King Tut gold mask to leave Cairo museum after nearly 100 years


By AFP
June 12, 2025


The golden funerary mask of King Tutankhamun is displayed at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo - Copyright AFP FERNANDO CARTAGENA

After nearly a century in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, King Tutankhamun’s iconic gold mask and remaining treasures are set to move to the new Grand Egyptian Museum near the Giza Pyramids.

Visitors have just days left to see the boy king’s world-famous gold funerary mask before it joins more than 5,000 artefacts from his tomb at the GEM, a $1-billion megaproject opening on July 3.

“Only 26 objects from the Tutankhamun collection, including the golden mask and two coffins, remain here in Tahrir,” said museum director Ali Abdel Halim.

“All are set to be moved soon,” he told AFP, without confirming a specific date for the transfer.

The government has yet to officially announce when or how the last artefacts will be relocated.

Still on display are the innermost gold coffin, a gilded coffin, a gold dagger, cosmetic box, miniature coffins, royal diadem and pectorals.

Tutankhamun’s treasures, registered at the Egyptian Museum on Cairo’s Tahrir square in 1934, have long been its crown jewels.

But the neoclassical building — with faded cases, no climate control and ageing infrastructure — now contrasts with the high-tech GEM.

Once open, the GEM is believed to be the largest in the world devoted to a single civilisation, housing more than 100,000 artefacts — with over half on public display.

In a dedicated wing, most of King Tut’s treasures will be exhibited together for the first time in history since British archeologist Howard Carter discovered the young pharaoh’s intact tomb in 1922.

His mummy will remain in its original resting place in Luxor’s Valley of the Kings as it is “a vital part of the archeological site”, Egyptian officials have said.

A virtual replica, however, will be displayed at the GEM using virtual reality technology.

The Egyptian Museum in Tahrir, long the historic heart of Egyptology, has lost in 2021 other star exhibits: 22 royal mummies including Ramses II and Queen Hatshepsut that were relocated in a widely watched state procession to the National Museum of Egyptian Civilization in Old Cairo.

Still, it is home to around 170,000 artefacts, according to the museum director, including treasures from Yuya and Thuya – Tutankhamun’s ancestors — and items from ancient Tanis, such as the golden funerary mask of King Amenemope.

A total of 32,000 artefacts have already been relocated from storage and display halls at the Tahrir museum to the GEM.

The museum’s director said the space left behind by Tutankhamun’s collection will eventually be filled by a new exhibition “on par with the significance of Tut’s treasures”.

Betraying the revolution: Cuban students reject dollarization


By AFP
June 12, 2025


Cuba's new mobile internet tariff pricing structure made it cheaper to pay in dollars than in Cuba's own currency, the peso -- much to the disdain of the country's student population - Copyright AFP YAMIL LAGE

Jordane BERTRAND, Leticia PINEDA

It took a steep hike in mobile internet tariffs to unleash a rebellion among Cuban students on a scale unseen since the 1959 revolution that brought Fidel Castro to power.

The new pricing structure, which came into effect on May 30, punished people who exceeded their meager monthly data limit of six gigabytes with steep fees.

On top of that, it made rates cheaper to top up in dollars than in Cuba’s own currency, the peso.

State telecommunications company Etecsa said the increases were necessary to fund investments in the mobile network.

But it was also seen as a ploy by the cash-strapped communist government to bring in much-needed foreign currency.

Students in particular reacted angrily to the measure, which not only makes it harder for them to stay connected, but deepens the chasm on the island between dollar-toting haves and peso-using have-nots.

In rare scenes throughout the one-party state, students at several universities organized a boycott of classes, and students’ unions issued statements rejecting the reform.

Anxious to avoid a repeat of the protests that rocked the island in July 2021, when thousands of people demonstrated over shortages of basic goods, the government has taken a conciliatory approach.

The Havana students’ union this week announced the creation of a discussion group with students, teaching staff from a dozen university faculties in Havana, and Etecsa’s representatives.

But on social media, students say they have come under pressure from security forces to fall in line.

In a video shared on social media, which AFP was unable to verify, a medical student claims she was threatened by a state security agent on campus with being taken to “an official place where you won’t be able to use your phone.”

The protests have ballooned into a wider mobilization over the subtle dollarization of the Cuban economy.

Students at the University of Holguin’s law faculty in eastern Cuba issued a statement denouncing the new mobile tariffs as “elitist and classist” and said the growing shift towards dollars was an affront to the principle of equal rights.

In another viral video, a medical student at the University of Havana warned that the currency of the United States was becoming the country’s “flagship currency.”

For opposition activist Manuel Cuesta Morua, the protests mark a return to the kind of activism last seen on campuses in the 1950s, which forged the revolutionary careers of Castro and others.

Today’s students are spearheading “a revolution within the revolution,” Cuesta Morua said, adding that their tirades against inequality marked a return to the “original discourse of a revolution that became militarized and more conservative” over time.



– Not against communism –



The row over the internet fees comes amid the emergence of a two-speed society on the communist island, which is mired in its worst economic crisis in 30 years.

Inflation rose by 190 percent between 2018 and 2023, according to official figures, eroding the value of the peso against the dollar.

Food, fuel and medicine are all in short supply.

