Mobilisation anti-A69 sous haute sécurité: incidents à proximité du chantier

Des manifestants, rassemblés samedi dans le parc d’un château pour protester contre le projet d’autoroute Toulouse-Castres, ont défilé en fin d’après-midi vers le chantier de l’A69 où ils ont lancé des pierres sur les forces de l’ordre, qui ont répondu par le tir de grenades lacrymogènes, ont constaté des journalistes de l’AFP.Plusieurs centaines de manifestants, parmi lesquels une cinquantaine de protestataires masqués et vêtus de noir, sont sortis du périmètre privé du château, malgré l’interdiction préfectorale de ce rassemblement pour risques de trouble à l’ordre public.Avec des troncs d’arbres, des palettes et des branches, ils ont commencé par occuper la RN26, que les autorités avaient préalablement coupé à la circulation, en scandant “no macadam” et en dansant la farandole. Cette route nationale jouxte la propriété du château de Scopont où les anti-A69 s’étaient rassemblés auparavant dans le calme pour dire “non à l’A69” et “enterrer” ce projet d’autoroute contesté entre Toulouse et Castres. Elle longe aussi le chantier de l’A69, stoppé fin février par décision de justice et qui vient de reprendre au ralenti. Là, les manifestants ont allumé un feu de broussailles, arraché un panneau de circulation et, tentant de pénétrer sur l’autoroute, jeté des pierres sur les forces de l’ordre, qui ont rétorqué par des grenades lacrymogènes, a constaté l’AFP. Un millier de membres de collectifs écologistes contre l’autoroute A69 s’étaient auparavant réunis dans une ambiance bon enfant devant un château à Maurens-Scopont (Tarn) pour dire “non à l’A69 et à son monde”. La préfecture du Tarn avait interdit cette mobilisation baptisée “Turboteuf” qui s’annonçait festive. Elle avait relevé la “présence importante” de personnes encagoulées ou masquées et déployé quelque 1.500 gendarmes en raison des risques de trouble à l’ordre public.Le préfet du Tarn Laurent Buchaillat a annoncé, photos à l’appui, qu’ont été saisis 55 “dispositifs hostiles” pouvant “constituer des armes par destination”.”Non ce n’est pas une manifestation festive”, a affirmé le ministre des Transports Philippe Tabarot sur X, fustigeant des “activistes soi-disant écologistes”. “Des catapultes, des boules de pétanque, des pierres: la violence est préparée”, prévient-il.”Nous ne laisserons rien passer”, a martelé aussi sur X le ministre de l’Intérieur Bruno Retailleau. “Quand, au nom de l’écologie, on mobilise des dizaines de militants d’ultra-gauche encagoulés et dangereux, dont une cinquantaine de fichés S, qui ne veulent que détruire ou casser du flic, alors c’est qu’on a basculé dans la sédition et l’ultra-violence”. – “Autoroute illégale” -“On a une justice qui devient hallucinante et qui dit qu’on peut reprendre le chantier d’une autoroute déclarée illégale par le tribunal”, a notamment déclaré Jean Olivier, coprésident des Amis de la Terre Midi-Pyrénées.Même si le chantier est considérablement avancé – arbres abattus, ponts construits, terrassement en cours – les opposants comptent empêcher la finalisation de cette infrastructure, dont la construction a débuté en 2023 et qui doit être achevée au second semestre 2026.- Contestation multiforme -Depuis le printemps 2023, la contestation a pris différentes formes: manifestations, grèves de la faim, occupations d’arbres au cÅ“ur de Zones à défendre (ZAD). Mais c’est sur le terrain juridique que les opposants ont réussi à stopper les pelles mécaniques.Fin février, le tribunal administratif de Toulouse a ordonné une interruption des travaux, estimant qu’il n’y avait pas de raison impérative d’intérêt public majeur (RIIPM) pour justifier les dégâts causés à l’environnement.Cette décision, saluée comme une victoire par les opposants, a donné lieu à plusieurs recours des pro-autoroute: d’un côté devant la justice administrative, de l’autre, par le biais d’une proposition de loi visant à valider rétroactivement les autorisations environnementales du chantier.Parallèlement, avant l’examen du dossier au fond prévu à la fin de l’année, la cour administrative d’appel de Toulouse a autorisé fin mai une reprise du chantier.- “Rassemblement illégal” -Faute de déclaration par ses organisateurs et en raison des heurts survenus lors de précédents événements, la préfecture du Tarn a émis un arrêté d’interdiction de la “Turboteuf” et appelé “la population à ne pas se joindre à ce rassemblement illégal, qui met en danger ses participants et les exposent à des poursuites pénales”. Les organisateurs ont maintenu l’événement mettant en avant qu’il se déroulait sur un terrain privé dont le propriétaire, Bernard d’Ingrando, a indiqué à l’AFP avoir donné son accord, “à condition qu’il n’y ait pas de débordements”.La “Turboteuf” est le quatrième grand weekend d’action contre le projet, après ceux d’avril et d’octobre 2023 puis de juin 2024, les deux derniers ayant été marqués par des affrontements avec les forces de l’ordre.

