Azerbaijan’s role as host marks the second consecutive year a country heavily reliant on fossil fuels will hold the world’s most prominent climate talks.

According to a report published by Transparency International and the Anti-Corruption Data Collective, Azerbaijan’s fossil fuel interests, entrenched levels of corruption and autocratic government put the UN-led climate process at risk.

The report emphasised that this risk isn’t unique to Azerbaijan, citing past and future Cop hosts with similarly strong fossil fuel ties.

“This report finds that in its current form, Cop – as the main global forum for setting the climate policy agenda – is at risk of being undermined by undue corporate influence and fossil fuel industry capture,” the report said.

“Corruption and kleptocracy, too, threaten the integrity of climate conferences, including the upcoming Cop29 in Baku, Azerbaijan.”

Azerbaijan under scrutiny

Azerbaijan, a former Soviet republic bordering Russia and Iran, has faced criticism over its Cop29 hosting rights.

Last week, the European Parliament condemned Azerbaijan’s human rights abuses, calling them “incompatible” with the summit.

In October, dozens of US lawmakers demanded the release of political prisoners ahead of the climate talks in Baku, where President Ilham Aliyev has ruled since 2003.

Azerbaijan’s plans to increase fossil fuel production also challenge the global transition away from oil and gas set out in Cop28 in Dubai.

Aliyev has publicly called the nation’s gas reserves a “gift of the gods”.

• Azerbaijan names former oil executive to head Cop29 climate talks
• Cop28 draft climate deal drops mention of fossil fuel ‘phase-out’

‘Fossil fuel diplomacy’

Cop29 president Mukhtar Babayev, a former executive of Azerbaijan’s national oil company SOCAR, has come under scrutiny, with the report alleging that SOCAR officials may be using the conference to negotiate oil and gas deals.

The watchdogs noted that COP29 risks becoming “another forum for fossil fuel diplomacy and dealmaking”.

The United Arab Emirates, which hosted COP28 in November 2023, faced similar accusations, with the summit president also director of the Emirates national oil company ADNOC.

Azerbaijan, alongside the UAE and Brazil – the next Cop host – forms a “troika” promoting climate action, yet all three countries are moving ahead with new oil and gas ventures.

The report argued that “some members of this troika can use Cop events as diplomatic showcases to support their domestic oil industries, sign new fossil fuel deals and sanitise their records of human rights abuses and environmental harms”.

It also raised concerns that certain members of the Cop29 organising team have been implicated in “high-profile corruption scandals” and that the event may be used to promote companies linked to Azerbaijan’s ruling family.

The Self-Determination Act was passed in the German parliament in April.

It allows over-18s to change official records to reflect their preferred names and genders without the need for psychiatric assessments or court hearings.

Under the legislation, anyone aged between 14 and 18 can ask for the changes to be made at a registry office with the agreement of their parents or legal representatives. In cases where there is a dispute, the applicant can seek legal help.

For children under 14, guardians would need to submit the paperwork.

No medical certificates or outside opinions will be required. The applicant can choose from several gender markers – male, female or “diverse” – or opt not to enter a gender at all.

“As populist politicians in Europe and beyond try to use trans rights as a political wedge issue, Germany’s new law sends a strong message that trans people exist and deserve recognition and protection without discrimination,” commented Cristian Gonzalez Cabrera, an LGBTQ+ rights researcher at campaign group Human Rights Watch, when the law was passed.

“Germany has joined a growing list of countries that are abolishing pathologising requirements for gender recognition which have no place in diverse and democratic societies.”

Thousands of applications

From 1 November, there will be a three-month wait between applying for the new status and making a personal declaration.

More than 1,200 people in the capital Berlin have already submitted applications, according to German press agency DPA, while thousands more are expected to do so nationwide.

Under Germany’s 1980 Transsexuals Law, medical reports and court approval were needed before someone could change their gender entry in official documents.

In 2017, a report for Germany’s Ministry of Family Affairs, Senior Citizens, Women and Youth, highlighted the cumbersome procedures.

Applicants said that to secure the necessary approvals, they had to provide details from their childhood and their sexual past. Some said they had to undergo physical examinations.

The ministry found that the legal steps could take up to 20 months to negotiate and cost an average of 1,900 euros.

Gay marriage brought equality to France while giving rise to homophobia

Polarising issue

Nearly eight years after those findings, the Self-Determination Act will radically simplify bureaucracy.

It comes into effect as activists warn of an increase in anti-LGBTQ+ violence in Germany. The interior minister said in June 2023 that police registered more than 1,400 such hate crimes during 2022.

Gay and transgender rights have become a polarising topic in Germany, where a centre-left government took over in 2021 with a vow to promote inclusion.

The alliance of Social Democrats, Greens and Free Democrats included the change to the gender recognition law in their coalition treaty.

The move was opposed by the largest opposition bloc, the Christian Democrats and Christian Socialist Union, as well as the far-right Alternative for Germany.

The reform was ultimately passed after a heated debate that resulted in various restrictions being added to the original bill.

The negative arguments made by opponents of the change have since contributed to the stigmatisation and harassment of trans people, activists told public broadcaster Deutsche Welle. 

HRW’s Gonzalez said: “German authorities should continue to push for full equality to eliminate acts of anti-LGBT violence in Germany and to promote anti-LGBT legislation overseas.”

Protesters in Bulgaria slam bill to ban LGBTQ+ ‘propaganda’ in schools

Rescue teams continued the search on Friday for victims and survivors missing since a year’s worth of rain fell in eight hours on Tuesday, destroying bridges and cutting off road and rail links.

“Unfortunately there are dead bodies in some vehicles, transport minister Oscar Puente said.

“Dozens and dozens are missing,” added Angel Victor Torres, minister in charge of cooperation with Spain’s regions. “They, unfortunately, could add to the total of 158 dead.”

Spanish football chiefs said games taking place this weekend would publicise a Red Cross fundraising campaign over the public address systems.

“Spain’s professional football joins the condolences and expresses its solidarity with the families of the victims and the missing,” La Liga said in a statement.

Real Madrid, which came under fire for poor sportsmanship for boycotting the Ballon d’Or award ceremony in Paris on Monday night, announced it would offer one million euros to the Red Cross.

“Real Madrid has decided to support this campaign to help the many families who are in a critical situation and need all our help and solidarity,” Madrid said in a statement.

Spanish football authorities postponed seven midweek ties in the annual Copa del Rey competition.

Games scheduled for the eastern region this weekend have also been rescheduled including the clash between Valencia and Real Madrid after Valencia transformed their Mestalla stadium into a drop-off point for donations of food and other essential items.

At matches that do go ahead, fans will be asked to observe a minute’s silence before kick-off as a tribute to the dead and the victims, La Liga said.

Ethics debate

On Friday, several riders in MotoGP said they felt it would be unethical to stage the season’s final race in Valencia in the aftermath of the floods.

Six-time world champion Marc Marquez said funds needed to go to people devastated by floods instead of being spent on repairs for the event.

“Ethically speaking, I don’t think it should be held,” said the 31-year-old.

Marquez, who rides for Gresini Racing, added: “As a Spaniard it is very difficult to see these images. We know that the area around the circuit has been badly damaged, but it doesn’t make sense to spend money on repairing that. Resources should go to helping people.”

The season-ending race could decide the outcome of the 2024 championship.

Championship pacesetter Jorge Martin boasts 453 points from 18 of the season’s 20 races.  Ducati’s Francesco Bagnaia lies 17 points behind in second place heading into the penultimate race in Malaysia this weekend.

“Valencia will be difficult,” said Martin. “Even if the track is OK and everything is good, it’s a difficult situation in terms of respecting the people there. I think the best option will be to race elsewhere.”