Cubans who receive dollar remittances from relatives abroad fare better, with well-stocked dollar payment grocery stores and gas stations only too happy to serve them.



– ‘Last straw’ –



In January, the government announced a partial dollarization of the economy, claiming it wanted to get its hands on some of the greenbacks.

But mobile top-ups in dollars were “the last straw” for many, according to Tamarys Bahamonde, a Cuban economist at American University in Washington.

In a joint manifesto, students from various faculties in Havana made it clear they were not “opposed to the government nor the revolution but to specific policies that betray its (egalitarian) ideal.”

For Bahamonde, the crisis underscores the widening gulf between Cuba’s decision-makers and its citizens.

To win over the students, Etecsa last week announced that they would be allowed two monthly top-ups at the basic rate of 360 pesos ($3), compared with one for the rest of the population.

But the students rejected the offer, saying they wanted everyone to benefit.

For activist Cuesta Morua, their reaction was proof that young Cubans, rather than the government, have become the voice of the people.

“It is the students… who are representing the country’s concerns.”

MYOB

Trump moves to block California electric cars program


By AFP
June 13, 2025


US President Donald Trump signed resolutions blocking California's mandate to phase out gas-powered cars - Copyright CENTRAL INDUSTRIAL SECURITY FORCE (CISF)/AFP Handout

Beiyi SEOW with Huw GRIFFITH in Los Angeles

US President Donald Trump on Thursday signed resolutions blocking California’s landmark efforts to phase out gas-powered cars in favor of electric vehicles, a move the state immediately contested in court.

Trump’s action, a rebuke of Democratic climate change policies, comes after the Republican-led Congress revoked the state’s waiver allowing it to set more stringent regulations for cars.

California had planned to end the sale of gasoline-only vehicles by 2035, among other ambitious efforts.

During the signing ceremony at the White House, Trump lashed out at the state’s bid as “a disaster for this country” and said the resolutions he was signing would save the industry from “destruction.”

California swiftly sued the Trump administration over the resolutions, with Attorney General Rob Bonta saying: “The President’s divisive, partisan agenda is jeopardizing our lives, our economy and our environment.”

“It’s reckless, it’s illegal, and because of it, we’ll be seeing the Trump administration in court again for the 26th time,” he added.

California, the nation’s wealthiest state with around 40 million people, has long used the waiver in the Clean Air Act to set its own emissions standards as it tries to mitigate some of the worst air pollution in the country.

The size of the auto market in the state — and the fact that several other states follow its lead — means automakers frequently use its standards nationwide.

Trump’s move also came as he clashes with California over immigration enforcement.

California Governor Gavin Newsom has accused the president of acting like a tyrant over his use of the military to control small-scale protests in Los Angeles.

– Environmental concerns –

Trump’s action was condemned by environmental groups who say the rules are key for easing pollution.

And Newsom recently argued that rolling back the state’s EV ambitions would boost China’s position on the market.

While China is a manufacturing hub for such vehicles globally, the United States is a net importer of them, he said in a May statement.

This is despite the United States being home to technologies that have pioneered the clean car industry, he noted.

Trump has repeatedly criticized subsidies to encourage the EV industry despite significant federal funding allocated to projects in Republican districts — where thousands of jobs are expected to be created.

He took aim at the sector as part of his flurry of executive orders on his first day in office this January in a bid to ensure what he called a “level” playing field for gasoline-powered motors.

California sues Trump for scrapping state’s EV rules

By AFP
June 12, 2025


A driver plugs in a Tesla electric vehicle to charge at a Tesla Supercharger location in Santa Monica, California 

- Copyright CENTRAL INDUSTRIAL SECURITY FORCE (CISF)/AFP Handout

California sued Donald Trump’s administration Thursday over his move to scrap the state’s tailpipe emission rules and its drive to phase out gas-powered cars.

“The President’s divisive, partisan agenda is jeopardizing our lives, our economy and our environment,” California Attorney General Rob Bonta said.

“It’s reckless, it’s illegal, and because of it, we’ll be seeing the Trump administration in court again for the 26th time.”

California, the nation’s wealthiest state with around 40 million people, has long used a waiver in the Clean Air Act to set its own emissions standards as it tries to mitigate some of the worst air pollution in the country.

Under that authority, which Bonta said has not been contested by successive Republican and Democrat administrations, the state plans to phase out the sale of gas-powered cars by 2035.

The size of the automarket in the state — and the fact that several other states follow its lead — means automakers frequently use its standards nationwide.

That is a source of irritation for Republicans who claim it is unfair that a Democratic-controlled state gets an effective veto on US rules.

“Under the direction of the President, the Republican controlled US House of Representatives and the Senate illegally used the (Congressional Review Act) to target California’s Clean Air Act waivers,” said Bonta.

“That’s why we’re asking the court to declare the resolutions to be unlawful and require the administration to implement the Clean Air Act consistent with the waiver as lawfully granted.

“The bottom line is simple, the President doesn’t have the legal authority to weaponize the CRA against California, and we won’t let him use the CRA for his political gain.”

The lawsuit, which Bonta said was filed in the Northern District of California, came within minutes of Donald Trump signing the legislation.

It also came as a row between Trump and California worsens, with the state’s governor accusing the president of acting like a tyrant over his use of the military to control small-scale protests in Los Angeles.

