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A look back at the brief and tragic life of Zayar Thaw, wunderkind Burmese rapper who became a member of parliament alongside Aung San Suu Kyi, before being executed by the Burmese junta in 2022.

Myanmar's Zayar Thaw

A look back at the brief and tragic life of Zayar Thaw, the talented Burmese rapper who became a member of parliament.

The Rapper Politician

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Camels have been part of daily life in the Middle East and North Africa for thousands of years. To honour these beautiful animals, the United Nations has declared 2024 the "International Year of the Camelid". In Europe, these animals are becoming more popular.  In France, camels are trained for therapeutic or sporting purposes... or to perform at weddings.

the camel population is increasing in Europe, used for racing, to perform at weddings, and for their rich milk.

Re: Camels of Europe

Igor Smilev's life has been marked by pain and a sense of powerlessness. The 48-year-old lost his parents and sister to cancer and he is convinced that the cause of their illness lies in the air. For decades, North Macedonia has had the worst levels of air pollution in Europe.

For decades, Northern Macedonia has had the worst air pollution levels in Europe.

Pollution in North Macedonia

Tidying, clearing out, decluttering: social media is awash with advice on how to simplify or improve your life by living with less things. Minimalists want to cut down on worldly possessions and even people, getting rid of toxic people in their lives. But does minimalism make them happier?

Minimalists want to cut down on worldly possessions. But does living with less things make them happier?

Re: Minimalism - A Life of Luxury?

As the war continues, tens of thousands of Ukrainian women have lost their husbands in the fighting, a difficult situation in this war-weary country.

ARTE Reportage

Ukraine: Nation of Widows

France and Germany have stepped up their cooperation by creating a special Franco-German police force. The operational unit made up of German federal police and French gendarmes can operate in both countries and specialises in policing international football matches.

France and Germany have stepped up their cooperation by creating a special binational police force.

The Franco-German Police

At the borders of Norway, Finland and Russia, the small town of Kirkenes plays a key geopolitical role. A battalion of some 700 soldiers is stationed in this northern Norwegian town of 3,500 people. Oslo asserts its territory in Russia’s shadow and is an important outpost for NATO and the EU.

At the borders of Norway, Finland and Russia, the small town of Kirkenes plays a key role for NATO and the EU.

Re: NATO's Northern Frontier

12-year-old Saoirse Coughlan from Dublin has moved to the remote Aran Islands off the west coast of Ireland for a year of schooling. Her aim is to learn Irish fluently by the end of her stay.

Re: Irish for Beginners

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A special edition of ARTE's geopolitics programme focusing on the Strait of Gibraltar, a key point of contact between the two shores of the Mediterranean.

Mapping the World

Close-up on the Strait of Gibraltar, a key point of contact between the two shores of the Mediterranean.

Strait of Gibraltar: Between Europe and Africa

Viktor Orban faces stiff competition in the European elections: Péter Magyar, head of a party that is rising in the polls and wants to break out of the conflictual relationship with the European Union.

Mapping the World Essentials

Viktor Orbán's Hungary & the EU

From his gilded youth in Europe to the bloody repression of the Arab Spring, this is the engrossing story of Muammar Gaddafi's second son who, despite arrest warrants for crimes against humanity, is running for election in Libya.

Saif Al Islam Gaddafi's Comeback

Muammar Gaddafi's second son ran for election in Libya, despite arrest warrants for crimes against humanity.

Son of a Dictator

Since Narendra Modi was elected Prime Minister of India in 2014, Hindu nationalism, which first emerged in the 1920s, has grown considerably. In this ideology, minorities within India are considered second-class citizens and Hindu militias spread fear and terror. This documentary analyses an ideology of hate that is disrupting democracy in the subcontinent and spreading violence at home as well as abroad, in the Indian diaspora in the UK and North America.

How extreme Hindu nationalists cause fear and terror in India and amongst the Indian diaspora abroad.

India: Hate as Ideology

The Houthis rule a third of Yemen with an iron fist, after ten years of civil war. Their ideology is as ferociously anti-American and antisemitic, as it is pro-Palestine with young people indoctrinated into a strict religious view of the world that burns with anger.

The Houthis rule a third of Yemen with an iron fist, after ten years of civil war.

Yemen: Houthi Fury

The right to freedom of information is enshrined in the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. But press freedoms are far from being universally respected. Mapping the World looks at the issue across the globe.

