Niger's coup leaders have tried to expel France's ambassador, but Paris says it doesn't recognize their authority to order him out. Macron said on TV he was "literally" a "hostage," stuck in the French Embassy in Niamey.

Germany has wanted reform of the UN Security Council for years. But its bids to join the exclusive circle of permanent members have always failed.

Over a week on from the devastating flash floods that washed whole neighbourhoods into the sea in eastern Libya, killing thousands, Libya is in dire need of assistance. Years of war and political division mean the country is badly ill-equipped to coordinate the international help that has been offered.

Many Catalans have long called for an independent Catalonia. The dispute over the region’s future divides not only Spanish but also Catalan society.

This week, five US citizens freed from prison in Iran were able to embrace their loved ones back home. Under the deal brokered by Qatar, five Iranians detained in the United States were also released. The agreement included the unfreezing of nearly $6 billion in Iranian assets. So is the deal a sign of warming ties between Washington and Tehran? We put the question to David Smith, Washington bureau chief for the Guardian.

Cooperation between Tunisia and the EU to limit irregular migration is proving difficult. Both parties have something to win and much to lose.

Fentanyl addiction is a scourge that's sweeping the United States. This dangerous synthetic opioid, 50 times stronger than heroin, is imported from Mexico by drug cartels. With the arrival of fentanyl, the cartels no longer needed to grow opium or rely on rural communities to produce it. Fentanyl is lightweight, discreet and easy to produce and transport. It can be passed off as a harmless pill, which explains the high number of deaths from overdoses.

Starting on Saturday September 23, China is hosting the Asian Games, a major multi-sport event held every four years between the Olympics. The 19th edition, postponed from last year, brings together some 12,000 athletes from across the continent, competing in 40 sports over two weeks in the eastern city of Hangzhou. For the first time, e-sports are featured as an official medal sport event, with seven golds on offer. But a lot of attention is also focused on what's happening outside the tracks and arenas. FRANCE 24's Oliver Farry tell us more about the geopolitical aspect of the event.

Josep Borrell, the EU's high representative for foreign and security policy, speaks to Talking Europe from New York, where he is attending the annual United Nations General Assembly. We discuss the big issues facing the EU in the world: Ukrainian grain exports and food security; the conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia; the EU's strategy in the Sahel, and migration.

As record numbers of migrants continue to arrive on the small Italian island of Lampedusa, FRANCE 24 looks back at the shipwreck of 2013, which saw 368 people drown off the island. Our reporters met a witness to the tragedy, a survivor and the island's doctor who registered the deaths. All of them want to put an end to these shipwrecks, which have made the Mediterranean the deadliest migrant route in the world.

In Nigeria, the first West African comic art exhibition is opening eyes, hearts and minds to a new way of looking at heroes.

It's taken decades, but India's parliament has passed a law guaranteeing more seats for female politicians. But bringing more women into politics remains an uphill battle.