‘We’re done with Teams’: German state hits uninstall on Microsoft


By AFP
June 12, 2025


Image: — © AFP/File DENIS CHARLET

Léa PERNELLE

At a time of growing concern over the power of the world’s mighty tech companies, one German state is turning its back on US giant Microsoft.

In less than three months’ time, almost no civil servant, police officer or judge in Schleswig-Holstein will be using any of Microsoft’s ubiquitous programs at work.

Instead, the northern state will turn to open-source software to “take back control” over data storage and ensure “digital sovereignty”, its digitalisation minister, Dirk Schroedter, told AFP.

“We’re done with Teams!” he said, referring to Microsoft’s messaging and collaboration tool and speaking on a video call — via an open-source German program, of course.

The radical switch-over affects half of Schleswig-Holstein’s 60,000 public servants, with 30,000 or so teachers due to follow suit in coming years.

The state’s shift towards open-source software began last year.

The current first phase involves ending the use of Word and Excel software, which are being replaced by LibreOffice, while Open-Xchange is taking the place of Outlook for emails and calendars.

Over the next few years, there will also be a switch to the Linux operating system in order to complete the move away from Windows.

– ‘Digital dependencies’ –

The principle of open-source software is to allow users to read the source code and modify it according to their own needs.

The issue of the power wielded by American tech titans has been thrown into sharper relief by Donald Trump’s return to the White House and the subsequent rise in US-EU tensions.

In the case of Microsoft, there have long been worries about the dominant position it enjoys thanks to it owning both the Windows operating system and a suite of programs found in offices the world over.

In 2023, the European Union launched an antitrust investigation against Microsoft over the way it tied Teams to its other programs for businesses.

“The geopolitical developments of the past few months have strengthened interest in the path that we’ve taken,” said Schroedter, adding that he had received requests for advice from across the world.

“The war in Ukraine revealed our energy dependencies, and now we see there are also digital dependencies,” he said.

The government in Schleswig-Holstein is also planning to shift the storage of its data to a cloud system not under the control of Microsoft, said Schroedter.

He explained that the state wants to rely on publicly owned German digital infrastructure rather than that of an American company.

– Taken ‘by the throat’ –

Experts point to economic incentives for the sort of shift Schleswig-Holstein is making, as investing in open-source alternatives and training staff to use them often costs less than the licences for Microsoft’s programs.

This is particularly the case when businesses and public bodies find themselves taken “by the throat” when hit by unexpected extra costs for mandatory updates, said Benjamin Jean from consulting firm Inno3.

Schleswig-Holstein hopes that its move away from Microsoft will eventually save it tens of millions of euros.

But organisations considering this sort of change have to reckon with resistance from staff who fear upheaval.

“If people aren’t guided through it, there’s an outcry and everyone just wants to go back to how it was before,” warned Francois Pellegrini, an IT professor at Bordeaux University.

– Pioneer administrations –

The potential pitfalls can be seen in the experience of Munich, whose city administration was a pioneer in using open-source programs in the 1990s.

In 2017, the city announced an about-turn, citing a lack of political support and the difficulty of interacting with other systems.

But other public bodies are staying the course: France’s gendarmerie, around 100,000 strong, has been using the Linux operating system since the 2000s and India’s defence ministry was in 2023 reported to have launched a homegrown system called “Maya OS”.

Across the border from Schleswig-Holstein, in Denmark, reports say that the local governments of Copenhagen and Aarhus are also looking into ditching Microsoft.

Another factor that could push the trend is the EU “Interoperable Europe Act”, which came into effect last year and encourages the use of open-source software.

According to Jean, “Within the space of two or three years” there could be a number of pioneer administrations who will be able to give feedback on their experiences and inspire others to make the switch

Meta makes major investment in Scale AI, takes in CEO


By  AFP
June 12, 2025


Image: — © AFP/File Hector RETAMAL

Glenn CHAPMAN

Scale AI announced a major new investment by Meta late Thursday that values the startup at more than $29 billion and puts its founder to work for the tech titan.

Company founder and chief executive Alexandr Wang will join Meta to help with the tech giant’s own artificial intelligence efforts as part of the deal, according to the startup.

Meta was reportedly pouring more than $10 billion into San Francisco-based Scale AI, and acquires its 28-year-old CEO amid fierce competition in the AI race with rivals such as OpenAI, Google and Microsoft.

“Meta has finalized our strategic partnership and investment in Scale AI,” a Meta spokesperson said in response to an AFP inquiry.

“As part of this, we will deepen the work we do together producing data for AI models and Alexandr Wang will join Meta to work on our superintelligence efforts.”

Meta promised more details about the move in coming weeks.

Scale AI works with business, governments and labs to exploit the benefits of artificial intelligence, according to the startup.

“Meta’s investment recognizes Scale’s accomplishments to date and reaffirms that our path forward — like that of AI — is limitless,” Wang said in a release.

“Scale bridges the gap between human values and technology to help our customers realize AI’s full potential.”

Scale AI founder Alexandr Wang will take to working on artificial intelligence at Meta as a result of the Silicon Valley tech giant making a big investment in the startup 

– Copyright GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP Drew Angerer

Since Wang founded Scale AI in 2016, it has grown to more than 1,500 people, he wrote in a post on X.

