Connect with us

Published

on

A national strike is taking place in France after President Emmanuel Macron’s circumvention of parliament to pass the divisive pension bill which would raise the retirement age by two years.

The co-ordinated strikes are expected to cause widespread national chaos, as well as travel disruption to and from France.

French airports will be hit, with Paris Orly airport seeing its schedule of flights reduced by 30% according to the Directorate General for Civil Aviation (DGAC).

Eurostar announced eight of its trains would be suspended as it runs a revised timetable.

French domestic travel will also take a hit. SNCF, France’s state-owned railway company, said to expect severe disruption with reduced TGV, TER and Intercite services.

Paris metro and other modes of public transport will be hit as transport workers take to the picket lines.

The industrial action could become violent, emulating the past few days of demonstrations all over France.

More from World

A demonstrator throws a projectile amid clashes in Nantes, France, on Thursday
Image:
A demonstrator throws a projectile amid clashes in Nantes, France

Why are people protesting and striking?

President Macron’s plan to increase the retirement age from 62 to 64 is a deeply unpopular.

Opinion polls show the vast majority of voters oppose the pension reforms, as do trade unions, who argue that there are other ways to balance the pension system account.

So as a collective force, workers from the transport, sanitary, refinery, education sectors and beyond have been marching in their respective cities and towns against the bill.

French streets have become lined with overflowing bins, notably in Paris where almost 10,000 tonnes of rubbish remains uncollected.

A woman walks past piles of garbage bags in a street as overflowing garbage has not been collected due to a strike of garbage collectors against French government pension reform, in Paris, France, March 17, 2023. REUTERS/Pascal Rossignol
Image:
A woman walks past piles of rubbish bags in Paris

How Macron did to push the retirement bill through?

The French president’s current PM, Elisabeth Borne, announced the proposed pension changes on 10 January.

Last week, Mr Macron forced the pension reform through the National Assembly without a vote using Article 49.3, a part of the French constitution that enables the government to pass a law without a vote by MPs.

What’s been the reaction and effect on the country so far?

After the bill was forced through on 16 March, people came out en masse to demonstrate.

Around 7,000 people participated in an unplanned rally on the Place de la Concorde in Paris – across the River Seine from the assembly.

Riot police fired tear gas and used a water cannon to disperse protesters, while officers who charged groups of demonstrators had stones thrown at them, according to a Reuters reporter. Firefighters were also called to extinguish blazes in Paris.

More than 300 activists were arrested.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

France: Police spray protesters

A ‘spectacular failure’ but the president survives

The move was called “a spectacular failure” by Jean-Luc Melenchon, the leader of left-wing party France Insoumise (France Unbowed).

“This bill has no parliamentary legitimacy, no legitimacy from the street,” he said at a protest outside parliament.

However, on 21 March, the president narrowly survived two motions of no confidence by nine votes after they were tabled by centrist MPs and those from the far-right National Rally.

The centrist group’s vote was first in the National Assembly, with 278 MPs voting in favour – higher than expected but narrowly short of the 287 needed to get the motion through.

Why does Macron say he’s bringing the change?

Speaking publicly for the first time since the reforms were forced through parliament, President Macron said the retirement system needed a change to keep it financed.

Mr Macron said: “That reform is not a luxury, it is not fun, it’s a necessity for the country,”

Currently, France’s state retirement age is 62 – much lower than many of its European neighbours. In the UK it’s 66, Germany and Italy 67, and Spain 65.

Its generous welfare state has long weighed heavily on the economy and workforce, which is gradually shrinking.

There are only 1.7 workers for every pensioner in France, down from 2.1 in 2000.

David S Bell, emeritus professor of French government and politics at the University of Leeds, told Sky News: “[Mr Macron’s] argument is that unless these reforms are made, and the French working life is made longer, the country won’t be able to afford it.”

What’s next?

Mr Macron said the retirement age changes would “continue its democratic path” and would need to be implemented by the “end of the year”.

This can only be legalised once the Constitutional Council reviews the bill in the coming weeks.

Mr Macron said he “respects” the protests against the reforms, but “condemned” violence ensuing from them last week.