Britain reestablishes full Syria ties as FM visits Damascus

Britain reestablished full diplomatic relations with Syria on Saturday, more than a decade after cutting ties, as Foreign Secretary David Lammy met the country’s new leader Ahmed al-Sharaa in Damascus.In 2011, Britain was among the first countries to acknowledge rebel groups as the official Syrian government after then-president Bashar al-Assad’s crushing of pro-democracy protests plunged the country into civil war.London also joined sanctions against Syria and later closed its embassy in Damascus, going on to launch air strikes on Assad’s forces.Assad was ultimately toppled in December after more than 13 years of fighting by a rebel offensive led by Sharaa, now Syria’s interim president.”The UK is reestablishing diplomatic relations because it is in our interests to support the new government to deliver their commitment to build a stable, more secure and prosperous future for all Syrians,” Lammy said in a statement.Photos released by Sharaa’s office showed him and Lammy meeting alongside Syrian Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shaibani.Their discussions addressed “bilateral ties… and ways of strengthening cooperation, as well as regional and international developments”, the presidency said in a statement.The Syrian foreign ministry issued a similar statement following a separate meeting between Lammy and Shaibani.Lammy said a stable Syria would benefit Britain by “reducing the risk of irregular migration, ensuring the destruction of chemical weapons” and “tackling the threat of terrorism”.Britain’s Foreign Office said Assad’s overthrow was an opportunity to “fully declare and destroy Assad’s evil chemical weapons programme”, adding that London had contributed an additional $2.7 million to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons to help Syria do so.In 2018, the UK joined US air strikes on Syria’s chemical weapons in response to a suspected poison gas attack by Assad’s forces. – Sanctions lifted -Syria has experienced a flurry of diplomatic activity in the months since Islamist-led forces ousted Assad.In May, Syrian Defence Minister Murhaf Abu Qasra met with an official British delegation, the defence ministry said at the time.In April, the British government announced it was lifting sanctions imposed on Syria’s interior and defence ministries under Assad.It also said it was removing sanctions against various media groups and intelligence agencies, as well as on some sectors of the economy including financial services and energy production.A month earlier, it ended sanctions on 24 entities including Syria’s central bank.The United States has also lifted sanctions on Syria and is planning to remove it from its list of state sponsors of terrorism. Last month, Damascus carried out its first electronic transfer through the international banking system since the imposition of sanctions.The growing international backing comes as Syria’s new leaders attempt to rebuild the country and reboot its moribund economy, both ravaged by the conflict and crippling sanctions.Britain’s Foreign Office said London had committed an extra $129 million to provide “urgent humanitarian aid” and support Syria’s reconstruction as well as countries hosting Syrian refugees.

Hamas says ready to start Gaza ceasefire talks ‘immediately’

Israel was considering its response on Saturday after Hamas said it was ready to start talks “immediately” on a US-sponsored proposal for a Gaza ceasefire.The security cabinet was expected to meet after the end of the Jewish sabbath at sundown to discuss Israel’s next steps, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu prepared to head to Washington for talks on Monday with US President Donald Trump.Trump has been making a renewed push to end nearly 21 months of war in Gaza, where the civil defence agency said 35 people were killed in Israeli military operations on Saturday.”No decision has been made yet on that issue,” an Israeli government official told AFP when asked about Hamas’s positive response to the latest ceasefire proposal.Hamas made its announcement late Friday after holding consultations with other Palestinian factions.”The movement is ready to engage immediately and seriously in a cycle of negotiations on the mechanism to put in place” the US-backed truce proposal, the militant group said in a statement.Two Palestinian sources close to the discussions told AFP that the proposal included a 60-day truce, during which Hamas would release 10 living hostages and several bodies in exchange for Palestinians detained by Israel.However, they said, the group was also demanding certain conditions for Israel’s withdrawal, guarantees against a resumption of fighting during negotiations and the return of the UN-led aid distribution system.Hamas ally Islamic Jihad said it supported ceasefire talks, but demanded guarantees that Israel “will not resume its aggression” once hostages held in Gaza are freed.Trump, when asked about Hamas’s response aboard Air Force One, said: “That’s good. They haven’t briefed me on it. We have to get it over with. We have to do something about Gaza.”The war in Gaza began with Hamas’s October 2023 attack on Israel, which sparked a massive Israeli offensive in the territory that aimed to destroy Hamas and bring home all the hostages seized by Palestinian militants.Two previous ceasefires mediated by Qatar, Egypt and the United States secured temporary halts in fighting and the return of Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.Of the 251 hostages taken by Palestinian militants during the October 2023 attack, 49 are still held in Gaza, including 27 the Israeli military says are dead.- ‘Will not be shut down’ -Efforts to broker a new truce have repeatedly failed, with the primary point of contention being Israel’s rejection of Hamas’s demand for guarantees that any new ceasefire will be lasting.Nearly 21 months of war have created dire humanitarian conditions for the more than two million people in the Gaza Strip, where Israel has recently expanded its military operations.A US- and Israel-backed group, the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation, took the lead in food distribution in the territory in late May, when Israel partially lifted a more than two-month blockade on aid deliveries.The group said two of its US staff were wounded in an “attack” on one of its aid centres in southern Gaza on Saturday.  “This morning, two American aid workers were injured in a targeted terrorist attack during food distribution activities at SDS-3 in Khan Yunis,” the organisation said, adding that reports indicated it was carried out by “two assailants who threw two grenades at the Americans”.UN agencies and major aid groups have refused to cooperate with the GHF over concerns it was designed to cater to Israeli military objectives. Its operations have been marred by near-daily reports of Israeli fire on people waiting to collect rations. UN human rights office spokeswoman Ravina Shamdasani said Friday that more than 500 people have been killed waiting to access food from GHF distribution points.GHF’s chairman Johnnie Moore, a Christian evangelical leader allied to Trump, on Wednesday rejected calls for the lead role in Gaza aid distributions to revert to UN agencies.”We will not be shut down. We have one job to do. It’s very simple, every day to provide free food to the people of Gaza,” he told reporters.- Civil defence says 35 killed -Civil defence spokesman Mahmud Bassal said Israeli military operations killed 35 people across Gaza on Saturday.Media restrictions in Gaza and difficulties in accessing many areas mean AFP is unable to independently verify the tolls and details provided by the civil defence agency.Contacted by AFP, the Israeli military said it could not comment on specific strikes without precise coordinates.The Hamas attack of October 2023 resulted in the deaths of 1,219 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures.Israel’s retaliatory campaign has killed at least 57,338 people in Gaza, also mostly civilians, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry. The United Nations considers the figures reliable.burs-dcp/smw

