03 World

Chaos on the streets of France as ‘900k’ refuse to go to work | World | News– www.express.co.uk
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France has been rocked by day of chaos and disruption, with hundreds of thousands of people joining a nationwide strike. Trade unions in the country called for a day of protests against budget cuts, as France continues to be plagued by political turmoil.

Between 600,000 and 900,000 people are thought to have attended the anti-government demonstrations, according to France’s Interior Ministry. Officials said they deployed 80,000 police officers across the country in response to the protests. Police used tear gas to disperse demonstrators in Lyon and Nantes, as tensions reached boiling point.

Roads and streets have reportedly been blocked by protesters in other major cities across France.

Major disruptions to public transport have been reported, with many metro lines in Paris said to be closed.

Students also gathered in front of their schools and universities in the capital and beyond, chanting slogans and blocking entrances. Around a third of teachers joined their students in taking strike action, boycotting classes.

Video. Thousands march in Paris for recognition of Palestinian state– www.euronews.com
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Demonstrators waved Palestinian flags ahead of France’s expected formal recognition of Palestinian statehood at the United Nations General Assembly on Monday.

In Malakoff, a suburb of Paris, the Palestinian flag has flown from the town hall since Friday despite government orders to remove it. Mayor Jacqueline Belhomme, who joined the Paris demonstration, said the display was a symbolic gesture of solidarity similar to the Ukrainian flag raised during Russia’s invasion.

Other towns have also raised flags, though some have taken them down following legal challenges. Socialist leader Olivier Faure has encouraged more municipalities to join the initiative despite warnings from the Interior Ministry. French leaders are expected to place the Gaza war and the wider conflict high on the agenda at the UN General Assembly this week.

Trump ‘grateful beyond words’ for second state visit to UK but key differences remain– www.euronews.com
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US President Donald Trump wrapped up his historic second state visit to the United Kingdom on Thursday saying he was “tremendously thankful” for the pomp and pageantry but some key differences between him and Prime Minister Keir Starmer remain.

When asked about the lack of progress in brokering a deal to end Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Trump said that Russian President Vladimir Putin has “let me down.”

Starmer said he and Trump had discussed how to “decisively increase the pressure on Putin” and that Trump had “led the way here.”

Trump has also not made good on threats to impose new sanctions on Russia and King Charles, in his state banquet speech Wednesday night, offered Trump a gentle nudge, noting “as tyranny once again threatens Europe, we and our allies stand together in support of Ukraine, to deter aggression and secure peace.”

While Starmer has played a major part in European efforts to shore up US support for Ukraine, Trump’s visit offered few major advancements,

The British government has also grown increasingly critical of Israel’s conduct in Gaza and the suffering of Palestinian civilians.

China’s Gap Between Rhetoric and Action Perpetuates Status Quo in Gaza– chinadigitaltimes.net
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On Monday, Reuters reported on the story of a man who tried to flee Gaza by crossing the border into Egypt and then flying to China in order to seek asylum, only to be denied and sent back. As his case illustrates, China’s well-known rhetorical support for Gaza has in many ways not translated into concrete action. In fact, China has appeared to soften its stance towards Israel over the past year. Its criticism over what a U.N. Commission of Inquiry described this week as genocide is directed more at the U.S. and other Western states that undergird Israel’s campaign, rather than at Israel itself. This selectivity serves to undermine the U.S.’ standing relative to China in the eyes of some other countries, while preserving China’s interests in Israel. However, Israel’s increasingly aggressive actions—including recently bombing Qatar’s capital—risk finally pushing Beijing to adopt a more confrontational stance backed by material consequences.

UK, Canada and Australia formally recognise Palestine, backing two-state solution– www.arabianbusiness.com
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The UK, Canada and Australia have formally recognised the State of Palestine, moves framed by all three governments as essential to preserving the prospect of a two-state solution and lasting peace in the Middle East.

UK recognition

British Prime Minister Keir Starmer confirmed that the UK has officially recognised Palestine, calling the decision a historic one grounded in the Palestinian people’s right to self-determination.

Trump says Putin has “really let me down,” as he wraps up historic second state visit to U.K.– www.cbsnews.com
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U.S. companies will be investing 150 billion pounds, the equivalent of over $200 billion, in the U.K. as part of a landmark package announced this week.

