berlin, mass protests in france, anger over changes to the country's pension system. there were clashes between police and demonstrators in paris today. hundreds of thousands on the streets venting over president macron's plan to raise the retirement age. also coming up, you fights up a new wave of russian airstrikes, air defenses lit up the skies over kyiv this morning.

>> i don't agree with vladimir putin's resume. >> we will meet a russian student who fled house arrest after becoming another victim of the kremlin crackdown on dissent. and a top u.s. official says iran's warring officials have agreed to send officials toward -- send officials to peace talks. i am brent goff. welcome. we begin this monday in france with a fresh wave of anger against man u mike rounds plans to change the country's pension system. hundreds of thousands joined a traditional made a demonstration today to condemn the plan which

would see the minimum retirement age raised by two years to the age 64. interior minister of the country says more than 100 police officers were injured in clashes with protesters across the country. >> clashes with police, smashed windows, paris is once again a light as angry people protest unpopular plans to post a minimum retirement age to 64. does marching here say this is a made a call for workers rights. -- mayday call for workers rights. >> we want to see our grandchildren work in grow up because we will have enjoyed our whole lives. >> young people, it is very important for us to be here because we are -- our generation

-- >> hundreds of thousands turned out across the country. much of the frustration it's -- is directed toward emmanuel macron. he says is needed to keep the french pension system viable. >> looking at opinion polls and rejections, this benefits extreme right parties because they symbolize anger toward emmanuel macron. he has four years left and it will be complicated for him to pass any new reforms. >> the pension law is now moving ahead and some think this mayday mobilization is the movement's last gasp after multiple nationwide strikes. they say they will keep up the

pressure and the father of this may be felt for years to come. >> trade unions are promising to keep the protest going. i asked our correspondent in paris to talk about what is happening there now. >> this square behind me is something that happened as it all began. protesters have directed at. that means macron resigned. trade union members are unhappy with the content of this pension reform. and the way it was passed. the french prime minister has

slammed that on the sidelines. this is across much of the world. the streets were full. i can see demonstrators in all directions. this is normally a celebration of all workers rights. there was a lot of frustration. they are looming over the whole affair. that is not what protesters say.

what is the longer-term political ramifications of all this resentment? this remains in office. this is just one political analyst described this as a political impasse. >> it is looking like a political impasse. he has another four years. will he be able to leave the country and govern for the next four years? it has proved entirely unpopular. we see cause for its bags --

cause for the resignation. he doesn't not listen to anyone. macron says these reforms are absolutely needed. france's population is needed. as both to one protester and he has recently don't care what it is like in other countries. it will make for a tricky time ahead in president macron. now to the were in ukraine. russia fired another barrage of missiles on monday. targeting cities across the

country. the air defenses accepted most of the rockets. 34 people were injured. the strikes are expected to continue. the counteroffensive by ukrainian forces could begin at any moment. >> as a another spark and i thought we should get out of the house. we were in the hallway, putting on our shoes when both doors were smashed by the explosions. i went outside and saw the garage was destroyed. everything was on fire. glass shards everywhere. had we been outside, we would

have been killed. >> dozens including children were wounded in recent attacks. many residents are frightened. >> we rest to the hallway and laid on the floor. and then the explosion wave twisted the door. we would have been trapped here if we stayed for five more seconds, then there were more explosions. i don't know what happened to the door but it was not easy to get inside the room. my child will need psychological help. >> in the morning, air defenses lit up these guys over kyiv. the ukrainian military said it shut down 15 of the 18 cruise missiles fired across the country. it is the latest wave of russian

airstrikes and that is in many places far from the front lines, they are being targeted across ukraine. >> our correspondent, nick connolly is in kyiv. he has more on mondays attacks. >> no casualties in kyiv. a lot more activity. a lot wider geography than just kyiv. it is believed they lived near industrial facilities and this was collateral damage. there seems to be what -- there seems to be some kind of logic to these attacks. people here in kyiv are very conscious of the fact that those

mornings are very serious indeed. >> nick connolly reporting from kyiv. russia's crackdown on opponents of its wharton ukraine has been well documented. lately, the kremlin has stepped up its efforts to stifle criticism. leading to what; the widest campaign of repression since the soviet union. recent targets have included students. question out of her shackles and on the run. getting goosebumps when she to inspect the moment she freed herself from house arrest and fled from russia to europe. >> right before i escaped, i was afraid because stupid thoughts kept coming into my head.

