassan Nasrallah was killed in an Israeli strike on Friday, vowed on Monday to continue the fight against Israel, saying it is ready for a ground operation.

The Israeli military said “intense fighting” was taking place Tuesday and warned Lebanese residents not to travel by vehicle in the region.

Meanwhile Hezbollah said it had targeted “a movement of Israeli soldiers in Metula with artillery shells”, then a “gathering of enemy soldiers” in the same area with rockets.

Hezbollah began low intensity strikes on Israeli troops a day after its Palestinian ally Hamas staged its unprecedented attack on Israel on 7 October, which triggered Israel’s devastating assault on the Gaza Strip.

Meanwhile, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin on Monday offered support to Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for “dismantling attack infrastructure” along the border with Lebanon.

“We agreed on the necessity of dismantling attack infrastructure along the border to ensure that Lebanese Hezbollah cannot conduct October 7-style attacks on Israel’s northern communities,” he said.

Austin reiterated the position shared by the White House that a “diplomatic resolution is required” to ensure civilian safety “on both sides of the border.”

(with newswires)

Addressing the Council of Europe rights body at its Strasbourg headquarters – in his first public comments since his release in June – Assange said, “I am not free today because the system worked. I am free today after years of incarceration because I pleaded guilty to journalism.”

The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe had issued a report expressing alarm at Assange’s treatment, saying it had a “chilling effect on human rights”.

Julian Assange spent most of the last 14 years either holed up in the Ecuadorian embassy in London to avoid arrest, or locked up at Belmarsh Prison, south of London. 

He was released under a plea bargain this summer, after serving a sentence for publishing hundreds of thousands of confidential US government documents. 

The trove included searingly frank US State Department descriptions of foreign leaders, accounts of extrajudicial killings and intelligence gathering against allies.

Assange returned to Australia and since then had not publicly commented on his legal woes or his years behind bars.

Facing a potential 175-year sentence, “I eventually chose freedom over unrealisable justice … Justice for me is now precluded,” Assange said, referring to the conditions of his plea bargain.

Speaking calmly and flanked by his wife Stella, who fought for his release, he added,”Journalism is not a crime, it is a pillar of a free and informed society.”

“The fundamental issue is simple. Journalists should not be prosecuted for doing their jobs,” Assange said.

The WikiLeaks founder said that he could have lost years more of his life had he tried to fight his case all the way.

“Perhaps, ultimately, if it had gotten to the Supreme Court of the United States and I was still alive … I might have won,” Assange said in his address.”

WikiLeaks founder Assange en-route to final US court hearing ahead of release

Assange case still divisive

Assange remains visibly affected by his experience, tiring towards the end of the session even as he thanked “all the people who have fought for my liberation”.

Stella Assange told reporters after the committee hearing, “It was truly exceptional that he came here today … He needs time to be able to recover“.

“He’s only been free for a few weeks and we’re really just in the process of starting from zero … or from less than zero,” she added.

Asked what the next moves for WikiLeaks might be, the site’s editor-in-chief Kristinn Hrafnsson told reporters Assange was “committed as ever to the basic principles that he’s always abided by – transparency, justice, quality journalism”.

Assange’s case remains deeply contentious.

Supporters hail him as a champion of free speech and say he was persecuted by authorities and unfairly imprisoned. 

Detractors see him as a reckless blogger whose uncensored publication of ultra-sensitive documents put lives at risk and jeopardised US security. 

French parliament votes against handing asylum to Wikileaks founder Assange

Pardon campaign

Assange is still campaigning for a US presidential pardon for his conviction under the Espionage Act.

US President Joe Biden – who is likely to issue some pardons before leaving office next January – has previously described him as a “terrorist”.

But Chelsea Manning, the army intelligence analyst who leaked documents to Assange, had her 35-year sentence commuted by President Barack Obama in 2017.

Assange’s timing and his choice of venue for his first post-release appearance have puzzled some observers.

The Council of Europe brings together the 46 signatory states of the European Convention on Human Rights, with little say over Assange’s legal fate.

Holly Cullen, a law professor at the University of Western Australia, told AFP ahead of the hearing that in criticising the United States, Assange might “need to be a bit more restrained until the pardon issue is resolved“.

(with newswires)

The Kenyan-led policing mission seeking to assist the Haitian national police in taking back control of areas under gang control was extended until 2 October, 2025.

The resolution, adopted unanimously on Monday, expressed “deep concern about the situation in Haiti including violence, criminal activities and mass displacement.”

On Friday, the UN said that more than 3,600 people have been killed so far this year in “senseless” gang violence that has ravaged the country.

Two million people in the country are in the grips of emergency levels of hunger and at least 6,000 displaced people face catastrophic levels of food insecurity.

Though it is operating under the UN and Haitian government’s blessing, the current mission is not a UN-run force.

Lack of funds

Several months after the Security Council’s first green light in October 2023, Kenya began deploying its first contingents this summer. The force now numbers around 400 personnel – with more than a dozen officers from both Jamaica and Belize. 

Last week, Kenyan President William Ruto pledged that the deployment would be completed by January, bringing the total to 2,500 personnel.

But with the mission hobbled by a chronic lack of funding, Edgard Leblanc Fils – the head of transitional council governing Haiti – told the General Assembly last week he “would like to see a thought being given to transforming the security support mission into a peacekeeping mission under the mandate of the United Nations”.

Such a move would allow it to raise necessary funds, he said, echoing a recent proposal from Washington.

Kenya promises full Haiti deployment by January amid calls for UN mission

No shift towards full UN mission

The first version of the extension resolution – drafted by the United States and Ecuador – called for planning to begin for a transition from the security deployment to a full-blown UN peacekeeping operation.

But after fraught negotiations which were marked by opposition from China and Russia, according to diplomatic sources, the adopted text makes no reference to such a shift.

China’s representative to the Security Council Geng Shuang pointed out that “the UN has sent multiple peacekeeping operations” in Haiti.

“The results have never been satisfactory”.

Instead the resolution as adopted “encourages the MSS mission to accelerate its deployment, and further encourages additional voluntary contributions and support for the mission”.

On Saturday, Guinea – ruled by a junta since a putsch in 2021 – offered to contribute 650 police officers to the mission.

(with newswires)

Along with increasing the corporate tax, the government could propose to tax share buybacks, as part of efforts to plug a gaping hole in public finances, the Le Monde daily reported on Sunday.

Barnier, who took office in September, faces a growing budget crisis as tax income is weaker than expected and spending higher than planned.

Le Monde says the 2025 budget, which must be presented to parliament by 1 October, could include an 8.5 percent increase in the tax rates on companies whose annual turnover is at least €1 billion.

