Friday evening’s attack in the central city of Magdeburg shocked the country and stirred up tensions over the charged issue of immigration.

The suspect, who was in custody, is a 50-year-old psychiatrist from Saudi Arabia with a history of anti-Islamic rhetoric who has lived in Germany for almost two decades.

The motive for the attack remains unclear.

There were scuffles and some “minor disturbances” at a far-right demonstration attended by around 2,100 people on Saturday night in Magdeburg, police said.

They added that criminal proceedings would follow, but did not give details.

Protesters, some wearing black balaclavas, held up a large banner with the word “remigration”, a term popular with supporters of the far right who seek the mass deportation of immigrants and people deemed not ethnically German.

Other residents gathered to pay their respects to the dead.

A magistrate has ordered the suspect – identified in German media as Taleb A. – into pretrial custody on charges of murder on five counts as well as multiple counts of attempted murder and grievous bodily harm, police said in a statement.

Those killed were a nine-year-old boy and four women, the police statement said.

Among the wounded, around 40 have serious or critical injuries.

Authorities said the suspected attacker used emergency exit points to drive onto the grounds of the Christmas market, where he picked up speed and ploughed into the crowds, hitting more than 200 people in a three-minute attack.

He was arrested at the scene.

German authorities have not named the suspect and German media reports have given his name only as Taleb A. in keeping with local privacy laws.

France ‘shares the pain of the German people’ as death toll from Christmas market attack rises

Motive unclear

As authorities investigated a possible motive, the Magdeburg prosecutor, Horst Nopens, said on Saturday that one possible factor could be what he called the suspect’s frustration with Germany’s handling of Saudi refugees.

The suspect had been strongly critical of Islam in the past and had appeared in a number of media interviews in 2019 reporting on his work helping Saudi Arabians who had turned their back on Islam to flee to Europe.

He had also voiced support on social media platform X for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party and for US billionaire Elon Musk, who has backed the AfD.

The AfD has strong support in the former East Germany where Magdeburg is located. Opinion polls put it in second place nationally ahead of elections in February.

Its members, including the candidate for chancellor Alice Weidel, planned a rally in Magdeburg on Monday evening.

Saudi Arabia had repeatedly flagged to Germany concerns over posts on the suspect’s social media, according to a Saudi source and a German security source.

The Christian Democrats, Germany’s main opposition party, and the Free Democrats, who were part of the coalition government until its collapse last month, called for improvements to Germany’s security apparatus, including better coordination between federal and state authorities.

“The background must be clarified. But above all, we must do more to prevent such offences, especially as there were obviously specific warnings and tips in this case that were ignored,” Sahra Wagenknecht, leader of the leftist BSW party, told the Welt newspaper.

The BSW, a new political party with far-left roots, has also condemned unchecked immigration and has gained considerable support ahead of the 23 February election.

Chancellor Olaf Scholz, whose Social Democrats are trailing in opinion polls, attended a service for victims in Magdeburg’s cathedral on Saturday.

France’s new Prime Minister Francois Bayrou, appointed on 13 December, is racing to name a new government by Christmas, with news of his cabinet picks eagerly expected.

Meanwhile, France will observe a national day of mourning on Monday for the victims of the disaster in the Indian Ocean archipelago of Mayotte, where at least 35 people were killed – a death toll the authorities have warned could soar.

Bayrou, the 73-year-old head of the centrist MoDem group, which is allied to Macron’s party, pressed ahead with consultations over the weekend.

“We are making progress,” Marc Fesneau of the MoDem group said in an interview with La Tribune Dimanche economics weekly, confirming that the full makeup of the government should be presented “in one go” and “before Christmas”.

Bayrou’s most immediate priority is to make sure his government survives a no-confidence vote and passes a budget for next year.

He is hoping to bring in high-profile figures from the left, right and centre in a bid to protect his government from possible censure.

Earlier this month the far right and left wing joined forces to eject Bayrou’s predecessor, Michel Barnier, from office, making his the shortest stint as prime minister in France’s Fifth Republic, which began in 1958.

France has been mired in deadlock since Macron gambled on snap elections this summer in the hopes of bolstering his authority. The move backfired, with voters returning a parliament fractured between three rival blocs.

Many commentators are already predicting Bayrou’s premiership will be short-lived.

Bayrou is the sixth prime minister of Macron’s mandate, and the fourth of 2024.

Each has served for a shorter period than the last.

François Bayrou named French prime minister as Macron seeks stability

Historically low rating

Bayrou has endured a tumultuous first week as premier, not least after facing a barrage of criticism for attending a town hall meeting in the Pyrenees city of Pau, of which he remains mayor, while Mayotte was grappling with the catastrophic aftermath of Cyclone Chido.

Even before Bayrou has properly started his job, a new poll carried out by Ifop for the French weekly Journal du Dimanche found 66 percent of respondents were unhappy with his performance.

Only 34 percent said they were satisfied or very satisfied with their new head of government.

Going back decades to 1959, Ifop said it had not seen such a low rating for a prime minister getting started in the job.

Bayrou has warned of the peril ahead if his government falls.

“If we fail in this attempt, then this is the last stop before the cliff,” he said.

French lawmakers oust Prime Minister Barnier after just three months in office

Michel Barnier was brought down over his failure to win support for a budget to shore up France’s shaky finances with spending cuts and tax rises to reduce the deficit.

Hard-left firebrand Jean-Luc Melenchon of the France Unbowed party has vowed to table a motion of no confidence when Bayrou gives a policy speech to parliament on 14 January.

Earlier last week Socialist Party leader Olivier Faure said he was disappointed by his meeting with Bayrou, adding he was “appalled at the poverty” of what had been proposed.

“My father was enslaved and he obeyed … everything they (enslavers) told him to do he did,” Costa said at her home in Santos, the coastal Brazilian city where her father ended up after the brutal voyage across the Atlantic.

From the 16th to the 19th century, Brazil received around five million enslaved Africans, more than any other country. Most were forcibly transported in inhumane conditions from Angola, in West Africa, aboard Portuguese vessels.

The organisers of “A Grande Travessia”, or the Great Passage, are seeking to charter a cruise ship to depart from Santos and stop in Rio de Janeiro and Salvador before making its way to Luanda, Angola‘s capital.

Artistic exchange between Brazil and Angola aims to reclaim colonial ties

Dagoberto Jose Fonseca, 63, a professor at Sao Paulo’s State University UNESP, is the mastermind behind the cruise, which is planned for 1 to 21 December 2025.

“We want to resume the maritime routes of the past to build another future,” Fonseca said.

Fonseca has been in talks with Angolan and Brazilian authorities, who support the initiative, and with cruise companies. Financial support will be required to charter the cruise ship.