she knows a per skip attempt had failed, she would likely be in prison by now. she had been waiting under house arrest for the court verdict. her crimes handgun antiwar flyers and condemning the war in ukraine in a private chat with her fellow university students. >> that was my protest. i chose the most harmless methods for it. that is what i thought. i don't agree with vladimir putin's regime.

>> this is one of the most 20,000 russians who have been punished for their antiwar stance. another russian was sentenced to two years in prison because his daughter drew an antiwar picture. he also tried to flee russia but he was caught and arrested. a careless joke or critical post is all it takes to get a knock on the door from the secret service. the fsp and possibly end up behind bars. the russian parliament has also tightened a lot to make it more difficult for young men to avoid being conscripted.

it has made a trigger to lead -- leave the country. she believes repression and pressure will get even worse because the kremlin fears its own citizens. >> what if all the young women who were against the war had taken to the street and got to the kremlin? it is clear that people must be intimidated because of this. that serves the russian regime very well at the moment. >> the dream is to become a journalist. in another, freer russia, perhaps that would not have to remain a dream. >> earlier i spoke with the director of the anticorruption foundation as an ngo that was founded by the jail of russian opposition leader, alexi navalny. i asked him if dissent was dead in putin's russia. >> since the start of this brutal aggression, a number of

repressive laws has been put in place by the russian government that take -- make it very dangerous for people to criticize the war that russia has unleashed. the process that happened over the first weeks of invasion have faded out and now we see ridiculous verdicts and people can get fines or even jailed for antiwar posts on social media or just going out on the streets with blank sheets of paper. >> european countries bordering ukraine were torn between helping their neighbor as well as protecting their own farmers and that that some of them to introduce agricultural import bands. >> the eu hopes to keep the

green truck from ukraine on the go and europe united. ukraine had long been a big agricultural exporter but russia's invasion changed that. with its black seaports partly blocked, ukraine got their products to surround the world, overland through europe and the eu waived tariffs on ukrainian goods to help. farmers complained they were being left with mountains of unsolved produce. and that the availability damage their business. poland normally a staunch ally of ukraine, they even banned imports unilaterally. leaving long lines of ukraine

trucks stuck. ukraine foreign ministry called the restrictions on its grain exports via the eu categorically unacceptable. the agreement aims to let ukraine agricultural products travel through the eu but allow poland, romania, poland and slovakia and hungary to impose temporary restrictions on some. it gives the option to restrict nor produce in the future. if that's ukrainian goods into the eu without tariffs for another year. >> i think this is a success for the european union. it was possible to reach -- >> that compromise solution may get the trucks moving again.

eu leaders hope it will maintain the image of europe united in its support for ukraine. >> looking at other stories around the headlines -- headlines around the world. first republic had assets worth about $230 billion and more than $100 billion in deposits. this is the second largest retail bank to go under in u.s. history. in the u.s., the former model e. jean carroll returned to the witness stand against -- witness stand in her case against donald trump. trump is accused of raping her in a department store dressing room in 1996.

