Focus

In this edition we look at how meat-loving France is facing up to animal abuse in its food chain. In recent months, several slaughterhouses have been named and shamed for mistreating animals after video footage was circulated by activists. Our reporters have been to a smaller-scale abattoir in Burgundy that wants to prove it is possible to treat animals with respect and still be cost-effective. The region will also soon be home to France's first mobile abattoir. A programme prepared by Patrick Lovett, Laura Burloux and Claire Pryde.

In Egypt, the number of blasphemy cases and convictions has risen over the past few years, and critics say the blasphemy laws are being abused. Rather than defending religion, the laws seem to be used as a weapon of political repression. Our correspondents report from Cairo on what this means for freedom of speech in the country. A programme prepared by Patrick Lovett, Laura Burloux and Claire Pryde.

Since he took office in December, Argentina's centre-right President Mauricio Macri has introduced a series of free-market pro-business policies. Macri has removed foreign exchange controls, reduced agricultural export tariffs and cut state subsidies for electricity, gas, and water. The new president is hoping to attract foreign investors and move on from the years of protectionist policies under his predecessor Cristina Kirchner. But so far, his reforms are meeting with resistance and have failed to kick-start growth. Our reporters spoke to Argentinians who say the reforms are too drastic and who are struggling to adapt to the abrupt changes.

A programme prepared by Patrick Lovett, Aline Schmidt and Claire Pryde.

A coalition that includes members of the Iraqi army, Kurdish forces and Sunni militias is set to launch an offensive against the Islamic State (IS) group’s stronghold of Mosul. The campaign’s actors told France 24 that preserving their unity will be as tough a challenge as retaking the city. Falah Mustafa, the foreign minister of Iraqi Kurdistan, gives us his reaction to our report. Mosul is the largest city in the IS group's self-proclaimed caliphate. It was captured by the jihadists in 2014 when Iraqi security forces dropped their weapons and fled.

Since then, Kurdish Peshmerga forces have entrenched themselves in the eastern and northern outskirts of the city while retrained Iraqi forces have advanced to Qayyara, around 60 km south of the city.

Iraq’s international allies, including France, are also expected to play a major part in the forthcoming battle. But the roles played by Sunni and Shiite militias allied with Baghdad have proven more contentious.

The ethnically and religiously diverse makeup of the city poses major challenges to war planners, who are trying to determine which forces will participate in the battle and as well as decide how they will manage the delicate balance in its aftermath.

To watch FRANCE 24’s full report by journalists Orianne Verdier and Stéphane Kenech click on the player above.

Morocco’s almost 16 million registered voters are readying for the country’s election on Friday. Two main parties are leading in the polls: the Justice and Democracy Party (PJD), which has led a coalition government since 2011, and the Authenticity and Modernity Party (PAM), which is battling the rise of religious fundamentalism. FRANCE24 takes a closer look at these two rival parties, which embody two halves of a divided society, where King Mohammed VI still wields considerable power. >> Read our report on France24.com: "Disillusioned Moroccan voters to snub parliamentary election"

Report by Patrick Lovett, Aline Schmidt and Claire Pryde.

Back in May, the entire population of the Canadian city of Fort McMurray were told to pick up their most essential items and flee as wildfires approached. The worst recorded wildfires in Canada's history left 1,600 homes burned and billions of dollars of damage in the heart of its already-struggling oil sands region. Four months on, Fort McMurray is struggling to recover. The economic consequences are severe and those residents who have returned remain traumatised. A programme prepared by Patrick Lovett, Emerald Maxwell, Aline Schmidt and Claire Pryde.

Dubai is perhaps best known for shopping malls and skyscrapers, but the United Arab Emirates' most populous city is also a hub for relief agencies. The Emirates is a safe haven in an unstable region that has emerged as a key player in the provision of humanitarian aid to conflict zones. Our correspondents bring us this report from the heart of Dubai's so-called Humanitarian City.

In the aftermath of July's failed coup in Turkey, the repercussions of the government's purge of civil servants are still being felt. Tens of thousands of state employees have been dismissed or suspended. In the education sector alone, some 40,000 teachers have lost their jobs. Some are accused of supporting the PKK, while others are suspected of links to Fethullah Gulen, the exiled cleric that Ankara claims was behind the attempted coup. The opposition has denounced the purge as a witch hunt.

Venezuela is descending into chaos. In the midst of a worsening economic crisis, the police have not been paid and looting is now commonplace as people become increasingly desperate. Citizen militias are taking the law into their own hands and street lynchings are on the rise. A programme prepared by Emerald Maxwell and Aline Schmidt.

As part of a power-sharing deal agreed back in 2014, Afghanistan's government was supposed to introduce several ambitious reforms before its two-year anniversary this Thursday. But simmering tensions between the country's President Ashraf Ghani and Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah have derailed the plans and are threatening to tear the national unity government apart. As our team on the ground reports, the Taliban have made the most of the political instability. Programme prepared by Josh VARDEY and Aline SCHMIDT