India on Thursday freed Frenchwoman Marie-Emmanuelle Verhoeven, wanted in Chile in connection with the assassination of a senator, and put her on a plane to France, sources told AFP.

The Indian foreign ministry said Verhoeven, who had been held in the country since February 2015, was released at France&#39;s request on health grounds.

Verhoeven&#39;s Indian lawyer confirmed that proceedings against her had been halted.

&quot;The government withdrew the extradition proceedings against her and the matter was closed,&quot; Ramni Taneja, Verhoeven&#39;s lawyer, told AFP.&nbsp;

A source close to the case said the Frenchwoman, 57, had been put on a plane to Paris.

A court hearing on Verhoeven&#39;s case was held in New Delhi on Wednesday and the Chilean government had complained at India&#39;s failure to hand her over.

The Indian foreign ministry said: &quot;Having considered the matter in its entirety, including the French request, the deteriorating mental and physical health of Ms. Marie Emmanuelle Verhoeven and the commitment of the French Government in the matter, the government decided ... to withdraw its inquiry order.&quot;

It added the government &quot;discharged Ms. Marie Emmanuelle Verhoeven on medical and humanitarian grounds&quot;.

The ministry said that the French government also committed to &quot;subsequent bilateral examination of the matter with the country directly concerned&quot; while requesting for her return to France on health grounds. &nbsp;

Chile has been seeking the extradition of Verhoeven over her alleged role in a conspiracy to kill Senator Jamie Guzman Errazuriz on April 1, 1991.

The senator was close to Chile&#39;s late dictator Augusto Pinochet. The killing was blamed on an extreme left wing group and Chilean investigators said Verhoeven was known as &quot;Commander Ana&quot; in the group.

It was the second time that Verhoeven has avoided extradition to Chile over the case. She was detained in Hamburg, Germany in January 2014, but German authorities rejected Chile&#39;s request.

Indian police arrested Verhoeven following an Interpol alert as she entered the country overland from Nepal.

She subsequently spent almost 16 months in a New Delhi high security prison before she was released on bail.&nbsp;

Verhoeven told authorities that she was visiting India on a Buddhist pilgrimage and her lawyers challenged a treaty between India and Chile allowing for her extradition.&nbsp;

Lawyers argued that the treaty, dating back to the 1800s, was not constitutional because it was not ratified after independence and the Partition of India in 1947.

India&#39;s Supreme Court last year ruled in favour of the government which argued that the treaty was still valid and so Verhoeven had to face the extradition proceedings.

A court hearing on Marie-Emmanuelle Verhoeven's case was held in New Delhi on Wednesday and the Chilean government had complained at India's failure to hand her over

India on Thursday freed Frenchwoman Marie-Emmanuelle Verhoeven, wanted in Chile in connection with the assassination of a senator, and put her on a plane to France, sources told AFP. The Indian foreign ministry said Verhoeven, who had been held in the country since February 2015, was released at France's request on health grounds. Verhoeven's Indian lawyer confirmed that proceedings against her had been halted. "The government withdrew the extradition proceedings against her and the matter was closed," Ramni Taneja, Verhoeven's lawyer, told AFP. A source close to the case said the Frenchwoman, 57, had been put on a plane to Paris. A court hearing on Verhoeven's case was held in New Delhi on Wednesday and the Chilean government had complained at India's failure to hand her over. The Indian foreign ministry said: "Having considered the matter in its entirety, including the French request, the deteriorating mental and physical health of Ms. Marie Emmanuelle Verhoeven and the commitment of the French Government in the matter, the government decided ... to withdraw its inquiry order." It added the government "discharged Ms. Marie Emmanuelle Verhoeven on medical and humanitarian grounds". The ministry said that the French government also committed to "subsequent bilateral examination of the matter with the country directly concerned" while requesting for her return to France on health grounds. Chile has been seeking the extradition of Verhoeven over her alleged role in a conspiracy to kill Senator Jamie Guzman Errazuriz on April 1, 1991. The senator was close to Chile's late dictator Augusto Pinochet. The killing was blamed on an extreme left wing group and Chilean investigators said Verhoeven was known as "Commander Ana" in the group. It was the second time that Verhoeven has avoided extradition to Chile over the case. She was detained in Hamburg, Germany in January 2014, but German authorities rejected Chile's request. Indian police arrested Verhoeven following an Interpol alert as she entered the country overland from Nepal. She subsequently spent almost 16 months in a New Delhi high security prison before she was released on bail. Verhoeven told authorities that she was visiting India on a Buddhist pilgrimage and her lawyers challenged a treaty between India and Chile allowing for her extradition. Lawyers argued that the treaty, dating back to the 1800s, was not constitutional because it was not ratified after independence and the Partition of India in 1947. India's Supreme Court last year ruled in favour of the government which argued that the treaty was still valid and so Verhoeven had to face the extradition proceedings.

India frees French woman wanted for 1991 Chile senator assassination

The G-20 (Group of 20)&nbsp;is an international forum which was formed with the purpose of establishing international cooperation on global economic and financial&nbsp;issues. The forum plays an important role in decision making on issues of international relevance.

G20 countries account for three-quarters of global trade. The G-20 countries produce more than&nbsp;80 per cent of the global economic&nbsp;output.&nbsp;

Around two-third&nbsp;of the global population lives in G-20 member countries.&nbsp;

The G-20 started in 1999 as a meeting of Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors in the aftermath of the Asian financial crisis that sent shockwaves through the global economic community.

In 2008, the first G-20 Leaders&rsquo; Summit was held, and the group played a key role in responding to the global financial crisis that rattled world markets causing massive financial instabilty and leading to the collapse of financial institutions.&nbsp;Its decisive and coordinated actions boosted consumer and business confidence and supported the global&nbsp;economic recovery.&nbsp;

How it works 
Each year in December&nbsp;a different G-20 member country assumes presidency of the forum. To ensure continuity, the presidency is supported by a &ldquo;troika&rdquo; (Trio) made up of the current, immediate past and next host countries. Being an informal group, the group has no permanent secretariat.&nbsp;

The G-20 president is responsible for bringing together the G-20 agenda in consultation with other members and in response to developments in the global economy. The summit and the preparatory processes &ndash; often including more than 60 ministerial and working group meetings per year &ndash; are coordinated by the respective host country.

Members of G20 
The twenty members of the forum are :

<table border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="1" style="width: 500px;">
	<tbody>
		<tr>
			<td>
			<ul>
				<li>Argentina</li>
				<li>Australia</li>
				<li>Brazil</li>
				<li>Canada</li>
				<li>China</li>
				<li>France</li>
				<li>Germany</li>
			</ul>
			</td>
			<td>
			<ul>
				<li>India</li>
				<li>Indonesia</li>
				<li>Italy</li>
				<li>Japan</li>
				<li>Republic of Korea</li>
				<li>Mexico</li>
				<li>Russia</li>
			</ul>
			</td>
			<td>
			<ul>
				<li>Saudi Arabia</li>
				<li>South Africa</li>
				<li>Turkey</li>
				<li>The United Kingdom</li>
				<li>The united States</li>
				<li>The European Union</li>
			</ul>
			</td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

 
&nbsp;

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The map displays the member countries, which represent two-thirds of the world population (Image source: g20.org) (Others)
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At the invitation of each Presidency, international organisations also regularly attend the G20 meetings. These organisations include the International Labour Organisation (ILO), the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Financial Stability Board (FSB), the World Bank (WB), the World Trade Organization (WTO), the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the United Nations (UN). The German G20 Presidency has also invited the World Health Organisation (WHO) in 2017.

Spain attends the G-20 Summits as a permanent guest. The Presidency can also invite representatives of regional organisations and guests to the G-20 Summit.&nbsp;

India and G20

India has enacted a number of legislations and taken steps to tackle issues like black money, terror financing and food security which can be traced back to G-20. &nbsp;

For instance, India enacted the&nbsp;National Food Security Act with the objective to provide food and nutritional security by ensuring access to adequate quantity of food at affordable prices to people.&nbsp;

India stands to gain from G-20 knowledge sharing and best practices of improving food security without increasing water consumption to unsustainable levels. The same can then also form part of implementation under the National Water Policy of India.

G-20 has emerged as an important forum where global leaders come together to discuss issues of international significance. At a time, when countries like US are turning inwards and showing signs of protectionism, forums like G-20 have assumed all the more importance to steer the global economic community.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;

&nbsp;

G20 is an international informal forum where India has made the mark of an emerging economy which aspires to take the world along with it towards development

The G-20 (Group of 20) is an international forum which was formed with the purpose of establishing international cooperation on global economic and financial issues. The forum plays an important role in decision making on issues of international relevance. G20 countries account for three-quarters of global trade. The G-20 countries produce more than 80 per cent of the global economic output. Around two-third of the global population lives in G-20 member countries. The G-20 started in 1999 as a meeting of Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors in the aftermath of the Asian financial crisis that sent shockwaves through the global economic community. In 2008, the first G-20 Leaders’ Summit was held, and the group played a key role in responding to the global financial crisis that rattled world markets causing massive financial instabilty and leading to the collapse of financial institutions. Its decisive and coordinated actions boosted consumer and business confidence and supported the global economic recovery. How it works Each year in December a different G-20 member country assumes presidency of the forum. To ensure continuity, the presidency is supported by a “troika” (Trio) made up of the current, immediate past and next host countries. Being an informal group, the group has no permanent secretariat. The G-20 president is responsible for bringing together the G-20 agenda in consultation with other members and in response to developments in the global economy. The summit and the preparatory processes – often including more than 60 ministerial and working group meetings per year – are coordinated by the respective host country. Members of G20 The twenty members of the forum are : Argentina Australia Brazil Canada China France Germany India Indonesia Italy Japan Republic of Korea Mexico Russia Saudi Arabia South Africa Turkey The United Kingdom The united States The European Union The map displays the member countries, which represent two-thirds of the world population (Image source: g20.org) (Others) × At the invitation of each Presidency, international organisations also regularly attend the G20 meetings. These organisations include the International Labour Organisation (ILO), the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the Financial Stability Board (FSB), the World Bank (WB), the World Trade Organization (WTO), the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the United Nations (UN). The German G20 Presidency has also invited the World Health Organisation (WHO) in 2017. Spain attends the G-20 Summits as a permanent guest. The Presidency can also invite representatives of regional organisations and guests to the G-20 Summit. India and G20 India has enacted a number of legislations and taken steps to tackle issues like black money, terror financing and food security which can be traced back to G-20. For instance, India enacted the National Food Security Act with the objective to provide food and nutritional security by ensuring access to adequate quantity of food at affordable prices to people. India stands to gain from G-20 knowledge sharing and best practices of improving food security without increasing water consumption to unsustainable levels. The same can then also form part of implementation under the National Water Policy of India. G-20 has emerged as an important forum where global leaders come together to discuss issues of international significance. At a time, when countries like US are turning inwards and showing signs of protectionism, forums like G-20 have assumed all the more importance to steer the global economic community.

All you need to know about G-20

The leaders of France and Britain on Tuesday announced an anti-terror action plan to crack down on radicalisation through social media.

After talks with British Prime Minister Theresa May in Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron said both countries agreed that social networks were not doing enough to stamp out terror propaganda.

Speaking after terror attacks in Manchester and London, Macron said the two countries had worked on a &quot;very concrete&quot; action plan.

He said one of the key measures would aim at preventing the incitement of &quot;hate and terrorism&quot; on the internet.

May said she and Macron agreed that &quot;more should be done to tackle the terrorist threat online&quot;.

She said the British and French campaign was aimed to &quot;ensure the internet cannot... be used to host the radicalising material that leads to so much harm.&quot;

May said the British government was already working with social media companies &quot;to halt the spread of extremist material and poisonous propaganda that warps young minds&quot;, adding: &quot;But we know they need to do more.

&quot;Today we can announce that the UK and France will work together to encourage organisations to do more and abide by their social responsibility to step up their efforts to remove harmful content from their networks.&quot;

The campaign includes exploring the possibility of legal penalties against tech companies if they fail to take the necessary action to remove unacceptable content, May said.

Britain was rocked by a suicide bombing at a pop concert in Manchester on May 22 which killed 22 people, including children, followed two weeks later by a knife and van attack in central London, which left eight dead.

France has been a constant target for jihadist attacks since 2015, with more than 230 people killed.

After their press conference the two leaders headed to the Stade de France to watch a friendly match between the French and English football teams.

May and Macron agreed that 'more should be done to tackle the terrorist threat online'

The leaders of France and Britain on Tuesday announced an anti-terror action plan to crack down on radicalisation through social media. After talks with British Prime Minister Theresa May in Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron said both countries agreed that social networks were not doing enough to stamp out terror propaganda. Speaking after terror attacks in Manchester and London, Macron said the two countries had worked on a "very concrete" action plan. He said one of the key measures would aim at preventing the incitement of "hate and terrorism" on the internet. May said she and Macron agreed that "more should be done to tackle the terrorist threat online". She said the British and French campaign was aimed to "ensure the internet cannot... be used to host the radicalising material that leads to so much harm." May said the British government was already working with social media companies "to halt the spread of extremist material and poisonous propaganda that warps young minds", adding: "But we know they need to do more. "Today we can announce that the UK and France will work together to encourage organisations to do more and abide by their social responsibility to step up their efforts to remove harmful content from their networks." The campaign includes exploring the possibility of legal penalties against tech companies if they fail to take the necessary action to remove unacceptable content, May said. Britain was rocked by a suicide bombing at a pop concert in Manchester on May 22 which killed 22 people, including children, followed two weeks later by a knife and van attack in central London, which left eight dead. France has been a constant target for jihadist attacks since 2015, with more than 230 people killed. After their press conference the two leaders headed to the Stade de France to watch a friendly match between the French and English football teams.

France and UK announce anti-terror action plan

French President Emmanuel Macron met Russia&#39;s Vladimir Putin near Paris on Monday, promising some frank talking with the Kremlin leader after an election campaign in which his team accused Russian media of trying to interfere.

Macron, in a press conference, standing right beside Putin, blasted Russia Today and Sputnik for carrying election&nbsp;&quot;propaganda&quot; during the recently held presidential elections, AFP Reported.

Here is the footage of the press conference, though the French president spoke in French.

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Macron calls RT and Sputnik purveyors of propaganda and lies while standing adjacent to Putin. <a href="https://t.co/7cKW09I1lv">https://t.co/7cKW09I1lv</a>
&mdash; Ankit Panda (@nktpnd) <a href="https://twitter.com/nktpnd/status/869228285812760576">May 29, 2017</a></blockquote>
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&nbsp;

Macron, who took office two weeks ago, has said dialogue with Russia is vital in tackling a number of international disputes. Nevertheless, relations have been beset by mistrust, with Paris and Moscow backing opposing sides in the Syrian civil war and at odds over the Ukraine conflict.

The French president also raised the issue of chemical weapons in Syria.

He said that the use of chemical weapons will be treated as a red line and any violation will attract strong response&nbsp;from them.

&quot;Any use of chemical weapons would results in reprisals and an immediate riposte, at least where France is concerned,&quot; Macron said at a joint news conference with Putin in which he added that his aim was the fight against terrorism in the country.

Fresh from talks with his Western counterparts at a NATO meeting in Brussels and a G7 summit in Sicily, Macron was hosting the Russian president at the sumptuous 17th Century palace of Versailles outside Paris.

The 39-year-old French leader and Putin exchanged a cordial, businesslike handshake and smiles when the latter stepped from his limousine for a red carpet welcome, with Macron appearing to say &quot;welcome&quot; to him in French.

The two men then entered the palace to start their talks.

&quot;It&#39;s indispensable to talk to Russia because there are a number of international subjects that will not be resolved without a tough dialogue with them,&quot; Macron told reporters at the end of the G7 summit on Saturday, where the Western leaders agreed to consider new measures against Moscow if the situation in Ukraine did not improve.

&quot;I will be demanding in my exchanges with Russia,&quot; he added.

Relations between Paris and Moscow were increasingly strained under former President Francois Hollande.

Putin, 64, cancelled his last planned visit in October after Hollande accused Russia of war crimes in Syria and refused to roll out the red carpet for him.

Then during the French election campaign the Macron camp alleged Russian hacking and disinformation efforts, at one point refusing accreditation to the Russian state-funded Sputnik and RT news outlets which it said were spreading Russian propaganda and fake news.

Two days before the May 7 election runoff, Macron&#39;s team said thousands of hacked campaign emails had been put online in a leak that one New York-based analyst said could have come from a group tied to Russian military intelligence.

Moscow and RT itself rejected allegations of meddling in the election.

Putin also offered Macron&#39;s far-right opponent Marine Le Pen a publicity coup when he granted her an audience a month before the election&#39;s first round.

Nonetheless, Russia&#39;s ambassador to Paris, Alexander Orlov said on Monday that he expected this first meeting between the two men to be full of &quot;smiles&quot; and marking the beginning of &quot;a very good and long relationship&quot;.

Orlov, speaking on Europe 1 radio, said he believed that Macron was &quot;much more flexible&quot; on the Syrian question, though he did not say why he thought this. Putin would certainly invite Macron to pay a visit to Moscow, he said.

