Author: France 24

The US House of Representatives on Thursday approved a stopgap bill to fund the federal government through early March and avert a partial government shutdown, sending it to President Joe Biden for final approval. Issued on: 18/01/2024 – 23:25 2 min  The measure passed 314-108, with 106 Republicans and two Democrats in opposition.Earlier on Thursday, the Senate had easily passed the bill, with a 77-18 vote ahead of the weekend deadline.”We have good news for America. There will not be a shutdown on Friday,” Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, a Democrat, said on the Senate floor just before the vote in that chamber.Both chambers accelerated their votes because of…

Issued on: 18/01/2024 – 10:59Modified: 18/01/2024 – 11:22 01:41 A shipment of medicine for dozens of hostages held by Hamas arrived in Gaza on Wednesday, part of a France- and Qatar- mediated deal that marked the first agreement between Israel and the militant group since a weeklong ceasefire in November. The deal could bring respite to some of the roughly 100 hostages who remain in captivity, as well as to Palestinians in Gaza in desperate need of aid. Read more on related topics: Source link

Hundreds of police officers protested across France on Thursday to press their claim for extra pay during this year’s Paris Olympics, underlining the threat of strikes and disruption to the Games. Issued on: 18/01/2024 – 22:08 3 min Aware of the risk to the country’s image, French authorities are scrambling to agree pay deals with a host of public sector trade unions who are demanding bonuses for working during the July 26-August 11 Olympics.In Paris, several hundred officers gathered near the police headquarters.”The Olympics will be without us,” chanted the protesters, holding flags and banners.Fabien Vanhemelryck, head of the Alliance…

Issued on: 18/01/2024 – 20:22Modified: 18/01/2024 – 20:24 07:18 China’s population fell by 2 million people in 2023 in its second straight annual decrease, as births dropped for the seventh straight year and deaths jumped following the end of COVID-19 restrictions, the government said Wednesday. The number of deaths rose by 690,000 to 11.1 million, more than double the previous year’s increase. Demographers said the rise was driven by the aging of the population and the widespread COVID-19 outbreaks that started in December 2022 and continued into February of last year. The total population stood at 1.4 billion, the statistics…

Issued on: 15/01/2024 – 14:30Modified: 15/01/2024 – 17:54 01:08 Senegal’s lions of Terango – the national football team – is gearing up for its first match against Gambia Monday in the Africa Cup of Nations. Senegal is looking to become the fourth country in history to win the tournament twice in a row. Read more on related topics: Source link

Issued on: 18/01/2024 – 11:41Modified: 18/01/2024 – 11:47 02:00 Pakistan’s air force launched retaliatory airstrikes early Thursday in Iran allegedly targeting militant hideouts, an attack that killed at least nine people and further raised tensions between the neighbouring nations. The tit-for-tat attacks Tuesday and Thursday appeared to target two Baluch militant groups with similar separatist goals on both sides of the Iran-Pakistan border. Read more on related topics: Source link

France on Thursday denied Moscow’s claim that Russian forces had bombarded French “mercenaries” in the eastern Ukrainian city of Kharkiv, saying it does not employ guns-for-hire. Issued on: 18/01/2024 – 21:34 1 min “France has no ‘mercenaries’ either in Ukraine or anywhere else, unlike some people,” the foreign ministry told AFP, calling the claim “another clumsy Russian manipulation”.Moscow’s defence ministry said on Wednesday that it had targeted “foreign militants in the city of Kharkiv, the core of which were French mercenaries” in a January 16 strike.The ministry claimed to have killed dozens of foreign militants in the attack and injured…

Issued on: 15/01/2024 – 15:51 The fortunes of the world’s five richest men have more than doubled since 2020, while three in five people around the globe have been made poorer. Those are just some of the findings in Oxfam’s new inequality report, released to coincide with the start of the World Economic Forum, an exclusive gathering of the global elite in Davos, Switzerland. FRANCE 24’s Yuka Royer spoke to the charity’s interim executive director, Amitabh Behar. Source link

Lamine Camara scored a stunning brace as Senegal began their defence of the Africa Cup of Nations title with a 3-0 win over Gambia on Monday, but fellow heavyweights Algeria and Cameroon were both held in their opening matches. Issued on: 16/01/2024 – 04:56 3 min Africa cup of Nations: Calendar and results © Studio graphique France Médias Monde  Sadio Mane’s Senegal are hoping to retain the trophy they won in Cameroon two years ago and were too strong for their Gambian neighbours, who played the whole second half with 10 men.Marseille midfielder Pape Gueye swept home an assist by…

Issued on: 18/01/2024 – 14:42Modified: 18/01/2024 – 14:54 04:08 © FRANCE 24 Pakistan’s military on Thursday hit back Iran with air strikes deep in its neighbour’s territory, leading to heightened tensions between the two countries. The strikes imperil diplomatic relations between Islamabad and Tehran, which have long regarded each other with suspicion over militant attacks. FRANCE 24 International Affairs Editor Kethevane Gorjestani brings you this analysis. Read more on related topics: Source link