Euro-2025: blessée à un genou, la capitaine allemande Giulia Gwinn quitte le tournoi

La capitaine allemande Giulia Gwinn, l’une des stars attendues de l’Euro de football en Suisse, manquera le reste du tournoi après s’être blessée au genou gauche vendredi soir face à la Pologne, a annoncé samedi la fédération allemande (DFB).”Giuli est forfait!”, écrit la DFB sur son compte X, expliquant que l’arrière droite du Bayern Munich souffre “d’une lésion du ligament interne au genou gauche” et sera indisponible pendant “plusieurs semaines”.Adulée en Allemagne, la joueuse avait quitté la pelouse du stade de St Gall à la 40e minute de son tout premier match de la compétition continentale, après une intervention défensive face à la star polonaise Ewa Pajor.Elle avait d’abord tenté de reprendre la rencontre avant de sortir en larmes, enlacée par l’avant-centre Lea Schüller – l’une des deux buteuses en deuxième mi-temps de cette rencontre finalement remportée 2-0 par les vice-championnes d’Europe.A seulement 26 ans, Gwinn s’est déjà rompu les ligaments croisés des deux genoux, manquant pour cette raison le Mondial-2023 et la déconvenue de ses coéquipières, éliminées en phase de poule.Les Allemandes, médaillées de bronze et première nation européenne des JO-2024 de Paris, figurent parmi les favorites de l’Euro, avec les Espagnoles championnes du monde et les tenantes du titre anglaises.Le forfait de Gwinn, latérale à l’origine de nombreuses offensives dans cette équipe très tournée vers l’attaque, pose aussi la question de la réorganisation de l’Allemagne: le sélectionneur Christian Wück, loin de la remplacer poste pour poste, a fait entrer vendredi Carlotta Wamser, jeune attaquante de l’Eintracht Francfort.

Fernando’s 4-35 restricts Bangladesh to 248 in 2nd Sri Lanka ODI

A career-best 4-35 by seamer Asitha Fernando helped Sri Lanka bundle out Bangladesh for 248 inside 46 overs in the second one-day international in Colombo on Saturday.The 27-year-old right-arm seamer, fresh from an English county stint with Glamorgan, used a mix of short-pitched venom and clever changes of pace to restrict the visitors.The home side’s bowlers hunted in packs, with leg-spinner Wanindu Hasaranga claiming 3-60, backed up by some sharp fielding and catching.With the series on the line, Bangladesh won the toss and elected to bat.Several batsmen got starts, but none went on to capitalise. Najmul Hossain Shanto looked set before throwing his wicket away by mistiming a long hop straight to long-on when on 14.Shamim Hossain (22) and Mehidy Hasan Miraz (9) fared no better, both falling to the short-ball trap by holing out to fine-leg.The 23-year-old Parvez Hossain Emon struck a fluent 67 off 69 deliveries to register his maiden ODI half-century with five fours and three sixes.Towhid Hridoy scored 51 off 69 balls but Bangladesh’s inability to stitch together partnerships proved costly as wickets fell at regular intervals.From 218-9, a spirited last-wicket stand between Tanzim Hasan Sakib and Mustafizur Rahman added 30 runs that could yet prove crucial.Tanzim hit 33 off 21 balls with two fours and two sixes, but was left stranded when Mustafizur perished without troubling the scorers.