‘Orchard of France’ is badly hit by extreme weather that has killed two people
France will declare a state of natural disaster after rain and hail storms lashed a swathe of the south-east on Saturday, devastating crops.
The flash storms, which brought hailstones as big as pingpong balls to some areas, killed two people in France and Switzerland, and injured at least 10 others.
Continue reading...Led by the archbishop of Paris, Michel Aupetit, priests and canons wearing hard hats for safety attended mass on 15 June 2019, the first since the devastating April blaze that damaged the cathedral’s roof
Continue reading...Last year, a museum dedicated to the work of Étienne Terrus revealed most of its paintings were probably not by him. How did it get there?
Odette Traby was dying. It was the summer of 2016 and the sun baked the terracotta roofs of her hometown, Elne, in the south of France, as she lay in bed. Weeks earlier, the 78-year-old had been diagnosed with stage IV cancer. This grande dame of Elne town life had refused all treatment and chosen to tough it out alone. “She was someone who wanted to grapple with, to face up to, death,” says Dani Delay, her niece.
Traby had one consolation. She had spent the previous months trying to secure the future of her life’s work, the town’s art museum. It was dedicated to the work of the local artist Étienne Terrus (1857-1922), a friend of Henri Matisse who had been largely forgotten by the time Traby established the museum in the mid-90s. When nearly 60 Terruses came on to the market in 2015, Traby rallied two local historical associations to raise tens of thousands of euros, securing at least 30 of the works. As her life ebbed, at least Traby could tell herself that her beloved museum was closer to gaining the “Musée de France” status that would give it priority state funding and resources.
Continue reading...Foreign involvement in Africa is far from unique to Russia (Leaked documents reveal Russia’s efforts to exert influence in Africa, 12 June). The new scramble for Africa involves more powers than the first round over a century ago. This time it’s in part about securing resources such as oil, gas and rare earth metals crucial for military and civilian digital technology, and denying these resources to rival powers.
The United States Africa Command (Africom) now has 7,500 American troops active in all but one African country, up from 6,000 in 2017. Apart from its huge base in Djibouti, controlling the narrow strait between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, a vital chokepoint through which all shipping using the Suez Canal has to pass – most importantly (for the Americans) Chinese shipping – the US has constructed small “lily pad” bases, whose presence gives the US a strong military capability.
Continue reading...French president Emmanuel Macron said the death of the tree was not symbolic
French president Emmanuel Macron has downplayed the death of an oak tree he planted with US president Donald Trump last year, saying people shouldn’t read symbols into everything and that he would send the American leader a new tree.
The two men celebrated the special relationship between the United States and France during Macron’s state visit in April 2018 to Washington by planting the oak sapling on the grounds of the White House.
Continue reading...French media say oak given as a gift by Macron and planted at the White House as part of charm offensive is no more
The tree planted by Donald Trump and his French counterpart, Emmanuel Macron, at the White House as a symbol of their countries’ ties has died, according to multiple media reports in France.
The oak was given as a gift to the US president during Macron’s visit in 2018. In a tweet at the time, Macron said: “100 years ago, American soldiers fought in France, in Belleau to defend our freedom. This oak tree (my gift to @realDonaldTrump]) will be a reminder at the White House of these ties that bind us.”
Continue reading...€72m makeover will create mile-long stretch of pools, fountains and parks
A garden stretches for a mile, free of cars with one of the world’s most recognisable monuments at its centre. Crossing the river on a tree-lined and lawned bridge, the roar of traffic has been replaced by the sound of water from fountains.
Such is the vision for the Eiffel Tower, which is at the centre of a major makeover project to transform one of Paris’s most visited districts.
Continue reading...The biggest Women’s World Cup in history is kicking off at the Parc des Princes on Friday but in the city there is not the air of anticipation you would expect
With the biggest Women’s World Cup in history kicking off at the Parc des Princes in Paris on Friday, the head of the local organising committee was bullish in his response to criticism over the lack of atmosphere and marketing in the French capital.
“Depends what you’re expecting from posters and setting up an event in the city?” shot back Erwin Le Prevost. “The means we have available to us are becoming bigger in every competition thanks to Fifa support. It’s a Women’s World Cup by Fifa, the main aim is to fill the stadiums and to have the biggest TV audience possible.”
Continue reading...In a post-Brexit world British forces will be operating under different rules of engagement
It was impossible not to be moved by the dignity of the diminishing band of D-day veterans in Normandy, 75 years after “the longest day” led to the opening of a new western front that helped bring about Adolf Hitler’s downfall.
