Author: France 24

Israel and Hezbollah conducted a heavy exchange of fire early Sunday, with both sides claiming their operations had been successful. Reporting from Jerusalem, FRANCE 24’s Irris Makler says some analysts now believe “this phase may be over. But,” she notes, “there’s no guarantees of that. We haven’t yet heard from Iran what it plans to do. So there’s a huge alert here.”

The United States claimed Friday that the latest round of Gaza truce talks in Cairo had been “productive”, despite a major sticking point over Israel’s insistence to keep troops in the Philadelphi corridor on the Gaza-Egypt border.

Alain Delon, the legendary French actor who made hearts throb around the world, was once described as the most beautiful man in the movies. But his love life was tumultuous and often tormented.

Paris promised to transform itself in terms of accessibility when it won the 2024 Olympic bid. While there have been improvements since then, much of the capital’s public transport system is still far from fulfilling that promise of accessibility for all, with just over a week to go until the Paralympics get underway. Story by France 2 and Emerald Maxwell.

The United Nation’s International Organisation for Migration (IOM) appealed on Wednesday for $18.5 million in assistance to provide health care services to people impacted by the mpox outbreak in East and Southern Africa, according to a statement. Story by Vedika Bahl.

The heads of Israel’s Mossad spy agency and Shin Bet domestic security service were taking part in talks towards an eventual Gaza hostage agreement in Cairo on Thursday, an Israeli government spokesman said. Meanwhile, the Israeli military continued to bomb several locations in the Gaza strip, killing at least five people, according to the Gaza civil defence agency.

French film legend Alain Delon has died at the age of 88, his three children told AFP in a statement on Sunday, following a battle with ill health. 

With one week until the Paralympic games get underway, the transformation of Olympic sites is almost finished, with modifications to properly host the sometimes little known Paralympic disciplines. Story by France 2 and Carys Garland.

A massive vaccination campaign to fight the spread of the newest strain of M-pox could be rolled out within the coming days across a number of African countries. The epicentre of the latest deadly outbreak is the DRC, but screening and border controls are being put in place in neighbouring countries to prevent transmission. For more information, FRANCE 24’s Haxie Meyers-Belkin interviews Placide Mbaia, head of epidemiology at the National Institute for Biomedical Research in Kinshasa.

The Gaza Strip has reported its first polio case in 25 years, prompting urgent efforts by health workers and aid agencies to launch a mass vaccination campaign despite ongoing airstrikes and aid restrictions. With the campaign slated to begin on August 31, UN agencies aim to vaccinate 640,000 children, but the conflict continues to pose significant challenges to delivering life-saving care in the besieged territory.