'19 months into a genocide: The intent from the Israeli side is to ethnically cleanse Palestinians'
06:25
20/05/2025
Rethinking management of natural resources: Filtration of bottled water just the tip of the iceberg
20/05/2025
Gaza: International pressure mounts in Israel
20/05/2025
The first humanitarian trucks allowed into Gaza after 3 months without aid
20/05/2025
EU leaders to pressure Russia with more sanctions
20/05/2025
Trump administration to pay $5 million to family of woman shot at US Capitol riot
20/05/2025
Strikes kill scores in Gaza as Israel ramps up 'extensive' ground offensive
20/05/2025
Israel recovers possessions linked to Eli Cohen, a spy executed in Syria in the 1960s
20/05/2025
Choose France Summit: Indonesia eyes new markets and strategy to navigate Trump's trade war
20/05/2025
In Barcelona, the price of coffee rises the longer you stay on the terrace
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France 24
44 minutes ago
- France 24
(How) Do the LA protests compare to the 1992 riots?
In the press today: We start with the protests in LA over increasing ICE arrests. The Australian press are headlining on this. The conserative Melbourne daily Herald Sun headlines "hell reigns in city of angels" and notes that rubber bullets and tear gas were used. The Guardian Australia headlines on a viral video of Australian journalist Lauren Tomasi for Channel 9 being shot with a rubber bullet during a live cross showing a guard appearing to deliberately aim in her direction. Channel 9 says the video serves as stark reminder of the inherent dangers journalists can face while reporting. Another Melbourne-based paper The Age reports that LA simmers as Donald Trump threatens to send troops everywhere. The paper's international editor Peter Hartcher writes that the confrontations we're seeing in LA are not quote episodic or random. They are likely the opening scenes of a new phase in US history. He adds that the problem is not the principle of deporting illegal immigrants but the manner in which Trump is doing it – with an enthusiasm verging on bloodlust. The San Francisco Chronicle publishes exclusive photos showing the deployment of troops as being "wildly underprepared." The photos show dozens of National Guard troops sleeping on the floor after Trump's rush to deploy them to LA, without the approval of California governor Gavin Newsom. This excellent cartoon from British illustrator Ben Jennings – Straight INTO Compton he says. The previous deployments of the National Guard also garnered a lot of attention in the press. The Associated Press notes that the deployment of National Guard troops are typically reserved for civil rights protests. It reminds us that the last time the National Guard were deployed to LA was in 2020 during the height of protests against the death of George Floyd. Some has compared the protests to the 1992 LA riots, after the acquittal of white police officers for the beating death of black man Rodney King. Time magazine explains the two are not the same notably because Trump invoked a section of the US code that allows the President to call in the National Guard when regular forces are not enough. But he did so without the approval of the governor, which is mandated in the code. Fruthermore, the damage in 1992 was extensive when the troops were called in In LA right now, it's much less. In France, Politico focusing the plight of Franco-Algerian writer Boualem Sansal. The acclaimed novelist, vocal critic of the Algerian regime and dual citizen was arrested in Algiers last November accused of undermining national unity. He's been sentenced to five years in prison. His case has garnered a lot of attention in France, which accused Algeria of using him as a political pawn. Relations between France and Algeria deteriorated last year after France's recognition of Morocco's sovereignty of Western Sahara. Supporters of the writer have now turned to Europe for help. Sansal has been in and out of hospital since his arrest – he's suffering from cancer and his supporters are concerned about his medical care. So far efforts to lobby the Algerian government to release Sansal have been ignored…his support group also filed a complaint with the EU ombudsman in the hopes of putting pressure. Staying in France, authorities are planning to use the hit Netflix series Adolescence to teach students about toxic masculinity. The series has been viewed 140 million times and garnered critical acclaim. Now the Guardian reports France will follow in the footsteps of the UK, Netherlands and the Flanders region in Belgium. The French education ministry will offer schools five classes based on excerpts from the mini series which sparked a global debate about misogynistic content online and its impact on teens. Finally, a zoo in Belgium was forced to close a zone this weekend after a fight broke out between two seals! Le Parisien reports that the fight erupted after the male seal, who wanted to mate with a female, was rebuffed. Given how big these seals can be – up to 270kg - it's a good thing the zone was closed so the sparring seals could cool off a bit…as they say, make love not war!