Public auditor warns France’s national finances are in ‘worrying state’

It would increase the tax rate from 25 percent to 33.5 percent, or the level it was before French President Emmanuel Macron lowered it when he was first elected in 2017.

The tax would be temporary and would impact 300 companies, netting some €8 billion for the public coffers in 2025.

Other possible measures include a tax on share buybacks – companies that buy their own shares to reduce their number and raise their value.

‘Burden must be shared’

New Finance Minister Antoine Armand and Budget Minister Laurent Saint-Martin said last week they would focus a budget squeeze on spending cuts first and then tax increases.

“The burden will need to be shared. It must firstly come from making an effort on public spending,” Armand told lawmakers in a first appearance before parliament’s finance committee since being appointed at the weekend. “Everyone will have to take part.”

France has ‘one of the worst deficits’ in its history, minister says

The previous government had planned to cut the fiscal shortfall to 3 percent of GDP by 2027, but weak tax revenues and budget overruns have put that target all but out of reach.

Saint-Martin said the budget deficit at risk of topping 6 percent of economic output, far above the 5.1 percent the previous government had estimated in the spring.

Armand said that although economic growth was marginally better than expected at 1.1 percent, it was not enough to ease the pressure on public finances.

Disagreement over taxing

Barnier’s office declined to comment ahead of the policy speech the prime minister will make in parliament on Tuesday.

Getting the budget adopted will be tough as the new government lacks a parliamentary majority, and even those in the governing coalition do not agree on whether tax increases are an option.

Former President Nicolas Sarkozy, who remains active in conservative political circles, warned that raising corporate taxes would negatively impact employment, growth and investment.

It “would be an error” for a right-wing prime minister to increase the tax, he said on Cnews and Europe 1 Monday. 

“France is the country that pays the most taxes, the country where there is the most redistribution, the country where the amount of public spending is the highest and the country where the sense of unfairness is the biggest as well,” he said.

Former prime minister Elisabeth Borne, who pushed budgets through without parliamentary debate by invoking article 49.3 of the Constitution, said on BFMTV/RMC that she feared Barnier “will not find the majority to pass the budget and maybe will have to resort to the famous 49.3“.

(with Reuters)

The figures went down slightly in August after increases for the previous ten consecutive months, bueause of the seasonal slow down in judicial activity over the summer.

The previous record number of inmates was 78,509 on 1 July.

As of 1 September, 3,609 prisoners were forced to sleep on a mattress placed on the floor, compared to 2,361 a year earlier.

French prisons have 62,014 places in total which means they are 127.3 percent over capacity.

In some centres, where detainees are awaiting trial and likely presumed innocent, or have been handed short sentences, this figure jumps to 153.6 percent.

In reaches and sometimes exceeds 200 percent in 17 establishments across France.

France has a total of 188 prisons, detention centres and other penal institutions.

Bad reputation

Among those incarcerated, 20,563 are defendants in detention awaiting final judgment.

In total, 94,906 people were detained as of 1 September. Among them, there are 15,937 non-detainees wearing an electronic bracelet or accomodated elsewhere.

Climate impact on French prisons leaves inmates serving ‘double sentence’

France has one of the worst track records in Europe in terms of prison overcrowding, according to a study published in June by the Council of Europe.

The organisation reported a prison density of more than 105 inmates per 100 places available in seven European countries, with France in third place with 119 inmates per 100 places, behind Cyprus (166) and Romania (120).

Measures have been taken by French authorities to try to remedy this problem, such as the ban on prison sentences of less than one month, the adjustment of sentences and the development of community service.

The previous government also announced the creation of 18,000 prison places by 2027 to increase overall capacity to 78,000, but this objective has fallen behind schedule.

(with AFP)

The campaigning creator who has blazed a trail for sustainable style, provocatively called her show “It’s about f…king time” – a reference to a T-shirt she first wore 25 years ago calling for an end to the use of fur and feathers in fashion.

On Monday – after her open-air show near the Eiffel Tower showcased top end looks made from everything from lentils to mushroom leather – the designer said, “I see things from a different perspective .. I’ve just been thinking about the billions of birds killed for the fashion industry”.

McCartney added, “for me they represent freedom, they represent purity and peace”.

The designer – daughter of ex-Beatle Paul McCartney and animal rights activist Linda McCartney – is an advisor to the world’s most powerful luxury tycoon, Bernard Arnault, on sustainability.

Arnault’s LVMH giant also owns a stake in her label.

• Secondhand chic as websites feed trend for used clothing in France
• Fashion and climate: why the greenest garment is the one you already own

Protest at Hermes

McCartney – a lifelong vegetarian – has long preached that “sustainability is the future of fashion, not just a trend,” with her brand lauded for its innovation and transparency as much as its style.

The fashion industry is regularly criticised for its impact on the environment, with some labels accused of greenwashing to disguise any lack of real change. 

Animal rights activists briefly disrupted the Hermes Paris Fashion Week show on Saturday.

The high-end French house is best known for its leather goods.

Several major luxury brands, particularly in Italy, still use exotic skins and furs.

(with newsires)

The poverty level of people aged 60 and older is on the rise, the Petits freres des pauvres (Little brothers of the poor) charity in its annual report published Monday.

In 2024, some 11 percent of elderly people live under the poverty line, compared to 8 percent in 2015. The number increases to 18 percent for those living alone.

Single people and women are particularly impacted by poverty. Households with two pensions fare better than those living alone, who are also isolated socially.

Women, who live longer than men, often have lower pensions because they have worked in lower paying jobs or have worked more part-time to care for children.

France struggles to defuse claims that pension reform will penalise women

According to the report, 69 percent of poor seniors said they lacked something in the last 12 months, including heating, food, healthcare or social connections.

Even as they struggle, however, many people do not consider themselves poor, and more than half do not ask for aid or do not know they are entitled to any help.

Three quarters of elderly people do not feel capable of applying for aid or filling out paperwork online.

Poverty harder to bear for women and children, French report claims

The government’s plan to give aid directly to people, based on the information held by the administration, without their having to fill out forms, should help more people get what they are entitled to.

The charity has called on the government to increase the minimum pension for elderly people, which is currently €1,012 per month for an individual, to at least the poverty level of €1,216 per month.

Yves Lasnier, the group’s director general, says the measure would cost €2 billion a year.

Other proposals are to increase the number of younger people working – and therefore contributing to their pensions – and addressing the issue of self-employed people who pay less into the system, and therefore receive less when they retire.

(with AFP)

“Today, it is with deep emotion that I’m announcing my retirement as a player of the France team,” Griezmann said on social media Monday.

“After 10 incredible years marked by challenges, successes and unforgettable moments, it is time for me to turn a page and make way for the new generation.”

He was one of the key elements in France’s 2018 World Cup win and its second-place title in 2022. 