Anielle Franco, Brazil’s minister of racial equality, said the project was aligned with the government’s “Rotas Negras” or Black Routes programme, which promotes tourism that values Afro-Brazilian history and culture.

‘Rebuild past’

The project envisages inviting around 2,000 passengers, including students, academics, business people, descendants of those enslaved and leaders of Afro-Brazilian religions.

Planned activities onboard include workshops, roundtables, networking opportunities and tributes to the over 2.5 million who lost their lives in the gruelling “Middle Passage”.

“My expectation is to learn about my past,” said Mary Francisca do Careno, one of the black academics set to go on the cruise, who said she hopes the trip would provide answers to questions she has about her heritage.

Afonso Vita, an Angolan expert on slavery heritage tourism, said the cruise would help his country confront its past and accused former coloniser Portugal of trying to avoid the topic.

“The country that colonised us, Portugal, never had any interest in seeing this history, which tarnishes its image, discussed publicly,” Vita said.

How Portugal’s Carnation Revolution changed the fate of its colonies in Africa

Earlier this year, Portugal’s President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said his country was responsible for crimes committed during transatlantic slavery and the colonial era, and suggested there was a need for reparations.

But the Portuguese government has rejected initiating any reparation process.

Both Vita and Fonseca urged the Portuguese government to get involved in the cruise project.

Portugal’s economy ministry, which oversees tourism, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Organisers see the cruise as part of a wider movement fighting for reparations over transatlantic slavery and European colonialism.

How could countries finance reparations for historical injustices?

The debate over whether there should be reparations to address historical wrongs and their legacies is long-standing and remains highly divisive, but support for reparations has been gaining momentum worldwide.

“A project such as this … invites us to reflect on reparations, as well as on the recognition and strengthening of the identity of black people,” Brazil’s Franco said.

French President Emmanuel Macron has expressed his “profound shock” at a tragic ramming attack at a German Christmas market, voicing his solidarity with Germany in their time of grief.

The incident, which took place on Friday evening in the town of Magdeburg, claimed the lives of at least five individuals – including a young child – and has left over 200 injured.

Posting on X, Macron remarked: “I share the pain of the German people.”

A 50-year-old Saudi man, who has reportedly been living and working in Germany as a doctor for over 20 years, was apprehended at the scene in connection with the attack.

The governor of Saxony-Anhalt, Reiner Haseloff, confirmed that the initial death toll of two had risen to five and highlighted the severity of the injuries sustained by nearly 200 individuals, with Chancellor Olaf Scholz noting that 40 are in a critical condition.

Saudi suspect in custody

Media outlets have reportedly identified the suspect as Taleb A., a former psychiatrist known for his anti-Islam rhetoric on social media.

The former Muslim allegedly criticised Islam and supported far-right, anti-immigrant sentiments, including those of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.

His online activities portrayed him as an advocate for Saudi women fleeing oppression, and he was vocal about his theory that German authorities mistreat Saudi asylum seekers.

The attack has stunned Germany, prompting grief and fear in a country already familiar with extremist violence.

Such incidents have led to heightened security measures in Christmas markets across Germany.

Nine dead in ‘xenophobic’ Germany bar shootings

French probe Berlin killers’ travels

Security reinforced across Germany

Law enforcement, following rigorous precautions, have maintained a strong presence around the vicinity of the attack, securing the area with officers and police vans stationed at regular intervals.

Verified footage captured the suspect’s arrest at a tram stop, where armed police quickly detained him.

Chancellor Scholz and Interior Minister Nancy Faeser visited Magdeburg, around 150km west of Berlin, on Saturday in a show of support.

A memorial service was arranged at the city cathedral, and flags were ordered to fly at half-mast as a mark of respect for the victims.

The tragedy has rekindled painful memories of past extremist attacks in Germany, most notably the 2016 truck attack in Berlin’s Christmas market, which claimed 12 lives and injured 56 more.

An apt moment indeed in the Moroccan city to muse on the slings and arrows of footballing fortune. 

In September 2020, just over 18 months after leaving the English Premier League team Everton for a five-year contract with the German outfit RB Leipzig, Lookman was back in England’s top flight playing on loan for Fulham.

In August 2021, he joined Leicester City on loan and a year later he signed for Gian Piero Gasperini’s all-action Atalanta side in Italy’s Serie A. 

“For those of us who have seen him in the Premier League, he really didn’t look great for Everton for all of the three years he was there,” said Jonathan Wilson, editor of the football magazine The Blizzard.

“And then he went to Fulham where he’s most famous for a terrible penalty miss, an attempted Panenka that went wrong. At Leicester, again, he’s OK. It’s a half a dozen goals, but it’s only really under Gasperini that he’s really taken off.”

Lookman travelled with the Nigeria squad to the delayed 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in Cote d’Ivoire as one of the sideshows to star striker Victor Osimhen who justified the hype with the equaliser in the 1-1 draw against Equatorial Guinea in Nigeria’s opening game in Group A.

Skipper William Ekong blasted home the winner from the penalty spot in the second pool game against hosts Cote d’Ivoire and an own-goal gave them victory against Guinea Bissau to take Nigeria through to the knockout stages.

With sudden death roving the firmament, Lookman came alive. He bagged a brace in the last-16 defeat of Cameroon. And he scored the only goal of the game in the quarter-final against Angola.

“He fully deserves the award,” said Angola coach Pedro Gonçalves munificently. “Unfortunately we were at the wrong end of his ability during the Cup of Nations and were knocked out of the competition.

“I didn’t really know of him before he went to Fulham – that’s when I first saw him. He has developed into a tremendous player.”

Though Cote d’Ivoire outwitted the Nigerians in the final, Lookman emerged from the Cup of Nations in the team of the tournament and with his own reputation enhanced.

A few months later, he wrote himself a page in Atalanta’s and European football folklore with all of his side’s goals in the 3-0 defeat against a hitherto unbeaten Bayer Leverkusen in the Europa League final.

It was Atalanta’s first European title in their 117-year history as Lookman became only the sixth player to score a hat trick in the final of a European club competition.

Wilson added: “I understand that people – whether they’re Premier League viewers or whether they’re Nigerians hadn’t quite taken him seriously.

“We didn’t quite realise how good he was because really the form he’s showing has only come since his time at Atalanta. The scepticism has been entirely reasonable.”

Winning the player of the year title is likely to fuel rumours that the Londoner might be on his way back to the Premier League.

“I hope that at least he sees out this season with Atalanta,” Wilson added. “Just because I think this season really could be extraordinary for Atalanta. They’re at the top of the Serie A table at the moment and it’s not impossible that they win Serie A for the first time. And why would you as a footballer not want to be part of that?

