On August 31, users of Twitter/X woke up to a platform devoid of Brazilians. After a protracted fight with CEO Elon Musk, Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes ordered a shutdown of the social media site in his country. Marie Santini, founder of Net Lab, details the timeline that led to the shutdown and how it fits in the Brazil’s lar…

It's the biggest mystery and probably the biggest scandal to hit Mexico in the past decade. On September 26, 2014, in the southern town of Iguala, police officers fired on several buses carrying students from the Ayotzinapa Rural Teachers' College. In the ensuing chaos, six people including three students were killed, while 43 other trainee teacher…

Dotting East Africa’s Swahili coast, Zanzibar, Lamu and Mombasa are synonymous with pristine waters and white sandy beaches. But many tourists are unaware that these UNESCO World Heritage Sites were the scene of a gruesome chapter in history. For centuries, the Swahili coast was central to the slave trade.…

Our latest edition of Latin America in Focus marks a major milestone: episode 200. Over the past eight years, we’ve covered a range of topics—and asked a lot of questions, including in our episode titles. For this episode, we decided to revisit three of those questions to see how we would answer them now. Half the world is going to the polls in 202…

Since he came to power 11 years ago, Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro has been stacking the decks in his political favor. But will he hit a wall in the July 28 election? The regime disqualified popular rival candidate Maria Corina Machado, yet a unified opposition is leading the polls. “[The Maduro government] could try to do a mega fraud, but the politi…

The first flashpoint of Russia’s hybrid war in Donbas in eastern Ukraine, and one of the first Ukrainian cities to be occupied and then liberated back in 2014, Sloviansk today finds itself once again under threat from the Kremlin’s armies.By FRANCE 24 English

Latin America, the biggest source of freshwater in the world, is running dry. Amid record-breaking temperatures, 150 million people live in water-scarce areas and water insecurity is becoming a new normal for many. But solutions exist. World Meteorological Organization’s Rodney Martinez and Acción Andina’s Florent Kaiser cover how Latin American co…

In Japan, they are known as "children of mixed blood": those born after 1945 to an American GI and a Japanese woman and abandoned due to stigma. Eighty years after the end of World War II, we went to meet some of these orphans to understand more about their painful past.By FRANCE 24 English

Twenty-two years ago, the Indian state of Gujarat erupted in violence. For several weeks from the end of February 2002, inter-communal violence led to the deaths of around 2,000 people, most of them Muslims. Entire neighbourhoods were burnt down and families massacred. This outpouring of hatred was sparked by a fire on a train on February 27, 2002 …

Claudia Sheinbaum and her Morena party won Mexico’s June 2 election by a landslide, and that means the country’s first woman president is set to have a huge mandate. What will she do with it? On the ground in Mexico City, AS/COA Online spoke to voters and then three experts on concerns and priorities for Sheinbaum’s sexenio. One question kept comin…

The events of April 25, 1974 have left an indelible mark on the history of Portugal and Europe. That evening, a group of 200 left-leaning young Portuguese military captains walked out of their barracks and occupied strategic locations. Tired of the ravages of the dictatorship and colonisation, they won the active support of the people. The uprising…

Buckle up: U.S. politics are headed for a bumpy ride. And the issue of migration, particularly at the U.S. Southern border, will significantly influence this year’s elections. In this episode, AS/COA Vice President Eric Farnsworth moderates a conversation between two top political consultants—a Democrat and a Republican—to get a view of Latin Ameri…

Six decades after the military coup that plunged Brazil into 21 years of dictatorship, the country is still struggling with its old demons. FRANCE 24’s team went to meet deeply divided Brazilians – Bolsonaro supporters who are nostalgic for the dictatorship and survivors and left-wingers who want to make sure that this dark period of history is not…

The Dominican Republic’s Luis Abinader is one of the most popular leaders in Latin America, if not the world, so it may come as little surprise that Abinader appears to be on comfortable footing to win in the first round of the country’s presidential vote on May 19. But then again, the country’s political climate differs from that of the rest of La…

The Croatian city of Vukovar, on the banks of the Danube, has a painful past. Located on the border with Serbia, it was the scene of the first major battle in the 1990s Balkan wars. Four years before the genocide in Srebrenica and eight years before the war in Kosovo, Vukovar was the first city in the former Yugoslavia to suffer ethnic cleansing, i…

An old adversary of Latin America is back: Dengue. The current outbreak of the mosquito-transmitted disease is the worst in years. Across the region, from Argentina to Brazil to Puerto Rico, images of hospitals filled with patients are coming into view. Four years after the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, how well-equipped is the region to tackle t…

Fifty-three years ago, Bangladesh finally obtained independence from Pakistan, at the cost of a war that left nearly 3 million people dead. Since then, the nation has developed into one of Asia's most dynamic economies, thanks in particular to the textile industry. The garment industry brings in more than $55 billion a year, making Bangladesh the w…

