France closes up to 500 schools Monday over student protests

By Jack Burgess,  PARIS France 

Up to 500 schools across France will be partially or totally closed on Monday after clashes between riot police and student protesters in recent days, the French education minister said on Sunday.

Lessons will be "totally or partly suspended" in some "400 to 500" high schools as security conditions "have not been fulfilled", Édouard Geffray said.

He also said 24 schools had been "burned or ransacked" since the start of the protests.

Thousands of students have been demonstrating over education standards and the protests, which started last week, have spread from Paris to other cities, including Montpellier, Nantes and Marseille.

High school pupils and others have objected to a lack of teachers, overcrowded classrooms and run-down buildings.

On Friday, French Justice Minister Gérald Darmanin said 735 of France's 3,700 schools had been affected "one way or another" by violent protests.

The education minister warned the number of schools potentially affected on Monday could be comparable to Friday's figure but promised a "partial, progressive return to lessons".

"There are activists - particularly from the far-left - who have infiltrated the high school student movement, hijacked it from the students themselves, and engaged in extreme violence," Édouard Geffray claimed.

"Clearly, this poses a risk to both our staff and our students," he said. Geffray added that 78 staff members in education had been wounded, which he described as "something we have never seen before".

On Friday 1,747 people were arrested, according to French Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez.

Over 5,000 people have been arrested altogether since the start of the movement, according news agencies, with around 85% of them minors.

Organisers of the protests have called for the demonstrations to continue on Tuesday after accusing the government of a lack of "concrete measures".

On Sunday, French Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said his government is taking further steps to "address the difficulties faced by high school students and educational staff".

He said this includes ensuring classes continue, improving facilities, better organising school days and making the French university admissions platform more transparent.

Lecornu also said the government is accelerating the review of its "vandal-pays" bill to ensure that people responsible for damage bear the cost of their actions.

Brazil election goes to run-off as right-wing Flávio Bolsonaro wins first round

BRASILIA, Brazil 

The right-wing Flávio Bolsonaro (pictured) has won the first round of Brazil's presidential election, beating the incumbent left-wing President Lula da Silva. But he did not obtain more than 50% of the votes required to win outright.

There will be a run-off vote between these two candidates on 25 October.

Flávio Bolsonaro is the son of the former right-wing president Jair Bolsonaro, who is serving a 27-year prison sentence for masterminding a failed coup attempt after losing the last election.

The election was close, with President Lula polling slightly ahead during the campaign. With 99% of the votes counted, Bolsonaro had 47.03% to Lula's 45.16% of the vote.

Bolsonaro's result exceeded expectations, meaning the second round now looks like his to lose, given some of the other presidential candidates who were knocked out in the first round were right-wing alternatives.

Bolsonaro's Liberal Party (PL) also had the most governors, senators and federal deputies elected in the results so far, meaning the party is expected to have the most influence in Congress.

The majority of Latin America has now elected right-wing presidents, aligned to the Trump administration, and the run-off will determine whether Brazil – Latin America's largest country and economy – will follow suit or not.

After casting his ballot, Lula, 80, warned that the choice was between democracy and "barbarism".

Bolsonaro, 45, said he wanted to "free the Brazilian people".

Lula and Bolsonaro are the two biggest names in Brazilian politics, on the left and right, and this campaign has polarised Brazil yet again: with themes of sovereignty, crime, the economy and corruption being top concerns for voters.

Lula is more popular in Brazil's poorer northeast, among low-income voters, Catholics, and women.

He is seeking a fourth term in office, after being elected in 2002, 2006 and then a later non-consecutive term in 2022. In that election, he beat Jair Bolsonaro by less than 2% of the vote, the closest presidential election result in Brazil's history.

After that election, Bolsonaro's supporters vandalised government buildings on 8 January 2023.

Jair Bolsonaro was banned from running for re-election even before his prison sentence, but endorsed his eldest son Flávio to run in his place. Jair Bolsonaro's wife, Michelle, was elected to the Senate on Sunday.

Flávio Bolsonaro has pledged to grant his father, and his supporters responsible for the January 8th riots, amnesty if elected.

He is more popular in the south, and among wealthier voters and evangelical Christians.

Bolsonaro said on Sunday he was "very happy" to have led Lula in the first-round vote, and expressed confidence that he would clinch a run-off victory in three weeks' time.

"I am very happy with the real possibility that, three weeks from now, Brazil will give a definitive answer by choosing a modern government," he said.

Lula admitted the outcome of the vote was "unexpected", but insisted that the race was not over.

"I admit I was convinced I would win in the first round," he said on Sunday. "The game is about to start. We are in extra time. In extra time, we will win over the Brazilian people."

