France's PM wants to scrap two public holidays to help fix public finances
15/07/2025
US-NATO deal: How will US arms reach Ukraine?
15/07/2025
'The moment of truth': French PM Bayrou lays out budget cuts
15/07/2025
What's at stake in Syria's Sweida clashes?
15/07/2025
Gaza truce still out of reach after Doha talks as deadly strikes continue
15/07/2025
French prisoner who escaped in inmate's bag recaptured
15/07/2025
In Iraq, drought threatens water supply and ancient heritage
15/07/2025
Syria declares ceasefire after deadly clashes in Sweida
15/07/2025
Mexico: Femicide filmed by a surveillance camera
Americas
15/07/2025
French PM Bayrou stakes political survival on budget squeeze
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France 24
12 hours ago
- France 24
Bid to bring back pesticide in France sparks unprecedented petition
The so-called "Duplomb law" has stirred public anger for permitting a return of acetamiprid -- a chemical known to be toxic to pollinators such as bees and to ecosystems. It was adopted on July 8 but has not yet come into effect. The legislation, named after the conservative lawmaker who proposed it, was presented in parliament as a measure to "reduce constraints" on French farmers. But its move to bring back acetamiprid prompted a 23-year-old master's student, Eleonore Pattery, to launch a petition against it which quickly snowballed, gathering support from many people, including actors and several leftwing lawmakers. The French parliament's official website showed it had accumulated more signatures than any other. At 6:00 pm (1600 GMT) Saturday the counter had passed 550,000. Pattery, who describes herself as "a future environmental health professional", called the new law a "scientific, ethical, environmental and public health aberration. "It represents a frontal attack on public health, biodiversity, the coherence of climate policies, food security, and common sense," she said. Acetamiprid has been banned in France since 2018, but remains legal within the European Union. The petition calls for the "immediate repeal" of the law and a "citizen-led consultation involving health, agricultural, environmental and legal stakeholders". Petitions do not in themselves trigger a review or repeal of the legislation but unprecedented public support may prompt renewed parliamentary discussion on the matter. Under French rules, if a petition reaches 500,000 verified signatures, the National Assembly may choose to hold a public debate limited to the content of the petition itself. In late June, before the law's passage, several thousand demonstrators — including farmers, environmental organisations and scientists — rallied across France calling for the bill to be withdrawn.
Euronews
13 hours ago
- Euronews
Syria's leader urges Bedouin tribes to commit to ceasefire
Syria's interim President Ahmad al-Sharaa urged Bedouin tribes to "fully commit" to a ceasefire aimed at ending clashes with Druze militias. The ceasefire was agreed on by Syria and Israel, and was announced earlier on Saturday by US Ambassador to Turkey and Special Envoy for Syria, Tom Barrack. It comes after Israeli forces carried out several attacks against Syria, including in the capital, Damascus, in what it called 'military interventions' to protect the Druze minority. It also comes on the heels of renewed clashes between Druze armed groups and Bedouin clans, in what Syria's President Ahmed al-Sharaa warned he'll send troops back in to quell the fighting that has so far displaced tens of thousands of people. Barrack announced the truce in a post on X, formerly Twitter, noting that the US-led peace initiative is supported by multiple countries in the region. 'Israeli Prime Minister [Benjamin] Netanyahu and Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa supported by the USA, [State Secretary Marco] Rubio have agreed to a ceasefire embraced by Türkiye, Jordan and its neighbours,' wrote Barrack. Though he did no disclose any details of the arrangement, Barrack called on all parties to disengage and seek peace. 