Bagnaia added: “in Valencia, racing is like a party, it’s a moment to enjoy. Knowing the situation right now, that’s not correct.

“We have always been super respectful of what’s happening around the world. It could be wrong, to race there. If it was my choice, I would prefer not to race there.”

Change

Circuit organisers initially said the track was in good condition and planned to stage the event as scheduled between 15 and 17 November.

But on Friday afternoon, they announced the race would be cancelled and staged elsewhere.

“We have been in constant contact with the local authorities and the circuit to best assess how we can help and how we should proceed,” said MotoGP in a statement. “We have a responsibility to every region where we race that goes far beyond the sport and the events.

“In lieu of racing in Valencia, MotoGP will instead race for Valencia. The championship will put our collective efforts behind backing the relief funds already in place to ensure our positive impact can connect with the area in the way it best serves the people and communities we have been part of for so long.”

Between midnight and 3am, French-ruled Algeria was shaken by around 70 coordinated attacks, leaving 10 settlers dead. French authorities were caught off guard and initially dismissed the assaults as a “tribal uprising”, possibly “fomented in Cairo” by Pan-Arabist movements.

The next day, the FLN issued a manifesto, the “Proclamation of 1 November”, urging local Muslim Algerians to join an armed resistance.

The events, later known in France as the Toussaint Rouge (Red All Saints Day), revealed an organised and determined movement among Algeria’s indigenous population to end colonial rule.

At first, French political leaders and media downplayed the seriousness of the FLN threat.

Roots of anger

The conflict, now recognised as the Algerian War – a term only formally adopted in 1999 – stemmed from decades of growing grievances among Algerians.

French settlers, or pieds-noirs, held the exclusive label “Algerians” for themselves, while indigenous Algerians were sidelined.

Many Muslim Algerians had fought for France in both world wars, expecting equality in return, but their calls went unanswered.

Historians have shown that the roots of Algerian anger date back to France’s conquest of the country in 1830, which met immediate resistance from leaders like Emir Abdelkader.

By the 1930s a rising Muslim population faced extreme poverty, low wages and limited political power, according to French historian Bernard Droz. One European’s vote counted for as many as 10 Muslim votes under the 1947 status.

France and Algeria revisit painful past in battle to mend colonial wounds

Initially, Algerian leaders sought assimilation.

Figures like Ferhat Abbas, a moderate nationalist, called for autonomy under French oversight. But efforts to grant citizenship to some Muslims, like the 1937 Blum-Violette bill, were blocked.

The defeat of France in 1940 and the impotence of the Vichy state in the face of Nazi Germany encouraged Algerians to demand stronger nationalism, historian Charles-Robert Ageron wrote.

In May 1945, expectations for equal treatment boiled over. During a celebration of the Allied victory, a peaceful protest in Sétif escalated into deadly riots after police intervention.

As protests spread to the countryside, European militias joined in a brutal crackdown. Some historians estimate up to 45,000 indigenous Algerians were killed.

By 1946, widespread electoral fraud convinced Muslim activists that the ballot box was a dead end.

Leaders like Messali Hadj gained popularity with the Algerian People’s Party, which promoted the slogan: “Neither assimilation nor separation, but emancipation.”

National liberation day

While 1 November 1954 became known in France as “Red All Saints Day”, for indigenous Algerians it symbolised the start of their liberation war.

The FLN demanded “the restoration of the Algerian state, sovereign, democratic and social, within the principles of Islam”.

Yet France saw Algeria as an integral part of its territory – “Algeria is France!” said then interior minister François Mitterrand, who chose to increase repression.

Among the first casualties on 1 November were two French Algerians, four soldiers, a police officer, a forest ranger, a pro-colonisation Algerian and a young teacher killed by mistake.

The war that followed was brutal, with massacres on both sides.

The French army, supported by Muslim Algerian Harkis who sided with the colonisers, employed extreme measures, including torture under the guise of government authority.

The conflict would drag on until 1962, resulting in more than a million deaths among both the colonisers and the colonised.

60th anniversary of the Evian peace accords between France and Algeria

The Evian Accords on 18 March 1962 established a ceasefire, bringing an end to 132 years of French rule over Algeria.

However, the trauma of the war has continuously strained ties between the two countries with disputes around archives, immigration policies and political disagreements. 

In July, Algeria recalled its ambassador from Paris after French President Emmanuel Macron openly supported Morocco in a dispute over the territory of Western Sahara.

Seventy years after the Toussaint Rouge, the legacy of the Algerian War endures, with debates around access to archives and historical accountability.

Historians are still working to unravel the complexities of a conflict that cast a long shadow over both nations.

Four others, including two 16-year-olds, were injured in clashes involving up to 600 people on Thursday night.

French Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau linked the violence to drug trafficking gangs.

“These shootings aren’t happening in South America, they’re happening in here in France,” he told French broadcaster RMC.

Retailleau said that “last Saturday in Rennes, a five-year-old was hit by bullets and is still in hospital.

“We are at a tipping point and the choice we have today is between a general mobilisation against this kind of thing or the Mexicanisation of the country.”

Police reported that the initial attack occurred in Poitiers’ Les Couronneries district, where several men fired into a restaurant before fleeing in a car.

The mass brawl erupted following the shooting, police added.

“Tensions between different groups broke out, requiring the intervention of the police and gendarmerie,” said police chiefs from the Vienne region, where Poitiers is located.

Police reinforcements are expected in the city on Friday.

Amid murmurs that the talks may drag into an extra day, summit president Susana Muhamad said Friday’s programmed closing session promised to be “heart-stopping” given the number of unresolved issues.

“It’s a very complex negotiation, with many interests, many parties… and that means everyone has to cede something,” Muhamad, who is Colombia’s environment minister, told reporters Thursday.

With some 23,000 registered delegates, the 16th Conference of Parties (Cop16) to the UN’s Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) which opened in Cali on October 21, is the biggest meeting of its kind ever.

The event is a follow-up to the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework agreed upon in Canada two years ago, where it was decided that $200 billion per year must be made available for biodiversity by 2030.

This must include $20 billion per year going from rich to poor nations to reach 23 UN targets to “halt and reverse” nature destruction by 2030, and by placing 30 percent of land and sea areas under protection.

COP16 was tasked with assessing, and ramping up, progress towards the targets.

But negotiations on funding mechanisms have failed to progress, observers and delegates say, even as new research this week showed more than a quarter of assessed plants and animals are at risk of extinction.

‘Chance to act’

Developing countries have called for more money.

They also want a brand new fund under the umbrella of the UN biodiversity convention, where all parties – rich and poor – would have representation in decision-making.

Rich countries insist they are on track to meet their funding targets, and many are opposed to yet another new fund.

European officials pointed Thursday to deadly flooding in Spain as a reminder of the harm that comes from humans’ destruction of nature, and urged delegates at the deadlocked talks to “act.”

European Commission envoy Florika Fink-Hooijer said the “catastrophe” in eastern and southern Spain this week, with at least 158 people dead and dozens still missing, highlights the link between biodiversity destruction and human-caused climate change.

Ecosystems hang in the balance as Colombia hosts crucial biodiversity talks

Droughts and flooding worsened by global warming cause the loss of plant species, including trees which absorb planet-warming carbon, in a vicious cycle of human-wrought Earth destruction.

“If we act on biodiversity, we at least can buffer some of the climate impacts,” Fink-Hooijer, who is the European Commission director-general for environment, told reporters.

“At this Cop we really have a chance to act,” she added.

