Author: Jourdain David

The percentage of French taking a vacation during the recent winter holiday period passed pre-pandemic rates, the latest sign of a strong rebound for this critical economic sector. According to a new report by Atout France, the nation’s tourism association, 27% of French people took a trip during the 2023 winter holidays, topping the 25% rate for 2019. Of those travelers, 79% took a holiday in mainland France, including 41% who traveled outside the region where they live. Urban destinations were the most popular, with 36% visiting a city, followed by 27% visiting the mountains, 21% visiting the coast, and 21%…

You have enjoyed trips and stays in luxury hotels in Qatar, Bahrain or the United Arab Emirates – You breached the EU code of conduct The MEP for Citizens and former president of the Balearic Government, Jose Ramon Bauzahas been forced to declare Up to eight trips that were not included in their official declarations on the European Parliament portal after the Qatargate jumpone of the largest cases of corruption in the body that ended with the arrest of the vice president of the Chamber, the Greek socialist Eva Kaili. According to an extensive report by the prestigious organization Transparency International, the Mallorcan politician…

French Defense Minister Sebastien Lecornu said on Feb. 19 that the training of Ukrainian pilots on Western fighter jets in France has not been ruled out. Speaking of the possible delivery of fighter jets to Kyiv, Lecornu said that “there are no taboos for France in the matter.” “The transfer of aircraft raises very complex logistical and practical issues,” he told Le Parisien. The European Parliament on Feb. 16 urged EU member states to consider supplying Ukraine with fighter jets, helicopters, missile systems, and more ammunition. Ukraine has been pleading for fighter jets for months, as Western, Ukrainian, and Russian…

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST: More than a million people took to the streets of French cities today to protest against President Emmanuel Macron’s plans to raise the country’s retirement age. As NPR’s Eleanor Beardsley reports from Paris, the large turnout suggests trouble ahead for the French government. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) GUNS N’ ROSES: (Singing) Knock, knock, knocking on… ELEANOR BEARDSLEY, BYLINE: Place de la Republique, where the march kicked off in Paris, was completely packed, with a party-like atmosphere. Trucks blared music from loudspeakers. Giant balloons floated overhead. Protesters waved placards with slogans like, not one more year, one more…

LE PECQ, France (AP) — The question for France’s president about his teenage romance with a teacher at his high school was so close to the bone, so eye-popping in a country where politicians largely keep their private lives to themselves, that the interviewer couldn’t quite rustle up the courage to ask it. So he got Emmanuel Macron to pose it to himself. “He is the president,” the French leader said, reading the question out loud from a piece of paper his interviewer handed to him. “He should set the example and not marry his teacher.” Ouch. A group of…

French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo made headlines again this week for mocking Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khomenei, angering the Iranian regime and prompting it to close a French research institute in Tehran. The latest controversy comes as France on Saturday marked the eighth anniversary of the attack on Charlie Hebdo’s offices that killed 12. Today, the irreverent, militantly atheist publication operates from a secret location with round-the-clock police protection to protect its staff, eight years after it was attacked by Islamist gunmen. Charlie Hebdo continues to mock politicians, public figures, and cultural icons from across the spectrum, often with vulgar…

Young people in France will have free access to condoms from January, in a bid to minimise the spread of sexually transmitted infections (STIs). The French president announced the new health measure on Thursday at an event for young people’s health. Emmanuel Macron said young people would be able to collect them from pharmacies, and described the move as a “small revolution in prevention”. In 2020 and 2021 France experienced a 30% national increase in STI rates. Mr Macron said France had educational challenges around sexual education. “We are not very good on this subject. The reality is very, very…