RFI English

Clooney kicks off Venice as festival wades into war, Gaza and AI Venice rolls out the red carpet Wednesday, with George Clooney set to collect a lifetime achievement award as the film festival opens a starry two-week run heavy on biopics, war-zone dramas from Gaza and Iran, and a fresh reckoning with artificial intelligence. 👉 Read more: https://rfi.my/D0o3.g

Tunisia accused of shutting down civil society through sweeping crackdown Tunisian authorities have intensified pressure on civil society through arrests, prosecutions, financial investigations and mass suspensions, Human Rights Watch said on Wednesday – warning that the independent civic space created after the 2011 revolution has been all but shut down. 👉 Read more: https://rfi.my/D0ni.g

World set to breach 1.5C climate limit as UN urges rapid reversal Global warming is set to cross the 1.5C limit within the next few years, exposing people and ecosystems to more severe climate damage, the UN's environmental agency said on Wednesday. But temperatures could eventually be brought back down if emissions fall sharply and carbon dioxide is removed from the atmosphere. 👉 Read more: https://rfi.my/D0mJ.g

Senegal and IMF strike $2.2bn deal, two years after debt scandal froze funding Senegal and the International Monetary Fund have reached a staff-level agreement on a new $2.2 billion (€1.9 billion) lending programme, nearly two years after an earlier deal was suspended following the discovery of previously unreported public debt. 👉 Read more: https://rfi.my/D0lB.g

French pop star Patrick Bruel cancels 35-date tour amid sexual assault storm French  pop and variety singer Patrick Bruel has cancelled his entire 35-date autumn tour, bowing to weeks of pressure from politicians, mayors and feminist groups following allegations of sexual assault and rape against him. Lawyers representing the accusers called the decision a "power signal" showing that women are "at last being heard." 👉 Read more: https://rfi.my/D0ko.g

Macron opens Bayeux Tapestry exhibition before first Burnham talks French President Emmanuel Macron begins a two-day visit to Britain on Wednesday, opening a landmark exhibition of the Bayeux Tapestry, the 11th-century embroidery depicting the Norman conquest of England, before holding his first in-depth talks with new Prime Minister Andy Burnham on Thursday. 👉 Read more: https://rfi.my/D0i7.g

France-UK deal linked to seven-year low in Channel migrant crossings France and the UK saw the number of small boats carrying migrants across the English Channel fall to its lowest summer level since 2019, with London crediting a new enforcement deal between the two countries. 👉 Read more: https://rfi.my/D0hg.g

French clubs cash in as Ligue 1 transfer window comes to a close The transfer window for French football clubs closed on Tuesday evening after three months of trading that saw the 18 Ligue 1 sides splash out €522 million and reap €894 million in player sales. 👉 Read more: https://rfi.my/D0f5.g

DRC school year begins amid Ebola, strikes and conflict Millions of students returned to school across the Democratic Republic of Congo on Tuesday, but the new term began amid an Ebola outbreak affecting six provinces, a teachers’ strike call and continuing conflict in the east. In AFC/M23-controlled territories, the movement organised the return to classrooms even as Kinshasa continued to pay primary and secondary school teachers. 👉 Read more: https://rfi.my/D0eX.g

No more Messi nights for Argentina as skipper says adios to national squad Fifa president Gianni Infantino led the tributes to Argentina skipper Lionel Messi, who announced his retirement from international football just over a month after playing in the 2026 World Cup final. 👉 Read more: https://rfi.my/D0c7.g

From labels to Netflix, how Quebec's fight to protect French collides with US trade French-language protections in Quebec have emerged as an unlikely source of friction between Canada and the United States, bringing rules designed to protect French in overwhelmingly English-speaking North America into a much bigger fight over trade. 👉 Read more: https://rfi.my/D0bT.g

Russia’s return to G20 talks unsettles Europe as Iran and trade tensions loom Russia's presence at the opening of G20 meetings in North Carolina sparked pushback from Europe on Monday, adding fresh tension to talks already clouded by the Iran war and US President Donald Trump's trade policies. 👉 Read more: https://rfi.my/D0bS.g

French tennis star Fils bemoans lack of energy in US Open first round flop France's top tennis player Arthur Fils admitted he felt his energy drain away as he botched a chance to open up a two-set lead over Stefanos Tsitsipas during his first round match at the US Open. 👉 Read more: https://rfi.my/D0aT.g

Ukraine air defences top agenda as EU ministers meet in Ireland European Union defence and foreign ministers gathering in Ireland this week are set to focus on strengthening Ukraine’s air defences, as concern grows over both Russia’s intensifying bombardment and what European officials see as a widening campaign of destabilisation across the continent. 👉 Read more: https://rfi.my/D0Y3.g

'Devoted servant of the nation': Former French PM Édouard Balladur dies aged 97 Former French prime minister Édouard Balladur died in Paris late Monday at the age of 97, his family said. Born in Turkey, he served as former president Francois Mitterrand's last prime minister from March 1993 to May 1995, carrying out several major privatisations of state companies, and unsuccessfully ran for the top job in 1995. 👉 Read more: https://rfi.my/D0Wa.g

French schools start new year in shadow of summer cyberattack Millions of pupils are returning to classrooms across France on Tuesday for the start of the new school year, with some schools forced to fall back on paper timetables and registers after a major cyberattack disrupted education systems over the summer. 👉 Read more: https://rfi.my/D0WJ.g

Ten years after Gabon’s post-election violence, painful questions remain Ten years on, victims of violence that followed president Ali Bongo’s disputed re-election in Gabon are still demanding truth and justice. Questions also remain over the possible involvement of French nationals and the response of the French authorities. 👉 Read more: https://rfi.my/D0Rw.g

France's international photojournalism festival founder Leroy dies aged 69 Tributes have been pouring in for Jean-François Leroy, the founder of the Visa pour l'image photojournalism festival, who died on Monday at the age of 69. 👉 Read more: https://rfi.my/D0Rd.g

Niger coup attempt: 'Russians saved the day' analyst tells RFI Niger’s military government has survived its most serious internal challenge since seizing power in 2023, after Russian paramilitaries helped loyalist forces crush last Saturday's attempted coup in the capital, Niamey. RFI spoke to an expert who explains how this episode has left General Abdourahamane Tiani’s junta weakened and more dependent on Russia. 👉 Read more: https://rfi.my/D0R9.g

Fils heads into US Open as leader of the French pack as Djokovic bows out France's top tennis player Arthur Fils will launch his US Open campaign on Monday in the shadow of a shock first round defeat for the fourth seed and four-time champion Novak Djokovic. 👉 Read more: https://rfi.my/D0PO.g