Continue Reading

World

‘The drones are always there… like a punishment’: A diary of daily life in Gaza

Published

on

By

'The drones are always there... like a punishment': A diary of daily life in Gaza

“We call drones our loyal friends, because they never leave us.”

Tasneem hears Israeli drones overhead, a constant fact of life in Gaza. It gets into your head, into your chest, she says.

“You can’t think, you can’t sleep. You can’t even be.”

“It’s always there, hanging above our heads, like some kind of punishment,” she says. In the background, the slow, constant buzz of a drone is audible.

“The people here in Gaza know that when the drone gets very low, at this level, something will happen. We all know what that something is… I don’t want to mention it.”

Tasneem al Iwini shared voicenotes with Sky News
Image:
Tasneem al Iwini shared voicenotes with Sky News

Tasneem al Iwini is 24. Like her peers across the world, she splits her time between work, studying for a master’s degree and spending time with her family of six.

Except she also has to deal with warplanes screaming overhead, rocketing food prices and the possibility that any day could be the last for her or her loved ones as Israel continues its war in Gaza.

To give a sense of what day-to-day life is like for her in Deir al Balah, Tasneem recorded a series of audio diary entries over the course of a week as part of her work with ActionAid and shared them exclusively with Sky News.

Smoke rises over Deir al Balah. Pic: Reuters
Image:
Smoke rises over Deir al Balah. Pic: Reuters

Day One: At least I’m still breathing

It’s incredibly hot today, Tasneem says. The kind of heat that makes your skin heavy and your thoughts slower.

I had so many things to do on my plate today, but honestly, I couldn’t move.

There’s no electricity and no fans, no air conditioner. So here I am just laying on my mattress and sweating.

My only relief is my plastic tray. I’m just using it as my personal fan…

I keep waving it back and forth, not to cool the room, but just to trick my brain into thinking I have control over this heat.

Sometimes I close my eyes and imagine I’m somewhere cold, as I actually prefer winter.

But then I hear the buzz of flies and mosquitoes in my ear and I remember this is Gaza, summer 2025. It’s exhausting, but at least I’m still breathing.

Day Two: Rocketing price of food

It’s Friday, which is a special day for us as it is the day we usually wait to cook something special. Today we are cooking maqluba (a traditional dish consisting of meat, rice and fried vegetables).

We haven’t tasted any kind of real protein like meat, chicken or fish for more than three months. I really miss chicken and fish badly.

But even this fake maqluba costs a lot, so many families can’t afford it… vegetables are very expensive.

Tasneem prepares meals with what she can get. Pic: Tasneem/ActionAid
Image:
Tasneem prepares meals with what she can get. Pic: Tasneem/ActionAid

Before the war we used to cook maqluba with at least four kilos of eggplants, because we are crazy about eggplants and its taste in maqluba . Now, if we manage to cook it with only two eggplants, that’s considered a luxury.

The price of one kilo of eggplant is more than 45 shekels. That’s approximately $12.50. Talking about tomatoes, the price is more than 90 shekels, which is approximately $27 per kilo.

Read more:
Number of dead in Gaza ‘reaches 63,000’ – as Israel declares city a combat zone
Israeli protesters attack ‘tyrant’ Netanyahu
Five journalists among 20 killed in Israeli strikes on hospital

Day Three: The drone reality

Here we go again. Our dear friend, the drone, Tasneem says as a buzzing noise hums in the background.

It just never leaves. It’s always there hanging above our heads like some kind of punishment.

The sound, I don’t even know how to describe it.

It’s not just noise. It gets into your head, into your chest. You can’t think, you can’t sleep, you can’t even be.

It drains something inside you slowly, and yet we live with it every day.

Later on:

Hi again. I’m just recording the gunfire. We are not sure what is happening outside, actually.

I can say that this is almost an every afternoon routine.

Tasneem al Iwini speaking about conditions in Gaza
Image:
Tasneem al Iwini speaking about conditions in Gaza

Day Four: A message to the world

Today I came across a small community kitchen, one of the very few still functioning.

