‘Wind of revolt’ sweeps French cinema in belated #MeToo reckoning

French cinema’s #MeToo breakthrough has been heralded, and pushed back, often enough to warrant caution – but there are signs the ground is finally shifting, more than six years after cinema’s feminist revolution kicked off across the Atlantic.

In 2017, at the dawn of the #MeTo…[Read more]

Unusually warm weather in northern Japan puts damper on winter events

Unseasonably warm weather in northern parts of Japan have caused iconic winter sights to melt away this week, causing ice deposits on trees to no longer appear so monster-like, and snow huts to be capped with blue sheets.

While Hokkaido and the northeastern Japan regions will…[Read more]

Japan to boost child allowances to tackle falling birthrate

The Cabinet on Friday approved a bill to expand the coverage of monthly child allowances to high school-age children as Prime Minister Fumio Kishida aims to stem the sharp drop in Japan’s birthrate.

Under the plan, the existing income limit for households receiving the benefits will be…[Read more]

Japan announces successful launch of next-generation H3 rocket

Japan’s space agency announced the successful launch of its new flagship rocket on Saturday, making it third time lucky for the H3 after years of delays and two previous failed attempts.

The H3 rocket, billed as flexible and cost-effective by the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency…[Read more]

Japan’s ‘Moon Sniper’ wakes up and shares new images of the lunar surface

Japan’s “Moon Sniper” robotic explorer is back in action after a power issue forced the spacecraft to shut down hours after landing on the moon 10 days ago, the country’s space agency said Monday.

The explorer executed a precise landing just after 10:20 a.m. ET on January…[Read more]

Japanese castle town invites travelers to live a day in the life of a feudal lord

The careful placement of the traditional “kabuto” helmet and the adjustment of the cord chin strap complete the transformation.

Simon Celestine arrived at Odawara castle as a tourist from France but he is now lord of one of the most impressive feudal-era for…[Read more]

Linda Burney attacks Closing the Gap with new $707m remote jobs program

The federal government will invest $707m in a new jobs program for remote Australia that it says will deliver 3000 jobs and better living conditions for Indigenous Australians over the next three years.

The program replaces the former government’s Community Development P…[Read more]

‘Didn’t want the public to see’: James Paterson says govt was forced to ‘cough up’ documents on freed immigration detainees

Shadow home affairs minister James Paterson says the government has been forced to “cough up” documentation it “didn’t want the public to see” following controversy surrounding the release of 149 detainees into the c…[Read more]

Climate activist Greta Thunberg joins protest against new French motorway

Thunberg came as part of a delegation of French, Belgian, Swedish and Spanish activists to the site near the southwestern city of Toulouse.

“We are here to stand in solidarity with the people who are resisting this project and this madness,” Thunberg told reporters,…[Read more]

‘It’s non-negotiable’: French MPs angry at move to restrict citizenship on Mayotte

Emmanuel Macron has been accused of walking a dangerous legal and political tightrope with a proposal to restrict access to French nationality for people born on the Indian Ocean island of Mayotte to immigrant parents.

The far right has welcomed the move, which…[Read more]

Istanbul University’s historic Beyazıt campus opens for visitors

University (IU), a cornerstone of Türkiye’s educational legacy, opened the doors of its iconic Beyazit campus to visitors on Thursday, offering a glimpse into its rich history and academic prowess.

Established in 1453 as Medaris-i Semaniye (Sahn-ı Seman) by Fatih Sultan Mehmet fo…[Read more]

Ferry services in Istanbul, Izmir disrupted due to adverse weather

Due to adverse weather conditions, some ferry services in Türkiye’s major metropolises Istanbul and Izmir were canceled on Sunday, according to Anadolu Agency (AA) reports, while warnings for possible thunderstorms were issued for the wider Marmara and Aegean…[Read more]

Türkiye launches new ‘Family and Youth Fund’ to boost welfare

The regulation regarding Türkiye’s newly established fund aimed at supporting a stable family structure, safeguarding young people against social risks, and supporting their development and initiatives was published in the country’s Official Gazette on Sunday.

The decision regarding t…[Read more]

Flowers, tears, tree planting in Adiyaman to remember Turkey’s earthquake

The clock tower standing above the rubble and debris, frozen in time with its watch hands stopped at 4:17am, had become a symbol of Adiyaman’s destruction. But a year later, it is finally ticking again as usual.

On the first anniversary of a double-fold earthquake that kil…[Read more]

In Turkey’s Gaziantep, weddings are dispelling some post-earthquake sadness

Gazi Muhtar Pasa Boulevard in downtown Gaziantep, an elegant district of bridal shops and venues in a city known as a wedding destination, is much livelier than a year ago, the sidewalks clear of debris and shattered window glass.

Businesses have been open since the e…[Read more]

Robert Badinter, French ex-minister who fought to abolish death penalty, dies at 95

The soft-spoken attorney, who said he could not abide by a “killer justice system”, was widely vilified for pushing through legislation banning the death penalty at a time when most French people still supported the practice.

He said later he had “never felt so…[Read more]

‘They’re drowning us in regulations’: how Europe’s furious farmers took on Brussels and won

On the outskirts of the northern Spanish city of Pamplona, a green, red and blue stream of New Holland, John Deere, Massey Ferguson, Fendt and Deutz-Fahr tractors trundled forwards, horns honking and orange lights flashing.

Under drizzly grey skies a…[Read more]

Fighting the smartphone ‘invasion’: the French village that voted to ban scrolling in public

picture of a smartphone with a red line through it serves as a warning in the window of a hairdresser’s shop in a French village that has voted to ban people scrolling on their phones in public. “Everyone is struggling with too much screen time,”…[Read more]

Paris mayor faces pushback over plans for car-free Eiffel Tower zone

Thousands of tourists jostle every day to snap the Eiffel Tower from across the River Seine on the hill at Trocadero, with its magnificent gardens and a modernist palace housing museums.

Walking to Trocadero is less romantic, however, requiring the crossing of two major…[Read more]

German upper house approves bill easing citizenship rules

German lawmakers have passed a bill that makes the process of obtaining citizenship easier, and moved to simplify repatriations.

The naturalisation reform, approved by the upper house of parliament on Friday, allows people to become German citizens while keeping their original…[Read more]