Stars set for Met Gala, fashion's biggest night

Former French model Juliette G. says it took her years to make sense of how she ended up in a New York bedroom with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.

The 43-year-old is one of two ex-models who have accused Daniel Siad, a French modelling scout with close ties to the late US financier, of having groomed them with the aim of introducing them to potential abusers.

Their stories come as part of a wider reckoning with rape and sexual assault in the wake of the global MeToo movement in recent years that has seen a number of accusations in France and beyond. 

"I identified quite a few stages that led me there," Juliette told AFP.

"These men, through manipulation, conduct tests to see how far a young woman will give in."

For Juliette, who has asked to withhold her surname to protect her privacy, it all started in 2004, when she was 21.

Siad -- who denies the accusations against him -- approached her in a Paris avenue. She calls this the "targeting" stage.

He asked her if she was a model and if she would be interested in "professional opportunities" in the United States.

"I think he was trying to gauge whether I would accept without asking too many questions. Which I did -- I let things stay vague so I wouldn't come across as difficult," she said.

She was soon sent a plane ticket to New York and an address in the city. She had no other information, but she felt reassured when her modelling agency said they knew Siad.

In New York, she headed to an address on Madison Avenue, where she briefly met Epstein, whose name Siad had not mentioned until then.

The financier would be convicted in 2008 of soliciting sex from girls as young as 14.

- 'In his debt' -

Epstein asked for her passport.

This, she explained, was the second stage of her grooming -- "hostage taking". Without her passport, she could not leave.

Epstein then announced he did not have time to see her that day, but gave her $120 and said she could use his limousine to go shopping.

This, she said, was the third step. Now, despite never having asked for money, she was "in his debt".

"I was ashamed for a long time. Years later, I even thought about paying him back," she added.

The following day, she returned to the Madison Avenue building, hoping for a professional interview.

Instead, he showed her around the premises, walking through a gym decorated with "photos zooming in on women's intimate body parts".

"Was it a subtle test of tolerance?" she said. "To see whether I would leave or accept being in such a surprising environment?"

Then he led her to a bedroom.

"My internal alarm went off," she said.

"I felt the need to say, 'I'm warning you, I'm not going to do anything.'"

She said he told her not to worry, but that he needed to see her body -- including her breasts -- to be able to recommend her to modelling agencies.

"I hesitated, but I'd just spent seven hours on a plane and they'd paid for my ticket... I did it," she said.

- 'Get back into shape' -

Epstein groped her, she said, then declared her body was not up to standard and she would need three months to "get back into shape".

He said that if she needed money, he could set her up to work as a party "escort".

Juliette pretended to mull the offer, but demanded he give her back her passport. She said he rummaged around in a pile of "some twenty passports" and returned it to her.

Juliette escaped.

Epstein died in custody in 2019 while awaiting trial on sex trafficking charges involving minors.

But Juliette said she was speaking out to help investigators looking for the convicted offender's accomplices.

Siad, who is under investigation in France, is just one of several French men who have been accused of aiding Epstein to traffic and abuse women.

French authorities in late 2020 arrested modelling agent Jean-Luc Brunel after allegations he procured women for the US billionaire. He was found dead in prison in 2022.

And 15 women in March urged France to investigate Gerald Marie, the former European head of Elite, a modelling agency known for managing supermodels Naomi Campbell, Claudia Schiffer and Cindy Crawford.

Among them, former Swedish model Ebba Karlsson has accused Siad of grooming her for Marie.

- 'You could go so far' -

Karlsson, now 56, said Siad approached her in Sweden in 1990. She was 20 years old.

"He was very talented," she said, describing how he would push a person to see how vulnerable they were.

"He would attach to their desires, their longings, and portray himself as some kind of saviour," she said, promising he could make them "a very famous model".

"And they were hooked," she said.

Karlsson said she followed Siad to Monaco and then to France, but the modelling jobs he had promised never materialised. Without money, she "became more and more dependent on him".

Karlsson said that one evening, in a pool house near Cannes, Siad raped her.

In the days that followed, she said, he announced he had found her a job with Elite.

Siad, via his lawyer Menya Arab-Tigrine, rejected the accusations. She said she hoped her client was not being made to "bear responsibility, because he is still alive, for the actions of other men who have died".