Because of the current situation, especially the scarcity of food and the near-total blockade on the humanitarian aid, most of these kitchens have shut down…

Smoke rises following an Israeli strike in Deir al Balah. Pic: Reuters
Image:
Smoke rises following an Israeli strike in Deir al Balah. Pic: Reuters

Tasneem says that just after she left the office, the community kitchen was hit in an Israeli strike.

Three youths were killed, and many children were injured.

Those children were playing around and nearby the kitchen…

This time I went to send a message to the world, with a heavy heart burdened by the challenges and the impossible conditions we live under.

I still hold on to hope that this war will end… Because honestly, here in Gaza, we have lost trust in the world, governments and every actor.

Day Five: How many children must die?

Good evening, dear friends. I don’t really know what to say. I feel like my heart is just a drain.

Yesterday I promised to take you through the rest of my day, but honestly, I came home feeling exhausted…

I bought just two cucumbers, and that cost me $8. Yes, $8 for two cucumbers.

This is what it means to say that even the basics have become impossible to get in Gaza.

I came home, washed the cucumbers and cut them into small pieces so all of us could taste what it feels like to eat cucumber.

Tomatoes are even worse. They are completely unaffordable in the market.

Palestinians gather at an aid distribution centre. Pic: Reuters
Image:
Palestinians gather at an aid distribution centre. Pic: Reuters

And every time I think about the situation we are living through here in Gaza, I feel like I’m out of patience. I just can’t take more.

How many of us have to die before the world decides to intervene? And how many children must die, not from bombing or shelling, but from starvation and malnutrition?

Today, the telecommunications company in Gaza announced that in the next 24 hours it is expected that internet services will shut down again because of the fuel shortage and because of the occupation, who continue to block fuel from entering the Strip.

And this does not mean losing the internet only. It means patients in the ICUs will lose connection to life. It means ambulances, fridges for medications and blood, even water pumps for both drinking and domestic use will stop working.

I was planning today to come home and study for my final exams, but I just sat there for a moment thinking about our reality.

And I couldn’t, I couldn’t do anything. So instead, I decided to record this for you. This is what Gaza looks like right now.

Day Seven: The cemetery is full… and the horror of jets overhead

There are many types of weapons being used… and here in Gaza, we the people have learned to genuinely distinguish between them.

We know each sound by heart.

For example, we know the sound of the F-16 (fighter jet) very well. We can even guess when it has a target.

It has a special tone, like it’s rushing towards something. There is a tension in the air, and we feel it in our bodies.

Whenever I hear one of them, I swear I feel like this is the last moment of my life. I cover my ears with both hands and run to stay nearby my family, because in this moment my heart tells me, if something happens, let it happen to all of us together.

I know that’s not how it works, but that’s how I cope. That’s the only way I feel some false sense of control…

Sometimes it feels like the pilot is showing off, flying lower over the heads of women, children and civilians, as if to say: “Look at me. I can do this.”

Every time the jets go low, I start praying, I do everything I can as if it is the end of my life.

A Palestinian boy walks amid debris after strikes in Deir al Balah. Pic: AP
Image:
A Palestinian boy walks amid debris after strikes in Deir al Balah. Pic: AP

In another voicenote from the same day, Tasneem talked about her walk to work.

I pass by the cemetery every day. Today, I saw a situation that truly broke my heart.

There was a group of angry people gathered around the person who is responsible for digging graves.

They were shouting, saying the cemetery is completely full, and now they have started opening all the graves without knowing who is buried there and without getting any consent from the families of the dead.

They are placing new dead bodies on the top of the old ones, whether they are men, women or children.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

‘Many people here prefer death over displacement’

Most people were furious, and honestly, I was so disappointed and heartbroken when I saw this.

This is one of those things I wish I never had to witness, but I wanted to share it with you, because it says so much about how bad things have become.

‘Critical moment’ for Gaza

Tasneem works with the Palestinian NGOs Network in Gaza and has partnered with ActionAid in the UK.

A spokesperson for ActionAid UK said: “Humanitarian workers like Tasneem are risking their lives every day to support and advocate for their fellow Palestinians in Gaza, despite experiencing the same intolerable conditions that they are.

