Author: France 24

The Trump administration has taken a number of actions aimed at restricting access to abortion, including pardoning anti-abortion protesters convicted of violating a law that protects abortion clinics and their patients. Jessica Le Masurier reports on the case of one doctor in New York who could face criminal prosecution for sending abortion pills out of state. FRANCE 24 speaks to Julie F Kay, co-founder of the Abortion Coalition for Tele-medicine.

Irish rugby great Hugo MacNeill said that the fight for who finally comes away with the Six Nations title will likely be decided at Saturday’s match between France and Ireland. 

According to reporting from Bloomberg, Germany’s envoy to Brussels urged the EU on Wednesday to ease its fiscal rules in order to allow for more defence expenditure to counter Russia. This would mark an important policy shift for a country known for financial restraint, and follows plans to change Germany’s own strict fiscal rules. Also in this edition, the EU unveils a new plan to boost its struggling auto industry.

Syria’s transitional government under interim president Ahmed al-Sharaa launched a sweeping security operation Friday against fighters loyal to the deposed Assad regime. The crackdown was triggered by worsening violence that has left dozens of people dead. 

Majda, Monika and Heidi are part of the Panorama theatre troupe in the village of El Barsha, a small Coptic Christian community in the south of Egypt. As they devise and perform plays in the street, filmmakers Nada Riyadh and Ayman El Amir follow the young women, who are negotiating the moment between adolescence and adulthood, contemplating their destinies and their dreams. “The Brink of Dreams” won the L’Œil d’or prize at the Cannes Film Festival. We speak to director Nada Riyadh about the power of female solidarity, how street theatre shifted mentalities in villages and the importance of cultural…

Pope Francis, speaking in a frail and breathless voice, thanked the faithful for their prayers in an audio message broadcast Thursday. It was his first public communication since being hospitalised three weeks ago with double pneumonia. The 88-year-old pope’s weakened condition has sidelined him for the longest stretch of his papacy and raised fresh concerns about his health and future.

LeBron James finished with 34 points and became the first player to score 50,000 combined points in the regular season and playoffs, and the Los Angeles Lakers extended their longest winning streak in four years to seven games with a 136-115 victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Tuesday night. 

Why does Donald Trump appear so determined to impose tariffs? Is it about raising revenue and bringing back jobs? Is it about leverage? To help us sort through what could be a complete overhaul of US and global trade policy of the past 75 years, Charles Pellegrin speaks to Greta Peisch, partner in international trade practice at law firm Wiley Rein and former general counsel at the office of the US Trade representative during the Joe Biden administration. 

Barely a week after the Israeli military acknowledged its “complete failure” to prevent the October 7, 2023 attack, Eyal Zamir, the country’s new army chief, said the military mission against Hamas remained unfinished. Zamir was sworn in as army chief on Wednesday, replacing Herzi Halevi, who resigned in January.

Two major speeches by two of the world’s most powerful leaders, delivered on opposite sides of the planet: For China, it was a call for unity to overcome obstacles through innovation and “opening up” — a time-honoured phrase in Chinese politics — to eventually accomplish national rejuvenation. Seven thousand miles away, President Donald Trump addressed both chambers of the US Congress, vowing to levy tariffs on imports and defeat inflation to “make America great again” — an equally resonant phrase for many in the United States. The paths their leaders choose will shape both countries’ futures — and the rest…