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A Belem, une grande marche pour le climat et des petits pas pour les négociateurs

A mi-parcours des négociations, la première COP sur le climat en Amazonie tient ses promesses: débat vigoureux sur d’énormes sujets, ambiance chaude qui a viré au chaotique et sérénité brésilienne à toute épreuve malgré le compte à rebours.Pour la première fois depuis la COP26 à Glasgow en 2021, la société civile mondiale – militants, ONG, peuples autochtones, scientifiques, syndicalistes… – va pouvoir s’exprimer librement samedi dans les rues de Belem, sans crainte d’arrestations arbitraires.Les trois dernières conférences climatiques de l’ONU se sont déroulées dans des pays, Egypte, Emirats arabes unis et Azerbaïdjan, où aucune ONG ne jugeait sûr de manifester en dehors du site de la COP, qui est protégé et régi par les Nations unies.La “marche mondiale pour le climat” s’élancera vers 09H00 (12H00 GMT) et traversera la dense ville amazonienne de 1,4 million d’habitants sur environ 4,5 kilomètres, s’arrêtant à quelques pâtés de maisons du site de la COP30.La marche doit être “un rappel puissant que les solutions climatiques ne seront légitimes que si elles sont construites à partir des personnes et des communautés qui subissent, dans leur chair, l’effondrement climatique”, a dit à l’AFP Leilane Reis, de Greenpeace Brésil.Parmi les revendications figure la demande de “réparations” pour les dommages qu’entreprises et gouvernements ont causés, en particulier aux communautés traditionnelles et marginalisées.Cette conférence climat a déjà été bousculée à deux reprises par la société civile, et à chaque fois par des communautés autochtones.Mardi soir, des manifestants avaient forcé l’entrée du site de la COP et s’étaient heurtés aux forces de sécurité. Vendredi matin, d’autres protestataires indigènes ont bloqué l’entrée principale et arraché des réunions au sommet avec des responsables brésiliens.- “Montagnes russes” -Après des tensions entre le Brésil et l’ONU, qui coorganisent l’événement, les autorités brésiliennes ont déployé des soldats très visibles autour du Parque da Cidade, siège de la conférence, dans le but d’éviter tout trouble dans les derniers jours de négociations.Où en sont ces tractations? Au terme d’une semaine, la présidence de la COP30 est censée dévoiler samedi après-midi le fruit de ses consultations pour concilier les demandes des pays sur une série de sujets.Des sujets aussi épineux que les ambitions en termes de réduction des émissions de gaz à effet de serre, le financement climatique au profit des pays vulnérables ou les barrières commerciales.Plusieurs participants estiment que chacun campe encore sur ses positions en attendant l’arrivée des ministres lundi, qui devront trouver un consensus de près de 200 pays d’ici la fin de la conférence le 21 novembre.Un négociateur africain souhaite que la présidence prenne les choses en main. “Sinon, ceci pourrait s’avérer une COP vide”, craint-il. “Les pays sont ici pour obtenir un bon résultat à cette COP”, a en revanche estimé vendredi le secrétaire d’État allemand Jochen Flasbarth.Les négociations “sont comme les montagnes russes, elles ont des hauts et parfois elles ont des bas”, a résumé la négociatrice en chef brésilienne, Liliam Chagas – sans dévoiler aucune carte.Selon un diplomate occidental, les Brésiliens décrivaient cette semaine les discussions comme des “séances de thérapie” et demandaient aux délégations de leur faire le point de leurs desiderata dans des “lettres d’amour”.