Panama is facing a moment of uncertainty amid an electoral race with eight candidates, droughts affecting the Panama Canal, and fallout over massive 2023 mining protests. But Felipe Chapman, chairman and managing partner of economic and financial advisory firm INDESA, remains optimistic about his country’s future. In a conversation with AS/COA Vice…

The Jordanian city of Zarqa has a strong Palestinian identity, with good reason. In 1948, with the creation of the State of Israel – what the Palestinians call the "Nakba" ("catastrophe") – some 750,000 people, or more than 80 percent of the Palestinian population, were forced to take exile in neighbouring countries as they fled the violence. Jorda…

Just hours before Joe Biden’s State of the Union address, the State Department’s Assistant Secretary for the Western Hemisphere Brian A. Nichols joined AS/COA in an event covering the state of U.S. policy in the Americas. In a conversation with AS/COA Vice President Eric Farnsworth, Ambassador Nichols laid out the administration’s positions on regi…

It was one of Spain's deadliest terrorist attacks in history. On the morning of March 11, 2004, ten bombs exploded almost simultaneously at the Atocha train station in the Spanish capital Madrid. Nearly 200 people were killed and more than 1,500 wounded. Twenty years later, survivors of the incident are still waiting to know the truth behind the bo…

In Mexico’s 2024 vote, more than a quarter of eligible voters are under 30 and nearly half are under 40. That means younger voters have an opportunity to play a major role in an election not only for president, but one that will see more than 20,000 seats up for grabs. But they have to participate if they want to have an impact. Me Veo, an organiza…

A century ago, the "manufacture, sale or transportation, importation or exportation" of alcohol was strictly forbidden across the United States, a policy that left an indelible mark. Nine decades after the end of the Prohibition era, which lasted from 1920 to 1933, some states and towns in the United States still remain "alcohol-free". Our correspo…

When it comes to corruption perceptions, Latin America is stagnating. And what’s one major obstacle to improvement? Judiciary independence, explains Transparency International’s Luciana Torchiaro. In this episode, she dives deep into how the region fared in her organization’s latest Corruption Perceptions Index, released in January 2024, and tells …

In the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli, one road symbolises the complex relationship between Lebanon and neighbouring Syria: the aptly named Syria Street. With the outbreak of civil war in Syria in 2011, Tripoli street also become a conflict zone. On one side, the Alawite district sided with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. The Sunni neighbourho…

2024 will be a big year for Latin American elections, and the first one takes place in El Salvador. Popular President Nayib Bukele is likely to win a race that showcases his regional—and global—influence. Digital Democracy Institute of the Americas’ Roberta Braga explains how Bukele’s social media strategy spreads beyond El Salvador’s borders and c…

An historic trial opened on January 8 for the West African nation of The Gambia. Ousman Sonko, a former high-ranking member of the dictatorship of Yahya Jammeh, is in the dock in Switzerland for a series of alleged crimes against humanity committed between 2000 and 2016. Victims of the dictatorship have high hopes for the trial. FRANCE 24's Sarah S…

As Taiwan heads to the polls for a presidential election on January 13, we look back at a dark chapter in the island's past. Almost 80 years ago, on February 28, 1947, tens of thousands of Taiwanese who had risen up against the government were murdered. It was the start of the "White Terror" period. For 40 years, the Taiwanese were deprived of thei…

2024 doesn’t just mark Mexico’s biggest elections ever, but the tenth anniversary since Morena, the party of President Andrés Manuel López Obrador, became an official party. And it now faces a test: will it build on its expanding control or find itself reined in by Mexican voters in June 2024? In this episode, long-time pollster Lorena Becerra and …

Between 1952 and 1960 in Kenya, the Mau Mau rebels who rose up against British rule faced a brutal crackdown that killed thousands of them. Left out of the history books for decades, these independence heroes are now fighting for recognition before the last survivors die out. Our correspondents report.…

Earlier this year, Latin American literature lost a champion when Edith Grossman, one of the foremost Spanish language translators, passed away. Grossman not only translated some of the region's master writers, but she advocated for her profession and for the value of reading in translation. In this episode, two acclaimed translators, Megan McDowel…

Thousands of Silicon Valley employees have been laid off over the past year, often finding out the bad news by email. Hit hard by rampant inflation and over-hiring during the Covid pandemic, the US tech giants of the San Francisco Bay Area have faced one of the worst crises in their history. A few months ago, a banking crisis added to their woes, w…

On October 29, Colombians voted for mayors and governors across the country, and President Gustavo Petro’s candidates fared poorly in an election that many say served as a referendum on his leadership. Sergio Guzmán, director of Colombia Risk Analysis, talks with AS/COA Online’s Jon Orbach about what we can learn from mayoral races in Bogotá and Me…