He said a few other employees, whom he referred to as “Scaliens,” will go with him to work on Meta’s AI initiative.

Wang described his departure as “bittersweet,” adding he will remain a member of the Scale AI board of directors.

– Military AI –

Along with work that includes AI data, agents, and optimizing systems, Scale AI late last year announced an artificial intelligence model built on Meta’s Llama 3 model that is customized for US national security missions including planning military or intelligence operations and understanding adversary vulnerabilities.

Listed capabilities of “Defense Llama” include assessing scenarios and answering tactical questions such as how enemies might attack and how to effectively counter, according to Scale AI.

“Scale AI is committed to ongoing collaboration with the defense community to ensure Defense Llama remains a trusted and effective asset for US military and intelligence operations,” Wang said at the time.

Scale AI will use the infusion of capital to accelerate innovation and strengthen partnerships, along with distributing proceeds to equity holders, according to the startup.

Meta will hold a minority stake in Scale AI after the investment deal closes, but an exact figure was not revealed.

Tech industry veteran and investor Jason Droege, a co-founder of Uber Eats food delivery platform, will take over as chief of Scale AI, according to the company.

“Scale has led the charge in accelerating AI development,” Droege said in a release.

“We have built the strongest foundation to tackle AI’s data challenges and push the boundaries of what’s possible.”

Meta chief Mark Zuckerberg recently touted his tech firm’s generative artificial intelligence (Gen AI) assistant, telling shareholders it is used by a billion people each month across its platforms.

EU crypto regulation hampered by national flaws


By AFP
June 12, 2025


Logos of different cryptocurrencies are displayed during the Token2049 conference in Dubai in April - Copyright AFP/File Sai Aung MAIN
Lucie LEQUIER

The first EU-wide cryptocurrency regulation was meant to impose some harmony, but disparities in implementation by member countries has allowed companies to exploit a flaw in the system.

Launched in December, Markets in Crypto-Asset (MiCA) insists on service providers obtaining a licence to operate legally in the European Union.

It is issued once specific criteria on anti-money laundering, prevention of terror group financing, IT security and financial soundness have been implemented.

Such a framework aims to protect investors and provide credibility to a sector deemed to be poorly regulated.

Once obtained, a licence grants access to the entire EU market, which encourages some companies to seek authorisation in the most “accommodating” member state.

Crypto experts, speaking to AFP, do not question the integrity of regulatory authorities in, for example, Germany and the Netherlands — two EU members which account for the majority of the roughly 30 MiCA licences issued so far.

Other bloc nations, including Malta, are in the crosshairs, however, according to these same experts, who preferred to remain anonymous.

They point to, for example, the Mediterranean island hastily issuing licences before the formal implementation of collective standards.

– Rapid approvals –

“From time to time we see arriving on our market, via the (MiCA) passport, products approved by some of our colleagues with, let’s say, a rather quick signing off,” lamented the president of the financial markets authority in France, Marie-Anne Barbat-Layani, as she addressed the country’s Senate in March.

Barbat-Layani noted that EU markets regulator ESMA had launched a “peer review” of an unnamed regulator that is potentially too lax.

When contacted by AFP, the watchdog declined to comment. The Maltese regulator, MFSA, neither confirmed nor denied that it was involved.

An official working under her, Stephane Pontoizeau, added: “There is always the risk of someone trying to find the least demanding entry point into Europe.”

Crypto platform OKX, which had planned to hire about 100 staff in France making the country its “anchor” in Europe, ultimately opted for Malta.

Peer Gemini followed the same strategy, having targeted Ireland before changing its mind, citing the “proactive engagement” of the Maltese authorities.

“Malta began welcoming applications several months earlier than other regulators, which meant that we could start the application process earlier, build the teams and infrastructure required to operate under MiCA,” noted Gemini’s head of Europe, Mark Jennings.

Other countries have been slow to grant approvals, with France having only just issued its first MiCA licence — to French fintech firm Deblock — amid accusations that its process is long and complex.

France, however, sees it as granting companies greater time to prepare their application, with the country implementing a transition period through to June 2026.

Pontoizeau insisted the French financial regulator is “determined not to add national requirements to European rules”.

According to lawyer Anne Marechal, former legal director at the regulator, there have been “cut-price approvals”.

She told AFP that “believing one can save a few weeks and a little money” puts companies’ credibility at risk with investors.

– Economic sovereignty –

Obtaining the necessary certification can also require considerable outlay, whether for a MiCA or national licence.

Tangi Le Calvez, founder of the crypto investment firm GOin, has invested about one million euros on obtaining a French licence, which inspired MiCA.

He believes that many players will not be able to complete all the necessary steps.

Already in 2017, EU member Estonia introduced its own mandatory licences for the crypto sector, which resulted in 75 percent of industry participants ceasing operations there, according to the Cointelegraph publication.

While it remains to be seen if a similar outcome will occur in the wake of MiCA, Claire Balva, strategy director at Deblock, highlighted the risk of European crypto firms being replaced by rivals from places with more flexible rules, such as the United States and Dubai.

Given their financial resources, such non-European companies would have no difficulty complying with EU rules, she insisted.

