A new report suggests that the Spanish government used the controversial Pegasus software to monitor the phones of dozens of Catalan independence figures.

Award-winning Scottish singer-songwriter Emeli Sandé is back with her soon-to-be-released fourth studio album, "Let's Say for Instance". She stopped by the FRANCE 24 studios to chat about making the record, as well as her move from a major to an indie label. The musician also tells us about filming one of her new videos in Paris, media coverage of her sexuality and taking part in a charity concert for Ukraine.

We take a look at some of the independent features in the sidebar sections of the 75th Cannes Film Festival. Olivia Salazar-Winspear tells us about Philippe Faucon’s "Les Harkis", which is screening in the Director's Fortnight selection. Set in 1959, it shines a light on the Algerian men who were enlisted to fight for the French Army in units known as Harkis and explores the repercussions they faced as a newly independent Algeria emerged from a deeply traumatic war of independence.

Wei Fenghe slammed US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin's "smearing" accusation that China was causing regional instability. He said Beijing would do whatever it takes to ensure reunification with Taiwan.

The leader of Scotland's government said Scotland was "ripped" out of the EU as she outlined a possible route to Scottish independence, including a referendum late next year.

The remains of Congolese icon Patrice Lumumba, the country's first prime minister, are laid to rest in Kinshasa. Belgium returned a tooth belonging to the murdered independence hero earlier this month. Also, African ministers of education were in Paris on Thursday for a UNESCO summit on tackling the devastating effect that the pandemic has had on education.

On the 60th anniversary of Algerian independence, we take a look at the French exhibitions paying tribute to Algeria's freedom and exploring the two countries' shared history. In Marseille, the Museum of European and Mediterranean Civilisations has dedicated an exhibit to resistance icon Emir Abdelkader, the religious-turned-military leader who led the struggle against France's colonial invasion.

Ukrainians are marking 31 years since they broke free from the Russia-dominated Soviet Union, exactly six months after Moscow's started a war to subdue the country once again.

As the Scottish government pushes on with its bid to hold a referendum on leaving the United Kingdom, with a hearing scheduled at the British Supreme Court on October 11 and 12, Scotland's Cabinet Secretary for External Affairs Angus Robertson has told FRANCE 24 that his government is "not giving up".

The military junta is observing the 75th anniversary of independence with a gesture of amnesty, but critics have called it a stunt. Thousands still remain locked up as authorities continue to crack down on dissenters.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen are in Tallinn. Estonia's Independence Day coincides with Russia's invasion of Ukraine.

Britain is in the throes of a serious economic crisis and many Scots are wondering if things wouldn’t be better if their country was independent.