“Wearing this jersey was an honour and a privilege,” said Grizou, as he is known – a favourite among his teammates and fans.

He imposed himself as a versatile player in the midfield, and even if the captain’s armband went to Kylian Mbappé, he was always a voice everyone listened to.

Griezmann is also fourth in France’s list of all-time leading goal-scorers with 44, behind only record marksman Olivier Giroud, Thierry Henry and Mbappé.

Valuable player

He played a French record of 84 consecutive matches with Les Bleus, a number that underlines his status as the national team’s most valuable player in the last 10 years.

His decision to quit is further confirmation that an era has come to an end for French football.

Last week Giroud, the team’s all-time top scorer, hung up his France boots after the Euro semi-finals.

Hugo Lloris and centre-back Raphael Varane both retired from international duty in the wake of the 2022 World Cup, with the latter quitting football entirely last week.

France coach Didier Deschamps will name his next squad this Thursday, ahead of Nations League matches against Israel in Budapest on 10 October and Belgium in Brussels four days later.

(with AFP, Reuters)

Like Ebola, the Marburg virus originates in fruit bats and spreads between people through close contact with the bodily fluids of infected individuals or with surfaces, such as contaminated bed sheets.

Without treatment, Marburg can be fatal in up to 88 percent of people who fall ill with the disease.

Rwanda officially declared an outbreak of the disease on Friday and a day later the first six deaths were reported. 

Speaking on Sunday evening, Health Minister Sabin Nsanzimana said 26 cases have been confirmed so far, and eight of those infected have died.

Contact tracing in place

The public has been urged to avoid physical contact to help curb the spread of the disease.

Some 300 people who came into contact with those confirmed to have contracted the virus have also been identified, and an unspecified number of them have been put in isolation facilities.

Most of those affected are healthcare workers across six out of 30 districts in the country.

“Marburg is a rare disease,” Nsanzimana told journalists. “We are intensifying contact tracing and testing to help stop the spread.”

The Minister said the source of the disease has not yet been determined.

Equatorial Guinea confirms Marburg deaths after push by WHO

WHO steps up support

A person infected with the virus can take between three days and three weeks to show symptoms, he added.

Symptoms include fever, muscle pains, diarrhoea, vomiting and, in some cases, death through extreme blood loss.

The World Health Organization has said it is scaling up its support and will work with Rwandan authorities to help stop the spread.

In the past, Marburg outbreaks and individual cases have been recorded in Tanzania, Equatorial Guinea, Angola, Congo, Kenya, South Africa, Uganda and Ghana.

The rare virus was first identified in 1967 after it caused simultaneous outbreaks of disease in laboratories in Marburg, Germany, and Belgrade, Serbia.

Seven people who were exposed to the virus died while conducting research on monkeys.

Mpox still at large

Separately, Rwanda has so far reported six cases of mpox, a disease caused by a virus related to smallpox but that typically causes milder symptoms.

Mpox – previously known as monkeypox because it was first discovered in research monkeys – has also affected several other African countries in what the WHO has declared a global health emergency.

Why the latest mpox outbreak has global health authorities so alarmed

Rwanda launched an mpox vaccination campaign earlier this month, and more vaccines are expected to arrive in the country.

Neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo has so far reported the most cases of mpox and has been identified as the epicentre of the emergency. 

(With wires)

The African neighbours, both significant oil producers, have asked the United Nations’ top court to settle a dispute centring on the tiny island of Mbanié, less than a kilometre long, off the coast of Gabon. 

On Monday, Equatorial Guinea’s representative at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), Domingo Mba Esono said: “Gabon’s position is factually and legally untenable”.

The conflict has been ongoing since 1972, when Gabon’s army drove Equatorial Guinea soldiers from Mbanié.

Gabon has since set up its own military presence on the virtually uninhabited island of just 30 hectares.

Oil prospects

But the dispute lay dormant until the early 2000s, when the prospect of oil rekindled interest in the Gulf of Guinea. 

In 2016, after years of mediation by the United Nations, the countries signed an agreement that would ultimately let the ICJ – also known as the World Court – settle the dispute.

Equatorial Guinea bases its claim on the islands on a 1900 convention dividing up French and Spanish colonial assets in West Africa.

Kenya-Somalia maritime dispute: Whose sea is it anyway?

Gabon, meanwhile, says the ICJ should base its judgment on another agreement from 1974.

Equatorial Guinea says the document Gabon has offered as proof for the 1974 agreement is unsigned and not an original.

Hearings will last a week and Gabon will present its case on Wednesday.

The court is expected to give its final and binding ruling sometime next year.

(With wires)

“Lebanon, a friend of France, already so fragile, is drawn into a war it has not chosen,” said Barrot, who arrived in Beirut for a 24-hour visit as the Israeli army increased its air strike campaign, hitting the capital for the first time

“France stands alongside Lebanon during its most difficult moments.”

Barrot oversaw the delivery of 12 tonnes of French humanitarian aid, with supplies to treat 1,000 serious injuries, he said on X. A second delivery is being prepared in the next few weeks.

Speaking earlier with Prime Minister Najib Mikati, Barrot said Paris sought “an immediate halt” to Israeli strikes.

France also appealed for Hezbollah and its backer Iran to abstain from any action that could lead to “regional conflagration”.

Two French nationals killed

As Barrot arrived, the French foreign ministry announced that a second French national had been killed in Lebanon, without giving details.

Last Monday an 87-year-old French woman was killed when her home collapsed following an explosion in the south of the country.

Later this Monday Barrot is to hold meetings about the status of the 20,000 French nationals who have remained in Lebanon, before meeting with Lebanese officials, including Mikati, as well as the UN Special Coordinator for Lebanon and members of the UN peacekeeping force in the south.

Barrot, newly-appointed to the Foreign Ministry post, is the first high-level foreign diplomat to visit Lebanon since Israeli air strikes intensified a week ago.

Former foreign and defence minister, Jean-Yves Le Drian, who has visited the country six times, was in Lebanon at the beginning of last week as French President Emmanuel Macron’s special envoy to Lebanon.

(with AFP)

Le Pen, her father and 25 colleagues – including current and former French lawmakers and MEPs – are accused of embezzling public funds and collusion.

Prosecutors claim that the defendants set up a fake jobs scheme using European parliamentary funds to pay for assistants who in fact worked for her National Rally party, formerly called the National Front, rather than on European affairs.

The scheme, which ran from 2004 to 2016, was in breach of EU rules.

The EU Parliament estimated in 2018 that 6.8 million euros had been embezzled. Marine Le Pen has always denied any wrongdoing.

The trial runs through to 27 November. If found guilty, Le Pen could face a maximum ten years behind bars and a whopping €1 million fine.

