Much of the world is wondering if the worst of Covid has run its course. So why, nearly four years on, is the country where the coronavirus originated still under lock and key? Rare scenes of protest out of China, like in its most populous metropolis Shanghai, have spread during a weekend when citizens clamoured for an end to draconian confinements.

Who would have thought that a Supreme Court ruling in the United States could trigger a constitutional amendment in France? After all, there is zero threat here to a woman's right to terminate a pregnancy, a right that has been on the books since 1975. Earlier this month we saw blowback in the US to that June decision by the high bench in Washington, with midterm election results pointing to record mobilisation by young people. For them, women's rights were on the ballot.

Back in September, when Iran's protest movement caught the world by surprise, conventional thinking was that with patience and ruthlessness, the regime would eventually outlast whatever came its way. After all, that has been the playbook so many times since the Islamic revolution of 1979. But is this time different?

It was always a stretch. Emmanuel Macron kept the lines of communication open with Vladimir Putin while Russia's propaganda machine and the mercenaries of Wagner fuelled anti-French sentiment in Africa. But in an interview on the sidelines of a Francophone nations summit in Tunisia, it sounds like the gloves are now off.

If the rise of cryptocurrencies seemed too good to be true, Bitcoin and its ilk have lost 74% of their value since reaching dizzying heights just one year ago. What was billed as the insurgent innovation that would decentralize and democratize global finance has instead proven to be an unregulated mess prey to money laundering and scams. Now comes the real reckoning, with the collapse of a company that as recently as September was valued at $32 billion: FTX.

If you build it, they will come. Qatar 2022 is now upon us, with the opening kickoff slated for Sunday. The World Cup is taking place in a tiny desert dictatorship with virtually no footballing tradition. What could possibly go wrong? When the opening whistle blows, will we all forget about human rights, the carbon footprint of air-conditioned stadiums built from scratch and a fall schedule that factors in the desert heat?

All it takes is a spark. After a day when Russia missiles rained down across the whole of Ukraine, two projectiles landed over the border in a Polish farming village, killing two people. We gauge the evidence and the latest reactions from NATO headquarters where according to its Article 5, an attack against one is an attack against all.

In less than half a century, the planet's population has doubled. We know that humanity's carbon footprint is unsustainable. How about its birth rate? The two are closely tied but the answer for many a nation is not as straightforward as it seems.

The US and Chinese leaders have held a three-hour bilateral from which the two sides produced completely different accounts. What we do know is that Xi Jinping was adamant that Taiwan was a red line he would not cross. Although Joe Biden stated there is "no Cold War" between China and the USA, there is not a lot of love lost either. Biden's $3 billion military aid package for Taiwan may not help thaw the situation, with Taipei looking to deepen the Taiwan-US security accord. This amid fears that Taiwan could be invaded by China.

How does a nation teetering on the brink of becoming a failed state restore its legitimacy? Welcome to a special edition of The Debate. Fed-up Haitians have been speaking out in the streets and on social media about gang rule in the Americas’ poorest nation. Citizen journalists and fact checkers from FRANCE 24’s Observers website have put together a short documentary.