Two people have reportedly been arrested after President Macron was slapped in the face during a walkabout in the Drome department this afternoon. Video shot by a member of the crowd appears to show the president being slapped by a man who was then approached by police. The president was briefly removed from the scene by his security entorage but then resumed his walkabout.
Earlier during his visit, President Macron said that the reopening of restaurant terraces three weeks ago was "a real success". Commenting on the progression of the epedemic before the next stage of deconfinement tomorrow, he added that "we must remain cautious". He said that there are about 110,000 employment vacancies in catering and encouraged unemployed people to seek work in the sector.
The president of the French government's Scientific Council has called for the wearing of masks outdoors to continue until at least 30 June. Speaking to French media this morning Jean-Francois Delfraissy said that "the situation is contained and is going in the right direction" and "the numbers have dropped faster than we imagined", which he attributed to the number of people who have now been vaccinated. However, he called for caution during the next phase of deconfinement from tomorrow.
Six people have been arrested suspected of offences releated to the financing of terrorism. Reports say that five people in the family of one of the perpetrators of the Bataclan attack in Paris in 2015 were arrested in the Bas-Rhin department in northeastern France and one in the Gironde.
About 150 demonstrators, mostly journalists, have gathered in Paris this afternoon to draw attention to the kidnapping of journalist Olivier Dubois who was taken hostage in Mali two months ago. A rally calling for his release was also held today in Bamako, the capital of Mali.
Two people have died in a house fire in the Var. The fire broke out last night in a three storey property in Bargemon. An investigation has been opened by the gendarmerie in Draguignan.
Meteo France have yellow weather warnings in place for storms in the Var and the Alpes-Maritimes until 9pm this evening and also tomorrow, Wednesday, from 1pm to at least 4pm. There's also a yellow warning for heavy rain and flooding in the Alpes-Maritimes until 11pm this evening.
BUSINESS
A major internet outage affected many leading websites earlier today. Those affected included the Financial Times, the White House and some UK government websites. Problems at a cloud computing network provider used by many major sites were apparently responsibe for the outage, which saw sites impacted for about an hour this morning, with most services being gradually restored.
The Eurozone economy shrank less than expected in the first quarter of this year. EU statistics agency Eurostat said today that the economy contracted by 0.3% in the quarter, which is less than the 0.6% previously estimated. Ireland led the way, with growth of 7.8% compared to the previous quarter.
Meanwhile, German factory output fell by 1.0% in April according to the Federal Statistics Office. Production was affected by supply chain problems and the shortage of parts including computer chips.
SPORT
Tennis....Slovenian player Tamara Zidanšek is through to the semi-finals of the French Open after defeating Paula Badosa. The final score was 7-5 4-6 8-6.
Football... The Dutch Football Association has said that Donny van de Beek will miss the Netherlands' Euro 2020 campaign because of injury. Their first match will be against Ukraine in Amsterdam on Sunday.
A new optional regional transport tax for businesses, introduced in France’s 2025 budget, aims to fund eco-friendly mobility projects. ...
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A judge has authorised a dive to inspect the wreckage of a plane in the sea off Antibes. The plane crashed into the Mediterranean on September 11 1968...
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In France, drinking water is heavily contaminated with "forever pollutants," particularly trifluoroacetic acid (TFA), as revealed by two studies from ...
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The trial of the Tunisian man accused of the murder of three people in the Nice Basilica attack is continuing in Paris. Yesterday the families of the ...
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Four cities in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (PACA) region made Booking.com's 2025 list of the "most welcoming destinations in France." ...
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