PRESS REVIEW – Thursday, April 3: There's disbelief, anger and scepticism in the international press after US President Donald Trump announces tariffs hikes on the US's international trade partners. Also: fury continues after the deaths of 15 aid workers in Gaza last month, which the UN now blames on Israeli forces. Plus: Paris's Fondation Louis Vuitton will honour British artist David Hockney in a new exhibition – but a cigarette on his exhibition poster has put him at odds with Paris metro authorities!

Trump's tariffs are dominating the headlines in the world's press. After much anticipation by the US president himself, the tariff hikes will affect all of the US's international trading partners. The British tabloid Daily Mirror headlines with: "Trading Blows". It notes that nations are poised to retaliate after Trump announced the sweeping new tariffs. Britain will get a 10 percent hike. The EU, meanwhile, will see a 20 percent increase on its products entering the US, much to the alarm of Belgian daily Le Soir. The daily simply goes with "Trade Wars" on its front page. Here in France, Le Figaro evokes the world's shock at the tariffs, with the editor suggesting a battery of sanctions against US tech groups as a first measure of retaliation. The left-wing paper Libération notes that with these new tariffs, Trump has massacred the world trade system that’s been in place since the end of World War II. The paper warns that the move will reinforce the possibility of a recession in the US.

The Wall Street Journal says these new tariffs send a strong message: that globalisation is over. However, the business daily warns that bringing manufacturing back to America is no easy feat. After all, the US is geared towards advanced technology and it doesn't have the domestic supplies of basic materials that are produced overseas much more cheaply.

Countries like China will be the among the hardest hit. The pro-government China Daily calls it the US tariffs' tantrum. It adds that the tariffs are "an undersea earthquake that will create a tsunami of turbulence and trouble for the world. All this in the vain hope of regaining lost pre-eminence." There's anger, too, in Australia. An opinion writer for the Sydney Morning Herald calls it "Trump's dumb war that just got dumber". Australian cartoonist Glen Le Lievre sees it as "Looney Tariffs". Trump is illustrated signing off as Porky Pig, warning "That's not all Folks!"

In other news, outrage continues over the deaths of 15 aid workers from the Red Crescent who the UN says were executed by Israeli forces. The Palestinian Red Crescent Society, of whom eight members were killed, say the 15 bodies recovered earlier this week showed gunshot wounds. One paramedic was found with their hands and feet bound. The New York Times notes that the UN, which is typically cautious about assigning blame, has openly blamed Israel for the deaths. Israeli authorities say a majority of those killed were Palestinian militants. The British left-wing socialist website Morning Star deplores the lack of international outrage around the deaths and around Palestine. It says the world is in a state of lawlessness. The paper reminds us that it’s been one year since the killing of seven World Central Kitchen staff, who were all foreign citizens. Israel was not sanctioned by the UN or world powers and so it keeps on killing aid workers.

Finally: a new David Hockney exhibition is set to be one of the highlights of the Paris art scene this spring, but he’s at odds with the city's metro authorities! The biggest exhibition dedicated to Hockney will be held at the Fondation Louis Vuitton next week, with 400 works in 11 rooms. But in the Paris metro, you wouldn’t know it. A poster containing a photograph of Hockney holding a self-portrait cannot be used to promote his exhibition. The reason? He is holding a cigarette in the photograph. In ludicrous reasoning that can only be French, authorities say they have no issue with him holding a cigarette in the painting, only in the photograph. Hockney has famously championed cigarettes. Les Gauloises have truly fallen out of favour in the French capital, it appears!

You can catch our press review every morning on France 24 at 7:20am and 9:20am (Paris time), from Monday to Friday.

PRESS REVIEW – Wednesday, April 2: Papers react to US President Donald Trump's threats of tariffs on "Liberation Day". Meanwhile, French papers are still covering the aftermath of Marine Le Pen's conviction for embezzlement. There's also focus on Ukraine ceasefire talks slowing down as Russia ramps up mobilisation. Finally, April Fools' Day was celebrated around the world with some good pranks, including nudist skiing in Switzerland.

The press are already reacting in anticipation of Trump's threatened tariffs. The Independent dedicates its front page to the story, saying that Britain is "bracing for the worst as Trump trade war erupts". The Daily Mirror calls it "CAR-NAGE" on its front page. According to the tabloid, 25,000 jobs in Britain’s car industry could be at risk. In the US, The New York Times looks at the impact that Trump’s tariffs could have on American alliances. Meanwhile, cartoons in The Financial Times, The Times, The Telegraph and The Irish Times make light of what Trump is calling "Liberation Day". 

