Daughter leaves French court during man’s trial over recruiting dozens to rape wife

Caroline Darian overwhelmed as details are revealed during trial of father, Dominique Pélicot, and 50 other men

Harrowing details have emerged at the trial of a French man charged with enlisting dozens of strangers to rape his drugged wife, with their daughter temporarily leaving the courtroom as she became overwhelmed by emotion.

The case against Dominique Pélicot, 71, has horrified France after the allegations were only exposed by chance when he was caught filming up women’s skirts in a supermarket.

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Emmanuel Macron continues consultations on next PM, weeks after French election – Europe live

France led by caretaker administration since July snap election

Eric Ciotti, a right-wing politician who had allied himself with the far-right ahead of the elections, has expressed his opposition to Xavier Bertrand.

BFMTV reports that Emmanuel Macron will hold new phone consultations with different political groupings.

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Man accused of enlisting strangers to rape drugged wife goes on trial in France

Dominique Pélicot, 71, being tried with 50 other men over alleged abuse of woman for years at couple’s Provence home

A husband who allegedly drugged his wife and invited more than 80 strangers to rape her at their home for almost a decade went on trial on Monday in a case that has shocked France.

Fifty men accused of taking part in the abuse of the woman are also on trial at the court in Avignon. More than a dozen feminists dressed in black protested outside the courthouse as the trial opened.

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Telegram CEO charged in France for ‘allowing criminal activity’ on messaging app

Pavel Durov, who has French citizenship, faces prosecution over alleged failure to suppress spread of sexual images of children and calls for violence

The head of Telegram, Pavel Durov, has been charged by the French judiciary for allegedly allowing criminal activity on the messaging app but avoided jail with a €5m bail.

The Russian-born multi-billionaire, who has French citizenship, was granted release on condition that he report to a police station twice a week and remain in France, Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau said in a statement.

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France to trial ban on mobile phones at school for children under 15

‘Digital pause’ experiment at 200 secondary schools could be extended nationwide in January

France is to trial a ban on mobile phones at school for pupils up to the age of 15, seeking to give children a “digital pause” that, if judged successful, could be rolled out nationwide from January.

Just under 200 secondary schools will take place in the experiment that will require youngsters to hand over phones on arrival at reception. It takes the prohibition on the devices further than a 2018 law that banned pupils at primary and secondary schools from using their phones on the premises but allowed them to keep possession of them.

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Chaos in France after Macron refuses to name prime minister from leftwing coalition

More talks to take place on Tuesday as president attempts to find a PM who can command cross-party support

France has been plunged into further political chaos after Emmanuel Macron refused to name a prime minister from the leftwing coalition that won the most parliamentary seats in the snap election last month.

The president had hoped consultations would break the political deadlock caused by the election that left the Assemblée Nationale divided into three roughly equal blocks – left, centre and far right – none of which has a majority of seats.

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Telegram founder arrest part of cybercrime inquiry, say prosecutors

Investigation into Pavel Durov relates to app’s alleged failure to stop spread of child sexual abuse material

Pavel Durov, the Russian-born billionaire co-founder of the Telegram messaging app, was arrested in France in connection with an investigation into criminal activity on the platform and a lack of cooperation with law enforcement, prosecutors announced on Monday.

Durov, who has French citizenship, was detained at Le Bourget airport, just outside Paris, on Saturday evening after arriving from Azerbaijan on his private jet. His surprise arrest has sparked debate over free speech worldwide and led to an outcry in Moscow.

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Telegram app founder Pavel Durov to appear in court after arrest in Paris

Russian-born billionaire said to have ‘miscalculated’ by visiting France during inquiry into crime on his platform

The Russian-born founder of Telegram, Pavel Durov, is due to appear in a French court in the coming days after his arrest at a Paris airport over alleged offences related to the messaging app.

Sources told the AFP news agency that the Franco-Russian tech billionaire would appear in court after being detained by police at Le Bourget airport. French investigators had issued a warrant for Durov’s arrest as part of an inquiry into allegations of fraud, drug trafficking, organised crime, promotion of terrorism and cyberbullying.

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Man suspected of attempted arson against synagogue arrested in France

Ministers call for more security around Jewish schools and places of worship after incident in La Grande-Motte

French police have arrested a man suspected of attempted arson against a synagogue in the southern France city of La Grande-Motte, acting interior minister Gérald Darmanin said on X.

The incident in the Mediterranean resort east of Montpellier is being investigated by France’s specialist antiterrorism prosecutor.

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Telegram app founder Pavel Durov reportedly arrested at French airport

Billionaire CEO, who was travelling aboard his private jet, was subject of arrest warrant, according to TV reports

Pavel Durov, billionaire co-founder and chief executive of the Telegram messaging app, was arrested at the Bourget airport outside Paris on Saturday evening, TF1 TV said, citing an unnamed source.

Durov was travelling aboard his private jet, TF1 said on its website, adding he had been targeted by an arrest warrant in France.