‘Clock is ticking’

Another point of contention among delegates is on how best to share the profits of digitally sequenced genetic data taken from animals and plants with the communities they come from.

Such data, much of it from species found in poor countries, is notably used in medicines and cosmetics that make their developers billions.

Cop15 had agreed on the creation of a “multilateral mechanism” for benefit-sharing of digital information, “including a global fund.”

Window to save Australia’s Great Barrier Reef is closing fast, report warns

But negotiators still need to resolve such basic questions as who pays, how much, into which fund, and to whom the money should go.

UN chief Antonio Guterres, who stopped over in Cali for two days this week with five heads of state and dozens of government ministers to add impetus to the talks, reminded delegates Wednesday that humanity has already altered three-quarters of Earth’s land surface, and two-thirds of its waters.

Urging negotiators to “accelerate” progress, he warned: “The clock is ticking. The survival of our planet’s biodiversity – and our own survival – are on the line.”

Representatives of Indigenous peoples and local communities held demonstrations at COP16 to press for more rights and protections, as delegates inside wrangled over a proposal to create a permanent representative body for them under the CBD.

On this, too, no final agreement has been reached.

Cop16 parties voted Thursday to have Armenia as the host for their next summit in 2026.

While studies may warn of the dangers of screens for young people, digital engagement later in life appears to be rather beneficial.

Last week, Paris hosted a national e-bowling final for competitors aged 65 and older, highlighting the strength and drive of senior players.

Organised by French organisation Silver Geek during Paris Games Week, the event aimed to improve seniors’ health and well-being while bridging the digital divide.

The tournament, which has gained popularity among the elderly, culminated in a showdown featuring four finalists.

Mental boost

Among the competitors was 90-year-old Sarah – the doyenne of the event – and 86-year-old Armande Guérin, a semi-finalist.

“It keeps our minds occupied and we get a taste for it. It’s better than going home and just sitting on the couch,” Armande told RFI.

She and her husband were introduced to e-sports by even coordinators at the canteen where they have lunch in Nantes, western France.

The couple has been e-bowling for three years. They practice twice a week on a console, for about an hour each time, in their living room. They also play with other participants.

“It allows us to meet people and not be alone,” says Armande.

As the e-bowling community grows, events like the “Trophée des Seniors” show the benefits of staying active.

‘A time bomb for kids’: a French photographer’s exploration of screen culture

“It helps with posture, balance and brings people together,” said Lise, a coordinator at Domitys Coeur de Loire, a retirement residence in Tours.

The activity boosts self-confidence for many seniors, who are often surprised by their own abilities.

At 81, 77, and 90 years old, several participants said they never thought they’d be able to play video games but now find it both entertaining and mentally stimulating.

Lise noted that while younger generations grew up with digital technology, older players embrace it as a fresh way to stay engaged: “It stimulates them, and they really enjoy it.”

Unlike some younger players who struggle with screen time, these seniors find themselves “addicted to competition”.

In an intergenerational twist, e-bowling pairs seniors with young coaches.

“We teach them to play [on the Nintendo Switch], to position themselves, understand the game, and connect with an audience,” said Faustine, a 19-year-old coach in civic service with Unis-Cité in Toulon.

“It’s about sharing, laughing and having an amazing time.”

A 2024 survey by the French Leisure Software Publishers Association (Sell) shows that 43 percent of French seniors now play video games – around 4.7 million people, or 12 percent of all gamers.

Their average age is 69, and they spend nearly five hours a week playing.

“I wish to congratulate the opposition on their victory and concede the election,” the 63-year-old told reporters at a press conference.

Preliminary results from Wednesday’s poll showed three opposition parties had together amassed at least 31 of 61 seats in the national legislature.

The Independent Electoral Commission is expected laer on Friday to confirm the results which will terminate the BDF’s rule over the country since its independence from Britain in 1966.

More than one million people from a population of 2.6 million were registered to vote on Wednesday. Main concerns highlighted in the prelude to the poll ranged from unemployment to mismanagement in Masisi’s first term.

“Opposition parties have garnered more than half of the parliamentary seats,” the independent Mmegi newspaper wrote on Facebook.

“This means ruling Botswana Democratic Party has now officially lost state power.”

Change

The left-leaning opposition Umbrella for Democratic Change (UDC) had already secured more than 24 seats, party official Mike Keakopa told the French news agency AFP.

He said it was aiming to reach 31 seats to become the outright winner and hand the presidency to its leader Duma Boko.

The two other opposition parties, the Botswana Congress Party and Botswana Patriotic Front, had taken around a dozen seats together.

“Botswana’s new dawn as Boko, UDC rise,” Mmegi said in a version of its front page posted on Facebook. 

The UDC swept a separate ballot at Wednesday’s polls for the local councils in what was seen as an indication of the trend for the national vote.

Boko, 54, a human rights lawyer, created the UDC in 2012 to unite parties against the BDP. It is the third time that he has run for the presidency.

“CHANGE IS HERE,” he wrote on social media as his party’s strong showing became clear.

There have also been allegations of corruption and nepotism during the reigh on Masisi’s government. The gap between the rich and poor is one of the largest in the world, according to the World Bank.

“The people in the country are clamouring for change, they are yearning for something refreshingly different,” Boko said in an interview in July with the South African channel ENCA .

“We are expecting more from this new Botswana,” said cleaner, Pelontle Ditshotlo.

The BDP had not delivered on its promises and the cost of living was too high, added the 41-year-old.

“When you are in parliament, we need to know that you listen to us, you are with us.”

October and November are set to host a series of events celebrating African art across the continent, in Europe and even farther afield.

Spotlight on Africa dives into perspectives from diverse African cultures, focusing on the voices and visions of the diaspora.

RFI journalists Ollia Horton and Melissa Chemam take us to the heart of two major art fairs: Paris’s Also Known As Africa (AKAA) and London’s 1:54 Contemporary African Art Fair.

Listeners will hear from Victoria Mann, founder and director of AKAA, and artist Christelle Clairville, whose work brings Caribbean influences to the dialogue around African identity.

French-Belgo-Congolese artist Tiffanie Delune, exhibiting in London, shares her journey through the art world.

Curators Grada Kilomba and Helio Menezes weigh in from the Sao Paulo Biennial in Brazil. Meanwhile, ahead of the Dakar Biennale, French-Algerian artist Dalila Dalleas Bouzar discusses her preparation and the importance of the event to her work.

Episode mixed by Hadrien Touraud and Erwan Rome.

Spotlight on Africa is a podcast from Radio France Internationale.

Humbert, the 15th seed, came through the encounter with the French Open champion 6-1, 3-6, 7-5 in two hours and and 17 minutes.

“I thought even if I win or lose I will fight till the end,” Humbert told the packed stands at the Accor Arena in Bercy in south-eastern Paris.

 And to the delight of the 16,000 partisans, he added: “I didn’t give up. I told myself I was capable of winning. And thanks to you, I did. Thank you.”

Path

Humbert reached the last eight at the Paris Masters in 2020 and will take on Thompson for the the second time this year.

The 30-year-old won in the first round in three sets at the Cincinnati Masters in August.

“It will not be easy against Jordan,” added Humbert. “It was a close match back in the summer but I’m looking forward to this next one. I don’t want to stop at the quarter-finals.”

Humbert was the only one of the five local heroes to survive Thursday’s last-16 encounters.

Damage

Veteran Adrian Mannarino went down to Thompson in straight sets while the French number two, Arthur Fils, lost to the third seed Alexander Zverev in three sets.

Arthur Cazaux and Arthur Rinderknech were dispatched respectively by the 2022 champion Holger Rune and last year’s beaten finalist Grigor Dimitrov.