Eight countries including China join military exercises in Russia

BEIJING, China 

Troops from eight countries concluded joint military exercises in Russia on Saturday after conducting coordinated ground and air operations, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported.

The Center-2026 strategic military exercise began Monday in Russia’s Chelyabinsk region.

The participating countries were Russia, China, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Pakistan and Tajikistan, according to CCTV.

At the Chebarkul training ground, the participating forces practiced long-distance deployment and joint operational planning before carrying out live-action maneuvers against simulated enemy targets, CCTV reported.

Russian President Vladimir Putin attended the exercises Friday in the Ural Mountains.

He said Center-2026 involved 47,000 troops training to repel an attack at 11 firing ranges and in the Caspian Sea.

About 6,000 troops from Russia and other countries took part in the final phase at Chebarkulsky, Putin said.

China sent personnel from the Central Theater Command, including members of the 82nd Group Army and a combined-arms brigade, according to CCTV.

EAST AFRICA NEWSPAPERS 5/10/2026

 

Houthi rebels claim attack on Saudi oil facility in Riyadh

SANAA, Yemen 

Yemen’s Houthi rebels have claimed responsibility for a fire that broke out at an Aramco oil refinery in the Saudi capital Riyadh on Saturday.

If true, it would be the latest in a series of attacks on Saudi facilities.

Houthi military spokesperson Brigadier Yahya Saree said that the alleged attack was in response to the "unjust siege and the launching of aggressive airstrikes" from Saudi territory.

”The Yemeni Armed Forces carried out a military operation using several ballistic missiles and drones, targeting Aramco in the capital of the Saudi enemy, Riyadh," Saree said in a statement posted on social media. "The operation successfully achieved its objective, by the grace of God. The strikes were accurate and direct, resulting in fires breaking out at the targeted sites.”

A major escalation between Saudi Arabia and the Iranian-backed Houthis has revived Yemen’s civil war. The Saudi-led coalition backing Yemen’s government said it carried out operations against Houthi militia early on Sunday, killing hundreds of fighters.

”We will continue to impose the equation of “siege for siege” and “escalation for escalation,” Saree said, "and to target the Saudi enemy’s military mobilisations until the aggression stops and the siege on our beloved country is lifted.”

The Saudi-led coalition supporting Yemen’s government has called the statement “misleading.” The rebels claimed a separate attack last month on an Aramco facility in Yanbu but Riyadh said it had intercepted the missiles and no damage was reported.

In recent weeks, renewed violence in the country has killed hundreds and displaced tens of thousands.

The Houthis captured the strategic city of Mokha and a number of Red Sea islands last month, extending their reach to the key Bab el-Mandeb Strait. It was the Houthis’ biggest land grab in years and ended a 2022 ceasefire that largely stopped major fighting in Yemen’s 12-year civil war.

At least 17 people killed in Kenya road crash, most of them Catholic pilgrims

MOMBASA, Kenya 

At least 17 people, most of them Catholic pilgrims, have been killed in a crash on a highway to the Kenyan port of Mombasa.

The accident happened in Salama in the early hours of Saturday morning as a truck driver tried to overtake another vehicle.

"We witnessed an accident that is quite tragic," said Justus Mwanzia, a member of county assembly.

According to Mwanzia, a minivan carrying 14 pilgrims and their driver collided with the truck, killing everyone on board. Mwanzia said three people in the truck were also killed.

The pilgrims were on their way to a prayer site in Nakuru County, west of the capital Nairobi, said Martin Kivuva, archbishop of the Catholic Archdiocese of Mombasa.

The archbishop said in a statement that he and others were “saddened with lots of grief” over the deaths.

Road accidents are a problem across Africa. In Kenya and elsewhere in the region, the accidents are often blamed on poorly maintained vehicles, excess speed and poor road conditions.

Kenya's National Transport and Safety Authority called upon all motorists to exercise extreme caution, avoid dangerous overtaking and strictly observe lane discipline. The government agency said the stretch where the crash happened was a so-called “black spot" and that recommendations to address the safety concerns had been made.

President William Ruto has offered his condolences to the families, friends, parishioners and the entire Catholic community.

EAST AFRICA NEWSPAPERS 3/10/2026

 

G7 to release 100 million barrels of energy reserves after diesel prices reach record highs

PARIS, France 

Leaders of the G7 nations have agreed to release up to 100 million barrels of oil and diesel in a bid to ease supply pressures that have caused prices to skyrocket.

The G7 made the decision after a meeting chaired by French President Emmanuel Macron on the 2nd, Reuters reported. 

In a joint statement, the group said it had decided to carry out a coordinated release of 100 million barrels of diesel, crude and other fuels through the International Energy Agency to stabilize global energy markets. 