Karlsson then met Marie in his office to discuss working for Elite.

"Why is he closing the blinds?" she said she thought.

He flattered her.

"You're so beautiful," she said he told her. "You could go so far," she said he added, introducing the idea of her starring in a movie.

Then suddenly "he put his fingers into me," she said. 

"It was to remove my power," she added.

Karlsson said she later attended an audition at his home, where she was one among "about ten girls" -- most appearing younger and speaking little English or French -- to be told to parade braless.

She pretended to accept the job, but flew back to Sweden and never returned.

Marie's lawyer Celine Bekerman denounced what she called "unfounded attacks" against her client.

She said a rape probe against Marie had been dropped in 2023. She accused Karlsson and other plaintiffs of choosing to ignore this and establish "far-fetched links between Gerald Marie and cases he has nothing to do with".

Karlsson said she was speaking up about the grooming and abuse so "we can stop that behaviour and teach young people" how to avoid it.

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Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te said Tuesday the democratic island has the "right to engage with the world", after he returned from a trip to Africa that Taipei has accused Beijing of trying to derail.

Taiwan said China applied "intense pressure" to Seychelles, Mauritius and Madagascar to revoke overflight permits for Lai's original trip to Eswatini, Taipei's only ally in Africa, which had been scheduled for April 22-26.

China claims Taiwan is part of its territory and opposes the self-governed island's participation in international organisations and exchanges with other countries.

"Taiwanese people are people of the world; Taiwanese people have the right to engage with the world," Lai told reporters at Taipei's international airport after his flight home on the Eswatini king's plane. 

Lai flew on the king's aircraft to Eswatini on Saturday.

"We will not shrink back because of suppression," Lai said, flanked by Eswatini Deputy Prime Minister Thulisile Dladla who had flown to Taiwan with him and his delegation.

"Mutual visits between heads of state should be the most ordinary thing, just like when we go out to visit friends, and are a basic right of every country."

The United States slammed China's "intimidation campaign" after Lai's first trip was delayed. The remarks were rejected by China's foreign minister as "baseless accusations".

On Saturday, China's foreign ministry accused Lai of making a "stowaway-style escape farce" that made him "an international laughing stock".

- 'Sanctions' -

Eswatini, a small enclave kingdom formerly known as Swaziland, is one of 12 countries that still recognise Taiwan. China has persuaded other nations to break diplomatic ties with the self-ruled island.

Lai had planned to visit Eswatini from April 22 to 26 for the 40th anniversary of King Mswati III's accession and his 58th birthday.

Taiwan's Foreign Minister Lin Chia-lung went instead after Lai's trip was postponed.

A Taiwanese security official, who requested anonymity in order to speak to the media, said previously that China had threatened "to revoke substantial debt relief granted to (Seychelles, Mauritius and Madagascar), halt financing and impose further economic sanctions".

Lai's last official overseas trip was in November 2024, when he visited Taiwan's Pacific allies and transited through the US territory of Guam.

Trump's administration reportedly denied Lai permission to transit through New York last year as part of an official trip to Latin America. Taiwan's foreign ministry denied that he was blocked.

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The old saying about lemons and lemonade has borne fruit for a French craft brewery, which was ordered by Yoko Ono to stop making its "John Lemon" beer -- and has now nearly sold out thanks to the publicity.

Aurelien Picard, owner of the Brasserie de l'Imprimerie brewery in the Brittany region, says he received notice in late March from lawyers for Ono to halt the use of the brand name or pay royalties for referencing her late husband, Beatles legend John Lennon.

"There were numbers like 100,000 euros ($117,000), and between 150 and 1,000 euros per day in penalties if we didn't do what they said," Picard told AFP. 

"Basically, they demanded we recall all our product and immediately stop using the brand."

After some back-and-forth, the small brewery won permission to sell its remaining 5,000 bottles by July 1, then halt production of the brand.

But the media attention generated by the dispute turned out to be great publicity: the brewery nearly sold out of John Lemon in a matter of days.

"It was crazy. I have less than 1,000 left," said Picard.

"It was kind of funny, amid our misfortune."

The brewery, several of whose beers play on celebrity names, launched John Lemon five years ago, because it seemed "cool", said Picard.