Men like Kenneth Hay, who read a poem, Normandy, by another veteran, Cyril Crain, to the congregation at Bayeux Cathedral. As he spoke its concluding words, “When my life is over and I reach the other side, I’ll meet my friends from Normandy and shake their hands with pride”, his voice began to break.
Continue reading...Veterans and world leaders have attended ceremonies to mark 75 years since allied troops landed in France during the second world war
Continue reading...Follow live updates as world leaders join veterans to mark the 75th anniversary of the D-day landings in Normandy
The Élysée Palace is live streaming the ceremony.
EN DIRECT | Cérémonie franco-américaine au cimetière américain, Colleville-sur-Mer. #DDay75https://t.co/zh7bfyDifa
Continue reading...French government blamed as €33bn deal to create world’s third largest carmaker stalls
The proposed €33bn merger of Fiat Chrysler and Renault has collapsed after an intervention from the French government, Renault’s biggest shareholder.
Fiat Chrysler, an Italian-American company, withdrew from a 50-50 merger proposal for its French rival after a board meeting on Wednesday. A deal would have created the world’s third-largest carmaker behind Volkswagen and Toyota.
Continue reading...Darren Jones pulled from canal that was first site liberated by second world war allies in 1944
A British soldier taking part in commemorations of the 75th anniversary of D-day has drowned at a historic second world war battle site in Normandy.
L/Cpl Darren Jones, 30, of the Royal Engineers was declared dead after firefighters pulled him from a canal at Bénouville near Pegasus Bridge, the first site liberated by the allies on 6 June 1944.
Continue reading...The stories of those who were there on 6 June 1944 and others involved in this week’s commemorations
Thousands of people are preparing to mark the 75th anniversary of the D-day landings at commemoration events in the UK and France this week. Senior politicians and members of the royal family as well as hundreds of veterans will attend ceremonies to mark one of the main turning points of the second world war and the biggest amphibious invasion in military history.
More than 200 veterans have boarded a cruise ship, MV Boudicca, charted by the Royal British Legion, to attend the events, while others are descending en masse on Portsmouth and Normandy. Here we hear the stories of those who were there on 6 June 1944 and others involved in this week’s commemorations.
Continue reading...‘March of the mutilated’ calls for ban on use of explosive grenades and rubber bullets
About 200 gilets jaunes have staged a “march of the mutilated” through central Paris. Among them were people seriously injured in demonstrations since the movement started last November.
Several had lost an eye or limb in clashes with riot police. The marchers called for an end to “repressive ultra-violence” and a ban on police use of explosive grenades and rubber bullets.
Continue reading...Ian Bailey, who lives in Ireland, convicted in his absence of killing Sophie Toscan du Plantier
A court in France has found Ian Bailey, a British former journalist, guilty of murdering Sophie Toscan du Plantier, a French film-maker who was battered to death in Ireland.
The cour d’assises in Paris on Friday sentenced Bailey to 25 years for the brutal murder in west Cork in 1996, an infamous cold case that has confounded Irish authorities and divided public opinion over Bailey’s guilt or innocence.
Continue reading...A zipline ride from the Paris landmark is providing an opportunity to speed across the Paris skyline at 90km (56 miles) per hour. The temporary zipline is an initiative by French mineral water brand Perrier to celebrate the French Open. It also coincides with the 130th anniversary of the Eiffel Tower. From 29 May to 2 June, members of the public will be selected through an online draw on social media for a chance to take the 800-metre journey, which ends at the École Militaire
Continue reading...Algerian student, his mother and friend apprehended after explosion leaves 13 wounded
French police have arrested three people over an explosion in the heart of the city of Lyon last week that injured 13 people.
According to Paris prosecutors, the suspected bomber is a 24-year-old Algerian citizen, who was arrested along with his mother and another Algerian friend. Police have also questioned the main suspect’s sister.
Continue reading...Foreign ministry says it is opposed to the death penalty ‘at all times and in all places’
France has confirmed it will take “the necessary steps” to try to prevent Iraq carrying out the death penalty against French citizens convicted of fighting with Islamic State.
“France is opposed in principle to the death penalty at all times and in all places,” the French foreign ministry said on Monday, as an Iraqi court sentenced a fourth French citizen to death, a day after handing capital punishment sentences to three others.
Continue reading...Deal would create world’s third-largest automaker and ‘save €5bn a year’ by sharing research
Fiat Chrysler has proposed a merger with France’s Renault that would create the world’s third-largest carmaker and save billions needed to invest in the race to make electric and autonomous vehicles.
The merged company would produce 8.7m vehicles annually and save €5bn ($5.6bn or £4.4bn) each year by sharing research, purchasing and other activities, according to a statement released by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA). It said the deal would involve no plant closures but did not address potential job cuts.
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