nurses in the u.k. are striking it an ongoing dispute over pay. it comes after union members rejected the author of a 5% pay raise. this latest action is the first to hit critical services including intensive care units as well as units giving chemotherapy. bulgaria's chief prosecutor has survived an assassination attempt unharmed. officials say his convoy was on its way to sophia with -- when a bomb exploded by the side of the road. the protesters were accused in failing to tackle corruption. they call for his resignation. the united nations top official incident says the countries were in general have agreed to send representatives to potential negotiations. the talks could be held in saudi arabia and they would focus on

establishing a durable truce. classes are still being reported despite an agreement between rival military forces to extend cease fire. >> eight tons of medical supplies. enough to treat over a thousand injured people. >> i hope this would be the first of only a number of batches that would come and i hope it will be extremely crucial for hospitals to be able to cater to the needs of thousands of people were flocking to their doors and waiting to get medical assistance. >> the conflict shows no signs of easing. shortly after the warring parties agreed to a 72 hour truce, violence broke out again in the capital. while foreign governments are scrambling to evacuate, thousands of sudanese are seeking refuge in neighboring countries. but many have no choice but to

hide in their homes amid rapidly deteriorating conditions. >> we had the sounds of artillery, we have to sleep on the floor. there is no food. >> in addition to food shortages, and jazz one that sudan's health care system is on the brink of collapse. >> many working and trained mines in the health care sector are fleeing sudan. there is a with drawl -- there is a withdrawal of many ngos and non-ngos due to direct attacks. it is a disaster. >> even before the fighting erupted, a third of sudanese were dependent on some form of humanitarian assistance. now fears are growing that a prolonged conflict could spread to the broader region.

it has suffered conflict in the past decade and climate change has left its deadly mark as well with severe drought and one of the world's first -- worst food insecurity crises. as the country moves deeper into crises, sudanese people are calling for international action to end the violence. >> eric reed asking about these mediation efforts and their chances of success. >> very low. i think it is almost impossible to imagine the leader meeting or even agreeing on a setting for socks. both men it seems to be are in

this fight to the end. >> to the end of what? the entire country and the civilian population? we know that many sudanese are fleeing to neighboring countries. are these neighbors? can they cope with arrivals of refugees? >> he already has almost 400,000 refugees overwhelmingly -- the disintegration of what we are witnessing could allow a country which has always had a center periphery dynamic -- very hard on the peripheral regions. if the center can't hold, the

peripheries will drift into extraordinary violence. >> what makes this even more tragic as we know sudan is rich in natural resources. it has what it takes to be a prosperous country. it is looking more and more like a failed state. maybe even a proxy war. how do you see the future? >> proxy war scenarios are all too possible. it is important to note that there is a tremendous amount of land in sudan, it could be the breadbasket of northeastern africa. the agricultural sector was allowed to disintegrate. this is one of the reasons sudan imports a great deal of food. it was one of the reasons malnutrition is so very high.

if we don't get humanitarian access with his convoys of food and medicine, we are going to see tens of thousands of people die. >> do you think the international community has what it takes to do just that? >> that remains to be seen. we have gotten some medicine from the port of sudan. we need a much more robust access and it seems likely. it is very dangerous.

>> we appreciate your time and your valuable insights on what is a story that seemed to go from bad to worse. thank you. in the u.k., fans of the royal family, that is the coronation of king charles the third. in just a few days, the king's possession will head down this road from buckingham palace, ending at westminster abbey, dedicated monarchists are camping out along the route, hoping to secure a course of view of the royals, hundreds of

thousands of people from the u.k. and around the world are expected to be in london on saturday for the crowning of the new king. here is a reminder of the top story we are following for this error. the french police have arrested hundreds of protesters taking part in nationwide demonstrations against plant pension reforms. classes work out in paris and other cities between protesters. after a short break i will be back to take you through the day. stick around, will be right back.

anchor: it is 10:00 p.m. and you are watching france 24. these are your headlines. hundreds of thousands gather on the streets of france for mayday protists -- protests against pension reform. we look at scuffles breaking out through the country. in cuba, fuel shortages forge look -- force the government to halt labor day celebrations. we have the latest. then, negotiations in the pipeline between sudan's warring army and paramilitary forces as deadly fighting connu