“I remember after the Europa League final, Lookman was very clear on what he owed Gasperini. I think he’s very aware that Gasperini has unlocked something in him or provided him with the environment where he can produce this form.

“So I don’t think he’s sort of looking down on Atalanta in any way. But there is an economic reality there that Atalanta cannot pay as much as the biggest teams like PSG, Manchester United or Chelsea.

“After three years in Italy, I think that’s fair. I think that’s a reasonable career progression to then move to a United or a Chelsea.”

On a national team level, Nigeria’s place at the 2025 Cup of Nations in Morocco has been secured but they face an array of tricky encounters in their push to qualify for the 2026 World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

After four of the 10 qualifying games, Nigeria lie in fifth place in Group C with three points.

Cote d’Ivoire, who claimed the Cup of Nations under Emerse Faé, head their 2026 World Cup qualifying pool with 10 points from a possible 12.

Both Faé and the national side were hailed at the same awards ceremony as Lookman as the coach of the year and team of the year respectively for their exploits at the Cup of Nations.

“These things are always subjective,” Wilson added. “I never am sure how seriously we should take them. I’m never entirely clear what they’re meant to be rewarding but I don’t think any of the awards that have been given stick out as being obviously wrong.

“You know, I think Lookman has been brilliant. No complaints about him winning it. Equally Emerse Faé and equally Cote d’Ivoire, they’ve all had exceptional years. You could make a case for other people but I don’t think you can really complain about these winners.”

Christelle Clairville named her gallery after her great-grandfather, a cabinet maker who she admired for his creative spirit. Now, after just three years, she has 20 artists under her wing.

Clairville is on a mission to change perceptions of Caribbean art, often seen as little more than colourful or exotic, inviting viewers to question stereotypes and rethink cultural symbols. 

“I worked in the start-up ecosystem for 10 years, and in each company I was going to I was hearing the same nonsense about my home island,” she told RFI. “People were saying we were maybe a bit slower, or studying in the West Indies might be easier than studying in mainland France. I was unaware of this way of thinking until now, and at some point I decided I could show something different from the Caribbean.”

She was delighted when her first time at the annual Also Known as Africa (AKAA) contemporary art fair in Paris in October coincided with this year’s theme of Caribbean art and its links to the African diaspora.

Artists join scientists at sea to unveil mysteries of marine life

Caribbean connections

“I created Maison Gaston as a Creole art house and I really intend to find artists with a connection to the Caribbean, whether they lived there or have been living there or they have roots there.”

She now represents around 20 artists and designers who, each in their own way, “question the relationship with the world as islanders, and who explore the racial interactions inherited from history”.

Clairville chose to showcase two artists in particular at AKAA – sculptor Florence Gossec, who shares a family connection with Guadeloupe, and painter Alain Joséphine from Martinique.

The theme of “lush vegetation” links the artists, with Gossec’s country flowers rendered in delicate brass sitting beside Joséphine’s bright, breezy abstract pieces.

‘Platform for discovery’

Gossec’s work caught Clairville’s eye three years ago in Orléans, just south of Paris, where the artist has her workshop. Although her father is from Guadeloupe, Gossec has only been there twice in her life.

While the artist says she’s not obviously influenced by her heritage, Clairville feels differently. She sees “a resonance, an echo of the West Indies” in Gossec’s work – a deep connection to nature, which she feels is one of the strengths of Creole art.

The concept for Maison Gaston may have been born in Guadeloupe, but the project has its sights set on the Caribbean diaspora worldwide thanks to the fact that it is an online operation. With no fixed gallery space, Clairville travels from place to place to promote the works.

Artist’s quest to honour hidden heroes of fight against French slavery

Building bridges

For Victoria Mann, founder of AKAA, it was important to take “the notion of geography out of the equation” and focus on creating “a platform for discovery”.

Rather than include artists because they’re from a certain country, AKAA aims to draw out the links claimed by each artist to the African continent through their practice, be it via history, heritage, memory or lineage, Mann explained.

“That is what we love about having the public come once a year into this space, to show things we haven’t seen before. The art scene from the Caribbean is not well known, even art from the French territories is not well known, so for us it was a beautiful opportunity,” she added.

Tripping the light fantastic as art meets dance at hybrid exhibition

For Clairville, art and beauty are powerful tools with which to pique people’s interest in the Caribbean region.

“For me art is a way to build bridges between two people. It’s a way to create compassion and understanding, because when they are moved by the work, then they will see the artist and the islands differently.”

Under the medical cannabis trial, rolled out in March 2021, patients suffering from serious pathologies were prescribed active cannabis-derived substances in the form of essential oils to be taken orally, or of cannabis flowers for vaping.

The experiement was due to end on 31 December 2024, but at a meeting on Thursday between patient associations and the health authorities, the Ministry of Health gave the green light for it to run for a further six months, FranceInfo reported. 

The extension will be granted only “with a view to weaning patients off the drug or finding alternatives”, the resigning Health Minister, Geneviève Darrieussecq, wrote in the letter enabling the decision.

Patients hopeful for France’s medical cannabis experiment

Cannabis is banned  in France, even for medical purposes, but patients associations have long been lobbying to get it cleared for use to relieve chronic pain.

At the time of the launch, doctor and pharmacologist Nicolas Authier told RFI the experiment was a “rather unique” way of administering medication. 

But he said the experiment was necessary given there remained strong opposition in parliament to a change in the law, despite a growing majority of French people supporting its legalisation.

Medical cannabis is legal in 33 countries, with South American nations leading the way.

Uruguay was the first to legalise it and, along with the Netherlands, Canada and Israel, supplies much of the cannabis oil used in medical treatments.

Pogba, 31, has been linked with several clubs since the Italian giants Juventus said last month that they no longer wanted his services when his punishment ends next March.

The Fatal Model agency said on social media that it was in talks with Corinthians to land the midfielder.

“Can you imagine seeing the French star wearing the Timão shirt?” said the message referring to one of the club’s nicknames. “Our proposal is to help make this dream come true.”

The club, founded in 1910 by five railway workers who saw a game of London-based Corinthian FC during their tour of Brazil, has become one of the most successful sides in the country.

On Tuesday, club executives confirmed they had been contacted by the agency.

“No negotiations are underway,” said a post on social media. “The club thanks the company for its interest,” it added.

Pogba rose to prominence at Manchester United as a teenager but frustrated by his lack of opportunities he moved to Juventus in 2012.

During his four years in the Italian top flight he won eight trophies including four Serie A titles. He returned to Manchester United in 2016 for a world record transfer fee of 105 million euros.

In his first season back in north-western England, he won the League Cup and the Europa League.

