Parisians Protest Against Islamophobia

A woman shouts slogans into a megaphone as a protester holds a placard reading "To support Palestinians is not a crime" during a protest "against racism, against Islamophobia" at the call of various organisations in Paris on April 21, 2024. (Photo by Antonin UTZ / AFP)
A woman shouts slogans into a megaphone as a protester holds a placard reading "To support Palestinians is not a crime" during a protest "against racism, against Islamophobia" at the call of various organisations in Paris on April 21, 2024. (Photo by Antonin UTZ / AFP)
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Parisians Protest Against Islamophobia

A woman shouts slogans into a megaphone as a protester holds a placard reading "To support Palestinians is not a crime" during a protest "against racism, against Islamophobia" at the call of various organisations in Paris on April 21, 2024. (Photo by Antonin UTZ / AFP)
A woman shouts slogans into a megaphone as a protester holds a placard reading "To support Palestinians is not a crime" during a protest "against racism, against Islamophobia" at the call of various organisations in Paris on April 21, 2024. (Photo by Antonin UTZ / AFP)

A crowd of around 2,000 people protested in Paris against racism, Islamophobia and violence against children on Sunday after a court allowed their demonstration to go ahead.
Bans on protests have been more frequent in France in recent months amid tensions stirred by Israel's war on Hamas in Gaza. In a country that is home to large Muslim and Jewish communities, authorities have banned many pro-Palestinian demonstrations and public gatherings, citing the risk of antisemitic hate crimes and violence.
On Sunday, the protesters marched peacefully from the multi-ethnic Barbes neighborhood towards Place de la Republique, Reuters reported. Many chanted slogans remembering Nahel, a 17-year-old of North African descent who was fatally shot during a police traffic stop last year.
Paris police chief Laurent Nunez told broadcaster BFM TV he initially chose to ban the march because in announcing the protest the organizers had likened French police violence to the war in Gaza, and he felt the event could cause a threat to public order.
That argument was rejected by Paris's administrative court in a fast-track decision.
"Fighting and mobilizing for the protection of all children is normal, it should be," said Yessa Belkgodja, one of the organizers of the march, welcoming the court's decision.
"If we are banned from protesting, it means we don’t have the right to express ourselves in France (..) We are being monitored on social media. That's enough, leave us alone", said Yamina Ayad, a retiree who was wrapped in Palestine flag.



Vatican Cancels Pope’s Weekend Engagements as He Battles ‘Complex’ Infection 

Pedestrians walk past the statue of Pope John Paul II outside the Gemelli hospital where Pope Francis is hospitalized for tests and treatment for an infection in Rome, on February 18, 2025. (AFP)
Pedestrians walk past the statue of Pope John Paul II outside the Gemelli hospital where Pope Francis is hospitalized for tests and treatment for an infection in Rome, on February 18, 2025. (AFP)
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Vatican Cancels Pope’s Weekend Engagements as He Battles ‘Complex’ Infection 

Pedestrians walk past the statue of Pope John Paul II outside the Gemelli hospital where Pope Francis is hospitalized for tests and treatment for an infection in Rome, on February 18, 2025. (AFP)
Pedestrians walk past the statue of Pope John Paul II outside the Gemelli hospital where Pope Francis is hospitalized for tests and treatment for an infection in Rome, on February 18, 2025. (AFP)

Pope Francis, who began his fifth day in hospital on Tuesday for what doctors have described as a "complex" respiratory infection, will not take part in this weekend's Holy Year events, the Vatican said on Tuesday.

The 88-year-old pontiff has been suffering from a respiratory infection for more than a week and was admitted to Rome's Gemelli hospital on Friday.

A planned public papal audience set for Saturday had been cancelled "due to the health condition of the Holy Father", the Vatican said in a brief statement.

A papal mass scheduled for Sunday will still take place, but will be led instead by a senior Vatican official, it added.

The Vatican said on Monday that doctors had changed the pope's drug therapy for the second time during his hospital stay to tackle a "complex clinical situation". They described it as a "polymicrobial infection of the respiratory tract".

Doctors say polymicrobial diseases can be caused by a mix of viruses, bacteria and fungi.

Francis, who has been pontiff since 2013, has had influenza and other health problems several times over the past two years. As a young adult he developed pleurisy and had part of one lung removed, and in recent times has been prone to lung infections.