Press Freedom: An Antidote to Tyranny

Press freedoms are far from being universally respected worldwide. Mapping the World looks at the issue across the globe.

Brexit has caused old tensions to flare up in Northern Ireland and threatens a fragile peace. The introduction of controls on goods between Great Britain and Northern Ireland have angered the loyalist community, whilst some in the Nationalist community see a united Ireland, inside the EU, within their grasp.
This documentary looks at the impact of Brexit on Northern Ireland, where a violent past, a conflict that claimed 3500 lives, still haunt the present.

A focus on the impact of Brexit on Northern Ireland, where a violent past still haunt the present.

Northern Ireland: A Fragile Peace

Insights

The Olympic Games puts the host country in the spotlight and Paris 2024 is no different. This major event is a security and logistical challenge as well as a golden opportunity for nations to project soft power across the world.

The Olympic Games puts the host city and nation in the spotlight and Paris 2024 is no different.

Geopolitics of the Olympic Games

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Damien, his wife Claire, and their three children, look after the family flock of four hundred sheep and eighty goats, in the breathtaking landscape of the Swiss Alps. But it's not always easy to combine family life and shepherding. This film is a touching portrait immersed in the daily life of an atypical family.

Damien, Claire, and their three children, look after the family flock in the breathtaking landscape of the Swiss Alps

A Shepherd Family

Biniam Girmay is a promising young cyclist from Eritrea. He dreams of taking part in the Tour de France one day. Despite all the obstacles in his way, Biniam climbs the world rankings step by step and competes in races in Europe. Will he manage to join a top team for the pinnacle of competitive cycling?

Cycling Ace

 Will the promising young cyclist from Eritrea manage to join a top team the Tour de France?

Biniam Girmay

As her grandmother suffers from Alzheimer's, the filmmaker asks her grandfather about the darker side of their family history in this very personal story.

With her grandmother suffering from Alzheimer's, the director asks her grandfather about the darker side of her family history.

Until Memory Separates Us

Twelve women talk about their experiences of the menopause, an upheaval that can paradoxically prove liberating. This enlightening documentary by Julie Talon offers a fascinating insight into what is still seen as a taboo subject.

Twelve women talk about their experiences of the menopause, an upheaval that can paradoxically prove liberating.

Menopause: Women Speak Out

Nowhere in Europe are so few children being born as in Italy. What remains of the joie de vivre of young people when the future leaves so little room for optimism? Jagoda Marinić sets out to meet these creative young people who don't see starting a family as an end in itself, and who find other ways to achieve personal fulfilment.

Europe with Jagoda Marinic

In Italy, young creatives talk about their passions and idea of self-fulfilment.

Nice to meet you: Italy

This documentary is a patchwork of material that gives insight into the mind of filmmaker, poet, and writer Thomas Brasch, who died twenty years ago. Material from his personal video diary, spliced with filmed interviews and archive footage of his plays, add up to a portrait of a Brasch who is strange, creative, and challenging.

Adocumentary as a patchwork of material that gives insight into the mind of filmmaker Thomas Brasch

BRASCH: Fear and Desire

Family fights, drugs, self-harm and money problems were part of Joana’s harsh reality for a long time. She started stripping because she was able to live in a flat above the club without paying rent. It was the first time she had a solid income and a job in a safe place, with people to turn to in times of need.

This programme by German channel ARD is part of The European Collection, a joint initiative of European public media (ARD, ARTE, France Télévisions, SRG SSR and ZDF), coordinated by ARTE.

Joana never planned to become a professional stripper, but now that she is, she doesn’t regret it.

Hard Life – I strip, so what?

Switching viewpoints

Kids

In Leicester, England, the Unglamorous Music Project aims to get older women, in their sixties and seventies, into playing music. They have 66 days to learn an instrument, write a song and perform in public.

ARTE Info Plus

In Leicester, England, the Unglamorous Music Project aims to get older women, in their sixties and seventies, into playing music.

Granny Punk in Leicester

Mariusz would never have become the artist he is now if Poland had not joined the European Union. He now creates striking murals in cities all over the world.

Europe of Artists

Mariusz Waras, Street Artist

Publishing house Marotta&Cafiero left the upmarket streets of Naples to set up shop in a crime-riddled neighbourhood. That was back in 2010, when the mafia reigned supreme and drug trafficking was rife. In 2017, the publishing house decided to open a book shop in the neighbourhood, which has flourished ever since.

