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FRANCE 24's prime time interview of the day goes beyond the headlines: join us as news-making guests from around the globe go in depth on the stories that matter. Every day at 6:15pm Paris time.

  1. 12 HR AGO

    UK elections: What does it mean to be Scottish today?

    As British voters head to the polls for local elections on May 7, Elena Pompei, a journalist with ENTR’s English-language team, takes us to Scotland, where she has been reporting on how young people are feeling ahead of the vote. Scottish voters will be casting ballots on Thursday to elect all 129 Members of the Scottish Parliament. Elena and her team asked two young Scots where they see the future of their country: in the UK, or independent?

    5 min

  2. 17 HR AGO

    'Unconscionable to keep them on cruise ship': WHO's Gostin on hantavirus outbreak

    François Picard is pleased to welcome Lawrence Gostin, author and director of the WHO Center on Global Health Law. His analysis highlights the legal and ethical dilemmas surrounding a cruise ship carrying suspected hantavirus cases off the coast of Cape Verde. Drawing direct parallels with the traumatic memory of cruise ships stranded during the Covid-19 pandemic, Gostin argues that the international community has already learned, at enormous human cost, the dangers of confining passengers at sea without adequate medical care or disembarkation plans. "You can't really confine people on a ship," argues Gostin, "especially if there's a transmissible virus on board, and keep them there without medical care, without quarantine facilities. That's unacceptable."  At the heart of his intervention lies a sharp critique of political hesitation in moments of public health uncertainty. Gostin calls it ultimately "unconscionable" to leave potentially infected passengers isolated without proper treatment or quarantine infrastructure. While acknowledging Cape Verde's limited medical capacities, Gostin emphasises that international law places obligations on wealthier jurisdictions capable of responding, arguing that Spain would be required to let them in: "The Canary Islands, which is a Spanish jurisdiction, certainly has advanced medical care and should be able to provide the medical intensive services that these sick passengers need."  Gostin frames the crisis within a broader framework of global health governance, scientific uncertainty and the fragile lessons inherited from Covid-19. His remarks also expand into a broader critique of cruise ship public health standards, warning that modern maritime tourism remains deeply vulnerable to infectious disease outbreaks ranging from hantavirus to norovirus. Asked whether he himself would ever take a cruise, Gostin replies with understated candour: "I wouldn't be afraid, but I wouldn't put myself to that kind of exposure." Produced by François Picard, Ilayda Habip and Guillaume Gougeon

    8 min

  3. 2 DAYS AGO

    Opaque nature of US-Iran shadow war: Are they 'dancing their way out of a minefield' towards a deal?

    François Picard welcomes Peter Apps, a global defence commentator who writes a bi-weekly column for Reuters on national security, conflict, international affairs and technology. Rather than casting the current state of US-Iran tensions as a binary shift between war and peace, Apps outlines a more fluid and volatile reality, where ceasefire and escalation unfold simultaneously: "Both (conflict and negotiations) will keep running." Read moreUAE calls new attacks 'dangerous escalation', reserves right to respond At the heart of this crisis, the Strait of Hormuz emerges not only as a critical chokepoint for trade and global shipping, but as a battleground of narratives and perception, where "both sides are trying to make it as opaque as possible". Control, in this sense, extends beyond military power to the shaping of narrative and risk. Apps also underscores China's growing diplomatic weight, positioning Beijing as a potential arbiter, though not a neutral one. Any effort to restore stability to maritime trade routes, he suggests, may come at a strategic cost, with Taiwan looming as a central bargaining chip: "They'll want something in return. And what they want in return may very well be the US backing off on Taiwan." Our guest further highlights the increasingly assertive posture of the UAE, which he describes as "the most individualistic" among regional powers, pursuing its own strategic course while navigating a dense and often uneasy web of alliances. Ultimately, Apps portrays a volatile mix of deterrence, signalling and negotiation. As he puts it, the region is "dancing out of this minefield towards some kind of deal": a fragile process where any missteps could quickly spiral out of control from choreographed chaos into fully-fledged escalation.