UN Security Council to vote Monday on Trump Gaza plan

The UN Security Council will vote Monday on a resolution endorsing US President Donald Trump’s Gaza peace plan, diplomats said.Last week the Americans officially launched negotiations within the 15-member Security Council on a text that would follow up on a ceasefire in the two-year war between Israel and Hamas and endorse Trump’s plan.A draft of the resolution seen Thursday by AFP “welcomes the establishment of the Board of Peace,” a transitional governing body for Gaza — that Trump would theoretically chair — with a mandate running until the end of 2027.It would authorize member states to form a “temporary International Stabilization Force (ISF)” that would work with Israel and Egypt and newly trained Palestinian police to help secure border areas and demilitarize the Gaza Strip.Unlike previous drafts, the latest mentions a possible future Palestinian state.The United States and several Arab and Muslim-majority nations including Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Turkey called Friday for the UN Security Council to quickly adopt the resolution.”The United States, Qatar, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Indonesia, Pakistan, Jordan, and Türkiye express our joint support for the Security Council Resolution currently under consideration,” the countries said in a joint statement, adding they were seeking the measure’s “swift adoption.”Friday’s joint statement comes as Russia circulated a competing draft resolution to Council members that does not authorize the creation of a board of peace or the immediate deployment of an international force in Gaza, according to the text seen Friday by AFP.The Russian version welcomes “the initiative that led to the ceasefire” but does not name Trump.It also only calls on the UN secretary-general to submit a report that addresses the possibilities of deploying an international stabilization force in war-ravaged Gaza.The United States has called the ceasefire “fragile,” and warned Friday of the risks of not adopting its draft.”Any refusal to back this resolution is a vote either for the continued reign of Hamas terrorists or for the return to war with Israel, condemning the region and its people to perpetual conflict,” the US ambassador to the United Nations, Mike Waltz, wrote in The Washington Post.”Every departure from this path, be it by those who wish to play political games or to relitigate the past, will come with a real human cost.”While it seemed until now that Council members supported principles of the peace plan, diplomatic sources noted there were questions about the US text, particularly regarding the absence of a monitoring mechanism by the Council, the role of the Palestinian Authority, and details of the ISF’s mandate.The Russian UN mission said in a statement that its alternative proposal differed by recognizing the principle of a “two-State solution for the Israeli-Palestinian settlement.””Unfortunately, these provisions were not given due regard in the US draft,” it said.

