Two people have been seriously injured in a shooting incident in Toulon this morning. A man in his thirties opened fire injuring two of his neighbours in the Loubière district of the city. Police cordoned off the area and the gunman gave himself up to authorities at 9.30 this morning and is in police custody in Toulon. According to the prosecutor, a neighbourhood dispute may have been the cause of the incident.
The first people repatriated from China to France because of the coronavirus are due to end their period of quarantine tomorrow. The 181 returnees have been held in isolation at a holiday camp in Carry-le-Rouet in the Bouches-du-Rhône since January 31, when they landed at an airport in Istres. Authorities have not reported any confirmed cases of the coronavirus amongst the group of returnees. Meanwhile, the French Ministry of Health said this morning that two of the eleven people who have been hospitalized because of the virus have now left hospital. They are a Chinese couple in their thirties who arrived from Whuan in China on the 18th of January and were amongst the first cases reported in France.
Work has started to transform the tunnel in Nice which runs from Rue du Congrès to the Promenade des Anglais. The plan is to make the tunnel, which is currently used by motorists, available to cyclists only. The work, launched a few days ago at an estimated cost of 450,000 euros, is expected to be completed in March.
It’s been announced that former French President Nicolas Sarkozy will be visiting Cannes next month. He’ll be inaugurating the annual MIPIM international property event which takes place at the Palais des Festivals from the 10th to the 13th of March.
Firefighters extinguished a blaze at a house in Sanary in the Var this morning. The wooden structure on the chemin de Bacchus, which according to reports was regularly used by squatters, was badly damaged by the fire.
Traffic on the region’s roads is expected to be heavy this weekend as people travel to and from the ski resorts. Roads to and from the resorts, the A7, A8 and A51 motorways and roads around the major cities of the south-east are expected to be most affected.
French Minister of Economy Bruno Le Maire has said that Chinese company Huawei will not be excluded from the market in 5G telecoms equipment in France. However, he also said that there would be restrictions put in place to protect what he called the "interests of sovereignty "of France if there were critical or military installations or nuclear zones nearby.
BUSINESS
In the UK, Sajid Javid has resigned as chancellor. Mr Javid rejected an order from UK Prime Minister Johnson to fire his team of aides, saying "no self-respecting minister" could accept such a condition. He has been replaced as chancellor by Chief Secretary to the Treasury Rishi Sunak.
Airbus has reported a €1.36bn net loss for its 2019 financial year, down sharply from 2018's €3bn profit. Airbus recently paid a settlement of €3.6bn, following investigations into the aircraft maker's use of middlemen to secure plane deals. Excluding the settlement and other one-off charges, full-year adjusted operating income was up 19% at nearly €7bn.
Facebook has delayed the launch of its new dating feature in Europe, after a visit to its offices in Dublin by Irish Data Protection Commission officers. The Commission said it had been told about the feature just 10 days ahead of the planned launch and "no information or documentation was provided". Facebook said it had completed the necessary paperwork and shared it when asked. Facebook Dating launched in the US in September as part of the existing Facebook phone app.
Norwegian Air has announced a loss of 1.87bn Norwegian crowns in the last three months of 2019. That was better than the firm's loss of 3bn crowns a year earlier, but still worse than forecasts. The company said its business had been "negatively impacted" by the grounding of the Boeing 737 Max plane.
SPORT
Football… Chelsea have signed their first player after their transfer ban. The club have reached agreement with Ajax to sign winger Hakim Ziyech this summer. Ajax have confirmed they have accepted a fee of 40m euros, potentially rising to 44m euros, with the move subject to the player agreeing personal terms.
Manchester United's new signing Odion Ighalo is training away from the club this week as a precautionary measure following his arrival from China. The club reportedly decided against taking Ighalo on their winter training camp in Spain because of concerns he may have difficulty getting back into the UK. However, he is expected to travel with the squad for Monday's game at Chelsea.
Motorsports… Formula 1's managing director Ross Brawn has said that the Vietnam Grand Prix is expected to go ahead on 5 April despite concerns over the coronavirus.
Rugby Union… The Hong Kong and Singapore legs of the World Rugby Sevens Series have been rescheduled from April to October because of the coronavirus outbreak.
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