Known locally as “book dealers”, this Naples publishing house has flourished in a neighbourhood riddled with crime.

Books over bullets in Naples

JRR Tolkien’s literary works have fascinated the Italian far-right. His intricate and imaginary world where elves, hobbits and orcs live together without ever mixing coincides with the values they defend. Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni made several references to Tolkien during her campaign and most recently, opened a new exhibition about the author at Rome’s National Gallery.

Italy’s far-right government has a growing interesting in shaping the country’s cultural institutions.

The far-right and Italy’s cultural scene

Europe as a source of inspiration: Meeting artists from across the continent whose works spring from Europe’s cultural diversity.

Saype is a graffiti artist with a difference. He doesn't spray his works on walls but in fields and on grass, using his own biodegradable paint. His huge works of art are best appreciated by drone, where the true scale is revealed. 

Gymnastics

Saype, Green-Fingered Graffitti Artist

The American director Peter Sellars was invited to the Salzburg Festival. For the 2017 edition he staged The Clemency of Titus by Mozart.

Carte Blanche to Peter Sellars

Square Artiste: Peter Sellars

Through the eyes of artists

Diwa is only 11 years old. She is one of the thousands of victims of a crime that is hardly reported on in Europe but which is causing havoc in the Philippines. She was raped by her parents, live on the internet, to satisfy the desires of foreign paedophiles who paid for the spectacle of her rape, giving instructions from a distance.

Philippines: Child Rape Online

Thousands of children in the Philippines have been abused, live on the internet. Report on a shocking crime.

Can we continue to work productively and safely in a world that is heating up? This documentary sheds light on the impact of rising temperatures on the workplace and on worker’s health.

Can we continue to work productively and safely in a world that is heating up? 

Too Hot to Work

Forty years ago, in June 1982, Israel invaded southern Lebanon, dubbed Operation Peace for Galilee by the Israelis. A small guerrilla group came together in secret to resist this offensive. Formed and supported by the Islamic Republic of Iran, it officially declared itself in 1985 as Hezbollah: The Party of God.
Four decades later, this small group has grown to become one of the most important military and political forces in the Middle East. A party of resistance for some, a terrorist group for others, Hezbollah is admired as much as it is feared. But the organisation, practically a state within a state, is living through turbulent times as Lebanon is experiencing a major political and economic crisis.

As  Lebanon experiences an existential crisis, a focus on the history of militant group Hezbollah, a controversial organisation supported by Iran.

Lebanon: Inside Hezbollah

Chinese men are suffering. There are simply not enough women to go around since China implemented its one-child policy in 1979.  This means that 1 in 5 Chinese men will not be able to find a partner in five years’ time.

Chinese men are suffering. There are simply not enough women to go around since China implemented its one-child policy in 1979. 

China: Men without Women

In the Jenin refugee camp, children like Youssef and Rayan risk their lives when they go to school or play in the street. The Israeli army has stepped up its presence in the north of the West Bank, a stronghold of the Palestinian armed struggle. But the growing violence is jeopardising the future of these children.

In the Jenin refugee camp, children like Youssef and Rayan risk their lives when they go to school or play in the street. 

Re: Growing up in the West Bank

Once a pariah on the international stage, the war in Ukraine seems to have put Nicolas Maduro, president of Venezuela, back at the centre of the game: The west needs Venezuelan oil after imposing sanctions on Russia. From revolutionary hero to increasingly autocratic ruler, this documentary follows in the footsteps of a canny and ruthless politician who never ceases to surprise his opponents and always seems to bounce back.

This documentary follows in the footsteps of a canny and ruthless politician who never ceases to surprise his opponents.

Maduro: From Socialism to Dictatorship

The average Belgian consumes 48kg of sugar a year, twice the maximum amount recommended by the World Health Organisation. And they’re not the only ones for whom sugar is a daily drug. Researchers have found that sugar can have the same effect on our brains as narcotics – lab rats in one experiment found it more addictive than cocaine. And sugar is everywhere, even where you least expect it, leading to over-consumption that’s rapidly becoming a public health crisis.

This programme by Belgian broadcaster RTBF is part of the European Collection, a joint initiative from European public service media (ARD, ARTE, France Télévisions, SRG SSR, RTBF and ZDF), coordinated by ARTE.

Sugar has become our daily drug, and this often hidden enemy is leading us into a public health crisis.

