French and Riviera News Thursday 29th June 2023

News

Violence following fatal shooting of 17-year-old by police - There have been protests and a second night of unrest in several cities in France following the fatal shooting of 17-year-old Nahel M by police near Paris on Tuesday during a road check. Thousands of extra security forces were deployed and at least 150 people were arrested. In Toulouse, protesters started a fire and threw stones at firefighters as they tried to put it out. Demonstrators also clashed with police in the northern city of Lille. In Rennes, about 300 people gathered to pay tribute to the teenager.  French President Emmanuel Macron said the shooting of Nahel was "unforgivable". But his comments drew an angry reaction from police unions, who accused him of rushing to judge the officers involved. Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin said he would be taking legal action against another group, France Police, after it published what he called an "unacceptable and abject" tweet seeking to justify the teenager's killing.

On Wednesday the French National Assembly held a minute's silence in memory of the 17-year-old and during his visit to Marseille President Macron said that "nothing justifies the death of a young person" and that the shooting was "unexplainable" and "inexcusable". He sent his "respect" and "affection" to the teenager's family.

Locally in Nice and its surroundings, on Wednesday evening, a message circulated on Snapchat, calling on young people from the districts of L'Ariane, Pasteur and Saint-Roch, in Nice, but also from La Condamine, in Drap, "to be heard".

Macron visit to Marseille - President Macron carries out his final day of his visit to Marseille on Wednesday and started the day with a visit to a housing complex in the east of the city. He announced plans to improve housing conditions quickly, saying that it is necessary to do in 18 months "what we do in seven years". In the afternoon the President was on the main port of Marseille. He said that the site must be "de-carbonised", adding that it is "impossible to think of Marseille without the port".

Woman drowns in private swimming pool - A woman has drowned in a private swimming pool in Revest les Roche in the Alpes Maritimes. Emergency services intervened on Wednesday evening, but it was already too late for the 59-year-old victim, a mother of two, who was well known amongst local villagers. Police have opened an investigation to determine exact circumstances.

Prince Albert visits Italy – H.S.H Prince Albert II Monaco has received a warm welcome in Italy during a visit to the Piedmont retracing family links. Prince Albert exchanged with locals in the village square of Vercelli, while unveiling a sign marking "Grimaldi Historic Sites of Monaco".

Heavy traffic - VINCI Autoroutes is forecasting particularly heavy traffic in the south-east of France this weekend, in the Rhône valley and around the Mediterranean. Traffic peaks are expected throughout the weekend on the A7 motorway, particularly in the Valence sector, the Mediterranean rim and the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, with the A8, A9 and A61 motorways also experiencing heavy traffic, particularly around large cities. Some disruption is also expected from Monday because of the Tour de France.

Business

Sri Lanka began a five-day bank holiday from Thursday to allow the crisis-hit nation to restructure $42bn (£33.2bn) in domestic debt. This comes as it secured $700m in support from multinational lender the World Bank. The country is facing its worst economic crisis since it won independence from the British in 1948.

The US company behind ChatGPT has said its first international office will be based in London. OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman said the move was an "opportunity to attract world-class talent". It comes after he criticised the EU's proposed legislation regulating artificial intelligence (AI), which would require companies to reveal the content used to train their systems.

The governor of the Bank of England, Andrew Bailey has said that the UK labour market and not Brexit is to blame for stubbornly high inflation. Bailey said the tight jobs market, with near-record low unemployment, was the reason the UK inflation rate is higher than both the US and Eurozone.

Sport

Football - Arsenal have agreed a deal worth £105m to sign West Ham's England midfielder Declan Rice. Talks are continuing between the clubs over how the deal will be structured for the 24-year-old.

Golf - Sergio Garcia has said that his feud with former Ryder Cup team-mate Rory McIlroy is over after the pair resolved their differences at the US Open. McIlroy voiced opposition when players, including Garcia, joined LIV Golf.

Weather

The Alpes-Maritimes has been placed on a yellow weather alert with thunderstorms forecast. Storms are expected inland by this afternoon with 28 degrees in Monaco, Nice and Antibes.

Sunny with 26 degrees in Saint-Tropez and Toulon. This evening going down to 21 degrees with clear skies.

The outlook for tomorrow and heading into the weekend. Unsettled tomorrow across the region with a chance of scattered showers. Highs of 27-28 degrees. Saturday and Sunday fine with a gentle breeze and highs of 27 degrees.

Sunrise                05.51am

Sunset                 09.16pm

Beach Weather

Nice - Sea temperature 24 degrees. Air temperature 27 degrees. UV level 10.

Cannes - Sea temperature 24 degrees. Air temperture 28 degrees. UV level 10. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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