The company, located in the northwestern town of Bannalec, has two employees and sells between 50,000 and 80,000 bottles per year, mainly to liquor stores and restaurants within a 40-kilometre (25-mile) radius.

It is now looking for a new name for its flavourful blonde beer.

Picard thought of "Jaune Lemon" -- the French word for "yellow" -- but Ono's lawyers were sour on the idea, he said.

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The Met Gala turned New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art into the world's most glamorous red carpet, with A-list actors, musicians, athletes, artists and designers coming together for charity -- and offering their best looks.

Here are the top five moments of the night:

- Queen Bey -

As the red carpet arrivals went on for hours, everyone was waiting and wondering: when will Beyonce arrive? 

Typically, the event's co-chairs are among the first on the scene, and tennis legend Venus Williams and Oscar winner Nicole Kidman did just that.

But Beyonce made a grand entrance, and did not disappoint.

She stunned fashionistas in a diamond skeleton gown, with skin-toned mesh underneath, the bejeweled bones showing to the tips of her fingers. The outfit, designed by Olivier Rousteing, included a feathered coat and an intricate headpiece.

At her side was rapper husband Jay-Z, elegant in a black tux and tails, and their 14-year-old daughter Blue Ivy Carter, who wore a strapless creamy white dress with a puffy train and a matching jacket.

"It feels surreal because my daughter's here," Beyonce told Vogue. "It's incredible to be able to share it with her and I think she looks so incredible."

- Saint Laurent rules -

Saint Laurent designer Anthony Vaccarello was  co-leader of the gala's "host committee" -- one tier below the co-chairs - and his work was on display all over the red carpet.

From actress Zoe Kravitz, who worked on the committee with him, to supermodel Kate Moss to "heated Rivalry" star Connor Storrie, the label was everywhere.

Rapper Doja Cat, also on the committee, wore a draped latex gown with a demure neckline -- but slit up to her waist.

And singer Rose, a multiple Grammy nominee this year for "APT," her banger collab with Bruno Mars, wore a chic strapless black dress with a high slit and an outsized bird brooch at her waist.

- Music divas meet K-Pop -

The Met Gala hosted some of music's most glittering stars: Madonna, Cher and Stevie Nicks are all in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. And Rihanna is a pop superstar, a beauty mogul and a Met Gala favorite.

But also on hand were some of the top names in K-pop, including Jennie, Rose, Lisa and Jisoo from girl group Blackpink, and the three women behind the mega-hit "Golden" from the Netflix film "KPop Demon Hunters."

While the Material Girl opted for a wispy Saint Laurent slip dress with a grayish cape handled by seven ladies-in-waiting and a towering hat featuring a ship, Cher wore a leather and lace Burberry dress, and Nicks wore a deep blue ensemble with matching top hat.

Rihanna is no stranger to the Met Gala and has made many unforgettable appearances, including last year, when she unveiled her third pregnancy.

This time around, she arrived in a sculptural silver gown from Maison Margiela with an intricately beaded bodice and an Art Deco-style headpiece.

For Team K-pop, singer-songwriter EJAE -- an Oscar, Grammy and Golden Globe winner for writing "Golden" -- stood out in a sparkling silver column gown from Swarovski, topped off with Korean hairpins called binyeos, according to Vogue.

- 'Heated Rivalry' stars scorch carpet -

Are you Team Rozanov or Team Hollander?

Actors Connor Storrie and Hudson Williams have emerged over the past year as the It Boys of showbiz and fashion, on the back of the massive success of their gay hockey romance series "Heated Rivalry," based on novels by Rachel Reid.

After taking the Winter Olympics and the Oscars parties by storm, the boys were back.

Storrie (who plays the flashy Ilya Rozanov) arrived first, wearing a chic black Saint Laurent suit with a sleeveless white-dotted black shirt that ended in a long train down his back -- which he revealed after ditching the jacket. 

Williams (who plays the subdued Shane Hollander) was the more daring of the two, sporting a pale blue Balenciaga suit with a cropped jacket, bare chest and a gauzy black train that was giving couture matador.

- Pure whimsy -

The theme for the gala is "Fashion is Art," and while many A-listers played it safe, a few understood the theme and went all-in.

"Game of Thrones" star Gwendoline Christie rocked a dramatic off-the-shoulder red Giles Deacon gown with a colorful feathered hat and a face mask in her hands, hoping to conjure the image of a John Singer Sargent painting.