“Just imagine having to go to work when you haven’t had a proper meal in days, knowing that at any moment you could be killed by bombing: that is their daily reality. Yet still, people like Tasneem are bravely speaking out and telling their stories so that the world knows the truth about the horrors they are facing…

“This is a critical moment. It’s time for the world to take meaningful action and use every diplomatic lever available to bring about a permanent ceasefire and end the siege on Gaza immediately so that food and other aid can enter unhindered, rapidly and at scale.”

Continue Reading

World

‘The drones are always there… like some sort of punishment’: Woman’s diary of daily life in Gaza

Published

on

By

'The drones are always there... like a punishment': A diary of daily life in Gaza

“We call drones our loyal friends, because they never leave us.”

Tasneem hears Israeli drones overhead, a constant fact of life in Gaza. It gets into your head, into your chest, she says.

“You can’t think, you can’t sleep. You can’t even be.”

“It’s always there, hanging above our heads, like some kind of punishment,” she says. In the background, the slow, constant buzz of a drone is audible.

“The people here in Gaza know that when the drone gets very low, at this level, something will happen. We all know what that something is… I don’t want to mention it.”

Tasneem al Iwini shared voicenotes with Sky News
Image:
Tasneem al Iwini shared voicenotes with Sky News

Tasneem al Iwini is 24. Like her peers across the world, she splits her time between work, studying for a master’s degree and spending time with her family of six.

Except she also has to deal with warplanes screaming overhead, rocketing food prices and the possibility that any day could be the last for her or her loved ones as Israel continues its war in Gaza.

To give a sense of what day-to-day life is like for her in Deir al Balah, Tasneem recorded a series of audio diary entries over the course of a week as part of her work with ActionAid and shared them exclusively with Sky News.

Smoke rises over Deir al Balah. Pic: Reuters
Image:
Smoke rises over Deir al Balah. Pic: Reuters

Day One: At least I’m still breathing

It’s incredibly hot today, Tasneem says. The kind of heat that makes your skin heavy and your thoughts slower.

I had so many things to do on my plate today, but honestly, I couldn’t move.

There’s no electricity and no fans, no air conditioner. So here I am just laying on my mattress and sweating.

My only relief is my plastic tray. I’m just using it as my personal fan…

I keep waving it back and forth, not to cool the room, but just to trick my brain into thinking I have control over this heat.

Sometimes I close my eyes and imagine I’m somewhere cold, as I actually prefer winter.

But then I hear the buzz of flies and mosquitoes in my ear and I remember this is Gaza, summer 2025. It’s exhausting, but at least I’m still breathing.

Day Two: Rocketing price of food

It’s Friday, which is a special day for us as it is the day we usually wait to cook something special. Today we are cooking maqluba (a traditional dish consisting of meat, rice and fried vegetables).

We haven’t tasted any kind of real protein like meat, chicken or fish for more than three months. I really miss chicken and fish badly.

But even this fake maqluba costs a lot, so many families can’t afford it… vegetables are very expensive.

Tasneem prepares meals with what she can get. Pic: Tasneem/ActionAid
Image:
Tasneem prepares meals with what she can get. Pic: Tasneem/ActionAid

Before the war we used to cook maqluba with at least four kilos of eggplants, because we are crazy about eggplants and its taste in maqluba . Now, if we manage to cook it with only two eggplants, that’s considered a luxury.

The price of one kilo of eggplant is more than 45 shekels. That’s approximately $12.50. Talking about tomatoes, the price is more than 90 shekels, which is approximately $27 per kilo.

Read more:
Number of dead in Gaza ‘reaches 63,000’ – as Israel declares city a combat zone
Israeli protesters attack ‘tyrant’ Netanyahu
Five journalists among 20 killed in Israeli strikes on hospital

Day Three: The drone reality

Here we go again. Our dear friend, the drone, Tasneem says as a buzzing noise hums in the background.

It just never leaves. It’s always there hanging above our heads like some kind of punishment.

The sound, I don’t even know how to describe it.