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Alain Delon buried in ‘strictest privacy’ in grounds of his estate

French actor, who died aged 88 last Sunday, had expressed wish to be buried like ‘anyone else’

Alain Delon had expressed the wish to be buried just like “anyone else”.

But as a crowd of journalists, television crews and fans gathered outside the wrought iron gates of his country home on Saturday, it was clear this was not the funeral of just anyone.

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French leftwing leaders ‘extremely satisfied’ after Macron talks

Meeting with president in bid to break political deadlock hailed as positive even if Macron has yet to name a PM

Leaders of France’s leftwing coalition declared they were “extremely satisfied” after Emmanuel Macron launched the first of a series of tense consultations aimed at pulling together a new government.

The New Popular Front (NFP) wants the president to name its candidate prime minister to break a six-week political deadlock.

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Paris Olympics gives eurozone economic boost after rise in spending

French service sector drives growth but experts warn strong figures mask disappointing performance elsewhere

The Paris Olympics have provided a boost to the eurozone economy after a sharp rise in spending as athletes and spectators descended on the French capital for the summer sporting event.

Figures from a closely watched survey of businesses showed monthly French private sector output rose to its highest level in 17 months in August.

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French film star Alain Delon dies aged 88

Celebrated actor and star of Plein Soleil and Le Samouraï has died, his children have said

Alain Delon, the celebrated actor who starred in a string of classic films such as Plein Soleil, Le Samouraï and Rocco and His Brothers, has died aged 88, his children have told French media.

“Alain Fabien, Anouchka, Anthony, as well as [his dog] Loubo, are deeply saddened to announce the passing of their father. He passed away peacefully in his home in Douchy, surrounded by his three children and his family,” they said in a statement, adding that the family asked for privacy.

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Alain Delon: how family feud brought Shakespearean tragedy to final years

Tensions between his children had erupted behind the gates of the French actor’s home in the village of Douchy

It has been some time since Alain Delon was last seen in the village of Douchy, his country home for the past half a century and the place he designated as his final resting place. Local people remember when back in the 1970s and 80s he would be spotted at the nearby chemist shop or the only restaurant, or even at the annual school fete with Mireille Darc, an actor and one of the great loves of his life.

“When I was a schoolgirl they would come for the end-of-year party. They would play Father Christmas and give everyone a present,” one woman recalled.

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David Lammy warns of rising risk of full-scale regional war in Middle East

The UK foreign secretary and his French counterpart write in the Observer about their fears over Israel’s escalating tensions with Iran

• It’s never too late for peace in the Middle East – we must break the cycle of violence

There is a rising risk of “full-scale regional war” in the Middle East, the foreign secretary, David Lammy, has warned, amid frantic international efforts to calm tensions with Iran and reach a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas.

With the US secretary of state, Antony Blinken, flying into Israel this weekend to push for a deal, Lammy has joined forces with his French counterpart, Stéphane Séjourné, to warn that now is a “perilous moment” for the region in the midst of widespread fears of escalation involving Tehran and allied militias in Lebanon, Iraq, Syria and Yemen.

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French customs officers thwart €1.3m sale of fake Leonardo da Vinci painting

Spanish police make arrest after being notified that export licence had expired and work was found to be a copy

Spanish police have arrested a man whose alleged plan to sell a fake Leonardo da Vinci painting in Italy for €1.3m was thwarted when the work caught the eye of French customs officers.

Although the man had an export licence for the work, which was purported to be a Leonardo portrait of the Italian aristocrat and military commander Gian Giacomo Trivulzio, the licence had expired, prompting customs officers at the Modane border post to contact Spanish police.

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‘Bloody warm, innit?’ says man who climbed Eiffel Tower on last day of Olympics

Bare-chested climber had ascended halfway up north face of structure when he was intercepted by Paris police

A climber scaled the north face of the Eiffel Tower in Paris on Sunday, the last day of the Olympics, but was intercepted by police midway up, police said. “At 2.45 pm, an individual was seen climbing the Eiffel Tower,” a police spokesman said. “The police immediately intervened and arrested the individual.”

Videos showed the bare-chested man skirting the Olympic rings as he made his way up without ropes.

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Family whose daughter died in Channel say they will attempt crossing again

Amira Al Shammari says they have no other options as she describes horror of 21-year-old Dina’s death

A mother from a stateless Arab minority say she and her family have no choice but to try to cross the Channel again despite the death last month of her eldest daughter on a previous attempt.

Dina Al Shammari, 21, was travelling with her parents and three teenage siblings when she was crushed to death in an overcrowded dinghy off the coast of Calais on 28 July.

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Two people die attempting to cross Channel in dinghy

Fifty-three people were rescued by helicopter on Sunday morning, French authorities have said

Two people have died attempting to cross the Channel in a dinghy, according to the French authorities, bringing the death toll since mid-July to at least nine.

Fifty-three people were rescued by a helicopter and several ships sent to the scene by Gris-Nez Regional operation and surveillance centre. HM Coastguard also provided assistance, but two people were declared dead after being found unconscious onboard.

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