The exploit, though, was Humbert’s. The 26-year-old swept through the opening set against the French Open champion in 25 minutes.

But Alcaraz broke to lead 4-2 in the second and held on to his advantage to claim the set 6-3 and level affairs.

Both men dominated play with their service in the decider. And trailing 4-5, Alcaraz had to serve to stay in the match after two hours.

He succeeded.

Skill

Humbert displayed guts and no little aplomb to notch up the game to lead 6-5.

He started with a double fault and failed in the subsequent points to land a first serve. But he ground his way through with a sumptuous forehand passing shot on the run. An angled backhand half volley and another forehand winner were added to the showreel.

Alcaraz cracked trying to save himself for a second time.

He started with a double fault and soon found himself facing two match points. Though he saved the first with a big serve, on the second, Humbert kept his nerve in a baseline exchange and raised his fist in triumph to the roars of the crowd as Alcaraz’s backhand drive flew past the base line.

In other last-16 ties, 10^th seed Stefanos Tsitsipas came from a set down to defeat the unseeded Argentine Francisco Cerundolo and eighth seed Alex De Minaur from Australia pulled off the same feat to dispatch the Briton Jack Draper.

Karen Khachanov, the 2018 champion, was more emphatic.

He dismissed another Australian Alexei Popyrin 7-6, 6-4 to set up a clash with Dimitrov.

Earlier this month, the French government notified the European Commission and six neighbouring states – Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Italy and Spain – that it would reintroduce border checks on land, air and sea routes from 1 November until at least April 2025.

It cited “serious threats to public policy, public order, and internal security posed by high-level terrorist activities, the growing presence of criminal networks facilitating irregular migration and smuggling, and migration flows that risk infiltration by radicalised individuals, as well as the irregular crossings on the Channel and North Sea borders, along with rising violence among migrants”.

The decision came as a surprise to many who have grown accustomed to free movement within the European Union’s so-called Schengen Zone.

Concerns are also being voiced about the practical implications of bringing back police checks, raising the spectre of delays at checkpoints and a potential backlog of cross-border travellers.

Widespread controls

While France has reinstated border checks several times since the creation of the Schengen Zone in 1995, such measures have typically been limited to specific routes.

The decision to apply them to all of its borders marks the most widespread resumption of controls to date.

Announcing the move on social media, France’s conservative new Prime Minister Michel Barnier said that the public “expects us to have an effective policy to control immigration”.

But rights organisations complain that France has repeatedly violated EU law by applying certain internal border controls since 2015, despite the Schengen Borders Code that says such controls should not exceed six months without “a new serious threat to public order”.

They also believe the EU is allowing France to continue its “misuse” of border controls under the guise of security, the justification Paris has given for retightening its borders several times since the 2015 terror attacks.

EU countries tighten border checks amid security and migration fears

Following Germany’s lead

France’s decision mirrors action taken by Germany to bolster border security earlier this year.

Saying it wanted to crack down on irregular migration, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s government announced on 16 September the restoration of temporary controls on all land borders.

Since then vehicles have still continued to cross borders relatively freely, with random spot checks or targeted inspections.

Travellers have also been reminded to carry valid identification, such as a national identity card or EU passport, when crossing borders.

Hard line on immigration

In France, newly appointed Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau has been vocal about tightening immigration policies.

He has cited rising terrorist activities and the increase of criminal networks associated with illegal immigration as pressing concerns for public order and internal security.

Earlier this week, the minister listed a series of measures to police prefects across France that are designed to “amplify and systemise” removal measures aimed at foreign nationals likely to pose a threat to public order in France.

French government to table new immigration law in early 2025

Macron’s trip – which saw France and Morocco sign deals worth an estimated €10 billion – has made clear which country is Paris’s preferred partner in North Africa.

That risks riling Algeria, which cut its diplomatic relations with Morocco in 2021.

In July this year, the Algerian government recalled its ambassador from Paris after Macron publicly backed Morocco’s claim to Western Sahara. 

This week, the French president reiterated his support directly to King Mohammed VI on Moroccan soil. 

Algerian journalist Adlene Meddi told RFI that the intervention was likely to worsen relations between Paris and Algiers.

“France is sacrificing its relations with Algeria in a fairly brutal and spectacular manner,” he said, “and we are going to enter a new phase of crisis that will last much longer than other crises.”

‘Strategic interests’

The Algerian-backed Polisario Front has campaigned for decades for the independence of Western Sahara, which was occupied by Spain until 1975.

Morocco sought to lay claim to it the same year.

The United Nations considers Western Sahara a “non-self-governing territory” and has had a peacekeeping mission there since 1991 with the aim of organising a referendum on the territory’s future.

But Morocco has repeatedly rejected any vote in which independence is an option.

By backing Moroccan sovereignty, Macron “deliberately ignores the aspirations of the Sahrawi people“, Khalil Abdelmalek, an Algerian student of political sociology,” told RFI.

“French support for Morocco reinforces the image of France as a state ready to sacrifice the principles of justice for its strategic interests,” he argued.

France, Morocco sign deals worth €10bn on energy, infrastructure

Shifting alliances

Seeking to break away from French influence and isolate Morocco in the broader Arab world, Algeria is looking to build new alliances.

Algerian President Abdelmajid Tebboune travelled to Egypt this week for his first foreign trip after his re-election last September.

At a joint press conference on Monday, Egypt’s President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi said that Egyptian companies are ready to work on infrastructure and urban development projects in Algeria. Investments will also take place in the energy sector. 

After two days in Cairo, Tebboune travelled to Oman for a three-day state visit. 

Also in Algeria’s sights as privileged partners are Libya and Sudan, countries that are not close to Paris or Rabat.

Experts estimate that Paris has little to gain by neglecting Algeria, as it remains an essential partner in terms of human resources, migration and regional politics.

Algerians also form the largest diaspora living in France, with over 1,600,000 people, ahead of Moroccans (1,060,000) and Portuguese (640,000). 

“This is an attack on academic freedom,” Vincent Geisser, director of the French Institute of Research and Study on the Arab and Islamic Worlds at Aix-Marseille University (Iremam), told press agencies.

Dupont, 27, was arrested on 19 October at his home in a suburb of Tunis.

His detention only came to light this week, his supporters having tried to negotiate his release out of the public eye. 

His parents travelled to Tunis a few days ago to discuss the case with France’s ambassador, according to media reports.

Geisser confirmed to RFI that the family had now set up a support committee to demand his release.

Dupont was in Tunisia to conduct sociological research on the country’s 2011 protests.

One of his friends, Edouard Matalon, a librarian visiting from Paris, was also arrested but released the same day after questioning.

According to Matalon, another of their friends, who has dual French-Tunisian nationality, also remains in custody.

Neither Tunisian or French authorities were immediately available for comment. 

‘Exceptional’ measures

After being detained, Dupont was “taken to an interrogation centre, placed in custody, and the same day brought before a military judge”, Geisser said in a press release, calling the last measure “exceptional” for a French student.

Dupont, who started his PhD in 2022, hoped his interviews would provide material for a paper on the social and career paths of “people who might have been active during the 2011 revolution” that toppled longtime dictator Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, according to his supervisor.

“It is not a political topic linked to dissidents or opponents or a security topic, but a typical sociology topic,” Geisser added, calling for his student to be released.

Civil liberties eroded

Dupont’s arrest comes against a backdrop of worsening civil liberties in Tunisia, which recently voted in a presidential election marred by a crackdown on the opposition, independent activists and journalists.

Fear and resignation ahead of Tunisia’s ‘lopsided’ presidential polls

President Kais Saied was re-elected with more than 90 percent of votes, three years after he made a sweeping power grab.

