Category Archives: France

Malian musician Rokia Traoré freed from French prison pending transfer to Belgium

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Traoré is in an international custody battle over her daughter after a Belgian court awarded sole guardianship to the child’s father

Malian musician Rokia Traoré has been released from a French prison, after being detained since 10 March for the alleged kidnap of her daughter in a child custody dispute. Her freedom is dependent on her delivery to Belgian authorities, once travel restrictions related to the coronavirus pandemic are lifted.

Traoré was arrested under a European warrant issued by a judge in Brussels, where a court had ordered her to surrender her five-year-old daughter to the child’s father, Jan Goossens, who is Belgian. Traoré was held in Paris after getting off a plane there.

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US may become centre of coronavirus pandemic, WHO says

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Figures go against Trump talk of restarting economy, as other countries tighten controls

The United States could become the new centre of the global coronavirus pandemic, according to the World Health Organization, which said case numbers were rising quickly there even asDonald Trump talked of re-opening the country for business.

“We are now seeing a very large acceleration in cases in the US. So it does have that potential [to become the centre of the pandemic],” the WHO spokeswoman Margaret Harris said.

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Manu Dibango, Cameroon jazz-funk star, dies aged 86 of coronavirus

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Musician who influenced Michael Jackson dies in Paris hospital from Covid-19 infection

Manu Dibango, the Cameroonian musician celebrated for his blend of jazz, funk and traditional west African styles, has died aged 86 in a Paris hospital after contracting Covid-19.

A message on his Facebook page announced the news with “deep sadness”, and added: “His funeral service will be held in strict privacy, and a tribute to his memory will be organised when possible.”

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Asterix creator Albert Uderzo dies at 92

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French comic-book artist, who created Asterix with the writer René Goscinny, dies at home ‘from a heart attack unrelated to the coronavirus’

Asterix illustrator Albert Uderzo has died at the age of 92, his family has announced.

The French comic book artist, who created the beloved Asterix comics in 1959 with the writer René Goscinny, died on Tuesday. He “died in his sleep at his home in Neuilly from a heart attack unrelated to the coronavirus. He had been very tired for several weeks,” his son-in-law Bernard de Choisy told AFP.

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Mali music star Rokia Traoré on hunger strike after ‘kidnapping’ arrest

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Musicians including Damon Albarn and Salif Keita call for release of singer, who is in an international battle over custody of her daughter

There are growing concerns for the health of Rokia Traoré, the internationally celebrated Malian singer, who has been on hunger strike at the Fleury-Mérogis prison near Paris since she was arrested on 10 March on allegations of kidnapping her daughter in a child-custody dispute.

Her lawyer, Kenneth Feliho, said: “I am very worried. She is only drinking. She has not been eating for over a week and her immune system is weak.”

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Iran ‘frees French researcher under prisoner exchange deal’

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Roland Marchal, whose colleague remains in detention, reportedly released in return for Iranian engineer

Emmanuel Macron says Iran has freed a French researcher imprisoned in the country, after France reportedly released an Iranian threatened with extradition to the US.

Macron said on Saturday he was “happy to announce the release of Roland Marchal, imprisoned in Iran since June 2019” and urged the Iranian authorities to immediately also free fellow researcher Fariba Adelkhah, the French president’s office said.

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Coronavirus: the week the world shut down

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Walls have been raised and societies quarantined as people enter a new reality

It should not have come as a surprise. Life had already been upended in China. Iran and Italy have been reeling for a month. And yet it still felt sudden, this week, when walls were raised across the world, entire societies were quarantined and billions of people realised they had crossed a dividing line: from life before coronavirus to after.

After weeks of governments prevaricating over whether to ban mass gatherings, close businesses or seal borders, restrictions came in a flurry. “We are at war,” announced the French president, Emmanuel Macron. But without adequate weapons to fight the virus, let alone enough hospital beds or ventilators, this was the week the world beat a tactical retreat.

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Erdoğan in talks with European leaders over refugee cash for Turkey

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Border issue and other matters discussed in conference call with Germany, France and UK

Turkey has pressed European leaders to make fresh cash pledges to prevent tens of thousands of refugees from leaving the country and trying to reach Europe amid a Russian-Syrian offensive in north-west Syria.

After intense bombardment in Idlib province last month, Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, encouraged thousands of refugees in the country to move on towards the Greek islands and the Baltics, in a repeat of the surge to Europe in 2015.

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Coronavirus: more than 100 million Europeans on lockdown – video report

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More than 100 million Europeans are living under lockdown after Spain joined Italy in imposing a national quarantine to combat coronavirus, with a wave of further restrictions on travel coming into effect worldwide.

The World Health Organization announced that Europe was the new centre of the Covid-19 outbreak, with hundreds of thousands of cases. The UK is yet to impose the level of restrictions seen in the rest of Europe but the health secretary, Matt Hancock, has said new measures will be announced in the coming weeks

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Coronavirus latest updates: all arrivals in Australia must self-isolate for 14 days, says PM

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Trump tests negative while Spanish PM’s wife tests positive; France and Israel announce partial closure of country; scientists condemn UK ‘herd immunity’ strategy. Follow live news

The US city of Hoboken, across the Hudson River from New York City, has announced a night curfew starting 16 March and ordered bars and restaurants to conduct only delivery services amid the ongoing coronavirus outbreak.

