This week FRANCE 24 visited the Paris Agriculture Fair (Salon de l'agriculture) – a must-do for French politicians from across the spectrum – as a former prime minister went on trial over hiring his relatives. We also take a look at Al Pacino's small-screen debut as a Nazi hunter and learn how the magnetic north pole is moving faster than ever before, potentially affecting GPS systems.

 

France’s former PM François Fillon goes on trial over ‘fake jobs’ scandal 
France’s disgraced conservative former prime minister François Fillon goes on trial Wednesday over the fake-jobs scandal dubbed PenelopeGate after his wife, who was paid handsomely for work as her husband’s parliamentary assistant that she allegedly never performed. The scandal sunk Fillon’s 2017 presidential bid.

 

In India, a Trump-Modi bromance with personal business and electability topping the agenda 
US President Donald Trump’s two-day visit to India may be a matter of pageantry over policy, but it served the domestic agendas of both leaders and, more importantly, the interests of Trump’s family business and Modi’s backers among the Indian diaspora in America.

 

Paris Agriculture Fair: Where cows, pigs and politicians strut their stuff 
It’s the event of the year for animal-lovers in Paris and for farmers from all over France. The Paris Agriculture Fair (Salon International de l’Agriculture) opened to the public on Saturday, to showcase cows, goats, pigs, chickens and… France’s leading politicians.

 

Cows at the Salon de l'Agriculture in Paris. Photo: © Pierre René-Worms, France Médias Monde

 

In pictures: Cows steal the show at the Paris Agriculture Fair
The biggest farm in France descended on the French capital on Saturday and once again the cows are the stars of the show. The Paris Agriculture Fair, or Le Salon International de l’Agriculture, runs from February 22 to March 1 at Paris Expo at Porte de Versailles.


Hosni Mubarak: the Egyptian strongman’s life in pictures
Former Egyptian strongman Hosni Mubarak, who died Tuesday at age 91, will be laid to rest on Wednesday. Mubarak, who ruled with an iron fist for 30 years until his 2011 ouster, was dubbed the Pharaoh at the height of his power, but he leaves behind a mixed legacy.

 

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak delivers an address at the Police Academy in Cairo on January 24, 1985. Photo: © Reuters

 

‘In Iran there are no differences between fundamentalists and reformists’

Shaparak Shajarizadeh is an Iranian activist and co-author of "Freedom is not a crime". She relates how she got “fed up with living a lie” and decided to take off her veil in Iran as an act of civil disobedience. Detained three times, she tells she faced “the most horrible things in the world” during interrogations. She warns about the violation of human rights that have been “worsening” in her country, in spite of the hopes raised by the so-called reformists over the last few years.

 

Shaparak Shajarizadeh. Photo:  © FRANCE 24

 

Clint Eastwood’s cautionary tale about a security guard turned terror suspect

Film critic Lisa Nesselson speaks to Eve Jackson about the week’s film news including two true stories: "Richard Jewell" by Clint Eastwood, about the security guard who was wrongly suspected in the 1996 Summer Olympics bombing. Then, Todd Haynes' new movie "Dark Waters," in which a corporate lawyer switches from defending chemical polluters to defending their victims.

 

TV series show: Al Pacino makes small screen debut in Nazi-hunter drama

Dheepthika Laurent and Olivia Salazar-Winspear discuss what’s shaping up to be a big month in TV series. Al Pacino makes his small-screen debut in the Nazi-slayer drama "Hunters" on Amazon Prime Video. Netflix releases its first African original series, "Queen Sono" and eyes a market with huge potential. Here in France, the hugely popular political drama "Baron Noir" begins its third season. And in our round-up of shows not to miss: a millennial reboot of "High Fidelity", LatinX comedy "Gentefied" and critically acclaimed series "Homeland"’s final season.
 

Al Pacino. Photo:  © France 24 screen grab

 

The treasures of France's Vosges region
FRANCE 24 takes you to discover France's eastern Vosges region. Each morning at dawn, the peaks of the Vosges mountains reappear through the mist. The famous Ridge Route can also be made out in the first rays of sun. On this road, created during World War I, we discover a multitude of landscapes characteristic of the region. At 1,200 metres above sea level, arnica flowers grow. The plant, well-known for its healing properties, is known locally as "Vosges gold".

 

Treasures of the Vosges. Photo:  © France 24 screen grab

 

An agriculture revolution: the farms of the future
As the annual Paris Agriculture Fair gets under way, we tell you more about the farms of the future – whether they're in containers in urban areas or at the bottom of the sea.

 

Farms of the Future/Tech24. Photo:  © France 24 screen grab

 

After Gomorrah: The Naples housing estate hoping to erase its mafia past

A symbol of the power of the Neapolitan mafia, the "Vele" buildings in the Scampia neighbourhood are to be demolished. A way for the southern Italian city to put its mafia past behind it, as FRANCE 24's team reports.
 

Reporters. Photo:  © Davide Cerullo

 

Earth's changing pole position
The magnetic north pole is moving faster and further than before. Generated over three thousand kilometers beneath the surface of the earth, changes there can impact our GPS systems. Geomagnetic field modeler for the British Geological Survey Dr William James Brown tells us about the movement and how we can adapt to it.

 

Perspective. Photo:  © France 24 screen grab