That’s unlikely, but she also faces a possible five-year ban on standing for public office. This would rule her out of the 2027 presidential election she is preparing for, and which a recent poll suggests she has a stronger than ever chance of winning.

Far right election gains ensure a financial jackpot for Le Pen’s National Rally

A total of 11 members of the European Parliament, 12 of their parliamentary assistants and four party collaborators are to be tried as well, while the RN party itself faces charges of concealing the wrongdoing.

Among the high-profile figures are Le Pen’s father Jean-Marie Le Pen, founder of the National Front, her former partner Louis Aliot – the mayor of the southern city of Perpignan – and RN spokesperson Julien Odoul.

Jean-Marie Le Pen, who is 96 years old, will not be present in court after a medical report in July diagnosed him as “unfit” to stand trial.

The National Rally is not the only party to be accused of misappropriating MEP funds.

In February this year the centrist MoDem party, currently part of President Emmanuel Macron’s Ensemble coalition, was fined €350,000 for similar charges.

MoDem’s leader, Francois Bayrou, was acquitted due to reasonable doubt, but the eight people found guilty were ordered to pay fines, sentenced to prison terms of 10 to 18 months and were banned from serving in public office.

While the Freedom Party (FPOe) has been in government several times, this is the first time it has won a national vote.

But even with the victory, it is not certain it will be able to form a government.

In line with far-right parties elsewhere in Europe, the FPOe has seen its popularity surge, fed by voter anger over migration, inflation and Covid restrictions.

The FPOe stood at 29.1 percent of votes, against 26.3 percent for the conservative People’s Party (OeVP), according to projections based on more than 60 percent of the votes counted.

FPOe leader Herbert Kickl, who took over the scandal-tainted party in 2021 and led its recovery, said he was ready to form the government with “each and every one” of the parties in parliament.

“It can’t be any more clear than today” that the country must “reconnect with the population’s needs,” Kickl said on national television after the results were announced.

“Our hand is outstretched in all directions,” he said.

Herbert Kickl: sharp-tongued leader of Austria’s far right

‘Exciting time’

At the FPOe headquarters, the atmosphere was festive, as supporters wearing traditional Austrian dresses downed glasses of beer.

“It’s a real success… It will be a very, very exciting time” with the FPOe trying to form the government, said Erik Berglund, 35, a waiter. He hailed sharp-tongued Kickl as the “most competent leader”.

Chancellor Karl Nehammer, who managed to close the gap to the FPOe in recent weeks in opinion polls, said at his party headquarters that he could see the disappointment of party members.

“It was a race to catch-up, and unfortunately we didn’t manage it,” Nehammer said, vowing to “continue to fight for the people’s interests”.

The OeVP’s support has plunged from more than 37 percent in the last national election in 2019. The Greens with whom they governed in an unprecedented coalition were also punished, falling to 8.3 percent from almost 14 percent in 2019.

More than 6.3 million of Austria‘s nine million inhabitants were eligible to vote.

Nehammer reiterated his refusal to work with Kickl, who has called himself the future “Volkskanzler”, the people’s chancellor, as Adolf Hitler was termed in the 1930s.

Kickl regularly attacks EU sanctions against Russia and espouses the far-right concept of “remigration”: expelling people of non-European ethnic backgrounds deemed to have failed to integrate.

Le Pen and Orban forces unite in EU parliament forming new far-right bloc

‘Earthquake’

The FPOe had been widely predicted to narrowly top the vote, but Sunday’s results for the party were even better than expected.

“This is certainly an earthquake and sends a shockwave through all the other parties,” political analyst Thomas Hofer told AFP.

Even though the FPOe has come first however, analysts predict Nehammer is in a good position to remain chancellor if he forms a coalition with the Social Democrats (SPOe) and another party, probably the liberal NEOs.

The SPOe reached 21 percent, according to the projections, while the NEOS have 9 percent.

It would be the first time a three-party coalition governs Austria, but analysts say such a coalition will have a hard time given the right-wing shift in the country.

A coalition between the far right and the conservatives still remains a possibility says analysts, given their common platform against immigration and on other issues.

Long a political force in Austria, the FPOe’s first government with the conservatives in 2000 set off widespread protests and sanctions from Brussels.

“The FPOe mainly stirs up fears and never has anything constructive to contribute,” researcher Theres Friesacher, 29, told AFP after voting in Vienna, citing corruption scandals that have frequently engulfed the party.

Both past OeVP-FPOe governments were short-lived.

The last one, headed by charismatic then-OeVP leader Sebastian Kurz, collapsed over a spectacular FPOe corruption scandal in 2019, after just a year and a half in power.

In a joint declaration signed last week at the headquarters of the International Cocoa Organisation (ICCO) in Côte d’Ivoire, cocoa-producing countries said that implementation deadlines set by the EU were “unrealistic in view of the requirements of the regulation, which range from the geolocation of plots to the establishment of an exhaustive traceability system”.

The EU’s Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) is due to come into force from 30 December 2024, and requires companies seeking to sell designated products to prove they have not been sourced from land deforested or degraded since 2021.

With less than three months to go, the ICCO said a traceability system wasn’t yet operational, while the European Commission still had not shared all the necessary documents or activated a data-processing platform involved in implementing the rules.

Protection for small producers

Cocoa producers warn that hasty implementation of the deforestation regulation could prove detrimental, particularly for small producers who risk finding themselves barred from the European market.

So as not to “add uncertainty in an already highly disrupted market”, they are asking Brussels for a delay – something it has already granted to downstream players responsible for bringing finished chocolate products to market. 

The ICCO is also calling for technical and financial support from the EU and industry to help implement the regulation without cutting into growers’ incomes.

• European Union adopts law to ban products driving deforestation
• Study says unregulated cocoa production behind deforestation in Côte d’Ivoire

European opposition

As well as cocoa, the new rules also apply to palm oil, cattle, soy, coffee, timber and rubber – and any products derived from them.

They have also faced resistance from within the EU, with some member states also calling for implementation to be postponed.

Earlier this month, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said he would push for a delay until concerns raised by Germany’s newspaper publishing industry had been addressed.

Publishers – who are affected as consumers of paper, derived from wood – claim the regulation would create unmanageable bureaucratic burdens. 

Meanwhile Brazil, a major supplier to the EU of several of the commodities affected, wrote to the European Commission this month calling for the regulation to be suspended and for the EU to reconsider altogether its approach to combatting deforestation.

Despite the mounting opposition, the Commission said earlier this week that the goal of implementing the EUDR as early as 30 December 2024 is still in place.

“The Commission is still working very hard on preparing the ground for the implementation of this regulation,” spokesperson Adalbert Jahnz told reporters in Brussels.

