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Finland tops global happiness rankings, US falls to lowest-ever position

The World Happiness Report 2025 ranks Finland as the happiest country globally for the eighth consecutive year. Released Thursday by the University of Oxford's Wellbeing Research Centre, the report also places Denmark, Iceland, and Sweden in the top four

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US Federal Reserve holds interest rates steady over Trump tarrifs

The US Federal Reserve announced a pause in interest rate cuts, citing increased economic uncertainty exacerbated by President Trump's unpredictable tariff measures. The central bank's decision keeps the key lending rate steady at 4.25 to 4.50 percent, a

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'Erdogan trying to play a bigger role internationally but he's not reliable, nor is he predictable'

Turkish police detained Istanbul's powerful mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu, Wednesday over graft and terrorism allegations, prompting outrage from the opposition which slammed it as a politically-motivated "coup". For in-depth analysis and a deeper perspective, F

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Yesterday

Israel-Hamas war: Prominent Palestinian human rights activists join FRANCE 24

Israeli troops have retaken part of a corridor that bisects Gaza, and its defence minister warned that attacks would increase “with an intensity that you have not known” until Hamas frees dozens of hostages and gives up control of the territory. For in-d

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Jury finds Greenpeace must pay $660 mn in damages in US pipeline suit

A North Dakota jury on Wednesday found Greenpeace liable for defamation and other claims brought by a pipeline company in connection with protests against the Dakota Access Pipeline. The nine-person jury awarded Dallas-based Energy Transfer and its subsi

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Another mass drug-facilitated rape case roils France

A man has confessed to fifteen rapes after drugging his victims. The 34-year-old suspect is a landscaper by profession and has no criminal record. According to the prosecutor in Montpellier, he "admitted to filming the events and acting under the influen

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Democracy under threat in US from a president who wants to be a dictator, human rights lawyer says

Donald Trump's rumbling conflict with the judiciary burst into open confrontation on Tuesday as Supreme Court Justice John Roberts issued a rare public rebuke of a US president over his call for the impeachment of a federal judge. FRANCE 24's Sharon Gaff

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Mixed reactions after Qatar talks between DR Congo and Rwanda

Presidents Felix Tshisekedi and Paul Kagame have expressed their support for a ceasefire after a surprise face-to-face meeting in Qatar. Many welcome their commitment as an important development, but it’s not clear whether it will be enough to stop the f

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JFK Assassination Files: Were there any ‘bombshell’ revelations?

The Trump administration just released over 64,000 pages of declassified documents related to the 1963 assassination of President John F. Kennedy. Following the release of these files, many pro-Trump users on social media now claim to have found ‘new’ bo

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LGBT Americans settling in Spain amid Trump's DEI crackdown

Since the Covid-19 pandemic, more and more American citizens have been settling in Madrid. Last year, 11,000 of them were registered in the Spanish capital. The trend began during the first Trump mandate and has gathered steam since Donald Trump returned

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US State Department confirms program tracking abducted Ukrainian children halted

President Donald Trump promised Wednesday to help Ukraine get back thousands of children allegedly abducted to Russia. But Yale University's Humanitarian Research Lab, which has been tracking the missing children, lost crucial funding from the US governm

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Russia and Ukraine exchange hundreds of prisoners of war

Russia and Ukraine on Wednesday announced they had each swapped 175 prisoners in one of the largest exchanges since Moscow launched a full-scale invasion more than three years ago. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky has repeatedly called for an “all-

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Erdogan could use Imamoglu detention to extend the term limit to presidency, analyst says

Anger has erupted on the streets of Istanbul, with thousands of people rallying in the cold in front of the city hall on Wednesday evening, yelling: "Erdogan, dictator!" and "Imamoglu, you are not alone!", after the city's mayor and Erdogan's main politi

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Mass protests as Turkey detains Erdogan's main election rival

Turkish police detained Istanbul's powerful mayor, Ekrem Imamoglu, Wednesday over graft and "terror" allegations, prompting outrage from the opposition which slammed it as a politically-motivated "coup". Imamoglu of the main opposition CHP is President R

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Pope Francis stops using oxygen mask, continues to recover from pneumonia, Vatican says

Pope Francis is no longer using mechanical ventilation to help him breathe in the latest positive update on his health, the Vatican said on Wednesday. The 88-year-old pontiff has spent more than a month in hospital battling pneumonia in both lungs.

