>> welcome to the newsroom. you are watching "france 24." 55 million iranians head to the polls. hardliners are vying to leave the country for more close or distant relations with the west. a new fifa president. members of the international football federation are set to vote on sepp blatter's successor

. they have already approved major reforms to curb corruption. we will be going live to zurich. voting begins in ireland as well after five years in power. andcenter rights in a gale labor partners are expected to lose ground. our correspondent will be getting the latest from the ground. you are watching live from paris on "france 24." crunching the numbers -- which jobs can help you find a mate. minot takes villa us through the day's papers in "press review." iranian leaders expect a high turnout rate this friday in the

most important election since the islamic revolution in 1979. -- vote pits reformists and for many, this election is a referendum on president rouhani's efforts to get sanctions relief after a decade of embargoes. mark thompson has the latest. which could help define the iranian president's future, the candidates chosen for the new parliament are likely to affect rouhani's chances for a free election next year. the former vice president says the government is ready to react. however the country votes. >> is what our people want that matters. to the ballotn boxes is what counts. if we get the majority, we can operate. if our friends when, we can help them strengthen their agenda. elections pits reformists

against conservatives who have dominated both institutions. is hoping to curb their influence and pave the way for domestic reforms. >> what type of future do we want in terms of our economy and relationship with the world, and in terms of the values of the revolution, in terms of our states as a woman, and the environmental challenges we have? >> it is the first time iranians have come to the polls since the agreement on the nuclear program. the economy is a key factor in the way people are voting. >> i looked at the different factions, decided on the candidates that are supportive of the government and supportive of reforms for young people like us. so that way they can make the right decisions for us, decisions that are beneficial for us.

>> supreme leader ayatollah how khamenei is hoping for a big turnout. here is our correspondent. target we are at a playstation central tehran. thousands of iranians -- at a election site in central terror and. hran. central terro speaking to women, we have speaking to students, clerics. some of them are saying that they actually want to vote for the person who will continue to back the president or to others are saying that while the candidates should focus on the country's economy, and for some others, the relationship will be with the international community and that is crucial.

the question is whether iran's willllion eligible voters come and have their voices heard. shona: it is the end of a long and bumpy campaign season as are electing a new president to replace sepp blatter after he was suspended last october for corruption allegations. of the five presidential contenders, two are set to get the most votes. a correspondent joins me now from zurich for the latest on the vote. let's start by talking about an earlier vote that took place this friday. it's all members pass a series of reforms. what were those reforms aimed at? >> first of all, they were crucial reforms. agreeers and officials that even though the spotlight

is on the vote for the new president, what is really important for the future of fifa is to pass this reform package, and it was packed, overwhelmingly 179 votes, and they really called these reforms the foundations for the future of fifa. a lot of changes coming up with these reforms for fifa. first of all, the scare separation between political decision-making and a day to day management. the 24 member executive committee that we know today will be replaced by a third or six-member council, which will have members elected by every member association. there will also be a big change, and that is really important, the term limits for the president as well as top officials. -- three four-year

terms, and remember, sepp blatter was on his fifth term before he resigned. previous president had been on for 24 years. the other change will be the representation of women inside fifa. reserving onet by seat for each confederation for a woman inside the 36-member council, so there will be at least six women on that very important counsel at fifa. shona: what can we expect from the presidential vote later today? it has been a long time coming. >> that is, of course, the vote that everyone is waiting for in the world of football. twovoting countries because countries have been suspended -- kuwait and indonesia. the way this vote will go is that to get elected in the first round straight out, you will need a 2/3 majority.

there are two front runners, sheikh salman and gianni infantino. 2/3e is a far cry from the arerity for both, so we probably in for a second round of voting. prince ali is the man who ran against sepp blatter last year and pushed sepp blatter to a second-round runoff. prince ollie could decide to throw -- prince ali could decide to throw his weight behind one of the two candidates, or we could be in for a third round if one of the front runners does not make a simple majority cut in the second round. it really is the most open election for fifa's top job in decades. shona: thank you so much. our correspondent giving us the latest from zurich.

irish voters are heading to the polls this friday. the incumbent center-right government has led the country back toward economic stability with the help of its left wing labour coalition partner. it is likely the government will include more parties, however, as experts predict a splintered vote. let's cross over now to dublin. i'm joined by our correspondent. like thise turnout friday? >> despite the winter weather, there has been a steady flow of voters. the primem was minister. kenny haspect that voted for himself because he is -- he has a proven track record.

