Iran defends plan to improve missile accuracy

Here are a few reasons to pick up a copy of The Guardian on Wednesday.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson apologised on Wednesday for a video showing his staffers joking about reports of a party in Downing Street during the COVID lockdown, saying he was furious but that he had been assured there was no party.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's wife, Carrie, has given birth to a baby girl, his office said.

France is home to some of the biggest luxury brands in the world. While many everyday businesses have struggled to bounce back from the health crisis, it’s been just the opposite for the most exclusive French labels. Jean-Noël Kapferer, professor emeritus of marketing, talks us through the success of luxury brands bouncing back from the pandemic. We also see how the luxury sector is making its way into the second-hand market, bringing in a whole new clientele.

The leader of the UK's opposition Labour party said on Sunday (December 12) that British Prime Minister Boris Johnson had broken the public's trust over COVID-19 regulations, making him "unfit for public office." Speaking on the BBC's Andrew Marr Show, Keir Starmer said Johnson posed a risk to public health following reports that parties were held at Downing Street during a 2020 Christmas lockdown when such festivities were banned.

In the south of France, the rocky inlets known as "Les Calanques" become popular as soon as spring arrives. Whether it's in Figuerolles, Cassis, Port-Miou or Marseille, these little coves are only accessible by sea. With their turquoise waters, they are small havens of peace. FRANCE 24 takes you to meet the people who live there all year round, guardians of this stunning natural beauty.

Here are a few reasons to pick up a copy of The Guardian on Wednesday⁣⁣⁣

Nine years after Timbuktu welcomed them as liberators, French troops are withdrawing from their final outpost in Mali's far north. There's no unruliness here, but also no cries of mission accomplished: the jihadist radicals who scattered when French-led forces intervened have long since morphed into a low-intensity insurgency with raids as far away as the far north of Benin. With the summer's chaos in Afghanistan still fresh in memories, when is the right time to end military intervention?

Nine years after Timbuktu welcomed them as liberators, French troops are withdrawing from their final outpost in Mali's far north. There's no unruliness here, but also no cries of mission accomplished: the jihadist radicals who scattered when French-led forces intervened have long since morphed into a low-intensity insurgency with raids as far away as the far north of Benin. With the summer's chaos in Afghanistan still fresh in memories, when is the right time to end military intervention?

The omicron coronavirus variant is spreading rapidly in the UK, where the number of daily infections has hit a record high. Health experts warn that it's the most significant threat to public health since the start of the pandemic.

A quarter of couples experience infertility despite regular sex, according to the French national research institute INSERM. The reasons include exposure to pollutants, endocrine disruptors, trying for a child later on in life, smoking and obesity. But in more than 15 percent of cases, the cause of the infertility remains unconfirmed. France's health minister has decided to take action by putting together a working group to better understand the issue and suggest changes by the end of the year. FRANCE 24's Eléonore Vanel and Camille Nedelec report.

Covid-19 has impacted businesses around the world. But despite rising costs, labour shortages and supply chain problems, French bosses are feeling more positive that at any point since the year 2000, according to a November survey. Stephen Carroll meets two entrepreneurs who are making and selling products in France: Christèle Merter, founder and CEO of the eco-conscious clothing company La Gentle Factory; and Benjamin Kuentz, who makes French whisky under his own label Maison Benjamin Kuentz.