Japanese tennis player Naomi Osaka made her Met Gala debut in a striking Robert Wun ensemble that featured a white coat with red feather accents, which she removed to reveal a red gown studded with thousands of red Swarovski crystals.

Broadway actor Ben Platt wore a pale green and sky blue suit that clearly depicted Georges Seurat's "A Sunday on La Grande Jatte" -- the source material for Stephen Sondheim's musical "Sunday in the Park with George."

And model Heidi Klum -- known for her over-the-top Halloween costumes -- resembled a living statue, her white gown draped perfectly, looking like marble.

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Jalen Brunson produced a dazzling 35-point performance as the New York Knicks pummeled the Philadelphia 76ers 137-98 to grab a 1-0 lead in their NBA Eastern Conference semi-final playoff series on Monday.

Knicks talisman Brunson led a dominant New York offense who erupted for 74 points in the first half and were always in control against a dangerous Sixers side who upset second-seeded Boston in the first round.

OG Anunoby provided Brunson's offensive support with 18 points while Karl-Anthony Towns and Mikal Bridges added 17 points apiece in front of a star-studded crowd at Madison Square Garden.

The win was the perfect start to the best-of-seven series for the Knicks, who are chasing a first appearance in the NBA finals since 1999.

Brunson set the tone for a lopsided evening in the first quarter, pouring in 14 points as the Knicks surged into a 33-25 lead.

The 29-year-old point guard kept the points flowing in the second quarter as the Knicks rattled in 41 points to take a 74-51 lead into half-time, Brunson icing the half with a superb three-pointer from 25 feet.

New York never looked like surrendering that advantage over the remainder of the game, leading by as many as 40 points in the fourth quarter before cruising home.

Philadelphia's big three of Tyrese Maxey, Joel Embiid and Paul George failed to fire, shooting a combined 12-of-31 in the face of a stifling New York defense.

New York will aim to double their series lead in game two in New York on Wednesday.

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Stocks sank Tuesday with a fresh spike in Middle East tensions fanning fears over the fragile US-Iran ceasefire, with the two sides appearing to be no closer to a deal to reopen the Strait of Hormuz.

And while oil prices fell, they held most of the huge gains seen Monday after the two countries traded fire over the key waterway and the United Arab Emirates reported on an installation.

The exchanges came after Donald Trump announced a mission called "Project Freedom" to guide ships from neutral countries out of the Persian Gulf, saying it was a humanitarian effort to help stranded crews.

The US president was later quoted by Fox News as warning that Iran would be "blown off the face of the earth" if it attacked US ships.

Crude prices surged Monday -- with Brent up almost six percent -- after a US admiral said US forces sank six small Iranian boats. Iran denied any had been sunk and earlier fired warning shots at US warships.

That came after the UAE said an energy installation in the emirate of Fujairah had been hit, while the UAE defence ministry announced four cruise missiles were launched from Iran, with three successfully shot down and another falling into the sea.

A senior Iranian military official did not deny the strikes but said: "What happened was the product of the US military's adventurism to create a passage for ships to illegally pass through" the Strait of Hormuz, according to state television.

Still, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said the clashes showed there was "no military solution to a political crisis" and pointed to Pakistan's efforts to keep mediating.

Both main oil contracts slipped Tuesday, with West Texas Intermediate shedding more than one percent. However, it was hovering just below $105, and Brent was slightly lower at a little more than $113.

"The US has already demonstrated its willingness to secure passage, successfully guiding vessels through contested waters," said Stephen Innes at SPI Asset Management.

"But the response from Tehran has been equally clear, signalling that any proximity to its strategic perimeter will be met with force, raising the stakes into something that feels less like brinkmanship and more like an asymmetric pressure campaign."

Fears that the ceasefire, which has been in place since early April, could fall apart weighed on Asian equities, with Hong Kong, Sydney, Singapore, Wellington and Taipei all down.

Tokyo, Seoul and Shanghai were closed for holidays.

The losses followed a drop on Wall Street -- where the S&P 500 and Nasdaq came off record highs -- and came after a healthy rally fuelled by fresh interest in all things linked to artificial intelligence.