Putin&#39;s schedule included a trip to a newly opened Russian Orthodox cathedral in Paris - a call he had been due to make for its inauguration in October, but which was cancelled along with that trip.

Clever Move

Macron decisively beat Le Pen, an open Putin admirer in a fraught presidential election campaign, and afterwards the Russian president said in a congratulatory message that he wanted to put mistrust aside and work with him.

Hollande&#39;s former diplomatic adviser, Jacques Audibert, noted how Putin had been excluded from what used to be the Group of Eight nations as relations with the West soured. Meeting in a palace so soon after the G7 summit was a clever move by Macron.

&quot;Putin likes these big symbolic things. I think it&#39;s an excellent political opportunity, the choice of place is perfect,&quot; he told CNews TV. &quot;It adds a bit of grandeur to welcome Putin to Versailles.&quot;

The Versailles exhibition commemorates a visit to France 300 years ago by Peter the Great, known for his European tastes.

A Russian official told reporters in Moscow on Friday that the meeting was an opportunity &quot;to get a better feel for each other&quot; and that the Kremlin expected &quot;a frank conversation&quot; on Syria.

While Moscow backs President Bashar al-Assad, France supports rebel groups trying to overthrow him. France has also taken a tough line on European Union sanctions on Russia, first imposed when it annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, and cancelled a $1.3 billion warship supply contract in 2015.

During the campaign, Macron backed expanded sanctions if there were no progress with Moscow implementing a peace accord for eastern Ukraine, where Kiev&#39;s forces have been battling pro-Russian separatists.

Since being elected, Macron appears to have toned down the rhetoric, although he noted the two leaders still had &quot;diverging positions&quot; in their first phone call.

(WION with inputs from Reuters)

Macron was hosting Putin at the palace of Versailles to reset relations with Russia, already beset by mistrust

French President Emmanuel Macron met Russia's Vladimir Putin near Paris on Monday, promising some frank talking with the Kremlin leader after an election campaign in which his team accused Russian media of trying to interfere. Macron, in a press conference, standing right beside Putin, blasted Russia Today and Sputnik for carrying election "propaganda" during the recently held presidential elections, AFP Reported. Here is the footage of the press conference, though the French president spoke in French. Macron calls RT and Sputnik purveyors of propaganda and lies while standing adjacent to Putin. https://t.co/7cKW09I1lv — Ankit Panda (@nktpnd) May 29, 2017 × Macron, who took office two weeks ago, has said dialogue with Russia is vital in tackling a number of international disputes. Nevertheless, relations have been beset by mistrust, with Paris and Moscow backing opposing sides in the Syrian civil war and at odds over the Ukraine conflict. The French president also raised the issue of chemical weapons in Syria. He said that the use of chemical weapons will be treated as a red line and any violation will attract strong response from them. "Any use of chemical weapons would results in reprisals and an immediate riposte, at least where France is concerned," Macron said at a joint news conference with Putin in which he added that his aim was the fight against terrorism in the country. Fresh from talks with his Western counterparts at a NATO meeting in Brussels and a G7 summit in Sicily, Macron was hosting the Russian president at the sumptuous 17th Century palace of Versailles outside Paris. The 39-year-old French leader and Putin exchanged a cordial, businesslike handshake and smiles when the latter stepped from his limousine for a red carpet welcome, with Macron appearing to say "welcome" to him in French. The two men then entered the palace to start their talks. "It's indispensable to talk to Russia because there are a number of international subjects that will not be resolved without a tough dialogue with them," Macron told reporters at the end of the G7 summit on Saturday, where the Western leaders agreed to consider new measures against Moscow if the situation in Ukraine did not improve. "I will be demanding in my exchanges with Russia," he added. Relations between Paris and Moscow were increasingly strained under former President Francois Hollande. Putin, 64, cancelled his last planned visit in October after Hollande accused Russia of war crimes in Syria and refused to roll out the red carpet for him. Then during the French election campaign the Macron camp alleged Russian hacking and disinformation efforts, at one point refusing accreditation to the Russian state-funded Sputnik and RT news outlets which it said were spreading Russian propaganda and fake news. Two days before the May 7 election runoff, Macron's team said thousands of hacked campaign emails had been put online in a leak that one New York-based analyst said could have come from a group tied to Russian military intelligence. Moscow and RT itself rejected allegations of meddling in the election. Putin also offered Macron's far-right opponent Marine Le Pen a publicity coup when he granted her an audience a month before the election's first round. Nonetheless, Russia's ambassador to Paris, Alexander Orlov said on Monday that he expected this first meeting between the two men to be full of "smiles" and marking the beginning of "a very good and long relationship". Orlov, speaking on Europe 1 radio, said he believed that Macron was "much more flexible" on the Syrian question, though he did not say why he thought this. Putin would certainly invite Macron to pay a visit to Moscow, he said. Putin's schedule included a trip to a newly opened Russian Orthodox cathedral in Paris - a call he had been due to make for its inauguration in October, but which was cancelled along with that trip. Clever Move Macron decisively beat Le Pen, an open Putin admirer in a fraught presidential election campaign, and afterwards the Russian president said in a congratulatory message that he wanted to put mistrust aside and work with him. Hollande's former diplomatic adviser, Jacques Audibert, noted how Putin had been excluded from what used to be the Group of Eight nations as relations with the West soured. Meeting in a palace so soon after the G7 summit was a clever move by Macron. "Putin likes these big symbolic things. I think it's an excellent political opportunity, the choice of place is perfect," he told CNews TV. "It adds a bit of grandeur to welcome Putin to Versailles." The Versailles exhibition commemorates a visit to France 300 years ago by Peter the Great, known for his European tastes. A Russian official told reporters in Moscow on Friday that the meeting was an opportunity "to get a better feel for each other" and that the Kremlin expected "a frank conversation" on Syria. While Moscow backs President Bashar al-Assad, France supports rebel groups trying to overthrow him. France has also taken a tough line on European Union sanctions on Russia, first imposed when it annexed Crimea from Ukraine in 2014, and cancelled a $1.3 billion warship supply contract in 2015. During the campaign, Macron backed expanded sanctions if there were no progress with Moscow implementing a peace accord for eastern Ukraine, where Kiev's forces have been battling pro-Russian separatists. Since being elected, Macron appears to have toned down the rhetoric, although he noted the two leaders still had "diverging positions" in their first phone call. (WION with inputs from Reuters)

France's Macron calls Russia Today, Sputnik 'propaganda' while standing beside Putin

Delhi Police took into custody the woman accused of honey trapping a Lok Sabha MP, from her house in Ghaziabad, ANI reported Tuesday.

The police have taken her for questioning.&nbsp;

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BJP MP KC Patel alleged honey-trap case: Police takes accused woman into custody, for questioning, from her house in Ghaziabad. <a href="https://t.co/ON0CWE1veQ">pic.twitter.com/ON0CWE1veQ</a>
&mdash; ANI (@ANI_news) <a href="https://twitter.com/ANI_news/status/859265107347386369">May 2, 2017</a></blockquote>
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KC Patel, the MP from Gujarat&#39;s Valsad, filed a complaint with the police last week alleging that he was drugged and filmed in an objectionable position by a gang led by a woman, who demanded extortion money of Rs 5 crore.

Following the complaint, the woman approached a city court, claiming the police did not act on her rape complaint against the lawmaker.

The woman had alleged that the MP raped her on several occasions.

Patel had alleged the woman invited him to a place in Ghaziabad for some work where she offered him a soft drink which was laced with sedatives, police said.

(WION)

There has been tremendous interest in the new French first lady, largely because she is 25 years older than her husband

Delhi Police took into custody the woman accused of honey trapping a Lok Sabha MP, from her house in Ghaziabad, ANI reported Tuesday. The police have taken her for questioning. BJP MP KC Patel alleged honey-trap case: Police takes accused woman into custody, for questioning, from her house in Ghaziabad. pic.twitter.com/ON0CWE1veQ — ANI (@ANI_news) May 2, 2017 × KC Patel, the MP from Gujarat's Valsad, filed a complaint with the police last week alleging that he was drugged and filmed in an objectionable position by a gang led by a woman, who demanded extortion money of Rs 5 crore. Following the complaint, the woman approached a city court, claiming the police did not act on her rape complaint against the lawmaker. The woman had alleged that the MP raped her on several occasions. Patel had alleged the woman invited him to a place in Ghaziabad for some work where she offered him a soft drink which was laced with sedatives, police said. (WION)

The French President's wife

With <a href="http://www.wionews.com/sports/inspired-alves-leads-juventus-into-champions-league-final-15415">the victory</a> of Italian football club Juventus in the Champions League semi-final against French club Monaco, Italy will get a chance to win its first Champions League trophy in seven years on June 4.

The last Champions League trophy was annexed by an Italian club was in 2010 when Jose Mourinho&rsquo;s Inter Milan beat Bayern Munich 2-0.&nbsp;

Spain has been pretty much dominant over the past few years with Barcelona and Real Madrid sharing the last three titles between them.

Italy has been waiting seven years for a&nbsp;Champions League win. So how long has it been for other major European countries?

Check the graphic below to find out:

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Source: <a href="http://http://www.rsssf.com/tablese/ec2.html">RSSSF.com</a>

It has been 21 years since Juventus itself won the Champions League.&nbsp;Here&#39;s a breakdown of how long the wait has been for major European clubs.

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Source: <a href="http://http://www.rsssf.com/tablese/ec2.html">RSSSF.com</a>

Juventus hopes to end Italy's seven-year wait for a Champions League title

With the victory of Italian football club Juventus in the Champions League semi-final against French club Monaco, Italy will get a chance to win its first Champions League trophy in seven years on June 4. The last Champions League trophy was annexed by an Italian club was in 2010 when Jose Mourinho’s Inter Milan beat Bayern Munich 2-0. Spain has been pretty much dominant over the past few years with Barcelona and Real Madrid sharing the last three titles between them. Italy has been waiting seven years for a Champions League win. So how long has it been for other major European countries? Check the graphic below to find out: Source: RSSSF.com It has been 21 years since Juventus itself won the Champions League. Here's a breakdown of how long the wait has been for major European clubs. Source: RSSSF.com

Infographic: Countries waiting for Champions League trophy

Emmanuel Macron was confronted on Monday with pressing reminders of the challenges facing him as France&#39;s next president, even as allies and some former rivals signalled their willingness to work closely with him.

The 39-year-old centrist&#39;s victory over far-right nationalist Marine Le Pen in Sunday&#39;s election came as a huge relief to European Union allies who had feared another populist upheaval to follow Britain&#39;s vote last year to leave the EU and Donald Trump&#39;s election as US president.

&quot;He carries the hopes of millions of French people, and of many people in Germany and the whole of Europe,&quot; German Chancellor Angela Merkel told a news conference in Berlin.

&quot;He ran a courageous pro-European campaign, stands for openness to the world and is committed decisively to a social market economy,&quot; the EU&#39;s most powerful leader added, congratulating Macron on his &quot;spectacular&quot; election success.

But even while pledging to help France tackle unemployment, Merkel rejected suggestions Germany should do more to support Europe&#39;s economy by importing more from its partners to bring down its big trade surplus.

European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker put it bluntly: &quot;With France, we have a particular problem ... The French spend too much money and they spend too much in the wrong places. This will not work over time.&quot;

The euro fell from six-month highs against the dollar on confirmation of Macron&#39;s widely expected victory by a margin of 66 per cent to 34 per cent.

Investors took profit on a roughly 3 per cent gain for the currency since he won the first round two on April 23.

France&#39;s economic malaise, especially high unemployment, had undermined the popularity of outgoing Socialist President Francois Hollande to the point where he decided not even to run again as a candidate.

&quot;This year, I wanted Emmanuel Macron to be here with me so that a torch could be passed on,&quot; said Hollande, appearing with Macron at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris to commemorate Victory in Europe Day and the surrender of Nazi forces on May 8, 1945 at the end of World War Two.

Elsewhere in Paris, more than 1,500 people, led by the powerful CGT labour federation, marched in protest against Macron&#39;s planned liberalisation of labour laws.

&quot;If he continues with the idea of executive orders in July, that means he will sweep away consultation and dialogue, so there will be a problem one way or another. We shall see,&quot; Jean-Claude Mailly, secretary general of the hardline leftist Force Ouvriere union told France Info radio.&nbsp;

Parliamentary majority

On assuming office next Sunday as France&#39;s youngest leader since Napoleon, Macron faces the immediate challenge of securing a majority in the June parliamentary election to have a realistic chance of implementing his plans for lower state spending, higher investment and reform of the tax, labour and pension systems.

With the two mainstream parties - the conservative Republicans and the left-wing Socialists - both failing to reach the presidential runoff vote, his chances of winning a majority that supports his election pledges will depend on him widening his centrist base.&nbsp;

The Socialists are torn between the radical left of their defeated candidate Benoit Hamon and the more centrist, pro-business branch led by Manuel Valls, who was prime minister under Hollande.

On Monday, key members of the centrist arm of The Republicans appeared ready to work with Macron despite the party hierarchy calling for unity to oppose the new president and calling those that were wavering &quot;traitors&quot;.

&quot;I can work in a government majority,&quot; said Bruno Le Maire, a senior Republicans official, who had been an aide of presidential candidate Francois Fillon, and is tipped by some to become the new foreign minister.

&quot;The situation is too serious for sectarianism and to be partisan,&quot; he said, later adding that Macron&#39;s victory was positive for France.

However, a senior Republican, Christian Estrosi, who had backed Macron and been rumoured to rally behind him, said on Monday he had turned down a ministerial post in order to focus on his home city of Nice.

&quot;I will say things clearly: my only ambition is to serve my city and my region and not to enter the government,&quot; Estrosi later told reporters.

Macron&#39;s party chief, Richard Ferrand, told a news conference his &quot;En Marche!&quot; movement will now change its name to &quot;En Marche la R&eacute;publique&quot; or &quot;Republic on the Move&quot;, so as to structure itself more like a traditional party.

He also said the names of Macron&#39;s 577 candidates in the legislative elections would be announced this Thursday.

Macron stepped down from the chairmanship of the movement on Thursday and 68-year-old former Socialist government adviser Catherine Barbaroux was named as interim president.&nbsp;

Le Pen, 48, defiantly claimed the mantle of France&#39;s main opposition in calling on &quot;all patriots&quot; to constitute a &quot;new political force&quot;.

Her tally was almost double the score that her father Jean-Marie, the last far-right candidate to make the presidential runoff, achieved in 2002, when he was trounced by the conservative Jacques Chirac.

(Reuters)

More than 1,500 people, led by the powerful CGT labour federation, marched in Paris in protest against Macron's planned liberalisation of labour laws.

Emmanuel Macron was confronted on Monday with pressing reminders of the challenges facing him as France's next president, even as allies and some former rivals signalled their willingness to work closely with him. The 39-year-old centrist's victory over far-right nationalist Marine Le Pen in Sunday's election came as a huge relief to European Union allies who had feared another populist upheaval to follow Britain's vote last year to leave the EU and Donald Trump's election as US president. "He carries the hopes of millions of French people, and of many people in Germany and the whole of Europe," German Chancellor Angela Merkel told a news conference in Berlin. "He ran a courageous pro-European campaign, stands for openness to the world and is committed decisively to a social market economy," the EU's most powerful leader added, congratulating Macron on his "spectacular" election success. But even while pledging to help France tackle unemployment, Merkel rejected suggestions Germany should do more to support Europe's economy by importing more from its partners to bring down its big trade surplus. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker put it bluntly: "With France, we have a particular problem ... The French spend too much money and they spend too much in the wrong places. This will not work over time." The euro fell from six-month highs against the dollar on confirmation of Macron's widely expected victory by a margin of 66 per cent to 34 per cent. Investors took profit on a roughly 3 per cent gain for the currency since he won the first round two on April 23. France's economic malaise, especially high unemployment, had undermined the popularity of outgoing Socialist President Francois Hollande to the point where he decided not even to run again as a candidate. "This year, I wanted Emmanuel Macron to be here with me so that a torch could be passed on," said Hollande, appearing with Macron at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris to commemorate Victory in Europe Day and the surrender of Nazi forces on May 8, 1945 at the end of World War Two. Elsewhere in Paris, more than 1,500 people, led by the powerful CGT labour federation, marched in protest against Macron's planned liberalisation of labour laws. "If he continues with the idea of executive orders in July, that means he will sweep away consultation and dialogue, so there will be a problem one way or another. We shall see," Jean-Claude Mailly, secretary general of the hardline leftist Force Ouvriere union told France Info radio. Parliamentary majority On assuming office next Sunday as France's youngest leader since Napoleon, Macron faces the immediate challenge of securing a majority in the June parliamentary election to have a realistic chance of implementing his plans for lower state spending, higher investment and reform of the tax, labour and pension systems. With the two mainstream parties - the conservative Republicans and the left-wing Socialists - both failing to reach the presidential runoff vote, his chances of winning a majority that supports his election pledges will depend on him widening his centrist base. The Socialists are torn between the radical left of their defeated candidate Benoit Hamon and the more centrist, pro-business branch led by Manuel Valls, who was prime minister under Hollande. On Monday, key members of the centrist arm of The Republicans appeared ready to work with Macron despite the party hierarchy calling for unity to oppose the new president and calling those that were wavering "traitors". "I can work in a government majority," said Bruno Le Maire, a senior Republicans official, who had been an aide of presidential candidate Francois Fillon, and is tipped by some to become the new foreign minister. "The situation is too serious for sectarianism and to be partisan," he said, later adding that Macron's victory was positive for France. However, a senior Republican, Christian Estrosi, who had backed Macron and been rumoured to rally behind him, said on Monday he had turned down a ministerial post in order to focus on his home city of Nice. "I will say things clearly: my only ambition is to serve my city and my region and not to enter the government," Estrosi later told reporters. Macron's party chief, Richard Ferrand, told a news conference his "En Marche!" movement will now change its name to "En Marche la République" or "Republic on the Move", so as to structure itself more like a traditional party. He also said the names of Macron's 577 candidates in the legislative elections would be announced this Thursday. Macron stepped down from the chairmanship of the movement on Thursday and 68-year-old former Socialist government adviser Catherine Barbaroux was named as interim president. Le Pen, 48, defiantly claimed the mantle of France's main opposition in calling on "all patriots" to constitute a "new political force". Her tally was almost double the score that her father Jean-Marie, the last far-right candidate to make the presidential runoff, achieved in 2002, when he was trounced by the conservative Jacques Chirac. (Reuters)

France's Macron reminded of huge challenges ahead

The <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/emmanuel-macron-elected-french-president-15319">victory</a> of 39-year-old Emmanuel Macron in the recent French presidential election has brought someone&nbsp;new, and very young,&nbsp;to the table of world leaders.

