Christina Okello

After being banned in French schools, religious symbols could now be banned in universities. France's High Council for Integration is calling for students to remove their headscarves, skullcaps and crucifixes in a bid to reduce tensions that some say are compromising the country's secular values.

It was a campaign promise of symbolic importance, but government plans to legalize gay marriage and adoption has escalated into one of the biggest divisive issues in France as supporters and opponents of the bill clash over their concept of what it means to be a family.

The Socialist government has launched a cultural battle against the National Front, which it considers to be a danger for the French Republic, a point of view shared by the Jewish community, which sees in the rise of the Far Right a painful reminder of the 1930s which saw Hitler come to power.

Umbrellas, raincoats and plenty of mud, the mood was somber at this year's festival of humanity and not just because of the bad weather. France's main left-wing parties and their supporters have been meeting outside Paris to discuss an alternative route to the direction taken by the Socialist government.

As the French government and its allies sell their case for military action in Syria, the Foreign Ministry has increased its medical aid to Damascus, where a chemical attack in August killed over 1400 people. The aid, including antidotes to nerve gas exposure, has been distributed by the Union of Syrian Medical Relief Organizations in Paris.

Thousands of people demonstrated around France to mark the second anniversary of the Toulouse attacks. Four Jews were killed in a deadly shooting spree by radical islamist Mohamed Merah in March 2012. Two years on, many feel the situation for Jews is getting worse.

As the world gathers to commemorate one of the darkest periods of our History, UNESCO has launched a new study to develop Holocaust teaching methods right across the globe. The aim is to make the history of the Jewish people relevant to students in places like Latin America or Central Africa, which have little connection.

In Uganda, officers of the new tourism police force were deployed throughout the country this weekend to protect tourists from terrorism. Security was heightened in the country's main national parks and hotels, after police received warnings that Shebab extremists were plotting new attacks.

Hopes of tackling climate change were raised at the first UN Environment Assembly last week. The assembly which hosted more than 1,200 participants from 193 member states in Kenya's capital, Nairobi, was the highest-level U.N. body ever convened on the environment.

Egypt's President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi says he wishes three imprisoned Al Jazeera journalists, were deported and not tried. Comments that spark hopes for the journalists' families following their sentencing to 7-10 years in prison. The news comes as Egypt faces intense international scrutiny, over its harsh sentences for opponents of the regime.

In a dark side street in Paris' Soho district, a stream of clubbers line up to enter trendy night club the Rouge Pigalle. A group of white Caucasians are allowed easy access, but a Black couple is barred at the door, on the grounds their name wasn't on the guest list.

The dancing rhythms of Gospel music and the succulent spice of Caribbean food hang in the air as a symbol of defiance from a community that sees its way of life increasingly threatened. The populist surge across Europe has left many Blacks gathered on the outskirts of Paris for a Day of Renaissance and Remembrance, concerned that Europe could soon close its borders. This would make it more difficult for their family members to come to France. Marine Le Pen has promised to reduce immigration by half, from 20.000 migrants per year to 10.000 within 5 years. And is steering the public towards a policy of selective immigration as opposed to forced immigration. She could damage chances for future migrants to come to Europe if she succeeds in forming an alliance with other Eurosceptic parties. But her impact is already being felt on Black French men and women, who have lived in France for years. This week the French government backed down-again-on a campaign promise to grant foreigners voting rights, saying there’s no appetite for it. Undeterred by the attacks on multiculturalism, Blacks have decided to unite and show their pride in their culture, in a bid to counter anti-immigration sentiment.

Electoral posters clutter Paris' streets, but many walk past with casual indifference. Polls suggest that the outgoing President Abdelazziz Bouteflika is likely to win, despite barely being seen on the campaign trail due to illness. Anticipating the outcome, many Algerians in France shunned polling stations, where observers outnumbered voters.

Electoral posters clutter Paris' streets, but many walk past with casual indifference. Polls suggest that the outgoing President Abdelazziz Bouteflika is likely to win, despite barely being seen on the campaign trail due to illness. Anticipating the outcome, many Algerians in France shunned polling stations, where observers outnumbered voters.