"Whether Operation Project Freedom actually proceeds, or proves to be the latest in a long line of initiatives and threats that fail to gain traction or are later walked back, remains to be seen," said IG's Tony Sycamore.

"If it does proceed, whether Iran will allow safe passage or instead chooses to fire on escorted vessels is another open question."

Meanwhile, Wells Fargo Investment Institute's Darrell Cronk warned that even if the crisis is brought under control, energy markets and factory activity would likely take some time to get back to normal.

- Key figures at around 0220 GMT -

West Texas Intermediate: DOWN 1.8 percent at $104.47 a barrel

Brent North Sea Crude: DOWN 0.9 percent to $113.14 a barrel

Hong Kong - Hang Seng Index: DOWN 1.0 percent at 25,829.06 

Tokyo - Nikkei 225: Closed for a holiday

Shanghai - Composite: Closed for a holiday

Dollar/yen: UP at 157.23 yen from 157.08 yen on Monday

Euro/dollar: DOWN at $1.1687 from $1.1701

Pound/dollar: DOWN at $1.3526 from $1.3538

Euro/pound: DOWN at 86.40 pence from 86.41 pence

New York - Dow: DOWN 1.1 percent at 48,941.90 (close)

London - FTSE 100: Closed for a holiday

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G7 trade ministers are set to meet in Paris on Tuesday and Wednesday to discuss issues such as critical minerals and small packages but will not directly address the latest US threat to impose additional tariffs on European vehicles.

The second meeting of trade ministers under the French G7 presidency is taking place as the global economy has been upended by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world's oil normally flows.

Discussion of the repercussions of the Middle East war is expected to dominate an informal session on Tuesday, according to the office of France's junior trade minister Nicolas Forissier. 

Meanwhile President Donald Trump's threat last Friday that he will hike US tariffs on cars and trucks from the European Union will likely addressed separately.

US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer is expected to meet with EU Trade Commission Maros Sefcovic in the French capital.

They also have a meeting scheduled with Forissier and French Economy Minister Roland Lescure.

The US and EU struck a deal last summer to cap US tariffs on EU autos and parts at 15 percent, which is lower than the 25-percent duty that Trump imposed on many other trading partners.

In late March, EU lawmakers gave their green light to the bloc's tariff deal with Trump, but with conditions. It must still be approved by member countries.

"Our position for the moment is not to overreact," said Forissier's office.

"We will discuss it among Europeans when the time comes, but in any case not within the framework of the G7," it added.

"This agreement is useful and we must continue to implement it."

- Four priorities -

On Wednesday the trade ministers of the G7 nations (Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan and the United States) are expected to discuss the four priorities set by the group's French presidency.

The first is find a collective and effective response to industrial overcapacity that undermines free trade.

Even if the discussion doesn't formally target China, the country's subsidising of certain sectors has created trade tensions for years.

A second priority is economic security, in particular securing and diversifying supplies of critical minerals that are indispensable in producing strategic products such as computer chips, electric vehicle batteries and super magnets. 

France favours creating a system of groups of producing, processing and consuming nations that share a commitment to implementing good practices.

- Small parcels, big problem -

The ministers will also touch on the failure in March of the latest round of World Trade Organization negotiations, with the body's role as a trade referee having been paralyzed by the United States for years.

"The goal is for this organization to be better suited to current challenges," Forissier's office said.

The ministers will also discuss cross-border sales via e-commerce sites which have generated huge volumes of small parcels that escaped customs duties and posed unfair competition to local retailers.

The US last year suspended the tariff exemption on small parcels valued at less than $800 and the EU will this summer put in place a flat-rate customs duty on packages valued at under 150 euros.

The summit of G7 heads of state and government is scheduled for June 15 to 17 in the eastern town Evian along the shore of Lake Geneva.

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Immaculately dressed in Victorian costume, Sherlock Holmes devotees gathered at the Reichenbach Falls in Switzerland to recreate the intrepid detective's fateful duel with his nemesis Professor Moriarty, 135 years on.

Captivated by British writer Arthur Conan Doyle's evocative world of villains, sleuths, fog, gas lamps and tweed, around 60 members of the Sherlock Holmes Society of London made the pilgrimage to the hallowed destination.

The spectacular scene is where Holmes and Moriarty clashed on a precarious high ledge, apparently falling to their deaths on May 4, 1891.

