anchor: welcome to the "france 24" newsroom. it is good to have you with us for the next hour of news. here are the headlines. the president makes his first public appearance since house arrest. we get an update from our correspondent. a belgian court considers spain's request. he faces charges of rebellion and sedition.

still -- iraqi army retakes the last town. we will cross to our correspondent on the ground in syria. we begin in zimbabwe where the embattled president has made his first public appearance since he was put under house arrest earlier this week. attending aold graduation ceremony in the capital today. his appearance comes as the military says it has made significant progress in talks for his departure. he has been in power 37 years. earlier this week, a military

takeover was triggered by the firing of the vice president. reporter: : he has been away sie the crisis began, a crisis triggered by his sacking. is saidformer president to be back in the country after nearly a week abroad. it is believed the mililitary wants him to be ththe next in line. the army seized state tv and mugabi u under house arrest. it says it is not targeting him but crimininals around him. whereabouts remain unknown. was tired of the removelling him how to some of the people from government.

he removed someone who is popular with the army. reporter: with pressure coming from all sides, he is refusing to resign, although his party may not give him a choice in the matter. drafting aey are resolution for his impeachment if he does not step aside. resolution for his impeachment. the military takeover was triggered when the vice president was fired. he is reportedly back in the country. what more can you tell us? unconfirmed report we have had. we heard earlier this week he may have come into the country on tuesday. he is seen as the preferred candidate by the military to

mugabe.president robert tohe e steps down or agreeses step down. thatat is not certain at all at this stage. we understand negotiations between m m and the m military e ongoing. as far as we know, there has been no breakthrough. mugabe has notughe capitulated to their dememands. the army says they have succeeded in removing him from power. what should we make of it? the military says they are working on getting him out of power. the president made his first public appearance since being put under house arrest. what do we know about what is

going on behind the scenes? thisw people are reading interesting development is that it is a strategic by the presidento have mugabe appear at this function. the military is keen to avoid intervention by the region. there is an ememergency regional summit planned to disiscuss the coup. want the coup in the region so perhaps this is an attempt by the military in zimbabwe to try to convince the world therere is not a coup her. state radio whwhich is under control l of thermy still l refs to president mugabe as the president.

at the start of the crisis, he said they were only targeting criminals around the president. pressurew he is under from the army to step down. mentioned the military saying they are targeting criminals around the president. is his wife considered one of these criminals?s? what is her relationship? >> they have not specified her by name. it was implied they were ministers close to grace mugabe. many of those have gone into hiding. know, only to the have beennisters detained by the army, including the finance minister. the army said in a statement today that was reported on state

operationy said the to target criminals is going well. they said discussions with the president are still ongoing. they did not elaborate on those discussions. anchor: thank you. crossed to kenya where police have used tear gas and water canons to disperse crowds. earlier this year, the supreme court canceled the presidential election and a fresh vote was held last month. he boycotted the new month saying electoral reform had not been made. on octobernt's win 26 is now being challenged at the supreme court amid claims of irregularities.

following almost two weeks of uncertainty regarding his ability to leave saudi arabia, the lebanese prime minisister is expected in france this weekend. he accepted emmanuel macron's invitation to paris amid concern he is being held against his will in lebanon. the hope is his visit to france will help and the political crisis. >> we hope today marks the beginning of a solution to the crisis we are going through. the prime minister has accepted the invitation, and he will be going to france. we hope it will go well and end the current crisis. anchor: france has publicly inserted itself in the affair with resident macron making an unplanned visit to riyadh and inviting him to visit paris. i spoke to our correspondent feeler about how people

about the french involvement. >> in lebanon, the french involvement is giving hope to the lebanesese who were starting to lose grip on the story. it has been almost two weeks since the prime ministeter announced his resignation from saudi arabia. here, therere is a growingng bef the pree minisister was heheld against t his will, that he was held captive in riyadadh. at first, it came as a surprise to hear that h he would be going to paris while everyone was waiting for him in beirut. france's diplomamatic gesture is widely appreciated.. lebanesedent -- the presidident of the republic spoe yesterday. he s said he h hoped the crisiss to go tohis acceptance france is a start for a solution. quit in ariri broadcast in which he lashed out

