"People in Gaza are starving to death right now. The speed at which this man-made hunger and malnutrition crisis has ripped through Gaza is terrifying," the head of the UN's World Food Programme (WFP) Cindy McCain said. "To have 50 percent of an entire population in catastrophic, near-famine levels, is unprecedented," Beth Bechdol, the deputy director general of the UN's Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), told AFP. This amounts to around 1.1 million people "struggling with catastrophic hunger and starvation", according to the WFP. Читать дальше...
As Putin extends his rule in the preordained Russian election following the harshest crackdown since the Soviet era, FRANCE 24's Delano D'Souza is joined by Gulnaz Sharafutdinova, Political Scientist, expert on Russian politics and socioeconomics and Professor of Russian Politics and Director of King's Russia Institute at Kings College of London.
Election commission results on Monday (March 18) showed that President Vladimir Putin has secured a fifth term with an overwhelming number of votes, in an election that held little suspense. Putin was all but guaranteed to win re-election, having silenced or imprisoned all his major opponents..FRANCE 24's Rob Parsons gives us his analysis.
In a statement Italy's Football Federation (FIGC) said that Inter Milan defender Acerbi had given "his version of events" to his Azzurri teammates and coach Luciano Spalletti "on the alleged racist remark". The FIGC continued that Acerbi said that he "had no intention of being defamatory, denigratory or racist" but that he would be dropped from the 28-man squad called up to play Venezuela and Ecuador in the build-up to Italy's European title defence. Roma's central defender Gianluca Mancini replaces Acerbi... Читать дальше...
Erik ten Hag's side came from 2-1 and 3-2 down to beat bitter rivals Liverpool 4-3 after extra-time at raucous Old Trafford on Sunday. Amad Diallo's last-gasp winner eased the pressure on under-fire boss Ten Hag and kept United in contention to salvage silverware from their rocky campaign. "The game got a little bit spicy, a little more special because it's an FA Cup game and if you lose, you're out," United captain Fernandes said. "We know the rivalry between fans, we know how United fans wanted... Читать дальше...
Wing Akaki Tabutsadzew scored two tries as Georgia romped to a 36-10 victory over Portugal in the final at the Jean Bouin stadium in Paris on Sunday night. That followed thumping victories over Romania (43-5) and Spain (38-3) as Georgia proved once again that they are a cut above the rest of the European Tier II nations. Cockerill wants World Rugby to provide Georgia with more matches against Tier I nations and the best Tier II teams such as Fiji and Japan -- and maybe even a place in the Six Nations. Читать дальше...
Pep Guardiola's side cantered to a 2-0 win at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday to reach the FA Cup semi-finals for a sixth consecutive season. City's dominance was not reflected in a scoreline that featured two deflected strikes from Bernardo Silva. The FA Cup holders are unbeaten in 22 games in all competitions and Spain midfielder Rodri believes there is more to come after the current international break. "It's going to be good for us, this break," Rodri said. "You will see the best version of this team at the end of the season. Читать дальше...
Darvish and the Padres will face Ohtani and his Los Angeles Dodgers teammates in two games in the South Korean capital, with Darvish taking the mound in Game 1. Tyler Glasnow will be the starting pitcher for the Dodgers. Darvish and Ohtani both played on Japan's World Baseball Classic-winning team last year and Ohtani has said he looked up to Darvish when he was growing up. But Darvish intends to treat the Dodgers' new blockbuster signing as just another opponent when they face off at Gocheok Sky Dome. Читать дальше...
A handful of nations, including Russia, China and Cuba, however, offered Tehran some support during sessions at the Human Rights Council putting Iran's record under the microscope. "I remain very concerned at the ongoing executions and spike in death penalty sentences observed," said Javaid Rehman, the council's special rapporteur on the rights situation in Iran. "At least 834 people were executed in 2023 -- a 43-percent increase compared to 2022," he said, as he presented his latest report to the council, the UN's top rights body. Читать дальше...
Ohtani and the Dodgers are in Seoul this week to play the San Diego Padres in two games as Major League Baseball opens its season in South Korea for the first time. Ohtani will make his Dodgers regular-season debut after joining the team in December on a 10-year deal worth $700 million -- the richest contract in North American sporting history. The 29-year-old attracted even more global attention when he announced last month that he had gotten married. Fans wearing white and blue shirts bearing... Читать дальше...