Should “a significant portion of cryptocurrencies held by Europeans” be hosted “on American infrastructure”, this also raises “questions of economic sovereignty”, added Balva.

Anthropic says looking to power European tech with hiring push


By AFP
June 13, 2025


As the AI race heats up, so does the race to find talent in the sector, which is currently dominated by US and Chinese companies - Copyright AFP/File Fabrice COFFRINI
Tom BARFIELD

American AI giant Anthropic aims to boost the European tech ecosystem as it expands on the continent, product chief Mike Krieger told AFP Thursday at the Vivatech trade fair in Paris.

The OpenAI competitor wants to be “the engine behind some of the largest startups of tomorrow… (and) many of them can and should come from Europe”, Krieger said.

Tech industry and political leaders have often lamented Europe’s failure to capitalise on its research and education strength to build heavyweight local companies — with many young founders instead leaving to set up shop across the Atlantic.

Krieger’s praise for the region’s “really strong talent pipeline” chimed with an air of continental tech optimism at Vivatech.

French AI startup Mistral on Wednesday announced a multibillion-dollar tie-up to bring high-powered computing resources from chip behemoth Nvidia to the region.

The semiconductor firm will “increase the amount of AI computing capacity in Europe by a factor of 10” within two years, Nvidia boss Jensen Huang told an audience at the southern Paris convention centre.

Among 100 planned continental hires, Anthropic is building up its technical and research strength in Europe, where it has offices in Dublin and non-EU capital London, Krieger said.

Beyond the startups he hopes to boost, many long-standing European companies “have a really strong appetite for transforming themselves with AI”, he added, citing luxury giant LVMH, which had a large footprint at Vivatech.

– ‘Safe by design’ –

Mistral — founded only in 2023 and far smaller than American industry leaders like OpenAI and Anthropic — is nevertheless “definitely in the conversation” in the industry, Krieger said.

The French firm recently followed in the footsteps of the US companies by releasing a so-called “reasoning” model able to take on more complex tasks.

“I talk to customers all the time that are maybe using (Anthropic’s AI) Claude for some of the long-horizon agentic tasks, but then they’ve also fine-tuned Mistral for one of their data processing tasks, and I think they can co-exist in that way,” Krieger said.

So-called “agentic” AI models — including the most recent versions of Claude — work as autonomous or semi-autonomous agents that are able to do work over longer horizons with less human supervision, including by interacting with tools like web browsers and email.

Capabilities displayed by the latest releases have raised fears among some researchers, such as University of Montreal professor and “AI godfather” Yoshua Bengio, that independently acting AI could soon pose a risk to humanity.

Bengio last week launched a non-profit, LawZero, to develop “safe-by-design” AI — originally a key founding promise of OpenAI and Anthropic.

– ‘Very specific genius’ –

“A huge part of why I joined Anthropic was because of how seriously they were taking that question” of AI safety, said Krieger, a Brazilian software engineer who co-founded Instagram, which he left in 2018.

Anthropic is still working on measures designed to restrict their AI models’ potential to do harm, he added.

But it has yet to release details of its “level 4” AI safety protections foreseen for still more powerful models, after activating ASL (AI Safety Level) 3 to corral the capabilities of May’s Claude Opus 4 release.

Developing ASL 4 is “an active part of the work of the company”, Krieger said, without giving a potential release date.

With Claude 4 Opus, “we’ve deployed the mitigations kind of proactively… safe doesn’t have to mean slow, but it does mean having to be thoughtful and proactive ahead of time” to make sure safety protections don’t impair performance, he added.

Looking to upcoming releases from Anthropic, Krieger said the company’s models were on track to match chief executive Dario Amodei’s prediction that Anthropic would offer customers access to a “country of geniuses in a data centre” by 2026 or 2027 — within limits.

Anthropic’s latest AI models are “genius-level at some very specific things”, he said.

“In the coming year… it will continue to spike in particular aspects of things, and still need a lot of human-in-the-loop coordination,” he forecast.

Millions take to the streets in 'No Kings' anti-Trump protests across the US

Millions participated in 'No Kings' demonstrations across the United States on Saturday to protest the Trump administration, organisers said, on the same day the president held a large-scale military parade in Washington, DC. The protests came on the heels of demonstrations over the federal immigration enforcement raids that began last week.


Issued on: 15/06/2025 -
By: FRANCE 24

People gather in Houston for the "No Kings" nationwide demonstration on June 14, 2025. © Raquel Natalicchio, AP


Masses of demonstrators packed into streets, parks and plazas across the United States on Saturday to protest President Donald Trump, marching through downtowns and small towns, blaring anti-authoritarian chants mixed with support for protecting democracy and immigrant rights.

Organisers of the “No Kings” demonstrations said millions had marched in hundreds of events. Governors across the US had urged calm and vowed no tolerance for violence, while some mobilised the National Guard ahead of marchers gathering.

Confrontations were isolated. But police in Los Angeles, where protests over federal immigration enforcement raids erupted a week earlier and sparked demonstrations across the country, used tear gas and crowd-control munitions to clear out protesters after the formal event ended. Officers in Portland also fired tear gas and projectiles to disperse a crowd that protested in front of a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement building well into the evening.