So when the next annual summit of G-20 world leaders takes place two months from now (July 7-8) <a href="http://www.hamburg.com/g20-2017/">in Hamburg, Germany</a>, how will Macron&nbsp;compare in age to the other world leaders present?

Here&#39;s a chart looking at the age of present G-20 world leaders:

<iframe class="highcharts-iframe" src="//cloud.highcharts.com/embed/obuqywe" style="border: 0; width: 100%; height: 600px"></iframe>

We see that Macron is the youngest in the group with the only other G-20 leader under 50 being Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada.

The oldest G-20 leader at present is King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud of Saudi Arabia at 81 while India&#39;s own leader Prime Minister Narendra Modi is 66 years old right now.&nbsp;

(WION)

How does the age of new French leader Emmanuel Macron compare to that of other world leaders?

The victory of 39-year-old Emmanuel Macron in the recent French presidential election has brought someone new, and very young, to the table of world leaders. So when the next annual summit of G-20 world leaders takes place two months from now (July 7-8) in Hamburg, Germany, how will Macron compare in age to the other world leaders present? Here's a chart looking at the age of present G-20 world leaders: We see that Macron is the youngest in the group with the only other G-20 leader under 50 being Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada. The oldest G-20 leader at present is King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud of Saudi Arabia at 81 while India's own leader Prime Minister Narendra Modi is 66 years old right now. (WION)

Infographic: How old are our world leaders?

One police officer was killed and two&nbsp;wounded Thursday in a shooting on Paris&#39;s Champs &Eacute;lys&eacute;es, police said, just days ahead of France&#39;s presidential election.

France&#39;s interior ministry said the attacker was killed in the incident in the early evening on the world-famous boulevard.&nbsp;

French President Francois Hollande said that a shooting on the Champs &Eacute;lys&eacute;eson Thursday evening was suspected to be &quot;of a terrorist nature&quot;.

The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the fatal shooting in Paris of a police officer on Thursday, in a statement by the jihadists&#39; propaganda agency Amaq.

&quot;The perpetrator of the attack in Champs &Eacute;lys&eacute;es in central Paris is Abu Yussef the Belgian and he is one of the Islamic State&#39;s fighters,&quot; it said.

The famous shopping street in the heart of the city, which is usually teeming with tourists and Parisians, was blocked by armed police and metro stations in the area were closed.

Dozens of vehicles from the emergency services were sent to the area.

The shooting comes just two days after police arrested two men in southern Marseille with weapons and explosives who were suspected of preparing an attack to disrupt the first-round of the presidential election on Sunday.

France is in a state of emergency and at its highest possible level of alert since a string of terror attacks that began in 2015, which have killed over 230 people.

Thousands of troops and armed police have been deployed to guard tourist hotspots such as the Champs &Eacute;lys&eacute;es or other potential targets like government buildings and religious sites.

Up until now, polls showed voters more concerned about unemployment and their spending power than terrorism or security, though analysts warned this would change in the event of further bloodshed.

For weeks, centrist former banker Macron and National Front (FN) leader Marine Le Pen have been out in front but opinion polls now show there is a chance that any of the four leading candidates could reach the second-round runoff on May 7.

Scandal-plagued conservative Francois Fillon and far-left firebrand Jean-Luc Melenchon have closed the gap substantially in the last two weeks.

(AFP)

Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the shooting on Champs ?lys?es

One police officer was killed and two wounded Thursday in a shooting on Paris's Champs Élysées, police said, just days ahead of France's presidential election. France's interior ministry said the attacker was killed in the incident in the early evening on the world-famous boulevard. French President Francois Hollande said that a shooting on the Champs Élyséeson Thursday evening was suspected to be "of a terrorist nature". The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the fatal shooting in Paris of a police officer on Thursday, in a statement by the jihadists' propaganda agency Amaq. "The perpetrator of the attack in Champs Élysées in central Paris is Abu Yussef the Belgian and he is one of the Islamic State's fighters," it said. The famous shopping street in the heart of the city, which is usually teeming with tourists and Parisians, was blocked by armed police and metro stations in the area were closed. Dozens of vehicles from the emergency services were sent to the area. The shooting comes just two days after police arrested two men in southern Marseille with weapons and explosives who were suspected of preparing an attack to disrupt the first-round of the presidential election on Sunday. France is in a state of emergency and at its highest possible level of alert since a string of terror attacks that began in 2015, which have killed over 230 people. Thousands of troops and armed police have been deployed to guard tourist hotspots such as the Champs Élysées or other potential targets like government buildings and religious sites. Up until now, polls showed voters more concerned about unemployment and their spending power than terrorism or security, though analysts warned this would change in the event of further bloodshed. For weeks, centrist former banker Macron and National Front (FN) leader Marine Le Pen have been out in front but opinion polls now show there is a chance that any of the four leading candidates could reach the second-round runoff on May 7. Scandal-plagued conservative Francois Fillon and far-left firebrand Jean-Luc Melenchon have closed the gap substantially in the last two weeks. (AFP)

France: One policeman killed, two wounded in Paris shooting

&nbsp;A police sharpshooter accidentally wounded two people as French President Francois&nbsp;Hollande&nbsp;was giving a speech in the south-west of France on Tuesday, a police source said.

The shooter was on a roof about a hundred metres (109 yards) from a tent where&nbsp;Hollande&nbsp;was speaking. During a change of position his gun fired accidentally, the source said.

A loud noise like a gunshot is heard on video footage of the president&#39;s speech. &quot;I hope there is nothing serious,&quot;&nbsp;Hollande&nbsp;said, then looked to his left and said, &quot;I don&#39;t think so&quot;.

The shot wounded two people in their legs; the injuries were not life-threatening, a prefect of police for Charente region Pierre N&#39;Gahane told BFM-TV.

(Reuters)

The shooter was on a roof about 100 metres from a tent where Hollande was speaking. During a change of position, his gun fired accidentally

A police sharpshooter accidentally wounded two people as French President Francois Hollande was giving a speech in the south-west of France on Tuesday, a police source said. The shooter was on a roof about a hundred metres (109 yards) from a tent where Hollande was speaking. During a change of position his gun fired accidentally, the source said. A loud noise like a gunshot is heard on video footage of the president's speech. "I hope there is nothing serious," Hollande said, then looked to his left and said, "I don't think so". The shot wounded two people in their legs; the injuries were not life-threatening, a prefect of police for Charente region Pierre N'Gahane told BFM-TV. (Reuters)

Police sniper accidentally wounds two during French President's speech

An explosion at a nuclear power plant on France&#39;s north-west coast caused minor injuries on Thursday, but the authorities have ruled out any risk of radiation.

The blast took place in the engine room at the Flamanville plant, which lies 25 kilometres (15 miles) west of the port of Cherbourg and just across from the Channel Islands.

&quot;It is not a nuclear accident,&quot; senior local official Jacques Witkowski told AFP.

He said a ventilator had exploded outside the nuclear zone at the plant, which has been in operation since the 1980s.

Five people suffered smoke inhalation but there were no serious injuries, Witkowski said.

One of the two pressurised water reactors at the plant was shut down after the explosion and the incident was declared over at 1100 GMT, the authorities said.

A new third-generation reactor known as EPR is also being built at Flamanville, which will be the world`s largest when it goes into operation in late 2018.

Construction of the new plant at the site in Normandy began in 2007 and was initially due for completion in 2012 but has been delayed several times.

(AFP)

'It is a significant technical event but it is not a nuclear accident,' a senior official told AFP

An explosion at a nuclear power plant on France's north-west coast caused minor injuries on Thursday, but the authorities have ruled out any risk of radiation. The blast took place in the engine room at the Flamanville plant, which lies 25 kilometres (15 miles) west of the port of Cherbourg and just across from the Channel Islands. "It is not a nuclear accident," senior local official Jacques Witkowski told AFP. He said a ventilator had exploded outside the nuclear zone at the plant, which has been in operation since the 1980s. Five people suffered smoke inhalation but there were no serious injuries, Witkowski said. One of the two pressurised water reactors at the plant was shut down after the explosion and the incident was declared over at 1100 GMT, the authorities said. A new third-generation reactor known as EPR is also being built at Flamanville, which will be the world`s largest when it goes into operation in late 2018. Construction of the new plant at the site in Normandy began in 2007 and was initially due for completion in 2012 but has been delayed several times. (AFP)

Explosion at French nuclear plant, officials rule out contamination risk

Art lovers returned to the Louvre in Paris on Saturday, 24 hours after a soldier shot a machete-wielding attacker at the museum, believed to be an Egyptian who entered the country a week ago.&nbsp;

The incident on Friday thrust security and the terror threat back into the limelight three months before elections in France, with authorities saying it was a &quot;terrorist&quot; assault.

It also risked dealing another blow to Paris&#39;&nbsp;lucrative tourism industry which has been badly affected by a string of attacks since 2015.

At the Louvre on Saturday, a crowd had formed at the main entrance as the doors re-opened to the first visitors of the day on schedule at 09:30 am (0830 GMT).

&quot;I&#39;m quite worried about coming today, but as we weren&#39;t able to visit yesterday we decided to come back anyway,&quot; 28-year-old Russian visitor Elena Lordugen told AFP.

Soldiers in uniform with machine guns could be seen patrolling as usual, with routine bag checks also undertaken by Louvre security staff.&nbsp;

Ali Tali, a Turkish tourist in his 40s, shrugged off their presence. &quot;We&#39;ve used these security measures in Turkey,&quot; he said.

French investigators say Friday&#39;s attacker, in a black T-shirt bearing a skull design and armed with two machetes, lunged at four patrolling French soldiers while shouting &quot;Allahu Akbar&quot; (&quot;God is greatest&quot;).

They are examining the Twitter account of an Egyptian man named Abdallah El Hamahmy after around a dozen messages were posted in Arabic between 9:27-9:34 am (0827-0834 GMT), just minutes prior to the attack.

&quot;In the name of Allah... for our brothers in Syria and fighters across the world,&quot; El Hamahmy wrote, before making reference to the Islamic State jihadist group in another tweet a minute later.

One of the troops was &quot;lightly injured&quot; in the attack after being struck on the head in a public area that leads to one of the museum&#39;s entrance.&nbsp;

A second soldier opened fire five times and hit the machete-wielder in the stomach.

&quot;The attacker fell to the ground, seriously wounded,&quot; Paris prosecutor Francois Molins told a press conference late Friday.

His condition stabilised overnight in a Parisian hospital, a source close to the case told AFP.

Based on his phone and visa records, he is thought to be a 29-year-old Egyptian national who is resident in the United Arab Emirates.

Investigators have established he entered France legally on a flight from Dubai on January 26 and had rented an expensive apartment near the Champs Elysee, sources close to the case told AFP.

The government of the United Arab Emirates, which includes Dubai, condemned the &quot;hateful crime&quot; and assured France of its &quot;full solidarity&quot;.

President Francois Hollande said that &quot;there is little doubt as to the terrorist nature of this act,&quot; an assessment echoed by Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve.&nbsp;

France was already reeling from a string of terror attacks over the last two years and the country has been under a state of emergency since November 2015.&nbsp;

The economy, immigration and security are major issues for voters ahead of this year&#39;s presidential and parliamentary elections forecast to confirm the country&#39;s shift to the right after five years of Socialist rule.

US President Donald Trump tweeted that a &quot;new radical Islamic terrorist has just attacked in Louvre Museum in Paris. Tourists were locked down. France on edge again. GET SMART US.&quot;

Witnesses described scenes of panic as people fled the Louvre complex following the incident.

&quot;We heard gunshots. We didn&#39;t know what it was about. Then we evacuated the employees and we left,&quot; one man who works in a nearby restaurant told AFP.

The Louvre, a former palace in the heart of the city, has seen annual visitor numbers fall by some two million since 2015 to 7.3 million.

The series of terror attacks in France began in January 2015 when jihadist gunmen rampaged through the offices of the Charlie Hebdo satirical newspaper and a Jewish supermarket in Paris, leaving 17 people dead in three days of bloodshed.

Ten months later, gunmen and suicide bombers from the Islamic State jihadist group attacked bars, restaurants, a concert hall and the national stadium in Paris, killing 130 people.

And last July, a Tunisian extremist rammed a lorry through crowds celebrating Bastille Day in Nice on France&#39;s south coast, crushing 86 people to death.

&nbsp;

(AFP)

French investigators?are examining the Twitter account of an Egyptian man

Art lovers returned to the Louvre in Paris on Saturday, 24 hours after a soldier shot a machete-wielding attacker at the museum, believed to be an Egyptian who entered the country a week ago. The incident on Friday thrust security and the terror threat back into the limelight three months before elections in France, with authorities saying it was a "terrorist" assault. It also risked dealing another blow to Paris' lucrative tourism industry which has been badly affected by a string of attacks since 2015. At the Louvre on Saturday, a crowd had formed at the main entrance as the doors re-opened to the first visitors of the day on schedule at 09:30 am (0830 GMT). "I'm quite worried about coming today, but as we weren't able to visit yesterday we decided to come back anyway," 28-year-old Russian visitor Elena Lordugen told AFP. Soldiers in uniform with machine guns could be seen patrolling as usual, with routine bag checks also undertaken by Louvre security staff. Ali Tali, a Turkish tourist in his 40s, shrugged off their presence. "We've used these security measures in Turkey," he said. French investigators say Friday's attacker, in a black T-shirt bearing a skull design and armed with two machetes, lunged at four patrolling French soldiers while shouting "Allahu Akbar" ("God is greatest"). They are examining the Twitter account of an Egyptian man named Abdallah El Hamahmy after around a dozen messages were posted in Arabic between 9:27-9:34 am (0827-0834 GMT), just minutes prior to the attack. "In the name of Allah... for our brothers in Syria and fighters across the world," El Hamahmy wrote, before making reference to the Islamic State jihadist group in another tweet a minute later. One of the troops was "lightly injured" in the attack after being struck on the head in a public area that leads to one of the museum's entrance. A second soldier opened fire five times and hit the machete-wielder in the stomach. "The attacker fell to the ground, seriously wounded," Paris prosecutor Francois Molins told a press conference late Friday. His condition stabilised overnight in a Parisian hospital, a source close to the case told AFP. Based on his phone and visa records, he is thought to be a 29-year-old Egyptian national who is resident in the United Arab Emirates. Investigators have established he entered France legally on a flight from Dubai on January 26 and had rented an expensive apartment near the Champs Elysee, sources close to the case told AFP. The government of the United Arab Emirates, which includes Dubai, condemned the "hateful crime" and assured France of its "full solidarity". President Francois Hollande said that "there is little doubt as to the terrorist nature of this act," an assessment echoed by Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve. France was already reeling from a string of terror attacks over the last two years and the country has been under a state of emergency since November 2015. The economy, immigration and security are major issues for voters ahead of this year's presidential and parliamentary elections forecast to confirm the country's shift to the right after five years of Socialist rule. US President Donald Trump tweeted that a "new radical Islamic terrorist has just attacked in Louvre Museum in Paris. Tourists were locked down. France on edge again. GET SMART US." Witnesses described scenes of panic as people fled the Louvre complex following the incident. "We heard gunshots. We didn't know what it was about. Then we evacuated the employees and we left," one man who works in a nearby restaurant told AFP. The Louvre, a former palace in the heart of the city, has seen annual visitor numbers fall by some two million since 2015 to 7.3 million. The series of terror attacks in France began in January 2015 when jihadist gunmen rampaged through the offices of the Charlie Hebdo satirical newspaper and a Jewish supermarket in Paris, leaving 17 people dead in three days of bloodshed. Ten months later, gunmen and suicide bombers from the Islamic State jihadist group attacked bars, restaurants, a concert hall and the national stadium in Paris, killing 130 people. And last July, a Tunisian extremist rammed a lorry through crowds celebrating Bastille Day in Nice on France's south coast, crushing 86 people to death. (AFP)

Louvre reopens 24 hours after machete attack

A French soldier opened fire and wounded a man armed with a gun&nbsp;who was trying to enter the Louvre museum in central Paris, police said.

