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A French court found Marine Le Pen guilty on Monday in an embezzlement case and barred her from seeking public office for five years, with immediate effect. Le Pen's lawyer said she would appeal.

A giant of Latin American culture, Vargas Llosa used powerful imagery and sometimes fantastical storytelling to explore issues of male violence, societal disruption and authoritarian politics.

Spanish prime minister Pedro Sánchez said a nationwide blackout of this scale had never happened before in Spain. He added that the underlying cause remains unclear.

As of Tuesday, there are more alleged accomplices than fugitives. Two of the 10 escapees are still on the run, while a dozen others are charged with helping them either before or after May 16.

About this Program The attack on Israel by Hamas on Oct. 7, 2023 opened a new chapter in the turbulence history of the post-Ottoman Levant. A low-grade war between Hezbollah in Lebanon and Israel begun on Oct. 8, 2023 exploded in September 2024 with devastating effect on both Hezbollah and the Lebanese population and infrastructure. Shifting power balances in the Levant and beyond contributed to the unexpectedly sudden collapse of the seeming impregnable Assad regime after 14 years of civil war. To understand the outlines of any potential emerging orders in Syria and Lebanon it is crucial to understand the history and forces driving today’s fragmented, yet interrelated Levant. Michael Provence, a specialist in modern middle eastern history, will present via Zoom the broad historical context in which recent developments in Syria & Lebanon have occurred. He will discuss the late Ottoman period, the colonial & post-colonial periods in the Levant, the emergence of Israel, the rise of Assad, the fall of Lebanon into civil war, and the emergence of Hezbollah - including its role as a proxy/client of Iran. A Q&A session will follow his presentation. Free to members & the public, available via Zoom. Pre-registration required. About Michael Provence Michael Provence teaches modern Middle East history, focusing on the 20th-century Arab East. He received a B.A in History from U.C. Berkeley in 1994 and a Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in 2001. During 2017-2018 he was Chercheur Résident (Research Fellow in Residence), Institut d’Etudes Avancées de Nantes, France. In 2010-11 and 2014, Provence was an Alexander von Humboldt fellow at the Zentrum Moderner Orient in Berlin, Germany. In 2024-25, he is a visiting professor at Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne. He is the author of two books and many articles. The books are "The Great Syrian Revolt and the Rise of Arab Nationalism" (2005) and "The Last Ottoman Generation and the Making of the Modern Middle East" (2017). Both available in Arabic and Turkish. Provence lived and studied over the course of many years in several Middle Eastern countries, particularly Syria and Lebanon, between 1998 and 2006. He returns as often as possible.

Bagayoko, an acclaimed guitarist and half of the Grammy-nominated blind duo Amadou & Mariam, died in his hometown of Bamako on Friday.

The Six Triple Eight sorted millions of pieces of wartime mail in a matter of months but weren't recognized publicly for decades. Just two of the 855 women are believed to be alive for the ceremony.

Join wine whiz Barbara Baxter, who trained at Francis Ford Coppola Winery in Napa and studied in Italy and France, on a delightful romp through cultural history paired with harmonious wines. The Art of Wine will focus on three iconic winemaking regions which also emerged as cultural epicenters throughout history: the city of Rome, pairing outstanding Italian wines with architecture from the classical epoch; wines of Provence paired with the Impressionist artists; and the arrival of both the wine world and art world in innovative postwar Southern California. An entertaining dive: culture and viniculture! Light refreshments will be provided. March 13: Art of Wine and Eternal Rome Savor the Eternal City’s history and culture paired with Italian wines. We hear tales of good and evil set among Rome’s monuments, fountains, aqueducts, and sculpture—heroes and villains paired with vino Italiano. March 20: Provence & Impressionism Light and love are served up in the art and wines of Southern France. Rounded and golden, soft and opulent—are we talking about wines from Provence or Impressionist art? We will explore this rewarding land and its culture. March 27: Southern California Southern California’s outrageous and fun art scene exploded in the postwar years parallel with California’s wine-world arrival. Join us for a dive into the era when Southern California art and wine became oh so cool. About Barbara Baxter Barbara Baxter studied wine academically at the Sorbonne in Paris and has continued her inquiry into the heritage of wine for more than a decade. She created visitor education programs for Francis Ford Coppolaʼs Rubicon Estate and has worked for Napa Valleyʼs most prestigious wineries: Sterling Vineyards and Opus One. She is the editor of Planet Wine and has also made wine in Napa Valley. Baxter has been featured in the Wall Street Journal, has lectured at major museums and universities in California, including the Getty Malibu, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Athenaeum Arts & Music Library, UC Berkeley, UC San Diego, Muzeo Museum and Cultural Center in Orange County, and The Huntington. Visit: https://www.ljathenaeum.org/events/baxter-25-series Athenaeum Music & Arts Library on Instagram and Facebook

Celebrated harpsichordist Jean Rondeau returns to San Diego, this time with his ensemble Nevermind, to present their brand-new transcription of the Goldberg Variations, BWV 988, by Johann Sebastian Bach. With Anna Besson on flute, Louis Creac’h on violin, and Robin Pharo on viola da gamba, the ensemble worked extensively on the transcriptions, shining new light on Bach’s masterpiece and unveiling new possibilities within the music. The concert will be held at St. James by-the-Sea Episcopal Church on March 14th at 7:30 p.m. Tickets and additional information are available on the society’s website. Founded in 2013, Nevermind champions and transcends the quartet repertoire (flute, violin, viola da gamba and harpsichord) of the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Nevermind have showcased their virtuosity at prestigious venues across Europe including the Auditorium of the Louvre, Wiener Konzerthaus, Wigmore Hall and the Barbican in London, Amsterdam’s Muziekgebouw, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Konzerthaus Dortmund, Alte Oper Frankfurt, Centra Nacional de Difusión Musical in Madrid, the Théâtre des Champs-Elysées in Paris, Concertgebouw Brugge, and the Salle de Musique in la Chaux-de-Fonds. Their international tours have also taken them as far afield as the United States, Canada, Russia, Iceland, and the Far East; notable highlights include the Boston Early Music Festival, Oberlin Conservatory in Ohio, Hong Kong City Hall, and a highly successful tour of Australia in 2019 with visits to Melbourne, Sydney, Canberra, Adelaide, Newcastle and Brisbane. A typical Summer season will also see them perform at numerous festivals, with past appearances at the Rheingau Musik Festival, Utrecht Early Music Festival, the Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival, Prague Spring Festival, Festival Ravel, Festival of Saintes, Bel-Air Claviers Festival, and Gstaad Menuhin festival in Switzerland. (Harrison Parrott) Visit: https://www.tix.com/ticket-sales/sdems/876/event/1393074 San Diego Early Music Society on Instagram and Facebook

The EPA's environmental justice office potential closure hits over-polluted communities, yet they fight on.