It’s not just noise. It gets into your head, into your chest. You can’t think, you can’t sleep, you can’t even be.

It drains something inside you slowly, and yet we live with it every day.

Later on:

Hi again. I’m just recording the gunfire. We are not sure what is happening outside, actually.

I can say that this is almost an every afternoon routine.

Tasneem al Iwini speaking about conditions in Gaza
Image:
Tasneem al Iwini speaking about conditions in Gaza

Day Four: A message to the world

Today I came across a small community kitchen, one of the very few still functioning.

Because of the current situation, especially the scarcity of food and the near-total blockade on the humanitarian aid, most of these kitchens have shut down…

Smoke rises following an Israeli strike in Deir al Balah. Pic: Reuters
Image:
Smoke rises following an Israeli strike in Deir al Balah. Pic: Reuters

Tasneem says that just after she left the office, the community kitchen was hit in an Israeli strike.

Three youths were killed, and many children were injured.

Those children were playing around and nearby the kitchen…

This time I went to send a message to the world, with a heavy heart burdened by the challenges and the impossible conditions we live under.

I still hold on to hope that this war will end… Because honestly, here in Gaza, we have lost trust in the world, governments and every actor.

Day Five: How many children must die?

Good evening, dear friends. I don’t really know what to say. I feel like my heart is just a drain.

Yesterday I promised to take you through the rest of my day, but honestly, I came home feeling exhausted…

I bought just two cucumbers, and that cost me $8. Yes, $8 for two cucumbers.

This is what it means to say that even the basics have become impossible to get in Gaza.

I came home, washed the cucumbers and cut them into small pieces so all of us could taste what it feels like to eat cucumber.

Tomatoes are even worse. They are completely unaffordable in the market.

Palestinians gather at an aid distribution centre. Pic: Reuters
Image:
Palestinians gather at an aid distribution centre. Pic: Reuters

And every time I think about the situation we are living through here in Gaza, I feel like I’m out of patience. I just can’t take more.

How many of us have to die before the world decides to intervene? And how many children must die, not from bombing or shelling, but from starvation and malnutrition?

Today, the telecommunications company in Gaza announced that in the next 24 hours it is expected that internet services will shut down again because of the fuel shortage and because of the occupation, who continue to block fuel from entering the Strip.

And this does not mean losing the internet only. It means patients in the ICUs will lose connection to life. It means ambulances, fridges for medications and blood, even water pumps for both drinking and domestic use will stop working.

I was planning today to come home and study for my final exams, but I just sat there for a moment thinking about our reality.

And I couldn’t, I couldn’t do anything. So instead, I decided to record this for you. This is what Gaza looks like right now.

Day Seven: The cemetery is full… and the horror of jets overhead

There are many types of weapons being used… and here in Gaza, we the people have learned to genuinely distinguish between them.

We know each sound by heart.

For example, we know the sound of the F-16 (fighter jet) very well. We can even guess when it has a target.

It has a special tone, like it’s rushing towards something. There is a tension in the air, and we feel it in our bodies.

Whenever I hear one of them, I swear I feel like this is the last moment of my life. I cover my ears with both hands and run to stay nearby my family, because in this moment my heart tells me, if something happens, let it happen to all of us together.

I know that’s not how it works, but that’s how I cope. That’s the only way I feel some false sense of control…

Sometimes it feels like the pilot is showing off, flying lower over the heads of women, children and civilians, as if to say: “Look at me. I can do this.”

Every time the jets go low, I start praying, I do everything I can as if it is the end of my life.

A Palestinian boy walks amid debris after strikes in Deir al Balah. Pic: AP
Image:
A Palestinian boy walks amid debris after strikes in Deir al Balah. Pic: AP

In another voicenote from the same day, Tasneem talked about her walk to work.

I pass by the cemetery every day. Today, I saw a situation that truly broke my heart.

There was a group of angry people gathered around the person who is responsible for digging graves.

They were shouting, saying the cemetery is completely full, and now they have started opening all the graves without knowing who is buried there and without getting any consent from the families of the dead.