Return

In 2018, he was a key feature in the France side that surged to glory at the World Cup in Russia. His sumptuous strike gave France a 3-1 lead in the 4-2 victory over Croatia in the final.

Three years later, he hoisted more silverware after France won the 2021 Nations League.

Pogba moved back to Juventus in the summer of 2022 but his second turn in Turin was instantly blighted by a series of injuries before he was suspended in September 2023 for failing a drugs test on 20 August after a Serie A match against Udinese.

The Italian Anti-Doping National Tribunal slapped a four-year ban on Pogba in February 2024 but it was reduced to 18 months at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Pogba can officially resume training next month and play competitively from March.

Claire Tabouret, 43, has been chosen to create contemporary stained-glass windows for the newly reopened Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral, in collaboration with Reims-based glassmaking studio Simon-Marq.

The initiative, which is being supported by President Emmanuel Macron and Archbishop of Paris Mgr Laurent Ulrich, aims to leave “a contemporary mark on the iconic building”, which was devastated by fire in 2019 and has since been fully restored. 

From ashes to innovation: 3D scanning powers Notre-Dame’s restoration

The new stained-glass windows are set to replace six of the seven windows on the south aisle of the cathedral, originally designed by 19th-century architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc.

A joint statement from the Elysée and the Paris Diocese highlighted “the exceptional artistic quality of the proposal and its architectural integration – particularly its harmony with the stained-glass window depicting the Tree of Jesse (1864), which remains in place in one of the chapels of the same aisle”.

Tabouret, who is based in Los Angeles, expressed her excitement at “the opportunity to use her art for unity,” especially “in an era marked by wars, divisions and extreme tensions”.

Shortlist

Following the signing of the contract with the public institution in charge of rebuilding Notre-Dame, a six-month study period is planned, followed by a year and a half for the execution of the windows, expected to be in place by late 2026

Eight artists, including Daniel Buren and Yan Pei-Ming, were shortlisted after a call for applications in April, which attracted 110 teams. The selection committee of 20 members included heritage curators, artists, members of the Paris Diocese, the public institution overseeing the restoration and the Ministry of Culture.

French stained glass museum reflects past and present art

Opposition to the project

However, a group of heritage defenders – led by Didier Rykner, head of the La Tribune de l’Art website – have opposed the project, on the basis that the original stained-glass windows were not damaged in the fire.

They have launched a petition, which has garnered nearly 245,000 signatures.

The Sites & Monuments heritage preservation group plans to take legal action, which will only be possible once a work permit for the project has been granted.

Julien Lacaze, president of the organisation, said: “These stained-glass windows are important for the architecture and will disappear, even though there are white glass panels in the north and south belfries that could accommodate contemporary stained-glass.”

The contemporary project has also faced opposition from the National Heritage and Architecture Commission, though its opinion is advisory. The commission has previously opposed other now-iconic projects, including the Louvre Pyramid and Buren’s black and white columns at the Palais-Royal.

Notre-Dame de Paris reopened on 7 December, after a monumental five-year restoration.

Notre-Dame de Paris holds first mass after five-year restoration

(with AFP)

On Friday, a French court handed heavy sentences to several men convicted of having played a role in the jihadist beheading of schoolteacher Samuel Paty in 2020 – a murder that horrified France.

47-year-old Paty was murdered in October 2020 by an 18-year-old Islamist radical of Chechen origin after showing cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed in class.

His killer, Abdoullakh Anzorov, died in a shootout with police.

Two friends of Anzorov, Naim Boudaoud and Azim Epsirkhanov were convicted of complicity in the killing and jailed for 16 years.

Prosecutors had accused them of having given Anzorov logistical support, including to buy weapons.

Epsirkhanov admitted he had received €800 from his fellow Chechen Anzorov to find him a real gun but had not succeeded.

Prosecutors said Boudaoud had accompanied Anzorov to buy two replica guns and steel pellets on the day of the attack.

French prosecutors charge two pupils, five adults over slain teacher

Lies spread online

Two other defendants who took part in the hate campaign against Paty before his murder were convicted of terrorist criminal association. 

Brahim Chnina, the 52-year-old Moroccan father of a schoolgirl who falsely claimed that Paty had asked Muslim students to leave his classroom before showing the caricatures, was jailed for 13 years.

His daughter, then aged 13, was not actually in the classroom at the time and earlier in the trial apologised to her former teacher’s family.

Abdelhakim Sefrioui, a 65-year-old Franco-Moroccan Islamist activist, was jailed for 15 years.

Chnina had posted messages and videos attacking Paty online.

Sefrioui, founder of a now-banned pro-Hamas group, had denounced Paty as a “thug” in another video.

He and Chnina spread the teenager’s lies on social networks with the aim, according to prosecutors, to provoke “a feeling of hatred” to prepare the way for “several crimes”.

Chnina spoke to Anzorov nine times by telephone over a four-day period after he published videos criticising Paty, the investigation showed.

But Sefrioui had told investigators he was only seeking “administrative sanctions”.

“Nobody is saying that they wanted Samuel Paty to die,” prosecutor Nicholas Braconnay had told the court.

“But by lighting thousands of fuses online, they knew that one of them would lead to jihadist violence against the blasphemous teacher”.

The other four defendants – part of a network of jihadist sympathisers around Anzorov spreading inflammatory content online – were also convicted, receiving either jail or suspended sentences.

Student admits to lying over claims of Islamophobia against beheaded teacher

Paty ‘died for nothing’

Paty, who has become a free-speech icon, had used the cartoons, first published in Charlie Hebdo magazine, as part of an ethics class to discuss freedom of expression laws in France.

Blasphemy is legal in a nation that prides itself on its secular values, and there is a long history of cartoons mocking religious figures.

In November, seven men and one woman went on trial, charged with contributing to the climate of hatred that led to the beheading of the history and geography teacher in Conflans-Sainte-Honorine, west of Paris.

The case was heard by a court panel of professional judges in a trial that lasted seven weeks.

Before the court’s ruling came on Friday, the Paty’s family had accused the prosecution of leniency.

Prosecutors had requested that some of the accused be acquitted, and had disputed the “terrorist intent” of the defendants.

Paty’s sister Mickaelle told BFMTV that the demands by prosecutors were “very weak”, saying she feared that these would be confirmed by the court.

“I think my brother died for nothing,” she said, adding that teachers were still being targeted by violence and threats.

Paty’s killing took place just weeks after Charlie Hebdo republished the cartoons, which originally appeared in 2015.

After the magazine first published them, Islamist gunmen stormed its offices, killing 12 people.

President Macron has stressed the importance of France’s military presence in Djibouti for the development of its strategy in the Indo-Pacific region on Saturday during a meeting with his Djiboutian counterpart Ismaïl Omar Guelleh.