Police added that&nbsp;the man was carrying a&nbsp;machete gun and carrying two bags on his back as he tried to enter the Paris Louvre museum.&nbsp;The attacker was alive but seriously wounded, the head of Paris police Michel Cadot told reporters at the scene, adding the bags he had been carrying contained no explosives.&nbsp;Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve called the attack &quot;terrorist in nature&quot; after the incident which led streets around the world-famous museum to be sealed off.

&quot;The soldier fired five bullets,&quot; Cadot said, describing how the man hurried threateningly towards the soldiers. &quot;It was an attack by a person... who represented a direct threat and whose actions suggested a terrorist context.&quot;

An anti-terrorism inquiry has been opened, the public prosecutor said in a statement.&nbsp;

The identity and nationality of the attacker remains unknown for now, French interior ministry spokesman Pierre-Henry Brandet said.&nbsp;Cadot added that a second individual had been detained.

The interior ministry had said on Twitter the incident was &quot;serious&quot;.

Media reports quoting a French police spokesman said the attacker shouted &quot;Allahu Akbar&quot; - God is great in Arabic - but was not carrying explosives. It was confirmed by Michael Cadot, he added, &quot;Police believe he wanted to carry out a terrorist attack.&quot;

French daily L&#39; Express had earlier reported that the suspect was carrying a knife.

Video uploaded on Twitter shortly after the incident took place showed people still waiting in line outside the entrance to the museum. Some people were&nbsp;also seen strolling in the square nearby.

(WION with Agency&nbsp;inputs)
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French police shot at a man armed with a?machete gun and carrying two bags on his back as he tried to enter the Louvre museum in Paris

A French soldier opened fire and wounded a man armed with a gun who was trying to enter the Louvre museum in central Paris, police said. Police added that the man was carrying a machete gun and carrying two bags on his back as he tried to enter the Paris Louvre museum. The attacker was alive but seriously wounded, the head of Paris police Michel Cadot told reporters at the scene, adding the bags he had been carrying contained no explosives. Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve called the attack "terrorist in nature" after the incident which led streets around the world-famous museum to be sealed off. "The soldier fired five bullets," Cadot said, describing how the man hurried threateningly towards the soldiers. "It was an attack by a person... who represented a direct threat and whose actions suggested a terrorist context." An anti-terrorism inquiry has been opened, the public prosecutor said in a statement. The identity and nationality of the attacker remains unknown for now, French interior ministry spokesman Pierre-Henry Brandet said. Cadot added that a second individual had been detained. The interior ministry had said on Twitter the incident was "serious". Media reports quoting a French police spokesman said the attacker shouted "Allahu Akbar" - God is great in Arabic - but was not carrying explosives. It was confirmed by Michael Cadot, he added, "Police believe he wanted to carry out a terrorist attack." French daily L' Express had earlier reported that the suspect was carrying a knife. Video uploaded on Twitter shortly after the incident took place showed people still waiting in line outside the entrance to the museum. Some people were also seen strolling in the square nearby. (WION with Agency inputs)

Louvre museum shooting 'terrorist in nature', says PM Bernard Cazeneuve

Cedric Herrou, a French farmer, may face five years in prison and a 30,000-euro fine if found guilty of the charge of helping in the unauthorised entry, transit and stay of illegal migrants in France.

He is an olive and poultry farmer from a village on the border with Italy.

Unapologetic for his actions, Herrou said&nbsp;sending him to prison would do nothing to reduce the influx of migrants to France across Europe.

Herrou said, &quot;I subjected myself to illegality because these people are pushing me towards illegality in order to protect the rights of these children that I&#39;ve taken across (the border), of these families that I&#39;ve taken across, I had to put myself in illegality. And if I have to continue, I will continue,&quot; reports Reuters.

A crowd of around 300 people gathered in front of the Palais de Justice in Nice in support of Herrou, the local hero.

Local newspaper Nice Matin named Herrou &quot;Azureen of the year,&quot; a title reserved for the region&#39;s most accomplished individuals, according to a report on Reuters.

In his defence, Herrou said, &quot;It&#39;s not up to me to make a distinction between black and white, people with or without papers. It&#39;s not my job. Farming is what I do, my job is feeding people and that&#39;s what I do.&quot;

Over recent months, Herrou has given shelter to several hundred migrants in the grounds of his home in Breil-sur-Roya, a French valley surrounded by Italian territory.

He was first arrested in August 2016 for accompanying eight Eritrean migrants from Italy into France&nbsp;but was released on a humanitarian immunity clause.

He was arrested again in October, where the same clause did not apply when the Nice prosecutor said his aiding of migrants then was not a response to immediate danger.

According to Herrou, he helped migrants on a purely voluntary basis, and accepted nothing in return from them, and that he had especially tried to help the minors among the migrants.

Herrou is part of an association named &quot;Housing and Citizenship,&quot;&nbsp;which has resorted to semi-clandestine tactics in assisting migrants who are regularly removed by the police from trains crossing into France and sent back to Italy.

(WION with inputs from Reuters)

Herrou may face five years in prison and a 30,000-euro fine if found guilty of the charges

Cedric Herrou, a French farmer, may face five years in prison and a 30,000-euro fine if found guilty of the charge of helping in the unauthorised entry, transit and stay of illegal migrants in France. He is an olive and poultry farmer from a village on the border with Italy. Unapologetic for his actions, Herrou said sending him to prison would do nothing to reduce the influx of migrants to France across Europe. Herrou said, "I subjected myself to illegality because these people are pushing me towards illegality in order to protect the rights of these children that I've taken across (the border), of these families that I've taken across, I had to put myself in illegality. And if I have to continue, I will continue," reports Reuters. A crowd of around 300 people gathered in front of the Palais de Justice in Nice in support of Herrou, the local hero. Local newspaper Nice Matin named Herrou "Azureen of the year," a title reserved for the region's most accomplished individuals, according to a report on Reuters. In his defence, Herrou said, "It's not up to me to make a distinction between black and white, people with or without papers. It's not my job. Farming is what I do, my job is feeding people and that's what I do." Over recent months, Herrou has given shelter to several hundred migrants in the grounds of his home in Breil-sur-Roya, a French valley surrounded by Italian territory. He was first arrested in August 2016 for accompanying eight Eritrean migrants from Italy into France but was released on a humanitarian immunity clause. He was arrested again in October, where the same clause did not apply when the Nice prosecutor said his aiding of migrants then was not a response to immediate danger. According to Herrou, he helped migrants on a purely voluntary basis, and accepted nothing in return from them, and that he had especially tried to help the minors among the migrants. Herrou is part of an association named "Housing and Citizenship," which has resorted to semi-clandestine tactics in assisting migrants who are regularly removed by the police from trains crossing into France and sent back to Italy. (WION with inputs from Reuters)

French farmer on trial for helping illegal migrants across border

French companies will be required to guarantee a &quot;right to disconnect&quot; to their employees from Sunday as the country seeks to tackle the modern-day scourge of compulsive out-of-hours email checking.

From January 1, a new employment law will enter into force that obliges organisations with more than 50 workers to start negotiations to define the rights of employees to ignore their smartphones.

Overuse of digital devices has been blamed for everything from burnout to sleeplessness as well as relationship problems, with many employees uncertain of when they can switch off.&nbsp;

The French measure is intended to tackle the so-called &quot;always-on&quot; work culture that has led to a surge in usually unpaid overtime -- while also giving employees flexibility to work from outside the office.

&quot;There&#39;s a real expectation that companies will seize on the &#39;right to disconnect&#39; as a protective measure,&quot; said Xavier Zunigo, a French workplace expert, as a new survey on the subject was published in October.&nbsp;

&quot;At the same time, workers don&#39;t want to lose the autonomy and flexibility that digital devices give them,&quot; added Zunigo, who is an academic and director of research group Aristat.

The measure was introduced by Labour Minister Myriam El Khomri, who commissioned a report submitted in September 2015 which warned about the health impact of &quot;info-obesity&quot; which afflicts many workplaces.&nbsp;

Under the new law, companies will be obliged to negotiate with employees to agree on their rights to switch off and ways they can reduce the intrusion of work into their private lives.

If a deal cannot be reached, the company must publish a charter that would make explicit the demands on and rights of employees out-of-hours.

Trade unions in&nbsp;France&nbsp;which see themselves as guardians of&nbsp;France&#39;s highly protected workplace and famously short working week of 35 hours have long demanded action.&nbsp;

But the new &quot;right to disconnect&quot;, part of a much larger and controversial reform of French labour law, foresees no sanction for companies which fail to define it.

Work-life balancing act

Left-leaning French newspaper Liberation praised the move in an editorial on Friday saying that the law was needed because &quot;employees are often judged on their committment to their companies and their availability.&quot; &nbsp;

Some large groups such as Volkswagen and Daimler in Germany or nuclear power company Areva and insurer Axa in&nbsp;France&nbsp;have already taken steps to limit out-of-hours messaging to reduce burnout among workers.

Some measures include cutting email connections in the evening and weekends or even destroying emails automatically that are sent to employees while they are on holiday.

A study published by French research group Eleas in October showed that more than a third of French workers used their devices to do work out of hours every day.

Around 60 per cent of workers were in favour of regulating to clarify their rights.&nbsp;

But computing and work-life balance expert Anna Cox from University of College London (UCL) says that companies must take into account demands from employees for both protection and flexibility.

&quot;For some people, they want to work for two hours every evening, but want to be able to switch off between 3-5 pm when they pick their kids up and are cooking dinner,&quot; she told AFP.

Others are happy to use their daily commute to get ahead before they arrive in the office, she explained.

Furthermore, the world of work is changing as rapidly as technology, with more and more employees working remotely or with colleagues in other time zones.

&quot;Some of the challenges that come with flexibility are managing those boundaries between work and home and being able to say &#39;actually I am not working now&#39;,&quot; she said.&nbsp;

One of the positive effects of the law will be to encourage &quot;conversations with people working together about what their expectations are.&quot;

(AFP)

This comes after a labour ministry report warned about the health impact of 'info-obesity' which afflicts many workplaces

French companies will be required to guarantee a "right to disconnect" to their employees from Sunday as the country seeks to tackle the modern-day scourge of compulsive out-of-hours email checking. From January 1, a new employment law will enter into force that obliges organisations with more than 50 workers to start negotiations to define the rights of employees to ignore their smartphones. Overuse of digital devices has been blamed for everything from burnout to sleeplessness as well as relationship problems, with many employees uncertain of when they can switch off. The French measure is intended to tackle the so-called "always-on" work culture that has led to a surge in usually unpaid overtime -- while also giving employees flexibility to work from outside the office. "There's a real expectation that companies will seize on the 'right to disconnect' as a protective measure," said Xavier Zunigo, a French workplace expert, as a new survey on the subject was published in October. "At the same time, workers don't want to lose the autonomy and flexibility that digital devices give them," added Zunigo, who is an academic and director of research group Aristat. The measure was introduced by Labour Minister Myriam El Khomri, who commissioned a report submitted in September 2015 which warned about the health impact of "info-obesity" which afflicts many workplaces. Under the new law, companies will be obliged to negotiate with employees to agree on their rights to switch off and ways they can reduce the intrusion of work into their private lives. If a deal cannot be reached, the company must publish a charter that would make explicit the demands on and rights of employees out-of-hours. Trade unions in France which see themselves as guardians of France's highly protected workplace and famously short working week of 35 hours have long demanded action. But the new "right to disconnect", part of a much larger and controversial reform of French labour law, foresees no sanction for companies which fail to define it. Work-life balancing act Left-leaning French newspaper Liberation praised the move in an editorial on Friday saying that the law was needed because "employees are often judged on their committment to their companies and their availability." Some large groups such as Volkswagen and Daimler in Germany or nuclear power company Areva and insurer Axa in France have already taken steps to limit out-of-hours messaging to reduce burnout among workers. Some measures include cutting email connections in the evening and weekends or even destroying emails automatically that are sent to employees while they are on holiday. A study published by French research group Eleas in October showed that more than a third of French workers used their devices to do work out of hours every day. Around 60 per cent of workers were in favour of regulating to clarify their rights. But computing and work-life balance expert Anna Cox from University of College London (UCL) says that companies must take into account demands from employees for both protection and flexibility. "For some people, they want to work for two hours every evening, but want to be able to switch off between 3-5 pm when they pick their kids up and are cooking dinner," she told AFP. Others are happy to use their daily commute to get ahead before they arrive in the office, she explained. Furthermore, the world of work is changing as rapidly as technology, with more and more employees working remotely or with colleagues in other time zones. "Some of the challenges that come with flexibility are managing those boundaries between work and home and being able to say 'actually I am not working now'," she said. One of the positive effects of the law will be to encourage "conversations with people working together about what their expectations are." (AFP)

France: Employees relieved from out-of-hours email checking

French companies will be required to guarantee a &quot;right to disconnect&quot; to their employees from Sunday as the country seeks to tackle the modern-day scourge of compulsive out-of-hours email checking.

From January 1, a new employment law will enter into force that obliges organisations with more than 50 workers to start negotiations to define the rights of employees to ignore their smartphones.

Overuse of digital devices has been blamed for everything from burnout to sleeplessness as well as relationship problems, with many employees uncertain of when they can switch off.&nbsp;

The French measure is intended to tackle the so-called &quot;always-on&quot; work culture that has led to a surge in usually unpaid overtime, while also giving employees flexibility to work from outside the office.

&quot;There&#39;s a real expectation that companies will seize on the &#39;right to disconnect&#39; as a protective measure,&quot; said Xavier Zunigo, a French workplace expert, as a new survey on the subject was published in October.&nbsp;

&quot;At the same time, workers don&#39;t want to lose the autonomy and flexibility that digital devices give them,&quot; added Zunigo, who is an academic and director of research group Aristat.

The measure was introduced by Labour Minister Myriam El Khomri, who commissioned a report submitted in September 2015 which warned about the health impact of &quot;info-obesity&quot; which afflicts many workplaces.&nbsp;

Under the new law, companies will be obliged to negotiate with employees to agree on their rights to switch off and ways they can reduce the intrusion of work into their private lives.

If a deal cannot be reached, the company must publish a charter that would make explicit the demands on and rights of employees out-of-hours.

Trade unions in France which see themselves as guardians of France&#39;s highly protected workplace and famously short working week of 35 hours have long demanded action.&nbsp;

But the new &quot;right to disconnect&quot;, part of a much larger and controversial reform of French labour law, foresees no sanction for companies which fail to define it.Left-leaning French newspaper Liberation praised the move in an editorial on Friday saying that the law was needed because &quot;employees are often judged on their committment to their companies and their availability.&quot;&nbsp;

Some large groups such as Volkswagen and Daimler in Germany or nuclear power company Areva and insurer Axa in France have already taken steps to limit out-of-hours messaging to reduce burnout among workers.

Some measures include cutting email connections in the evening and weekends or even destroying emails automatically that are sent to employees while they are on holiday.

A study published by French research group Eleas in October showed that more than a third of French workers used their devices to do work out of hours every day.

Around 60 per cent of workers were in favour of regulating to clarify their rights.&nbsp;

But computing and work-life balance expert Anna Cox from University of College London (UCL) says that companies must take into account demands from employees for both protection and flexibility.

&quot;For some people, they want to work for two hours every evening, but want to be able to switch off between 3-5 pm when they pick their kids up and are cooking dinner,&quot; she told AFP.

Others are happy to use their daily commute to get ahead before they arrive in the office, she explained. 
Furthermore, the world of work is changing as rapidly as technology, with more and more employees working remotely or with colleagues in other time zones.