against hezbollah. israel is willing to work with others. >> cooperation between israel and saudi arabia is almost unheard of, but that is exactly what the chief of staff of israel's defense forces declared in one of the kingdom's own publications. >> there is complete agreement between us and saudi arabia, which has never been our enemy. we are ready to exchange experiences with moderate arab countries and exchange intelligence to confront iran. >> according to the lieutenant general, it is the greatest threat in the middle east, particularly given its support for hezbollah. the general sees the plan is extending its control across the

region. it has left certain nations with little in common with their interests aligned. >> we are consulting with our allies and friends around the world to see what the most effective way is, the most effective leverage to employ. and we will make decisions when the time comes. >> given israel's continued presence, any formal relations seem unlikely. however, israel points to donald thep as the reasoson for anti-iran -- front. anchor: it is believed to be the last town held by the jihadist group.

controlled the territory the size of britain would have lost all of their key strongholds. syria.s on the ground in we can cross to him now. what more can you tell us about the jihadists that have fled the fighting from the stronghold in raqqa? as it wasell you, reported by our colleagues frorm bbc and other mediaa oututlets, some have fled the city. asre e nowow fighting here, you can may be heaear behind me. this road leads to jihadadist-hd territory. and with h a unit from m the syn democraticic forces moving in to try to take the next villages. the objective is to take control

of a strategic city on the border between syria and i ira it is ththe passage point betwen both c countries. at the moment, we are e seeing a race to the city. it was said to, have been taken control of by the regime and the russians. it appears that was not completely exact. we met some civilians fleeing ththe city earlier yesterday.. they were telling us they had seen no trace of any syrian simplyent forces there, islamic statate group stilill in contntrol of the city. we have heard other reports saying they have pushed back the regime forces. now we have a race with the syrian defefense forces, syrian democratic forces, which are a majority militia tryrying to tae control of t the city, as well s the regime, as well as on the

otheher side of the border,r, te milititia trying to take the ciy from the other side. we have a race to the strategic city where it is said the americans wish to install a base later on. anchor: thank you, james, from syria. europee come back to were a balkan court is set to consider whether to send the ousted catalog leader back to spain. arrestissued a european warrant for him and his foreign ministers after they fled to brussels last month and ignored the summons to appear before a spanish judge. they claim they could not get a fair trial back home. sarah morris joins us from adjourned. the judge in brussels is hearing arguments behind closed doors from prosecutors and defense lawyers in what could be a long

courtroom battle. >> that is right. there is some ignorant nation -- indignation in spain that this will not be a simimple processs. many commentators s say a europn arrest warrant should be simple between european union partners. newspaper is carrying the belgium would treat him like a v.i.p. fugitive and they have said they have document sent by the spanish court requesting information about the state of the prisons, including the quality of the food,d,or peoplee in custotody. they say they have had a document sent back to o the court that it meets

all l of the e european agreemes signed. anchor: this friday does mark the deadline for the application for the december 21 election. tell us what is h happening the. >> that is rightht. the ousted catalog president wanted -- catalog president wanted all the parties to stand on the list from 2015. the left-wing independence parties have given him the cold shoulder. they will stand separately on different lists fighting as separate parties. many members of the catalog government -- catalan government that were

ousted to be standing in those elections fighting their campaigns even from prison cells. the independence parties will be help in making it the best possible result in t this electn to dislodge the independence party from government. we know it will be a tight race. at the moment, opinion polls suggesting independence parties could pull 46% of the vote. anchor: thank you, sarah morris. the united nations climate summit wraps up this friday. envoys from nearly 200 countries have been working on a rulebook. progress has been mixed as divisions have reemerged between rich and developing countries. there is some agreement when it

comes to coal. tw20 different nations, estates, and five canadian provinces, all in agreement by 2030.sing out coal >> this alliance is about celebrating the benefits of what is possible and helping all of us achieve these week steps for the sake of the planet and generations to come. responsibility for greenhouse gases, it is a big step. however, some countries have not signed up. while still intending to pull out of climate change agreements in 2020, have some ideas about moving forward. >> we remain open to the possibility of rejoining at a later date under terms more favorable to the american people.

