Opponents of the 2030 Winter Olympics in the Alps file two appeals demanding a public debate
"This is the first time that citizens have brought before the UN the lack of public participation in the Olympic Games organization process by the project promoters, in order to ensure compliance with the Aarhus Convention, which France signed and ratified [in 2002]," explained Jérôme Graefe, the lawyer representing the plaintiffs. By doing so, France pledged to guarantee the right to information, public participation in decision-making and access to justice in environmental matters.
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Euronews
3 hours ago
- Euronews
Iran says it detained 21,000 'suspects' during 12-day Israel conflict
Iranian police detained 21,000 people on suspicion of offences such as spying and illegal filming during the nation's 12-day conflict with Israel, state media reported on Tuesday. After Israel launched air strikes against its regional rival on 13 June, Iran's authorities ramped up an internal security crackdown — ranging from mass arrests to executions. More than 1,000 police checkpoints were set up nationwide during the conflict with Israel, according to Iranian police spokesman Saeed Montazeralmahdi. He told state TV that the crackdown relied on citizens reporting suspicious activity to the authorities. "The arrest of 21,000 suspects during the 12-day conflict indicated high awareness and participation of people in providing security," Montazeralmahdi was quoted as saying. "Law enforcement rounded up 2,774 illegal migrants and discovered 30 special security cases by examining their phones," he said. The conflict saw a huge increase in Afghan migrants being deported from Iran back to Afghanistan, according to the UN refugee agency. The sharpest rise occurred on 26 June — two days after the conflict — when some 36,100 Afghans returned in a day. Montazeralmahdi said that 261 suspects of espionage and 172 people accused of unauthorised filming were also arrested in the security forces' crackdown. However, the spokesman did not elaborate on what charges the suspects might face. This is the first time Iran's police have given a total number of arrests during the 12-day fighting. In recent weeks Iran has occasionally reported the arrests of suspects on spying charges. The 21,000 figure contrasts with remarks made by Iran's judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei last month. He told Iranian state TV that around 2,000 people were arrested during and after the 12-day conflict, and said many of those were released after investigations found no evidence of spying for or cooperation with Israel. Since the end of June, Iran has reportedly executed seven men convicted of spying for Israel, sparking fears from activists that Tehran could conduct a wave of executions. The number of executions in Iran rose to at least 901 last year, the highest annual figure since 2015, according to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. Amnesty International has accused Iran of having "intensified repression at home" following the hostilities with Israel in June.
Euronews
3 hours ago
- Euronews
At least 100 Palestinians killed in Israeli attacks across Gaza
At least 100 Palestinians have been killed and more than 500 others injured over the past 24-hours as Israeli attacks continue across Gaza despite mounting international pressure and condemnation over its conduct of war. The Gaza Health Ministry says that at least 69 people were killed in air strikes in various locations across the enclave. Eyewitnesses reported attacks in the north, near Gaza City, where Israel carried out an assault on Monday morning killing five Al Jazeera journalists which sparked a wave of criticism. The Hamas-run health ministry says at least 31 people were also targeted while en route to collect aid at food distribution points. It's the latest in a series of attacks targeting the Israeli-backed US aid operation, an initiative launched with the hopes of replacing traditional UN systems. The initiative, run by the Delaware-based Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF), has been the site of repeated Israeli assaults. Eyewitnesses say Israeli troops routinely open fire at crowds of Palestinians marching towards the hubs. Israel says its troops only fire warning shots and deny targeting civilians deliberately. The IDF is not physically policing any of the GHF sites – which operates its own security apparatus – but it does secure the perimeters within a two-kilometre radius. The GHF denies any incidents of fatal violence taking place at their sites, though have confirmed that their security personnel have on "rare instances" deployed tear gas to quell unrest and skirmishes in the queues. The US firm insists that its operations in Gaza, which started in late May, have been extremely successful, and are delivering millions of meals daily, claims which could not be independently verified as third party witnesses are not involved in the US-Israeli delivery scheme. The United Nations continues to be frozen out of aid operations in Gaza after Israel accused the organisation's branches, primarily UNRWA, of being infiltrated by Hamas operatives, who in assist in the looting and reselling of aid. Their operations have been significantly reduced with the emergence of the GHF operation, after Israel claimed, without providing evidence, that Hamas fighters are stealing aid convoys for their personal consumption and to sell in black markets to continue to "finance its war machine." The lack of UN aid operations has contributed to a worsening humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza. The UN estimates that at least 90% of Gaza's 2 million population are at risk of famine. Those estimations are supported by the increasing number of malnutrition-related fatalities. The Gaza Health Ministry says five Palestinians died on Monday from starvation, bringing the total number of famine-related deaths to 227, including 103 children. According to the ministry, 61,599 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli offensive since the start of the war in 2023. Their figures do not distinguish between civilian and combatant casualties, though the UN says that more than two-thirds of deaths it has been able to verify were women and children. Statement from the West Meanwhile, the United Kingdom has issued a joint statement with 27 partners, many of them European, denouncing the humanitarian suffering in Gaza, rising famine levels and restrictions faced by non-governmental organisations. "The humanitarian suffering in Gaza has reached unimaginable levels. Famine is unfolding before our eyes. Urgent action is needed now to halt and reverse starvation. Humanitarian space must be protected, and aid should never be politicised," said the statement. "We call on the government of Israel to provide authorisation for all international NGO aid shipments and to unblock essential humanitarian actors from operating. Immediate, permanent and concrete steps must be taken to facilitate safe, large-scale access for the UN, international NGOs and humanitarian partners," it added. The joint statement was signed by the foreign ministers of Australia, Belgium, Canada, Cyprus, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Japan, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. The EU's foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas, EU Commissioner for the Mediterranean Dubravka Šuica and EU Commissioner for Equality, Preparedness and Crisis Management Hadja Lahbib were also signatories.
LeMonde
3 hours ago
- LeMonde
Gaza: France condemns Israeli strikes on journalists and urges giving them safe access
Al Jazeera journalist Anas Al Sharif, who was killed in an Israeli strike on August 10, 2025, stands at a landfill as he reports the news in Gaza City, on August 13, 2024. DAWOUD ABU ALKAS / REUTERS France condemned "the heavy toll paid by local journalists" in Gaza, on Tuesday, August 12, and called on the Israeli authorities to guarantee "safe and unhindered access" for international media. On Sunday, five Al Jazeera journalists were killed in an Israeli strike on their tent in Gaza City. Among the victims was Anas al-Sharif, a prominent Al Jazeera correspondent, aged 28. A freelance reporter was also killed in the strike that targeted the Al Jazeera team. Condemning the strike, the French Foreign Ministry said that the journalists were targeted while "carrying out their reporting duties." Israel has confirmed that it had targeted Sharif, whom it labeled a "terrorist" affiliated with Hamas, saying he "posed as a journalist." "Journalists must never be targeted," Pascal Confavreux, a spokesman for the French Foreign Ministry, said in a statement, adding that they were protected by international humanitarian law. International journalists "must be able to operate freely and independently to document the reality of the conflict," Confavreux added. Gaza closed off to international press outlets Since the start of the war in Gaza, members of the international press have not been allowed to work freely in the Palestinian territory. Only a few hand-picked media outlets have been allowed to enter, embedded with the Israeli army, and their reports are subject to military censorship. Almost 200 journalists have been killed in the war Israel launched in response to Hamas's October 7, 2023 assault, according to media watchdog Reporters Without Borders (RSF). In July, international news agencies Agence France-Presse (AFP), Associated Press (AP) and Reuters, as well as the BBC, called on Israel to allow journalists in and out of Gaza. Le Monde with AFP Reuse this content