An Uzbek citizen has tested positive for coronavirus after returning from France, Uzbekistan’s Healthcare Ministry said on Sunday, marking the first infection from the virus in the Central Asian country of 34 million.

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Coronavirus latest updates: Trump gives briefing as Ohio and Illinois go into lockdown

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Number of UK deaths rises to 35 while other countries introduce stricter new measures

Here comes Donald Trump.

Speaking of which:

California governor Gavin Newsom announces that the state's bars, nightclubs, breweries and wineries be closed.

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France closes ‘non-essential’ public spaces due to coronavirus

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Food shops, tobacconists, banks, and public transport will remain open despite the order

France has announced the closure of all public places “non-essential” to public life including restaurants, cafes, cinemas and discos from midnight Saturday.

“We must absolutely limit movement, meetings and contacts,” French prime minister Edouard Philippe said on Saturday evening. Food shops, tobacconists, banks and public transport will remain open, he said.

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Anti-inflammatories may aggravate Covid-19, France advises

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French minister says patients should take paracetamol rather than ibuprofen or cortisone

French authorities have warned that widely used over-the-counter anti-inflammatory drugs may worsen the coronavirus.

The country’s health minister, Olivier Véran, who is a qualified doctor and neurologist, tweeted on Saturday: “The taking of anti-inflammatories [ibuprofen, cortisone … ] could be a factor in aggravating the infection. In case of fever, take paracetamol. If you are already taking anti-inflammatory drugs, ask your doctor’s advice.”

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‘Do not let this fire burn’: WHO warns Europe over coronavirus

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Europe now centre of pandemic, says WHO, as Spain prepares for state of emergency

The World Health Organization has stepped up its calls for intensified action to fight the coronavirus pandemic, imploring countries “not to let this fire burn”, as Spain said it would declare a 15-day state of emergency from Saturday.

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the WHO director general, said Europe – where the virus is present in all 27 EU states and has infected 25,000 people – had become the centre of the epidemic, with more reported cases and deaths than the rest of the world combined apart from China.

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Coronavirus live updates: fifth death confirmed in UK, as head of New York’s airports tests positive

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With cases spiking sharply across Europe and emergency measures in place from California to Saudi Arabia, investors have sent shares tumbling

US authorities are planning a flight tomorrow to repatriate Britons on the coronavirus-hit Grand Princess cruise ship.

The UK Foreign Office issued the following statement:

We continue to work closely with the US authorities to repatriate British nationals on board the Grand Princess. The US are currently planning for a flight to leave tomorrow evening, returning to the UK on Wednesday afternoon. We remain in contact with all British nationals on board and will continue to offer support.

Chinese authorities reportedly scrambled to move people out of quarantine hotels which need full safety inspections after the deaths of at least 10 people in a collapsed hotel.

Joanna Davison, an English teacher, and her partner were suddenly placed in enforced isolation in Shenzhen after a ferry trip about 10 days ago. On Thursday, she told the Guardian she endured a “terrifying” experience as five people in hazmat suits came to test them at her home before they were whisked to quarantine.

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‘We are power’: the world marks International Women’s Day – video report

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People around the world marked International Women's Day on Sunday with rallies, marches and protests. In London, topless protesters formed a human chain on Waterloo bridge to highlight the vulnerability of women in the face of the climate crisis. In Kyrgyzstan, dozens of protesters were arrested after masked men attacked them at a rally for gender equality. On the Greek-Turkish border, asylum seekers marched to demand entry into the EU

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Polanski’s ‘Oscar’ divides elite world of French cinema

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Critics say best director award for J’accuse highlights a deep problem in French society

The elite world of French cinema, one of the pillars of the country’s exception culturelle, was bitterly divided after Roman Polanski was named best director at France’s equivalent of the Oscars.

Several actresses walked out on Friday night as the César was awarded to the Franco-Polish director who is still wanted in the United States after he admitted the statutory rape of a 13-year-old girl.

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Roman Polanski wins best director at French ‘Oscars’ amid protests

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Activists protest against director who pleaded guilty to statutory rape in US but fled before sentencing

Police and protesters clashed briefly outside the French “Oscars” ceremony on Friday evening as the Franco-Polish film director Roman Polanski was awarded the prize for best director.

Immediately after the announcement there was shouting and booing among the audience, and the two actors who announced the award quickly left the stage.

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Asia Bibi: Pakistani woman jailed for blasphemy claims asylum in France

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Emmanuel Macron invites Christian who spent eight years on death row to live in country

Asia Bibi, the Pakistani Christian woman who spent eight years on death row on blasphemy charges, has filed an initial application for asylum in France and been invited to live in the country by Emmanuel Macron.

But speaking after a meeting with the French president in the Elysée palace on Friday, Bibi said she had not decided where she would settle. She was acquitted last year and granted a one-year leave of stay with her family in Canada.

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Gare de Lyon in Paris evacuated after fire outside station

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Fire reportedly started by protesters opposed to concert nearby by Congolese singer

Police evacuated the Gare de Lyon in Paris after scooters and rubbish bins were set alight outside the station, reportedly by protesters opposed to a concert being given by a Congolese singer.

Photos on social media showed flames reaching several metres into the sky and a cloud of black smoke around the station, which was evacuated at the height of rush hour.

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