A volcano in Iceland that erupted on Saturday for the fourth time since December was still spewing smoke and bright orange lava into the air early on Monday (March 18) although infrastructure and a nearby fishing town were safe for now, authorities said.
The European Union and Egypt on Sunday (March 17) signed a 7.4-billion-euro financial package to support the indebted north African country, boost energy sales to Europe and stem irregular migrant flows.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday (March 17) that Israeli troops would pursue a planned ground offensive in southern Gaza's Rafah that has spurred fears of mass civilian casualties.
"I have considered it for some time and carried out talks, but I think that ... this is the right time to make way for new energy, new people and new possibilities," he said in a statement issued by the club. Streich has spent the majority of his career at the club, first as a player before becoming a youth coach in 1995. The 58-year-old took over as boss of the first team in 2011 and is the second-longest serving coach in the Bundesliga after Heidenheim's Frank Schmidt. Streich said after they... Читать дальше...
Iranians will celebrate the start of the year 1403 at exactly 26 seconds past 6:36am (0406 GMT) on March 20, matching the astronomical time of the spring equinox. Globally, some 300 million people will wish each other "Happy New Year" ("Nowruz mobarak") including in Iran, Afghanistan, Kazakhstan and among Kurds in Turkey, Iraq, Syria and elsewhere. "It's the most important holiday of the year, the one where we forget our problems to get together with our loved ones and dream of a better year," said Marjan... Читать дальше...
Election commission results on Monday (March 18) showed that President Vladimir Putin has secured a fifth term with an overwhelming number of votes, in an election that held little suspense. Putin was all but guaranteed to win re-election, having silenced or imprisoned all his major opponents. FRANCE 24's Douglas Herbert gives us his analysis.
Russia's election commission on Monday (March 18) hailed a "record" victory for President Vladimir Putin after a vote with no opposition.
The five-time Olympic track gold medallist, who gave birth to a second child in July, had been targeting a fourth Olympic Games later this year. "I always knew deep down I would know when the right time was," the 31-year-old told the BBC. "I have had an absolute blast but now is the time for me to hang that bike up." Kenny, who is married to Britain's most successful Olympic cyclist, Jason Kenny, won gold medals at the London 2012 Games in omnium and team pursuit, defending her titles in Rio de Janeiro. Читать дальше...
Friends and allies of Russian President Vladimir Putin were quick to congratulate him on his election win but Western leaders denounced what they called an illegal election.
Thailand is one of the biggest plastic polluters in the world: Some 2 million tonnes of plastic waste are produced each year in the country, and only 25 percent of it is recycled. It's estimated that at least 50,000 tonnes of plastic end up in the ocean annually. But Thailand's underdeveloped recycling industry is just one of the problems. Thailand also imports plastic waste, with 372,000 tonnes imported in 2023 alone. Overwhelmed by the problem, the Thai government has announced measures to ban the import of plastic waste by 2025. Читать дальше...
Eight people, all women and children, were killed on Monday in "reckless" air strikes by the Pakistani military in the border regions of Afghanistan, the Taliban government's spokesman said.
Played for centuries in Afghanistan's northern steppes, the national sport at the heart of Afghan identity has evolved from a rough, rural pastime to a professionalised phenomenon flush with cash. "The game has changed completely," the horseman, soon to turn 40, told AFP after returning home victorious from the tournament final in the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif earlier this month. After 20 years as a buzkashi rider, or "chapandaz", Sarwar welcomes the changes to the game, which is played across... Читать дальше...
Cubans staged rare street protests Sunday over food and electricity shortages as the country suffered long outages that left parts of the island without power for up to 14 hours a day.
Vladimir Putin said Russia would not be "intimidated" as he hailed an election victory that paves the way for the former spy to become the longest-serving Russian leader in more than 200 years.
The pre-dawn raid came at a time of growing concern over a looming Israeli ground invasion of Gaza's crowded far-southern city of Rafah, and as international mediators and envoys readied to meet in Qatar Monday to revive stalled truce talks. A meeting between Israel's Mossad chief David Barnea, Qatari Prime Minister Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al-Thani and Egyptian officials "is expected to take place today", a source said on condition of anonymity given the sensitivity of the talks. The Israeli military... Читать дальше...