In France, April will have seen the first major fire and the continuation of the protest against the pension reform, with “pans”. The news will also have been marked by the indictment of Donald Trump in New York and by the deadly confrontation between two rival generals in Sudan. In eleven drawings, “La Matinale” offers you an overview of the highlights of the past month.
Donald Trump charged in New York
Donald Trump has been formally charged – a first for a former US president – ??in an accounting and tax fraud case linked to payments to cover up three embarrassing cases ahead of the 2016 election, including one linked to an affair with the former star of the pornographic industry Stormy Daniels.
“It’s a persecution, not an accusation,” claimed the candidate for a new presidential term, from his residence in Mar-a-Lago, Florida, after appearing on Tuesday, April 4, in criminal court in New York. .
Emmanuel Macron in search of a way out of the crisis
The Head of State spoke during a solemn address on Monday, April 17. Emmanuel Macron quickly mentioned the “necessary” pension reform, regretting that a “consensus could not be found”.
He mainly turned to the rest of his five-year term, giving himself “one hundred days” to act “in the service of France”. Three projects have been set: the creation of a “new work life pact”; the guarantee of “republican order” and the promise, in particular, to “strengthen the control of illegal immigration”; decongestion of hospital emergency departments by the end of 2024.
Disrupted movements
Emmanuel Macron in Sélestat (Bas-Rhin), in Ganges (Hérault), in Vendôme (Loir-et-Cher) or even in Ostend, in Belgium, Elisabeth Borne in Châteauroux, Pap Ndiaye in Lyon, François Braun in Poitiers, Gabriel Attal near Montpellier… The public outings of the executive have, since the promulgation of the pension reform law on April 15, been accompanied by pot concerts organized by opponents of this reform.
Sudan descends into chaos
A deadly conflict broke out on Saturday, April 15, in several regions of Sudan, opposing the regular army led by General Abdel Fattah Al-Bourhane to the paramilitary forces of General Mohammed Hamdan Daglo, known as “Hemetti”.
On April 24, after American mediation, the two belligerents agreed to a three-day ceasefire, which was partially respected. Many countries, including France, have evacuated their diplomatic personnel and nationals. The fighting has left more than 500 dead and more than 4,600 injured across the country since the violence began.
A tense 75th anniversary in Israel
Israelis celebrated, on Wednesday, April 26, the Independence Day festivities and the 75th anniversary of the proclamation of the State of Israel, according to the Jewish calendar, in a climate of tensions around the judicial reform wanted by the government. This project, presented in early January, provoked one of the biggest popular protest movements in the country.
Russia facilitates military mobilization
On Tuesday, April 11, Russia equipped itself with instruments making it much more effective to call part of its population to the flag, allowing a new military mobilization to hover. Notices can now be sent electronically and not only in the form of paper delivered by hand. In addition to risking criminal prosecution if they seek to escape enlistment, the recipients of these messages will be prohibited from leaving the territory.
French President visits Beijing
On a visit to China, Emmanuel Macron, in the words of a diplomat, “urged Xi Jinping not to deliver anything to Russia that would serve its war against Ukraine”. The French president also tried to convince his Chinese counterpart to “bring Russia to its senses”, but Xi did not break Beijing’s benevolence towards Moscow.
Moreover, Emmanuel Macron’s remarks on European “strategic autonomy” and his declarations on Taiwan have caused concern in Taipei and shocked the United States.
End of life: Executive hesitates over terms of bill
In the midst of the pension crisis, the citizens’ convention on the end of life has largely declared itself in favor of active assistance in dying in the form of assisted suicide and euthanasia. Legalize the former without paving the way for the latter? The executive hesitates, and seeks a scenario so as not to impose on caregivers to perform a lethal act, for example by involving associations. But he will have to decide fairly quickly if he wants the “bill” announced on Monday April 3 “by the end of the summer” to implement a “French end-of-life model”.
Already a fire in the south of France
More than 930 hectares of vegetation were ravaged on Sunday, April 16, in the Pyrénées-Orientales by a fire which broke out in the morning, on the site of Peyrefite, in Cerbère, before being brought under control overnight. This is the first major fire on French territory in 2023, and it comes very early, raising fears of a new dark season on the forest fire front, after a record year in 2022 where more than 66,000 hectares left. in smoke.
Life in the age of artificial intelligence
In schools or businesses, among Hollywood screenwriters or in American political life, artificial intelligence software is playing an increasingly important role. To the point of raising concerns and calls for more regulation, even a “pause” in their development.