Procès pour viol de l’avocat parisien Alex Ursulet: verdict attendu samedi

La cour criminelle de Paris doit rendre samedi son verdict dans l’affaire de l’avocat parisien Alex Ursulet, accusé de viol par une ancienne stagiaire à son cabinet en janvier 2018.Les réquisitions de l’avocat général sont attendues samedi matin, avant les plaidoiries des avocats de la défense et les derniers mots de l’accusé.”Ce que je dis depuis le premier jour, c’est que je suis innocent des faits qui me sont reprochés”, a répété vendredi cette figure bien connue du barreau de Paris, autrefois associé de Jacques Vergès, qui avait acquis une notoriété et connu un succès professionnel certain après avoir défendu le tueur en série Guy Georges.A la barre, Alex Ursulet martèle: “La vérité, c’est ce que je dis, c’est ce qui s’est passé”, c’est-à-dire, selon lui, rien, en tout cas rien de nature sexuelle, entre lui et cette stagiaire à l’époque âgée de 25 ans.Jeudi, la plaignante, depuis devenue avocate, avait pourtant raconté en détail une pénétration digitale vaginale, le 30 janvier 2018 en milieu d’après-midi, subie dans un état de “sidération”, alors que les deux se trouvaient seuls au cabinet. Un peu plus tôt, lors d’un déjeuner en tête-à-tête au restaurant, l’avocat l’avait déjà, selon elle, questionnée sur ses pratiques intimes.Alex Ursulet, qui comparaît pour viol aggravé, notamment en ce que les faits auraient été commis par “contrainte” et “surprise” par une personne abusant de l’autorité que lui confère sa fonction, encourt vingt ans de réclusion criminelle.Vendredi, lors d’un interrogatoire de près de cinq heures, qualifié de “laborieux” par l’avocat général, le mis en cause a formellement contesté cette chronologie accusatrice: après le déjeuner, il n’est pas rentré directement à son cabinet mais est allé prendre un café avec sa compagne, puis il a retrouvé un journaliste avec qui il avait rendez-vous.De telle sorte que, s’il s’est ensuite bel et bien retrouvé seul avec sa stagiaire dans son bureau, “ça a duré une minute, une minute et demie”.- “Explications incongrues” -Faute d’éléments matériels incontestables, la cour criminelle (compétente pour juger les crimes dont la peine encourue n’excède pas vingt ans, composée de cinq magistrats professionnels sans jurés populaires) a enchaîné depuis lundi les auditions de témoins. A l’appui de l’accusation, ces proches de la plaignante qui ont décrit son état de tristesse et désespoir les semaines qui ont suivi les faits allégués. La jeune femme avait par ailleurs mis fin à son stage dès le lendemain. D’autres anciens collaborateurs avaient encore fait part de la “toute puissance” d’Alex Ursulet.Au terme de son enquête, le juge d’instruction avait pour sa part décelé “une relation alternant proximité, réprimandes et compliments” entre la robe noire et sa stagiaire, corroborée par des messages plus ou moins équivoques – la défense n’y voit que du second degré.Pour Alex Ursulet et ses avocats, celle qui ne cachait pas son admiration pour son maître de stage a construit un récit a posteriori, “fâchée, furieuse” de ne pas avoir été conviée à une audience, peut-être d’ailleurs influencée par des adversaires de Me Ursulet qui auraient voulu “sa perte”.”Qui?”, l’a interrogé vendredi l’avocat général. Pas de réponse. Le représentant de l’accusation poursuit: “Vous pensez qu’une jeune stagiaire qui n’a pas été retenue pour vous accompagner à une audience aurait été capable de dire devant le Conseil de l’ordre, les enquêteurs, et aujourd’hui la juridiction criminelle” qu’elle a été faussement victime d’un viol, “en venant vous accabler sept ans après?”Pour l’une des trois avocates de la partie civile, Me Hedwige Mure, il existe “deux versions avec une scission très précise”: “D’une part, les incohérences, les contradictions, les explications incongrues, parfois même farfelues, d’une des parties”, “de l’autre la constance, la précision, la cohérence.””La constance doit triompher face aux contradictions”, a-t-elle exhorté.

Trump pulls support for key MAGA ally Marjorie Taylor Greene

US President Donald Trump said Friday he was pulling his endorsement for key ally Marjorie Taylor Greene after a string of disagreements, calling the hard-right lawmaker a “ranting lunatic.”It marks an extraordinary rift in Trump’s Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement a year before US midterm elections, with Trump facing growing criticism on the cost of living and the Jeffrey Epstein scandal. “I am withdrawing my support and Endorsement of ‘Congresswoman’ Marjorie Taylor Greene,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social network.”All I see ‘Wacky’ Marjorie do is COMPLAIN, COMPLAIN, COMPLAIN!”Trump said he would be open to backing an opponent if Republicans in her state of Georgia decided to mount a primary challenge against Greene, saying people there were “fed up with her and her antics.””If the right person runs, they will have my Complete and Unyielding Support. She has gone Far Left,” Trump said.Trump has, largely successfully, supported primary challenges against Republicans he considers insufficiently loyal in the past.Greene responded quickly on X saying “I don’t worship or serve Donald Trump.” She asserted that Trump was attacking her as punishment — and as a warning to other Republicans — because she supports efforts for Congress to call on the administration to release the full Epstein probe files.The split comes at a delicate time for Trump, following heavy off-year election losses earlier this month that have caused Republican jitters a year away from the 2026 midterms.Firebrand Greene, 51, was until recently a diehard pro-Trump supporter — even wearing a “Trump Was Right About Everything” hat when he addressed Congress in March. She has since broken with him on a host of issues, and Trump expressed frustration with her for the first time on Monday, saying she had “lost her way.”The first signs came when she split with other Republicans over the summer when she called Israel’s war in Gaza a “genocide.”Greene has also been critical on health care and particularly the cost of living crisis, telling Trump to focus on the “home front” instead of foreign policy and peace deals.Perhaps the most sensitive area of criticism has been Greene’s position on the Epstein scandal, which ensnared Trump again in recent days with the release of a new trove of emails.After becoming a leading voice calling for justice for victims of the notorious sex offender over the summer, Greene this week was one of a few MAGA rebels who backed a call by Democrats on a vote to push Trump to release files relating to the Epstein probe.”And of course he’s coming after me hard to make an example to scare all the other Republicans before next weeks vote to release the Epstein files,” Greene said in her X post Friday night.”It’s astonishing really how hard he’s fighting to stop the Epstein files from coming out that he actually goes to this level,” she added.Greene’s sudden shift has prompted speculation that she is lining up for her own presidential bid in 2028, although she has dismissed it as “baseless gossip.” Famed for her scathing comments towards Democrats and journalists, Greene had previously made her name as a fierce defender of Trump’s policies.She also embraced QAnon conspiracy theories and in 2018 asserted that California wildfires were ignited by a space laser controlled by the Jewish Rothschild family.

