France

23 Apr 2023; MEMO: The French government has initiated a swift evacuation of its citizens and diplomatic personnel from Sudan, along with citizens from other European and allied partner countries, Anadolu reports.

According to a statement from French foreign ministry, the country has launched a rapid evacuation operation for its diplomatic personnel and citizens in Sudan, where violent clashes have entered the second week.

PARIS, April 23 (Reuters) - France, Ukraine and the Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania expressed dismay after China's ambassador in Paris questioned the sovereignty of former Soviet countries like Ukraine.

Asked about his position on whether Crimea is part of Ukraine or not, Chinese ambassador Lu Shaye said in an interview aired on French television on Friday that historically it was part of Russia and had been offered to Ukraine by former Soviet leader Nikita Khrushchev.

GANGES, France (AP) — Hundreds of people opposed to the new law raising the retirement age from 62 to 64 demonstrated Thursday in a small town in southern France during a visit by President Emmanuel Macron, while scattered protests were staged elsewhere.

Macron’s trip to Ganges comes amid a concerted new effort by him and his government to move on from the furor caused by the pension reform.

Demonstrators sang what has become the anthem of the retirement protests: “We are here, we are here, even if Macron doesn’t want (us to be here), we are here.”

PARIS, April 20 (Reuters) - A group of protesters briefly invaded offices of stockmarket operator Euronext in Paris' La Defense business district on Thursday, saying big companies must pay up to finance pensions, as part of wider protests against a rise in the retirement age.

"We are told that there is no money to finance pensions," said Sud-Rail unionist Fabien Villedieu. But there is "no need to get the money from the pockets of workers, there is some in the pockets of billionaires."

LYON (France), April 19 (NNN-AGENCIES) — Over 14,000 people have been arrested and 8,000 weapons seized in an anti-firearms operation across Central and South America, Interpol said.

As well as weapons, the raids swept up over 200 tonnes of cocaine and other drugs worth $5.7 billion, as well as 370 tonnes of drug precursors (chemical ingredients), the France-based police cooperation body said in a statement.

Dubbed “Trigger IX”, it was “the biggest firearms operation ever coordinated by Interpol,” it added.

PARIS, April 13 (Reuters) - Union activists barged into the Paris headquarters of luxury goods company LVMH (LVMH.PA) on Thursday, saying the French government should shelve plans to make people work longer for their pension and tax the rich more instead.

In a 12th day of nationwide protests since mid-January, striking workers also disrupted garbage collection in Paris and blocked river traffic on part of the Rhine river in eastern France.

PARIS (AP) — The death toll from Sunday’s avalanche in the French Alps rose to six, including two mountain guides, local authorities said Monday.

The prosecutor’s office in Bonneville, in the Haute-Savoie region, said the body of a sixth person was found after searches resumed on Monday morning.

The prefecture of Haute-Savoie said one person was sent to the hospital with minor injuries. Eight other people were found unharmed.

No details have been provided on the identity of the victims.

MARSEILLE, France (AP) — Eight people remained missing after the building they lived in exploded and collapsed early Sunday near the port of Marseille, leaving mounds of burning debris hampering rescue operations, officials said.

More than 100 firefighters worked against a ticking clock to extinguish flames deep within the rubble of the five-story building, but more than 17 hours later “the situation is not yet stabilized,” Marseille Prosecutor Dominique Laurens said at an evening news conference.

PARIS, April 9 (Reuters) - Four people have died and a number of others have been injured in an avalanche in the French Alps, interior minister Gerald Darmanin said on Sunday.

The avalanche occurred in the middle of the day on the Armancette glacier, he wrote on Twitter.

Those caught up in the avalanche were hiking in the mountains, according to local media.

President Emmanuel Macron wrote on Twitter that rescue services were continuing to search for further casualties and that his thoughts were with the victims and their families.

MARSEILLE, France (AP) — Up to 10 people may be buried under the debris of a building that collapsed following an explosion in France’s port city of Marseille, but a fire deep within the rubble hindered rescue efforts Sunday, the French interior minister said.

Officials determined that at least four people lived in the building, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said. It was not known if anyone was killed in the collapse or explosion, or what triggered the blast, he said.