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Alors que l’UE s’apprête à discuter avec Washington d’un élargissement de l’accès aux données afin de préserver le régime d’exemption de visa, une élue du groupe Renew fait part de ses préoccupations. Ces négociations interviennent dans un climat de relations transatlantiques plus tendues.

The post Partage de données biométriques : une eurodéputée questionne les discussions UE–États-Unis sur les visas appeared first on Euractiv FR.

The smaller glaciers of the Tian Shan mountains respond more quickly to climate change.

Can AI strengthen Europe’s response to disinformation while safeguarding media freedom and trust?

 

Prominent South Azerbaijani dissident journalist Ahmad Obali discussed the pivotal importance of International Mother Language Day for the South Azerbaijani people.

International Mother Language Day, observed annually on February 21, promotes linguistic and cultural diversity, as well as multilingualism, to foster inclusive societies and preserve endangered languages. Initiated by Bangladesh and proclaimed by UNESCO in November 1999, the day emphasizes the importance of mother tongue preservation and education. Every nation and ethnic group that is suppressed culturally wants to celebrate International Mother Language Day on February 21st.  For South Azerbaijanis and other repressed ethnic groups in Iran, International Mother Language Day has great meaning and significance.

South Azerbaijani dissident journalist Ahmad Obali proclaimed, “Each ethnic group in Iran has their own language: Baloch, Turkmen, South Azerbaijanis, Ahwazi Arabs and Kurds. The fact that these languages are banned in schools and official communications in Iran, and none of these ethnic groups can even have a private school funded by themselves that teaches their language is a travesty. We celebrate Mother Language Day every year in South Azerbaijan, asking for the right to study in our mother tongue as it is written in Article 15 of the Iranian Constitution.”

However, Obali noted that it is a crime in Iran to demand to have the right to study and work in one’s mother tongue: “Iran is also the only known nation in the world that if people ask for the implementation of the constitution in regards to language, people can be arrested, tortured and jailed. I do not know of any other country where you can get arrested, tortured and given a long-prison sentence because one asked for the implementation of the country’s constitution. Although South Azerbaijanis make up one third of the population in Iran, there have been numerous protests asking for the implementation of the 15th article of the constitution. Most of the leaders have been arrested, such as Abbas Lesani, and been given years of jail time. Dr. Ali Reza Farshi, which is currently serving a long-term prison sentence in the South Azerbaijani city of Marand in the Islamic Republic of Iran, was arrested only for distributing children’s books in the Azerbaijani language.”

“Iran considers the right for non-Persians to learn their language in school as a national security threat and they claimed that the oppression of the non-Persian ethnic cultural rights is a service to national unity,” Obali noted, stressing that the oppression of ethnic languages has a long history in Iran. “When the old Reza Pahlavi was brought to power in 1925 due to British intervention, he declared Iran as a one-nation, one language and banned all non-Persian languages in official communications, schools, newspapers and so forth. When he was overthrown due to his sympathy for Hitler during World War II, his son Muhammed Reza Pahalivi was brought to power a little after and he continued the same oppressive policy until 1979. When he was deposed by Ayatollah Khomeini, there was a nation-wide belief that since Khomeini’s regime is Islamist, they would not be repressive on cultural and ethnic issues, but interestingly enough, not only did the Islamic Republic of Iran continue the same policy, but they have enforced it harder than Pahlavi.”

“Just a couple of years ago, the Iranian government passed a law that stated that the kindergarteners in non-Persian areas must pass a Farsi language exam before they start in any school,” Obali noted. “If they fail the exam, they would be sent to a special school that is set up for children with mental issues. This forced families in South Azerbaijan and other parts of the country to teach their children Farsi before they could learn their own mother tongue.”

Linguistic oppression also affects South Azerbaijanis in their dealings with the Iranian judiciary. According to Iran Human Rights, “Ethnic regions such as South Azerbaijan are overrepresented in the women’s death penalty cases.” Human Rights Watch also reported that ethnic minorities are disproportionately targeted for the death penalty in Iran, generally speaking.

The case of Sakineh Mohammadi Ashtaini is a case in point. Because of her lack of understanding of Farsi, she was sentenced to death for something that would not even be punishable in any court of law in any democratic society. If there was not an international uproar, she could have been executed. As Obali noted, “She could not understand the language of the court in Tabriz, which is 100 percent Azerbaijani populated city. She was charged with adultery, but she did not commit any crime. She just signed a paper not knowing that she was signing off on her own death sentence.”

According to Obali, “Most South Azerbaijanis today because of Iranian policy do not know how to write in their own language or officially communicate. When I was going to school before the 1979 Islamic takeover, I was beaten by the teacher and fined monetarily because I spoke with my classmates in my own language in the class. I was literally punished in a humiliating manner in front of the whole class, just for speaking in my mother tongue. They were forcing us not to speak our mother tongue in class, even though all of the students and the teacher himself were South Azerbaijani.  This was an official government made to all of the schools in Iran. Additionally, official instructions were given to mix Persian words with Azerbaijani language as much as possible, so even if it is spoken, it is almost like a different language for it is mixed so much.”

“100 years of essentially cultural suppression, persecution and oppression of the Azerbaijani language in Iran has resulted in many South Azerbaijanis to be assimilated into Persian culture and language,” Obali emphasized. “In other words, there is a cultural genocide going on against non-Persians in Iran, otherwise known as linguicide. This crime against humanity is overlooked, unfortunately, by most democratic nations in the West,” even though minority rights is highly respected in these countries domestically.