Unsurprisingly, the French papers are still talking about Le Pen's five-year ban from public office. Le Monde's front page reads: "Le Pen convicted, her ambitions stopped". Le Parisien describes her combative response to the ban; its front page features this quote from an exclusive interview with her: "I will not let it happen." The right-wing paper Le Figaro focuses on Le Pen's appeal and her quest to "save her candidacy". It says she is mobilising supporters against "interference by judges in a presidential election". Libération also picks up on accusations of interference on its front page, calling this sentiment "an anti-judge poison".

As ceasefire talks in Russia stall, Ukrainian paper The Kyiv Independent reports that Moscow won't accept the US proposal on Ukraine in its current form. Russian President Vladimir Putin seems to be preparing for a continuation of the war. The BBC says that Putin has started Russia’s biggest military call-up in years.

Finally, the world celebrated April Fools' Day yesterday with some great pranks. The Telegraph claimed that police had been ordered to warn suspects under arrest that they were not strippers hired by their mates. Meanwhile, the Royal Albert Hall played along too, announcing a Nokia-themed evening, complete with iconic ringtones and games of snake. Last but not least, a ski station in Switzerland announced that it was opening an nudist ski piste.

You can catch our press review every morning on France 24 at 7:20am and 9:20am (Paris time), from Monday to Friday.

PRESS REVIEW – Tuesday, April 1: We bring you all the reactions from the French and international press after French far-right leader Marine Le Pen was found guilty of embezzlement and banned from running for public office. The immediate ban means she'll likely be ineligible for the 2027 French presidential elections. The international press, meanwhile, turn their attention to Jordan Bardella, the president of the National Rally and Le Pen's likely successor. We also look at reactions from the European far right.

There's plenty of press reaction to Le Pen's conviction for embezzlement and her immediate, five-year ban on running for public office. One word from the French paper La Croix sums it up: "Ineligible". The paper says this court ruling is a huge shock for the far-right National Rally party and will throw the 2027 presidential election into disarray. La Croix hails what it sees as an inherently "legal decision", even if it has political ramifications. It adds that the ruling is based on laws and texts voted years ago. The paper expresses alarm at the response by the party's leader Jordan Bardella, who has decried the "execution" of French democracy. La Croix reminds readers that the justice system is for everyone, without exception.

In the leftwing press, Libération says GUILTY in big, bold print on its front page. The communist paper, L’Humanité, revisits a slogan from the Front National, the previous name of the National Rally. The slogan was "clean hands, heads held high." It's corrected by L’Humanité to read: "dirty hands, heads hanging low". The editor of L'Humanité calls Le Pen’s conviction a victory for democracy and the state of law and slams the reactions from the far right and the "Bolloré media". This is a reference to media magnate Vincent Bolloré, who is close to the far right. The latter have denounced a conspiracy against them.

Speaking of the conservative media, Le Journal du Dimanche, a weekly paper that is owned by Vincent Bolloré, calls Monday's court ruling the day that destroyed Le Pen’s presidential destiny. The paper laments what it sees as 20 years of her career being "annihilated" by one legal decision. The right-wing paper L'Opinion, meanwhile, calls it a political earthquake. Kak, the cartoonist, sees Le Pen hanging from a hook with the hammer of justice ready to nail her in. The paper's editor warns of "a huge moment of democratic danger" and says the court decision will paradoxically serve to feed populism. Le Parisien says it could transform Le Pen's right-hand man Bardella into a valued asset of the party.

There is also lots of focus on Bardella in the international press. Politico notes that he has weathered nearly a decade in politics without losing his lustre. He is "polished, composed to a fault, with boy-next-door good looks and a carefully practiced smile". Bardella is a TikTok sensation and the only politician on the list of 50 most popular personalities in France compiled by a French newspaper. His popularity and the rise of the far right represent a "potential sea change in European politics", Politico says.

For The Telegraph, the far right will survive this court ruling. It points to Bardella as a likely successor. He is "slavishly loyal" to her and recently published a bestselling memoir about growing up in an urban slum. However, his youth could be a hindrance. If one day he makes it to the Élysee palace, the irony would be that the anti-immigrant party's first president is ... the son of immigrants.

In any case, far-right figures from Europe have rushed to Le Pen’s defence. Italy’s Matteo Salvini and the Netherlands' Geert Wilders have been quick to defend her and condemn the ruling with the slogan Je Suis Marine, which spreading on social media, according to a report from our FRANCE 24 web team. Hungary's Viktor Orban also used the slogan on social media to express his support for Le Pen. Paolo Lombardi, an Italian cartoonist, has reimagined Orban as Le Pen. Finally, Marten Wolterink, a Dutch illustrator, evokes the hypocrisy of the far right: Vive L’Europe as long as the money keeps coming in, embezzling funds but otherwise inherently Eurosceptic.

