France

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For Giant Panda, It's a Girl ... and Another Girl!

Huan Huan, on loan from China to France, is the new mom of twins

(Newser) - Happy news on the giant-panda front: One such panda on loan to France from China gave birth to twin female cubs early Monday, per the AP . "They are very lively, pink, and plump," says the Beauval Zoo, south of Paris. The cubs weigh 5.3 ounces and 4....

Thousands Oppose France&#39;s Virus Pass
French Protest
New Virus Pass

French Protest New Virus Pass

Polls show majority support, but opponents are hitting the streets

(Newser) - Thousands of people protested France's special virus pass by marching through Paris and other cities on Saturday. Most demonstrations were peaceful, but some protesters in Paris clashed with riot police, who fired tear gas. Some 3,000 security forces deployed around the capital for a third weekend of protests...

Given Cash to Broaden Their Cultural Horizons, French Don't

18-year-olds stick to manga, which $350 from government helps buy

(Newser) - Juliette Sega is operating within the rules for spending the $350 the French government is giving every 18-year-old when she buys comic books, if not the aspirations. "It's a really good initiative," said Juliette Sega, who lives in southeastern France. "I'm a steady consumer of...

Man in Suit, Tie Carries Out 'Daring' Paris Jewel Heist

Suspect hit one of France's oldest jewelers

(Newser) - Jean-Claude Van Damme's first credited film role was a brief appearance in a movie about a jewel heist. Life seemed to imitate art Tuesday in Paris, where a jewel heist was carried out while would-be witnesses at an adjacent cafe happened to be distracted by Van Damme, who was...

Nurses Join Vaccine Protest
Nurses Join Vaccine Protest

Nurses Join Vaccine Protest

More than 100,000 people march in France against new coronavirus measures

(Newser) - Over 100,000 people protested across France on Saturday against the government's latest measures to push people to get vaccinated and curb rising infections by the delta variant of the coronavirus. In Paris, separate protest marches by the far right and far left wound through different parts of the...

They Said Her Rants Were Racist. But They Were Convicted

11 found to have harassed teen who posted anti-Islam videos

(Newser) - Eleven people have been convicted of the online harassment of a schoolgirl who posted rants against Islam , in a controversial case out of France. The girl identified only as Mila changed schools and underwent police protection after receiving what her lawyer said was more than 100,000 abusive messages, including...

Man Seeking Stash of 'Nazi Gold' Killed 4 Relatives

There's no sign stash ever existed

(Newser) - A Frenchman obsessed with a supposed stash of gold hidden from the Nazis has been sentenced to 30 years for murdering and dismembering four family members. Investigators say there is no sign the treasure ever existed. Prosecutors said Hubert Caouissin thought his brother-in-law Pascal Troadec had concealed gold bars that...

French Champagne Makers Decry 'Scandalous' Putin Law

His legislation suggests the only real champagne is from Russia

(Newser) - French Champagne producers make one thing very clear : The only legal Champagne comes from the Champagne region of France. To their chagrin, Russia sees things a bit differently. Under a law signed by President Vladimir Putin on Friday, only local producers can slap the word "shampanskoye," the Russian...

Cannes Film Fest Is Back, With a Big First

Spike Lee will be first Black person to head jury for the festival, starting Tuesday

(Newser) - For the past 16 months, the Palais des Festivals, the central hub of the Cannes Film Festival, has been lined with hospital beds and even turned into a mass-vaccination site after the film fest was postponed last year, then canceled due to the pandemic. On Tuesday, the film fest, delayed...

Woman Who Killed Abusive Husband Collapses in Court
She Could've Gotten
Life. What Prosecutors
Sought Made Her Faint
in case you missed it

She Could've Gotten Life. What Prosecutors Sought Made Her Faint

Frenchwoman Valerie Bacot collapses in court on Friday

(Newser) - A Frenchwoman on trial for murdering her abusive husband , who was her abusive stepfather before he forced her to marry him, collapsed in court Friday after hearing how long prosecutors were asking for her to spend in prison. Valerie Bacot, now 40, could have seen life in prison after admitting...