Rights groups fear Saied will tighten his grip on Tunisia, considered the only democracy to have emerged from the 2011 Arab Spring protests.

Amnesty International has documented a significant rollback of human rights in the country, especially in the last couple of years.

(with newswires)

Together with police, Paris city hall launched investigations two years ago to discover how long the 2.1 million people who live in the capital could go without vital supplies.

In a study published this week, urbanism experts at the Atelier Parisien d’Urbanisme (Apur) found the city would could last a week at the most – slightly longer, in fact, than previously estimated.

“Supply disruption had been identified as a major risk, but the authorities had no reliable data on food resilience,” Pénélope Komites, deputy mayor in charge of resilience, told French news agency AFP after the publication of Apur’s analysis on Tuesday.

“We were talking about three days’ self-sufficiency without knowing where this figure came from. Knowing that it is between five and seven days is a bit more reassuring,” she said.

Emergency food stores

Apur estimates that with an average of 1.45 kg of food eaten per person per day, 3,090 tonnes of food are needed to feed the 2,146,000 residents of Paris and provide 6.5 million meals a day.

Its survey first looked at where food is stored in normal times. Researchers found three main places: household cupboards (containing between 36 hours and five days of reserves on average), shops and community catering (two days of reserves) and food logistics warehouses (also two days).

The study suggests establishing basement storage spaces around the city. Land and depots such as warehouses, car parks and exhibition centres should also be designated to store more foodstuffs, it says.

The study equally highlights another significant problem: 95 percent of foodstuffs arrive in Paris by truck. It suggests increasing the use of the river and railways to bring in supplies in an emergency.

The report adds: “The aim of these measures is to ensure the security of the food supply, particularly for resident populations in the event of a one-off crisis that disrupts or slows down the supply chain.”

How France is cooking up ways to turn the tables on food waste

Hundred-day goal

City officials are also weighing the feasibility of creating a second wholesale food market in the north of the city to complement the massive Rungis market on its south-eastern fringes. 

In 2022, Paris city chiefs published an action plan to counter a range of problems likely to be faced in the coming decade, including “social, economic, territorial and cultural divides, geopolitical tensions, climate disruption [and] dwindling natural resources”.

“Faced with the challenges of the 21st century, Paris is demonstrating its resilience,” the strategy says. “Resilience means putting in place solutions to better anticipate and overcome any crises that may arise.”

As part of that goal, they want the capital’s population to be able to hold out for 100 days in the event of an emergency.

France could meet climate goals if meat consumption is ‘halved’

An exceptionally powerful Mediterranean storm from Tuesday unleashed heavy rains and torrents of mud-filled water that swept away people and wrecked homes, with the eastern Valencia region hit hardest.

The body coordinating rescue work in the Valencia region announced that 155 bodies had been recovered there by Thursday afternoon.

Officials in Castilla-La Mancha and Andalusia had announced a combined three deaths in their regions on Wednesday.

With many people still missing and some areas remaining inaccessible to rescuers, government ministers had warned Wednesday’s provisional toll of 95 was likely to rise.

“Please, stay at home… follow the calls of the emergency services,” pleaded Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.

“Right now the most important thing is to save as many lives as possible,” Sanchez told residents of the eastern Valencia and Castellon provinces.

King Felipe VI warned the emergency was “still not over” and national weather service AEMET put parts of eastern and southern regions on high alert levels for rain on Thursday.

Flags flew at half-mast on government buildings and minutes of silence were observed nationwide at the start of three days of national mourning after Spain’s deadliest floods in decades.

Eliu Sanchez, a resident of a suburb of Valencia city, recalled how the merciless currents snatched a man who tried to take refuge on a car.

“I have been told of people who were clinging to trees, but the force made them let go and they were carried away, calling for help. Trucks, everything was going from here to there,” said Sanchez, 32.

Death toll from Spanish floods mounts as torrential rains persist

‘Catastrophe’

Emergency services backed by drones and more than 1,200 troops combed mud-caked towns and villages to find survivors and clear roads of debris.

Abandoned vehicles lay piled on top of each other like dominoes and some residents grabbed planks of wood to plough through layers of thick, sticky mud, AFP journalists saw in the Valencia region.

In Paiporta, a suburb of Valencia city at the epicentre of the damage, 27-year-old musician David Romero lamented a “catastrophe”.

“Neighbourhood after neighbourhood, street after street, there is not a business standing,” he told AFP.

Hundreds of people are being sheltered in temporary accommodation while road and rail transport have been severely disrupted.

It could take up to three weeks to reopen the high-speed line between Madrid and Valencia, Transport Minister Oscar Puente wrote on X.

‘Nobody warned’

Scientists say human-driven climate change is increasing the length, frequency and intensity of extreme weather events that are increasingly unpredictable and difficult to control.

The political fallout of the disaster started to rumble on Thursday after doubts were raised about the adequacy of warning systems.

Romero said the warnings in Paiporta only arrived when the local river was already overflowing and catching people off guard in the streets, a complaint echoed by 21-year-old Joaquin Rigon.

“Nobody warned of anything… they took out the owner of the bar here dead, drowned, chaos,” Rigon told AFP.

The conservative head of the Valencia region had appeared to shift responsibility to the left-wing central government on Wednesday.

But the interior ministry criticised “erroneous information” on Thursday and said the regions, which have wide powers in Spain’s decentralised political system, are responsible for managing civil protection procedures in emergencies.

(AFP)

Among 20 new measures announced this week, the FFR also plans to introduce drug and alcohol testing. Alcohol is now banned at the national rugby centre in Marcoussis, in stadiums and in changing rooms.

“These are places where players are meant to develop their physical and tactical abilities to the best of their ability,” said FFR vice president Jean-Marc Lhermet.

“The consumption of alcohol is not authorised.”

The decision comes as the French squad began their autumn training sessions at Marcoussis, south of Paris, earlier this week.

Series of scandals

The focus on discipline comes in the wake of a series of high-profile incidents that rocked the French team this year.

In July, fullback Melvyn Jaminet received a 34-week suspension over a racist social media post during their tour in Argentina.

During the same tour, Hugo Auradou and Oscar Jegou were arrested on allegations of sexual assault, which they denied, claiming the encounters were consensual.

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In August, tragedy struck the under-18 French team when player Medhi Narjissi was swept away by a rip tide while swimming in South Africa. His body was never recovered.

National team coach Fabien Galthie has said his players have backed the measures.

“We did a questionnaire, and all the players said yes,” he said. “It was a logical and coherent development in relation to what had happened.”

France are scheduled to play Japan, New Zealand and Argentina next month. 

Eugene Rwamucyo, 65, was accused of aiding his country’s then authorities to disseminate anti-Tutsi propaganda and of participating in mass murder by attempting to destroy evidence of genocide.

Rwamucyo’s trial was the eighth in France relating to the genocide in 1994, when an estimated 800,000 people – mostly ethnic Tutsis – were slaughtered by the Hutu majority.

The former doctor, who practised medicine in France and Belgium after leaving his country, was found guilty of complicity in genocide, complicity in crimes against humanity and conspiring to prepare those crimes.

He was acquitted of charges of genocide and crimes against humanity.

Prosecutors had asked for 30 years in jail.

In his final statement ahead of the verdict Rwamucyo insisted he was innocent.

“I assure you that I did not order the killing of survivors or allow survivors to be killed,” Rwamucyo said.

“I understand the suffering of those who are still looking for their loved ones… but I cannot help them,” he added.