Born in Cameroon, Bassy now lives between Africa and Europe, where he has been touring intensely since the summer. 

At Anticipation Festival in Paris, a three-day music event dedicated to change and to ecology, he performed songs from his latest album, Mádíbá, which is inspired by the theme of water and the life it brings to humans, animals, plants and all natural things.

The songs form a kind of ecological fable about what brings us together.

Bassy told RFI he wanted to write an album about water as “the one living element we can find in every living element”.

“My latest album talks about how we can live on Earth even though we are facing the fact that we cut our relationship with the big living family,” he said.

“This includes human beings, trees, animals and other living elements that sometimes we don’t even see because we are focused on ourselves. But all those living elements are really essential and important to the whole chain.

“As Ubuntu philosophy is saying: you are because I am; and I am because you are. Everything is completely linked.”

Transatlantic inspirations

A former member of Cameroonian jazz-soul band Macase, Bassy moved to France in 2005 and has been working solo since the end of the 2000s.

Music began at home for Bassy, who continues to write most of his songs in the Basaa language of central and coastal Cameroon.

“Music came to us, to my sisters and brothers, to me, very early, as my mother was singing all day long,” he told RFI. “Music was really present at home.” 

He learned to sing at church before taking up the guitar. 

“After secondary school, I decided to embrace music as my work,” he said. “I feel that I’m not the one who decided, music decided for me.”

Travelling provided fresh inspiration, plunging him into sounds from Latin America to Europe.

While his music offers a mix of genres – soul, folk, electro and melodies from his native Cameroon – his latest album is a deeper exploration of his own culture, both as a villager and a cosmopolitan African. 

Its title Mádibá means “water” in Cameroon’s Duala language, while also invoking one of Africa’s greatest shared icons, Nelson Mandela.

Bassy has written about his own country’s struggle for freedom. His song “1958” is dedicated to anti-colonial leader Ruben Um Nyobè, who took up an armed struggle to claim full independence for Cameroon from France and was shot in the back by French forces.

Cameroon’s Blick Bassy remembers 1958 and his fallen hero

Pan-African production

Drawing on his experience as an African artist who has found international success, Bassy now has a new project: a festival in Cameroon for other young music makers.

Billed as the first festival in Africa to offer training in production, Africa Prod Fest aims to encourage those starting out in the music industry to move forward with their own projects.

“The idea of the festival in Cameroon came from the process I went through myself to understand the structures of the music business,” Bassy said. “And now I would like to share this experience with my people in Africa.”

Teenage performers from Benin use girl power to take on the world

Having worked with other African artists, including legendary Malian singer-songwriter Salif Keita, Bassy also hopes that bringing producers together from across the continent will feed musical cross-pollination.

“We can build something, a connection, because sometimes when you’re living in Central Africa, you don’t have any idea about the type of music that is made in West or East Africa,” he told RFI.

“So for me, it was really important to start by making this kind of connection because we have some beautiful melodies and harmonies.”

Blick Bassy will be performing in Marseille in October, in Toulouse and Brest in December, and Achères in March.

“There is no place for abuse,” the pontiff said at a celebration of Mass at Brussels’ King Baudouin soccer stadium on Sunday.

“There is no place for the cover-up of abuse…. I ask bishops, do not cover up abuse.

“Evil must not be hidden,” he told a gathering of some 30,000 people.

The 87-year-old pontiff was responding to the outrage over sex abuse within Belgium’s clergy that has devastated the church’s credibility.

He had been pressed by high-profile figures at three of the five major events on his three-day visit in unusual and sometimes fierce language for a papal trip.

In a meeting with Belgian dignitaries on Friday, both King Philippe and Prime Minister Alexander De Croo called for more concrete action to help survivors of abuse by Catholic clergy.

And in later events at two Catholic universities, officials denounced his stance on the role of women in the church and society.

Francis described women as having “a fertile welcome, care (and) vital devotion”, prompting the UC Louvain university to issue a press release to express their “disapproval” of his views..

Francis did not specifically mention those criticisms at Sunday’s Mass – the last event of his trip – but he did deviate from his prepared homily to reflect the meeting he’d held with 17 survivors of abuse on Friday evening.

Belgium’s Catholic Church offers ‘maximum availability’ to sex abuse victims

Abuse and cover-up

Belgium, like France, has a legacy of abuse and cover-up.

Bruges Bishop Roger Vangheluwe was allowed to quietly retire in 2010 after he admitted he had sexually abused his nephew for 13 years.

Francis only defrocked him this year – 14 years later – in a move seen as finally dealing with the problem before arriving in Belgium.

Following recent revelations that France’s late Abbé Pierre had allegedly sexually abused more than 20 women over a 50-year period and that the church was aware of the priest’s behaviour, Francis said the French priest was “a man who did so much good, but he’s also a sinner”.

“Abuse, in my judgment, is something demonic, because every type of abuse destroys the dignity of the person,” he said.

French charity turns its back on founding father accused of sexual abuse

This is not the first time Francis has faced criticism over failing to act to curb abuse within the clergy.

On a trip to Chile in 2018, groups of demonstrators protested outside his events and Catholic churches were attacked before his visit.

But the pope, leader of the world’s 1.4 billion Catholics, is not usually confronted directly in public by political leaders or Catholic officials organising his events.

(with newswires)

The Israeli military said Sunday that the air force had “struck dozens of Hezbollah terror targets in Lebanon, including launchers that were aimed toward Israeli territory – structures in which weapons were stored and additional Hezbollah terrorist infrastructure”.

The navy had intercepted a projectile approaching Israel from the area of the Red Sea and another eight projectiles coming from Lebanon had fallen in open areas, it said in a morning statement.

Lebanon’s health ministry said 33 people had been killed in Israeli strikes on Lebanon on Saturday.

More than 700 people have been killed in Lebanon since 23 September, when Israel intensified its airstrikes around the country forcing tens of thousands to flee their homes, the ministry said.

In Beirut, displaced families spent the night on the benches at Zaitunay Bay on the waterfront.

The United Nations’ World Food Programme (WFP) said in a statement on Sunday it had launched an emergency operation to provide food for up to 1 million people affected by the conflict in Lebanon.

The ongoing bombings in Lebanon are ”compounding the fragility of a population burdened by accumulated crises,” the WFP highlighted. 

Concern over widening conflict

Nasrallah was killed in a massive Israeli air attack on Friday on the group’s headquarters in Beirut’s southern suburbs.

Hezbollah confirmed his death on Saturday.

Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah killed in Israeli strikes on Beirut

Israel said it had also killed senior Hezbollah official Ali Karaki and other commanders along with Nasrallah.

Nasrallah’s elimination was a major blow to Hezbollah and to Iran, removing an influential ally who helped build Hezbollah into the linchpin of Tehran’s network of allied groups in the Arab world. 