“I promised that my government would deliver jobs, growth and opportunity for working people. Today we have secured a historic £150bn of investment commitments from US companies into the UK. Creating 7,600 high quality jobs and driving growth across the country,” Starmer said in a social media post Thursday morning before he welcomed President Trump to his country house, Chequers.

The deal includes the equivalent of over $136 billion in investment in the U.K. from Blackstone over the next decade, according to the British government. It also includes investments from Prologis, Palantir, Amentum, Boeing and STAX.

Stefanik urges Bondi to investigate MSF over alleged Hamas propaganda ties– www.foxnews.com
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FIRST ON FOX: Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., requested that Attorney General Pam Bondi undertake an investigation into Doctors Without Borders under the Anti-Terrorism Act.

In a copy of Stefanik’s letter reviewed by Fox News Digital, she accuses Doctors Without Borders, often known by its French acronym MSF, of having gone on a media offensive against U.S.-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, accusing the organization of “orchestrated killing.”

Stefanik claimed the attacks “mirror propaganda continuously pushed by Hamas and threaten to undermine the only large-scale humanitarian food operation currently working in Gaza.”

Together For Palestine: ‘How can we live with ourselves and stand by and do nothing?’– www.glamourmagazine.co.uk
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It was exactly 11 years ago that I first joined a protest in support of Palestine. In 2014, tens of thousands of ordinary people took to the streets of London to protest the Gaza War – a 50-day conflict during which 2,251 Palestinians, including 1,462 civilians and 551 children, as well as 66 Israeli soldiers and five civilians, including one child, were killed (per the UN).

Where many might not remember the 2014 conflict, few can escape the current horror in Gaza. Since the Hamas attack on Israel, on October 7th 2023, the Israeli military response has killed nearly 65,000 Palestinians (per the Palestinian Ministry of Health), although real figures could be much higher. Many human rights organisations, charities and genocide scholars have described the situation as a genocide.

But while there were politicians such as Diane Abbott speaking out at that first rally I attended back in 2014, many celebrities stayed silent. Those who did show support, such as Javier Bardem, Penelope Cruz, Selena Gomez and Rihanna, were lambasted or ordered to backtrack by industry peers. Speaking out against the injustices in Palestine has always come at a price, but finally, more and more artists are stepping away from silence.

US Treasury sanctions Sinaloa cartel faction Los Mayos in Mexico– abcnews.go.com
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MEXICO CITY — The U.S. Treasury Department on Thursday sanctioned members of a Sinaloa cartel faction known as Los Mayos, one of the groups that has tormented Sinaloa’s capital in an ongoing war for control.

The move came on the same day that U.S. Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence John K. Hurley is visiting Mexico, and after the Trump administration designated the Sinaloa cartel as a terrorist group earlier this year.

Hurley is meeting with Mexican authorities and business leaders to discuss strategies for combating drug trafficking, cartel operations and illicit financing. The U.S. Treasury Department said in a statement that the official’s main message will be that the department “will not allow Mexico-based drug cartels to access the U.S. financial system.”

It’s part of an ongoing effort by the Trump administration to crack down on cartels. In addition to pressuring Mexico’s government to more aggressively pursue the criminal groups, the administration has also doled out rounds of sanctions to cartel leaders, banks it alleged facilitated money transfers for cartels and a rapper accused of laundering money for the groups.

Maps: 7.8-Magnitude Earthquake Off Russia Prompts Brief Tsunami Advisory in Alaska– www.nytimes.com
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A major, 7.8-magnitude earthquake struck in the North Pacific Ocean on Friday, according to the United States Geological Survey. The earthquake prompted a brief tsunami advisory, the second-highest alert level, for some coastal portions of western Alaska, which was lifted about two hours later.

The temblor happened at 6:58 a.m. Kamchatka time about 80 miles east of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatsky, Russia, data from the agency shows.

Tsunamis are a series of long waves caused by a large and sudden displacement of water in the ocean, usually from a large earthquake on or below the ocean floor. Tsunamis radiate in all directions from the epicenter and can cause dangerous coastal flooding and powerful currents that can last for hours or days.