&quot;Some of the challenges that come with flexibility are managing those boundaries between work and home and being able to say &#39;actually I am not working now&#39;,&quot; she said.&nbsp;

One of the positive effects of the law will be to encourage &quot;conversations with people working together about what their expectations are&quot;. 
&nbsp;

(AFP)

To tackle out-of-hours email checking, companies will be required to negotiate with employees to agree on their rights to switch off

French companies will be required to guarantee a "right to disconnect" to their employees from Sunday as the country seeks to tackle the modern-day scourge of compulsive out-of-hours email checking. From January 1, a new employment law will enter into force that obliges organisations with more than 50 workers to start negotiations to define the rights of employees to ignore their smartphones. Overuse of digital devices has been blamed for everything from burnout to sleeplessness as well as relationship problems, with many employees uncertain of when they can switch off. The French measure is intended to tackle the so-called "always-on" work culture that has led to a surge in usually unpaid overtime, while also giving employees flexibility to work from outside the office. "There's a real expectation that companies will seize on the 'right to disconnect' as a protective measure," said Xavier Zunigo, a French workplace expert, as a new survey on the subject was published in October. "At the same time, workers don't want to lose the autonomy and flexibility that digital devices give them," added Zunigo, who is an academic and director of research group Aristat. The measure was introduced by Labour Minister Myriam El Khomri, who commissioned a report submitted in September 2015 which warned about the health impact of "info-obesity" which afflicts many workplaces. Under the new law, companies will be obliged to negotiate with employees to agree on their rights to switch off and ways they can reduce the intrusion of work into their private lives. If a deal cannot be reached, the company must publish a charter that would make explicit the demands on and rights of employees out-of-hours. Trade unions in France which see themselves as guardians of France's highly protected workplace and famously short working week of 35 hours have long demanded action. But the new "right to disconnect", part of a much larger and controversial reform of French labour law, foresees no sanction for companies which fail to define it.Left-leaning French newspaper Liberation praised the move in an editorial on Friday saying that the law was needed because "employees are often judged on their committment to their companies and their availability." Some large groups such as Volkswagen and Daimler in Germany or nuclear power company Areva and insurer Axa in France have already taken steps to limit out-of-hours messaging to reduce burnout among workers. Some measures include cutting email connections in the evening and weekends or even destroying emails automatically that are sent to employees while they are on holiday. A study published by French research group Eleas in October showed that more than a third of French workers used their devices to do work out of hours every day. Around 60 per cent of workers were in favour of regulating to clarify their rights. But computing and work-life balance expert Anna Cox from University of College London (UCL) says that companies must take into account demands from employees for both protection and flexibility. "For some people, they want to work for two hours every evening, but want to be able to switch off between 3-5 pm when they pick their kids up and are cooking dinner," she told AFP. Others are happy to use their daily commute to get ahead before they arrive in the office, she explained. Furthermore, the world of work is changing as rapidly as technology, with more and more employees working remotely or with colleagues in other time zones. "Some of the challenges that come with flexibility are managing those boundaries between work and home and being able to say 'actually I am not working now'," she said. One of the positive effects of the law will be to encourage "conversations with people working together about what their expectations are". (AFP)

France gets 'Right to Disconnect'

&nbsp;Russia said on Sunday it would veto a French-drafted Security Council resolution aimed at ensuring that UN officials can monitor evacuations from besieged parts of the Syrian city of Aleppo and instead proposed a rival text it believes could achieve the same goal.

Russian ambassador to UN Vitaly Churkin raised concerns that the French-drafted resolution does not account for the preparation needed for UN officials to be able to monitor evacuations and the protection of civilians who remain.

&quot;We have no problem whatsoever with any kind of monitoring,&quot; he told reporters.

&quot;But the idea that they should be told to go to wander around the ruins of eastern Aleppo without proper preparation and without informing everybody about what is going to happen, this has disaster written all over it,&quot; Churkin said.

Churkin circulated a rival Russian text to council members during a closed-door meeting on Sunday ahead of a planned vote on the French draft.

The Russian draft contained one key change, asking UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to &quot;provide arrangements, including security arrangements, in coordination with the interested parties, to allow United Nations personnel to monitor the condition of civilians remaining in Aleppo.&quot;

Russia, an ally of Damascus that has provided military backing to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad&#39;s troops, has vetoed six Security Council resolutions on Syria since the conflict started in 2011. China joined Moscow in vetoing five resolutions.

Churkin said of the French draft: &quot;We cannot support it, we cannot allow it to pass because this is a disaster.&quot;

French ambassador to the UN Francois Delattre told reporters that he would be unable to compromise with Russia on what he described as &quot;basic demands.&quot;

A crackdown by Assad on pro-democracy protesters in 2011 led to civil war, and Islamic State militants have used the chaos to seize territory in Syria and Iraq. Half of Syria&#39;s 22 million people have been uprooted and more than 400,000 killed.

(Reuters)

Russia argued that the French draft did not account preparations needed for UN officials to oversee evacuations and safety of civilians

Russia said on Sunday it would veto a French-drafted Security Council resolution aimed at ensuring that UN officials can monitor evacuations from besieged parts of the Syrian city of Aleppo and instead proposed a rival text it believes could achieve the same goal. Russian ambassador to UN Vitaly Churkin raised concerns that the French-drafted resolution does not account for the preparation needed for UN officials to be able to monitor evacuations and the protection of civilians who remain. "We have no problem whatsoever with any kind of monitoring," he told reporters. "But the idea that they should be told to go to wander around the ruins of eastern Aleppo without proper preparation and without informing everybody about what is going to happen, this has disaster written all over it," Churkin said. Churkin circulated a rival Russian text to council members during a closed-door meeting on Sunday ahead of a planned vote on the French draft. The Russian draft contained one key change, asking UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon to "provide arrangements, including security arrangements, in coordination with the interested parties, to allow United Nations personnel to monitor the condition of civilians remaining in Aleppo." Russia, an ally of Damascus that has provided military backing to Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's troops, has vetoed six Security Council resolutions on Syria since the conflict started in 2011. China joined Moscow in vetoing five resolutions. Churkin said of the French draft: "We cannot support it, we cannot allow it to pass because this is a disaster." French ambassador to the UN Francois Delattre told reporters that he would be unable to compromise with Russia on what he described as "basic demands." A crackdown by Assad on pro-democracy protesters in 2011 led to civil war, and Islamic State militants have used the chaos to seize territory in Syria and Iraq. Half of Syria's 22 million people have been uprooted and more than 400,000 killed. (Reuters)

Russia to veto French draft UN resolution on Aleppo evacuation

France&rsquo;s parliament voted early Wednesday to extend a national state of emergency until July 15, after next year&rsquo;s elections.

The security measures, in force since attacks in Paris that killed 130 people in November 2015, are now expected to be approved by the Senate on Thursday.&nbsp;

It is the fifth extension of the state of emergency, which gives police extended powers of search and arrest.

The overnight vote in the National Assembly passed by 288 to 32, with only Left Front lawmakers, protesting ecologists and a handful of centre-right Republicans voting against.

The extension, which will give the country its longest uninterrupted state of emergency since the Algerian War in the 1960s, will span the two-round presidential election in April-May and June parliamentary polls.

The government has cited a heightened risk of jihadist attacks coinciding with the polls.

Ahead of the vote, new interior minister Bruno Le Roux stressed that France faced &quot;an extremely high&quot; risk of a terrorist attack.

Since the last extension,shortly after the Bastille Day attack in July when a Tunisian jihadist rammed a truck through a crowd in Nice, killing 86 people, he said &quot;we have foiled no fewer than 13 attacks, involving about 30 individuals&quot;.

With numerous public meetings and campaign rallies expected in the coming months, Le Roux said &quot;the intense electoral period we are entering increases the risk of further terrorist acts&quot;, echoing weekend comments by his predecessor, newly-appointed Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve.

The extension until July 15 would also allow a new president,incumbent Francois Hollande is not seeking re-election,to assess security and prolong the state of emergency if necessary.

Hollande&rsquo;s tenure has been marred by the three major Islamist-inspired terror attacks,against Charlie Hebdo magazine in January 2015, then in Paris the following November and the Bastille Day attack in Nice.

Cazeneuve, the former interior minister who coordinated the introduction of the state of emergency, took over as prime minister on Tuesday after Manuel Valls stepped down to seek the Socialist nomination for the presidency. 
&nbsp;

(AFP)

The extension will span the two-round presidential election in April-May and June parliamentary polls

France’s parliament voted early Wednesday to extend a national state of emergency until July 15, after next year’s elections. The security measures, in force since attacks in Paris that killed 130 people in November 2015, are now expected to be approved by the Senate on Thursday. It is the fifth extension of the state of emergency, which gives police extended powers of search and arrest. The overnight vote in the National Assembly passed by 288 to 32, with only Left Front lawmakers, protesting ecologists and a handful of centre-right Republicans voting against. The extension, which will give the country its longest uninterrupted state of emergency since the Algerian War in the 1960s, will span the two-round presidential election in April-May and June parliamentary polls. The government has cited a heightened risk of jihadist attacks coinciding with the polls. Ahead of the vote, new interior minister Bruno Le Roux stressed that France faced "an extremely high" risk of a terrorist attack. Since the last extension,shortly after the Bastille Day attack in July when a Tunisian jihadist rammed a truck through a crowd in Nice, killing 86 people, he said "we have foiled no fewer than 13 attacks, involving about 30 individuals". With numerous public meetings and campaign rallies expected in the coming months, Le Roux said "the intense electoral period we are entering increases the risk of further terrorist acts", echoing weekend comments by his predecessor, newly-appointed Prime Minister Bernard Cazeneuve. The extension until July 15 would also allow a new president,incumbent Francois Hollande is not seeking re-election,to assess security and prolong the state of emergency if necessary. Hollande’s tenure has been marred by the three major Islamist-inspired terror attacks,against Charlie Hebdo magazine in January 2015, then in Paris the following November and the Bastille Day attack in Nice. Cazeneuve, the former interior minister who coordinated the introduction of the state of emergency, took over as prime minister on Tuesday after Manuel Valls stepped down to seek the Socialist nomination for the presidency. (AFP)

France: Parliament votes to extend state of emergency to July 15

&nbsp;French Prime Minister Manuel Valls on Monday entered the race to be the Socialist candidate for next year&rsquo;s presidential election and said he was quitting the government to focus on campaigning.

Opinion polls bill the 54-year-old Valls as favourite to win his party&#39;s nomination in late January primaries.

But the centrist with a business-friendly stance on economic policies combined with a reputation as a hardliner on law and order will face stiff competition from party rivals.

In any case, opinion polls predict that no left-wing candidate is likely to gather enough support in the presidential election and that conservative Francois Fillon would eventually beat far-right leader Marine Le Pen in a two-way run-off.

&quot;Yes, I am candidate for the presidency of the Republic,&quot; Valls said to applause from supporters in his fiefdom of Evry, the gritty southern suburb of Paris where he was mayor for over a decade.&nbsp;

&quot;I am outraged at the idea that the Left could be disqualified from these presidentials,&quot; Valls said, referring to his camp`s poor poll ratings and its divisions. &quot;We must unite,&quot; said Valls who later added: &quot;My candidacy is one of conciliation, of reconciliation.&quot;

Valls had made no secret of his desire to seek the Socialist ticket and President Francois Hollande&#39;s decision not to run for a second mandate opened the way for him.

Valls announced his resignation as prime minister, saying it would be effective on Tuesday.

 
(Reuters) 
&nbsp;

Valls announced his resignation as prime minister, saying it would be effective on Tuesday

French Prime Minister Manuel Valls on Monday entered the race to be the Socialist candidate for next year’s presidential election and said he was quitting the government to focus on campaigning. Opinion polls bill the 54-year-old Valls as favourite to win his party's nomination in late January primaries. But the centrist with a business-friendly stance on economic policies combined with a reputation as a hardliner on law and order will face stiff competition from party rivals. In any case, opinion polls predict that no left-wing candidate is likely to gather enough support in the presidential election and that conservative Francois Fillon would eventually beat far-right leader Marine Le Pen in a two-way run-off. "Yes, I am candidate for the presidency of the Republic," Valls said to applause from supporters in his fiefdom of Evry, the gritty southern suburb of Paris where he was mayor for over a decade. "I am outraged at the idea that the Left could be disqualified from these presidentials," Valls said, referring to his camp`s poor poll ratings and its divisions. "We must unite," said Valls who later added: "My candidacy is one of conciliation, of reconciliation." Valls had made no secret of his desire to seek the Socialist ticket and President Francois Hollande's decision not to run for a second mandate opened the way for him. Valls announced his resignation as prime minister, saying it would be effective on Tuesday. (Reuters)

France elections: PM Valls makes presidential bid for 2017, quits government

France demanded on Friday that Britain take in hundreds of minors from war-torn countries after the British interior minister suggested that Paris should do more for them following the closure of the &quot;Jungle&quot; migrant camp in the northern French port city of Calais.

Bulldozers are flattening the sprawl of ramshackle huts and tents which had been home to about 6,000 refugees and migrants from Asia, the Middle East and Africa hoping to cross the English Channel and start new lives in Britain.

Most have now been bussed to other centres across France pending examination of their cases. But the plight of hundreds of minors roaming the area, nearly 1,500 of whom have signed up for temporary lodging in container-boxes in Calais, has become a point of dispute.

British Home Secretary (Interior Minister) Amber Rudd told her French counterpart Bernard Cazeneuve on Friday that his government must guarantee the protection of youngsters left in limbo after the evacuation of the &quot;Jungle&quot;.

&quot;Any child either eligible or not in the secure area of the camp should be cared for and safeguarded by the French authorities. We understand that specialist facilities have been made available elsewhere in France to ensure this happens,&quot; Rudd&#39;s spokesman quoted her as saying.

Cazeneuve replied that Britain should &quot;quickly execute its responsibilities to take in these minors, who hope to come to the United Kingdom. This is the best way to give them the protection they are due,&quot; he said.

The head of France&#39;s Ofpra refugee agency, Pascal Brice, put it more bluntly. &quot;We&#39;ve done Britain&#39;s work in tending to the adults,&quot; he told Reuters. &quot;The least they can do is take care of the isolated minors who are now at the CAP (temporary lodgings) and who have an interest in going to Britain.&quot;

French government officials in the region say that 1,451 minors are in the container-box lodgings. Britain has so far accepted 274 children from among this group, France says. European Union rules say Britain must take in unaccompanied children who have family ties there. An amendment to those rules adopted in Britain this year states that such minors whose best interests are served by doing so should also be admitted.

&nbsp;

DEBRIS

Aid groups say hundreds if not thousands more adults and minors may have fled into the hinterland around the &quot;Jungle&quot;, ready to return when the heavy police presence wanes. Smoke and dust floated over the heart of the site on Friday, as bulldozers cleared mounds of debris and rubbish, watched from afar by a group of youngsters who had slept outdoors in an area that once serve as a school for camp-dwellers. Charity workers gave them food on Friday.

Abdul Hadi, an Afghan youth who gave his age as 16, said he spent 10 months in the &ldquo;Jungle&rdquo; but failed to register with the French authorities for help when the evacuation on Monday. &quot;I hope I can get to the UK this week,&quot; he said.

Serge Szarzynski, head of social affairs in the Calais area, told Reuters a solution would be found for Hadi and the youths with him.

(Reuters)

The French reacted to the British interior minister's suggestion that more could be done to shelter the at-risk minors

France demanded on Friday that Britain take in hundreds of minors from war-torn countries after the British interior minister suggested that Paris should do more for them following the closure of the "Jungle" migrant camp in the northern French port city of Calais. Bulldozers are flattening the sprawl of ramshackle huts and tents which had been home to about 6,000 refugees and migrants from Asia, the Middle East and Africa hoping to cross the English Channel and start new lives in Britain. Most have now been bussed to other centres across France pending examination of their cases. But the plight of hundreds of minors roaming the area, nearly 1,500 of whom have signed up for temporary lodging in container-boxes in Calais, has become a point of dispute. British Home Secretary (Interior Minister) Amber Rudd told her French counterpart Bernard Cazeneuve on Friday that his government must guarantee the protection of youngsters left in limbo after the evacuation of the "Jungle". "Any child either eligible or not in the secure area of the camp should be cared for and safeguarded by the French authorities. We understand that specialist facilities have been made available elsewhere in France to ensure this happens," Rudd's spokesman quoted her as saying. Cazeneuve replied that Britain should "quickly execute its responsibilities to take in these minors, who hope to come to the United Kingdom. This is the best way to give them the protection they are due," he said. The head of France's Ofpra refugee agency, Pascal Brice, put it more bluntly. "We've done Britain's work in tending to the adults," he told Reuters. "The least they can do is take care of the isolated minors who are now at the CAP (temporary lodgings) and who have an interest in going to Britain." French government officials in the region say that 1,451 minors are in the container-box lodgings. Britain has so far accepted 274 children from among this group, France says. European Union rules say Britain must take in unaccompanied children who have family ties there. An amendment to those rules adopted in Britain this year states that such minors whose best interests are served by doing so should also be admitted. DEBRIS Aid groups say hundreds if not thousands more adults and minors may have fled into the hinterland around the "Jungle", ready to return when the heavy police presence wanes. Smoke and dust floated over the heart of the site on Friday, as bulldozers cleared mounds of debris and rubbish, watched from afar by a group of youngsters who had slept outdoors in an area that once serve as a school for camp-dwellers. Charity workers gave them food on Friday. Abdul Hadi, an Afghan youth who gave his age as 16, said he spent 10 months in the “Jungle” but failed to register with the French authorities for help when the evacuation on Monday. "I hope I can get to the UK this week," he said. Serge Szarzynski, head of social affairs in the Calais area, told Reuters a solution would be found for Hadi and the youths with him. (Reuters)

France says Britain can keep at-risk kids from Calais 'Jungle' camp

Over one-third of France&#39;s &quot;Jungle&quot; camp&#39;s population left for 80 reception centres across France on Monday.&nbsp;

At least 2,318 migrants left the&nbsp;squalid conditions of the camp in Calais as France begins the process of dismantling it.&nbsp;

The demolition crew will start tearing the camp today and is expected to complete by Wednesday evening, French officials told AFP.&nbsp;

&quot;Tonight, 2,318 migrants have been housed. 1,918 adults left Calais, boarding 45 buses heading towards 80 welcome centres located in 11 of France&#39;s regions. And 400 minors have been directed towards and also housed at the temporary centre, where they will wait for their cases to be studied, joining the 200 minors already there. There are therefore 600 isolated minors who are safe within the temporary reception centre (CAP). The first step has been taken today, it was done calmly and under control and we must of course continue,&quot; Reuters quoted&nbsp;French interior minister&nbsp;Bernard Cazeneuve as&nbsp;saying.&nbsp;

The migrants were asked to move or face deportation if they decided to stay in France, AFP reported.&nbsp;

French authorities said those who agree to be relocated can apply for asylum in France. Those who don&#39;t, however, can face deportation.