He Was Her Stepdad, Then Her Husband. Now, a Murder Trial

More than 600K call for release of Valerie Bacot, who says Daniel Polette abused her for 24 years

(Newser) - The trial of a Frenchwoman who allegedly shot her husband to death started Monday, and the suspect herself says she deserves to be punished. But Valerie Bacot's story has infuriated activists on domestic violence who say she should be given her freedom, as her husband was also her stepfather,...

22-Year-Old Loses Hand as Police Bust a Rave in France

As many as 1,500 people attended

(Newser) - A 22-year-old man lost his hand and several others were also injured amid clashes as police tried to break up an unauthorized rave in western France, authorities said Saturday. The tensions erupted in a field near the Brittany town of Redon on Friday night, just two days before France lifts...

A French Tradition Lost Over Last Year Might Be Back

President Macron uses double-cheeked embrace known as 'la bise'

(Newser) - The double-cheeked embrace that was a customary greeting in France before being largely abandoned during the pandemic is back with a presidential seal of approval. French President Emmanuel Macron made the return of “la bise” all but official Friday by giving cheek-to-cheek embraces to two World War II veterans...

France Ships Small Version of Famed Statue to US

Replica of Lady Liberty will be on Ellis Island for Independence Day

(Newser) - The first Statue of Liberty sent to the US 135 years ago was a hit, and France is making a similar—albeit smaller—gesture this summer. A nearly 10-foot-tall exact replica was sent off from Paris in a ceremony Monday, WLNE reports, where it's been in the garden of...

In France, Swift Justice for Macron Slap

Jailed man said he 'acted instinctively'

(Newser) - The man who slapped French President Emmanuel Macron in the face on Tuesday will spend the next four months behind bars. A court in Valence Thursday sentenced 28-year-old Damien Tarel to 18 months in jail for assaulting a public official, with 14 months suspended, per Reuters . Tarel—an unemployed medieval...

France's Emmanuel Macron Gets Slapped in the Face

President was greeting a crowd when a man pulled the stunt

(Newser) - A startling moment jolted an otherwise rousing political moment in France on Tuesday. As President Emmanuel Macron was greeting a crowd, a man clasped his arm and slapped him in the face, reports the BBC . Watch the video here . Security immediately intervened and arrested the man, and Macron appeared to...

Fewer Attend D-Day Events, but France 'Does Not Forget'

Coronavirus restrictions limit attendance as Britain opens new memorial

(Newser) - When the sun rises over Omaha Beach, revealing vast stretches of sand extending toward distant cliffs, one starts to grasp the immensity of the task faced by Allied troops on June 6, 1944, landing on the Nazi-occupied Normandy shore. Several ceremonies were being held Sunday to commemorate the 77th anniversary...

France to Open for Tourists, With a Few Rules

Americans will find it easier to travel, though not everywhere in Europe

(Newser) - France is ready to welcome back foreign tourists, the government announced Friday, provided they follow a few color-coded rules. Vaccinated visitors from Europe can arrive starting Wednesday, France 24 reports. So can travelers from the the orange-rated US and much of the rest of the world, who won't have...

French Teen's Anti-Islam Posts Lead to a Landmark Trial

13 are accused of threatening her online after she disparaged the religion

(Newser) - Thirteen people went on trial Thursday in Paris accused of cyberbullying or death threats against a teenage girl who posted online comments critical of Islam. The case is the first such trial under new jurisdiction France created this year to prosecute crimes online, including harassment and discrimination, per the AP...

A Big First for Paris&#39; Louvre
A Big First for
Paris' Louvre

A Big First for Paris' Louvre

Laurence des Cars appointed by President Macron as museum's first female president

(Newser) - It was a phone call Laurence des Cars had long waited for—and when it finally came this week, it was a "joyful and emotional moment." "I will never forget that call," the 54-year-old art historian tells France Inter , via the Guardian , of the correspondence that...

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