Hezbollah has vowed to keep fighting Israel and continued to fire rockets at it, including a salvo on Sunday morning.

Lebanon’s top Christian cleric Bechara al-Rai urged diplomacy in the conflict and said Israel’s killing of Nasrallah had wounded the hearts of the Lebanese people.

The escalation in the conflict over the last fortnight has increased fears it could spin out of control, potentially drawing in Iran, Hezbollah’s principal backer, as well as the United States.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was moved to a secure location in Iran after Nasrallah’s killing, sources told Reuters. Khamenei said Nasrallah’s death would be avenged and his path in fighting Israel would be pursued by other militants.

Tehran has called for a United Nations Security Council meeting on Israel’s actions in Lebanon and elsewhere in the region, warning against any attacks on its diplomatic facilities and representatives.

A senior member of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, deputy commander Abbas Nilforoushan, was also killed in Friday’s attacks, Iranian media reported.

US President Joe Biden on Saturday described Nasrallah’s death as a “measure of justice for his many victims” and fully supported Israel’s right to self-defence, but underlined it was “time for a ceasefire”.

Hezbollah and Israel have been fighting in parallel with Israel’s war in Gaza against Hamas since the Iran-backed Palestinian group’s attack on Israel on 7 October last year.

Hezbollah has said it would cease fire only when Israel’s Gaza offensive ends. 

(with Reuters)

The Northern Lights project plans to take CO2 emissions captured at factory smokestacks in Europe and inject them into geological reservoirs under the seabed.

The aim is to prevent the emissions from being released into the atmosphere, and thereby help halt climate change.

On the island of Oygarden, a key milestone was marked on Thursday with the inauguration of a terminal built on the shores of the North Sea, its shiny storage tanks rising up against the sky.

It is here that the liquified CO2 will be transported by boat, then injected through a long pipeline into the seabed, at a depth of around 2.6 kilometres, for permanent storage.

The facility, a joint venture grouping oil giants Equinor of Norway, Anglo-Dutch Shell and TotalEnergies of France, is expected to bury its first CO2 deliveries in 2025.

It will have an initial capacity of 1.5 million tonnes of CO2 per year, before being ramped up to five million tonnes in a second phase if there is enough demand.

“Our first purpose is to demonstrate that the carbon capture and storage (CCS) chain is feasible,” Northern Lights managing director Tim Heijn told AFP.

“It can make a real impact on the CO2 balance and help achieve climate targets,” he said.

Prohibitive cost

CCS technology is complex and costly but has been advocated by the UN’s Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) and the International Energy Agency (IEA), especially for reducing the CO2 footprint of industries like cement and steel, which are difficult to decarbonise.

The world’s overall capture capacity is currently just 50.5 million tonnes, according to the IEA, or barely 0.1 percent of the world’s annual total emissions.

In order to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius since the pre-industrial era, CCS would have to prevent at least one billion tonnes of CO2 emissions per year by 2030, the IEA says.

The technology is still in the early stages, and has been slow to develop because of prohibitive costs – compared to the price companies have to pay for CO2 emission quotas, for example.

It therefore depends heavily on subsidies.

Denmark rolls out plans for world’s first carbon tax on livestock

“Public support was and will be crucial to help such innovative projects to advance, especially as CCS costs are still higher than the costs of CO2 emissions in Europe,” said Daniela Peta, public affairs director at the Global CCS Institute.

The Norwegian government has financed 80 percent of the cost of Northern Lights, which has been kept confidential.

The Scandinavian country is Western Europe’s largest oil and gas producer.

The North Sea, with its depleted oil and gas fields and its vast network of pipelines, is an ideal region to bury unwanted greenhouse gases.

Several other undersea storage projects are under development in Europe.

The Greensand scheme, being built off Denmark‘s coast by British chemicals group Ineos and 23 partners, is due to enter into service in late 2025 or early 2026.

In Italy, oil group Eni has tied up with gas transporter Snam to build a facility off of Ravenna.

Greenwashing?

Northern Lights is part of an ambitious 30-billion-kroner ($2.9 billion) scheme dubbed “Longship” – after the Viking ships – of which the state has provided 20 billion kroner.

The plan initially included the creation of two CO2 capture sites in Norway.

While the Heidelberg Materials cement factory in Brevik is expected to begin shipping its captured emissions to the site next year, snowballing costs have forced the waste-to-energy plant Hafslund Celsio in Oslo to review its plans.

Northern Lights has also secured cross-border deals with Norwegian fertiliser manufacturer Yara and energy group Orsted to bury CO2 from an ammonia plant in the Netherlands and two biomass power stations in Denmark.

Some environmentalists worry the technology could provide an excuse to prolong the use of fossil fuels and divert funds needed for renewable energies.

They have also raised concerns about the risk of leaks.

“Northern Lights is ‘greenwashing’,” said the head of Greenpeace Norway, Frode Pleym, noting that the project was run by oil companies.

“Their goal is to be able to continue pumping oil and gas. CCS, the electrification of platforms and all of these kinds of measures are used by the oil industry in a cynical way to avoid doing anything about their enormous emissions,” he said.

At the UN, Erdogan again compared Israel to Hitler, calling for an “international alliance of humanity” to stop Israel as it did Hitler 70 years ago. However, such fiery rhetoric is finding a shrinking audience.

“It’s more conveying a message to their own base”, said Sezin Oney of the Turkish news portal Politikyol. “There isn’t an audience that really sees Turkey or Erdogan as the vanguard of Palestine rights anymore. On the contrary, that ship sailed long ago.”

Erdogan attempted to boost his image as a powerful regional player by meeting with the Lebanese and Iraqi Prime Ministers on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly. But Ankara is increasingly finding itself sidelined as a regional diplomatic player.

“Ankara‘s pro-Hamas approach has only marginalised Turkey in the international arena,” said international relations expert Selin Nasi of the London School of Economics. “So we see Egypt and Qatar receiving credits for their roles as mediators. And Turkey is locked out of international diplomatic efforts.”

Since Hamas’s 7 October attack on Israel and Israel’s subsequent Gaza campaign, Ankara has tried to position itself among international mediating efforts to end the fighting, given its close contacts with Hamas.

Turkish youth finds common cause in protests against trade with Israel

Mediation efforts

“Turkey was asked by the United States to speak with Hamas people”, said international relations expert Soli Ozel at Vienna’s Institute for Human Studies.

However, Ozel says the assassination of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Iran denied Erdogan his diplomatic trump card.

“One big blow to Turkey has been the murder of Haniyeh, with which Turkey did have very close relations. For all I know, he may even have had a Turkish passport”, said Ozel.