Obali noted that while the mullahs in Iran refer to Israel as the “little Satan” and have been calling for the destruction of Israel for 47 years, “Arabs in Israel can study in their own language and work in their own mother tongue. Arabic is one of the official languages of the State of Israel. All children in Israel, including Jewish children, study Arabic in school, as it is mandatory for all Israelis to have a basic understanding of such a significant minority language. On the Israeli trains and buses, signs are written in Hebrew, Arabic and English. The same for street signs.” Obali noted that South Azerbaijanis can only dream of their language getting the same respect from the Iranian authorities that Arabic receives in the State of Israel.

As a South Azerbaijani immigrant to the United States, Obali stated that he found American society to be more accepting of the Azerbaijani language than Iranian society: “Immigrants from South Azerbaijan to the United States can set up a special school to teach Azerbaijani language to their children.  There are Azerbaijani language courses in many colleges in America. We can set up radio, television and newspapers in Azerbaijani language as well, while all of this is forbidden in Iran. The only radio and television station in Azerbaijani language in Iran must use 60 percent non-Azerbaijani words, known among South Azerbaijanis as Farzari. We ask the free nations of the world to help ethnic minorities to save their mother language and culture.”

Events across the border – including the rise of Jamaat-e-Islami – are serving as political ammunition in the Indian state assembly race.

Currently, Austria has a mandatory military service of six months for all 17-year-old males

Australia has made its biggest Pacific sporting bet so far. Will it deliver results for both Australia and the Pacific Islands?

Ukraine’s top scorer wants football to be a natural choice for girls

Le jeûne catholique est axé sur la vie spirituelle et la compassion ; ainsi, pendant le jeûne, on modifie non seulement son alimentation, mais aussi ses habitudes et ses comportements.

Le gouvernement français entend rassembler des travaux scientifiques sur les effets de l’intelligence artificielle chez les mineurs. L’annonce a été faite mercredi 18 février par la ministre du Numérique, Anne Le Hénanff, en marge d’un sommet mondial consacré à l’IA à New Delhi, en Inde.

The post La France demande l’avis des scientifiques sur les risques liés à l’IA pour les enfants appeared first on Euractiv FR.

L’Algérie a enregistré en février 2026 l’un des prix essence Algérie les plus bas en Afrique et dans le monde. Selon des données récentes, le […]

L’article Essence : l’Algérie parmi les pays les moins chers au monde en février 2026 est apparu en premier sur .

On 24 February 2026, the DROI Subcommittee will hold an exchange of views on the human rights dimension of the externalisation of migration and asylum policies worldwide. The Commissioner for Human Rights of the Council of Europe, Michael O’Flaherty, will present his report on the topic. Speakers also include Frontex Fundamental Rights Officer Jonas Grimheden, and Samira Bouslama, Senior Human Rights Officer at the United Nations Support Mission in Libya.

The exchange will centre on the Council of Europe Commissioner for Human Rights' report 'Externalised asylum and migration policies and human rights law', as Commissioner Michael O'Flaherty will outline the human rights implications of externalised asylum and return arrangements, including risks to core safeguards, accountability gaps and compliance with non-refoulement.

Against the background of intensifying cooperation with third countries, Jonas Grimheden, Frontex Fundamental Rights Officer, will address how fundamental rights compliance is monitored in Frontex operations and partnerships, while Samira Bouslama, Senior Human Rights Officer at the United Nations Support Mission in Libya, will present findings on the human rights consequences of interceptions and returns to Libya.

Source : © European Union, 2026 - EP

Steelmakers want the same made-in-EU rules as plastic, cement and aluminium producers

Au moins 12 cas de choléra et 14 cas de Mpox ont été signalés ces derniers jours dans le village de Bolila, situé dans le territoire de Basoko, à 285 km de Kisangani, en aval du fleuve Congo.

Selon des sources locales, qui tirent la sonnette d’alarme, la situation constitue une « urgence sanitaire préoccupante ».

Insights from Kristin Vekasi 

C’est à midi ce mercredi 18 février que devait entrer en vigueur un cessez-le-feu entre le gouvernement congolais et l’AFC/M23. La date et l’heure avaient été annoncées le 9 février à Luanda par le président angolais João Lourenço, à l’issue d’une rencontre avec le président togolais Faure Gnassingbé, médiateur de l’Union africaine, l’ancien président nigérian Olusegun Obasanjo, le président congolais Félix Tshisekedi. Neuf jours plus tard, cette nouvelle tentative s’inscrit dans une série d’initiatives restées sans effet. Un énième cessez-le-feu qui, au-delà de son entrée en vigueur annoncée, se heurte une fois encore à la question de la confiance entre les parties.

In Nusa Tenggara Timur, a 10-year-old boy’s suicide exposes the limits of income-based poverty metrics. Multidimensional data show that deprivation in Indonesia often clusters long before a family is officially classified as poor.

Depuis le début de l’épidémie de Mpox à la mi-décembre 2025, plus de 850 cas ont été notifiés. Ce week-end, le porte-parole du ministère de la Santé publique a annoncé que 209 patients ont été déclarés guéris et aucun décès n’a été rapporté. Dans les grandes villes du pays, les sensibilisations auprès des publics les plus vulnérables ont commencé. Les prostituées sont particulièrement ciblées tant le risque pour elles d’attraper le virus et de le propager est élevée. 

The fates of two prominent wolf warriors at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs – Qin Gang and Zhao Lijian – provide some insights.