    12 min

  4. 2 DAYS AGO

    Hezbollah deploys hard-to-jam fibre optic drones, shifting battlefield tactics

    Back in March, Lebanon was pulled back into conflict amid escalating regional tensions linked to Iran, as Hezbollah fired rockets into Israel. Israel responded with waves of air strikes and later ground operations in the south, displacing hundreds of thousands of people. While early exchanges relied on rockets and mortars, Hezbollah has since shifted tactics, with analysts pointing to an increased use of fibre optic drones that can evade Israeli jamming systems. A US-brokered ceasefire came into effect in mid-April, but it remains fragile, with ongoing clashes and strikes reported in southern Lebanon. For analysis, FRANCE 24's Gavin Lee is joined by Lina Khatib, Associate Fellow at Chatham House. Produced by Gavin Lee, Andrew Hilliar, Maya Yataghene and Guillaume Gougeon

    13 min

  5. 3 DAYS AGO

    Christina Lamb's quest for a new body to investigate crimes against journalists

    This Sunday marks World Press Freedom Day, but there is little to celebrate. The latest index from Reporters Without Borders (RSF) shows this is the worst year in its 25-year history, with the global average score at a record low. For the first time, more than half of all countries are classified as having "difficult" or "very serious" press freedom conditions, and just 1 percent of the world's population lives in countries rated "good". Eritrea remains the most dangerous place for journalists, while the Gaza Strip is among the deadliest places to report from. For more, FRANCE 24's Gavin Lee is joined by Christina Lamb, chief foreign correspondent at The Sunday Times, who is calling for an independent body to investigate crimes against journalists. Produced by Gavin Lee, Andrew Hilliar, Maya Yataghene and Guillaume Gougeon

    13 min

  6. 4 DAYS AGO

    Ukraine's battlefield: Advanced Ukrainian drones raise concerns among Russian forces

    From Ukraine's evolving battlefield, where drone warfare is redefining front lines and so-called "killing zones", to reports of "Martian drones" and their impact on both Russian and Ukrainian forces, we also look at the expanding use of unmanned systems in rescue operations, including the evacuation of a 77-year-old woman in Odesa region. FRANCE 24's Gavin Lee is joined by Olena Kryzhanivska, a Ukrainian defence analyst specialising in drones and unmanned systems and founder of Ukraine's Arms Monitor. Produced by Gavin Lee, Andrew Hilliar, Maya Yataghene and Guillaume Gougeon

    14 min

  7. 4 DAYS AGO

    Mali in crisis: Jihadist fighters and Tuareg separatists threaten Bamako

    As Mali's military struggles to maintain control amid a growing jihadist insurgency, a number of its own soldiers have been arrested, accused of collaborating with al Qaeda-linked militants in coordinating widespread attacks. The Islamist group JNIM, alongside separatist Tuareg rebels, has reportedly seized two northern cities, killed the defence minister and is now attempting to impose a blockade on the capital, Bamako. We take a closer look at what's happening on the ground in Mali, the escalating security crisis and the role of Russian mercenaries in supporting the government. FRANCE 24's Gavin Lee is joined by Beverley Ochieng, a specialist in West Africa and political risk analyst at Control Risks, to share her expertise. Produced by Gavin Lee, Andrew Hilliar, Maya Yataghene and Guillaume Gougeon

    12 min

  8. 5 DAYS AGO

    Inside Iran's 'mosquito fleet': Telegraph's Adrian Blomfield with a rare frontline glimpse of Hormuz

    Gavin Lee welcomes Adrian Blomfield, senior foreign correspondent at The Telegraph. His reporting from the Strait of Hormuz offers a rare, intimate view beyond satellite imagery and policy abstraction. "One of the things you get a sense of when you're out on the water," he reflects, "is just how much more complicated the picture is." That complexity is not theoretical. It is kinetic, obscured by haze and shaped by "about 300 small speedboats… bouncing along the water" at high speeds, forming a dense and ambiguous maritime ecosystem where smugglers, civilians and military actors blur into a single, indistinguishable flow. Watch moreOpening Hormuz 'not a humanitarian gesture': Essential to keeping global food system operating What emerges from Blomfield's account goes far beyond conflict and geopolitics. The same vessels that sustain an economy, "supporting coastal communities", also enable Iran's asymmetric leverage, allowing military assets to "hide in plain sight". In this environment, power is not asserted through overwhelming force but through persistence and opacity. As Blomfield puts it starkly: "Forget about weapons of mass destruction… Iran now has a weapon of mass disruption." Perhaps most striking is the banality of the threat. Mining the Strait, a chokepoint of global energy flows, requires little sophistication, Blomfield explains. "You hide the mines… lift the tarpaulins, chuck the mines in." The implications, however, are profound. With "five to six thousand mines" potentially in play and no clear path to elimination, the crisis does not ever lead to a resolution. "There's no obvious easy solution," Blomfield concludes, sketching a future defined less by decisive conflict than by enduring instability. His testimony ultimately reinforces a foundational truth of journalism on the front lines: proximity reshapes context, perspective and understanding. To "narrow the distance between you and the story" is not just a methodological choice. It is the only way to capture the layered realities that define modern conflict zones.

    17 min
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FRANCE 24's prime time interview of the day goes beyond the headlines: join us as news-making guests from around the globe go in depth on the stories that matter. Every day at 6:15pm Paris time.

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