French government

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Biden Concedes 'Clumsy' Handling of Deal to Macron

Leaders meet for the first time since security alliance left France in the cold

(Newser) - Meeting with President Emmanuel Macron for the first time since a weapons deal with Australia caused a US-France rift , President Biden said the situation was mishandled by his administration. "It was not done with a lot of grace," Biden said in an appearance with Macron on Friday. France...

Colonial History Adds to French Guiana's Pain

Pandemic recalls illnesses first brought by Europeans

(Newser) - When white doctors walked into Camopi, a majority Indigenous town near the border with Brazil, townspeople felt worry instead of relief. With French Guiana facing a wave of coronavirus infections, the AP reports, doctors from the French mainland were there to administer tests and treat the sick. But for residents...

Dispatcher Tells Dying Woman: 'Everyone' Dies Someday

Emergency operators are under severe stress, says union leader

(Newser) - A young woman near death called an emergency dispatch number in France last December and was mocked by the operator, France24 reports. Naomi Musenga, 22, called the ambulance service and in a barely audible voice complained of severe stomach pain and said she thought she was going to die—to...

To Protect Itself, France Bans ... Ketchup in Schools

American condiment can only be served with French fries

(Newser) - France is famous for defending its language and culture from foreign invaders, and now the French have a new enemy in their sights: ketchup. The French government is banning ketchup from school and university cafeterias—with a single exception. The American condiment can be served with French fries, the LA ...

'Spectacular' Cyberattack Hit French Government

Chinese Internet addresses cited in attack seeking G20 docs

(Newser) - Hackers have broken into French finance ministry computers in a “spectacular” attack, prompting the government to take 10,000 machines offline, AFP reports. The attackers reportedly sought information "related to the French presidency of the G20 and to international economic affairs," says a security official. The cyberattack...

French Fight Ban on Insulting Civil Servants

More civil servants filing suits when slighted

(Newser) - A Paris publisher has launched a high-profile crusade to legalize an increasingly popular crime: the insulting of public officials, the London Times reports. After being fined €150 for calling a cop a connard—or stupid bastard—Jean-Jacques Reboux got even angrier, and accused civil servants of abusing the law...

France Opens Probe Against Former PM

De Villepin will be grilled over Sarkozy smear campaign

(Newser) - Dominique de Villepin, France's former PM and a longtime rival of president Nicolas Sarkozy, will undergo a formal investigation for his alleged role in improperly smearing Sarkozy. De Villepin denies involvement in the scandal which may also implicate former president Jacques Chirac, but the announcement is seen as a step...

French Government Develops BlackBerry Allergy

Security concerns prompt ban for top-level officials

(Newser) - BlackBerrys may feel like tools of high-tech spycraft, but they're not—or so the manufacturer is attempting to convince the French government. Worried that American intelligence could intercept transmissions from the addictive devices, the government has renewed an apparently futile 18-month-old ban on high-level officials' use, according to the Times ...

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