“[France’s] presence in Djibouti … is also geared towards the Indian Ocean and the Indo-Pacific, and our reaffirmed Indo-Pacific strategy, consolidated since the spring of 2018, could not be achieved without the French forces in Djibouti,” Macron said during the visit, where he also visited French troops based there.

At a time when France has been forced to withdraw its troops from several African countries – particularly in the Sahel – the French president emphasised Djibouti’s unique position. 

Djibouti’s veteran leader in Paris for talks on France’s military base

“We wanted to develop our model where, in many countries, we had established historical foundations. We wanted to rethink it,” he declared.

“Djibouti is not part of this overall manoeuvre because, for decades, the very nature of our base here, of our operations, has been profoundly different,” he added, stressing Djibouti’s “security needs” as much as France’s ambitions in the Indo-Pacific.

The Indo-Pacific covers a vast area of Asia and Oceania, including major emerging powers such as India and China.

It accounts for around 60 percent of the world’s GDP, and France is present there through its overseas departments and territories, such as New Caledonia, French Polynesia, Mayotte and Reunion Island.

Djibouti veteran ruler Guelleh wins election landslide

‘Projection point’ for African missions

Addressing French troops with whom he shared a Christmas dinner on Friday, Macron said that the French base in Djibouti would be “reinvented as a projection point” for missions in Africa.

France has already been forced to evacuate its troops from Mali, Burkina Faso and Niger between 2022 and 2023 after military juntas came to power.

A first contingent of 120 French soldiers also left Chad on Friday, which made a similar request on 29 November, as did Senegal.

Ismaïl Omar Guelleh recalled the “special relationship” with France, marked by the renewal of a defence partnership last July.

He also welcomed the signing on Saturday of two agreements concerning the construction of a new airport in Djibouti and the development of a space agency.

The two presidents discussed a number of regional issues, with Macron stressing the importance of implementing “a process of dialogue to put an end to the terrible conflict in Sudan“, ravaged by a civil war that has pitted the army against paramilitaries.

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

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

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

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

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

Opportunity for Ankara

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

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

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

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

Success of rebel groups in Syria advances Turkish agenda

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

‘The Euphrates is a line’

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

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

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

Tensions with Israel

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

Turkey seeks Gaza ceasefire role despite US criticism over Hamas ties

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

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

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

The cyclone, which hit the island on Saturday, 14 November, destroyed infrastructure and flattened many of the makeshift dwellings in its large slums.

Thirty-one people have been reported dead, although the death toll is expected to rise significantly.

Almost one week on, there are still food and water shortages and electricity is yet to be restored in some areas, in the aftermath of Mayotte’s worst storm in nearly a century.

Angry exchanges 

On Thursday, President Emmanuel Macron arrived on the Indian Ocean archipelago, along with four tonnes of emergency aid. But residents say this is far from enough, and there were angry exchanges with the president.

Macron hit back at a jeering crowd: “If this wasn’t France, you’d be 10,000 times more in the shit. There is no other place in the Indian Ocean where people have received this much help. That’s a fact.”

As the French president visited a neighbourhood in Tsingoni on Mayotte’s main island Grande-Terre – where people still have no access to drinking water or phone service – one man shouted: “Seven days and you’re not able to give water to the population.”

“I understand your impatience. You can count on me,” Macron replied, adding that water would be distributed at city halls.

France and Comoros clash over migrants lost in Mayotte cyclone disaster

Macron later announced that France would observe a day of national mourning on Monday, 23 December. He also said a special law suspending the usual regulations would be passed to speed up reconstruction, based on the model used for the restoration of Notre-Dame Cathedral.

The president left Mayotte – France’s poorest department – on Friday, after spending some 24 hours meeting locals and officials.

Mayotte cyclone lays bare the fragility of France’s ‘forgotten’ territory

EU response

In a statement issued on Friday, the European Union said it had responded to “France’s request for assistance”, providing emergency shelters, hygiene kits and medical tents.

Belgium, Germany, Italy and Sweden have offered the shelters and other items via the EU Civil Protection Mechanism, it said.

Neighbouring Comoros, which gained independence from France in 1974, said it was ferrying 250 tonnes of bottled water to Mayotte on Friday.

The EU said it had also provided Mozambique with €900,000 in emergency humanitarian funding to help affected communities there. Seventy-three people were reported dead in northern Mozambique and 13 in Malawi, according to the authorities.

Cyclone Chido leaves 34 dead and devastates Mozambique

The self-governing region within Somalia – which has never been recognised by the latter’s authorities – appears to be closer to being recognised than ever before.

Speaking at his inauguration in Hargeisa on 12 December, President Abdirahman Mohamed Abdullahi said he would give “special importance to foreign policy” and pursue recognition for Somaliland from the international community based on a “valid legal argument”.

“My new government’s first job is to renew its relations with the rest of the world in order for us to be able to create a new Somaliland that will help the security of the entire region, including the Red Sea,” he declared.

The United States Ambassador to Somalia, Richard H. Riley, attended the president’s inauguration and said that Somaliland was “one of the best examples of democracy in action in Africa”.

Key election

The presidential election was held in November, following weeks of uncertainty.

The results saw Mohamed Abdullahi, 69, leader of the Waddani party, also known as “Cirro”, secure the presidency with 64 percent of the vote, defeating the incumbent candidate, Muse Bihi, of the Kulmiye party. 

Somaliland votes amid Horn of Africa tensions

Approximately 53 percent of registered voters turned out – lower than the previous presidential election in 2017, when 64 percent of those registered voted.

US recognition

Rumours began circulating last week that the US could declare Somaliland the world’s newest country when Donald Trump returns to the White House in January.

“Although not an official publication of incoming US President Donald Trump’s campaign, the Project 2025 conservative manifesto issued by some of his allies makes the case for official recognition of Somaliland,” wrote East Africa analyst Omar Mahmood on the think tank Crisis Group‘s website.

Support for the region has grown among Republican US-Africa policy leaders – who are likely to be Africa advisors in Trump’s White House. Peter Pham, a former Africa envoy in Trump’s first term, told newsletter Semafor Africa that Somaliland’s democratic process had “demonstrated its attractiveness as a partner for the United States and other countries”.

For Hafed Al-Ghwell, executive director of the North Africa Initiative at the Foreign Policy Institute of the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies in Washington DC, the incoming US administration could view Somaliland’s stability as “a strategic asset” against the backdrop of its “volatile neighbour” Somalia – and an opportunity to counter expanding influence in the region from Washington’s geopolitical rivals.