“And I really don’t think Turkey has any relations or contacts with Yahya Sinwar, who is officially and effectively the leader of Hamas”.

With Israel already alienated by Erdogan’s fiery rhetoric along with Turkey imposing an Israeli trade embargo, Gallia Lindenstrauss of Tel Aviv‘s National Security Studies says Turkey has nothing to offer.

Turkey flexes naval muscles as neighbours fear escalating arms race

“There are two main mediators in this conflict: Egypt and Qatar. They’re the two actors that have leverage over Hamas. Turkey, despite its very open support of Hamas, has very little leverage on Hamas’s decisions,” said Lindenstrauss.

“So Turkey is not effective – it doesn’t have the money to push Hamas in a certain direction, it doesn’t have the political leverage over Hamas to push it in the right direction. In practice …Turkey is not very efficient.

“So I don’t think it’s a mistake that Turkey is not part of this [mediation] process.”

Ankara has been quick to point out that existing mediation efforts between Hamas and Israel have achieved little, with the conflict now spreading to Lebanon.

However, some experts claim Ankara’s diplomatic sidelining has a broader message of Arab countries pushing back against Turkey’s involvement in the region.

“None of the Arab countries would like to get Turkey involved in this process,” said international relations expert Huseyin Bagci, of Ankara’s Middle East Technical University.

“Turkey could be considered by their views as the enemy of Israel, but it is artificial. The Middle East Arab-Israeli conflict since 1948 has been an Arab-Israeli conflict, not a Turkish-Israeli conflict.”

Turkey and Egypt bury the hatchet with a dozen new bilateral deals

Regional ambitions

For more than a decade, Erdogan has sought to project Turkey’s influence across the Middle East, often referring to the years of Ottoman rule as the halcyon days of peace and tranquillity.

But the latest Middle East war has ended such dreams, analyst Ozel said.

“The Turkish government thought that they could dominate the Middle East. They played the game of hegemony seeking, and they lost it,” Ozel explained.

“When they lost it, Turkey found itself way behind [the position] it had prior to 2011 when their grandiose scheme of creating a region which would be dominated by Turkey began.”

As the Israel-Hamas war threatens to escalate across the region, Erdogan’s rhetoric against Israel will likely continue. But analysts warn that outside of the leader’s conservative base at home, few others in the region will be receptive.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Be sure you check out our wonderful podcasts!

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

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

Remember, podcasts are radio, too! As you see, sound is still quite present in the RFI English service. Please keep checking our website for updates on the latest from our journalists. You never know what we’ll surprise you with!

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

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

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

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

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

This week’s quiz: On 29 August, I asked you a question about the 2024 Paris Paralympics Games, which had just opened with a parade on the Champs-Élysées and a grand show on Place de la Concorde, designed by the Games artistic director Thomas Jolly. You were to re-read our article “Paralympic torch arrives in France ahead of opening ceremony” and send in the answer to this question: How many athletes will compete in how many events?

The answer is, to quote our article: “During the Games, around 4,400 athletes will compete in 549 events, which will take place in 18 competition sites, including 16 identical to their Olympic counterparts.”

In addition to the quiz question, there was the bonus question: “With whom do you feel the happiest, and why?”, suggested by Jayanta Chakrabarty from New Delhi, India.

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

The winners are: Razia Khalid, who’s a member of the RFI Seven Stars Radio Listeners Club in District Chiniot, Pakistan. Razia is also this week’s bonus question winner. Congratulations, Razia!

Also on the list of lucky winners this week are M. N. Sentu, a member of the RFI Amour Fan Club in Rajshahi, Bangladesh, and RFI Listeners Club member Kashif Khalil from Faisalabad, Pakistan.  

Last but certainly not least, two RFI English listeners from Bangladesh: Shahanoaz Parvin Ripa, the president of the Sonali Badhon Female Listeners Club in Bogura, and Shihab Uddin Khan from Naogaon.

Here’s the music you heard on this week’s programme: Traditional music from the Middle Ages; the Allegro from the Piano Sonata K. 545 by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, performed by Gabriel Tacchino; “The Flight of the Bumblebee” by Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov; “The Cakewalk” from Children’s Corner by Claude Debussy, performed by the composer, and “I Didn’t Know What Time It Was” by Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart, sung by Cécile McLorin Salvant.

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

This week’s question … you must listen to the show to participate. After you’ve listened to the show, listen to Alison Hird’s report on political compromise in France on the Spotlight on France podcast no. 115, or consult her article “Where did France’s culture of political compromise go, and is it coming back?”, both of which will help you with the answer. 

You have until 21 October to enter this week’s quiz; the winners will be announced on the 26 October 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

or

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

Click here to learn how to win a special Sound Kitchen prize.

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

Native Americans from French Guiana and Suriname were recently in Paris to demand the restitution of the remains of six of their ancestors who died after being exhibited in so-called human zoos. Corinnne Toka Devilliers, whose great-grandmother Moliko was exhibited at the capital’s Jardin d’Acclimatation in 1892 but survived, describes holding a shamanic ceremony at the Museum of Mankind to prepare her fellow Kali’na for the voyage home. But there are still legal obstacles to overcome before the remains can leave the Parisian archives where they’ve spent the past 132 years. (Listen @3’30”)

Until recently, French villages with fewer than 2,000 residents did not need to name their streets – but legislation that came into effect this summer now requires them to identify roads to make it easier for emergency services and delivery people to find them. While not all villages have jumped at the opportunity, we joined residents in a hamlet in the south of France as they gathered to decide their new street names. And geographer Frederic Giraut talks about how the law is impacting the culture and heritage of small, rural localities. (Listen @21’53”)

The closely watched trial of a man accused of drugging his wife and inviting others to rape her while she lay unconscious at their home in southern France has become a rallying cry for those who say society needs to change the way it thinks about sexual assault. Fifty years ago, another rape case caused similar outcry – and led to changes in how France prosecutes and defines rape. (Listen @13’25”)

Episode mixed by Cecile Pompéani. 

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

In Istanbul’s conservative Uskudar district overlooking the Bosphorus waterway, activists from the group 1,000 Youth for Palestine recently gathered to protest the killing by Israeli security forces of the Turkish-American activist Aysenur Ezgi Eygi.

But along with chants condemning Israel, the demonstrators also attacked Erdogan and his government for Turkey’s continuing trade with Israel.

“I am here to force the Turkish government to stop the oil trade with Israel and to stop genocide,” declared Gulsum, a university academic who only wanted to be identified by her first name for security reasons.

“This is not just a public demand. It’s also a legal obligation for Turkey to stop genocide.”

Since the start of Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, the student-based group has directed its protests at the export of Azerbaijani oil to Israel by way of a Turkish port.

It also targets Turkish companies – many of which have close ties to Erdogan – that it accuses of circumventing the trade embargo by using third parties.