Trump pulls support for key MAGA ally Marjorie Taylor Greene

US President Donald Trump said Friday he was pulling his endorsement for key ally Marjorie Taylor Greene after a string of disagreements, calling the hard-right lawmaker a “ranting lunatic.”It marks extraordinary rift in Trump’s Make America Great Again (MAGA) movement a year before US mid-term elections, with Trump facing growing criticism on the cost of living and the Jeffrey Epstein scandal. “I am withdrawing my support and Endorsement of ‘Congresswoman’ Marjorie Taylor Greene,” Trump said in a post on his Truth Social network.”All I see ‘Wacky’ Marjorie do is COMPLAIN, COMPLAIN, COMPLAIN!”Trump said he would be open to backing an opponent if Republicans in her state of Georgia decided to mount a primary challenge against Greene, saying people there were “fed up with her and her antics.””If the right person runs, they will have my Complete and Unyielding Support. She has gone Far Left,” Trump said.Trump has, largely successfully, supported primary challenges against Republicans he considers insufficiently loyal in the past.The split comes at a delicate time for Trump, following heavy off-year election losses earlier this month that have caused Republican jitters a year away from the 2026 midterms.Firebrand Greene, 51, was until recently a diehard pro-Trump supporter — even wearing a “Trump Was Right About Everything” hat when he addressed Congress in March. She has since broken with him on a host of issues, and Trump expressed frustration with her for the first time on Monday, saying she had “lost her way.”The first signs came when she split with other Republicans over the summer when she called Israel’s war in Gaza a “genocide.”Greene has also been critical on health care and particularly the cost of living crisis, telling Trump to focus on the “home front” instead of foreign policy and peace deals.Perhaps the most sensitive area of criticism has been Greene’s position on the Epstein scandal, which ensnared Trump again in recent days with the release of a new trove of emails.After becoming a leading voice calling for justice for victims of the notorious sex offender over the summer, Greene this week was one of a few MAGA rebels who backed a call by Democrats on a vote to push Trump to release files relating to the Epstein probe.Greene’s sudden shift has prompted speculation that she is lining up for her own presidential bid in 2028, although she has dismissed it as “baseless gossip.” Famed for her scathing comments towards Democrats and journalists, Greene had previously made her name as a fierce defender of Trump’s policies.She also embraced QAnon conspiracy theories and in 2018 asserted that California wildfires were ignited by a space laser controlled by the Jewish Rothschild family.

