A violent earthquake in Morocco, temperature records broken and director Yorgos Lanthimos rewarded at the Venice Film Festival… Here is a summary of the news from this weekend of September 9 and 10.
• The earthquake in Morocco
A violent earthquake of magnitude 6.8 according to the American Institute of Geophysics (USGS) struck Morocco during the night from Friday to Saturday in the Marrakech region. The earthquake left at least 2,122 dead and 2,421 injured, according to a provisional report from the Moroccan Interior Ministry early Sunday evening.
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In the old town of Marrakech, the medina, listed as a UNESCO world heritage site since 1985, some buildings have collapsed. Residents took refuge outside and notably spent the night in the famous Jamaa el Fna square for fear of aftershocks from the earthquake. But it is about fifty kilometers further south, in the mountain villages of the High Atlas in the provinces of Al-Haouz and Taroudant, that the destruction is the most significant and the toll is heaviest.
In the streets of Marrakech, after the earthquake: “Everyone is afraid, we are sitting in fear”
While the search is still underway, the kingdom has declared a three-day national mourning. In the affected villages, residents are already digging graves to bury the victims.
Several countries and organizations are offering their help to Rabat: the European Union, Spain, France, the United Kingdom, Switzerland and even Turkey. President Emmanuel Macron said France was ready to ” to intervene “ to come to the aid of Morocco when the authorities of the kingdom “will deem it useful”.
• A tedious G20
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi concluded on Sunday a G20 summit described as a success in particular by Russia and Brazil, which will host the next edition in Rio de Janeiro. India, the host country this year, managed to have a joint declaration adopted, which denounced the use of force for the purposes of territorial conquest, but refrained from directly criticizing Moscow’s invasion of Ukraine.
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G20 leaders struggle to make progress on war in Ukraine and response to climate change
Beyond Ukraine, the G20 countries are also divided on the future of oil. With 2023 on track to become the hottest year on record, the final declaration failed to call for an exit from fossil fuels, even though it supports the goal of tripling renewables for the first time by 2030.
” It is insufficient “recognized French President Emmanuel Macron, who “alert everyone” on the need to set more ambitious objectives, particularly on the exit from oil.
• Last weekend of heatwave
The mercury rose again during the last heatwave weekend. On Saturday, the thermometer reached for the second time this week the record for the hottest day in September in France, the national thermal indicator standing at 25.1°C, Météo-France confirmed on Sunday.
More than a dozen monthly records were broken on Saturday from Brittany (Saint-Brieuc, 31.5°C) to the Paris region (Trappes, 34.6°C, Le Bourget, 35.3°C) passing by via Normandy (Rouen, 33.2°C) without forgetting Nantes (35.4°C).
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The summer of 2023 was the hottest ever measured in the world, “climate collapse has begun”
From Monday, temperatures should start to drop. Associated with a stormy deterioration, a clear cooling from the west will reach the center of the country, marking the end of this heatwave episode, extraordinary for a month of September in France, indicates Météo-France. “The duration of this episode of extreme heat, combined with its intensity and lateness, is remarkable across the country”noted Météo-France at the start of the week.
• Opening of the Rugby World Cup
The Rugby World Cup opened Friday evening at the Stade de France with a victory for the Blues against the All Blacks (27-13). More than 15 million viewers followed the opening match on TF1, a better score than the Blues’ debut at the 2022 World Cup.
After a difficult first half and in blazing heat, the French won against the New Zealanders who lost a group match in the World Cup for the first time.
“It was magical”: carried by their public, the Blues won their first World Cup match
The competition takes place in Bordeaux, Lille, Lyon, Marseille, Nantes, Nice, Paris, Saint-Etienne and Toulouse, until October 28.
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• Yorgos Lanthimos crowned at the Venice Film Festival
With “Poor Creatures”, Greek filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos (“The Lobster”, “The Favorite”), a regular at festivals, finally achieves recognition. The film is a kind of feminine Frankenstein, fantastic and baroque, largely in black and white. Sometimes raw, “Poor creatures” is both entertainment and a message about how standards weigh on women. The American star Emma Stone, who also produced the film, plays a candid creature who undergoes her sentimental and sexual education.
Controversy, favorites, strike in Hollywood… Everything you need to know about the 80th edition of the Venice Film Festival
The Italian festival was disrupted by the writers’ and actors’ strike in Hollywood. Emma Stone, for example, was unable to make the trip to collect the prize.
In addition, feminist groups criticized the invitations of Roman Polanski, Luc Besson and Woody Allen, targeted by the #MeToo movement.