On Sunday, flyers were distributed telling migrants in text and pictures to show up at a hangar near the camp. The migrants began arriving early on Monday at meeting points set by the French authorities as part of a full evacuation and demolition of the camp, according to an AFP journalist at the scene.

Some 6,000 to 8,000 migrants will be moved to reception centres across the country. The move allows the closure of the camp which was home to over 7,000 refugees mostly from Afghanistan, Sudan and Eritrea in the past 18 months. The camp has strained relations between France and Britain and caused tensions with locals in Calais.

Jean-Marc Puissesseau, chief executive of Calais port where migrants in January briefly occupied a ferry, told BBC radio he was &quot;a very, very happy man.&quot;&nbsp;

&quot;It&#39;s for us really the D-Day,&quot; he said, hailing an end to the &quot;constant stress&quot; of drivers fearful of being ambushed by migrants, AFP reported.

Wahid, a 23-year-old Afghan expressed relief that he was being sent to a place &quot;better&quot; than the Jungle. &quot;We don&#39;t know yet where we are going, but it will obviously be better than the Jungle, which was made for animals not humans.&quot;

However, amid relief over getting residency in France, some migrants vowed not to go to the shelter to which they are designated. They still hold on to the dream of going to England.

&quot;They&#39;ll have to force us to leave. We want to go to Britain,&quot; Karhazi, an Afghan told AFP.

&quot;We have yet to convince some people to accept accommodation and give up their dream of Britain. That&#39;s the hardest part,&quot; Didier Leschi, head of the French immigration office OFII, told AFP.

The first group of children with no ties to Britain arrived in the UK from the French &quot;Jungle&quot; migrant camp in Calais on Sunday. Britain began taking in children who had a family connection in the UK last week. Under a new legal Dubs amendment, a limited number of vulnerable child refugees are allowed entry into Britain even if they do not have family already living in the country.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)

French authorities said those who agree to relocate to designated shelters can apply for asylum, others can face deportation

Over one-third of France's "Jungle" camp's population left for 80 reception centres across France on Monday. At least 2,318 migrants left the squalid conditions of the camp in Calais as France begins the process of dismantling it. The demolition crew will start tearing the camp today and is expected to complete by Wednesday evening, French officials told AFP. "Tonight, 2,318 migrants have been housed. 1,918 adults left Calais, boarding 45 buses heading towards 80 welcome centres located in 11 of France's regions. And 400 minors have been directed towards and also housed at the temporary centre, where they will wait for their cases to be studied, joining the 200 minors already there. There are therefore 600 isolated minors who are safe within the temporary reception centre (CAP). The first step has been taken today, it was done calmly and under control and we must of course continue," Reuters quoted French interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve as saying. The migrants were asked to move or face deportation if they decided to stay in France, AFP reported. French authorities said those who agree to be relocated can apply for asylum in France. Those who don't, however, can face deportation. On Sunday, flyers were distributed telling migrants in text and pictures to show up at a hangar near the camp. The migrants began arriving early on Monday at meeting points set by the French authorities as part of a full evacuation and demolition of the camp, according to an AFP journalist at the scene. Some 6,000 to 8,000 migrants will be moved to reception centres across the country. The move allows the closure of the camp which was home to over 7,000 refugees mostly from Afghanistan, Sudan and Eritrea in the past 18 months. The camp has strained relations between France and Britain and caused tensions with locals in Calais. Jean-Marc Puissesseau, chief executive of Calais port where migrants in January briefly occupied a ferry, told BBC radio he was "a very, very happy man." "It's for us really the D-Day," he said, hailing an end to the "constant stress" of drivers fearful of being ambushed by migrants, AFP reported. Wahid, a 23-year-old Afghan expressed relief that he was being sent to a place "better" than the Jungle. "We don't know yet where we are going, but it will obviously be better than the Jungle, which was made for animals not humans." However, amid relief over getting residency in France, some migrants vowed not to go to the shelter to which they are designated. They still hold on to the dream of going to England. "They'll have to force us to leave. We want to go to Britain," Karhazi, an Afghan told AFP. "We have yet to convince some people to accept accommodation and give up their dream of Britain. That's the hardest part," Didier Leschi, head of the French immigration office OFII, told AFP. The first group of children with no ties to Britain arrived in the UK from the French "Jungle" migrant camp in Calais on Sunday. Britain began taking in children who had a family connection in the UK last week. Under a new legal Dubs amendment, a limited number of vulnerable child refugees are allowed entry into Britain even if they do not have family already living in the country. (With inputs from agencies)

Calais: France to start dismantling 'Jungle' camp from today

Marking a difficult chapter in Europe&#39;s migrant crisis, French authorities on Friday said the &quot;jungle&quot; migrant camp on the&nbsp;northern coast will be demolished from Monday. The local administration announced the &quot;legal order&quot; on the long-awaited operation in Calais.&nbsp;

The administration said the residents of the makeshift camp will be taken to nearly 300 temporary accommodation centres dotted around France, while their cases are considered. &quot;The aim is to give everyone a roof over their heads and we will do everything we can to make that happen,&quot; one official said.

On Sunday, officials and charity workers will pass through the settlement of shacks and tents to inform residents that they will have to leave. Local residents and businesses had for months called for the camp to be razed.&nbsp;

The camp, which dates back to April 2015, is a key departure point for Britian where they believe they have a better chance of finding work. It housed more than 10,000 migrants at the peak of the migrant crisis, maily refugees from Afghanistan, Sudan and Eritrea.&nbsp;

British authorities are allowing those with family links in Britain to settle in the UK. But the camp has strained ties between France and the UK with leaders like Alain Juppe, the frontrunner to win the right-wing nomination for next year&#39;s French presidential election, saying that Britain should conduct its evaluations of the migrants on its own soil, not in France.

But even when the &quot;Jungle&quot; is cleared away, some wonder whether another camp will simply spring up elsewhere.

(WION with inputs from agencies) 
&nbsp;

The migrants residing in the makeshift camp will be taken to temporary accommodation centres ahead of the demolition drive on Monday

Marking a difficult chapter in Europe's migrant crisis, French authorities on Friday said the "jungle" migrant camp on the northern coast will be demolished from Monday. The local administration announced the "legal order" on the long-awaited operation in Calais. The administration said the residents of the makeshift camp will be taken to nearly 300 temporary accommodation centres dotted around France, while their cases are considered. "The aim is to give everyone a roof over their heads and we will do everything we can to make that happen," one official said. On Sunday, officials and charity workers will pass through the settlement of shacks and tents to inform residents that they will have to leave. Local residents and businesses had for months called for the camp to be razed. The camp, which dates back to April 2015, is a key departure point for Britian where they believe they have a better chance of finding work. It housed more than 10,000 migrants at the peak of the migrant crisis, maily refugees from Afghanistan, Sudan and Eritrea. British authorities are allowing those with family links in Britain to settle in the UK. But the camp has strained ties between France and the UK with leaders like Alain Juppe, the frontrunner to win the right-wing nomination for next year's French presidential election, saying that Britain should conduct its evaluations of the migrants on its own soil, not in France. But even when the "Jungle" is cleared away, some wonder whether another camp will simply spring up elsewhere. (WION with inputs from agencies)

France orders Calais 'jungle' camp to be cleared, migrants await their fate

&nbsp;

French interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve said that Britain must be responsible towards unaccompanied children traveling from Calais &quot;Jungle&quot; camp in an article published in The Guardian today.&nbsp;

The minister also spoke about tearing down the camp, adding that neither London nor Paris wants &quot;to leave people with the right to refugee status in the cold and the mud -&ndash; women and children least of all.&quot;

&quot;The British government has pledged to help solve this crisis by taking in some unaccompanied minors, the vast majority of whom have expressed the wish to go to the UK,&quot; he added.&nbsp;

The minister&#39;s comments came a day after many teenagers were sent to the UK.&nbsp;Britain said the children sent were aged between 14 and 17 and were from countries including Syria and Sudan. More will follow in the coming days.&nbsp;

&quot;The UK government now needs to intensify this effort, so that every unaccompanied minor can benefit from fair, lasting protection. In the longer term, neither the UK nor France can abdicate our responsibilities regarding the migration crisis across our continent,&quot; AFP quoted Cazeneuve saying.&nbsp;

The &quot;Jungle&quot; camp saw the influx of migrants from across Europe, many of whom wished to seek asylum in Britain. This has caused tensions between both countries.&nbsp;

Cazeneuve also warned that the &quot;humanitarian operation must be supported by long-term measures aimed at making the border impenetrable at Calais and other Channel ports&quot;.&nbsp;

And that &quot;thanks to the cooperation between our police services, 33 illegal immigration networks smuggling people into the UK have already been dismantled in France since the beginning of this year,&quot; he added.&nbsp;

(WION with inputs from AFP)

 
&nbsp;

French interior minister said neither UK nor France will want to leave people wanting asylum out cold, least of all women and children

French interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve said that Britain must be responsible towards unaccompanied children traveling from Calais "Jungle" camp in an article published in The Guardian today. The minister also spoke about tearing down the camp, adding that neither London nor Paris wants "to leave people with the right to refugee status in the cold and the mud -– women and children least of all." "The British government has pledged to help solve this crisis by taking in some unaccompanied minors, the vast majority of whom have expressed the wish to go to the UK," he added. The minister's comments came a day after many teenagers were sent to the UK. Britain said the children sent were aged between 14 and 17 and were from countries including Syria and Sudan. More will follow in the coming days. "The UK government now needs to intensify this effort, so that every unaccompanied minor can benefit from fair, lasting protection. In the longer term, neither the UK nor France can abdicate our responsibilities regarding the migration crisis across our continent," AFP quoted Cazeneuve saying. The "Jungle" camp saw the influx of migrants from across Europe, many of whom wished to seek asylum in Britain. This has caused tensions between both countries. Cazeneuve also warned that the "humanitarian operation must be supported by long-term measures aimed at making the border impenetrable at Calais and other Channel ports". And that "thanks to the cooperation between our police services, 33 illegal immigration networks smuggling people into the UK have already been dismantled in France since the beginning of this year," he added. (WION with inputs from AFP)

Britain must fulfil duty to Calais migrant kids: France

French President Francois Hollande told the authors of a recently published book that &quot;France has a problem with Islam&quot;, comments that can divide his party before next year&rsquo;s presidential election.

Hollande spoke to the two authors of &quot;A President Shouldn&rsquo;t Say That....&quot; in December 2015, only a month after Jihadist gunmen and bombers attacked Paris, killing 130.&nbsp;

The book published on Wednesday, is written by journalists, Gerard Davet and Fabrice Lhomme, who met with Hollande 61 times, Reuters reported.

&quot;It&rsquo;s true that there&rsquo;s a problem with Islam. No one doubts it,&quot; Hollande is quoted as saying, Reuters reported.

&quot;It&rsquo;s not that Islam poses a problem in the sense that it is a dangerous religion, but in as far as it wants to affirm itself as a religion of the Republic.&quot; he added.

&nbsp;Similar statements have been made by conservative politicians in the past.&nbsp;

Since the late 1980s, successive Paris governments have &nbsp;failed in nurturing a liberal &quot;Islam of France&quot; to help integrate the faith into secular society.

In August, Prime Minister Manuel Valls said the state must re-invent its relationship with the &quot;Islam of France&quot;.

On Hollande&rsquo;s comments, government spokesman Stephan Le Foll told Reuters: &quot;There&rsquo;s a problem with Islam today because Islam is politicised by some. There is a problem and at the same time we need to be able to overcome this problem.&quot;

According to Reuters, opposition politicians said on Wednesday that Hollande should spend less time talking to journalists and more time governing.

Late on Wednesday, Hollande also &nbsp;invited two of France&rsquo;s highest ranking judges to patch up relations after the book quoted him belittling judges, according to a tweet on the top appeals court&rsquo;s Twitter account.&nbsp;

 
 
&nbsp;

(WION with inputs from Reuters)

Hollande's comments made to authors of a book published on Wednesday have drawn criticism from the opposition

French President Francois Hollande told the authors of a recently published book that "France has a problem with Islam", comments that can divide his party before next year’s presidential election. Hollande spoke to the two authors of "A President Shouldn’t Say That...." in December 2015, only a month after Jihadist gunmen and bombers attacked Paris, killing 130. The book published on Wednesday, is written by journalists, Gerard Davet and Fabrice Lhomme, who met with Hollande 61 times, Reuters reported. "It’s true that there’s a problem with Islam. No one doubts it," Hollande is quoted as saying, Reuters reported. "It’s not that Islam poses a problem in the sense that it is a dangerous religion, but in as far as it wants to affirm itself as a religion of the Republic." he added. Similar statements have been made by conservative politicians in the past. Since the late 1980s, successive Paris governments have failed in nurturing a liberal "Islam of France" to help integrate the faith into secular society. In August, Prime Minister Manuel Valls said the state must re-invent its relationship with the "Islam of France". On Hollande’s comments, government spokesman Stephan Le Foll told Reuters: "There’s a problem with Islam today because Islam is politicised by some. There is a problem and at the same time we need to be able to overcome this problem." According to Reuters, opposition politicians said on Wednesday that Hollande should spend less time talking to journalists and more time governing. Late on Wednesday, Hollande also invited two of France’s highest ranking judges to patch up relations after the book quoted him belittling judges, according to a tweet on the top appeals court’s Twitter account. (WION with inputs from Reuters)

France has a problem with Islam: Francois Hollande

France is seeking an international war crimes investigation against Syrian and Russian forces in eastern Aleppo and is working to ask the International Criminal Court&rsquo;s prosecutor to launch the investigation.

&quot;These bombings - and I said it in Moscow - are war crimes,&quot; the country&rsquo;s foreign minister Jean-Marc Ayrault told France Inter radio after a French-drafted resolution on Syria was vetoed by Russia in a UN security council meeting on Saturday.

&quot;We shall contact the International Criminal Court prosecutor to see how she can launch these investigations.&quot; he added.

Ever since the collapse of a US-Russia brokered ceasefire deal in September, Russian and Syrian forces have pounded Aleppo&rsquo;s rebel-held sectors in their biggest offensive.

US secretary of state John Kerry had also called for a war crimes investigation last week.

It is,however, unclear how the ICC proceeds with an investigation because Syria is not its member and so the court has no jurisdiction in the west Asian country.

The only way for the case to make it to ICC is through a referral from the UN security council. Moscow vetoed a French resolution in May 2014 to refer the situation in Syria to the ICC.

&quot;It is very dangerous to play with such words because war crimes also weigh on the shoulders of American officials,&quot; said Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, according to RIA news agency.

A French diplomatic source told Reuters that Paris had begun to comb through the ICC&rsquo;s articles to see what could be done. &nbsp;

&quot;It will be complicated, but we are looking for other solutions. Our jurists are trying to find other ways,&quot; the source said, adding that Paris was also not ruling out a new security council &nbsp;resolution.

Ayrault added in his interview that Paris would also seek separate sanctions on the Syrian government at the United Nations once a joint UN and Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) inquiry concludes&nbsp;on October 21.&nbsp;

&quot;We do not agree with what Russia is doing, bombarding Aleppo. France is committed as never before to saving the population of Aleppo,&quot; Ayrault said.

&quot;If the President decides (to see Putin), this will not be to trade pleasantries,&quot; he added.

&nbsp;

(WION with inputs from Reuters)

 
 
&nbsp;

France claims that Russian and Syrian forces have committed war crimes in Aleppo

France is seeking an international war crimes investigation against Syrian and Russian forces in eastern Aleppo and is working to ask the International Criminal Court’s prosecutor to launch the investigation. "These bombings - and I said it in Moscow - are war crimes," the country’s foreign minister Jean-Marc Ayrault told France Inter radio after a French-drafted resolution on Syria was vetoed by Russia in a UN security council meeting on Saturday. "We shall contact the International Criminal Court prosecutor to see how she can launch these investigations." he added. Ever since the collapse of a US-Russia brokered ceasefire deal in September, Russian and Syrian forces have pounded Aleppo’s rebel-held sectors in their biggest offensive. US secretary of state John Kerry had also called for a war crimes investigation last week. It is,however, unclear how the ICC proceeds with an investigation because Syria is not its member and so the court has no jurisdiction in the west Asian country. The only way for the case to make it to ICC is through a referral from the UN security council. Moscow vetoed a French resolution in May 2014 to refer the situation in Syria to the ICC. "It is very dangerous to play with such words because war crimes also weigh on the shoulders of American officials," said Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, according to RIA news agency. A French diplomatic source told Reuters that Paris had begun to comb through the ICC’s articles to see what could be done. "It will be complicated, but we are looking for other solutions. Our jurists are trying to find other ways," the source said, adding that Paris was also not ruling out a new security council resolution. Ayrault added in his interview that Paris would also seek separate sanctions on the Syrian government at the United Nations once a joint UN and Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) inquiry concludes on October 21. "We do not agree with what Russia is doing, bombarding Aleppo. France is committed as never before to saving the population of Aleppo," Ayrault said. "If the President decides (to see Putin), this will not be to trade pleasantries," he added. (WION with inputs from Reuters)

France to seek International Criminal Court options for war crimes investigation in Syria

The less-than-supersonic sale of French Rafale fighter jets to India has highlighted the obstacles facing foreign arms firms seeking to do business with the world&#39;s biggest weapons importer. 
 