The group's three-day journey through Holmes-related sites in Switzerland wound up at Meiringen in the Bernese Oberland, for a funicular ride on Sunday up to the thundering Reichenbach Falls, which tumble 120 metres (400 feet) into a pool below.

Hats of all varieties, twirled moustaches, lavish dresses and walking canes abounded, as each came dressed as an individual character from the stories, including the missing rugby player, the king of Bohemia, and Mrs Hudson, Holmes's landlady at 221B Baker Street, London.

"It does transform you, just wearing the clothes, and hunching a bit," said British lawyer Peter Horrocks, top-hatted and clad in black as the sinister crime lord Moriarty.

"This is so atmospheric," he said amid the roar and spray, insisting it "absolutely" brings Sherlockians closer to the story.

Doyle killed off his beloved detective at this spot in his 1893 short story "The Adventure of the Final Problem".

But such was the public outcry, Doyle was forced to resurrect him -- and the affection for Holmes endures to this day.

- 'Tears in my eyes' -

With a magnifying glass in one hand and a pipe in the other, motoring author Philip Porter played Holmes.

He hailed the "unique appeal" of Doyle's stories, "full of Victorian atmosphere, the triumph of good over evil, and some wonderful characters" to draw in devotees.

"We have very little in common in real life, but we are brought together by the Sherlock Holmes canon," he told AFP.

Recreating the duel, Holmes and Moriarty grappled, finally holding the stance depicted in Sidney Paget's 1893 illustration as the pair seemingly tumbled.

Doctor Watson then walked by, his shouts of "Holmes!" echoing off the rocks, before discovering the letter the detective left for him to find -- and realising his dear friend had plummeted to his doom.

"When Watson found the note, frankly I had tears in my eyes. I found that really moving," said Helene Vrot, from near Paris, who dressed in the 1895 "very short-lived fashion for huge sleeves".

"It's an opportunity to make memories with people who have the same kind of mind," she told AFP of the trip.

For JeanMarie Zubia, from the US state of Washington, "it's a total immersion" into the Victorian era.

Her character was Laura Lyons from "The Hound of the Baskervilles", and she revelled in the collective for the detective.

"It's amazing to be surrounded by all the other Sherlockians here, because they get to talk non-stop about what I'm so passionate about... the minutiae that goes into every single story," she said.

- 'My dream place' -

One sweat-soaked trail runner did a double-take as he dashed straight into the costumed throng, while Chinese first-time visitor Kitty -- making her own solo anniversary pilgrimage -- could not believe her eyes.

Wearing a Holmes-style deerstalker hat, the 24-year-old Sherlock fanatic suddenly walked right into beloved characters come to life.

"Wow! It's very lucky of me to meet Mr Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson and Professor Moriarty and Colonel Moran!" the enthralled Manchester University robotics student said.

"This is my dream place. It's beautiful -- just like Watson wrote in his diary."

The organised visit was celebrating the more than 1,000-strong London society's 75th anniversary.

The trip's coordinator Markus Geisser told AFP nearly half the visitors were on their first Holmes trip, showing "travelling to Switzerland in a Victorian costume is still something that people actually like to do".

Dressed as the devil-may-care German spy Von Bork, he said the multinational society and its events were a chance to meet likeminded people, adding: "in my case, I met my wife."

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The president of the Dominican Republic on Monday suspended a mining project by Canadian company GoldQuest after hundreds protested the proposal over its feared environmental impact. 

The project sought to extract deposits of gold, copper and silver from a reserve of 1.1 million ounces, valued at around $5 billion, according to GoldQuest.

Hundreds demonstrated on Sunday to protest GoldQuest's proposed mining project in the Cordillera Central mountain range, raising concerns the extraction process would damage soil and water.

The location is far from tourist areas and  near the southern province of San Juan, where the local agriculture-based economy supports 143,000 residents.

"When citizens express concerns and worries, our duty is to act with prudence and transparency, which is why I have ordered the immediate suspension of any activity" related to the project, President Luis Abinader said on his WhatsApp channel.

Although the project did not have the necessary permit, GoldQuest had hailed the Dominican government's "commitment" to moving forward with the project on its website.

"The initiative has only been in the environmental assessment phase and there is no authorization whatsoever," Abinader confirmed. 

"My commitment is to the country, to its people, and to its future," he said.