The city of Raqqa symbolises the tragic fate of Syria over the past 12 years. From the start of the uprising against President Bashar al-Assad in 2011, the northern city was a major target for rebel groups. It then became the stronghold of Islamic State group terrorists, who made Raqqa the capital of their self-proclaimed caliphate. The city went t…

October was a busy month for Venezuela. The United States eased sanctions on the country’s oil sector, the opposition and the Maduro regime sketched out an electoral roadmap, and María Corina Machado triumphed in the opposition primary. What does all this mean for the country’s energy sector? "I estimate that instead of getting half a billion dolla…

Some Argentinians carry a heavy family secret. Under the country’s military dictatorship from 1976 to 1983, their fathers were police or military officers. As such, they were responsible for the disappearance of up to 30,000 people, according to human rights groups. These men have since been accused – and sometimes convicted – of crimes against hum…

As the world falters in its 2015 Paris Agreement goal to reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, Brazil is helping turn the tide. As the country’s Senate approved a bill that would regulate companies releasing more than 10,000 tons of CO2 per year, it looks to start making a profit on emissions too. In this episode, the Federal University of Rio d…

In this edition of Revisited we head to Canada to discover the diversity of the country's French accents and cultures as the use of French in the mainly English-speaking country declines. From Port Royal in Nova Scotia to Toronto via New Brunswick and Quebec, what remains of the 18th-century colony of New France? Our correspondent reports.…

Argentines face a three-horse race when they vote for a president on October 22. Each contender has distinct ideas for resolving the country’s economic and security woes. One of those candidates— libertarian Congressman Javier Milei—has brought back the idea of dollarizing the country’s economy. Are voters open to the idea? In this episode, Reuters…

As record numbers of migrants continue to arrive on the small Italian island of Lampedusa, FRANCE 24 looks back at the shipwreck of 2013, which saw 368 people drown off the island. Our reporters met a witness to the tragedy, a survivor and the island's doctor who registered the deaths. All of them want to put an end to these shipwrecks, which have …

With Mexico’s two main political alliances selecting Claudia Sheinbaum and Xóchitl Gálvez as their 2024 contenders, it’s looking likely that the country’s next president will be a woman. But already in Mexico, women hold a range of top political seats and have achieved gender parity in Congress. In this episode, Mónica Tapia talks with Carin Zissis…

It has been 50 years since Chile's military junta came to power. On September 11, 1973, the army headed by General Augusto Pinochet launched a coup with the US' covert backing. Soldiers took over the presidential palace, ousting leftist President Salvador Allende, who committed suicide. Pinochet then stayed in power for 17 years, a period of dictat…

During the Cold War, the US military conducted manoeuvres in Spain’s Andalusia region. On January 17, 1966, a bomber and a supply plane collided in mid-air. From the belly of the bomber, four thermonuclear bombs fell to the ground. There was no nuclear explosion, as luckily they were unarmed. But they scattered highly radioactive plutonium over 250…

Artificial intelligence may spark job loss fears across the Americas, but businesses and people in the region are increasingly adopting the technology. Ángel Melguizo, partner at Argia and Latin America advisor to UNESCO on ethics and AI, outlined what countries need to do to benefit from the AI revolution without leaving people behind. He also cov…

The second half of 2023 will see Spain take over several EU leadership posts, and Madrid has pledged to deepen its focus on EU-Latin American relations. Could this lead to aflourishing regional relations? Ahead of the EU-CELAC summit in July, author Michael Reid explained the roadblocks to trans-Atlantic integration. From Ukraine to a Mercosur-EU f…

Back in 2015, Guatemala's President Otto Perez Molina was forced to resign before being eventually found guilty of fraud and criminal conspiracy. His downfall seemed proof that impunity for corruption was not inevitable in a country plagued by 40 years of civil war. Perez was the prize catch of the International Commission against Impunity in Guate…

In a world struggling with geopolitical uncertainty, how can North America offer a secure environment and economic stability? In this episode, conducted in collaboration with the U.S.-Mexico Foundation (USMF), we explore the answer to this question and more. USMF Managing Director Enrique Perret interviews AS/COA’s Susan Segal about how Canada, Mex…

Guatemalans head to the polls June 25 with their country’s democracy at a crossroads. Despite nearly two dozen presidential candidates on the ballot, three key contenders were eliminated and dozens of the country’s corruption-battling prosecutors and journalists face exile or imprisonment. What does this mean for the election? What is the U.S.’s ro…

Ecuador’s Guillermo Lasso chose to do something unprecedented on May 17, invoking a constitutional clause that dissolved the National Assembly and triggered a new set of elections for the executive and legislative branches. Now that he’s Lasso ruling by decree, what can Ecuadorans expect in this period of uncertainty? And who are the big players ah…

Arthur Bispo do Rosario never intended to become an artist. But he’s now recognized as a pioneering force in Latin American art. After experiencing hallucinations at the age of 29, he was checked in to a psychiatric institution where he spent the rest of his life. While there, he heard voices that told him to recreate all existing materials on eart…