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EU seeks to kickstart defence push to counter Russian threat, US retreat

Europe • 7:48 PM

The EU on Wednesday sought to fire the starting pistol on plans to help member states bolster their defences. A key part of the EU's proposals is not just to equip its forces to face the menace from Russia but also to make sure investments bolster Europe

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European telescope studying the dark universe unveils new images of distant galaxies

A European space telescope launched to explore the dark universe has released a trove of new data on distant galaxies. The images and other information released Wednesday by the European Space Agency's Euclid observatory includes a preview of three cosmi

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France plans 'survival manual' distribution to prepare households for emergencies

France is planning to dispatch a “survival manual” to every household, which gives out instructions on how to prepare for a crisis such as an armed conflict or natural disaster. The decision is still pending approval from the prime minister, but the Fren

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Israel-Hamas: Back to war ? Over 400 Palestinians killed & fears for Israeli hostages

Israel as we speak is bringing the war back to the people of the Gaza Strip, notably launching a ground operation to take back control of the Netzarim Corridor. This followed the extensive bombardment of Tuesday, March 18th - with over 400 Palestinians

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Trump floated US ownership of Ukraine power plants: White House

Europe • 7:17 PM

President Donald Trump has raised the possibility of the United States taking ownership of Ukrainian power plants, the White House said Wednesday as efforts to end the war with Russia proceed. Trump hailed a "very good" call with Ukraine's Volodymyr Zele

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Israelis take to streets in anger as Netanyahu resumes air strikes on Gaza

Thousands of Israelis took to the streets of Jerusalem on Wednesday to call on Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu to end the war on the Gaza Strip and return the hostages. Israel resumed a series of deadly air strikes on the besieged Palestinian enclave o

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2027 Tour de France to start in 'Magical' Edinburgh

Europe • 6:15 PM

The men's and women's 2027 Tour de France will begin in the United Kingdom, with Edinburgh to host the men's Grand Depart.

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Trump mutes Voice of America, makes space for Russian and Chinese influence

US President Donald Trump last week cut funding for international public radio stations Voice of America and Radio Free Europe, which broadcast programmes aligned with “democratic values” to millions of listeners around the world. In their absence, Russi

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Mexico City bans violent bullfighting, sparking fury and celebration

Mexico City's local congress has decided to impose strict rules on bullfighting in the city. With the passing of the bill, killing or maiming the bulls will no longer be allowed. For animal rights activists its a victory and for bullfighting afficianados

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France: Prime Minister convenes key ministers over hijab ban in sports

A plan to ban the Hijab in all sports is dividing the French government. On Tuesday, the Prime minister held talks with key cabinet ministers as divisions start to grow. While religious symbols have been banned in schools since 2004, earlier this year th

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Israeli strikes kill 20, Palestinian medics say, as military orders evacuations

Fresh strikes overnight killed at least 20 people in Gaza, a day after Israel resumed its operations on the enclave, bringing the death toll to over 400 people, including mostly children and women, according to the Gaza Health Ministry. Meanwhile in Isra

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Ukraine's Zelensky calls Trump after US-Russia ceasefire talks

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky on Wednesday held talks with Donald Trump to hear details about the US leader's call with Russia's Vladimir Putin for a lasting ceasefire to end the grinding three-year conflict. For more, FRANCE 24 international af

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Key Erdogan rival arrested by Turkish police as government crackdown escalates

Turkish police on Wednesday arrested Istanbul’s mayor — a popular opposition leader and key rival of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan — and several other prominent figures as part of investigations into alleged corruption and terror links. It was a dramat

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Disney's poisoned apple: New 'Snow White' film gets a muted launch

A new live action remake of "Snow White" stars Gal Gadot and Rachel Ziegler; film critic Emma Jones tells us why revisiting the 1937 animated classic has stirred up controversy for Disney and resulted in a quieter premiere than usual. We also discuss poi

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United States releases final trove of secret Kennedy assassination files

A new round of Kennedy Papers have been released following orders from President Trump. The files were uploaded to the National Archives website on Tuesday in the form of digital documents inclduing PDFs of memos. Some include the heading "secret" while

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Tasty pastries: French treats go global

Here on Entre Nous, we've profiled several pastry chefs who are making their mark in France. Our latest guest, however, is a French pâtissier who is making a splash overseas. Antonin Simon, currently head pastry chef at Mexico's Hotel Esencia, joined us

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United Kingdom government unveils welfare reforms amid tight finances

