Author: France 24

Celebratory gunfire and gun battles sometimes sparked by minor feuds are a daily occurrence in Iraq where firearms possession remains widespread despite a period of relative calm. Saad Abbas was in his garden in Baghdad when he was jolted by a sharp, searing pain in his shoulder. “At first, I thought someone had hit me with a stone,” the 59-year-old said, before realising that a bullet had hit him. Source link

A staggering total of 120 million people are living forcibly displaced by war, violence and persecution, the UN said Thursday, branding the ever-increasing number a “terrible indictment on the state of the world”. Source link

Charles de Gaulle famously complained that governing a country with 246 kinds of cheese was all but impossible. Less known is what De Gaulle said just before that: “Only peril can bring the French together”. President Emmanuel Macron had peril on his mind when he stunned his compatriots by calling a snap national election after the far right routed his pro-European party in Sunday’s European elections. Macron is betting that faced with peril – the risk of being governed by the most extreme-right party since the Nazi-era Vichy government – French voters might put their grievances aside and unite against…

In the UK’s general election, Steve is running to be MP for Brighton. In Wyoming in the United States, Vic is running to be mayor. Both of them are not in fact human, but created by artificial intelligence. On this week’s Tech 24, we interview AI Steve to find out what these robot candidates mean for democracy (and whether he’s going to turn us all into paperclips). We also look at the election campaigns that have recently come to a close in India and the EU, where the deluge of AI-generated disinformation that some were predicting did not come to pass. Source link

In this edition of arts24, we met the author being called the best new writer of fiction in America. Nathan Hill’s first novel “The Nix” in 2016 was named one of the books of the year and optioned for a TV series with Meryl Streep. He’s in Paris as his second, “Wellness”, is being translated into French by publishing house Gallimard. It’s a look at modern love and marriage, society’s pursuit of health and happiness, and the stories we tell ourselves. Nathan Hill talks to Eve Jackson about being picked for Oprah Winfrey’s book club, modern-day marriage with mention of…

They are among the most coveted young football talents of their generation. Already key players at their respective clubs, they have been selected to play for their national teams in the Euro 2024 tournament that kicks off Friday in Germany. FRANCE 24 looks at 10 players under 22 who France’s Les Bleus might meet on the pitch. Source link

Israeli helicopters struck Gaza’s Rafah Thursday, residents said, with militants reporting street battles in the southern city as US President Joe Biden called Hamas the “biggest hang-up” to another truce. Source link

This week, a new law paving the way for the introduction of universal healthcare in South Africa both excites and divides. Also, ed tech has the potential to close education gaps in DR Congo. One digital learning portal is going down well with kids, but is struggling to attract the investment it needs to scale up.  Source link

Israeli helicopters struck Gaza’s Rafah Thursday, residents said, with militants reporting street battles in the southern city as US President Joe Biden called Hamas the “biggest hang-up” to another truce. Source link

More than a million Muslim pilgrims were in Mecca Friday for the start of a hajj pilgrimage held against the grim backdrop of the Gaza war and in exhausting summer heat. Source link