India has signed a series of key defence deals under Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as part of a $100 billion upgrade of its Soviet-era military hardware, making it an attractive proposition for arms exporters. 
 
But a series of corruption scandals have made India a challenging environment, with huge delays and a tough negotiation process. 
 
After nearly a decade of discussions and setbacks, India signed a deal Friday to acquire 36 Rafale fighter jets for 7.9 billion Euros ($8.8 billion) as it seeks to bolster its military against an increasingly assertive China. 
 
Defence experts say the aircraft, manufactured by France&#39;s Dassault, will provide a much-needed boost to India&#39;s air force. 
 
But the final windfall was much less than had been hoped for by the French. 
 
&quot;The Indians always conduct very tough negotiations. They are known for it,&quot; said Isabelle Saint-Mezard, a specialist in South Asian strategic issues at the University of Paris. 
 
&quot;They have all the major weapons suppliers knocking at their door, so they are well positioned to do so.&quot; 
 
Eric Trappier, CEO of Dassault Aviation, has gained experience of India&#39;s bargaining tactics in recent years. 
 
&quot;India is a school of patience,&quot; he said. 
 
The country ranks 130 out of 189 on the World Bank&#39;s Ease of Doing Business index -- the worst of all G20 countries -- and regulations vary capriciously across its 29 states, where even the same law can be interpreted in bafflingly different ways. 
 
&nbsp;Fear of corruption&nbsp; 
 
Allegations of corruption have scuppered Indian defence deals as far back as 1987, when then-prime minister Rajiv Gandhi&rsquo;s government collapsed over charges of kickbacks paid to Indian officials by the Swedish group Bofors to clinch a $1.3-billion artillery deal. 
 
Fears of further corruption meant that &quot;the modernisation of the armed forces stalled,&quot; said Gulshan Luthra of the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses in New Delhi. 
 
To erect safeguards against graft India ramped up its army of bureaucrats dealing with weapons sales, with contracts becoming trapped in a paper maze. 
 
The smallest comment on an arms deal required from a government department can delay a case for several months. 
 
&quot;In recent years, the authorities have tried to clamp down on graft. As a result, officials in charge of issuing contracts fear exposing themselves to suspicion of corruption and are reluctant to engage,&quot; said St. Mezard. 
 
For a contract to succeed, &quot;it usually takes strong political will at the highest level of the state,&quot; she added. 
 
But all these precautions do not prevent old demons resurfacing. 
 
In 2013 the government scrapped a $748 million contract with AgustaWestland helicopters following allegations it was won through kickbacks. 
 
 
Technology transfer&nbsp; 
 
Deals are also complicated because India is determined to achieve its goal of being less dependent on foreign trade for its military equipment. Its tenders are accompanied by significant technology transfer requests. 
 
For example, one mooted deal was to have seen Dassault assemble 108 out of 126 fighter jets on Indian soil. 
 
But the French refused to assume responsibility for all the planes that were to be built in India. 
 
&quot;The Indians insist on such deals, but without always having the means or the expertise to carry them out. As a result, suppliers are reluctant to embark on this sort of agreement,&quot; said St. Mezard. 
 
Faced with an urgent need to modernise its military, Modi&rsquo;s government finally opted for the direct sale of 36 ready-to-fly Rafale jets, which will be manufactured in France. 
 
But Dassault will be contractually bound to reinvest nearly half of the value of the deal in India, an obligation known as the offset clause. 
 
&quot;The offset rules are very complicated and opaque,&quot; said Rahul Bedi, a Jane&#39;s Defence Weekly analyst. &quot;We are talking high-tech and the Indian industry does not have the sophistication to absorb such offsets.&quot; 
 
India has signed several big-ticket deals since Hindu nationalist Modi took power in 2014. 
 
The increasing assertiveness of its giant neighbour China as well as its simmering rivalry with Pakistan has increased its need to upgrade its military. 
 
That signals many potential contracts for foreign arms suppliers -- despite the obstacles. 
 
(AFP)

A series of corruption scandals involving arms deals have made India a challenging environment, with tough negotiations and long delays

The less-than-supersonic sale of French Rafale fighter jets to India has highlighted the obstacles facing foreign arms firms seeking to do business with the world's biggest weapons importer. India has signed a series of key defence deals under Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi as part of a $100 billion upgrade of its Soviet-era military hardware, making it an attractive proposition for arms exporters. But a series of corruption scandals have made India a challenging environment, with huge delays and a tough negotiation process. After nearly a decade of discussions and setbacks, India signed a deal Friday to acquire 36 Rafale fighter jets for 7.9 billion Euros ($8.8 billion) as it seeks to bolster its military against an increasingly assertive China. Defence experts say the aircraft, manufactured by France's Dassault, will provide a much-needed boost to India's air force. But the final windfall was much less than had been hoped for by the French. "The Indians always conduct very tough negotiations. They are known for it," said Isabelle Saint-Mezard, a specialist in South Asian strategic issues at the University of Paris. "They have all the major weapons suppliers knocking at their door, so they are well positioned to do so." Eric Trappier, CEO of Dassault Aviation, has gained experience of India's bargaining tactics in recent years. "India is a school of patience," he said. The country ranks 130 out of 189 on the World Bank's Ease of Doing Business index -- the worst of all G20 countries -- and regulations vary capriciously across its 29 states, where even the same law can be interpreted in bafflingly different ways. Fear of corruption Allegations of corruption have scuppered Indian defence deals as far back as 1987, when then-prime minister Rajiv Gandhi’s government collapsed over charges of kickbacks paid to Indian officials by the Swedish group Bofors to clinch a $1.3-billion artillery deal. Fears of further corruption meant that "the modernisation of the armed forces stalled," said Gulshan Luthra of the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses in New Delhi. To erect safeguards against graft India ramped up its army of bureaucrats dealing with weapons sales, with contracts becoming trapped in a paper maze. The smallest comment on an arms deal required from a government department can delay a case for several months. "In recent years, the authorities have tried to clamp down on graft. As a result, officials in charge of issuing contracts fear exposing themselves to suspicion of corruption and are reluctant to engage," said St. Mezard. For a contract to succeed, "it usually takes strong political will at the highest level of the state," she added. But all these precautions do not prevent old demons resurfacing. In 2013 the government scrapped a $748 million contract with AgustaWestland helicopters following allegations it was won through kickbacks. Technology transfer Deals are also complicated because India is determined to achieve its goal of being less dependent on foreign trade for its military equipment. Its tenders are accompanied by significant technology transfer requests. For example, one mooted deal was to have seen Dassault assemble 108 out of 126 fighter jets on Indian soil. But the French refused to assume responsibility for all the planes that were to be built in India. "The Indians insist on such deals, but without always having the means or the expertise to carry them out. As a result, suppliers are reluctant to embark on this sort of agreement," said St. Mezard. Faced with an urgent need to modernise its military, Modi’s government finally opted for the direct sale of 36 ready-to-fly Rafale jets, which will be manufactured in France. But Dassault will be contractually bound to reinvest nearly half of the value of the deal in India, an obligation known as the offset clause. "The offset rules are very complicated and opaque," said Rahul Bedi, a Jane's Defence Weekly analyst. "We are talking high-tech and the Indian industry does not have the sophistication to absorb such offsets." India has signed several big-ticket deals since Hindu nationalist Modi took power in 2014. The increasing assertiveness of its giant neighbour China as well as its simmering rivalry with Pakistan has increased its need to upgrade its military. That signals many potential contracts for foreign arms suppliers -- despite the obstacles. (AFP)

The Rafale saga: Obstacles foreign arms firms face in sealing deals with India

India is set to finalise the 7.87 billion Euros deal for 36 Rafale fighter jets as&nbsp;French defence minister Jean Yves Le Drian arrives in India on September 22 along with CEOs of Dassault Aviation, Thales and MBDA to sign the Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA).&nbsp; 
 
The cost, offsets and service details have been finalised and work is being done on the IGA, Indian news agency the Press Trust of India reported.&nbsp; 
 
A team from France has already arrived in the Indian capital, New Delhi, and a group of translators are going through the contract.&nbsp; 
 
Once the IGA is fixed, the document will go for final clearance to the Cabinet Committee on Security.&nbsp; 
 
The fighter jet is expected to arrive in India in 2019, with an annual inflation capped at 3.5 per cent. &nbsp;The weapon systems will include new-age beyond visual range missile &#39;Meteor&#39; and Israeli helmet-mounted display.&nbsp; 
 
India managed to save over 590 Euro million through tough price negotiations, which began this year in January, according to PTI. &nbsp;The deal was delayed by pricing and offsets issue as India wanted a better contract, the news agency said.&nbsp; 
 
France agreed for a 50 per cent offset clause after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi intervened. This will create at least 3 billion Euros worth of business for Indian companies and jobs through offsets.&nbsp; 
 
(WION with inputs from Reuters) 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
&nbsp;

French defence minister, Jean Yves Le Drian, CEOs of Dassault Aviation, Thales and MBDA will be coming to India to seal the deal on Sep 22

India is set to finalise the 7.87 billion Euros deal for 36 Rafale fighter jets as French defence minister Jean Yves Le Drian arrives in India on September 22 along with CEOs of Dassault Aviation, Thales and MBDA to sign the Inter-Governmental Agreement (IGA). The cost, offsets and service details have been finalised and work is being done on the IGA, Indian news agency the Press Trust of India reported. A team from France has already arrived in the Indian capital, New Delhi, and a group of translators are going through the contract. Once the IGA is fixed, the document will go for final clearance to the Cabinet Committee on Security. The fighter jet is expected to arrive in India in 2019, with an annual inflation capped at 3.5 per cent. The weapon systems will include new-age beyond visual range missile 'Meteor' and Israeli helmet-mounted display. India managed to save over 590 Euro million through tough price negotiations, which began this year in January, according to PTI. The deal was delayed by pricing and offsets issue as India wanted a better contract, the news agency said. France agreed for a 50 per cent offset clause after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi intervened. This will create at least 3 billion Euros worth of business for Indian companies and jobs through offsets. (WION with inputs from Reuters)

India set to finalise Rafale fighter aircraft deal

Britain will start building wall in the French port city of Calais to prevent refugees and migrants from entering the country, the interior ministry said on Wednesday.&nbsp; 
 
The barrier, which will be 4-metre high and one kilometre long, will be built on a port approach road starting this month. The project is likely to be completed by the end of the year, officials said.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;We are going to start building this big new wall very soon. We&#39;ve done the fence, now we are doing a wall,&quot; junior minister Robert Goodwill told a parliamentary committee. 
 
He added that security was being stepped up in Calais, home to the &ldquo;Jungle&#39;&#39; camp, to keep thousands of migrants from the Middle East who are fleeing war and poverty. There were a lot of attempted channel crossings last year by migrants sneaking onto lorries boarding ferries and the Eurotunnel. 
 
France had dismantled the southern half of the Jungle camp in February and March.&nbsp; 
 
In March, Britain and France had agreed to a 17 million pound of security measures of which the wall is a part.&nbsp; 
 
The agreement has drawn severe criticism from across the political spectrum. &nbsp; 
 
Green Party MP Caroline Lucas called the wall &quot;monstrous&quot; and the campaign group, Citizens UK, asked Britain to use the money&nbsp;to transfer child migrants with families in Britain from Calais instead. 
 
Richard Burnett, chief executive of Britain&#39;s Road Haulage Association said that funding for the wall &quot;would be much better spent on increasing security along the approach roads&quot;. 
 
The jungle is a home to some 7,000 migrants, but the number might have mounted to 10,000 after the recent influx, the charities have said.&nbsp; 
 
There have been complaints of migrants attacking vehicles with metal bars to stop them. They sometimes use tree branches to block roads to slow trucks heading for Britain.
&nbsp;

(WION with inputs from agencies) 
&nbsp;

Officials said the four-meter high, one-kilometer long barrier will be built on a port approach road starting this month

Britain will start building wall in the French port city of Calais to prevent refugees and migrants from entering the country, the interior ministry said on Wednesday. The barrier, which will be 4-metre high and one kilometre long, will be built on a port approach road starting this month. The project is likely to be completed by the end of the year, officials said. "We are going to start building this big new wall very soon. We've done the fence, now we are doing a wall," junior minister Robert Goodwill told a parliamentary committee. He added that security was being stepped up in Calais, home to the “Jungle'' camp, to keep thousands of migrants from the Middle East who are fleeing war and poverty. There were a lot of attempted channel crossings last year by migrants sneaking onto lorries boarding ferries and the Eurotunnel. France had dismantled the southern half of the Jungle camp in February and March. In March, Britain and France had agreed to a 17 million pound of security measures of which the wall is a part. The agreement has drawn severe criticism from across the political spectrum. Green Party MP Caroline Lucas called the wall "monstrous" and the campaign group, Citizens UK, asked Britain to use the money to transfer child migrants with families in Britain from Calais instead. Richard Burnett, chief executive of Britain's Road Haulage Association said that funding for the wall "would be much better spent on increasing security along the approach roads". The jungle is a home to some 7,000 migrants, but the number might have mounted to 10,000 after the recent influx, the charities have said. There have been complaints of migrants attacking vehicles with metal bars to stop them. They sometimes use tree branches to block roads to slow trucks heading for Britain. (WION with inputs from agencies)

Britain to build wall in Calais to keep migrants at bay

It would be &quot;unconstitutional&quot; for France to pass a law banning the burkini and such a move could cause irreparable harm, French interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve warned in an interview published online late Sunday.&nbsp; 
 
Speaking to French daily La Croix, Cazeneuve reiterated the government&#39;s opposition to legislating on the controversial matter which has sparked fierce debate both at home and abroad about women&#39;s rights and France&#39;s strictly-guarded secularism. 
 
Around 30 coastal resorts have recently banned women from wearing the full-body swimwear on their beaches, although France&#39;s highest administrative court on Friday overturned the measure in one town, in a ruling likely to set a legal precedent which will affect the others.&nbsp; 
 
Rightwing figures are pushing for a nationwide ban to be written into law, led by former president Nicolas Sarkozy who this week launched his bid to regain the presidency in next year&#39;s election.&nbsp; 
 
But Cazeneuve ruled out any such move.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;As the prime minister has said, the government refuses to legislate on the matter because any such law would be unconstitutional, ineffective and likely to create antagonism and irreparable tension&quot;, he said.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;However, Muslims must continue to engage with us over gender equality, the inviolable nature of the principles of the French Republic, and tolerance in order to live together,&quot; he said, noting that in overruling the ban, the court had &quot;stated the law&quot;.&nbsp; 
 
Cazeneuve will on Monday have &quot;a day of consultations&quot; with religious figures, civil groups, parliamentarians and others on Islam in France, seeking to get the religion which is the subject of fevered debate throughout the country better &quot;anchored in the values of the Republic&quot;. 
 
France has been hit by a string of Islamist attacks over the past 18 months, raising questions over security failures and resulting in a spike in Islamophobia. 
 
In the latest instance of intercultural tensions, a restaurant owner in the Paris suburb of Tremblay-en-France is facing an investigation after chasing two veiled Muslim women out of his premises on Saturday. 
 
His actions, caught on video, provoked a furious response and prompted prosecutors to open an inquiry. 
 
The incident, filmed by one of the two women and posted online, shows the other saying; &quot;We don&#39;t want to be served by racists&quot;. 
 
The restaurateur responds: &quot;Racists like me don&#39;t plant bombs and don&#39;t kill people.&quot; 
 
He added that &quot;terrorists are Muslim and all Muslims are terrorists. I don&#39;t want people like you in my place. Now you know it you can get out&quot;.&nbsp; 
 
The boss of &quot;Le Cenacle&quot; restaurant later apologised for his actions as calls to boycott his establishment flooded social media sites alongside negative reviews. 
 
A source close to the investigation said that the proprietor had left his home along with his family for security reasons. 
 