Britain’s Labour Party government on Tuesday announced an overhaul of the welfare system that it says will save almost 6 billion euros. The government says it's an important step to get more people back into work and bring down ballooning government expe

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Ukraine ceasefire talks: 'Trump doesn't have much leverage to increase pressure on Russia'

Europe • 2:30 PM

As head of the Council representing the EU's member states, EU chief Antonio Costa is tasked with forging unity -- be it on European rearmament or transatlantic relations -- between 27 countries with often divergent histories and goals. With US President

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Supreme Court chief rebukes Trump over call for judge's impeachment

Donald Trump's rumbling conflict with the judiciary burst into open confrontation on Tuesday as the Supreme Court's chief justice issued a rare statement seemingly aimed at the president's comments. In a post on his social media platform, Trump had calle

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Tackling poverty in the UK: New book explores roots of crisis

Europe • 2:15 PM

Oliver Farry speaks to Juliette Démas, London correspondent for the French daily Libération, who is the author of a new book, "Les affamés du Royaume" ("The Famished of the Kingdom"). It looks at the poverty crisis in the UK, which has seen an increasing

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European Union signals a new drive to buy European weapons

The EU is calling to beef up efforts to rearm in a white paper unveiled today. Eurpean Union announceda new drive to break its security dependency on the United States, with a focus on buying more defense equipment in Europe rather than from suppliers ac

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War in Ukraine: 'How can we think we will gonna be in a safe world?'

Russia launched a series of drone strikes that struck civilian areas overnight and damaged a hospital in Ukraine following the refusal by President Vladimir Putin to back a full 30-day ceasefire during discussions with his American counterpart. 'How can

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Fraud complaints target French billionaire Vincent Bolloré's Africa port deals

Africa • 11:41 AM

A coalition of African groups filed fraud complaints Wednesday against French billionaire Vincent Bolloré, accusing him of illegally obtaining the rights to run ports and money laundering. French investigators have in the past looked into allegations the

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To return or not to return? Syrian refugees in Germany question their future

Europe • 11:22 AM

Since the fall of Syrian leader Bashar al-Assad’s regime last December and an increasingly virulent debate on immigration in Germany, many exiled Syrians there are wondering about their future. Some are already packing their bags to return home, while ot

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The 'barefoot diva', Cesaria Evora's legacy lives on in Cape Verde

Mindelo, a small port city on the island of São Vicente in Cape Verde, was once home to Cesaria Evora. She was celebrated around the world for her morna style - a nostalgic musical genre now recognized as a piece of cultural heritage by UNESCO. Her music

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What is the 1968 migratory agreement that is currently disputed?

63 years after Algeria proclaimed independence from France, its former colonial power, the two countries' relationships have gone through highs and lows. Today, they are at a historic low, so much so that the Franco-Algerian migratory agreement signed in

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France-Algeria ties: Algeria rejects French deportation drive

Algeria refuses to accept France's bid to deport dozens of Algerian nationals, saying Paris needs to go through the appropriate channels, in the latest episode of a strained relationship between the two countries. French interior minister Bruno Retaillea

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Rwanda and DR Congo leaders meet in Qatar: 'A surprise for various reasons'

In a surprise announcement, the presidents of Rwanda Paul Kagame and DR Congo Felix Tshisekedi are said to have met in Qatar this Tuesday. The Qatari ministry of foreign affairs released a joint statement that says: "The heads of state reaffirmed the com

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Tesla attacks surge across US in backlash over Musk's White House role

Tesla vehicles, dealerships and charging stations across the United States have been vandalised in recent weeks amid growing anger against the company's CEO Elon Musk, a key ally of US President Donald Trump. Attorney General Pam Bondi said Wednesday the

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Police arrest Istanbul mayor over alleged corruption and terror links

Turkish police have arrested Istanbul mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, the man widely seen as President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's biggest rival. The detention is allegedly part of an investigation into corruption and links to terrorism. It comes a day after a universi

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European Commission set to unveil capital markets investment plan

Brussels prepares to release a proposal on boosting investment into European firms via reforms to capital markets regulations. Also in this edition: entrepreneurs show off their ideas for a more sustainable use of outer space at a London trade show.

