France has been brought to a standstill as unions staged nationwide strikes and the Bloquons Tout movement — translated as “Block Everything” — added a new disruptive edge. Schools closed, metros halted, and more than 250 protests took place across the country.
The strikes were triggered by the 2026 draft budget, first introduced under François Bayrou and still looming under his successor, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu. The plan, aimed at meeting EU fiscal targets, calls for sweeping cuts to public spending. Unions say these cuts unfairly burden workers, pensioners, and public services.
But it wasn’t just the unions on the streets. Bloquons Tout, a citizen-led movement born online, organised blockades and flash protests, making the demonstrations more unpredictable and harder for the government to manage.
In this edition of NewsHour, Guy Shone crosses live to Paris with our correspondent Ross Cullen for the latest on the ground, before leading into a pre-prepared package featuring analysis from Antoine Bristielle, Director of the Jean Jaurès Foundation’s Opinion Observatory. We then turn to our studio analyst to examine the deeper political questions: Is austerity driven more by Brussels than Paris? Can Lecornu hold the line? And is this the start of a wider autumn of unrest?
Counting is underway in Armenia's elections. The results of the vote are set to determine the political direction of the country of three million peop...
Counting is underway in Armenia’s parliamentary elections, with the results of the vote set to determine the makeup of the National Assembly and sha...
The Iranian national football team is set to arrive in North America for the World Cup after finally securing travel documents, but a dispute over U.S...
Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry has confirmed the number of casualties its citizens suffered as a result of the 5 June drone attacks on the cargo ships ...
Sirens rang out across multiple areas of Israel on Sunday night after missiles were launched from Iran towards the country, the Israeli military said...
Counting is underway in Armenia’s parliamentary elections, with the results of the vote set to determine the makeup of the National Assembly and shape the country's political direction for the foreseeable future. But in Armenia, the final result is not decided by vote percentages alone.
The Iranian national football team is set to arrive in North America for the World Cup after finally securing travel documents, but a dispute over U.S. visa approvals continues to cast a shadow over the country's tournament preparations.
Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry has confirmed the number of casualties its citizens suffered as a result of the 5 June drone attacks on the cargo ships Natra and Zircon in the Sea of Azov. In a statement, it said four Azerbaijani citizens were killed and four others were injured.
The United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has warned ahead of World Environment Day that Afghanistan's worsening water crisis is disproportionately affecting women and girls, who bear much of the responsibility for securing water for their families.
Counting is underway in Armenia's elections. The results of the vote are set to determine the political direction of the country of three million people for the next few years. Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan is hoping to fend off challenges from several pro-Russia candidates to secure a third term.
Armenian authorities arrested six candidates from the pro-Russian Strong Armenia bloc on Saturday, one day before voters were due to take part in parliamentary elections.
More than 6,000 people gathered outside a vote-counting centre in Seoul on Friday night, demanding this week’s local elections be repeated after ballot shortages left some voters unable to cast their ballots.
Azerbaijan's Foreign Ministry has confirmed the number of casualties its citizens suffered as a result of the 5 June drone attacks on the cargo ships Natra and Zircon in the Sea of Azov. In a statement, it said four Azerbaijani citizens were killed and four others were injured.
The U.S. said it struck Iranian radar sites on Qeshm Island and in Goruk after intercepting four drones, while Iran's Revolutionary Guards said they launches retaliatory strikes on four tankers in the Strait of Hormuz and targeted U.S. bases in the Gulf.
In a special edition of Context, Orkhan Amashov reports from Washington on the inaugural meeting of the Board of Peace, examining plans for Gaza’s reconstruction, a proposed stabilisation force, and the wider diplomatic impact of the U.S.-led initiative.
Here are the latest stories from AnewZ’s Africa News programme, focusing on political and security developments across the African continent.
Here are the latest stories from AnewZ’s Africa News programme, focusing on political and security developments across the African continent.
The following story summaries are from AnewZ’s Africa News programme, focusing on political and security developments across Africa and beyond.
In today’s Prime Time, we covered the following conversations: Azerbaijan has shipped petroleum products to Armenia by rail for the first time in decades, marking a significant step toward economic cooperation and regional integration in the South Caucasus.
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