PRESS REVIEW – Monday, March 31: The French papers react to the upcoming verdict in Marine Le Pen's embezzlement trial. Also, international headlines are full of Donald Trump quotes after the US president's phone interview with NBC. Meanwhile, The Economist has an interesting piece on the political situation in Myanmar in the aftermath of the earthquake. In other news, the Guardian has a long read about the far right in Sweden and their recruitment methods. Finally, two women in Oxford celebrate their extraordinary birthdays.

The French papers all have very similar front pages this morning, as Marine Le Pen's future will be decided by French courts later this Monday. La Depeche calls it the moment of truth. Le Pen and her party are accused of embezzling money from the European Parliament by using a fake jobs scam. On its front page, Libération says Marine Le Pen's future "hangs in the balance". It highlights the crucial question: Will Le Pen be able to run for president in 2027? For the right-leaning paper le Figaro, Le Pen’s future is on a judicial knife-edge.

Around the world, plenty of headlines are using different quotes from Donald Trump’s phone interview with NBC on Sunday. The Washington Post chooses to focus on Trump's "anger". Politico highlights his "pissed off" comment. The US president said that he was “very angry and pissed off” with Vladimir Putin and his approach to a ceasefire, adding that he would impose tariffs on Russia’s oil exports if Putin does not agree to a truce within a month.

Meanwhile, NBC leads with Trump's comments on a possible third term. He said there were "methods" by which he could become president for a third time. At the moment, though, a third term is prohibited under the 22nd Amendment of the US Constitution. BBC News chooses to use a Trump quote about his beloved tariffs. Trump said he "couldn’t care less" about higher car prices resulting from his policies. His latest tariffs are set to begin on April 2, which Trump has called "Liberation Day".

The Economist has an interesting article on the political situation in Myanmar. It says that following the earthquake, many thought there might be a pause in the civil war. But although one side of the warring parties, the National Unity Government, announced a temporary ceasefire, the military junta has continued bombing certain areas, with some bombs landing close to rescue operations. The article says that the military junta has a record of exploiting disasters for political gain.

There's quite a scary article in the Guardian as a long-read piece focuses on the far right in Sweden and its recruitment practices. The article says that far-right groups are using bodybuilding and fight clubs to further their White supremacist agenda, pulling in boys through online platforms and social media. It adds that there has been a dramatic shift in the structure and practices of extreme far-right groups. One of the biggest changes being that the age of recruitment has plummeted, with some of the boys recruited now as young as 10. It adds that where it used to be "guys who wanted to be seen" it is now about "vulnerable boys" who spend their time online and miss social contact.

We finish with some very wholesome news coming out of Oxford: two women who have been neighbours for over 40 years will be celebrating their 101st birthdays together tomorrow. Josie and Anne were both on April 1, 1924 and have been neighbours since the 1980s. They plan to celebrate together as they have for many years, perhaps by sharing a cup of tea over the garden fence.

You can catch our press review every morning on France 24 at 7:20am and 9:20am (Paris time), from Monday to Friday.

PRESS REVIEW – Wednesday, March 26: International papers react to the Black Sea security deal reached by Ukraine and Russia that was brokered by the US. Elsewhere, European papers react to the Signal group chat leak with outrage. Also, Palestinians participate in the largest anti-Hamas protest since October 2023. Finally, two otters are on the loose in Wisconsin after escaping the local zoo.

The international papers are discussing the news of a tentative Black Sea ceasefire reached in Saudi Arabia. The Saudi paper Arab News headlines with: "US says it brokered deal to end fighting in the Black Sea in talks with Ukraine and Russia". It says that although many details remain unresolved, the agreement could present a path to a wider ceasefire. The Ukrainian press says that the deal "is not what Ukraine needs" and adds that the ceasefire favours Russia more than it does Ukraine. The Kyiv Independent says that the deal misses out crucial securities that Ukraine needs, including the protection of its port infrastructure. In Russia, the newspaper Vedomosti says that what Russia wants is access to international markets for its agricultural products and fertilisers. It says that for that to happen, it needs access to ports and payment systems, which would mean that the US would have to put pressure on Europe.

