Notre Dame cathedral ▶ Catholic Cathedral ▶ Completed in 1345 ▶ Construction took 182 years ▶ Tower height of 69 meters ▶ Where Napoleon was coronated ▶ 14 million visitors annually ▶ Has a 13 tonne bell named Emmanuel The Notre Dame has survived ▶ French Wars of Religion ▶ The …
Read More »TV lets it all hang out in naked attack on bad body image
Cannes, France | AFP | Reality television shows like “Big Brother” and “Love Island” have been blamed for helping create the Instagram aesthetic of perfect, bronzed hairless bodies. But a new show is trying to repair the damage unrealistic standards are doing to people’s body image. “Naked Beach” is …
Read More »Airbus flies into new era with change of boss
Paris, France | AFP | Frenchman Guillaume Faury took over as CEO of European aerospace giant Airbus on Wednesday, looking to benefit from the current troubles of rival Boeing and limit potential disruption from Brexit and US President Donald Trump’s trade threats. The 51-year-old will replace Tom Enders, who is …
Read More »Uber launches electric bikes, scooters in Paris
Paris, France | AFP | US ride-hailing group Uber said Wednesday that it would start deploying electric bikes and scooters for rent on Paris streets as soon as this week, joining a crowded market which city officials have vowed to rein in. Initially 500 of its Jump bikes and 500 …
Read More »France begins debating digital tax, defying US ire
Paris, France | AFP | French lawmakers on Monday began debating a new tax on digital giants such as Facebook and Apple that has angered the United States, with Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire boasting that France was proud to be in the vanguard of such a move. The United …
Read More »Macron seeks to shine light on Rwanda genocide
Paris, France | AFP | French President Emmanuel Macron on Friday appointed a panel of experts to investigate France’s actions in Rwanda during the country’s genocide 25 years ago, a subject that has dogged Franco-Rwandan relations since the 1994 massacres. The commission of eight researchers and historians “will be tasked with …
Read More »Macron under fire for skipping Rwandan genocide commemorations
Paris, France | AFP | When a smattering of leaders gather this weekend in Kigali to mark the 25th anniversary of Rwanda’s genocide there will be one conspicuous absence: French President Emmanuel Macron. Several African leaders and Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel are expected at events commemorating the 1994 massacre of …
Read More »I can’t believe Museveni and Kagame want to destabilize each other, French envoy
Stephanie Rivoal, the outgoing French Ambassador spoke to The Independent’s Ronald Musoke about her highs and lows of her two-and-half year stay in Uganda. Uganda was your very first post in your diplomatic career. How have you found your stay here? It is my belief that modern diplomacy touches three …
Read More »Hero French pilot in Entebbe hijack dies aged 95
Nice, France | AFP | A French pilot hailed for bravery during a hijacking drama targeting Jews on an Air France flight in 1976 has died aged 95, his son told AFP on Wednesday. Michel Bacos was flying from Tel Aviv to Paris when Palestinian and German radicals hijacked the …
Read More »French judges question PSG president in athletics corruption probe
Paris, France | AFP | The Qatari boss of top French soccer team PSG Nasser Al-Khelaifi has been questioned in France in connection with a corruption probe over the awarding to Doha of the World Athletics championships, a judicial source said Saturday. The source said Al-Khelaifi was questioned on Wednesday by investigating magistrates who termed …
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