Focus

An exclusive report from our journalists Matthieu Mabin and Noreddine Bezziou, who have been embedded with the Iraqi anti-terrorism forces on the frontline in Mosul. It has been seven weeks since the start of the offensive to retake the country’s second city, which fell to the Islamic State group in 2014. Those seven weeks have seen intense fighting, spearheaded by the Iraqi counter-terrorism troops, known as the Golden Division. A programme prepared by Patrick Lovett and Elom Marcel Toble.

Ghanaians are heading to the polls to elect a new president. The incumbent, John Dramani Mahama, is running for a second term and says he has a "very good" chance of winning. Meanwhile, the opposition criticises the government's handling of the economy and points to energy problems and corruption. Our correspondents report from Accra. A programme prepared by Patrick Lovett and Elom Marcel Toble.

Park Geun-hye's days as South Korea’s president appear to be numbered right now. Every weekend, for more than a month, hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets to demand her resignation over a vast corruption and cronyism scandal. Park is suspected of helping her longtime friend, Choi Soon-sil, to accumulate millions of dollars in donations for the businesswoman’s foundations. Amid mounting public anger, Park has said she will resign. But she is leaving it to parliament to decide the timing of her exit. France 24 talked to some of the people demanding fresh elections to pick a new South Korean leader.

A programme prepared by Patrick Lovett and Elom Marcel Toble.

The year 2016 is shaping up to be a record year for the arrival of asylum seekers in Italy. Since January, around 170,000 have arrived on the shores of the peninsula including women, families and unaccompanied minors. Once identified, they are sent to different Italian regions. Some locals are reluctant to open their doors to refugees. But the southern region of Basilicata is using the arrival of asylum seekers as a means of developing its labour force and to boost services. At the heart of the Basilicata reception model is the idea of having smaller groups of asylum seekers spread across the different local communities in order to prevent segregation and facilitate integration. Together with Salvatore Laurenzana and Philip Willan, our Italy correspondent Natalia Mendoza reports on this unusual approach to the integration of migrants in Italy's far south.

A programme prepared by Patrick Lovett, Jessica Sestili and Elom Marcel Toble.

Austria's far-right candidate Norbert Hofer gets another shot at becoming president in a second-round vote on Sunday after a May election was annulled by the constitutional court due to irregularities. Another close contest is forecast between Hofer and independent candidate Alexander Van der Bellen. Our correspondents went to Burgenland, a rural province in the east where Hofer enjoys strong support, to see why the far right is so popular. A programme prepared by Patrick Lovett and Elom Marcel Toble.

Our reporters in Iraq have been following Shiite militias who are fighting alongside the regular army. Their current mission is to retake the town of Tal Afar, west of Mosul, from the Islamic State group. Last Saturday, the Iraqi parliament voted to officially legalise these militias, which are armed and supported by neighbouring Iran. A programme prepared by Patrick Lovett and Elom Marcel Toble.

France’s state of emergency imposed in the wake of last November’s terror attacks is still in place today. The measure gives police and state officials special powers to take action against those deemed to be a threat to national security. Those powers include the right to hold people under house arrest without the approval of a judge. But it's a move that's proved controversial, with many suspects protesting their innocence. Our team went to meet them. A programme prepared by Patrick Lovett and Elom Marcel Toble.

For almost ten years, Germany has been trying to boost its low birth rate by implementing one of the world's most expensive family policies. These measures are beginning to show results. For the third year in a row, Germany's birth rate has increased. But is that only because of the government's efforts? Our correspondents report. A programme prepared by Patrick Lovett, Jessica Sestilli and Elom Marcel Toble.

In this edition we’re reporting on detention centres in Spain, where illegal immigrants are held while the authorities try to organise their deportation. Critics are calling the centres "Spanish Guantanamos", with reports of violence and unhygienic living conditions. Just last night, a dozen immigrants escaped from Madrid's main detention centre, including one who had given FRANCE 24 exclusive footage for this report. A programme prepared by Jessica Sestilli, Patrick Lovett and Elom Marcel Toble.

On the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, we bring you a report from India. In the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, the situation is alarming - rape cases have almost doubled in two years. But with the help of a local NGO, 70 women, often themselves victims of domestic violence, have been hired to serve as mediators. Since 2014, they have helped nearly 2,000 female victims in Uttar Pradesh alone. Our correspondents report.