France 24
an hour ago
- France 24
UN Ocean Conference drums up signatories to key High Seas Treaty
Eighteen countries ratified the High Seas Treaty on Monday, bringing the total to 49 – just 11 short of the 60 needed for the ocean agreement to enter into force. The surge in support, occurring during the UN Ocean Conference in Nice, France, adds momentum to what could become a historic shift in how the world governs the open ocean. Here's what the treaty is, why it matters and what happens next. Formally known as the Agreement on Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction, the High Seas Treaty is the first legally binding agreement focused on protecting marine biodiversity in international waters. These waters, which are beyond the jurisdiction of any single country, make up nearly two-thirds of the ocean and almost half the surface of the planet. Until now, there has been no comprehensive legal framework to create marine protected areas or enforce conservation on the high seas. Despite their remoteness, the high seas are under growing pressure from overfishing, climate change and the threat of deep-sea mining. Environmental advocates warn that without proper protections, marine ecosystems in international waters face irreversible harm. 'Until now, it has been the wild west on the high seas," said Megan Randles, global political lead for oceans at Greenpeace. "Now we have a chance to properly put protections in place.' The treaty is also essential to achieving the global '30x30' target – an international pledge to protect 30% of the planet's land and sea by 2030. The treaty creates a legal process for countries to establish marine protected areas in the high seas, including rules for destructive activities like deep-sea mining and geo-engineering. It also establishes a framework for technology-sharing, funding mechanisms and scientific collaboration among countries. Crucially, decisions under the treaty will be made multilaterally through conferences of parties (COPs) rather than by individual countries acting alone. Once 60 countries ratify the treaty, a 120-day countdown begins before it officially enters into force. That would unlock the ability to begin designating protected areas in the high seas and put oversight mechanisms into motion. As of Monday evening, 49 countries and the EU had ratified, meaning 11 more are needed to trigger that countdown. The first Conference of the Parties (COP1) must take place within one year of the treaty's entry into force. That meeting will lay the groundwork for implementation, including decisions on governance, financing and the creation of key bodies to evaluate marine protection proposals. Environmental groups are pushing to surpass the required 60 ratifications, and to do so quickly – the more countries that ratify, the stronger and more representative the treaty's implementation will be. There's also a deadline: only countries that ratify by COP1 will be eligible to vote on critical decisions that determine how the treaty will operate. 'To reach 60 ratifications would be an absolutely enormous achievement, but for the treaty to be as effective as possible, we need countries from all over the world to engage in its implementation,' said Rebecca Hubbard, director of the High Seas Alliance. 'So the next step will be to go from 60 to global.' The surge in support on Monday has raised hopes that 2025 could mark a turning point for high seas protection. 'We're on the brink of making high seas history,' Hubbard said.
France 24
2 hours ago
- France 24
Gavin Newsom: California's governor takes on Trump, woos embattled Democrats
Immigration protests in Los Angeles are proving a stern test of Gavin Newsom 's leadership of California, but the unrest also hands the ambitious governor a unique opportunity, say analysts, as he weighs a presidential run in 2028. Rarely a shrinking violet, the 57-year-old chief executive of the country's largest and richest state has eagerly taken up the Democratic Party 's cudgel against President Donald Trump 's immigration crackdown. On Monday, shortly after Trump ordered active-duty Marines into Los Angeles to put down the demonstrations, Newsom slammed the move as "deranged". "US Marines have served honorably across multiple wars in defence of democracy," Newsom posted on X. "They shouldn't be deployed on American soil facing their own countrymen to fulfill the deranged fantasy of a dictatorial president. This is un-American." Newsom spent the weekend attacking his Republican opponent, accusing him of deliberately stoking tensions by deploying California's National Guard to downtown LA. A presumed frontrunner for the Democratic leadership, Newsom has made no secret of his political ambitions and appears to be relishing his chance for a public showdown with Trump. As the latest front in Trump's immigration crackdown played out on the streets, the Democrat was brawling on social media, vowing to sue Trump over a "serious breach of state sovereignty". California Attorney General Rob Bont on Monday announced plans to sue the Trump administration. He said the lawsuit would ask the court 'to set aside the president's unlawful action" against California's state rights. Newsom promptly shared the information on social media, declaring that California would "stand up" for the constitutional principle of "governance by civil, not military rule". "Every political crisis is a political opportunity," Jeff Le, a former senior official in California state politics who negotiated with the first Trump administration, told AFP. "In California, where President Trump polls at 30 percent, it's a potential gift for the governor to showcase stark differences between the two." 'Come and get me, tough guy' Those differences were all too apparent as Trump upbraided the Democrat for a "horrible job", while the president's "border czar", Tom Homan, threatened to arrest Newsom over any interference with deportations. Newsom's initial response to Homan, during an MSNBC interview and in subsequent posts on his own social media: 'Come and get me, tough guy.' On Monday Trump seemed to agree with his border chief, telling reporters, 'I would do it if I were Tom.' 'I think it's great. Gavin likes the publicity, but I think it would be a great thing,' Trump added. "He's done a terrible job. Look – I like Gavin, he's a nice guy, but he's grossly incompetent, everybody knows." Homan later said there was 'no discussion' about actually arresting Newsom, but reiterated that 'no one's above the law". Homan rowed back his comments after the Newsom's fiery interview with MSNBC. Newsom's defiant showing would delight a Democratic base "desperate for a fighter", Le noted. But he warned that a prolonged stand-off in LA – and particularly an escalation of violence or vandalism – could erode public sympathy, especially if Trump seeks to target California's federal funding. 'Face of Democratic resistance' A former mayor of San Francisco, Newsom has been at the helm of the Golden State for six years, making it a haven for liberal priorities such as abortion access and anti-deportation "sanctuary cities". He has been talked of as a future Democratic president for years, and has bolstered his national profile with bold overtures beyond his own state, including debating Florida Governor Ron DeSantis on Fox News. But he has courted controversy on his own side for appearing at times too chummy with Republicans, a criticism fueled by the launch in March of a podcast featuring friendly chats with provocative right-wing guests. His reputation also lost some of its sheen among centrists during the pandemic, when he was slammed by business owners for onerous public health restrictions. A lunch that Newsom attended with lobbyists at an opulent Napa Valley restaurant during the partial lockdown became infamous. An Economist/YouGov poll released last week showed Newsom has ground to make up, as his net popularity rating of -13 points is significantly worse than Trump's still underwhelming -7 points. "There's no question Gavin Newsom is trying to use this moment to elevate his national profile, casting himself as the face of Democratic resistance to Donald Trump," said veteran political strategist Charlie Kolean. But the analyst cautioned that Newsom would damage his presidential ambitions if voters thought he was taking the side of criminals over security forces in his drive to be seen as a defender of civil rights. "Voters overwhelmingly want law and order – it's one of the core issues Trump ran on and won big with," Kolean told AFP.
