Iran marks one year since Hezbollah chief Nasrallah’s assassination
Thousands gathered in Tehran on Thursday to commemorate one year since the assassination of longtime Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, as Iranian off...
France has unveiled a new agreement offering greater autonomy to New Caledonia, a move Paris described as “historic” but which falls short of the full independence long demanded by many Indigenous Kanaks.
The deal, announced on 12 July after ten days of tense negotiations at the Élysée Palace, comes more than a year after deadly riots shook the South Pacific territory over proposed changes to voting rules. Those changes, strongly opposed by pro-independence groups, were seen as a threat to Kanak political representation.
Under the accord, New Caledonia would become a “state of Caledonia” within the French Republic, and the French constitution would recognise a new “Caledonian nationality” alongside French citizenship. While celebrated by President Emmanuel Macron as a “historic” compromise, the deal still requires approval in New Caledonia and may be put to a vote there as early as February.
Participants in the talks — which included officials from the French government, pro-independence Kanaks, and anti-independence representatives — agreed the arrangement could eventually expand local control over international relations, policing, and justice. It may also allow New Caledonia to adopt its own flag, anthem, and name.
However, critics say the agreement stops short of recognising the right to self-determination — a long-standing demand of the Kanak independence movement, which has roots stretching back to French colonisation in the 1850s.
France granted citizenship to Kanaks in 1957 and the territory has held three referendums on independence since 2018, all of which ended in favour of remaining under French control — although the most recent vote in 2021 was boycotted by pro-independence groups after a COVID-19-related delay.
A special congress will be held to determine next steps. What lies ahead remains uncertain — not only in terms of whether New Caledonians will back the proposal, but also whether it will meaningfully address the deep-rooted tensions that continue to define politics in the archipelago.
A day of mourning has been declared in Portugal to pay respect to victims who lost their lives in the Lisbon Funicular crash which happened on Wednesday evening.
Video from the USGS (United States Geological Survey) showed on Friday (19 September) the Kilauea volcano in Hawaii erupting and spewing lava.
At least eight people have died and more than 90 others were injured following a catastrophic gas tanker explosion on a major highway in Mexico City’s Iztapalapa district on Wednesday, authorities confirmed.
A powerful 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck off Russia’s Kamchatka Peninsula on 13 September with no tsunami threat, coming just weeks after the region endured a devastating 8.8-magnitude quake — the strongest since 1952.
At least 69 people have died and almost 150 injured following a powerful 6.9-magnitude earthquake off the coast of Cebu City in the central Visayas region of the Philippines, officials said, making it one of the country’s deadliest disasters this year.
France’s iconic Eiffel Tower was shut on Thursday as nationwide strikes and protests swept across the country, with unions demanding the government scrap austerity plans and raise taxes on the wealthy.
Thousands gathered in Tehran on Thursday to commemorate one year since the assassination of longtime Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, as Iranian officials vowed defiance against the U.S. and Israel.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has hit out at European leaders, accusing them of whipping up hysteria calling them "dishonest".
Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni criticised an aid flotilla intercepted off Gaza by the Israeli military, saying on Thursday the activists' mission and a strike called in their support in Italy would do nothing to help Palestinians.
Two people have been shot dead by police in Morocco as nationwide protests over poor public services intensify, marking the first fatalities since the unrest began last weekend.
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