Turkey talks tough on Israel but resists calls to cut off oil

Unifying cause

The group uses social networks to broadcast its message, getting around government-controlled media.

The activists say they have received broad support that crosses Turkey’s traditional divides of religious and secular.

“When it comes to Palestine, it is a story that we all unite about,” said Gizem, a university student and 1,000 Youth for Palestine member.

“There are those who define themselves as socialists and those who define themselves as Islamists. There are also apolitical youth who say ‘I don’t like politics’, but still join us.”

While Erdogan presents himself as a stalwart defender of the Palestinian cause, police are cracking down on the protests.

One of the group’s Palestinian members was arrested after activists disrupted a panel discussion on Israel hosted by the state broadcaster. She now faces deportation in a case that has provoked further protests.

Images of police arresting headscarf-wearing members of the group further embarrassed Erdogan and his religious base.

Protests escalate in Turkey over Azerbaijani oil shipments to Israel amid embargo

‘Divide and rule’

Sezin Oney, a commentator for Turkey’s Politikyol news portal, says the group’s diversity poses a problem for Erdogan, given he has often sought to exploit the deep divisions between religious and secular voters when facing attack.

She argues that 1,000 Youth for Palestine’s ability to bridge those gaps is indicative of a wider change in Turkish society.

“It’s actually portraying the current youth of Turkey – you don’t have monolithic circles in the grassroots,” explains Oney.

“You have a mixture: hybrid groups of conservatives, conservative-looking, but very progressive,” she says. “Such hybrid groups are coming together because of a cause, but ideologically or background-wise or social class-wise, they may be very diverse.

“And that’s something threatening for the government. Because the government is embarking on divide and rule.”

Persistent political headache

Erdogan lost heavily in local elections earlier this year, a defeat widely blamed both on economic problems and anger over Turkey’s ties to Israel.

The 1,000 Youth for Palestine activists say they hope to continue to build on those results. 

“The reason for our success is that we put our finger on the right spot. We expose the hypocrisy of both the capitalists, the corporations and the government,” claims Murat, a university student who belongs to the group.

“People also saw this hypocrisy and thought that someone should speak out, and they supported us a lot because of that,” he added. “We will unite as the people of Turkey and continue to stand in the right place in history to stop the massacre in Palestine.”

The diversity of 1,000 Youth for Palestine is seen as its main strength, which is why it will likely continue to pose a political headache for Erdogan. Yet it may also offer hope that the deep divides in Turkish society can be bridged.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Be sure you check out our wonderful podcasts!

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

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

Remember, podcasts are radio, too! As you see, sound is still quite present in the RFI English service. Please keep checking our website for updates on the latest from our journalists. You never know what we’ll surprise you with!

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

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

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

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

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

This week’s quiz: On 24 August, I told you a story about a sign I saw on a French highway this summer. On most highways across France, there are illuminated signboards that tell you if there’s an accident ahead, encourage you to take a break from driving, or remind you of the speed limit. The messages change according to what information is deemed necessary for drivers.

During the Olympic games, the signs said: “Remember: 130 kilometres per hour … speed is for Léon”. You were to write in and tell me who Léon is, and why the French said speed was OK for him.

The answer is: Léon is that French human fish, Léon Marchand. He won four Gold Medals in swimming this year … the 200-meter medley, 200-metre breaststroke, the 200-metre butterfly, and the 400-metre medley. He became the sixth Olympic swimmer to win four gold medals at a single Games.

Léon Marchand is the world record holder in the long course 400-metres individual medley; the Olympic record holder in the 200-metres butterfly, the 200-metres breaststroke, and the 200-metres individual medley; and the French record holder in the long course 200-metre individual medley, 200-metre butterfly and 200-metre breaststroke.

The young man is fast – watching him swim was incredible. See why the French government would tell us to be careful with our speed, but Léon could go as fast as he wished?

In addition to the quiz question, there was the bonus question, suggested by Hans Verner Lollike from Hedehusene, Denmark: “The Paris 24 Olympic Games are over, but if you had a chance to win a Gold Medal, in which sport would it have been?”

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

The winners are: RFI Listeners Club member Alan Holder from the Isle of Wight, England. Alan is also this week’s bonus question winner. Congratulations, Alan!

Saleem Akhtar is a winner this week. Saleem is the president of the RFI Seven Stars Radio Listeners Club in District Chiniot, Pakistan.

Pakistan! Congratulations on your amazing javelineer, Arshad Nadeem. Nadeem made history for Pakistan by becoming the first Pakistani to win an individual Olympic gold medal. Not only that, but he set an Olympic record with his throw of 92.97 meters… the sixth-longest throw in history. Mubarak, Arshad! Mubarak, Pakistan!

Also on the list of lucky winners this week are RFI Listeners Club members Rodrigo Hunrichse from Ciudad de Concepción, Chile; Helmut Matt from Herbolzheim in Germany, and Father Steven Wara, who lives in the Cistercian Abbey in Bamenda, in Cameroon’s North West Region.

Congratulations winners!

Here’s the music you heard on this week’s programme: “Imagine” by John Lennon; the waltz op. 64 No. 1 in D flat, the “Minute Waltz” by Frédéric Chopin, performed by Arthur Rubinstein; “The Flight of the Bumblebee” by Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov; “The Cakewalk” from Children’s Corner by Claude Debussy, performed by the composer, and “Pocket Piano” by DJ Mehdi.

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 “France’s foreign ministry unveils two-year gender equality strategy”, which will help you with the answer.

You have until 14 October to enter this week’s quiz; the winners will be announced on the 19 October 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

or

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

Click here to learn how to win a special Sound Kitchen prize.

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

While floods are devastating West Africa, about 68 million people in southern Africa are suffering the effects of an El Nino-induced drought which has wiped out crops across the region. 

Nearly 68 million suffering from drought in southern Africa

Zimbabwe, Malawi, Lesotho, Namibia, and Zambia are facing severe drought conditions, leading to widespread devastation. The impact is stalling economic growth and raising serious concerns about food security in the region. 

Zimbabwe to cull elephants to tackle drought, food shortages

In Zambia, the drought that has gripped southern Africa since early this year has led to rolling power cuts in a country that relies heavily on hydropower.

Some inhabitants, however, have already turned to solar power as an alternative.

To discuss how it can help, we speak this week with John Keane, CEO of the UK-based charity SolarAid, from the Zambian capital Lusaka. 

He explains how sales of solar products have increased by more than 540 percent since the beginning of 2024, and what the social enterprises are doing to spread awareness among Zambians and avoid the use of charcoal or candles.     

Episode mixed by Nicolas Doreau  

Spotlight on Africa is a podcast from Radio France Internationale

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.