Author: France 24

Activists rallied across the globe on Thursday to mark May Day. In Paris, scuffles broke out as black-clad protesters targeted Socialist Party members. In Istanbul, police arrested more than 400 people amid a heavy crackdown on demonstrations. Read our liveblog to see how the day’s events unfolded. 

A US initiative to distribute food in Gaza would not involve Israel aside from the provision of “military security”, US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee said on Friday. The plan has already met with criticism from the international community as it appears to sideline the UN and existing aid organisations operating in the Palestinian enclave. 

In this edition of our arts24 music show, Jennifer Ben Brahim chats with Franco-Cameroonian musician James BKS. He’s gone from producing beats for some of the biggest stars like Snoop Dogg and will.i.am, to carving out a name for himself as a performer. Music is in his blood, with his father being the late Afro-jazz legend Manu Dibango, and James has continued his legacy by embracing his African musical roots. He’s back with the EP “See Us Rise”, a deeply personal and introspective record.

All Ligue 1 matchday 33 games will be played simutaneously. European qualification spots are still up to grab, while teams at the bottom fight to avoid relegation.

OpenAI says it’s no longer seeking to transition to a fully for-profit company. The decision follows public backlash and a lawsuit by Elon Musk. Also in this edition: California Governor Gavin Newsom proposes a $7.5 billion tax credit for the US film industry instead of Donald Trump’s 100% tariffs on foreign films, and Sweden mulls a ban on paying for adult content online.

Like humans, chimpanzees drum rhythmically – and two subspecies living on opposite sides of Africa even have their own signature styles, according to a study published Friday in Current Biology. The findings lend new weight to the theory that the essentials of music were present before our evolutionary split from chimpanzees 6 million years ago.

PSG weathered one attack after another and showed remarkable adaptability to hold off and defeat an inspired Arsenal 2-1 to reach the Champions League final on Wednesday.

As the world woke up in a new papal era, the Catholic faithful across Africa joyfully welcomed the election of Leo XIV. We unlock the African perspective  with Father Henry Chukwujekwu from the Diocese of Nnewi in Nigeria, now serving a mission in France.

A spate of violent kidnappings has targeted wealthy French cryptocurrency investors as criminal gangs seek to extort ransoms. We take a closer look. But first: Washington prepares for trade negotiations with Beijing amid reports of progress on a US-UK trade deal aimed at de-escalating Donald Trump’s trade war.

In a country in the midst of change, where more and more women refuse to wear the veil despite the rules, conservatives are looking to maintain their grip on power. Nearly 180,000 clerics, or mullahs, preach the words of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei in Iran, but not all of them are ultra-conservative. Some have understood the need for dialogue, in a society divided by economic sanctions and the feminist uprising that followed the death in custody of Mahsa Amini back in 2022. Farad Fathi, a media-savvy cleric and a staunch supporter of the regime, is reaching out to young Iranians to…