Eiffel Tower lit up to mark change, seen as way of protecting law that decriminalised abortion in 1975
The French parliament has enshrined abortion as a constitutional right at a historic joint session at the Palace of Versailles.
Out of 925 MPs and senators eligible to vote, 780 supported the amendment, which will give women the “guaranteed freedom” to choose an abortion.
Continue reading...Boat carrying 10 other children between seven and 13 years old, along with girl’s pregnant mother, father and three siblings, sank
A seven-year-old girl has died in a canal close to Dunkirk after a makeshift boat carrying 16 people from northern France to the UK capsized, the prefecture in France’s Nord department said.
The boat, which was carrying 10 other children between seven and 13 years old along with the girl’s pregnant mother, her father and three of her siblings, sank with all onboard entering the water.
Continue reading...Letter aims to bring public anger over 30,000 deaths of Palestinians in Gaza into heart of parliaments
More than 200 MPs from 12 countries have committed themselves to trying to persuade their governments to impose a ban on arms sales to Israel, arguing they will not be complicit in “Israel’s grave violation of international law” in its assault on Gaza.
The letter, organised by Progressive International, a network of socialist MPs and activists focused on international justice, is seen as the best practical measure possible to bring public anger over the 30,000 deaths of Palestinians in Gaza into the heart of parliaments, where calls for an immediate unconditional ceasefire have so far fallen on deaf ears or been rejected by national governments.
Continue reading...Prosecutors have received six complaints against Miller, 75, dating from between 1995 and 2005
The French psychoanalyst and media personality Gérard Miller is being investigated by French prosecutors over allegations of rape and sexual assault, including of minors, as more women made claims in a documentary that he had sought to meet teenagers in the studio audiences of TV shows and invite them to his home.
Prosecutors launched an investigation after receiving six complaints against the 75-year-old of rape or assault between 1995 and 2005.
Continue reading...First-year vehicle excise duty is a fraction of that in countries such as France and the Netherlands
Low taxation on petrol SUVs in the UK compared with much of Europe is inviting a glut of large, polluting luxury cars, according to an analysis by a green thinktank.
The tax paid when buying a new petrol or diesel SUV in the UK is only a fraction of the levies in neighbouring countries, including France and the Netherlands, and lower than many others in Europe, making it a “tax haven” for the bigger, less environmentally friendly vehicles, the report from Transport & Environment (T&E) found.
Continue reading...Actor’s landmark address comes amid claims arts sector has shrugged off sexual abuse for decades
The actor Judith Godrèche has denounced France’s “incestuous” film industry and called for the establishment of a commission of inquiry into sexual violence in the sector as she spoke in front of senators in the upper house of parliament.
The landmark hearing – the first time an artist has spoken to the senate about sexual and gender-based violence in the French film industry – comes amid claims that the world of arts has shrugged off sexism and sexual abuse for decades.
Continue reading...One accused of terrorism and three of helping Chérif Chekatt procure weapons for deadly assault at Christmas market
Four menhave gone on trial today accused of involvement in the 2018 terrorist attack on Strasbourg’s Christmas market, in which a gunman killed five people and injured 11 others in an assault that was later claimed by Islamic State.
Chérif Chekatt, 29, who was born and raised in the city, opened fire with a 19th-century revolver on 11 December in the historic centre.
Continue reading...Officials say 179 people trying to cross Channel were rescued after four French-led operations
One person has died and two others are missing in the Channel after an incident involving a small boat, French rescue services have said.
According to the Préfecture maritime Manche et mer du Nord, four French-led rescue operations took place in the Channel on Wednesday, coordinated by the regional operational surveillance and rescue of Gris-Nez.
Continue reading...Prime minister says France ‘stands up’ to defend women as rights are attacked around the world
France is preparing to enshrine abortion as a constitutional right at a joint session of parliament next week, after the senate voted in favour on Wednesday night.
France would write into its constitution the “guaranteed freedom” of women to choose an abortion.
Continue reading...Senior church officials in Rome decline to act, citing worsening health of French clergyman known as ‘devil priest’
A French clergyman dubbed the “devil priest” who stands accused of sexually abusing Inuit children in Canada’s north will not be dismissed from his congregation after senior church officials in Rome declined to act, citing the nonagenarian’s declining health.
Johannes Rivoire, a priest with the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, worked in several Canadian Arctic communities in the 1960s and 70s before returning to France in 1993.
