Medical experts say the hantavirus outbreak linked to a cruise ship remains contained and should not trigger fears of another Covid-style crisis. Speaking to FRANCE 24, former Institut Pasteur chief Christian Bréchot said human-to-human transmission of the virus is rare, but warned the incident highlights the need for faster testing and stronger outbreak response systems worldwide.

President Emmanuel Macron has chosen Kenya as the stage for a renewed French push to strengthen ties with Africa through business, diplomacy and culture. The Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi on Monday and Tuesday will bring together heads of state, executives and artists as France seeks to promote a partnership-based approach to the continent. FRANCE 24's Bastien Renouil reports. 

Fresh demands for a second Scottish independence referendum have intensified after Labour’s heavy election losses across the UK, piling further pressure on Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer. With the Scottish National Party claiming a sweeping victory in Scotland and Nigel Farage’s Reform UK surging south of the border, SNP figures said the results showed the urgent need for Scotland to break away from Westminster.

Health experts say a hantavirus outbreak linked to a cruise ship should not be compared to Covid-19, despite growing public concern and online misinformation. Professor of Medecine Paul Hunter of the University of East Anglia said the virus is well known, spreads only through close contact, and poses “very little risk” to the wider public, even as passengers continue to be monitored after disembarking in the Canary Islands.

Tensions between the United States and Iran have escalated after reports of US fire on Iranian-linked tankers in the Gulf of Oman. Tehran warned of retaliation against American targets in the region as diplomatic efforts continue over a proposed deal involving sanctions, nuclear limits, and maritime security.

Spanish passengers and crew from the quarantined ship have begun disembarking as an international evacuation effort unfolds in the Canary Islands. Authorities say strict health protocols are in place, while officials and experts stress the virus poses far less risk than COVID-19 despite growing public concern. FRANCE 24's Sarah Morris reports.

Israel carried out strikes across Lebanon on Saturday, killing at least nine people in the south according to authorities, with raids also targeting a highway not far from Beirut outside of Hezbollah's traditional strongholds. The fresh attacks were some of the most intense since the start of a three-week-old ceasefire between Israel and Iran-backed Hezbollah that has done little to halt daily exchanges of fire, mostly in southern Lebanon.

The first plane carrying passengers evacuated from the hantavirus-hit MV Hondius cruise ship departed Tenerife for a hospital in Madrid, followed shortly after by a plane carrying five French nationals bound for Paris. Follow our live blog for all the latest updates. 

Keir Starmer vowed Friday to remain as Britain's prime minister after disastrous local elections saw his centre-left Labour party humiliated across the UK, with disillusioned voters backing hard-right and nationalist parties. Thursday's ballots – Starmer's biggest electoral test since Labour ousted the Conservatives in 2024 – left the British leader under intense pressure after the party suffered a historic mauling in its Welsh heartlands.

Militants detonated a car bomb at a checkpoint in northwestern Pakistan and opened fire on police, killing at least 15 and wounding three, officials said on Sunday. Gunmen stormed the police checkpost after the car blast, opening fire, according to officials who said they also used small drones in the attack.

Fashionable A-listers evoked the theme “fashion is art” to embody works of art at the Met Gala, Moscow held a modest annual Victory Day parade that didn’t include heavy weapons for the first time in nearly two decades and anti-immigration party Reform UK made significant gains across England in local and regional elections: FRANCE 24 looks back at some of the week's most striking images.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said Saturday that the conflict in Ukraine is nearing its end after he oversaw a military parade on Red Square commemorating the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II – a show that didn't include heavy weapons for the first time in nearly two decades. Talking to reporters, Putin accused Western “globalist elites” of arming Ukraine to defeat and break up Russia and declared that “I think the matter is coming to an end.”