Press Review - 'Lame excuse': British papers not convinced by PM Starmer's Mandelson defence
PRESS REVIEW – Tuesday, April 21: British broadsheets and tabloids mock Prime Minister Keir Starmer's address to the House of Commons, in which he defended himself over the Peter Mandelson vetting scandal. In France, former PM Gabriel Attal talks about "the love of his life", but a conflict of inte»»»
EU court finds Hungary's anti-LGBTQ legislation violates bloc's rules
The European Court of Justice on Tuesday found that Hungary's 2021 anti-LGBTQ law breached EU rules. The judgment provides a test for Hungary's new leader Peter Magyar, who ended Prime Minister Viktor Orban's 16-year domination with a landslide victory in an April 12 election. Hungary's outgoing g»»»
Full suspension of trade relations with Israel requires EU unanimity
Germany on Tuesday rejected calls from other EU member states to suspend the bloc's cooperation agreement with Israel due to concerns over Israel's conduct in Gaza, Lebanon and the West Bank. Spain and Ireland led proposals to suspend the deal, but Germany said doing so would be "inappropriate". Da»»»
Jet fuel prices flying sky high
The war in Iran is having wider consequences for the aviation sector, with rising jet fuel prices putting pressure on airlines and even raising concerns about possible shortages. France and Europe more broadly are looking for solutions to prevent such a scenario. Bryan Quinn reports.»»»
Significant 'overlap' between auto industry and arms manufacturing, expert says
The European automobile industry is pivoting from car production to manufacturing combat drones and defense systems as the continent seeks to rearm in the face of Russia's continued threats. Speaking with FRANCE 24's Mark Owen, Rico Luman, Senior Economist for Transport and Logistics at ING Bank, e»»»
UK police make eight further arrests after arson attacks on Jewish sites
British counter-terrorism officers have made a total of 23 arrests over a wave of arson attacks targeting Jewish sites and an Iran-critical media outlet in London, the Metropolitan police said Tuesday. Police are investigating whether Iran paid "criminal proxies" to carry out the attacks. UK counte»»»
Ukraine reopens damaged Druzhba pipeline to unlock €90 billion EU loan
Kyiv said Tuesday it has repaired the damaged Druzhba oil pipeline, clearing the last obstacle to a long-delayed €90 billion EU loan. The move forces Ukraine into the uncomfortable position of resuming Russian oil flows to Hungary and Slovakia even as Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky presses al»»»
Russia's Sergei Shoigu says safety of Russians in Transnistria under threat, TASS reports
The safety of Russian citizens in Moldova's breakaway Transnistria region is currently under threat, Sergei Shoigu, secretary of Russia's Security Council, said on Tuesday. Speaking on FRANCE 24, Laurențiu Pleșca, Policy Fellow at the German Marshall Fund, explains that Russia is using the »»»
Israeli soldiers sexually assaulting Palestinians to force them from West Bank homes – report
Israeli soldiers and settlers are systematically using sexual violence and harassment to force Palestinians from their homes in the occupied West Bank, according to a report by the West Bank Protection Consortium – a group of international humanitarian organizations. The report, published on Sunday»»»
Iran war drives fuel theft surge as gas prices soar globally
A wave of “fill up and flee” crime is sweeping petrol stations across the UK, while American drivers are waking up to drilled-through tanks and drained fuel as the US-Israeli war on Iran has sparked a spike in oil and gas prices across the globe, according to media reports and industry watchdogs. T»»»
Business - Tim Cook to step down as Apple CEO after 15 years in the job
Apple has named John Ternus as its new CEO to replace Tim Cook, who is stepping down in September after 15 years at the helm of the tech giant. We take a closer look. Also, a new energy think tank report shows renewable energy accounted more than a third of electricity generation globally in 2025, »»»
Frangieh to Aoun: Even Bashir Gemayyel Failed to Impose “Peace” When Israeli Tanks Were in Beirut
The head of the Marada Movement in Lebanon, Suleiman Frangieh, affirmed that the Resistance is a result of occupation, and what is happening today in the South — the “yellow line” and other matters — gives it full legitimacy to continue. Frangieh added during an interview with Al-Mayadeen channel t»»»