Continue reading...City hall engineer had put bag with sensitive data in overhead luggage rack on train at Gare du Nord
A bag containing a computer and two USB memory sticks holding police security plans for the Paris Olympic Games has been stolen from a train at the capital’s Gare du Nord station.
The bag belonged to an engineer from Paris city hall, the police said late on Tuesday, confirming a report by BFM television, adding that he had put the bag in the luggage compartment above his seat.
Continue reading...French president tells Paris conference Moscow ‘must not and cannot’ win the war and that Europe’s security is at stake
The French president, Emmanuel Macron, has called for western countries to step up their support for Ukraine, warning that Moscow’s actions in recent weeks signal that Russia could attack Nato states in the next few years.
Speaking at the opening of a hastily convened conference of 20 mainly European leaders in Paris designed to speed up the supply of weapons and financial aid to Ukraine, Macron said Russia “must not and cannot win this war” and that Europe’s own security was at stake.
Continue reading...Four ski mountaineers from a nearby club killed and three injured while off piste with a guide
Four people have been killed in an avalanche in the mountainous Auvergne region of central France, local authorities said.
The avalanche took place on Sunday at an altitude of 1,600 metres (5,250 feet) above the village of Mont-Dore in an area known as the Val d’Enfer, the prefecture of the Puy-de-Dôme department said in a statement.
Continue reading...French president greeted by whistles from hundreds of demonstrators as some clash with police
Hundreds of protesting farmers clashed with police in Paris as Emmanuel Macron toured the annual agricultural fair on Saturday. The French president had opened the fair as angry farmers blew whistles and shouted insults.
Riot police initially kept the protesters at a safe distance as he toured the fair, tasting honey from Normandy and cheeses from the Alps, and shaking hands with exhibitors. But as he entered the fair’s livestock area, hundreds of demonstrators crashed the gates and clashed with police.
Continue reading...Star tells audience at prestigious César awards that they need to challenge powerful and abusive men whatever the career risk
Judith Godrèche has urged the French film industry to break its omertà on sexual abuse in an unprecedented address to the country’s most prestigious awards ceremony on Friday evening.
Godrèche, who says she was groomed and raped as a teenager by an acclaimed director, received a standing ovation as she took the stage at the Césars – the French equivalent of the Oscars.
Continue reading...President faces uncertain reception at Salon d’Agriculture after weeks of protests by furious farmers
Most politicians kiss babies; French leaders pat cows and make a fuss of lambs.
The Salon d’Agriculture, the country’s annual farm show which opens on Saturday, is a date presidents cannot afford to miss.
Continue reading...Pressure mounts on Israel and Hamas to make a deal before threatened Rafah offensive
An Israeli negotiating team arrived in Paris on Friday for talks about a potential ceasefire in Gaza in the latest sign of tentative progress towards an agreement that could end the five-month-old war.
The Israeli delegation, which includes the heads of its internal and external intelligence services, will meet the director of the CIA, Qatar’s prime minister and Egypt’s most senior intelligence official for talks over the weekend in what appears to be the most serious push for weeks to halt the fighting.
Continue reading...Ukrainian ambassador to Australia also urges west not to succumb to ‘fatigue’ in its support for Ukraine
Ukraine is appealing to Australia and France to deliver more ammunition to the country as it marks the second anniversary of Russia’s full-scale invasion.
The Ukrainian ambassador to Australia, Vasyl Myroshnychenko, also urged western leaders not to succumb to “fatigue” over the protracted war, saying: “I think the only country which can feel fatigue can be Ukraine, actually, because we are the ones who are being killed.”
Continue reading...European Commission president says she will never work with parties such as AfD or National Rally, no matter how big a vote they secure in European elections
Campaign Corner: Slovakia
As the campaign kicks off for the June European elections, more parties are presenting their candidates.
We believe that this is an attempt to take over the agricultural protest movement by extreme and irresponsible groups, possibly under the influence of Russian agents.
Continue reading...Actor, who has accused two directors of raping her as a teenager, to address France’s most prestigious film awards ceremony
Judith Godrèche, an actor who has accused two high-profile directors of raping her as a teenager, will address France’s most prestigious film awards ceremony on Friday in an unusual move aimed at breaking what she calls the “omertà” surrounding the abuse of women and girls in the industry.
Godrèche, whose autobiographical hit TV show about the grooming of a 14-year-old girl has sparked a national debate, will take to the stage at the César awards, the French equivalent of the Oscars, which is broadcast live on television.
Continue reading...