irrespective of our views on the paris agreement, the united states continues to be a leader in clean energy and innovation. and we understand the need for transforming energy systems. >> specifically, washington wants to work on making fossil , the subject of a side event that your criticism. >> you have seen the alternative delegations saying we are moving. they are very strong. the trump administration was pretty irrelevant at the talks and did not play much of a role at all. binding but legally the hope is it will draw other countries into a framework moving forward. much of the planet seeks to limit the damage from rising temperatures worldwide. anchor: sicilian mafia boss has

died at the age of 87. he was serving 26 life sentences in jail. he is believed to have ordered including0 murders, women, children, police officers, judges, prosecutors, and politicians. earlier this year, he asked to be released from prison to die with dignity. it was a request ultimately denied. time for a business update. with theing to start latest over the brexit negotiations. >> yes, the british prime minister is attending a meeting on reform. brexit is not on the agenda. a lot of attention is on theresa may's talks on the sidelines of the conference. time is running out as she tries to take the deadlock over the divorce settlement. >> it is the e.u.'s first social summit in two decades.

leaders have gathered in sweden to focus on ways to boost welfare and reduce inequalities for 500 million people after years of austerity that have seen the rise of populism. brexit will not be on the agenda. the stalled talks are threatening to oversee auto -- overshadow the settlement. >> the clock is ticking. to comee will be able to an agreement as part of the divorce. there is work still to be done. >> at the heart of the outstanding issues, the so-called divorce bill, the u.k. peshmergas contribution to the e.u. budget. forth, the u.k. has put 20 billion euros. the the e.u. wants more. >> negotiations continue. i look forward to the european

union responding positively so we can move forward together. >> leaders will also press may on the future rights of e.u. citizens living in britain. on the sidelines, she also met with the irish leader to talk about the future of the u.k.'s border with ireland. before we could talk about trade, the idea there would be any border. has demanded progress on key terms by december. that will allow them to move on to trade talks. all this before the u.k.'s expected exit date in march of 2019. >> let's check in on the financial markets. shares in europe started the last day of trading of the week mostly in the red but have now crawled back into positive : the passage of the

tax bill in the united states house of representatives. moving on to other business headlines, the c.e.o. of nisan says he will return part of his salary following a recent scandal. he says the voluntary pay cut started last month and will continue through march. it was found unauthorized employees carried out safety checks as early as 1979. the scandal has led to the recall of 1.2 million cars. a committee of international creditors has voted the government and the state will company have officially defaulted on billions of dollars worth of funds. the announcement comes days after credit rating agencies declared they were in default. they triggered payment of default insurance known as a

credit default swap. the u.s. dollar dropped against other currencies this friday after the "wall street journal" reporter investigators have issued a subpoena to trump campaign officials. robert mueller requested documents specifying key russian words. anchor: you have a new unveiling from tesla. >> the company rolled out its first ever truck capable of driving long distances carrying a heavy load. it has been highly anticipated. the product is more powerful than most people expected. vehicle wills the be 20% more cost efficient than diesel rivals. take a listen. >> one o of the biggest questios we have been asked about diesel trucks is how far they can go.

500-mile range. [applalause] >> what does that mean? by the way, 500 miles at maximum weight and highway speeds.s. going 60 miles an hour. >> tesla alslso unveiled a a surprise n new car, a $200,0,000 sports car. musk says s it will be thehe fat car ever that goes from zero to 200 kilometers in seconds on a single charge. all of that comes after disappointing results from tesla. anchor: thank you very much. worse, the song has been inescapable since it was released earlier this year. it was the undisputed song of the summer with lyrics so hot they made some people blush. it was a hit big-time at the latin grammys.

take a look. >> ♪ >> it became the longest-running number one hit of all timee and one of the m most-watched videos on youtube. the song has almost signal head of the revived reggae is the catchy beat resonatates with people across the globe. >> people want to sing along knowthough they do knonot what they are singiging. it is really interesting the language does not matatr. the flavor, the rhythm, and the music. that is what matters. that makes me very happy. >> music video helped shine a spotlight on the neighborhood in puerto rico's capital. over the summer, it brimmed with tourists trying to visit the area where thehe video was film. here.ame

i want to see with a shot the music video. i like it. it is a very good place. >> all of these tourists were

♪ >> too many outsiders, culture and los angeles is something that begins s and ends w with te movies. but the city has always been home to radical ideas and art, architecture, literal -- literaturere, and urban life. the profile of the city has run bigger and writer. with new cultural institutions, new approaches to art, and new ways of thinking about the landscape. join m me as we hit some of f te cityty's most impmportant culull landscapapes. ththis is