Recognising Somaliland could also enable US intelligence to set up long term operations to monitor the movement of weapons in the region and the activities of China, which has a military base in neighbouring Djibouti, according to Semafor.

Further disputes

Somaliland announced de facto self-rule when declaring its independence from Somalia in 1991, after the fall of the infamous Somali leader Siad Barre.

However, its existence has not been officially recognised by any country, restricting access to international finance and the ability of its 6 million inhabitants to travel.

It has developed into a self-governed state, issuing its own currency and maintaining security forces and civilian administration from Hargeisa.

Somaliland rises from the rubble, 25 years after ‘independence’

Somaliland also boasts a stable political environment, inshore contrast to Somalia’s ongoing struggles amid deadly attacks by al-Shabab rebels.

The recent election was the sixth in a row to be organised peacefully and bring political alternance.

“Somaliland reinforced its reputation as one of the Horn of Africa’s stronger democracies by staging a successful presidential election and ushering in a peaceful transfer of power,” Crisis Group expert Omar Mahmood wrote in a report.

Singing for Somaliland

“On paper, Somaliland would welcome official recognition by a great power,” Mahmood added. “But if this is done unilaterally and with no major diplomatic spadework in advance, it would also supercharge tensions between Somaliland and Somalia, particularly along the contested boundary with Puntland.”

If Ethiopia has been open to building relations with Somaliland, recognition, Mahmood continued, could “prompt furious objections from Mogadishu’s allies in the region, such as Djibouti and Eritrea, as well as their friends farther afield, including Saudi Arabia, Turkey, Qatar and Egypt – further dividing the region”.

 (with newswires)

Former prime minister Michel Barnier, ousted earlier this month, warned of the growing fiscal strain in a last-ditch effort to push through a stringent budget plan. He said France’s interest payments alone were “mounting up to a staggering €60 billion” – exceeding the national defence or education budgets.

Moody’s cited “political fragmentation” as a key reason for its decision to downgrade France’s creditworthiness, further complicating efforts to stabilise the economy.

The downgrade will make borrowing more expensive for France.

“It is a huge warning about debt burdens and fiscal deficits,” said Burhan Khadbai, of the Sovereign Debt Institute, a part of the Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum (OMFIF) think tank.

Last month, French government bonds traded above Greece’s for the first time, reflecting investor concerns.

“France is now seen as one of the riskiest economies in the eurozone,” Khadbai added.

Credit agency Fitch said in October that France’s debt would reach 118.5 percent of GDP by 2028. The budget deficit is expected to exceed 6 percent, double the European Union limit.

The debt burden is also affecting French regions, including Paris and Île-de-France, as well as agencies like CADES, tasked with managing and repaying France’s social security debt.

Khabai called France’s downgrade “a warning for all countries”, drawing comparisons to the UK’s “mini-budget chaos” under Liz Truss two years ago.

“The UK is still recovering its reputation with investors,” he told RFI.

France braces for economic judgment amid political turmoil and record debt

PM’s daunting task

New Prime Minister François Bayrou now faces the challenge of forming a government that will face the same problem as all its predecessors, while navigating a divided parliament.

France’s political deadlock risks vetoing any fiscal reforms, while protests could erupt over unpopular measures.

But bringing down the debt “has to be a priority”, said Khabai. He urged Paris to develop a sustainable fiscal policy, although political fragmentation makes consensus difficult.

Potential solutions range from tax increases to cutting social programmes or scaling back large infrastructure projects. Implementing viable reforms could improve France’s credit rating and ease borrowing costs in the future.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Be sure you check out our wonderful podcasts!

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Congratulations, winners!

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

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

This week’s question … you must listen to the show to participate. After you’ve listened to the show, listen to Melissa’s 15 December International Report podcast – “Gaza’s powerful war narratives make their way to the Oscars”, which will help you with the answer.

You have until 27 January to enter this week’s quiz; the winners will be announced on the 1 February podcast. When you enter be sure to send your postal address with your answer, and if you have one, your RFI Listeners Club membership number.

Send your answers to:

english.service@rfi.fr

or

Susan Owensby

RFI – The Sound Kitchen

80, rue Camille Desmoulins

92130 Issy-les-Moulineaux

France

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

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

While Flamanville 3 will eventually power up to two million households, energy operator EDF said the reactor will not operate at full capacity immediately.

Instead, the operation “will be marked by different power levels through to the summer of 2025”.

The start of the new generation European Pressurized Reactor (EPR) comes 12 years behind schedule after a slew of delays and cost overruns.

The cost of the project, initially estimated at  €3.3 billion, has ballooned to over €13 billion.

A test run in September had to be interrupted after one day due to an “automatic shutdown”, before starting again days later.

Nuclear safety in spotlight as French start-ups bring mini reactors to market

Betting on nuclear

Flamanville 3 is the fourth EPR reactor in the world and the most powerful in France, with a capacity of 1,600 MW. It is the 57th reactor in the French nuclear fleet, which generates around three fifths of the country’s energy.

France continues to bet on nuclear as a way of providing relatively cheap and carbon-free electricity.

The government has committed to building six new-generation EPR2 reactors at a cost of tens of billions of euros, with plans to eventually increase this number to 14.

France to build more new generation nuclear reactors to reach green targets

But questions remain about EDF’s ability to deliver on its ambitions. The energy giant is already heavily in debt, as is the French state – EDF’s sole shareholder.

Nuclear power accounts for around three-fifths of France’s energy output and the country boasts one of the world’s largest nuclear power programmes.

Neighbouring Germany exited nuclear power last year by shutting down the last three of its reactors.

The request, received late Thursday, gives Paris just six weeks to remove 1,000 soldiers and their equipment. French officials say the tight deadline is likely to further strain relations.

French military sources called the move “a pressure tactic from the hardline faction of Chad’s inner circle of power” – adding that  such a withdrawal would be impossible.

Chad is the last remaining country in the Sahel to host French troops. It set up a special commission to oversee the dismantling of the military agreement between Paris and N’Djamena earlier in December.

Chad launches commission to end military pact with France

Cautious negotiations

Despite the demand, negotiations are ongoing. French military sources described the discussions as “technical, but going well”.

Chadian officials have also stressed that the troop withdrawal does not imply a breakdown in relations with France.

“The situation is entirely different from the AES countries,” according to one source close to the Chadian authorities, referring to the Alliance of Sahel States, formed last year by Niger, Mali and Burkina Faso.

New Sahel Confederation challenges regional order as ECOWAS seeks dialogue

Relations bwetween France and Chad have grown tense since 2021, when Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno became president after his father’s death.

“Macron has not distinguished himself with his diplomatic skills in the way he interacted with Chad’s president,” Sciences Po researcher Roland Marchal told RFI.

