France

03 July 2021; MEMO: The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has rejected a case brought by the widow and daughter of late Palestinian President Yasser Arafat requesting it reopen an investigation into his 2004 death.

PARIS, June 29 (Xinhua) -- Infections with the more contagious COVID-19 Delta variant "now account for about 20 percent of new cases" in France, French Health Minister Olivier Veran said on Tuesday.

The Delta variant, first detected in India, "is gradually becoming dominant (in France) as it is in all countries in the world," Veran told France info radio.

The same virus variant had represented 9 to 10 percent of new infections according to numbers released a week ago.

Paris, Jun 28 (PTI) Star Indian archer Deepika Kumari on Monday regained the number one position in global rankings following her hat-trick of gold medals at the World Cup Stage 3 here.

The 27-year-old from Ranchi, who had achieved the top spot for the first time in 2012, on Sunday claimed gold medals in three recurve events -- women's individual, team and mixed pair.

"This is going to take Deepika to the number one spot in the world rankings on Monday," World Archery had tweeted on its official handle after Deepika's gold rush.

PARIS, June 27 (Reuters) - France holds run-offs for regional elections on Sunday that could shift the balance between political heavyweights vying for pole position in next year's presidential race.

Last Sunday's first round proved dire for President Emmanuel Macron, whose party is on course to win none of France's 13 mainland regions, but was also disappointing for far-right leader Marine Le Pen. 

PARIS, June 26 (NNN-AGENCIES) — US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Friday that it will be “very difficult” for the United States to return to the nuclear deal with Iran if ongoing negotiations drag on.

“There will come a time when, yes, it will be very difficult to return to the parameters established by the agreement,” the head of US diplomacy said during a joint press conference with his French counterpart, Jean-Yves le Drian.

PARIS, June 25 (Reuters) - The U.N. nuclear watchdog on Friday demanded an immediate reply from Iran on whether it would extend a monitoring agreement that expired overnight, prompting an Iranian envoy to respond that Tehran was under no obligation to provide an answer.

The agreement continued the International Atomic Energy Agency's collection of data on some of Tehran's activities, cushioning the blow of Iran's decision in February to reduce cooperation with the agency.

New Delhi, Jun 25 (PTI) Pakistan continues to remain in the 'Grey List' of FATF as the global body against money laundering and terror financing on Friday said that Islamabad has failed to take action against UN-designated terrorists like India's most wanted Hafiz Saeed and Masood Azhar.

The FATF also said that Pakistan should continue to work to address its strategically-important deficiencies.

PARIS, June 25 (Reuters) - President Emmanuel Macron defended on Friday a failed attempt by France and Germany to hold an EU summit with Russian President Vladimir Putin, after eastern European leaders shot down the initiative they said would send the wrong message to Moscow.

The meeting proposed by Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, which have both sought to take a less confrontational attitude with Russia in recent years, fractured EU leaders gathered in Brussels along an old East-West divide.

PARIS (AP) — The trial of former French President Nicolas Sarkozy concludes Tuesday in Paris, after a month during which the court sought to determine whether he broke laws on campaign financing in his unsuccessful 2012 re-election bid.

The verdict is expected to be rendered at a later date. Prosecutors have requested a six-month prison term, as well as a six-month suspended sentence and a fine of 3,750 euros ($4,468).

PARIS, June 21 (Reuters) - The first round results of France's regional elections marked a form of failure for President Emmanuel Macron's party, said Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin on Monday, although he added it was too soon to draw conclusions for the 2022 Presidential vote.

France's far right performed worse than predicted in Sunday's regional elections, exit polls showed, and the centre-right made a comeback while the vote as a whole was impacted by a high abstention rate.