Sugar, the daily drug

Recent scandals have revealed the brutal methods used in training young athletes. This damning investigation, based on numerous eyewitness accounts, exposes the workings of an elite training culture that sacrifices children in the name of sporting glory.

Winning at Any Price

An investigation exposing how elite sport sacrifices children in the name of sporting glory.

Children in Elite Sport

Californian senator Kamala Harris will become the first black and female vice president if Joe Biden wins the US election on 3 November. A charismatic speaker and strong debater, Harris has risen to prominence quickly in her home state. A portrait of a pure product of the American dream.

USA: Kamala Harris, a Californian Success Story

The European Environment Agency has published its annual report on bathing water quality. 96% of bathing waters meet EU quality standards, and over 85% are of excellent quality. But the assessment criteria have been criticised: The results measure only bacteriological pollution and not chemical pollution.

The European Environment Agency has published its annual report on bathing water quality to a mixed reception.

Water Bathing Quality in Europe

In 1987, Bashir Abu Rabiah worked as an assistant on pyrotechnics and special effects on the film Rambo III. In this instalment of the Hollywood saga, Sylvester Stallone crosses the desert on horseback and fights alone against Soviet occupying forces in Afghanistan. The film, shot in the Negev desert in Israel, had far-reaching consequences for the Bedouin population.

Revisiting the filming locations of 1988’s Rambo III ‘rented out’ by the Israeli army to Hollywood.

Under a Blue Sun

In 2019, Morocco celebrated 20 years of King Muhammad VI's reign. He's managed to impose his own style through gradual reforms. But the country is also deeply divided and unequal. Though the King wishes to reform, he must face opposing forces of tradition and common law. The challenges are numerous and the threats are significant. He must constantly walk a political tightrope to keep revolution at bay.

The King must constantly walk a political tightrope to keep revolution at bay.

Mohammed VI, The King With Two Faces

On 4 April 1949, the North Atlantic Treaty was signed, enshrining the creation of NATO just four years after the end of the Second World War. The primary objective of this military alliance of twelve European and North American countries was to prevent war in Europe and to counter the expansion of the Soviet bloc. Since its creation in the Cold War, the organisation has grown from 12 to 31 member states - including several former Eastern Bloc nations. Weakened by its turbulent history, NATO is facing a growing number of challenges: the difficulty of coordinating its members, the logistical obstacles in the event of an attack on European soil, and the threat, raised by Donald Trump, of an American withdrawal, at a time when European defence is almost entirely dependent on the United States.

A look back at the turbulent history of the military alliance facing unprecedented challenges in the face of Putin's Russia.

Putin, NATO, and Europe

This summer, all eyes are on Paris. Can the French capital keep its promise of safer, cheaper and more sustainable Olympics? Across Europe, democracies have become skeptical about the benefits of hosting the Games, as local governments are faced with a general lack of fervor, complaints about costs, concern around sustainability, and security threats.
 

Can Paris revive Olympics enthusiasm?

Faced with global skepticism, Paris 2024 organisers hope to lead the way into a new era of safer, cheaper and more sustainable Olympics.

ARTE Europe Weekly

An unprecedented investigation tracks the journey of assault rifles, aircraft and armoured tanks made in Switzerland to regions grappling with armed conflict. Aircrafts intended for civilian transport are being used in Afghanistan for intelligence purposes and Sig Sauer rifles arm Saudi soldiers against rebels in Yemen.

This programme of the Swiss channel SRG SSR is part of The European Collection, a joint initiative of European public media (ARD, ARTE, France Télévisions, SRG SSR and ZDF), coordinated by ARTE.

What happens to weapons manufactured in Switzerland, the cradle of neutrality and international law?

War, made in Switzerland

Since 2016, athletes displaced from the home nations have been allowed to compete at the Olympic Games under the Refugee Olympic Team flag. ARTE meets the Olympians who are dreaming of gold, in exile.

Paris 2024: Refugee Athletes

ARTE meets the Olympians who are dreaming of gold, in exile.

Abductions take place on a massive scale in Nigeria. In one week in March, almost 500 people were abducted in two towns in the north of the country, many of them school children. On average, ten people are kidnapped every day in the country, five times as many as in Mexico and Colombia combined.

Kidnapping in Nigeria

In Nigeria, gangs kidnap women, men and children en masse in order to extort ransom money from their families.

The war in Ukraine poses acute geopolitical challenges for the Europe. This documentary goes behind the scenes of EU diplomats and follows the work of Josep Borrell, High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and his team. It’s a rare insight into the complex machinery of modern diplomacy in a dangerous world.

