Runaway Military Horse Hoofs It to Seine

(NEWSER) - French cops have busted 26 people linked to the biggest jewelry heist ever in France, reports the Guardian. Police swooped in after learning that foreign buyers were about to contact the team to purchase gems lifted late last year in a brazen daylight armed robbery in Paris. The suspects, both men and women aged 22 to 67, include a security guard and several gangsters in the $100 million heist in the American gem boutique Harry Winston. Cops recovered large amounts of cash, weapons and stolen jewelry. More»

(NEWSER) - Thieves stole a sketchbook containing 33 Pablo Picasso drawings from the Picasso Museum in Paris, the Daily Mail reports. The security system was somehow disabled and there was no sign of forced entry. The theft occurred sometime last night or early today and resembles the 2007 robbery of the home of one of Picasso’s granddaughters, when two paintings worth $55 million were taken. More»

1,000 cops bust 33 for riots in raid on immigrant communities

(NEWSER) - More than 1,000 French police stormed housing projects in three largely immigrant communities outside of Paris early today and arrested 33 suspects believed linked to riots in November, AP reports. Police sources said two gang leaders in particular organized the street violence that included armed rioters in what they described as a "quasi-military operation." More»

Replica city wasn't finished by end of WWI

(NEWSER) - A sham Paris was built near the end of World War I in an attempt to fool German bombers, according to recently unearthed archives. The fake city—built on a bend of the Seine similar to the one in Paris—boasted fake railways, fake factories, and even a fake Champs-Elysées, the Telegraph reports. Private firms were hired to create wooden replicas of buildings, and one of the country's foremost electrical engineers was hired to illuminate it. More»

'Love is stronger than hate,' says 'Charlie Hebdo'

(NEWSER) - Remember the boundary-busting French satirical newspaper that was firebombed for making the Prophet Mohammed a "guest editor"? Journalists toned down the controversy this time around—not. In fact, right on the cover, a Muslim is planting a big, slobbery kiss on a figure representing the publication, Charlie Hebdo. Above the embrace are the words: "Love is stronger than hate." The Guardian says the paper "isn't holding back," while Gawker —convinced the Muslim is a "gay Mohammad" (though he's not in the garb of the prophet)—calls it the "ballsiest paper in the world." More»