Macron, he added, has been perceived in Deby’s circles as “unsupportive”.

Both countries have however still a strong interest in keeping their relations as cordial and peaceful as possible, due to the volatile state of the Sahel region.

According to a Chadian source, the initial withdrawal timetable – which extended until March – was rejected as it was deemed too long.

The ideal scenario for N’Djamena would be for the French departure to be completed before the end of February, when Ramadan begins.

“We are trying to find a solution that works for both sides,” added the Chadian source.

France caught off guard as Chad cuts military ties with Paris

Proposals and counter-proposals

Proposals and counter-proposals are multiplying and ongoing “in a constructive spirit”, a source said.

Senior French military officials added that France wants to show that the withdrawal is indeed under way.

French forces have already begun moving out. Three Mirage fighter jets left the Adji Kossei base between 10 and 11 December.

Troops from outposts in Faya-Largeau and Abéché, home to 50 and 100 personnel respectively, will begin evacuations next week.

This departure of the jets came less than two weeks after Chad unilaterally broke its defence agreement with France.

Marchal said French authorities acted quickly to retrieve the jets to show respect for Chad’s demands. However, he noted a lack of coordination between the two governments.

Logistical challenges remain, as it takes more than 10 days to move equipment and personnel from remote outposts to the capital.

The Adji Kossei base is expected to be dismantled next due to logistical and safety considerations.

France was plunged into fresh chaos earlier this month after the far right and left wing joined forces to eject Bayrou’s predecessor, Michel Barnier, after just three months in office.

Speaking on Thursday, Bayrou said he hoped his new administration would “be presented… over the weekend” or “in any case before Christmas.”

He faces a huge challenge trying to form a cabinet from the divided parliament that felled Barnier after his minority administration failed to pass a state budget.

The new government’s priority will be to pass a budget capable of stabilising France’s finances without provoking further backlash over spending cuts and tax hikes.

“I hope that we can have it around mid-February. I’m not sure we’ll get there,” he told public broadcaster France 2.

France unveils emergency budget law to prevent state shutdown

Pension reform could be reexamined

The urgency is heightened by new data from the INSEE statistics institute showing that France’s public debt grew by €71.7 billion in the third quarter, reaching €3.3 trillion.

This accounts for 113.7 percent of GDP, well above the European Union’s 60 percent threshold.

France has been in a state of political deadlock since President Emmanuel Macron gambled on snap elections in June.

Why did Macron call snap elections and what does it mean for France?

He hoped to bolster his authority but voters returned a parliament fractured between three rival blocs, with his centrist movement a roughly similar size to the leftist NFP alliance and the far right National Rally.

Both of those camps have urged the government to reverse some of Macron’s flagship reforms, including the 2023 law to raise the state pension age from 62 to 64 years old.

The measure, pushed through parliament without a vote, triggered widespread protests earlier this year.

Bayrou said he was open to reexamining the pension age question.

“But we’ll also have to ask ourselves the question of how to finance it,” he added, warning that he would not suspend the reform.

When asked if he would use Article 49.3 – a constitutional tool that allows the government to pass laws without parliamentary approval – Bayrou said he would only resort to it if there was a “total deadlock on the budget.”

(with AFP)

The French government gave the green light for the construction of 16 water reserves – known as mega-basins – for agricultural use in the Marais Poitevin, north of La Rochelle.

But 10 environmental campaign groups, including Nature Environnement 17 and the Ligue de protection des oiseaux (“Birds’ Protection League”, LPO), opposed the decision and took the case to the Bordeaux Administrative Court of Appeal.

On Wednesday, the court ruled that four of the 16 mega-basins are likely to destroy all or part of the habitat of the little bustard.

“The authorisation granted is illegal because it does not provide for a ‘protected species’ exemption,” the judges said.

They ruled that building work on the reservoirs should be halted, and added that the water stored in the Sainte-Soline reservoir – the only one of the four built so far – can be used next summer by nearby farms.

Violent clashes

The mega-basins have divided opinion, with supporters saying they are a way to use water efficiently because it is pumped from the underground water table in the winter and stored for use in the dry summer months.

Critics argue they are too big and favour large farms, while activists claim water is a common good and that farmers are effectively stealing it rather than moving towards less water-intensive and more sustainable agricultural practices.

Protest convoy against government irrigation scheme reaches Paris after 8 day march

Tensions between the two sides led to violent clashes around the site of the Sainte-Soline reservoir in March 2023.

“Biodiversity was the forgotten issue,” said LPO director Régis Ouvrard. “The mega-basins perpetuate a system of intensive agriculture responsible for the decline in biodiversity, and endangering populations of endangered species such as the little bustard.”

More than half of endangered species in France are not protected: report

Little bustards grow to between 42 and 45cm long with a 90-110cm wingspan. They weigh around 830g and feed on seeds, insects, rodents and reptiles.

“The bustard is a species on life support,” Ouvrard added. “It lost 94 percent of its numbers between 1978 and 2000. The four reserves targeted by this ruling will have a direct impact on 5 percent of the total bustard population.”

The government said it had taken note of the court’s decision.

The stampede occured on Wednesday at the Islamic High School in Ibadan, Nigeria’s third-largest city, Oyo State Police Command said.

Thousands of people had gathered at the school for an event organised for local families.

Police officials said they believed the surge began after the organisers – the Wings Foundation and Agidigbo FM radio – started distributing food and gifts.

According to local radio, the event programme said children would “win exciting prizes like scholarships and other bountiful gifts”.

Nigeria is grappling with its worst economic crisis in a generation.

The injured children were receiving medical attention.

Eight people have been arrested, including the main sponsor of the event, police spokesperson Adewale Osifeso said in a statement.

The Homicide Section of the State Criminal Investigation Department has opened a probe, Osifeso added.

Nigeria anti-hardship protests turn deadly as police fire shots, tear gas

‘Tragic incident’

Oyo state governor, Seyi Makinde, expressed his condolences. “Our hearts remain with the families and loved ones impacted by this tragedy. May the souls of the departed rest in peace,” he wrote on X.

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu expressed his “profound sadness over the tragic incident” in a statement on Thursday. 

He urged the Oyo State government to take necessary measures to prevent such a tragedy from reoccurring, calling for a comprehensive review of all public events’ safety measures, strict enforcement of safety regulations, and regular safety audits of event venues”.   

Nigeria has seen several deadly stampedes in recent months.

In March, two students died and 23 were injured after being crushed by crowds that had gathered to collect free bags of rice at Nasarawa State University, in central Nigeria.

Also in March, four women were crushed to death in the northern city of Bauchi where they had been waiting outside the office of a wealthy businessman to pick up cash gifts to help pay for food during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. 