Purdue Pharma to be dissolved as US judge says to approve bankruptcy

OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma, blamed for helping to fuel a deadly opioid crisis, said Friday that a US bankruptcy judge will sign off on a deal to settle thousands of lawsuits against the company, which will cease to exist.Purdue and other opioid makers and distributors were accused of encouraging free-wheeling prescription of their products through aggressive marketing tactics while hiding how addictive the drugs are.Earlier this year, several US states reached a $7.4 billion settlement with the Sackler family and Purdue, the company they owned for decades, that will see funds routed to affected communities and individuals.Federal judge Sean Lane said in a New York court that he would sign off on the company Chapter 11 plan, with a formal ruling expected at a hearing on Tuesday.”Today cements the end of a long chapter, and brings us very near to the end of the book for Purdue,” board chairman Steve Miller said in a statement. “Soon, Purdue will cease to exist.””We will now commence the process of satisfying all outstanding requirements for Purdue to emerge from bankruptcy so that resources from the settlements can flow to communities across America as quickly as possible,” he said.The Sacklers will pay $6.5-7.0 billion while the company will pay $900 million. A separate fund of $865 million will be created to compensate victims.The remnants of Purdue will become Knoa Pharma, a company owned by a foundation, that will provide opioid use disorder treatments and overdose reversal medicines, “with no obligation to maximize profits,” the company said.For many people, opioid addiction begins with prescribed pain pills, such as OxyContin, before they increase their consumption and eventually turn to illicit drugs such as heroin and fentanyl, an extremely powerful synthetic opioid.The Sacklers have consistently denied wrongdoing over the opioid crisis.The company statement says the family “have had no involvement in Purdue since the end of 2018,” while officials said the January settlement had ended the Sacklers’ control of Purdue Pharma.

Iran’s first woman orchestra conductor inspires

When Paniz Faryoussefi mounts the podium and reaches for her baton, she represents more than just the hope of a thrilling orchestral performance.The eyes turned towards her in Tehran’s renowned Vahdat Hall include those of many young women musicians inspired by her taking her place as Iran’s first woman philharmonic conductor.Women’s professional and cultural lives are still heavily restricted in the conservative Islamic republic, particularly in terms of public performance before mixed-gender audiences.Women, for example are not allowed to sing solo in front of men.But, as exemplified by 42-year-old Faryoussefi, they can now conduct an orchestra.”When I stepped onto the stage, I noticed that all eyes were on a woman conducting the orchestra, and I felt an immense responsibility,” she told AFP after the performance.- Close eye on dissent -Widespread street protests shook Iran for several months following the death in custody in 2022 of a young woman arrested for violating the country’s strict dress code for women.In the wake of the disturbances, the government has relaxed certain restrictions and young women have become more prominent in some areas of social and cultural life. And since a 12-day war with Israel earlier this year, Iranians have been pushing social boundaries further still.Analysts say the authorities have shown greater tolerance, while keeping as close an eye as ever for any signals of political dissent.Several women in the audience at the concert did not wear their scarves. The conductor wore hers, covering her hair as the law demands, but her arrival at the podium was in itself a sign of greater openness.    The crowd shared Faryoussefi’s enthusiasm, particularly the young women, who seemed aware that they were witnessing a historic moment.In some Iranian cities, women musicians are not allowed to perform on stage, and even in the capital Tehran they cannot raise their voices in song in public. Faryoussefi was born into an artistic family and her mother dreamed of her becoming a cheffe d’orchestre — but Iranian performing arts academies do not teach conducting.She briefly attended classes in Armenia before returning to build a trailblazing career. “Young women need to persevere and follow their dreams,” she said.At the podium, she led the 50-strong orchestra through works by Austria’s Franz Schubert, Finland’s Jean Sibelius and the Soviet-Armenian composer Aram Khachaturian.”I hope this marks a new era for young Iranian women and that they will understand that… they should not be afraid,” she said. “It is the only gateway to emancipation.”A friend saw a little girl in the audience mimicking my movements. He thought a dream was already taking root in her, that she was thinking she too could one day achieve the same thing.”The concerts took place over two days and attracted large crowds.Said Shourabi, 53, works in metal fabrication and wasn’t a big concertgoer until his daughter, who was out of town, bought him the tickets and insisted he go along.  “In Iran,” he said, “women have always been held back and haven’t been able to fully express their talents, even if I’m sure they’re just as capable as men.” Hairdresser Fariba Aghai, 44, was delighted to see a woman take up the baton at the orchestra, lamenting that women singers still can’t perform at concerts or publish their own songs.”They shouldn’t have to sell themselves short and should know that they’re capable of anything,” she said.