The European papers are also discussing the deal. The Belgian paper Le Soir says that Russia wants to renew a deal that it killed in the first place, referring to the Black Sea Grain Initiative that Moscow pulled out of in July 2023. The Guardian has an analysis piece with an evocative title: "Ukraine ceasefire deal looks like a Russian wishlist tied with a US bow”, highlighting that the Kremlin said it would only implement the Black Sea ceasefire once the US significantly rolls back its sanctions.

European papers are also up in arms about the Signal group chat leak. The British tabloid the Daily Star asks if JD Vance is the most dangerous man in the world. In Germany, the paper FOCUS discusses a "real hatred of Europe" and accuses the Trump administration of using "mafia-worthy tactics". In Italy, the broadsheet La Repubblica features the story on its front page, headlining with a Vance quote calling Europe freeloaders or "parasitic". Libération, in France, takes a slightly different angle on its front page. According to a recent study, more than 60 percent of French consumers would support a boycott of American products, while a third of them try to actively avoid products associated with Donald Trump and Elon Musk's policies.

Turning to the Middle East, Palestinians have taken to the streets for the largest anti-Hamas protests since October 2023. The New York Times describes the protests in the streets of Beit Lahia in northern Gaza. It says there were neutral signs against the war in general, but that there were also chants asking Hamas to "get out". The BBC reports that masked Hamas militants tried to disperse protesters, hurting several people in the process. It notes that open criticism of Hamas has grown in Gaza since the war began, but that it is hard to tell how much support for the group has changed since the start of the conflict.

Finally, we all know otters for their cuteness, but the AP brings us the news that they are actually criminal masterminds! Louie and Ophelia, two otters at Wisconsin zoo, have escaped and are on the run. The zoo is on their tail: it has hired a tracker, installed motion detecting cameras and urged the public to share any information on the two fugitives.

You can catch our press review every morning on FRANCE 24 at 7:20am and 9:20am (Paris time), from Monday to Friday.

PRESS REVIEW – Tuesday, March 25: The press decries a massive security breach after a journalist for The Atlantic is accidentally included on a group chat for Yemen war plans. Also: Colorado state officials take down a portrait of Donald Trump after he complains it is unflattering. The Oscar-winning Palestinian director of "No Other Land" is attacked and arrested in the West Bank. Plus: we look at the creepiest contender in The Guardian's invertebrate of the year competition!  

In The Atlantic, editor-in-chief Jeffrey Goldberg describes how he was accidentally sent the details of military strikes in Yemen. The journalist was added to a group chat called "Houthi PC small group" alongside JD Vance, Pete Hegseth and Marco Rubio among others. At first, Goldberg says, it seemed so surreal he thought it was a disinformation campaign. But he realised it was real when the bombs started falling. Foreign Policy describes the incident as horrifying. The mistake is sparking outrage from both sides of the political spectrum. The National Review asks Who's Getting Fired for This? The right-wing magazine was quick to point the finger at Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth. The New York Times, called for the same, headlining: If Pete Hegseth Had any Honor, He Would Resign.

Staying in the US, The Washington Post brings us the story that a Trump portrait in Colorado is being taken down after he ranted about it on social media. Donald Trump took to Truth Social to complain about the painting. The Guardian says Republicans have called it "petty" whilst Democrats have called Trump an "insecure baby". The portrait will be removed from Colorado's state capitol building, but it could be replaced with a portrait from Russia. The BBC says that although Trump was not happy with the Colorado portrait, he does seem chuffed by the one Putin sent earlier, "a personal gift" according to Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov.

The Washington Post also brings us a story from the Palestinian territories. Hamdan Ballal, one of the directors of the Oscar-winning documentary "No Other Land", has been attacked by a group of Jewish settlers and later arrested by the Israeli army. "No Other Land" recounts the destruction of a Palestinian community in the occupied West Bank which had been resisting forced displacement.

Finally, The Guardian has announced its shortlist for invertebrate of the year. The frontrunner is Cymothoa exigua, a tongue-biting louse that lurks in the Pacific Ocean. When it comes across a fish it burrows into their tongue. But that's only the beginning. It then sucks the blood of the fish but doesn't kill it. Much worse, it turns itself into a tongue to feed it and keep it alive. Stranger still, the parasites start off male, but turn female once inside the tongue. They then prevent any other newcomers from turning female by excreting hormones, and then mate with whichever date they find lying around inside the gills of the fish. While Cymothoa exigua is presumably hoping to win the prize this year, nine other invertebrates have made the shortlist.

You can catch our press review every morning on France 24 at 7:20am and 9:20am (Paris time), from Monday to Friday.

