South African opposition figure Malema sentenced to five years in prison

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will speak with Lebanese President Joseph Aoun on Thursday, according to Israel's Minister for Innovation, Science and Technology Gila Gamliel. US President Donald Trump had said the "leaders" of Israel and Lebanon would speak for the first time on Thursday, in what would be a historic first. Gamliel's statement was the first confirmation from an official Israeli source that talks would take place. FRANCE 24's Noga Tarnopolsky reports from Jerusalem.

In 2025 China imported 5.4 million barrels of crude oil through the Strait of Hormuz every day, making it one of the waterway's largest stakeholders. As the economic effects of the US blockade of the strait reach China's shores, Beijing has condemned the move as "dangerous and irresponsible". Meanwhile, Donald Trump claimed on Wednesday that he is working with Beijing, and that China welcomed his efforts to reopen the waterway.

Pope Leo XIV on Wednesday urged Cameroon's leaders to examine their "conscience" and tackle corruption and rights abuses, in a pointed speech on the first day of his visit to the central African country. In his address in an unusually direct tone to officials, including President Paul Biya, 93, who has led the central African country with a tight grip since 1982, Leo urged Cameroon's authorities to "serve as bridges, never as sources of division, even when insecurity seems prevalent".

French lawmakers are due to vote on ​new laws defining antisemitism, proposed in the wake of a surge in anti-Jewish incidents but which critics say could be used to censor criticism of Israel and chill protest movements. Critics - including some rights groups, academics and left-wing politicians - say that they will ‌censor legitimate activism for Palestinian rights and contribute to conflating Jews with the state of Israel.