Ahead of the first round of France's presidential election on Sunday, far-left candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon is still trying to channel voters, this time using holograms. On the other side of the political spectrum, the far-right's Marine Le Pen continues to close the gap on incumbent Emmanuel Macron in the polls.

Hardly a week goes by in Cameroon without a video emerging that documents violence against gay or transgender people. Our Observers, LGBT rights activists, brought this worrying phenomenon to our attention. In this episode of The Observers Direct, we visited them on the ground to see how they help victims and fight to change public attitudes.

Incumbent Emmanuel Macron and his far-right challenger Marine Le Pen have both made it to the April 24 second round of the French presidential election. They have already embarked on a final fortnight of bruising campaigning ahead of a run-off whose outcome is far less certain than it was in 2017. FRANCE 24's Charles Pellegrin reports from Le Pen's surprise visit to a rural area. Plus, Europe editor Catherine Nicholson explains how this election could greatly impact the future of NATO and the EU.

There are calls from the US and Britain for an investigation after Ukrainian soldiers of the Azov regiment were reportedly injured by a "poisonous substance" during a Russian attack on the port city of Mariupol. No evidence has yet been gathered. The UK foreign secretary says it would be "a callous escalation" of the war. The Pentagon says it's "deeply concerning". Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has already expressed his fears that Russia could deploy chemical weapons in his country.

There are calls from the US and Britain for an investigation after Ukrainian soldiers of the Azov regiment were reportedly injured by a "poisonous substance" during a Russian attack on the port city of Mariupol. No evidence has yet been gathered. The UK foreign secretary says it would be "a callous escalation" of the war. The Pentagon says it's "deeply concerning". Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has already expressed his fears that Russia could deploy chemical weapons in his country.

The focus of the battle for the French presidential runoff is now turning to international strategy: FRANCE 24's Clovis Casali tells us all about Marine Le Pen's foreign policy plans. The far-right candidate warns against sending any more weapons to Ukraine and is calling for a rapprochement between NATO and Russia once Moscow's war in Ukraine winds down.

They're calling it the battle of Donbas. After nearly two months of mishaps and setbacks, Russia is putting all its might into a bid to capture the entire east of Ukraine. But will it capture it or flatten it? We ask our guests about the Kremlin's endgame.

Israeli police blocked a flag-waving march that is considered a provocation to Palestinians. A similar event last year came on the eve of a deadly war between Israel and Hamas.

Middle Eastern countries are still on the fence when it comes to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Their citizens are pointing out the West's double standards around conflict and refugees. Should Europe be worried?

Spain’s Alejandro Sanchez, Germany’s Marie-Thérèse Kaiser and Italy’s Fabrizio Busnengo all have two things in common: They are under 35 and are positioning their respective far-right political parties at the gates of power. Each of them shrugs off the dark side of their countries’ history, campaigning with gusto for parties that are less than a decade old: Vox in Spain, Germany's Alternative für Deutschland (AfD) and Brothers of Italy. Our correspondents Sarah Morris, Céline Schmitt, Armelle Exposito, Anne Mailliet, Louise Malnoy and Lorenza Pensa report on the new faces of the far right in Europe.

It was only a leak of a draft. Yet punches have already been thrown outside the US Supreme Court in the first standoff over Justice Samuel Alito's 98-page argument in favour of overturning the 1973 Roe v. Wade ruling that legalised abortion in the United States. We ask whether the document leaked to Politico is a turning point for more than just reproductive rights.

Ten-month old Davyd suffers from a life-threatening illness. His mother has fled Ukraine to Germany with him and his brother, making their struggle for survival even more difficult.