The news was marked by emotion after the attack on the French teacher by a radicalized former student in a high school in Arras and by the rise in tensions on the Israeli-Lebanese border while Israel is still demanding the evacuation of civilians in the northern Gaza Strip before its ground offensive. And on a lighter note, we’re looking forward to seeing what the French XV have in store during their meeting this evening with South Africa in the quarter-final of the Rugby World Cup.
1. Tribute to Dominique Bernard, the professor murdered in Arras on Friday
More than 5,000 people, according to the prefecture, gathered in Arras (Pas-de-Calais) in memory of Dominique Bernard, the French teacher stabbed to death on Friday by a radicalized former student, an Islamist attack after which the government tries to display his “firmness”.
The meeting was held in the central square of the city, not far from the Gambetta school complex, scene of the attack, which occurred in a context marked by fears of the conflict in the Middle East being imported into France.
The city’s siren first sounded several times in the square, packed with people, in a pitch-black silence, before people spoke.
“Arras is being tested, but Arras is standing, you are standing, we are standing,” said the mayor of various centers, Frédéric Leturque, to the participants, some of whom had tears in their eyes.
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2. Escalation of tensions in the Middle East
Tension is rising dangerously on the border between Lebanon and Israel, where deadly clashes are increasing between Lebanese Hezbollah and the Israeli army, raising fears of a regional escalation of the war between Israel and Hamas.
These fears were reinforced on Sunday by warnings from Tehran, sponsor of Hezbollah, about a possible “widening of the conflict”. Washington, for its part, said it feared an “escalation” and a “possible involvement of Iran”.
On the ground, clashes and attempts to infiltrate Israel from Lebanon are increasing. On Sunday, an Israeli civilian was killed and several others injured in Shtula, in northern Israel, by a missile attack claimed by Hezbollah, an ally of Palestinian Hamas in war against Israel.
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3. France faces South Africa in rugby
Obano, the male giraffe from the Branféré animal park in Morbihan, specialist in sports predictions during this Rugby World Cup, predicted a victory for the French XV this evening against South Africa. Can we trust him? In any case, the Blues will have to deliver a high-level match against the defending champion, in order to maintain their dream of a first world title. Fabien Galthié’s men will be able to count in particular on their captain Antoine Dupont, back (helmeted) as starter after his maxillo-zygomatic fracture and whose uncertain return has kept the supporters in suspense for 3 weeks.
Follow the match in our Live this evening from 9 p.m.
4. Iranian director Dariush Mehrjui and his wife murdered
The famous Iranian director Dariush Mehrjui “killed by multiple stab wounds to the neck”, announced the head of justice of the province of Alborz, Saturday evening with his wife at their home near Tehran. The circumstances of this double murder remain mysterious.
Dariush Mehrjui, who was 83 years old, is considered one of the greatest exponents of Iranian cinema having been a director, producer and screenwriter for six decades during which he faced censorship before and after the 1979 Islamic Revolution In particular, he produced in 1969 The cowone of the first films of his country’s new wave of cinema and awarded the jury prize at the Venice Film Festival in 1971. His wife Vahideh Mohammadifar, who was 54, was also a screenwriter and set designer.
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5. The Azerbaijani flag in Nagorno-Karabakh
Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliev raised the national flag for the first time on Sunday in Stepanakert, capital of Nagorno-Karabakh, a region recaptured in September from Armenian separatists following a lightning military offensive from Baku.
“We have achieved what we wanted, we have fulfilled the dream of the Azerbaijani people for decades,” Mr Aliyev said in a victorious speech in Stepanakert, called Khankendi in Azeri. “We took back our land.” “It is a great pleasure and a historic event,” continued Mr. Aliev, after hoisting the flag. He assured that “raising the Azerbaijani flag” in Nagorno-Karabakh was his “number one goal” since he became president 20 years ago.
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