And in Salt Lake City, Utah, police were investigating a shooting during a march downtown that left one person critically injured. Three people were taken into custody, including a man believed to be the shooter, who also suffered a gunshot wound, according to Police Chief Brian Redd.

Redd said it was too early to tell if the shooting was politically motivated and whether those involved knew each other. The shooter appeared to be walking alongside the group of thousands who were marching, he added. Video feeds showed demonstrators running for safety as gunshots rang out.

Huge, boisterous crowds marched, danced, drummed, and chanted shoulder-to-shoulder in New York, Denver, Chicago, Austin and Los Angeles, some behind “no kings” banners. Atlanta’s 5,000-capacity event quickly reached its limit, with thousands more gathered outside barriers to hear speakers in front of the state Capitol. Officials in Seattle estimated that more than 70,000 people attended the city's largest rally downtown, the Seattle Times reported.

Demonstrators hold a "Colorado Stands" banner as they protest the Trump administration during the "No Kings" national rally in Denver, Colorado on June 14, 2025, on the day of President Trump's military parade in Washington, DC. © Jason Connolly, AFP

Trump was in Washington for a military parade marking the Army’s 250th anniversary that coincides with the president’s birthday. About 200 protesters assembled in northwest Washington’s Logan Circle and chanted “Trump must go now” before erupting in cheers. A larger-than-life puppet of Trump – a caricature of the president wearing a crown and sitting on a golden toilet – was wheeled through the crowd.

In some places, organisers handed out little American flags while others flew their flags upside down, a sign of distress. Mexican flags, which have become a fixture of the Los Angeles protests against immigration raids, also made an appearance at some demonstrations Saturday.

In Culpepper, Virginia, police said one person was struck by an SUV when a 21-year-old driver intentionally accelerated his SUV into the crowd as protesters were leaving a rally. The driver was charged with reckless driving.

The demonstrations come on the heels of the protests over the federal immigration enforcement raids that began last week and Trump ordering the National Guard and Marines to Los Angeles, where protesters blocked a freeway and set cars on fire.

“Today, across red states and blue, rural towns and major cities, Americans stood in peaceful unity and made it clear: we don’t do kings," the No Kings Coalition said in a statement Saturday afternoon after many events had ended.

Thousands gathered downtown, where organizers handed out small American flags and people carried protest signs saying “fight oligarchy” and “deport the mini-Mussolinis".

Demonstrators take part in a protest against the Trump administration during the "No Kings" national rally in downtown Los Angeles, California, on June 14, 2025, on the same day as President Trump's military parade in Washington, DC. © Ringo Chiu, AFP

Karen Van Trieste, a 61-year-old nurse who drove up from Maryland, said she grew up in Philadelphia and wanted to be with a large group of people showing her support.

“I just feel like we need to defend our democracy,” she said. She is concerned about the Trump administration’s layoffs of staff at the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the fate of immigrant communities and Trump trying to rule by executive order, she said.

A woman wearing a foam Statue of Liberty crown brought a speaker system and led an anti-Trump sing-along, changing the words “young man” in the song “Y.M.C.A.” to “con man”.

”I am what the successful American dream looks like,” said C.C. Téllez, an immigrant from Bolivia who attended the protest. “I’ve enjoyed great success here in the United States, and I’ve also contributed heavily to my community. And if there was space for me, I think there’s a way for everybody else to belong here as well.”

Thousands gathered in front of City Hall, waving signs and listening to a Native American drum circle before marching through the streets.
'I voted for Donald Trump, now I regret that'

As protesters passed National Guard troops or US Marines stationed at various buildings, most interactions were friendly, with demonstrators giving fist bumps or posing for selfies. But others chanted “shame” or “go home” at the troops.

Amid signs reading “They fear us don’t back down California” and “We carry dreams not danger, ” one demonstrator carried a 2-foot-tall (60-centimeter) Trump pinata on a stick, with a crown on his head and sombrero hanging off his back. Another hoisted a huge helium-filled orange baby balloon with blond hair styled like Trump's.

A few blocks from City Hall, protesters gathered in front of the downtown federal detention centre being guarded by a line of Marines and other law enforcement. It was the first time that the Marines, in combat gear and holding rifles, have appeared at a demonstration since they were deployed to city on Friday with the stated mission of defending federal property.

Peter Varadi, 54, said he voted for Trump last November for “economic reasons”. Now, for the first time in his life, he is protesting, waving a Mexican and US combined flag.

“I voted for Donald Trump, and now I regret that, because he’s taken this fascism to a new level,” Varadi said. “It’s Latinos now. Who’s next? It’s gays. Blacks after that. They’re coming for everybody.”

Even after the formal event ended, the downtown streets were packed with a jubilant crowd as people danced to salsa music and snacked on hot dogs and ice cream bought from vendors, many of whom are Latino immigrants. But the previously calm demonstration turned confrontational as police on horseback moved into the crowd and struck some people with wood rods and batons as they cleared the street in front of the federal building.

Marchers in the crowd that stretched for blocks along Fifth Avenue had diverse reasons for coming, including anger over Trump’s immigration policies, support for the Palestinian people and outrage over what they said was an erosion of free speech rights.
'The existential crisis of this country'

But there were patriotic symbols, too. Leah Griswold, 32, and Amber Laree, 59, who marched in suffragette white dresses, brought 250 American flags to hand out to people in the crowd.