France puts Rwandan doctor on trial for alleged role in 1994 genocide

‘One can kill with words’

Prosecuting lawyer Nicolas Peron had said Rwamucyo should be acquitted on the charge of crimes against humanity, saying there was no evidence to show Rwamucyo himself committed summary executions or acts of torture.

But he said in his closing statement the accused should not “escape his responsibilities” as “one can kill with words”.

Rwamucyo, who grew up in a Hutu family, was approached by anti-Tutsi militants in the late 1980s after his return from studying in Russia, according to prosecutors, who accuse him of then spreading anti-Tutsi propaganda.

While teaching at university, he also participated in the execution of wounded patients and helped bury them in mass graves “in a final effort to destroy evidence of genocide”, the prosecution said, quoting witness statements.

His lawyers say Rwamucyo denies any wrongdoing and argues the accusations are based on his opposition to the current Rwandan government.

His participation in the burial of bodies in mass graves was motivated by the wish to avoid a “health crisis” that would have occurred if they had been left out in the open, the lawyers said.

Following an international arrest warrant issued by Rwanda, Rwamucyo was detained in May 2010 by French police following a tip-off by his colleagues in the Maubeuge hospital in northern France, where he was working at the time.

“He was openly anti-Tutsi and publicly expressed his support for the genocidal government,” said Emmanuel Daoud, a lawyer for LDH and FIDH, two human rights organisations who are among the plaintiffs.

In December 2023, a French court sentenced another former doctor, Sosthene Munyemana, to 24 years in prison for his involvement in the 1994 genocide.

(AFP)

Chouviat, 42, died during a police arrest in January 2020, repeatedly saying: “I’m suffocating”.

The three officers – aged 28, 33 and 38 – were not stood down and continue to perform their duties. They were placed under formal investigation for involuntary manslaughter in 2020 while an investigating judge looked into the case.

A fourth officer, a policewoman, was placed under the more favourable status of “assisted witness” and escapes prosecution.

The prosecutor’s request, made public on Tuesday, seeks to bring the three officers before a criminal court on the charge of involuntary manslaughter.

The information was confirmed by a source close to the case, following an initial report from the investigative website Mediapart.

The decision to send the officers to trial rests with the investigating judge.

Riots in France’s banlieues are over for now, but deep-rooted anger remains

Emblematic case

The case of Chouviat, a delivery man and father of five, became emblematic of police violence in France.

He was pinned to the ground during a police check in Paris, still wearing his motorcycle helmet.

According to reports, Chouviat was restrained and handcuffed behind his back for one and a half minutes without the officers checking his condition.

Witness footage reportedly shows Chouviat’s legs moving up and down before he fainted. He was taken to the hospital in critical condition and died two days later, on 5 January.

Revelations from the forensic report showed that Chouviat said “I’m suffocating” nine times in 13 seconds before losing consciousness.

His pleas were similar to those of George Floyd, an African-American man who died during an arrest in Minneapolis in May 2020 – a case that fuelled the Black Lives Matter protests in the United States.

French police questioned over death of Paris delivery man during arrest

Warning signs unnoticed

Throughout the investigation, the police officers claimed they had believed Chouviat was “continuously rebelling” against his arrest.

“If we had heard the expression ‘I’m suffocating’ even once, we would have stopped,” one officer testified to the judge in July 2020.

However, witnesses interpreted Chouviat’s actions as signs of distress, and footage shows the officers continuing regardless.

Investigators noted the officers were trained to recognise such warning signs.

For the Chouviat family’s lawyers, an involuntary manslaughter charge does not fully capture the intent behind the actions.

“A strangulation hold is by nature deliberate,” said family lawyer Arié Alimi, adding: “If the charge remains involuntary manslaughter, the risk of acquittal is high.”

According to a UN report released on Wednesday, 1,223 people were killed and 522 injured as a result of gang violence and the fight against gangs.

“This represents a 32 percent drop in killings and injuries compared with the first quarter, but an increase of 27 percent compared with the second quarter,” it said.

Almost half of the deaths were attributed to gangs, but some 45 percent were reportedly the result of law enforcement operations.

“At least 106 extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions were carried out by law enforcement officials … Among the victims were six children aged approximately ten years old,” the report said.

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The report also highlighted a 40 percent increase in the number of acts of violence committed by self-defence groups or unorganised members of the population, known as the “Bwa Kale” vigilante movement.

They made up some 8 percent of the overall killings.

At “least 122 individuals – either presumed gang members or accused of common crimes, including animal or telephone theft – were killed with extreme brutality by the population,” the report stated.

“During these incidents, victims were mutilated with machetes, stoned, decapitated, burned alive or buried alive,” it continued.

“Children were not spared. One of the most violent incidents took place in the locality of Les Palmes, in the commune of Petit Goave, where, on 5 September, a 15-year-old boy, accused of stealing a pig, was hit with a machete before being buried alive.”

The report also said 170 people were kidnapped during those months and the persistent use of sexual violence against women and girls continues.

The Auteuil stand at the Parc des Princes stadium in Paris will be partially closed for one match to punish fans over homophobic chants during a recent match against Strasbourg.

The sanction takes effect from 5 November, so the stand will be fully open for PSG’s match against Lens this Saturday, but remain shut when PSG hosts Toulouse on 22 November.

On 19 October, the team’s so-called “Ultras” fans chanted homophobic slogans for around 10 minutes during a match against Strasbourg.

The slogans were taken up by a large part of the crowd at Parc des Princes. The stadium announcer intervened twice to stop them, to no avail. 

PSG fans face scrutiny after alleged homophobic chants during Strasbourg clash

Ringleaders identified

Five days after the match, Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau announced that two ringleaders who initiated the chant had been identified. No arrests have been made, however.

Following the chants, PSG “reaffirmed its commitment against all forms of discrimination, including homophobia”, adding that it was taking “all necessary measures, before and during matches, to ensure that the Parc des Princes remains an inclusive venue for all”.

Last week, a meeting dedicated to tackling homophobia was held at the Ministry of the Interior with the French football authorities and Sports Minister Gil Avérous. 

France vows ‘firm response’ to homophobic chants at football match

It was pointed out that in the event of homophobic chanting, a match should be stopped, as set out in a Fifa circular dating back to the 2019-20 season. 

But this measure was criticised by Retailleau, who favoured a “temporary interruption”.

“If there are homophobic chants,” he said, ”the sporting movement must take its responsibilities, there must be a temporary interruption. Stopping matches is very complicated, it’s not the right solution.”

In 2023, the LFP’s Disciplinary Committee also sanctioned PSG for similar offences by closing the tribune completely for one match and one match suspended.

Bajolet is alleged to have instructed agents working for the DGSE, which he led from 2013 to 2017, to pressure entrepreneur Alain Duménil, with whom the agency was engaged in a lengthy dispute.

Duménil claims he was detained at a Paris airport as he prepared to board a flight and threatened with harm to himself and his family unless he handed over 15 million euros, an account the DGSE contests.

Now a judge has ruled there is sufficient evidence to try Bajolet for complicity in attempted extortion over the 2016 incident, according to a ruling seen on Tuesday by the news agency AFP. 

It orders him to appear in criminal court outside Paris, where he will face the charge of “arbitrary infringement of individual liberty as a holder of public authority”.

Shadowy fortune

The case has provided a rare glimpse into the financial interests of the DGSE, which is entrusted with managing a war chest designed to secure the state in the event of a national emergency. 

Seeded by the damages paid to France after World War I, the capital was kept separate from the agency’s operational budget and placed in investments that helped it grow substantially over the decades.

But by the turn of the century, with little external oversight to monitor them, the DGSE’s investments had turned risky and were losing it considerable sums, according to an investigation by Le Monde. 

