10 Years Since Bataclan, U.S. Shutdown Ends, Seagull Breakthrough

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🗞️ FRONT PAGE​​

Like other French dailies, Paris-based daily Libération marks the 10-year anniversary of the November 13 attacks on the capital that killed 130 people and left more than 400 wounded. Armed terrorists had targeted restaurants, bars, the Bataclan music hall and the Stade de France arena in the worst attack on French soil since World War II. Tributes will take place at each attack site on Thursday while the Eiffel Tower will be lit in the colours of the French flag after nightfall. Libération also reports on the “relief” after the release of French-Algerian novelist Boualem Sansal, who was granted a humanitarian pardon by Algeria’s president on Wednesday. Sansal, 81, was arrested on November 16, 2024, in Algiers and given a five-year jail sentence in July 2025 for undermining national unity with remarks that questioned Algeria’s borders. Read more in French analyst Pierre Haski’s latest piece: Boualem Sansal’s Release And The Future Of France–Algeria Relations.

🌎 7 THINGS TO KNOW RIGHT NOW

• Longest U.S. government shutdown ends. President Donald Trump signed a bill ending the 43-day government shutdown, restoring federal operations and pay for workers. The House passed the funding measure 222–209 despite Democratic opposition over healthcare subsidies. The deal funds the government through Jan. 30, adding to national debt, with no clear political winner emerging.

• Ukraine Justice and Energy ministers resign amid corruption scandal. Ukraine’s Justice Minister German Galushchenko has resigned after an anti-corruption probe found that he had allegedly benefitted from a $100 million kickback scheme in the energy sector. Although not charged, Energy Minister Svitlana Grynchuk has also resigned. The probe, which involves state nuclear firm Energoatom, as well as close associates to President Volodymyr Zelensky, threatens Ukraine’s credibility and wartime unity amid Russian attacks on its power grid. Read this recent portrait of Ukrainian anti-corruption whistleblower Pavlo Barbul, via Global Press Journal.

• Israel attacks Gaza despite ceasefire. Israel launched new airstrikes on Beit Lahia, northern Gaza, as well as eastern areas of Gaza City and the southern city of Khan Younis. This comes as Gaza’s Health Ministry says at least 245 Palestinians were killed and 627 wounded since the fragile truce came into force on Oct. 10. Read more about the risks of a ceasefire without a peace process, in this analysis by France Inter’s Pierre Haski.

• G7 urges action in Ukraine, Sudan. G7 foreign ministers meeting under Canada’s G7 presidency in Niagara called for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine and de-escalation in Sudan. The statement reaffirmed “unwavering support” for Kyiv and discussed using frozen Russian assets to fund Ukraine’s defense. The ministers also condemned Sudan’s spiralling humanitarian crisis and urged both warring sides to stop fighting. For more on Sudan, read this recent article by La Stampa’s Francesca Mannochhi, translated from Italian and adapted by Worldcrunch.

• Thai king makes historic first visit to China. Thailand’s King Maha Vajiralongkorn has arrived in Beijing for a first state visit, the monarch’s first major overseas visit since taking the throne nine years ago. Marking 50 years of diplomatic relations between Thailand and China, the trip follows an invitation by Chinese President Xi Jinping and highlights the deepening political and economic ties between the two countries. 

• Trump responds to fresh Epstein allegations. Donald Trump took to his Truth Social platform to dismiss newly released emails linking him to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein as a “hoax.” The messages, published by House Democrats, show Epstein mentioning Trump several times and claiming he “knew about the girls.” Trump denies wrongdoing, accusing Democrats of reviving the Epstein story to distract from their responsibility in the government shutdown. For more, we offer this piece: The Epstein Conspiracy That Even QAnon Hero Trump Can’t Spin Away.

• News Quiz! According to a study by researchers at the University of Exeter in the UK, what method is the most effective to scare off food-stealing seagulls?

A. Singing
B. Staring
C. Shouting
D. Shooting
[Answer below]

📰 IN OTHER NEWS

🤝 Political change in Paris and German mediation led to the release of writer Boualem Sansal in Algiers. A victory for diplomacy over confrontation.
— FRANCE INTER

👶 Italy’s long slide below replacement birth rate is driven by fewer women of childbearing age and weak support systems, not by “selfish” young women.
— LA STAMPA

🎙️ In our latest Paris Calling episode, Gaspard Koenig, a French philosopher, novelist, and modern-day gentleman farmer reflects on soil, freedom and the rhythms of life bridging Parisian salons and the fields of Normandy.
— WORLDCRUNCH

📣 VERBATIM

“Everyone needs to do their bit, and all of them need to do more.”

— Glen Peters, a senior researcher at the Center for International Climate Research (CICERO), said that “collectively, the world is not delivering,” after a new report released on Thursday warns that global fossil fuel emissions are set to hit a new high in 2025 and that curbing warming under 1.5°C would now be essentially “impossible.” According to the annual Global Carbon Budget, despite rapid growth in renewable energy, emissions from oil, gas and coal are all set to rise, with the overall figure due to reach a record 38.1 billion tonnes of CO2.