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Exclusive: FRANCE 24 speaks to former Israeli and Palestinian officials

With more than 400 people now confirmed dead this Wednesday in Israeli air strikes on Gaza that leave the two-month ceasefire in tatters, FRANCE 24's Georja Calvin-Smith speaks to former Israeli prime minister Ehud Olmert and former Palestinian foreign m

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Fresh strikes hit Ukraine after Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump phone call

Ukraine and Russia have accused each other of launching air attacks destroying civilian infrastructures early on Wednesday just hours after Putin agreed to halt attacks against Ukrainian energy targets, but refused a full ceasefire unless the West halts

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Putin-Trump phone call: 'The art of the dealski'

PRESS REVIEW – Wednesday, March 19: We look at reactions in the press after US Supreme Court Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr issues a rare rebuke of Donald Trump. Also: cartoonists react to Trump and Vladimir Putin's phone call on Ukraine. Finally, we d

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Greenland sees victory of centre-right while Trump pledges to 'annex the island'

The leaders of all Greenland's political parties on Friday denounced US President Donald Trump's vow to take over the Danish autonomous island. FRANCE 24's senior reporter, Clovis Casali has more.

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EU rearmament: Commission unveils white paper on Europe's defence

In Brussels this week, leaders' talks will once again be dominated by how to support Ukraine and bolster Europe's defences. With US President Donald Trump forging ahead with Russia's Vladimir Putin on negotiating a ceasefire in Ukraine, Costa voiced conf

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Trump-Putin phone call: Russia agrees to half attacks on energy infrastructure

While the highly anticipated call between Trump and Putin did not secure the breakthrough ceasefire endorsed by Ukraine last week, it did result in a scaled-back commitment to halt attacks on energy infrastructure for 30 days. Hours after the call explos

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What do we know about the phone call between Trump and Putin?

Russia and Ukraine have accused each other of launching air attacks that destroyed civilian infrastructure early Wednesday... It comes just hours after Vladimir Putin agreed in a phone call with his US counterpart to pause strikes on energy targets. Wash

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REPLAY: 'Stranded' NASA astronauts back on Earth after splashdown

After an unexpected nine-month stay in space, a pair of NASA astronauts finally returned to Earth on Tuesday, concluding a mission that gripped global attention and became a political flashpoint.

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NASA astronauts return to Earth on SpaceX capsule after 9-month space marathon

NASA astronauts Butch Wilmore and Suni Williams made a successful splashdown on Tuesday evening, nine months after technical problems with their spacecraft upended what was supposed to be a week-long test mission.

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Live: Trump to help Zelensky get more air defence from Europe, White House says

Europe • 8:08 AM

US President Donald Trump has pledged to help Ukraine get more air defence equipment from Europe as Kyiv's forces battle Russia, the White House said Wednesday. In a phone conversation Tuesday, Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelensky also

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'Trump admires Putin & would like to have a political system operating similarly to that of Russia'

Europe • 7:30 AM

Ukraine accused Russia of effectively rejecting a US-backed ceasefire proposal, reporting a barrage of strikes on civilian infrastructure hours after Moscow agreed to temporarily pause attacks on energy facilities. Washington was pushing an immediate 30-

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EU launches push to boost defence as Trump pivots away from Europe

The EU on Wednesday will look to launch plans to help member states bolster their defences as Europe grapples with Russian aggression and the potential loss of the US security umbrella.

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Turkey detains Istanbul mayor and key Erdogan rival days before presidential nomination

Pacific Asia • 6:49 AM

Turkish authorities detained President Tayyip Erdogan's main political rival Ekrem Imamoglu on Wednesday on an array of charges including corruption and aiding a terrorist group just days before his expected nomination as the main opposition’s presidenti

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Live: Gaza health ministry reports 970 deaths in 48 hours in wake of new Israeli strikes

Gaza's health ministry on Wednesday registered 970 deaths in two days as Israel launched new strikes on the besieged enclave. The Israeli military denied carrying out an air strike on a UN building in central Gaza that killed at least one foreign aid wor

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Judge blocks Trump administration order banning transgender people from military

Continuing US federal judges' resistance to President Donald Trump's sweeping executive orders, a Washington, D.C. district judge moved to block Trump's ban on transgender people from serving in the military, a seminal component of the president's crusad

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Russia, Ukraine trade accusations of violating deal not to target energy infrastructure

Europe • 3:59 AM

Russia and Ukraine accused each other on Wednesday of launching air attacks that sparked fires and damaged infrastructure just hours after their leaders agreed to a limited ceasefire to halt attacks on energy infrastructure. The US announced that fresh t

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