Cazeneuve lashed out the opposition for trying to earn political points from the burkini controversy at a time when the country has been rattled by a string of deadly attacks claimed by Islamic State militants.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;Certain opposition leaders are making a lot of noise. They think that in the current context of terror threats, we can abandon the fundamental principles of law as embodied in the Constitution,&quot; he said, warning that such a move would be &quot;a serious mistake&quot;.&nbsp; 
 
(AFP) 
&nbsp;

Speaking to French daily La Croix, he reiterated the government's opposition to legislating on the controversial matter

It would be "unconstitutional" for France to pass a law banning the burkini and such a move could cause irreparable harm, French interior minister Bernard Cazeneuve warned in an interview published online late Sunday. Speaking to French daily La Croix, Cazeneuve reiterated the government's opposition to legislating on the controversial matter which has sparked fierce debate both at home and abroad about women's rights and France's strictly-guarded secularism. Around 30 coastal resorts have recently banned women from wearing the full-body swimwear on their beaches, although France's highest administrative court on Friday overturned the measure in one town, in a ruling likely to set a legal precedent which will affect the others. Rightwing figures are pushing for a nationwide ban to be written into law, led by former president Nicolas Sarkozy who this week launched his bid to regain the presidency in next year's election. But Cazeneuve ruled out any such move. "As the prime minister has said, the government refuses to legislate on the matter because any such law would be unconstitutional, ineffective and likely to create antagonism and irreparable tension", he said. "However, Muslims must continue to engage with us over gender equality, the inviolable nature of the principles of the French Republic, and tolerance in order to live together," he said, noting that in overruling the ban, the court had "stated the law". Cazeneuve will on Monday have "a day of consultations" with religious figures, civil groups, parliamentarians and others on Islam in France, seeking to get the religion which is the subject of fevered debate throughout the country better "anchored in the values of the Republic". France has been hit by a string of Islamist attacks over the past 18 months, raising questions over security failures and resulting in a spike in Islamophobia. In the latest instance of intercultural tensions, a restaurant owner in the Paris suburb of Tremblay-en-France is facing an investigation after chasing two veiled Muslim women out of his premises on Saturday. His actions, caught on video, provoked a furious response and prompted prosecutors to open an inquiry. The incident, filmed by one of the two women and posted online, shows the other saying; "We don't want to be served by racists". The restaurateur responds: "Racists like me don't plant bombs and don't kill people." He added that "terrorists are Muslim and all Muslims are terrorists. I don't want people like you in my place. Now you know it you can get out". The boss of "Le Cenacle" restaurant later apologised for his actions as calls to boycott his establishment flooded social media sites alongside negative reviews. A source close to the investigation said that the proprietor had left his home along with his family for security reasons. Cazeneuve lashed out the opposition for trying to earn political points from the burkini controversy at a time when the country has been rattled by a string of deadly attacks claimed by Islamic State militants. "Certain opposition leaders are making a lot of noise. They think that in the current context of terror threats, we can abandon the fundamental principles of law as embodied in the Constitution," he said, warning that such a move would be "a serious mistake". (AFP)

Anti-burkini law would be unconstitutional: French interior minister

The burkini, a body-concealing women&rsquo;s swimsuit that fits a conservative Islamic dress code, might have stirred a &nbsp;controversy in France, but on the beaches of North Africa, it has made few waves. 
 
On the coast of Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia, women are already wearing increasingly modest outfits, &nbsp;but few can afford the full-body costume. 
 
In Zeralda, a seaside resort in Western Algiers, few women dare to wear a swimsuit, let alone a bikini, on public beaches. 
 
&#39;People look at me as if I am Martian&#39; 
 
Hakima, a mathematics teacher in her 40s, wears a burkini in the sea before wrapping up in a large sarong when she gets out. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s more decent,&quot; she says. 
 
&quot;The all-body swimsuit is a solution for practicing Muslim women who like the sea.&quot; 
 
But some women cover up against their will, like Manel Brahimi, a biology student. 
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<h5>The swimsuit was introduced to the country by Moroccans living overseas, says Miloud, a retiree.</h5>
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&quot;I love swimming but if I wear a normal swimsuit, people look at me as if I am a Martian,&quot; she says. 
 
Siham, 24, is also resigned to wearing cycling shorts under her one-piece swimsuit to &quot;avoid being stared at&quot;. 
 
On the beaches of Rabat, swimmers splash around in various outfits including Bermuda shorts, tracksuit pants, leggings, denim shorts, and even suggestive wet T-shirts.&nbsp; 
 
Few wear an actual burkini, a garment that on average costs 500 dirhams (50 euros, $56), outside the budget of most beach-goers in the Moroccan capital. 
 
The swimsuit was introduced to the country by Moroccans living overseas, says Miloud, a retiree. 
 
&quot;They brought the fashion (of the burkini) here this year when they came on holiday to the beaches&quot; in the conservative north of the country, says Miloud. 
 
Another beach-goer, Fadel, sees the outfit as &quot;a story of big money&quot; that &quot;creates business for Islamic fashion stores&quot;. 
 
&quot;But most people don&#39;t care,&quot; he says. Last week, Nice became the latest French seaside resort to ban the burkini after a string of terror attacks. 
 
Prime Minister Manuel Valls said the costume was part of a political project based &quot;on the enslavement of women,&quot; and was &quot;not compatible with the values of France and the republic&quot;. 
 
This month, youths on a beach on the French Mediterranean island of Corsica came to blows with a group of Muslim families, reportedly after a tourist snapped pictures of women bathing in burkinis. 
 
But the swimsuit has sparked no such controversy in Tunisia, says sociologist Abdessatar Sahbani. 
 
&quot;Wearing the burkini, which has increased considerably since the revolution (in 2011), hasn&#39;t caused any problems on the beaches,&quot; he says. 
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<h5>It&#39;s a haven of peace, a discreet place for a Muslim woman,&quot; says Ouahiba Chaturi, a retired air hostess in a two-piece swimsuit.</h5>
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&quot;This summer, Tunisians are much more preoccupied with the economic and security situation.&quot; 
 
But changing social mores have given a boost to beach clubs reserved for women and children, such as the &quot;Marina Club&quot; east of Algiers. 
 
The club&#39;s clientele lounge next to a swimming pool sporting a variety of clothes from bikinis to burkinis, far from the gaze of men. 
 
The club is entirely staffed by women, from waitresses to lifeguards. Many of them are students. 
 
&quot;It&#39;s a haven of peace, a discreet place for a Muslim woman,&quot; says Ouahiba Chaturi, a retired air hostess in a two-piece swimsuit. 
 
In addition to the exterior wall, another wall separates the pool from a special section for women who wear the full Islamic veil and don&#39;t want to undress in front of other women. 
 
&quot;They don&#39;t appreciate the presence of young boys in there,&quot; says one client. 
 
She says she was surprised at the comparison between the gaze of a seven-year-old and that of an adult. 
 
&#39;Country&#39;s beaches were always mixed until recently&#39; 
 
In early August, an article in an Algerian newspaper provoked an outcry on social media for claiming that &quot;nudity&quot; on public beaches had turned them into no-go areas for families. 
 
It blasted Algerian women who &quot;wear skimpy swimsuits as if they were on foreign beaches, and walk along the shore displaying their bodies full of tattoos.&quot; 
 
Yet in the 1990s, mixed beaches and swimsuits were the norm on Algeria&#39;s beaches.&nbsp; 
 
Saida, an English teacher, says the country&#39;s beaches were always mixed until recently.&nbsp; 
 
Now, &quot;the walls have been put up between those who can pay to tan on a private beach and those who, by conviction or obligation, swim in an outfit society deems decent,&quot; she says. 
 
Katia Ouhid, who is in her 50s, says she wears the bikini &quot;on principle&quot;. 
 
&quot;I put on weight when I was pregnant, but I refuse to accept the diktat of society,&quot; she says. 
 
&quot;When the Islamists banned women from going to the beach, we didn&#39;t yield. We went with family and friends and we wore our swimsuits.&quot; 
 
Amina, one of her friends, says society has &quot;regressed enormously in terms of individual freedoms,&quot; and says she misses the beaches where girls used to wear swimsuits in shimmering colours.&nbsp; 
 
&quot;All it needs is a sign at the entrance, family beach, modest dress required &quot;, she says. 
 
(WION with inputs from AFP)&nbsp;

On the coast of Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia, women are already wearing increasingly modest outfits, ?but few can afford the Burkini

The burkini, a body-concealing women’s swimsuit that fits a conservative Islamic dress code, might have stirred a controversy in France, but on the beaches of North Africa, it has made few waves. On the coast of Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia, women are already wearing increasingly modest outfits, but few can afford the full-body costume. In Zeralda, a seaside resort in Western Algiers, few women dare to wear a swimsuit, let alone a bikini, on public beaches. 'People look at me as if I am Martian' Hakima, a mathematics teacher in her 40s, wears a burkini in the sea before wrapping up in a large sarong when she gets out. "It's more decent," she says. "The all-body swimsuit is a solution for practicing Muslim women who like the sea." But some women cover up against their will, like Manel Brahimi, a biology student. The swimsuit was introduced to the country by Moroccans living overseas, says Miloud, a retiree. "I love swimming but if I wear a normal swimsuit, people look at me as if I am a Martian," she says. Siham, 24, is also resigned to wearing cycling shorts under her one-piece swimsuit to "avoid being stared at". On the beaches of Rabat, swimmers splash around in various outfits including Bermuda shorts, tracksuit pants, leggings, denim shorts, and even suggestive wet T-shirts. Few wear an actual burkini, a garment that on average costs 500 dirhams (50 euros, $56), outside the budget of most beach-goers in the Moroccan capital. The swimsuit was introduced to the country by Moroccans living overseas, says Miloud, a retiree. "They brought the fashion (of the burkini) here this year when they came on holiday to the beaches" in the conservative north of the country, says Miloud. Another beach-goer, Fadel, sees the outfit as "a story of big money" that "creates business for Islamic fashion stores". "But most people don't care," he says. Last week, Nice became the latest French seaside resort to ban the burkini after a string of terror attacks. Prime Minister Manuel Valls said the costume was part of a political project based "on the enslavement of women," and was "not compatible with the values of France and the republic". This month, youths on a beach on the French Mediterranean island of Corsica came to blows with a group of Muslim families, reportedly after a tourist snapped pictures of women bathing in burkinis. But the swimsuit has sparked no such controversy in Tunisia, says sociologist Abdessatar Sahbani. "Wearing the burkini, which has increased considerably since the revolution (in 2011), hasn't caused any problems on the beaches," he says. It's a haven of peace, a discreet place for a Muslim woman," says Ouahiba Chaturi, a retired air hostess in a two-piece swimsuit. "This summer, Tunisians are much more preoccupied with the economic and security situation." But changing social mores have given a boost to beach clubs reserved for women and children, such as the "Marina Club" east of Algiers. The club's clientele lounge next to a swimming pool sporting a variety of clothes from bikinis to burkinis, far from the gaze of men. The club is entirely staffed by women, from waitresses to lifeguards. Many of them are students. "It's a haven of peace, a discreet place for a Muslim woman," says Ouahiba Chaturi, a retired air hostess in a two-piece swimsuit. In addition to the exterior wall, another wall separates the pool from a special section for women who wear the full Islamic veil and don't want to undress in front of other women. "They don't appreciate the presence of young boys in there," says one client. She says she was surprised at the comparison between the gaze of a seven-year-old and that of an adult. 'Country's beaches were always mixed until recently' In early August, an article in an Algerian newspaper provoked an outcry on social media for claiming that "nudity" on public beaches had turned them into no-go areas for families. It blasted Algerian women who "wear skimpy swimsuits as if they were on foreign beaches, and walk along the shore displaying their bodies full of tattoos." Yet in the 1990s, mixed beaches and swimsuits were the norm on Algeria's beaches. Saida, an English teacher, says the country's beaches were always mixed until recently. Now, "the walls have been put up between those who can pay to tan on a private beach and those who, by conviction or obligation, swim in an outfit society deems decent," she says. Katia Ouhid, who is in her 50s, says she wears the bikini "on principle". "I put on weight when I was pregnant, but I refuse to accept the diktat of society," she says. "When the Islamists banned women from going to the beach, we didn't yield. We went with family and friends and we wore our swimsuits." Amina, one of her friends, says society has "regressed enormously in terms of individual freedoms," and says she misses the beaches where girls used to wear swimsuits in shimmering colours. "All it needs is a sign at the entrance, family beach, modest dress required ", she says. (WION with inputs from AFP)

Burkini 'not a big deal' in North Africa

Nice has become the latest French seaside resort to ban the burkini, the body-concealing Islamic swimsuit that has sparked heated debate in secular France, city officials said on Friday. 
 
Using language similar to bans imposed in a string of other towns on the French Riviera, the city barred apparel that &quot;overtly manifests adherence to a religion at a time when France and places of worship are the target of terrorist attacks&quot;. 
 
The wording of the ban in Nice refers specifically to last month&#39;s Bastille Day truck attack in the city that claimed 86 lives as well as the murder 12 days later of a Catholic priest near the northern city of Rouen. 
 
Fifteen towns in the southeast, as well as others elsewhere in France, have already banned the burkini including nearby film festival host city Cannes, where three women were each fined 38 euros ($43) under the ban at the weekend. 
 
Nice&#39;s deputy mayor Christian Estrosi, from the centre-right Republicans party, wrote in a letter to Prime Minister Manuel Valls on Tuesday that &quot;hiding the face or wearing a full-body costume to go to the beach is not in keeping with our ideal of social relations&quot;. 
 
Valls came under fire after saying on Wednesday that the burkini was &quot;not compatible with the values of France and the Republic&quot;. 
 
The Socialist premier cited the tensions in France after the jihadist attacks to justify his support for the mayors who barred a garment that he said was &quot;founded on the subjugation of women&quot;. 
 
France&#39;s Human Rights League accused Valls of &quot;participating in the stigmatisation of a category of French people who have become suspect by virtue of their faith&quot;. 
 
Burkinis are a rare sight on French beaches, where a small minority of Muslim women can be seen bathing in ordinary clothes and wearing headscarves. 
 
Islamic dress has long been a subject of debate in France, which was the first European country to ban the Islamic face veil in public in 2010, six years after outlawing the headscarf and other conspicuous religious symbols in state schools. 
 
Meanwhile, the imam of Florence, Italy, triggered a storm on Friday by posting on his Facebook page a picture of a group of eight nuns, veiled and dressed in their habits, on a beach. 
 
Izzedin Elzir, who is also president of the Union of Islamic Communities of Italy (UCOII), posted the picture without a caption but unwittingly sparked a wave of criticism. 
 
The image was shared more than 2,000 times and drew many negative comments. Facebook blocked Elzir&#39;s profile page for several hours after receiving hostile notifications from users. 
 
Interviewed on Sky Tg24 television, Elzir said he had simply sought to stir a &quot;positive debate&quot; and in fact had received messages from &quot;very many Christians&quot; to thank him. 
 
He said he posted the picture &quot;to respond to those who say that... western values are different in the way people dress and cover their body&quot;. 
 
&quot;I meant that part of western values comes from Christianity... and you can see that Christian roots are also derived from people who cover themselves almost completely.&quot; 
 
Interior Minister Angelino Alfano said on Tuesday that Italy would not ban the burkini, saying the measure would be fruitless and even counter-productive, as it could cause a potential backlash. 
 
(AFP)

The French town said the apparel 'overtly adhered to a religion' at a time when the country is in the grips of cascading terror attacks

Nice has become the latest French seaside resort to ban the burkini, the body-concealing Islamic swimsuit that has sparked heated debate in secular France, city officials said on Friday. Using language similar to bans imposed in a string of other towns on the French Riviera, the city barred apparel that "overtly manifests adherence to a religion at a time when France and places of worship are the target of terrorist attacks". The wording of the ban in Nice refers specifically to last month's Bastille Day truck attack in the city that claimed 86 lives as well as the murder 12 days later of a Catholic priest near the northern city of Rouen. Fifteen towns in the southeast, as well as others elsewhere in France, have already banned the burkini including nearby film festival host city Cannes, where three women were each fined 38 euros ($43) under the ban at the weekend. Nice's deputy mayor Christian Estrosi, from the centre-right Republicans party, wrote in a letter to Prime Minister Manuel Valls on Tuesday that "hiding the face or wearing a full-body costume to go to the beach is not in keeping with our ideal of social relations". Valls came under fire after saying on Wednesday that the burkini was "not compatible with the values of France and the Republic". The Socialist premier cited the tensions in France after the jihadist attacks to justify his support for the mayors who barred a garment that he said was "founded on the subjugation of women". France's Human Rights League accused Valls of "participating in the stigmatisation of a category of French people who have become suspect by virtue of their faith". Burkinis are a rare sight on French beaches, where a small minority of Muslim women can be seen bathing in ordinary clothes and wearing headscarves. Islamic dress has long been a subject of debate in France, which was the first European country to ban the Islamic face veil in public in 2010, six years after outlawing the headscarf and other conspicuous religious symbols in state schools. Meanwhile, the imam of Florence, Italy, triggered a storm on Friday by posting on his Facebook page a picture of a group of eight nuns, veiled and dressed in their habits, on a beach. Izzedin Elzir, who is also president of the Union of Islamic Communities of Italy (UCOII), posted the picture without a caption but unwittingly sparked a wave of criticism. The image was shared more than 2,000 times and drew many negative comments. Facebook blocked Elzir's profile page for several hours after receiving hostile notifications from users. Interviewed on Sky Tg24 television, Elzir said he had simply sought to stir a "positive debate" and in fact had received messages from "very many Christians" to thank him. He said he posted the picture "to respond to those who say that... western values are different in the way people dress and cover their body". "I meant that part of western values comes from Christianity... and you can see that Christian roots are also derived from people who cover themselves almost completely." Interior Minister Angelino Alfano said on Tuesday that Italy would not ban the burkini, saying the measure would be fruitless and even counter-productive, as it could cause a potential backlash. (AFP)

Nice latest town in French riviera to impose ban on burkini

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