Eurotopics.net

Georgia's Prime Minister Giorgi Gakharia has unexpectedly resigned in protest against a court order for the arrest of his most prominent rival, Nika Melia. Melia, head of the opposition party United National Movement, has been charged with involvement in the 2019 protests and the storming of parliament. Gakharia was pushing for Georgia's integration into the west. Observers are deflated.

Several German federal states on Friday evening commemorated the victims of the far-fight attack in Hanau on 19 February 2020. Press voices from across Europe reflect on why the commemoration and the debate about structural racism which was precipitated by the killings is so important for Germany.

Facebook has blocked all news pages and many government pages in Australia in response to a planned law that requires it to pay for content from media companies that is distributed via its platform. Prime Minister Scott Morrison is now appealing for international support in showing the tech giants what they can and cannot do. Most of Europe's press is clearly on his side.

French President Macron has announced at the G5 Sahel summit that the EU-backed Operation Barkhane will continue in the Sahel, although the number of French troops in the region will be reduced this autumn. The military operation has been running in Burkina Faso, Chad, Mali, Mauritania and Niger since 2014, with the aim of fighting Islamist terror. Commentators take very different views of what it has achieved.

In Minsk, two journalists from the Polish-based broadcaster Belsat have been sentenced to two years in prison on charges of organising protests against the head of state Alexander Lukashenka. Yekaterina Andreyeva and Darya Chulsova had reported on an opposition demonstration via livestream in November. Commentators provide details and background info.