Author: France 24

Israel’s security is at the “core” of German foreign policy, the UN’s highest court heard on Tuesday, where Berlin has denied a claim that it is aiding in a “genocide” in Gaza. Issued on: 09/04/2024 – 14:31 3 min Nicaragua has brought Germany before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to demand that judges impose emergency measures to stop Berlin from providing Israel with “weapons and other assistance”.”Our history is the reason why Israel’s security has been at the core of Germany foreign policy,” Germany’s representative told the court in The Hague.”Where Germany has provided support to Israel, including in…

Issued on: 07/04/2024 – 16:02Modified: 07/04/2024 – 18:11 03:27 © FRANCE 24 Israel on Sunday pulled troops out of southern Gaza, including from the city of Khan Younis, the military said, after months of fierce fighting with Hamas militants left the area devastated. Despite the withdrawal of the military’s 98th division comprised of some 10,000 men, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu said Israel is “one step away from victory” in the Gaza war. FRANCE 24’s Rob Parsons reports from Jerusalem.  Read more on related topics: Source link

An “exceptional” dust cloud from the Sahara is choking parts of Europe, the continent’s climate monitor said on Monday, causing poor air quality and coating windows and cars in grime. Issued on: 09/04/2024 – 09:22 1 min Copernicus Atmosphere Monitoring Service said the latest plume, the third of its kind in recent weeks, was bringing hazy conditions to southern Europe and would sweep northward as far as Scandinavia.Mark Parrington, senior scientist at Copernicus, said the latest event was related to a weather pattern that has brought warmer weather to parts of Europe in recent days.”While it is not unusual for…

Issued on: 09/04/2024 – 11:04 The trial of 27 people charged in the “Panama Papers” tax evasion and money laundering scandal opened in Panama on Monday. After the first day of hearings, we take a look back at the bombshell investigation that showed how the world’s rich and famous used shell companies to avoid their domestic tax authorities. Also in this edition, FRANCE 24’s Bryan Quinn reports on US President Joe Biden’s second attempt at cancelling student loan debt for 30 million Americans.  Source link

World champion Lotte Kopecky sprinted to the Paris-Roubaix Femmes title in a thrilling finish on Saturday. Issued on: 06/04/2024 – 19:26 1 min Belgium’s Kopecky (SD Worx-Protime) was in a lead group of six when the 148.5km race arrived at the famous Roubaix velodrome and had enough in the tank to outpace her rivals.Elisa Balsamo (Lidl-Trek) finished second while Pfeiffer Georgi (DSM-Firmenich PostNL) pipped Marianne Vos (Team Visma-Lease a Bike) to third place.Vos made the first move on the velodrome lap and led into the final straight but Balsamo went past her before Kopecky timed her victory surge to perfection.“This…

Gaza’s health ministry collects data from the enclave’s hospitals and the Palestinian Red Crescent.The health ministry does not report how Palestinians were killed, whether from Israeli airstrikes and artillery barrages or errant Palestinian rocket fire. It describes all casualties as victims of “Israeli aggression”.The ministry also does not distinguish between civilians and combatants. Throughout four wars and numerous skirmishes between Israel and Hamas, UN agencies have cited the Hamas-run health ministry’s death tolls in regular reports. The International Committee of the Red Cross and Palestinian Red Crescent also use the numbers.In the aftermath of war, the UN humanitarian office has published…

Europe’s top rights court is Tuesday to decide in three separate cases if states are doing enough in the face of global warming in rulings that could force them to do more. Issued on: 09/04/2024 – 05:38Modified: 09/04/2024 – 05:41 3 min The European Court of Human Rights, part of the 46-member Council of Europe, is from 10:30 am (0830 GMT) to rule on whether governments’ climate change policies are violating the European Convention on Human Rights.All three cases accuse European governments of inaction or insufficient action in their measures against global warming.In a sign of the importance of the…

Mulugeta Uma and Mestawut Fikir won the Paris Marathon men’s and women’s races on Sunday to give Ethiopia a double in the event for the first time in five years. Issued on: 07/04/2024 – 16:17 1 min On a course that was different from the Olympic event in August, Uma won with a time of 2:05:33, beating Kenyans Titus Kipruto and Elisha Rotich.Kipruto finished 15 seconds behind Uma while Rotich was more than a minute behind. Rotich was the pre-race favourite going into the event having set the course record in 2021.In the women’s race, Fikir finished with a time…

Issued on: 08/04/2024 – 19:25 After six months, proof that Israel’s longest war since the 1980s is winding down or is the weekend announcement of troops withdrawing from southern Gaza the calm before a whole new storm? Prime Minister Netanyahu insists his forces will make a move for the southernmost city of Rafah and this despite strong objections from the United States which is now pressing for a ceasefire and a ramping up of desperately needed humanitarian aid for Palestinian civilians.Last week’s killing of seven aid workers gave the international community a startling insight into all that’s gone wrong with…

Issued on: 08/04/2024 – 22:52 At the end of a three-day tour that took him successively to Kenya, Rwanda and Ivory Coast, France’s Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné spoke to FRANCE 24 and RFI about relations with Rwanda, reform of the CFA franc, France’s military presence in Africa and the wars in Gaza and Ukraine. French Foreign Minister Stéphane Séjourné gave an exclusive interview to FRANCE 24 and RFI, from Abidjan in Ivory Coast, after completing his first African tour. The head of French diplomacy spoke in particular about the issues marking relations between Paris and the states of the African continent.On France’s…