One war, another. Another devastating earthquake. Floods, again. Heat, too much. We won’t blame you for disconnecting this weekend when the news, if it excites us, can give us nightmares. If it is sometimes difficult to keep an eye on the news on these sunny Sundays, we have not turned off the sound or the image… The editorial staff of 20 minutes gives you what you need to remember from the last forty-eight hours of news. Intense. Spoiler alert: we still keep the fries (and it feels really good).
1. Hamas attacks
Fighting still rages this Sunday evening between Hamas activists and Israeli forces, the day after the launch of a surprise offensive by the Palestinian Islamist movement against Israel. The Hamas offensive was launched from the Gaza Strip at dawn on Saturday, fifty years and one day after the start of the 1973 Arab-Israeli war.
The Israeli army, which counted more than 3,000 Palestinian shots, immediately responded with airstrikes and launched Operation “Iron Swords”. A thousand people have already been killed on both sides as Israeli forces hunt down Palestinian fighters infiltrated into Israel and bombard the Gaza Strip. As for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, he spoke of a “long” war against Hamas and promised to reduce Hamas hideouts in Gaza, a poor enclave populated by 2.3 million inhabitants, to “ruins”.
Additional information: Hamas fighters attacked a rave party attended by several hundred young Israelis near Gaza. Xavier Régnier returns to this raid here.
2. Afghanistan is shaking
More than 2,000 people died in western Afghanistan, hit by a violent 6.3 magnitude earthquake on Saturday, which caused enormous damage, according to a new official report released this Sunday. More than 1,300 homes were destroyed in the Herat region by this earthquake, which was followed by eight strong aftershocks. Speaking of “an unprecedented earthquake”, the spokesperson for the Ministry of Disaster Management, Mullah Janan Sayeq, estimated this Sunday at 2,053 deaths in 13 villages. A toll that could rise further, he warned, as the World Health Organization had done the day before. Back in pictures of this disaster here:
3. Fiji calms down
The Blues “rubbed” Italy on Friday evening but this weekend was still not finished with rugby. And now Argentina has qualified for the quarter-finals of the World Cup after barely beating Japan (39-27) on Sunday. The day before, the XV of Clover crushed the Scots. It is now up to them to face the All Blacks in the quarterfinals. As for the XV of the Rose, it emerged with pain from the Samoan brambles. At the time of writing, it is impossible to know if Fiji have sent Portugal back to the locker room (match at 9 p.m. this evening, in Toulouse), but we know that the public’s favorites only need one point to qualify. And that after the meeting, Waisea Nayacalevu’s teammates should comply with the age-old ritual of kava… And what is kava? Well, Nicolas Stival tells you everything there.
4. Renaissance “pump up the JAM”
The Renaissance party returned to school – sorry its campus – this weekend in Bordeaux with Europe in its sights. And on Sunday, the JAM (young people with Macron) were expected to bring a little atmosphere to the sometimes sleepy bays of the presidential camp. But how do you recognize a real “JAM”, as they like to call themselves? Our political journalist Thibaut Le Gal was in Bordeaux and spoke about it with Ambroise Méjean, president of the youth movement and Albane Branlant, one of the spokespersons. First thing, a JAM is a fan of Emmanuel Macron and “will be there until the end for him”. Secondly, he “has this impertinent side, this ability to shake things up a little with innovative proposals”. For the rest, it’s in Thibaut’s report.
5. The fries are ambience
You just had to get started. Saturday was held in Arras (Pas-de-Calais), the first world fry championship. Around thirty candidates struggled in front of a rather dense crowd, in order to “defend know-how, both professional and family, on the same model as the andouillette festival which takes place every year, at the end of August, in Arras.” The fried potato has therefore been given pride of place in Artois, which remains more than ever a land of potatoes. The objective was also to surf on the European gastronomy label that Hauts-de-France won this year. So, for the occasion, the first brotherhood of fresh fries was created.
And during the championship, it was certainly the taste but also the cooking techniques that were judged. In four categories: family fries, authentic fries, creative fries and fry sauce of the year. To find out the name of the world champion of authentic fries, it’s in the video above.