PRESS REVIEW – Monday, March 24: The Turkish and international papers react to the arrest of Ekrem Imamoglu, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's main political rival. Elsewhere, Chahinez Daoud's murderer goes on trial, as femicide continues to be a serious problem in France. Also, the Taiwanese president is taking a tougher stance on China. Finally, two campaigners are calling out a number of French bars, accusing them of not giving punters their money's worth.

PRESS REVIEW – Friday, March 21: British Prime Minister Keir Starmer sends a warning to Vladimir Putin, insisting that the Russian leader should fear British nuclear weapons. Elsewhere, Ronen Bar is removed as the head of Israel's domestic intelligence agency, leading to protests and backlash against PM Benjamin Netanyahu. Also, it's the first ever World Day for Glaciers. Finally, Zimbabwe's Kirsty Coventry is elected the first ever female president of the International Olympic Committee.

PRESS REVIEW – Thursday, March 20: The papers in the Arabic world react with anger as Israel resumes its bombardment of Gaza, although many of the Israeli dailies defend the move. Elsewhere, several candidates vie to be the new president of the International Olympic Committee, with the campaign turning increasingly sour. Finally, the blobfish completes an extraordinary comeback to be named New Zealand's "fish of the year".

PRESS REVIEW – Wednesday, March 19: We look at reactions in the press after US Supreme Court Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr issues a rare rebuke of Donald Trump. Also: cartoonists react to Trump and Vladimir Putin's phone call on Ukraine. Finally, we discover the best of the best in British wildlife photography.

We begin with a very public spat between US Supreme Court Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr and US President Donald Trump. As The Washington Post reports, it dates back to events over the weekend. Last Saturday, Chief Judge for the US District Court for DC James Boasberg ordered the Trump administration to turn around an aircraft deporting alleged gang members to Venezuela. The Trump administration justified the flight by the Alien Enemies Act of 1798, previously invoked only during wartime. The planes continued to their destinations but the White House has said it did not defy the judge's directive. The order, though, prompted Trump to rant against Boasberg on social media, calling him a "radical left lunatic" who "should be impeached".

Throwing around the word "impeached" did not go down well in the US Supreme Court. In a statement, Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr issued a sharp, rare rebuke that impeachment is not an appropriate response to disagreement concerning a judicial decision. It's the most public battle between the two since 2018, as Politico notes.

The reaction in the press has been mixed, however. The Guardian'swriter argues that Judge Roberts, a conservative justice, has paved the way for the impunity that enabled Trump to run for and win a second term. Steven Greenhouse reminds us that Roberts, since becoming chief justice in 2005, has sought to boost corporate America and consolidate Republican power. He was also author of the "startling" ruling that gave presidents far-reaching immunity from prosecution last year. This also helped lay the groundwork for Trump’s increasingly authoritarian presidency. Greenhouse asks: how could Roberts not realise that this would only serve to embolden Trump even more?

The conservative US magazine National Review offers a different perspective, saying it’s quite possible that Trump's alleged noncompliance with the Boasberg order on the planes could be evidence in a future Democrat-led impeachment trial of Trump. If that were to happen, the chief justice would be presiding but he has now destroyed his impartiality with this statement. For that reason, the Review says it would have been better to refrain from publicly scolding the president.

We turn next to reaction from the illustrated press on Donald Trump and Vladimir Putin’s Tuesday phone call on Ukraine peace talks. The announcement of a 30-day pause on bombing energy infrastructure is seen sceptically by Chapatte, the Swiss paper Le Temp’s cartoonist, who sees Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky being strangled by the telephone cord itself. Andy Bunday, meanwhile, sees a phone with limited options in the Oval Office. Press one to disarm Ukraine, press two to give away land, press three to give away power plants, press four to bar Ukraine from NATO.

One of the most visual cartoons is from Pete Songi, who evokes the "art of the dealski". He sees Vladimir Putin in his bathtub with a bath mat emblazoned with MYKRAINE, and the coalition of the killing, with a hockey helmet in the corner. Among the agreements between the two leaders is, bizarrely, that Russia and the US play a game of ice hockey, prompting British tabloid The Sun to ask "What the puck?"

Finally: we bring you the winners of the British Wildlife Photography awards. Simon Withyman won the Urban Wildlife category for his picture of a Bristol fox. Also in Bristol, John Waters won the Animal Behaviour category with a picture of fantastical speckled wood butterflies. One of the most striking snaps is from the winner of the Young Photographers category. Teenager Ben Lucas set up a GoPro camera inside an abandoned packet of chips and then waited to snap a gorgeous ground-view shot of pigeons approaching the leftover chips!

You can catch our press review every morning on France 24 at 7:20am and 9:20am (Paris time), from Monday to Friday.