Seeking to extricate itself from loss-making companies and recover its funds, the service entered into a deal to exchange shares with Duménil in the early 2000s.

But the French-Swiss businessman – who has since been sanctioned for tax fraud and other wrongdoing – promptly transferred the remaining assets and liquidated their holding companies, leaving the DGSE with now worthless shares.

French spy agency emerges from shadows with first website

‘You robbed the government’

The agency pursued the case in the courts for over a decade, but failed to recoup a loss it estimates at some 15 million euros.

In March 2016, Duménil alleges, the DGSE resorted to shadier means.

According to statements to investigators seen by Le Monde, he claims he was stopped by border police at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris and handed over to two plain-clothes DGSE agents.

“‘You robbed the government of 13 million, which today makes 15 million with interest’,” Duménil said one of the agents told him. “‘You have to give it back to us’… He was very threatening, talking about me ending up in a wheelchair or worse.” 

The businessman says the agents also showed him pictures of his family and friends: “They wanted to make me understand that they could also go after any of these people.” 

Spy agency on trial

Duménil was allowed to leave and subsequently filed a complaint, which has been dismissed several times but allowed to stand on appeal. 

While the identity of the DGSE agents remains classified, director Bajolet was indicted in late 2022 for allegedly ordering their actions. 

A career diplomat, he acknowledges approving the plan to intercept Duménil at the airport, but told investigators he did not give detailed instructions and hoped only to revive discussions between each side’s lawyers. 

The DGSE denies Duménil was ever detained or threatened. It has not commented on the latest developments in the case.

Bajolet’s trial, for which a date has not yet been set, threatens to bring the agency further scrutiny.

After the judge’s ruling on 23 October, Duménil’s lawyers William Bourdon and Nicolas Huc-Morel said in a statement: “Beyond the trial of Bernard Bajolet, this will be the trial of the DGSE and the twisting of its work to private ends.”

French military spy agency celebrates 30th birthday as war rages on

October and November are set to host a series of events celebrating African art across the continent, in Europe and even farther afield.

Spotlight on Africa dives into perspectives from diverse African cultures, focusing on the voices and visions of the diaspora.

RFI journalists Ollia Horton and Melissa Chemam take us to the heart of two major art fairs: Paris’s Also Known As Africa (AKAA) and London’s 1:54 Contemporary African Art Fair.

Listeners will hear from Victoria Mann, founder and director of AKAA, and artist Christelle Clairville, whose work brings Caribbean influences to the dialogue around African identity.

French-Belgo-Congolese artist Tiffanie Delune, exhibiting in London, shares her journey through the art world.

Curators Grada Kilomba and Helio Menezes weigh in from the Sao Paulo Biennial in Brazil. Meanwhile, ahead of the Dakar Biennale, French-Algerian artist Dalila Dalleas Bouzar discusses her preparation and the importance of the event to her work.

Episode mixed by Hadrien Touraud and Erwan Rome.

Spotlight on Africa is a podcast from Radio France Internationale.

Libya resumed oil exports this month after a pause caused by a dispute over control of the country’s central bank, which oversees oil exports.

“This was a serious crisis,” said Jalel Harchaoui from the Royal United Services Institute. “And while it’s partly fixed, there are still issues that need attention.”

The row between Libya’s two rival administrations which led to the temporary halt, was only resolved by intense negotiations, but Harchaoui claims the conflict’s repercussions continue.

Newly reconciled, Turkey and Egypt could be a force for stability in Africa

“A lot of players, including armed groups in Tripoli, are trying to take advantage of whatever has happened over the last several weeks. So I’m not describing a scenario of war, but I’m describing a more volatile environment,” he said.

Turkish-Egyptian relations

However, a recent rapprochement between Egypt and Turkey could offer hope of easing Libyan tensions.

“We agreed to consult between our institutions to achieve security and political stability,” pledged Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi at a press conference last month in Ankara with his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan. 

Libya once was a point of Turkish-Egyptian rivalry, with Cairo backing the eastern Libyan administration in Benghazi of Khalifa Haftar and Ankara supporting the western Tripoli-based Government of National Unity. Now, Egyptian-Turkish collaboration is key to resolving the latest Libyan crisis.

“Both countries can push the Tripoli-based government at least to accept something or come to the least terms that they can agree,” said Murat Aslan of the SETA Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research, a pro-Turkish government think tank. “So it’s a win-win situation for both Egypt and Turkey.”

Economic crises

With both the Turkish and Egyptian economies in crisis, the economic benefits of cooperating in Libya are seen as a powerful force behind the country’s rapprochement and Libyan collaboration.

Fighting between rival militias in Libya kills dozens

“These two countries are very important to one another,” said Aya Burweila, a Libyan security analyst

“They’ve figured out a way to divide spheres and work together. Even in the east now, Turkish companies have cut lucrative deals, infrastructure deals, just as Egypt has.

“So economy and money drive a lot of these political friendships and reapportionment.”

Ankara is looking to Cairo to use its influence over Hafta to support an agreement it made with the Tripoli-based Government of National Unity to explore widely believed energy reserves in Libyan waters.

Libya’s stability at greater risk with turmoil in Niger and Sudan, UN warns

At the same time, Cairo is pressing to remove Ankara-supported Prime Minister Abdul Hamid Dbeibeh of Libya’s Government of National Unity. Despite differences, Harchaoui says Cairo and Ankara are committed to cooperation.

“What has already been decided is that they are going to speak and they are going to speak on a daily basis,” said Harchaoui.

“And then at every crucial moment, they are going to make sure and Turkey, specifically, is going to make sure that Egypt is on board.

“But we need more tangible results from the dialogue that has already been in place,” he added.

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.

It’s time for you to start thinking about your New Year’s resolutions for our annual New Year’s Day show. If you’ve already made up your mind about what you’ll aim for in 2025, go ahead and send it to us … if not, be sure you send us your resolution – or resolutions if you are really ambitious! – by 15 December.

Mark your calendars now for 12 December, 6 PM Paris time – that’s when the winners of the ePOP video competition will be announced, live on the ePOP Facebook page. My good pals Max Bale and Gaël Flaugère, who run the Planète Radio department that sponsors ePOP, invited me to come on the show and talk to you for a few minutes, in English. So plan to stay up late or get up early on 12 December, beloved listeners!

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

This week’s quiz:  On Alison Hird and Sarah Elzas’ Spotlight on France podcast no 115, Alison produced a piece on France’s current governmental crisis, and the lack of an ability in the French political landscape to compromise – as Alison noted: “France does not have the tradition of coalition building more commonly found in Germany, Switzerland and the Nordic countries.”

As social scientist Loïc Blondiaux told Le Monde: “The idea of deliberation – organised, reasoned debate in the form of an exchange of arguments – has never had the force and legitimacy in France that it has in other countries … a specific trait of our political culture is, on the contrary, contempt for consensus. Compromise is often seen as synonymous with giving in and weakness.”

I asked you to re-listen to Alison’s report, and send in the answer to this question: How many political groups are there in France’s National Assembly?

The answer is: As Laure Gillot-Assayag, a researcher in political science and philosophy told Alison: “There are 11 political groups in the National Assembly, it’s a record … a culture of compromise is more necessary than ever if the government is to function in such a deeply divided political landscape.”

In addition to the quiz question, there was the bonus question: “What is the most wonderful thing you’ve ever seen in a museum?”

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

The winners are: Saleem Akhtar, the president of the RFI Seven Stars Radio Listening Club in District Chiniot, Pakistan. Saleem is also the winner of this week’s bonus question. Congratulations, Saleem!

