The announcement of the joint exercise was made by the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force (JGSDF) and the defense minister on Friday, as the nation aims to strengthen its military cooperation with allies in the region. “By strengthening cooperation between Japan, the United States and France, we’d like to further improve …
Read More »Marine Le Pen’s chances of an electoral earthquake in France are gaining momentum as Macron loses his bearings
With the French presidential elections now less than a year away, when cafes and bars reopen post-Covid, there will be one topic of conversation among customers to dominate all others – the very real possibility that Marine Le Pen could be the next President of the Republic. So strong is …
Read More »France tells its citizens to flee Pakistan as deadly anti-French riots intensify over Emmanuel Macron’s perceived slight on Islam
When he first waded into the domestic affairs of France, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan probably thought he could rely on the muscle of fellow Muslim leaders, including bellicose Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, to help see off complaints about over-reach. However, in just six months, the relationship between Islamabad …
Read More »France finally outlaws sex with children under 15 after Duhamel-Kouchner incest scandal reignites age of consent debate
The Assemblee Nationale voted unanimously on Thursday to set the age of consent at 15, classifying sex with children under that age – as well as incestuous sex with anyone under 18 – as rape, punishable by up to 20 years in prison. “This is an historic law for our …
Read More »France calls on nationals to leave Pakistan, citing ‘serious threats’ to their security amid deadly anti-French protests
“Due to the serious threats to French interests in Pakistan, French nationals and French companies are recommended to temporarily leave the country,” read the letter from the French embassy to its citizens in Pakistan on Thursday. The move comes after a week of intense protests against French interests in the country, …
Read More »Macron spent €4bn bailing out Air France then axed a tenth of all internal flights to appease the greens – this is a French farce
When President Emmanuel Macron got the green light for the state to bail out ailing Air France earlier this month, who knew that just a few days later he would put the nation’s aviation industry into a tailspin after bowing to a climate group’s demands on reducing carbon emissions. With …
Read More »5 women arrested in France on suspicion of plotting terrorist attack on religious site during Easter holidays
French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin confirmed the operation in a tweet, thanking counter-terrorism agents for their work. Several French news outlets reported earlier that authorities had learned a woman – who has not been publicly identified – was planning a terrorist attack on a religious site in the southern city …
Read More »France shuts schools for three weeks and whole country heads for lockdown amid Covid-19 spike as Macron defends measures
All face-to-face teaching in schools will be suspended from Monday for a week ahead of the two-week spring break, with schools set to return on April 26, Macron announced, in a televised national address on Wednesday evening. The tougher lockdown measures, which had been in place in 19 areas including …
Read More »Media watchdog takes Facebook in France to court over hate speech failures
The media watchdog group took the step to challenge Facebook over what it described as “misleading commercial practices” and a “massive proliferation” of problematic content on the company’s platform. The legal action focuses on a section of Facebook’s policies that pledge to provide “a safe, secure and error-free environment” for …
Read More »Prime Minister Jean Castex gets Covid-19 vaccine live on air as France resumes rollout after blood-clot fears
“I didn’t feel anything,” the 55-year-old said at the Begin military hospital in Paris as he sought to allay fears that the vaccine was unsafe. France was among a dozen European Union nations to pause its rollout of the jab. Paris announced on Thursday it would resume administration of the …
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