economy toed to the become again the champion of growth in europe with surprising 7% of gdp of growth, halved the employment figures down to 8%. look what the main opposition party did, driving the country over the the economic and banking crush five years ago. the 20's two parties, as far as the prime minister is concerned, the choice should be reasonably easy to make for the voters. so why is it that opinion polls say voters are like -- are unlikely to fullback in the same government that is leaving office now? >> "the irish times" has a headline under the pictures, predicting a hung parliament.

the price of the economic recovery has been impacted by the irish people, and that has been drastic austerity, the worst austerity program in europe but for greece. are fed upple who may want to punish the main governing parties, the three main parties who have been in power since the beginning of the state in 1922. they may decide to both to the prime minister's party. and vote for independence, vote for the hard left. no majority tove any party and make it extremely difficult for kenny and his party to continue the job. he will have difficulty forming a new government. shona: thank you so much for joining us with the latest there from the voting in ireland. freedom for two journalists in turkey.

the editor in chief and representative of a centerleft opposition daily has been jailed, both jailed since november. --sident erdogan filed showing turkish trucks carrying ammunition to syrian militants. our correspondent has the story. >> released after 92 days behind freedthe journalists were just a day after turkey's top court ruled their detention was a violation of human rights. >> i think this is a historical decision. constitutionalhe courts will pave the way for the freedom of the press and freedom of expression. >> they work for turkey's leading opposition newspaper.

they were arrested in november over reports that accused the country's secret services of supplying arms to islamists in syria. the pair was charged with obtaining and revealing state secrets and for seeking to overthrow the government of resets a up erdogan -- of recep tape erdogan. they say freedom of inspection is under threat of their country. >> today we are being released, but it does not mean that the dispute of a jailed journalist is over. we still have many friends in prison, and our struggle for them must continue. journalists' nightmare is not over yet. both will stand trial in march and are facing possible life sentences. shona: a partial victory for gay rights groups in italy. the senate in rome approved a bill recognizing same-sex civil

unions, a step forward for italy, the only major european country to have given no legal rights to gay couples so far. in two vote is expected months. gay-rights groups are disappointed, because the bill was modified to remove a provision that would allow adoption by same-sex couples following pressure from the catholic church. name-calling and mockery at the latest republican debate. all five contenders for the gop nomination took to the stage in houston, texas, thursday night. the last debate before super tuesday, march 1 before voters in 11 states head to the polls. rising star marco rubio took a square hit at front runner donald trump, as party readers are worried as the billionaire's success with voters. our correspondent reports. >> the knives were out thursday for the 10th republican debate. with much of the night spent attacking current front runner

and reality tv star donald trump. ted cruz: when i was leading the fight against the gang of eight amnesty bill, where was donald? he was firing dennis rodman on "celebrity apprentice." donald trump: you do not have one republican center backing -- you do not have one republican senator backing you, not one. you should be a same give yourself -- you should be ashamed of yourself. marco rubio: if you are going to be starting a trade war -- donald trump: you do not know a thing about business. do not know i anything about bankrupting four of them. >> trump came off as lackluster and lacking energy. donald trump: i am relaxed. you are the basket case. go ahead, don't get nervous.

>> was super tuesday around the corner, all the candidates know that march 1 to be a game changer, either solidifying trump's lead or allowing one of the other candidates to push ahead. shona: will hilderbrandt joins me on set. welcome, will. a lot of attention on china. l: top priority for the g20 finance ministers meeting is to get global growth back on track, and it is hoping to find an accord within its policy to do so. but that is easier said than done. cloudyys prospects are this year. is reason is that the g20 hosting china. country hosting the g20 is china. growth remains modest, and some large emerging markets are showing signs of distress. 's top of this, china

necessary transition to a more balanced growth model is added to market volatility. has unsettled financial markets, which in turn depresses consumer and investors sentiment. will: to remedy this, china's central bank has taken steps to calm the market. i asked our correspondent what do people think china was trying to say. >> there will always be a joint communique, but analysts reckon it will not amount to a great deal because the expectations are pretty low of what can be achieved. in terms of the chinese economy, the path ahead still could be very tough. the imf chief earlier was

talking about restructuring. that is going to be painful in terms of manufacturing to the service industry, and changing the economy for 1.5 billion people is not going to be easy. she also mentioned vulnerability. not this time, but slow growth in emerging markets, with possible war in syria. there are lots of hurdles ahead. china is just one of them. how are the markets responding, will you will: the hope is that something can be published. in the in europe are green with oil and gas being top performers. it should be said that rbs is at 10%, after the bank reported massive losses for the eighth year in a row. the e.u. tries to contain ongoing protests by angry