The tsunami advisory had been in place for parts of the Alaskan coast that were closest to the earthquake. Farther away, the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center in Honolulu said there was no threat to Hawaii. “Based on all available data, a destructive Pacific-wide tsunami is not expected,” it said.

In late July, the same region was hit by an 8.8-magnitude earthquake. That quake, one of the strongest ever recorded, set off tsunami waves that reached as far away as Hawaii and California.

Carney says Mexican gangs operating in Canada ‘and vice versa,’ vows action – National– globalnews.ca
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Prime Minister Mark Carney on Thursday acknowledged the issue of Mexican drug cartels operating in Canada, but also that “there are Canadian gangs that operate in Mexico” and that more cooperation is needed to combat them.

Carney made the comments while speaking alongside Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum in Mexico City, where the two leaders signed a new comprehensive strategic partnership aimed at strengthening trade and security ties, including tackling transnational organized crime.

“The unfortunate fact is that yes, there are cartels or gangs from one country in another country, but also vice versa,” he told reporters. “I’m going to acknowledge that there are Canadian gangs that operate in Mexico. We cooperate with the Mexican authorities. We share information. We’re deepening that cooperation.

“Surveillance, heightened police cooperation is appropriate in order to ensure that these criminals are brought to justice, and not wavering in the efforts to bring them to justice, whether the activities are in Canada, Mexico or the United States.”

As Youth Unemployment Hits New High, China Waxes Nostalgic for the “Boom Years”– chinadigitaltimes.net
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China’s National Bureau of Statistics published new data on Wednesday showing that urban youth unemployment rose to a two-year high last month. According to the data, the rate of unemployed youth aged 16 to 24 (excluding students) rose from 17.8 percent in June to 18.9 percent in August, nearing the historical peak of 21.3 percent in June 2023. This development underscores how even in a country that censors and “optimizes” negative data, a harsh economic landscape continues to frustrate millions of Chinese youth.

After the peak in 2023, government officials suspended the publication of youth unemployment data for several months and revised their methodology to yield lower figures. Articles discussing the state of the Chinese economy have also been censored online, including one on WeChat from March titled “Ten Questions About the Chinese Economy in 2025,” and a similar list of ten economic questions in 2023. A meme comparing masses of youth at a job fair to the Terracotta Warriors was likewise taken down from the internet in May. Upon hearing about the latest youth unemployment figures, Chinese netizens on Weibo and X joked about the sensitivity and unreliability of such statistics, as documented by CDT Chinese editors:

Stream2024: Great news! Another record high!

Greece delays Israel arms deals due to Gaza – report– en.globes.co.il
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The Greek government is interested in closing an extensive arms deal with the Israeli government, but the ongoing war in Gaza is causing delays on the part of Greece, the “eKathimerini” website reports, despite the strategic importance of the deals to Greece.

The deal includes Elbit Systems PULS rocket launch system, with the Greeks interested in a full range of munitions, including Accular 160 mm, EXTRA, and Predator Hawk missiles with 300-kilometer range, totaling around €700 million.

Five key takeaways as Donald Trump hosts UK Prime Minister Keir ...

Five key takeaways as Donald Trump hosts UK Prime Minister Keir ...

Trump UK visit live: President tells Starmer to call in the military against illegal migration– www.independent.co.uk
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Watch as Donald Trump says that Jimmy Kimmel was fired for poor ratings after the late night host had his show pulled for comments he made about Charlie Kirk’s shooting. At a press conference at Chequers with British Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer on Thursday (18 September), the president was asked about the suspension of Kimmel’s talk show and whether free speech was more “under attack” in Britain or America. Mr Trump responded by claiming that Mr Kimmel was fired ”because he had bad ratings”, and slammed him for saying a “horrible thing about a great gentleman known as Charlie Kirk”. Stating that the comedian should have been axed long ago, Mr Trump said: “You can call that free speech or not, he was fired for lack of talent.”

The US president briefly raised a clenched fist as he stood at the door of Chequers alongside Sir Keir Starmer and their wives, Melania and Victoria, while two RAF pipers played Scotland The Brave.

He then shook hands with the Prime Minister before being driven to his waiting helicopter.