Author: France 24

Damascus has secured a significant victory with the capture of several newly controlled areas, previously held by Kurdish-led forces, including YPG and PKK. While the ceasefire is mostly holding, security forces have been deployed to prevent civilians from reaching the frontlines and to maintain calm, especially in Kobane, where there is concern over potential vendettas. Additionally, government envoys are working to convince local tribes to stay peaceful. One of the ongoing challenges for Damascus is managing the prisons holding ISIS prisoners. FRANCE 24’s Wassim Nasr has the latest.

As President Zelensky says today that peace talks are progressing and that a U.S. security guarantee is “100 percent there,” awaiting only formal approval from President Trump, there has so far been no confirmation from the White House, nor does it address President Putin’s continued insistence on claiming more Ukrainian territory; meanwhile, away from the front lines, civilians are bearing the brunt of the war, with some left without electricity for more than 16 days, prompting Ukraine’s foreign minister to describe repeated attacks on the energy grid as acts of genocide, as we now turn to the left bank to…

Manchester United dealt a major blow to Arsenal’s title hopes by becoming the first team to beat the league leaders in North London this season. Matheus Cunha’s late winner handed Michael Carrick a second win in as many games in charge.

French President Emmanuel Macron wants to fast-track legislation to ban social media for teens under the age of 15, with parliament slated to vote on a draft proposal Monday.

The fatal shooting of a man in Minneapolis by a federal immigration agent sparked renewed outrage in the US on a week that saw revellers line the streets of Dakar to celebrate Senegal’s Africa Cup of Nations title and France’s Emmanuel Macron steal the show at the annual Davos gathering with his widely discussed Top Gun-style aviator sunglasses. FRANCE 24 looks back at the week’s most striking images.

The withdrawal of the Kurdish-led SDF from northeastern Syria represents the most significant shift in control in the country since the fall of longtime ruler Bashar al-Assad, according to reports from D. Alboz, H. Hammoud and Liza Kaminov.

PSG did just enough to beat Auxerre. Between two Champions League fixtures, the Parisians travelled to Auxerre aiming to regain top spot in the league. The current Ligue 1 champions are closely matched with RC Lens, who are set to face Marseille in a crucial match today.

It’s been one year since Donald Trump started his second term as US president, and he’s pointing to the country’s strong GDP growth rate and stock market performances to paint a glowing picture of the economy. But a closer look shows that while activity is booming, it’s mostly benefitting the country’s wealthier households. Also in this edition, we see how Trump’s tariffs have pushed German winemakers to look to China for their exports.

Ryan Coogler’s vampire epic “Sinners” dominated Oscar nominations on Thursday with a record 16 nods. The Academy also rewarded international films and handed a strong showing to Warner Bros.

DEM, Turkey’s pro-Kurdish party, on Saturday called for the blockade on the Kurdish-majority city of Kobane to be lifted immediately, warning of a “humanitarian tragedy” in the northern Syrian town. Kurdish forces have withdrawn from areas near Kobane over the past week following pressure from the Syrian military.