On Wednesday morning, a driver intentionally struck pedestrians and cyclists on Île d’Oléron, a French tourist island, injuring five people, two seriously. The 35-year-old local resident, who reportedly shouted “Allahu Akbar” upon arrest, drove for about 35 minutes hitting people on the road. After the incident, the man attempted to set his car on fire before being apprehended by gendarmes. Preliminary investigations suggest the suspect, known to police for prior offenses, may have mental health issues and was not on any security watchlist.
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Shein opened its first physical store in Paris on November 5, 2025, drawing hundreds of shoppers despite controversy surrounding its fast fashion business model and environmental impact. Simultaneously, the French government announced it was suspending Shein’s online platform due to the sale of childlike sex dolls. This action followed protests and a judicial investigation against Shein and other online retailers. Shein responded by pledging to cooperate with authorities, banning the sex dolls, and suspending third-party seller products, amidst news of a man’s arrest in relation to a similar purchase from China.
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A French court sentenced four Bulgarians to prison terms ranging from two to four years for vandalizing Paris’ Holocaust Memorial with red hand graffiti. The court also issued a lifetime ban from France for each of the individuals. The red hand symbol, which has historical ties to antisemitism, was part of a campaign allegedly orchestrated by Russia to incite social division and spread disinformation, according to French intelligence. The court emphasized the severity of the act and the site’s significance, highlighting the attempt at foreign interference.
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Troubleshooting video playback issues may involve addressing browser extension conflicts. Specifically, a particular extension is interfering with the video player’s functionality. Viewers may need to temporarily disable the problematic extension on the current website. After disabling the extension, reloading the page should resolve the issue and allow video content to load.
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Following the theft of the French crown jewels from the Louvre, a museum dedicated to Denis Diderot in Langres, France, was also targeted. Approximately 2,000 gold and silver coins, valued at around €90,000, were stolen from a display case at the Maison des Lumières. These coins, dating from 1790 to 1840, belonged to the city’s private collection and were discovered in 2011. This incident adds to a series of recent museum heists across France, including the theft of gold nuggets from the Natural History Museum and porcelain from the national porcelain museum.
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President Emmanuel Macron has surprisingly reappointed Sébastien Lecornu as Prime Minister, just four days after his resignation, following a week of political turmoil. Lecornu, who previously served for only 26 days, faces the challenge of forming a government and presenting next year’s budget by Monday, despite a National Assembly where Macron lacks a majority. The new prime minister will also need to address France’s significant public debt and budget deficit, which have contributed to the downfall of previous leaders. Political divisions within the conservative Republicans and lack of support from the left-wing parties further complicate Lecornu’s task.
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In a surprising turn of events, French President Emmanuel Macron reappointed Sebastien Lecornu as Prime Minister after accepting his resignation just days prior, which followed the collapse of his initial government. Lecornu’s reappointment was met with harsh criticism from political opponents, who decried the decision as a democratic failure. Lecornu’s new government will need to navigate a divided political landscape, and as part of this, potential ministers have been asked to disengage from presidential ambitions for 2027 to foster stability. The selection process for the new cabinet will be closely watched, as the previous choices were heavily criticized, and the final consultations included Macron’s centrist bloc and traditional parties, excluding the far-left and far-right.
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Political instability has gripped France since the snap parliamentary elections in July 2024, resulting in a hung parliament and a series of prime ministers failing to secure support. Marine Le Pen has called for early elections. The current prime minister, Lecornu, also resigned after less than a month, further highlighting the deadlock caused by ideologically opposed factions refusing to compromise. The nation’s economic situation has deteriorated with the third-highest public debt in the eurozone, and financial markets responded negatively to Lecornu’s resignation.
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French PM Sebastien Lecornu has resigned. Let’s just get this straight: we’re talking about a Prime Minister whose tenure lasted a mere 17 hours. That’s right, a little over half a day. This isn’t just a short term; it’s practically a blink of an eye in political time, setting a new record – and not a particularly flattering one – for the shortest-lived government in French history. The previous record holder, from the Fourth Republic, managed to hang on for a whole three days. Lecornu barely made it through a single day before the whole thing imploded.
For some context, even Liz Truss, whose time as UK Prime Minister was widely ridiculed, enjoyed a significantly longer stint in office.… Continue reading
French authorities have arrested the captain and first officer of the sanctioned tanker Boracay, suspected of operating for Russia’s “shadow fleet” after the French navy boarded the vessel near Saint-Nazaire. The two crew members are accused of failing to provide proof of the ship’s nationality and not complying with orders, and their detention has been extended. The Boracay, sanctioned by Britain and the EU, had previously been tracked near Denmark, with its movements coinciding with drone activity that caused airport closures. The Kremlin has stated it has no information about the vessel, but that Russian military has to act at times.
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