Also on the list of lucky winners this week are Sakirun Islam Mitu, a member of the RFI Amour Fan Club in Rajshahi, Bangladesh; also from Rajshahi, RFI English listener Sumaiya Akter, a member of the World Dx International Radio Fan Club.

Rounding out this week’s list of lucky winners are Ferhat Bezazel, the president of the RFI Butterflies Club Ain Kechera in West Skikda, Algeria, and finally, RFI English listener Abdul Rehman, a member of the International Radio Fan and Youth Club in Khanewal, Pakistan.

Here’s the music you heard on this week’s programme: “Take a Hike” by Rik Carter and Phil Brown; “Galerie” by Bruno Letort; “The Flight of the Bumblebee” by Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov; “The Cakewalk” from Children’s Corner by Claude Debussy, performed by the composer, and “Identité” by Gaël Horellou, performed by Horellou 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, re-read Amanda Morrow’s article “Ecosystems hang in the balance as Colombia hosts crucial biodiversity talks”, which will help you with the answer.

You have until 18 November to enter this week’s quiz; the winners will be announced on the 23 November podcast. When you enter be sure to send your postal address with your answer, and if you have one, your RFI Listeners Club membership number.

Send your answers to:

english.service@rfi.fr

or

Susan Owensby

RFI – The Sound Kitchen

80, rue Camille Desmoulins

92130 Issy-les-Moulineaux

France

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

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

On October 11, Fitch’s decision to downgrade France’s economic outlook to “negative” serves as a warning to Prime Minister Michel Barnier, who is struggling to push his 2025 budget through parliament. The credit agency’s assessment signals a potential downgrade if the government fails to take swift action to improve public finances.

France’s fiscal situation appears increasingly precarious. The deficit, now at €167 billion (5.5 percent of GDP), could  surpass 6 percent  by year’s end. With national debt projected to hit €3.5 trillion, or 114.7 percent of GDP, France is far beyond EU limits.

France braces for economic judgment amid political turmoil and record debt

EU rules require member states to keep budget deficits below 3 percent of GDP and debt under 60 percent of GDP.

Fitch predicts that the deficit will hover around 5.4% in both 2025 and 2026 due to ongoing political uncertainty and the challenges in implementing fiscal reforms. The agency believes the budget could pass before the year’s end, but the government may need to make concessions to win support from opposition parties. 

All eyes are now on Moody’s which will reveal its judgement on France’s economy and credit-worthiness on 25 October. 

Meanwhile, Finance Minister Antoine Armand emphasised the government’s commitment to improving the economy following Fitch’s assessment, but will that be enough?

RFI spoke to Erik Norland, Chief Economist with the Chicago-based CMEGroup about the possible scenarios France’s economic planners are facing.

Over 405,000 people – both Lebanese and Syrian – have crossed into Syria from Lebanon since the start of Israel’s offensive, according to figures from UN refugee agency UNHCR.

Approximately 60 percent are under 18, UN spokesman Farhan Haq said on Thursday, and most are struggling to meet basic needs.

The returnees are mainly people who had sought sanctuary in Lebanon from the civil war in Syria, now in its 13th year. “In Lebanon, there have been nearly one million Syrian refugees just since 2011,” says Metin Corabatir of the Research Centre on Asylum and Migration, an Ankara-based NGO.

He warns this could be just the beginning of the exodus if the fighting in Lebanon continues, threatening to overwhelm Syria.

“We are not talking only about Syrian refugees going back to Syria, but the Lebanese population is moving, crossing the border to Syria. And Syria would either try to close the borders or force them to go north to the Turkish borders,” Corabatir told RFI.

“This really would lead to a catastrophic situation for people, for countries and may pull Turkey into more tensions with Israel.”

Anti-refugee backlash

People fleeing Lebanon have been arriving at refugee camps in north-east Syria, close to the Turkish border. But Turkey, already hosting an estimated five million refugees, including over three million Syrians, is facing growing public backlash over their presence.

“Turkey basically cannot handle more refugees,” warns Ozgur Unluhisarcikli, head of the Ankara office of the German Marshall Fund of the United States, an international think tank.

Earlier this year, tensions spilled over into violence against refugees in the provincial city of Kayseri. The issue has become a significant political liability for the government, with opinion polls routinely finding large majorities wanting refugees to leave.

Even if the country has the practical capacity to take more people in, “I don’t see Turkey accepting a massive new wave of refugees”, predicts Unluhisarcikli. 

Turkey’s Syrian refugees face local hostility as economic problems mount

Border barricades

In the last couple of years, Ankara has constructed a wall along its border with Syria in a bid to prevent more refugees from entering Turkey. 

Murat Aslan, of the pro-government Seta Foundation for Political, Economic and Social Research, believes such efforts will only continue as the war in the Middle East threatens to trigger a new exodus.

“Turkey does not want any further waves coming from another region because Turkey is just experiencing and mending an economic crisis,” he says. “Inflation is currently under control, and we expect a decrease in it.

“What does another wave of refugees mean? A lot of spending, a lot of inflation, and other than this, societal insecurity. That’s why Turkey will not tolerate another wave.”  

But such a stance will likely be tested if Israel continues its offensive, creating more refugees and with them, the risk of Turkey facing a humanitarian crisis on its border.

Turkey continues to host more refugees than anyone else, but for how long?

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.

It’s time for you to start thinking about your New Year’s resolutions for our annual New Year’s Day show. If you’ve already made up your mind about what you’ll aim for in 2025, go ahead and send it to us … if not, be sure you send us your resolution – or resolutions if you are really ambitious! – by 15 December.

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 21 September, I asked you a question about a gender equality plan at France’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  We reported on that plan in our article “France’s foreign ministry unveils two-year gender equality strategy”.

You were to re-read the article and send in the answer to this question: What is the Foreign Ministry’s goal for promoting women to important posts? What is the percentage they are aiming for?

The answer is, to quote our article: “According to the ministry, this year more than 45 percent of ambassadors appointed for the first time will be women, while among newly-appointed consuls-general, over 40 percent will also be women.” 

In addition to the quiz question, there was the bonus question: “How would you define a truly happy person?”, which was suggested by Sabah Binte Sumaiya from Bogura, Bangladesh:

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

The winners are: RFI Listeners Club member Hans Verner Lollike from Hedehusene, Denmark. Hans is also this week’s bonus question winner. Congratulations, Hans, on your double win.

Also on the list of lucky winners this week are RFI Listeners Club members Samir Mukhopadhyay from Kolkata, India; Mizanur Rahman from Dhaka, Bangladesh, and Faiza Zainab – who’s also a member of the International Radio Fan and Youth Club in Khanewal, Pakistan.

Last but certainly not least, RFI English listener Tafriha Tahura from Munshiganj, Bangladesh.

Here’s the music you heard on this week’s programme: “Mazurka no. 4″ by Frédéric Chopin, arranged by Serge Forté and performed by the Serge Forté Trio; “Threnody for the Victims of Hiroshima” by Krzysztof Penderecki, performed by Antoni Wit and the National Polish Radio Symphony Orchestra; “La Grande Galerie de la Zoologie” by Philippe Hersant, performed by the Ensemble Bestiaire Fabuleux; “The Flight of the Bumblebee” by Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov; “The Cakewalk” from Children’s Corner by Claude Debussy, performed by the composer, and “Don’t Worry, Be Happy” by Bobby McFerrin, performed by McFerrin.

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

This week’s question … you must listen to the show to participate. After you’ve listened to the show, re-read Paul Myers’ article “Kenya’s Ruth Chepngetich sets women’s world record at Chicago Marathon”, which will help you with the answer.

You have until 11 November to enter this week’s quiz; the winners will be announced on the 16 November 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,  

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.