“Our mothers who came out, fought for our rights, and now we're fighting for future generations as well,” Griswold said.

Some protesters held signs denouncing Trump while others banged drums.

“We’re here because we’re worried about the existential crisis of this country and the planet and our species,” said Sean Kryston, 28.

Governor Tim Walz and law enforcement encouraged people not to attend rallies “out of an abundance of caution” following the shootings of the Democratic state lawmakers.

Dozens of events were canceled, but tens of thousands still turned out for demonstrations in Duluth, Rochester and St. Paul, which included a march to the state Capitol. Walz canceled his scheduled appearance at the St. Paul event.

Authorities said the suspect had “No Kings” flyers in his car and writings mentioning the names of the victims as well as other lawmakers and officials, though they could not say if he had any other specific targets.

Seda Heng, 29, of Rochester, said she was heartbroken by the shootings, but still wanted to join the rally there. “These people are trying to do what they can for their communities, for the state, for the nation,” Heng told the Minnesota Star-Tribune.

Crowds cheered anti-Trump speakers in Charlotte's First Ward Park before marching, chanting “No kings. No crowns. We will not bow down."

Marchers stretched for blocks, led by a group of people holding a giant Mexican flag and bystanders cheering and clapping along the way.

Jocelyn Abarca, a 21-year-old college student, said the protest was a chance to “speak for what’s right” after mass deportations and Trump's deployment of the National Guard in Los Angeles.

“If we don’t stop it now, it’s just going to keep getting worse,” she said.

Naomi Mena said she traveled an hour to demonstrate in Charlotte to represent her “friends and family who sadly can’t have a voice out in public now” to stay safe.

People march through downtown at the conclusion of the "No Kings Day" demonstration on June 14, 2025 in Austin, Texas. © Brandon Bell, AFP

A rally at the Texas Capitol in Austin went off as planned despite state police briefly shutting down the building and the surrounding grounds after authorities said they received a “credible threat” to Democratic state lawmakers who were to attend.

Dozens of state troopers swarmed through the grounds about four hours before the event, but the area was later opened and the rally started on time. The building remained closed.

The Department of Public Safety later said one person was taken into custody “in connection with the threats made against state lawmakers" after a traffic stop in La Grange, Texas, about 65 miles (105 kilometres) east of Austin. State police did not detail the threat or immediately identify the person, but said there was no additional active threat.
Tear gas, flash bangs and rubber bullets

A demonstration of hundreds of people opened to “War Pigs” by Black Sabbath playing over a sound system on the state Capitol lawn in Jackson.

“A lot of stuff that’s going on now is targeting people of colour, and to see so many folks out here that aren’t black or brown fighting for the same causes that I’m here for, it makes me very emotional,” said Tony Cropper, who traveled from Tennessee to attend the protest.

Some people wore tinfoil crowns atop their heads. Others held signs inviting motorists to “Honk if you never text war plans.”

Melissa Johnson said she drove an hour-and-a-half to Jackson to protest because “we are losing the thread of democracy in our country".

Earlier in the day, thousands of protesters lined the streets in downtown Portland for several blocks, waving signs as passing cars honked in support. They marched around the city draped in American flags to the beat of drums and music.

By late afternoon, a small group of demonstrators amassed across the river to protest in front of an ICE office where three people were arrested Wednesday night after starting a small fire against the building, police said.

Federal immigration officers fired tear gas, flash bangs and rubber bullets in an effort to clear out the remaining protesters in the evening. Some protesters threw water bottles back and tended to each other's wounds. The police department wrote on X that the event was declared a riot.

At least two people were detained and taken inside the federal immigration building.

(FRANCE 24 with AP)

Kenya protests reignited by custody death, but ‘Gen Z' movement remains divided

A year on from landmark protests over taxes and corruption, Kenya's youth remains undeterred by a violent police response but faces conflicting ideas on what direction to take. Meanwhile, the recent death of a blogger in prison has sparked new demonstrations.

Issued on: 15/06/2025 - 

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A concert in memory of those killed during demonstrations against tax hikes, in Nairobi, 7 July, 2024. REUTERS - Monicah Mwangi

By:Melissa Chemam with RFI

In June 2024, protests erupted across Kenya against a new bill that would mean a sharp rise in taxes – with 40 percent of people in the country living in poverty and the government regularly embroiled in corruption scandals.

"It was spontaneous, leaderless and unlike anything our country had ever seen," said Hanifa Adan of the movement. The 28-year-old emerged as one of the most high-profile figures in what became known as the "Gen Z protests".

The demonstrations reached a climax on 25 June, when thousands stormed the parliament where lawmakers were debating the bill – ultimately forcing President William Ruto to withdraw it.

In the course of the protests, 60 people died amid a violent police response, and dozens were arbitrarily detained.

Following this brutal response, in the weeks that followed the protests dwindled.

"State violence was brutal and traumatising, and it was meant to intimidate and silence us. But instead, it exposed the desperation of a system clinging to power," said Adan.

Kenya probes deadly violence that erupted during tax hike protests

Fractured movement

Kenya has rarely seen protests of this kind, which observers have called a new form of political uprising in the country – in which young people cast off the ethnic and geographic divides which had long defined their politics, to focus instead on policies.