The protests on Sunday, held in various areas of San Juan and the town of Sabaneta, were dispersed with tear gas. Four officers reported injuries as a result of clashes with demonstrators.

Sabaneta is home to the province's main dam, which supplies water to more than 30,000 hectares (74,000 acres) of crop-bearing lands.

Gold is the main export of the Dominican Republic, and mining accounts for around 2 percent of its Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

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© Agence France-Presse

As evening falls in Fiji's capital, a steady stream of people approaches a makeshift clinic that is a first line of defence against one of the world's fastest-growing HIV epidemics.

In the South Pacific nation -- a popular tourist destination of just under a million people -- there were over 2,000 new HIV cases recorded last year, a 26 percent increase from 2024.

The government has declared an HIV outbreak and described it as a national crisis.

"It's spreading like wildfire," Siteri Dinawai, 46, who came to be tested, told AFP.

The Moonlight Clinic, a converted minibus parked in a suburban cul-de-sac in Suva, is part of a push to bring testing into neighbourhoods.

Volunteers from the Survival Advocacy Network -- a group supporting sex workers -- and Rainbow Pride Fiji, which works with LGBTQ+ communities, are on hand to speak to those who may be reluctant.

Ana Fofole and her team at Medical Services Pacific, which runs the clinic, hand out condoms as part of their awareness drive and test for syphilis and hepatitis B.

"We don't just turn up anywhere -- we have to do it the right way," says Fofole.

Irinieta Foi, 45, is among those Medical Services Pacific hopes to reach by bringing testing into neighbourhoods.

Foi, who is able to get a result in 15 minutes, says she stumbled upon the clinic.

"I decided, OK, why not?"

Many stay away for fear of returning a positive result, said 28-year-old Ecelina Lalabaluva, who also got tested.

- Transit hub for drugs -

Clinics like this raise awareness about the blood-borne disease and can help pin down just how many people are living with HIV in Fiji and refer them to treatment.

The number of known cases is around 5,000, according to Renata Ram, country director for Fiji and the Pacific at UNAIDS, who says the crisis has been building for years.

That number was as low as 500 in 2014, according to estimates by UNAIDS, which classifies Fiji as having among the world's fastest-growing HIV epidemics.

Transmission rates began to increase around 2019, when a group of "very high-risk" injecting drug users emerged, primarily in the sex worker community, Ram explained.

"Fiji, like other Pacific islands, for a long time have been transit hubs for drugs from Latin America and Asia destined for Australia and New Zealand," said Virginia Comolli, Pacific programme head at the Global Initiative against Transnational Organized Crime.

The flow of highly addictive drugs such as methamphetamine and cocaine to those lucrative markets rose sharply after a lull during the Covid pandemic, she explained.

Those drugs are increasingly seeping into the Pacific's domestic markets -- in part due to foreign criminal syndicates opting to pay their local facilitators in kind, she said.

For those living with the virus, the social stigma can weigh heavy in a country where conservative values largely prevail.

- 'Wait to die?' -

One of the few public faces of the crisis is Mark Lal, who was diagnosed with HIV two years ago.

"In Fiji, whenever the topic of sex comes up, everyone just disperses," says Lal, 24, a gay man who said he is not a drug user.

He originally knew little about HIV and the available treatment.

"When I was diagnosed, the first thing I asked the doctors was: 'What now? Do I just wait to die?'"

On his "Living Positive Fiji" page on Facebook, Lal has fielded questions from more than a hundred people.

Most are aged 17 to 20 and are unsure whether to disclose their HIV status out of fear of discrimination.

"If you come out publicly as someone living with HIV, there's a chance where you might actually not get a good reaction," Lal said.

His own hospital visit for his initial diagnosis left its mark.

"I saw some walking out with fear in their eyes, and I was like: 'I want to change this. I want to help people'."

Fiji has a tough task to rein in case numbers, according to Ram of UNAIDS, who said the country is "15 to 20 years behind" in its HIV efforts.

"A needle-syringe programme is what is very much needed right now."

The government has said it will adopt a plan to prevent the spread of disease through drug injections, but implementation of its programme to provide safe injecting equipment has been delayed.

For Foi, one of the women attending the outreach clinic, the task is simple.

"It's really important for everybody to get tested."

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