Reports: Two CIA officers die in Mexico car crash after drug raid - UPI.com
John Ratcliffe, director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, looks on as President Donald Trump speaks during a briefing on Iran on April 6 in the James S. Brady Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, D.C. Multiple sources reported Tuesday that two U.S. officials killed in a car crash»»»
Historic Great Lakes flooding shoves ice chunks into Michigan homes - UPI.com
Flooding sent giant chunks of ice into Michigan homes this week after record snowfall melt and rounds of heavy rain created dangerous flooding around the Great Lakes. The statewide flooding dashboard from the Michigan Police showed 40 counties under a state of emergency (red) and road closures due »»»
Panama Canal auction prices quadruple as Hormuz closure reshapes global energy flows
A Chinese-controlled liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) tanker paying $4mn to jump a queue is not the sort of detail that ordinarily surfaces in shipping intelligence reports. Yet the transit of the Gas Virgo, a Singapore-flagged vessel operated by Wanhua Chemical, through the Panama Canal on April 15 h»»»
Europeans fear Washington more than Beijing for the first time, Politico reports
For the first time in the history of transatlantic polling, more Europeans view the United States as a threat to their continent than view China in the same light, a seismic shift in public sentiment. A Politico Europ»»»
UAE warns it could sell oil in yuan if dollar liquidity crunch hits
The United Arab Emirates (UAE) has warned Washington it could switch to Chinese yuan or other currencies to settle oil sales if it faces a severe shortage of US dollars, Russian oil industry publication Neft i Kapital reported on April 21. »»»
US and Cuba talk in Havana but cannot agree on what was said
Cuba has confirmed that senior officials from Havana and Washington held face-to-face talks on the island in early April, in the highest-level diplomatic encounter between the two governments in nearly a decade, as the Trump administration's pressure campaign against the communist-run island shows »»»
COMMENT: Rising pressures on Iranians in the UAE
For over a century, the geographical gap between the southern coast of Iran and the bustling ports of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was less a barrier and more a bridge. However, the recent war on Iran by the US and Israel and Iran's response to GCC neighbours has all but burnt that bridge. »»»
Russia expects resumption of Gulf diplomacy, Lavrov says
Russia expects positive news on the resumption of diplomatic efforts to resolve the situation around Iran, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said, state news agency TASS reported on April 21. Moscow has emerged a»»»
IDF soldier recieves 30-day military detention after smashing Jesus statue in Lebanon
An Israeli soldier has been sentenced to 30 days of military detention after being photographed destroying a statue of Jesus in the Christian village of Debel in southern Lebanon, the IDF confirmed on April 21. The inciden»»»
Russia expects resumption of Gulf diplomacy, Lavrov says
Russia expects positive news on the resumption of diplomatic efforts to resolve the situation around Iran, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said, state news agency TASS reported on April 21. Moscow has emerged a»»»
COMMENT: Is Iran the fourth superpower?
For 30 years, analysts warned that Iran could close the Strait of Hormuz. For 30 years, Iran did not. It threatened to close the Strait, but it never pulled the trigger. The US and its Gulf allies assumed Iran was jive-talking. That changed on February 28 when the US and Israel thought they could b»»»
COMMENT: Rising pressures on Iranians in the UAE
For over a century, the geographical gap between the southern coast of Iran and the bustling ports of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) was less a barrier and more a bridge. However, the recent war on Iran by the US and Israel and Iran's response to GCC neighbours has all but burnt that bridge. »»»
IDF soldier recieves 30-day military detention after smashing Jesus statue in Lebanon
An Israeli soldier has been sentenced to 30 days of military detention after being photographed destroying a statue of Jesus in the Christian village of Debel in southern Lebanon, the IDF confirmed on April 21. The inciden»»»