The Latest Breaking News from FRANCE 24

EU to help break blockade on Ukraine’s Odesa to free up grain exports

The European Commission said Thursday it would help Ukraine break the Russian blockade on the port city of Odesa, where thousands of tonnes of grain destined for the global market remains trapped. UN and EU officials have warned that Russia’s continuing siege of the southern port risks causing a global…

France 24 · May 12, 2022

Explainer: How do France's legislative elections work?

Close on the heels of April's presidential vote, French voters go back to the ballot box on June 12 and 19 to elect lawmakers to the National Assembly. France's legislative elections tend to pale next to the limelight-stealing race for the Élysée Palace, but with 577 distinct races to fill…

France 24 · May 11, 2022

UN chief 'deeply concerned' about risks of global hunger due to war in Ukraine

UN chief Antonio Guterres said Wednesday he was "deeply concerned" about the prospect of global food shortages stemming from the war in Ukraine, calling the current food security situation "dramatic". Ukraine said its forces were gradually pushing Russian troops away from the city of Kharkiv, the country's second-largest, signalling a…

France 24 · May 11, 2022

Operatic Soprano Chen Reiss on re-attributing credit to romantic composer Fanny Hansel

Operatic Soprano Chen Reiss began singing at the age of 14 in her native Israel. She has since toured the world and taken part in many recordings of classics and soundtracks. Her new album explores the work of romantic composer Fanny Hensel, whose music was often attributed to her brother…

France 24 · May 9, 2022

Live: Putin says Russian troops ‘fighting for the Motherland’ in Ukraine

Russia celebrated its 1945 victory over Nazi Germany on Monday with a show of military might even as its army battles Kyiv's forces in the east of Ukraine, where 60 people were killed in an air strike on a school sheltering civilians. Follow FRANCE 24 for live updates. All times…

France 24 · May 9, 2022

Ukraine's Kherson region prepares for Russian counteroffensives

Fighting continues to rage in southern Ukraine. Here, Russian forces hold the port city of Kherson and they claim to control the whole administrative region, of which Kherson is the capital. But in fact they don’t: Ukrainian counterattacks in March brought a small part of that region back under Kyiv’s…

France 24 · May 8, 2022

As Russia prepares military pomp, Ukraine blames it for deadly school bombing

About 60 people were feared to have been killed in the bombing of a village school in eastern Ukraine, while Russian President Vladimir Putin prepared to mark the 77th anniversary of the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany in World War Two. Thank you for joining us during this live…

France 24 · May 8, 2022

Macron vows to build ‘stronger France’ during second term as president

President Emmanuel Macron on Saturday was inaugurated for a new term, making him the first French leader in 20 years to serve a second mandate following his election victory over far-right politician Marine Le Pen in the April 24 second round of the 2022 presidential vote. Follow FRANCE 24's coverage…

France 24 · May 7, 2022

Ukraine's Zelensky says several hundreds were saved from Azovstal plant

Ukrainian's president said on Saturday that more than 300 civilians had been rescued from the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol, where Ukrainian forces are holding out against a Russian siege. He assured that authorities would now focus on evacuating the wounded and medics. Ukraine is also working on humanitarian corridors…

France 24 · May 7, 2022

Ukrainian army specialists hunt for explosives left behind by Russian forces

When the Russian army withdrew from northern Ukraine they scattered landmines across fields and left hand-grenades and trip wires in peoples’ homes. More than 28 thousand explosives have already been found. But over 300,000 hectares around Kyiv still need to be painstakingly checked. It is a dangerous process. Explosive ordinance…

France 24 · May 6, 2022