A rare insight into the complex machinery of European diplomacy in a dangerous world.

Inside European Diplomacy

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In Sweden the supreme court has granted to the Sami people exclusive fishing and hunting rights in reindeer-herding areas. A victory for an ancient indigenous people is a scandal for many Swedish hunters as the decision revives old tension in Swedish far north.

Re: Hunting in the Arctic Circle

In Sweden the supreme court has granted to the Sami people exclusive fishing and hunting rights in in reindeer-herding areas. A victory for an ancient indigenous people is a scandal for many Swedish hunters as the decision revives old tension in Swedish far north.

The Sami and the Swedish State

Citizens across Europe who used to belong to the lower middle class have fallen into poverty. An in-depth investigation into the precariat, a new social class of financially insecure citizens who, although they are employed, find it very difficult to make ends meet.

The Middle Class in Crisis

An in-depth investigation into the precariat, a new social class of financially insecure citizens who, although they are employed, find it very difficult to make ends meet.

Working But Poor

In Spain, depopulation in rural areas has left many medieval and Renaissance churches in peril. Dubbed “Empty Spain”, the phenomenon is a consequence of a mass rural exodus that took place in the 50s and 60s. Now, countless religious buildings are neglected as a result. But historians, archeologists and architects are banding together to revitalise these cultural treasures.

Scientists are striving to preserve Spain's ancient churches, threatened by rural exodus.

Rescuing Spanish Churches

A young actor decides to spread social messages to the people of Afghanistan using laughter: a dramatic approach in a region plagued by bombs, threats and disasters. But on August 15th, 2021, Afghanistan falls into the hands of the Taliban and Karim finds himself in extreme danger. He receives death threats and is forced to abandon what he loves most: his art.

A young Afghan actor decides to become the Afghan Charlie Chaplin: Karim Asir wants to change his country using pantomime and humor. 

Laughing in Afghanistan

Water is an increasingly contested resource around the world and disputes along the world’s longest river are particularly tense. The Nile is vital to the survival and development of Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia. And with Ethiopia building the largest dam in Africa on the Nile, this dispute of water is heating up.

Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia and the UAE are locked in a power struggle of the waters of the Nile.

The Battle of the Nile

In Scandinavian countries, "Green Care" (or nature therapy) is a well-established alternative to traditional retirement homes. It combines agricultural activities with care services. At the age of 74, German pensioner Heinz-Dieter Herper is starting a new life: he is moving to a farm...

Life on the Farm

At the age of 74, German pensioner Heinz-Dieter Herper is starting a new life: he is moving to a farm...

Re: Green Care

One year on from the Taliban taking Kabul, ARTE returns to Afghanistan to see what life is like under Taliban law

Under Taliban Law

Violence, drugs and prostitution are a fact of life for the many children in the 5th district of Bucharest, considered the most dangerous in the city. From the Roma minority, Valeriu Nicolae grew up in poverty. With his teams, he ensures that these children have a roof, food and above all that they have access to education.

Violence, drugs and prostitution are a fact of life for the many children in the 5th district of Bucharest.

Re: Bucharest’s Lost Children

For sport, to perform at weddings, or for their rich milk, camels are becoming more common in Europe.

The 100-year-old ship, The Rocket, steams its way from the capital Dhaka along the waterways of Bangladesh. In this observational documentary we meet characters from all walks of life who use this popular means of transport in a poetic snapshot of Bangladeshi society.

A Film by Kamar Ahmad Simon

A poetic snapshot of Bangladeshi society on the 100-year-old steamboat, The Rocket.

Day After...

In the beginning there was Billy Graham. In the midst of the Cold War, the US preacher established himself at the ‘pope’ of the evangelicals - a conservative Christian movement that aims to expand the social influence of religion in society. His great crusade was then appropriated by a powerful political-religious lobby in the following decades.

The Great Crusade

In the midst of the Cold War, Billy Graham spearheaded a conservative Christian movement that wanted to align society with strict religious belief.

Evangelicals for World Domination (1/3)

From the 1970s onwards, the secularisation of America was increasingly a source of dismay for evangelical leaders. In a society they denounced as decadent, they fought to preserve their version of family values. When Ronald Reagan was elected president in 1980, he was conservative Christians favoured candidate.

Evangelicals in Power

From the 1970s onwards, dismay at increasing secularisation spurred evangelicals to gain political power.