'We call upon Druze, Bedouins, and Sunnis to put down their weapons and together with other minorities build a new and united Syrian identity in peace and prosperity with its neighbours.' Clashes began on Sunday between Druze militias and local Sunni Muslim Bedouin tribes in Syria's southern Sweida province. Government forces intervened, nominally to restore order, but ended up taking the Bedouins' side against the Druze. Israel intervened in defence of the Druze, launching dozens of airstrikes on convoys of government fighters and even striking the Syrian Defence Ministry headquarters in central Damascus. The Druze form a substantial community in Israel, where they are seen as a loyal minority and often serve in the Israeli military. The week-long fighting has killed hundreds of people. Some locals speaking to media outlets say Syrian government-affiliated fighters executed Druze civilians, looted their homes and burned them down in the wake of the clashes. On Wednesday, al-Sharaa's government reached a truce with Druze groups, mediate by Washington, Turkey and other Arab countries, and began withdrawing their troops from the Sweida province. Druze groups were tasked, according to the details of the deal revealed by the Syrian interim president on Thursday, to oversee internal security as government forces pulled out. By late Thursday however, clashes were flaring up again between Bedouin and Druze groups. State media reported that Druze militias had carried out revenge attacks against Bedouin communities, leading to a new wave of displacements. The governor of the neighbouring Daraa province said in a statement that more than 1,000 families were displaced to his province as a result of 'attacks on Bedouin tribes by outlaw groups'. Al-Sharaa said special forces will be deployed to Sweida to 'break up clashes and resolve the conflict on the ground'. The UN estimated that some 80,000 people were displaced since clashes erupted on Sunday. It also added that essential services, including water and electricity had collapsed in Sweida, as well as major disruptions to telecom and health facilities.
France 24
14 hours ago
- France 24
Clashes, homes torched in south Syria's Sweida despite ceasefire
Just hours earlier, Syrian interim President Ahmed al-Sharaa had announced an immediate ceasefire, but Bedouins and tribal fighters who are allied with the Syrian authorities pushed on in the west of the Druze-majority city. "Go forward, tribes!" said fighter Abu Jassem, addressing fellow combatants in the area, where the streets were largely deserted. "We will slaughter them in their homes," he said, referring to the Druze. The tribal fighters have converged on Sweida from other parts of Syria to support the Bedouins who have been clashing with Druze fighters since July 13. The violence has killed at least 940 people, according to a monitor. An AFP correspondent on Saturday saw dozens of torched homes and vehicles and armed men setting fire to shops after looting them. Some fighters, their faces covered, opened fire in the streets with automatic weapons while others moved around on vehicles and motorbikes. One fighter wore a black band around his head that bore the Islamic profession of faith. Another was carrying scissors, after footage in recent days showed fighters cutting the moustaches of Druze elderly and clergy, a grave insult to members of the minority community. The Druze, followers of an esoteric religion that split from Shiite Islam, are regarded at best with suspicion by more hard-line Sunni Islamists who count among the ranks of Syria's new authorities. 'Nothing left' In Sweida city, where around 150,000 people live, residents have been holed up in their homes without electricity and water. Food supplies are scarce despite repeated appeals for humanitarian assistance, and communications have largely been cut off. Near the city's main hospital, an AFP photographer said bloated bodies were being taken for burial in a nearby pit as the morgue was overflowing. A doctor had told AFP that the facility had received more than 400 bodies. Security forces on Saturday were deploying in the province with the stated aim of protecting civilians and ending the chaos. Near a village north of Sweida, an AFP correspondent saw government forces deploying at a checkpoint and seeking in vain to prevent armed tribal fighters from advancing. Interior ministry spokesman Noureddine al-Baba told AFP in the province's north that security forces were deploying "to protect public and private property and guarantee the security of civilians". Government forces were to "supervise the withdrawal of the tribes that were in battle with outlaw groups," he added, referring to Druze fighters. An AFP correspondent said some tribal fighters withdrew from the city on Saturday afternoon, and also reported armed men dragging bodies from a street. According to the United Nations, the fighting has displaced at least 87,000 people. One resident of the city who fled days earlier told AFP that "We have nothing left." "Most of the people we know -- our relatives and friends -- are dead," said the resident, requesting anonymity due to the security situation. "Sweida has been destroyed, and we are trying to keep our families away until this madness ends." strs-lar/lg/ami © 2025 AFP