G7 members and partner countries will prioritize releasing a substantial volume of diesel within the first 20 days, according to the statement.

The G7 also agreed at the meeting not to restrict diesel exports among member countries. Members will coordinate maintenance schedules at their refineries as well.

European Union member states, which have been pressed by the Donald Trump administration to tap their diesel reserves, held an emergency meeting the same day to discuss their response. 

EU members discussed a French proposal for European countries to release 50 million barrels of diesel and IEA members to release 50 million barrels of crude, Reuters reported.

The Trump administration had issued an ultimatum to Europe, threatening to ban diesel exports unless European countries released strategic reserves, after diesel prices in the U.S. surged ahead of the November midterm elections. 

Average U.S. diesel prices have jumped more than 70% from a year earlier to above $6.5 a gallon.

Trump said on his social media platform Truth Social that Europe had just agreed to release a massive amount of stockpiled diesel and that the process would begin immediately. He did not specify which countries would release how much.

"Flydubai attacker had 'Islamist radical indoctrination'" - Netanyahu

JERUSALEM, Israel 

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says investigations suggest the man who stabbed his fellow pilot and tried to take over a flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv had undergone "Islamist radical indoctrination".

The Flydubai plane plunged more than 17,000ft (5,200m) two hours into its journey on Wednesday, before passengers and crew overpowered the attacker and retook control to land safely.

Netanyahu told Fox News that it was looking "very likely" that the attacker, who he said was an Omani national, "was going to down the plane".

Meanwhile, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) state news agency reports investigations have begun there to determine "whether the incident was linked to any terrorist activity or purpose".

The Interior Ministry of Saudi Arabia - where the plane made an emergency landing - said that both the pilot and co-pilot had been sent back to the UAE on Thursday morning after medical teams had cleared them.

UAE officials earlier claimed jurisdiction over the incident because the aircraft on which the attack took place is registered there and flies under its flag.

Netanyahu told Fox that once the attacker had been subdued and tied up by passengers and crew, he was "calling out to the aircrew 'kill me, kill me', so it's clear he was suicidal - that's not a question".

"And with all the passengers in there, and if you couple that with what I just told you about the Islamist tendencies, that radicalisation that were found in his background, I think... that'll give us a pretty good clue."

However, he stressed that he did not want to draw any firm conclusions as to motive yet.

Both US President Donald Trump and UAE officials have indicated to the media that Iran may be responsible for the incident, without definitively blaming Tehran.

Trump told reporters on Thursday that Iran would be "hit very hard" if it was deemed to have been involved in the attack.

Pilots from countries without diplomatic relations with Israel were usually not allowed to fly there, Netanyahu said when asked about how the suspected Omani pilot came to be on the plane.

He added: "Obviously there was a loophole here and we're taking care of that among other things... with the full co-operation, I have to say, of the Emirati government, so we're both interested in making sure this doesn't happen again."

Oman has not formally established official ties with Israel, unlike the UAE.

The prime minister was also asked earlier on the same network whether there was an indication if Iran was involved, he replied: "It's too early to say".

Both Netanyahu and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said the stabbed pilot, Indian national Capt Smit Machchhar (pictured down) was a "hero".

India's ambassador to the UAE Deepak Mittal visited Captain Machhar in hospital on Thursday, the Indian Mission confirmed on social media, stating he was "in good health and recovering well".

Preliminary findings from a separate Israeli investigation into the incident, suggest that the alleged attacker intended to crash the plane, an Israeli security source said.

The source said the investigation - led by Israel's intelligence agency Mossad - interviewed passengers after they arrived in Tel Aviv to establish what had happened on the plane.

Flydubai's flight FZ1073, with more than 170 people on board, took off from Dubai International Airport in the UAE at 03:05 GMT (07:05 local time), en route to Ben Gurion Airport.

Two hours later, the 17,000ft drop in altitude was reported on the plane tracking website Flightradar24 and minutes later the plane signalled an emergency code.

At about 05:40, the plane - which had briefly entered Jordanian airspace - looped back into Saudi Arabia, where it later started its manual descent, landing safely at Tabuk Airport in the north west of Saudi.

Flydubai has since suspended flights between Dubai and Tel Aviv as it carried out its own investigation into the incident.

Israel's Transportation Ministry said the suspension aligns with Netanyahu's directive.

Israeli airlines including El Al, Israir and Arkia said plans were in place to operate rescue flights from Dubai starting on Friday to bring back stranded passengers.

The Transportation Ministry also said it sent an urgent request to Etihad Airlines to increase the number of flights between Abu Dhabi and Tel Aviv.

EAST AFRICA NEWSPAPERS 2/10/2026