France

French president traveling to Lebanon after deadly explosion

By Associated Press

French President Emmanuel Macron announced he would fly to the shattered Lebanese capital, and two planeloads of French rescue workers and aid were expected to touch down on Wednesday afternoon.

Notre Dame Cathedral’s organ will undergo a 4-year-long cleaning

By Nadine Achoui-Lesage, Angela Charlton, Associated Press

The mammoth task of dismantling, cleaning and re-assembling France’s largest musical instrument started Monday and is expected to last nearly four years. Amazingly, the 8,000-pipe organ survived the 2019 fire that consumed the cathedral’s roof and toppled its spire.

French prime minister defends police amid brutality concerns

By Associated Press

In his first major policy speech, Prime Minister Jean Castex vowed to fight racism and anti-Semitism, but didn’t directly address recent protests in France against racial injustice and police violence unleashed by George Floyd’s death in the United States.

In the U.K. and France, debate over whether to require face masks spreads

By Angela Charlton, Danica Kirka, Associated Press

Scientists say the two countries' governments should have done so ever since they started easing lockdowns — like many other European nations did.

France ordered to fight pollution or pay millions in fines

By Associated Press

The Council of State's unusual ruling Friday came after the government failed to fulfill a 2017 order to reduce pollution in accordance with EU rules. The national government and local governments have announced multiple anti-pollution measures in recent years. But…

Activists protest against French minister accused of rape

By Arno Pedram, Associated Press

Women’s rights activists held protests in cities in France and abroad against President Emmanuel Macron’s appointment of a new interior minister who is accused of rape and a justice minister who has minimized the #MeToo movement.

Study shows virus hit African immigrants hardest in France

By John Leicester, Associated Press

A new study from the French government's statistics agency shows that death rates doubled among immigrants from sub-Saharan Africa and tripled in the Paris region at the height of the country's coronavirus outbreak.

France to abandon police chokeholds amid George Floyd protests

By Sylvie Corbet, Associated Press

France's interior minister says police in the country will no longer be allowed to conduct chokeholds during arrests. The minister says the immobilization technique is now banned after it came under renewed criticism following George Floyd's death in the United…

French virus tracing app goes live amid debate over privacy

By Sylvie Corbet, Kelvin Chan, Associated Press

France is rolling out an official coronavirus contact-tracing app aimed at containing fresh outbreaks as lockdown restrictions gradually ease.

World outrage grows at George Floyd’s death

By Sylvie Corbet, Associated Press

French authorities have banned a protest over racial injustice and heavy-handed police tactics as global outrage about the death of George Floyd in the United States kindled frustrations across borders and continents.