Author: France 24

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…

Most British exporters and manufacturers have felt an impact from disruption in the Red Sea caused by attacks on shipping by Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthi rebels, according to a survey. Issued on: 25/02/2024 – 23:55 1 min The British Chambers of Commerce said 55% of exporters reported disruption, as did 53% of manufacturers and business-to-consumer services firms, a category that includes retailers and wholesalers. Across all businesses, 37% reported an impact.”There has been spare capacity in the shipping freight industry to respond to the difficulties, which has bought us some time,” the BCC’s head of trade policy, William Bain, said.”But our…

Thousands of Brazilians poured into the streets of Sao Paulo on Sunday after ex-president Jair Bolsonaro called for a show of support as he faces accusations he plotted a coup to stay in power. Issued on: 25/02/2024 – 20:59 2 min Dressed in the green and yellow of Brazil’s flag, which Bolsonaro claimed as a symbol while in office, an immense crowd of his supporters thronged Paulista Avenue, one of the main arteries in the country’s economic capital.Bolsonaro arrived waving the Israeli flag—a rejection of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva’s remarks comparing Israel’s offensive in Gaza to the Holocaust—before…

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky suggested on Sunday that plans for Kyiv’s long-awaited counteroffensive last year had been leaked to Russia ahead of time. Issued on: 25/02/2024 – 18:27 1 min Ukraine’s counteroffensive in 2023, powered by billions of dollars in Western arms, largely fell flat, failing to break through multiple lines of Russian defences and fortifications.“Our counteroffensive action plans were on the Kremlin’s table before the counteroffensive actions began,” Zelensky said Sunday at a press conference in Kyiv.His office subsequently confirmed to AFP that Zelensky was referring to Moscow obtaining sensitive military planning information.Zelensky did not provide any other details…

The Eiffel Tower reopened to visitors on Sunday after a six-day closure because of striking employees demanding better maintenance of the historic landmark, showing traces of rust, and salary hikes. Issued on: 25/02/2024 – 15:59 1 min The operator of the 330-meter (1,083-foot) tower said in a statement it reached an agreement with unions representing the workers after promising to allocate an “ambitious 380 million euro (about $412 million) investment by 2031” for renovation work. This week, it also launched salary negotiations, expected to be finalized next month, after employees on strike demanded an increase proportionate to revenue from ticket…

It was the puddles of green sludge left by the tires of massive tractors in western Belgium’s industrial farmlands that drew the attention of biological engineer Ineke Maes. Issued on: 25/02/2024 – 14:44 4 min The slime was destructive algae, the result of the excess of chemicals used by farmers to boost their crops, but at a high cost to nature. Maes had hoped the European Union’s environmental policies would start to make a fundamental difference by improving exhausted soils.In recent weeks, some of those tractors moved off the land and onto the roads, blocking major cities and economic lifelines…

Half of Western military aid to Kyiv is delivered late, Ukrainian Defence Minister Rustem Umerov said on Sunday. Issued on: 25/02/2024 – 13:15 1 min Ukraine, which is struggling with an ammunition shortage, has for months said that Western aid is slow to reach it and this has real consequences for its two-year fight against Russia.”At the moment, commitment does not constitute delivery,” Umerov said during a forum dedicated to the second anniversary of Russia’s invasion of its neighbour.”Fifty percent of commitments are not delivered on time,” he added.Umerov argued this put Ukraine at a further disadvantage “in the mathematics…

France’s annual movie awards ceremony took a somber turn Friday with a standing ovation for actress Judith Godreche who spoke out against sexual violence in the film industry. Issued on: 23/02/2024 – 11:30Modified: 23/02/2024 – 23:07 1 min “Why accept that this art that we love so much, this art that unites us, be used as a cover for illicit trafficking of young women?” Godreche told the 49th Cesar Awards ceremony.Police opened an investigation earlier this month after Godreche filed a complaint for sexual violence against French film director Benoit Jacquot, 77, with whom she had a relationship in the…

“Dahomey”, a documentary by Franco-Senegalese director Mati Diop probing the thorny issues surrounding Europe’s return of looted antiquities to Africa, won the Berlin film festival’s top prize Saturday. Issued on: 25/02/2024 – 11:05 3 min Kenyan-Mexican Oscar winner Lupita Nyong’o, the first black jury president at the 74th annual event, announced the seven-member panel’s choice among 20 contenders for the Golden Bear award at a gala ceremony.Diop said the prize “not only honours me but the entire visible and invisible community that the film represents.”To rebuild we must first restitute, and what does restitution mean? To restitute is to do…

Donald Trump easily defeated Nikki Haley in South Carolina’s Republican contest on Saturday, extending his winning streak as he marches toward a third consecutive presidential nomination and a rematch with Democratic President Joe Biden. The former president had been widely favored to win the Southern state, despite his litany of criminal charges and Haley’s status as a native of South Carolina who won two terms as governor.The big win will bolster calls from Trump’s allies that Haley, his last remaining challenger, should drop out of the race. But Haley, who appeared to have outperformed expectations based on opinion polls, again…