But divides began to emerge within the movement. While some continued to engage in street protests, notably over women's rights and against police brutality, others took a different path – like Kasmuel McOure, 27.

He had gained notoriety during the protests with his fiery statements, but he subsequently joined the establishment, allying with veteran opposition leader Raila Odinga, who recently forged an alliance with the government.

McOure now calls himself "a party man through and through" – a move perceived by many protesters as a betrayal.

"If you're going to play politics then let's play it properly," he told French news agency AFP.

Some observers say he may intend to run for parliament at the next election in 2027. He has said that young people "must take political power" and that the Gen Z movement was too disorganised to foster real change.

"I thought the majority of the people who were calling themselves leaders were agitating for the sake of agitating," he said.  

Death in custody

With the death of the blogger Albert Ojwang in custody last weekend, new protests have erupted this week. 

The first march began in the capital, Nairobi, on Monday, near the Central Police Station where Ojwang died. Some protesters clashed with the police after officers used tear gas on the crowd.

Kenya protests erupt after activist Albert Ojwang dies in police custody

For Amnesty International in Kenya, Ojwang's death highlights major concerns about Kenya's police – which are not new.

"Why would the Directorate of Criminal Investigations use so much public taxes to arrest Albert Ojwang in Homa Bay and drive 350km past several police stations and courts to Central Police Station, Nairobi? Why would a suspect commit suicide after peacefully complying with an arrest and actively calling for family and friends to raise bail for him?" the organisation wrote in a statement, co-signed by groups working on police reforms.

Amnesty is calling on Kenyan authorities to admit a UN fact-finding team to independently investigate the cases of deaths and abductions by the police.

"Without independent and external investigation, these practices shall remain a threat to Kenyan lives, the rule of law, national security and the public interest," the statement concluded.

 (with AFP)

What Can Ancient Climates Tell Us About Modern Droughts?

 June 15, 2025

By Eurasia Review

Climate change is reshaping the global water cycle, disrupting rainfall patterns and putting growing pressure on cities and ecosystems. Some regions are grappling with heavier rainfall and flooding, while others face prolonged droughts that threaten public health, disrupt economies and increase the risk of political instability. In one recent example, a years-long drought between 2015 and 2020 brought Cape Town, South Africa, to the brink of running out of water—a moment officials dubbed “Day Zero.”

Scientists have long debated whether extreme events like the Cape Town water crisis are driven by human-caused climate change or are part of natural climate variability, with some models suggesting that global warming may indeed play a role.

“But a model is not the real world,” says Tripti Bhattacharya, Thonis Family Associate Professor in Syracuse University’s Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences (EES). “So we looked back in time.”

In a paper recently published in Nature Communications, Bhattacharya and a team of researchers, led by EES graduate Claire Rubbelke ’25 Ph.D. (and supported by undergraduates Lucy Weisbeck from the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry as well as, in earlier work, Ellen Jorgensen ’23), analyzed ancient plant matter preserved in a column of sediment drilled off the coast of South Africa. These molecules contain hydrogen isotopes from the rainfall that nourished the plants, providing a chemical fingerprint of past climate conditions.

The team extracted organic compounds from sediment samples using a cocktail of solvents. As those solvents evaporate, the organic material remains in the vial as an orange residue.

The study focuses on the Mid-Pleistocene Transition, a 550,000-year period between 1.25 and 0.7 million years ago when Earth’s glacial cycles and atmospheric composition underwent major shifts. The researchers found evidence that, during this time, dramatic changes in global atmospheric circulation—including contractions and expansions of the massive Hadley cell, which rises near the equator and sinks around 30 degrees latitude—produced wetting and drying conditions in Southern Africa. The latter correspond to the conditions experienced during Cape Town’s Day Zero crisis.

“We found that when the climate has changed dramatically in the past, it produced shifts analogous to the Day Zero drought,” Bhattacharya says. “This suggests that those types of events are really driven by global climate change.”

Rubbelke says the findings raise new questions about the future. “One big question I’m left with is whether these short droughts—and the Day Zero drought was relatively short-lived—will become more prolonged and eventually a permanent feature of the regional climate,” she says. “The fact that past droughts appear in the sediment record suggests they persisted for many years.”

In future work as a postdoctoral researcher, Rubbelke plans to conduct comparative studies on the opposite, eastern coast of Africa to better understand variations in rainfall across the continent. She also hopes to explore how shifting rainfall patterns may have shaped early human evolution in Southern Africa, home to key fossil sites like the Cradle of Humankind. Changes in vegetation and water availability could have influenced where hominin species lived and which ones survived.

Beyond its scientific insights, the research offers practical value for the present. Regions such as California, which share South Africa’s Mediterranean climate—marked by mild, wet winters and hot, dry summers—could benefit from a deeper understanding of past drought dynamics. “Climate models are the only tool we have for planning,” says Bhattacharya. “By testing how well they simulate past events, we can identify where they fall short—and ultimately improve our modeling capacity to better prepare for the future.”

Eurasia Review

Eurasia Review is an independent Journal that provides a venue for analysts and experts to disseminate content on a wide-range of subjects that are often overlooked or under-represented by Western dominated media.