(with AFP) 

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

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

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

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

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

Opportunity for Ankara

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

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

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

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

Success of rebel groups in Syria advances Turkish agenda

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

‘The Euphrates is a line’

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

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

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

Tensions with Israel

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

Turkey seeks Gaza ceasefire role despite US criticism over Hamas ties

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Be sure you check out our wonderful podcasts!

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Congratulations, winners!

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

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

This week’s question … you must listen to the show to participate. After you’ve listened to the show, listen to Melissa’s 15 December International Report podcast – “Gaza’s powerful war narratives make their way to the Oscars”, which will help you with the answer.

You have until 27 January to enter this week’s quiz; the winners will be announced on the 1 February podcast. When you enter be sure to send your postal address with your answer, and if you have one, your RFI Listeners Club membership number.

Send your answers to:

english.service@rfi.fr

or

Susan Owensby

RFI – The Sound Kitchen

80, rue Camille Desmoulins

92130 Issy-les-Moulineaux

France

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

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

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

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

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

Episode mixed by Hadrien Touraud. 

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

From film festivals to the Oscars

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

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

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

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

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

Emerging voices

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

This dramatic end to the Assad family’s half-century rule over Syria marks a significant shift in the region’s balance of power, with analysts predicting that Turkey’s influence in Syria could now grow at the expense of its regional rivals.

“Turkey emerged… by proving its relevance, importance and its strength… out of these latest developments in Syria… as the clean, clear winner,” says Aydin Selcen, a former senior Turkish diplomat who served in the region and is now a foreign policy analyst for Turkey’s independent Medyascope news outlet.

“And Iran is definitely the loser. And Russia also is pushed aside.”

Success of rebel groups in Syria advances Turkish agenda

The Turkish-backed Syrian National Army played a role in the overthrow of Assad. However, it was the radical Islamist group Hayat Tahir Al Sham – or HTS – that led the offensive. And that, analysts say, will be a cause for apprehension in Ankara.

“Despite all the jubilation of the Turkish press and the government and the circles that support the government about the collapse of the Assad regime in general, I would think there is some uneasiness,” says Hasan Unal, professor of international relations at Ankara’s Baskent University.   

“I can see it through lots of problematic issues that would be coming out of what’s going to happen,” he added, “because of the ideological Islamist leanings of the incumbent government and… the Islamic jihadist terrorist groups associated with it.”

Support and protection

However, Turkey may not be entirely without influence over Syria’s new Islamist leaders. For years, it provided support and protection to the Idlib region of Syria, where HTS was based. 

Analyst Aydin Selcen suggests Ankara could retain significant influence if recent statements by HTS leadership calling for an inclusive Syrian government are honoured.  

“If pragmatism prevails, that’s perhaps where Turkey and Ankara may come in. And also Ankara definitely will be viewed as a positive outside contributor by these new Syrian rulers, because of the fact that we here in Turkey are hosting over 5 million Syrians and also that Turkey helped protect Idlib.”

Turkish foreign minister Hakan Fidan, addressing an international conference in Doha last Sunday, 8 December, said that Turkey is committed to helping secure a politically inclusive new Syria. 

Turkey’s Syrian refugees 

A stable Syria is also key to Ankara’s goal of sending home millions of Syrian refugees now living in Turkey. Public resentment over their presence has grown, as the country has grappled with an economic crisis over the past few years.

However, such a return may not be simple, predicts Sezin Oney, a commentator on Turkey’s independent Politikyol news site.

“The refugees, the Syrians you have in Turkey, are mostly women and children. So it has to be a [new Syrian] government, an administration, friendly to women and children, especially women.”

“But we don’t know if these Islamic jihadist groups will be really friendly towards these groups,” he added.

“There might be a Taliban 2.0 arising just across the border; we don’t know what kind of administration HTS and surrounding groups will be. It’s a big security risk; I don’t see Syria settling down to become a safe clash-free place.” 

‘Imperative’ to work against IS in Syria, Blinken tells Turkey

For now, Erdogan is celebrating the overthrow of Assad as a Turkish triumph, with European leaders and Washington queuing up to speak to him as Turkey positions itself as a key player in shaping Syria’s future.

But the sudden demise of the Assad regime underscores how quickly fortunes can change in the region, and the future of Syria – and Turkey’s role in it – are today more uncertain than ever. 

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 winners’ names announced and the week’s quiz question, along with all the other ingredients you’ve grown accustomed to: your letters and essays, “On This Day”, quirky facts and news, interviews, and great music … so be sure and listen every week.

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

There are just two days left for you to be a part of our New Year’s Day show – get your New Year’s resolutions and/or wishes to me by this coming Monday, 16 December. Send them to me at thesoundkitchen@rfi.fr

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Be sure you check out our wonderful podcasts!

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

We have a new RFI Listeners Club member to welcome: Zahurul Islam Joy from Rajshahi, Bangladesh. Welcome, Zahural!

This week’s quiz: On 9 November, I asked you a question about the American composer and musician Quincy Jones, who died earlier that week.

You were to re-read our article “Tributes roll in for beloved musician and producer Quincy Jones, who died at 91”, and send in the answer to this question: What is the name of the legendary Frenchwoman with whom Jones studied in Paris in 1957?

The answer is: Nadia Boulanger, arguably the single most important composition teacher of the 20th century.  

In addition to the quiz question, there was the bonus question: What is the best way to flatter a mother-in-law?

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

The winners are: RFI Listeners Club member Pradip Chandra Kundu from West Bengal, India. Pradip is also this week’s bonus question winner. Congratulations, Pradip!

Also on the list of lucky winners this week are RFI Listeners Club members Zenon Teles, the president of the Christian – Marxist – Leninist – Maoist Association of Listening DX-ers in Goa, India, and Ataur Rahman Ranju, the president of the Alokito Manush Cai International Radio Listeners Club in Rangpur, Bangladesh. Rounding out the list of this week’s winners are RFI English listeners Shatrudhan Sharma from Rajasthan, India, and Mahfuz from Cumilla, Bangladesh.

Here’s the music you heard on this week’s programme: “Tamasha” by Aamer Shafiq, Farhan Bogra, Shiraz Khan, and Sparlay Rawail, performed by Khumaariyan; “No Bones at All” by Quincy Jones, performed by the Quincy Jones Ensemble conducted by the composer; “The Flight of the Bumblebee” by Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov; “The Cakewalk” from Children’s Corner by Claude Debussy, performed by the composer, and the traditional Mexican huasteco “La Huasanga”, performed by Xochicanela.

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 support for Syrian transition hinges on respect for minority rights”, which will help you with the answer.

You have until 20 January to enter this week’s quiz; the winners will be announced on the 25 January 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.   

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.