livestock farmers. will: this has been going on for about a month in france. farmers say their profits are being squeezed by low prices. in a bid to get out of the crisis, the french government is putting pressure on the country's supermarket industry over pricing practices. the top agricultural official has more. >> they are targeting france's biggest supermarket chains. southwest farms are shipping the shelves of canned goods. >> we are getting rid of the ready cooked food because most of the time we do not know where the meat comes from. >> the key issue for many of the countries farmers, plummeting prices of derry, pork, and other produce. >> it is clear that the major supermarkets, industrial producers, and fruit processing -- and food processing factories are keeping the profits. >> they say it is harder to

survive. some supermarkets have made moves to calm their anger. has threewhich abattoirs in brittany -- they promise a better deal for their product. >> we cannot live -- we cannot let farmers live exclusively off -- we made a decision to lower the price markets as well as at our ports of sale -- our point-of-sale. >> paris is pressuring the e.u. to take surplus milk, pork, and other produce off the european markets. it is also talking about lifting trade sanctions against russia. the european commission must take full responsibility and must use its power to take initiative, and it needs to speak out on the issue. >> the commission cost proposals could be unveiled after a

meeting of for ministers in mid-march. shona: we end this bulletin with a bit of social logical research -- of sociological research from, of all places, tender. app: this is a dating where, if they do not like what they see, swipe left. swipe right if they do. -- whoant a man who has is either a pilot, a founder of a company, a firefighter, doctor. note the prizes there. women whooking for are physical therapists, interior designers, and a speech like which pathologist. shona: very specific. >> it is, and i do not know why. some of the majors in the u.s. are saturated with one gender or the other. of angeres a lot people, so perhaps it is just coincidence. shona: maybe, but a lot of the

guys were there, the guys who are specific. >> or uniform based. shona: and the women who are social -- will: people, healthy. shona: the number one's college student. that is young. thank you for that very interesting information, will. now it is time for the "press review." florence villeminot is with me on the set. a lot of focus today on today's elections in iran. the first one marseilles nuclear deal with world powers last year. flo: let's take a look at the "tehranon times -- the times." you can see this article talking about five power factors for iran. what are the five power factors?

iran is at the crossroads of geopolitical issues of regional demographic giant. it is full of energy resources and is a soft scientific power. this article suggests that the results of today's elections will be important for iran but also the region in general. that is why everyone is paying so much attention to it. papers are critical of the fact that most of the candidates advocating for reform were not allowed to run. on," from "liberaci conservatives continue to hold a strong grip on the country. an opinion shared by "the washington post" today. only a limited number of moderates and reformers are on the ballot. analysts say the election is unlikely to cause a history

making moment of change in iran. at a look at a nimitz -- lebanese newspaper, this headline is interesting. must changerything so that everything can stay the same. nothing changes after all. shona: here in france, meanwhile, papers are focusing on a crisis within the socialist party. a lot of that is about the government's economic policies, but not everyone is in agreement about it. flo: not everyone is thrilled within the socialist party with the plans that the government has for the labor code. it wants to reform the labor code. one paper talking about how the socialist party is on the verge of an implosion. it is so dramatic that you can see it. france 24 wonders if the socialist party will last through the winter. inside, it says this time the left wing really could die. what is the cause of all this drama? yesterday, a heavyweight in the

socialist party wrote an incendiary piece where essentially she lashed out against president hollande to plan to reform the labor code. she says it is actually going to weaken france, and this piece she wrote had the effect of a bombshell. she is accusing the president of not being left-wing enough. if we take a look at this cartoon, you can see francois hollande saying the left is imploding. the economy minister on the right is saying why does that concern us? in the middle you can see the pen minister saying, "shut up, michael." shona: does this have something to do with him being one of the forefathers of the 35-hour work week? flo: it does. there is a very interesting graphic that explains this war on the left because you have, vallsstance, the clan, which has come up on the

left of the right wing. he is unapologetic about defending premarket -- free-market policies. in the middle you have francois hollande, who wants to reform and keep the socialist party together. he is trying to make everyone happy. --the left wing, you have she was one of the masterminds of the 35 hour working week. she is seeing as that she is seen as the guard dog, the conscience of the left wing. she says she is trying to save the socialist party from the current poll it is feeling toward the right. shona: another big story in france is the international agricultural fair. that is a big favorite here. a backdrop for major farming prices going on right now. it is kicking off in particular circumstances. "french farmers are right to be angry. they have been holding protests for months now." they are talking about the just anger of

farmers. givesricultural minister an interview to the catholic paper today. you can see his explanation. heóoó?"""#n#n#n#n#n#n#b#b#g#bóóq

host: thanks. [applause] come on out, everyone. [cheers and applause] i guess first of all, could we hear that last poem again? that was amazing. well, thanks, everyone for being here, and i want to thank the organizers for giving me the honor to chair this panel.