They are placing new dead bodies on the top of the old ones, whether they are men, women or children.

Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player

‘Many people here prefer death over displacement’

Most people were furious, and honestly, I was so disappointed and heartbroken when I saw this.

This is one of those things I wish I never had to witness, but I wanted to share it with you, because it says so much about how bad things have become.

‘Critical moment’ for Gaza

Tasneem works with the Palestinian NGOs Network in Gaza and has partnered with ActionAid in the UK.

A spokesperson for ActionAid UK said: “Humanitarian workers like Tasneem are risking their lives every day to support and advocate for their fellow Palestinians in Gaza, despite experiencing the same intolerable conditions that they are.

“Just imagine having to go to work when you haven’t had a proper meal in days, knowing that at any moment you could be killed by bombing: that is their daily reality. Yet still, people like Tasneem are bravely speaking out and telling their stories so that the world knows the truth about the horrors they are facing…

“This is a critical moment. It’s time for the world to take meaningful action and use every diplomatic lever available to bring about a permanent ceasefire and end the siege on Gaza immediately so that food and other aid can enter unhindered, rapidly and at scale.”

Continue Reading

World

Number of dead in Gaza reaches 63,000, health ministry says – as Israel declares city a combat zone

Published

on

By

Number of dead in Gaza reaches 63,000, health ministry says - as Israel declares city a combat zone

More than 63,000 Palestinians have now reportedly been killed during Israel’s war in Gaza, a figure likely to rise after the IDF declared Gaza City a combat zone on Friday.

The number of people killed, reported by the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry, follows nearly 23 months of war.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been pushing ahead with his plan to militarily occupy the Gaza Strip, starting with Gaza City, with the goal of destroying Hamas and returning the remaining Israeli hostages.

A mourner during the funeral of Palestinians killed while trying to receive aid. Pic: Reuters
Image:
A mourner during the funeral of Palestinians killed while trying to receive aid. Pic: Reuters

Israel on Friday claimed the city was a Hamas stronghold and alleged that a network of tunnels remains in use despite several previous large-scale raids on the area.

Israeli army spokesperson Avichay Adraee urged Palestinians to flee south, calling evacuation of the city “inevitable”.

But the head of the Red Cross warned it would be impossible to keep people safe during such a mass evacuation.

Many people in Gaza City would not be able to follow evacuation orders because they are starving, sick or injured, Mirjana Spoljaric said.

Palestinians are being urged to flee Gaza City by the Israeli military. Pic: Reuters
Image:
Palestinians are being urged to flee Gaza City by the Israeli military. Pic: Reuters

International humanitarian law requires Israel to ensure civilians have access to shelter, safety and nutrition,
when evacuation orders are issued.

“These conditions cannot currently be met in Gaza. This makes any evacuation not only unfeasible but incomprehensible under the present circumstances,” Ms Spoljaric added.

Meanwhile, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced it had targeted Abu Obeida, a spokesperson for Hamas’s armed wing, in a strike on Gaza City, according to Israeli media.

And Mr Netanyahu later said the body of hostage Idan Shtivi was retrieved from Gaza.

Read more:
UN staff pressure human rights chief to call Gaza a genocide
Tony Blair meets with Trump to discuss future of Gaza

A Palestinian child waits to receive food from a charity kitchen. Pic: Reuters
Image:
A Palestinian child waits to receive food from a charity kitchen. Pic: Reuters

Four people were killed by Israeli gunfire on Saturday while trying to get aid in central Gaza, according to health officials at Awda hospital, where the bodies were brought.

Their deaths join the almost 1,900 people who the UN say have been killed while seeking food since 27 May, including more than 1,000 killed in the vicinity of the controversial Gaza Humanitarian Foundation sites.

“Most of these killings appear to have been committed by the Israeli military,” a spokesperson for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Thameen Al-Kheetan said.

Israel has previously blamed Hamas militants for fomenting chaos and endangering civilians at aid sites.

The conflict began with a Hamas-led attack on Israel on 7 October 2023, which saw around 1,200 people killed and about 250 people taken hostage.

Continue Reading

Trending