Why now? Turkey's president is ordering a return to tradition for what's much more than a tourist attraction, but a monument for the ages: after decades of disputes, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has chosen to reconvert Istanbul's Hagia Sophia from a museum to a mosque. The move reverses a 1935 decision by the founder of secular Turkey, Mustafa Kemal Atatürk. François Picard's panel discusses the political timing at home and abroad where it's not just neighbouring Greece and its Orthodox Christians who are up in arms.

Why has Donald Trump deployed federal agents in camouflage – many unidentified – to the streets of Portland, Oregon? The Department of Homeland Security overruled objections from local authorities, insisting that the forces were there to quell "lawlessness". François Picard's panel argues over the legality and the motives of the US president's move in an election year. How will this deployment of force play with voters in November? Is Trump putting US democracy to the test?

Will July 21, 2020 go down in history as Europe's Hamilton moment with the EU pooling debt among member states? The agreement gives Brussels the never-before-seen power to borrow hundreds of billions of euros on world markets and distribute it to member states. François Picard's panel argues over the significance of the moment and the compromises made during four days of marathon negotiations: is the final amount the right amount? What about the watering down of strings attached to going green and the rule of law?

The battle over the data in your computer is on. Amid growing momentum for a US ban on China-owned TikTok on pushback against Huawei's rollout of 5G, now come privacy concerns from a different quarter. The European Court of Justice has struck down the Privacy Shield agreement under which Europe's information can be stored on US servers, a deal worked out in the wake of Edward Snowden's revelations about Washington's mass spying on users. Where does it now leave the likes of Facebook?

Why has the tide turned against Mali's President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita? The central authority in Bamako finds itself arguably weaker than at any time since 2013, when French intervention stopped radical insurgents trying to swoop down from the north. Most recently, there have been massacres of both soldiers and civilians throughout the Sahel. From the March kidnapping of Malian opposition leader Soumaila Cissé to deadly protests in the capital and the role of influential imam Mahmoud Dicko, François Picard's panel looks at why the latest crisis has France and the entire region on edge.

Will post-pandemic recovery plans make the world a better place or simply accelerate the inequality gap between North and South? Stimulus plans in Europe, the United States and at the G20 feature dizzying sums to save jobs and industry, but what about that promise of a healthier way of trading with the likes of the Indian sub-continent and Africa? FRANCE 24 and Deutsche Welle team up for a special edition that asks the hard questions put to the United Nations conference on "Building Back Better": how to restore livelihoods in a more equitable... and sustainable way?

As France's medical workers are honoured at a scaled-down Bastille Day ceremony in Paris, the nation enters a new phase. As the number of Covid-19 cases starts to slowly creep up again, François Picard's panel endorses plans to impose face masks in public indoor spaces and discusses a deal to increase pay for doctors and nurses. Did Emmanuel Macron strike the right tone? Does his new government have a handle on the kinds of reforms needed to truly bolster a long-neglected healthcare sector?

Which way now for Poland? After a bitter campaign comes a tight win for incumbent Andrzej Duda of the ruling Law and Justice Party (PiS) over centrist Warsaw mayor Rafal Trzaskowski. François Picard's panel asks about the deep divide between liberal cities and Catholic conservative small towns at odds over what some Duda supporters call a "civilisational" battle over LGBTQ rights, access to state media and an overhaul of the judiciary that's got Brussels calling on the PiS to respect EU standards for the rule of law.

Protests are set for Paris again, with medical staff calling for a better deal. The complaints of the frontline staff in the coronavirus pandemic put into sharp focus the challenges facing the new French government. But is the new team fit for the task? Prime Minister Jean Castex has defended the selection, in particular his choice of interior minister, who is still facing an active investigation over alleged rape. The new justice minister is also making headlines for the wrong reasons. These are two high-profile cases, but how many of the new team are the right pick for their post?

When will the worst be behind us? More than six months after coronavirus first made news, new outbreaks are forcing returns to lockdown everywhere from Australia to Spain. An endless nightmare or the normal course of a pandemic in the age of globalisation? Is the mortality rate dropping or not? How to juggle the balance between lives and livelihoods?