France

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France Warns of War with Iran
France Warns of War with Iran

France Warns of War with Iran

World should 'prepare for the worst," says foreign minister

(Newser) - French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner yesterday threatened war with Iran to  halt its nuclear weapons program. France favors negotiations and sanctions but the world should prepare for military action if all else fails, he said in an interview on French TV. Iranian nuclear weapons would pose "a real danger...

Mayors Spurn Sarkozy Immigration Crackdown

Reject DNA testing, deportation quotas

(Newser) - French leftists aren't about to help Nicolas Sarkozy make good on the immigration crackdowns he promised during his campaign for president. Eight Paris-area mayors have refused to cooperate with measures that include deportation quotas and mandatory DNA-testing for prospective immigrants. Human rights groups denounced Sarkozy for treating immigrants as "...

Noriega Dodges French Trial in Miami Stir

Dictator's fight against extradition delays release date

(Newser) - Eleventh-hour appeals of his extradition to France kept former Panamanian strongman Manuel Noriega in his Miami prison cell yesterday, his scheduled release date. The dictator was set to face French money-laundering charges, but his lawyers argued that the Geneva Convention prevents his extradition because Paris doesn't recognize his prisoner-of-war status.

Royal, Now Solo, Comes Back to Politics

Defeated candidate forgives her ex but goes after his job

(Newser) - Defeated for the French presidency and newly single, Ségolène Royal is relaunching her political career with a tell-all in one of the country's mass-market celebrity mags. And not just any celebrity mag: She's on the cover of Paris Match, employer of the other woman in her relationship with...

Rugby World Cup: Forget the Ball and Watch the Men

Brawny-thighed players arrive in France

(Newser) - France has been gripped by rugbymania as fans descend for the 2007 World Cup, which begins today. Bakeries are offering pigskin-shaped loaves, and Galeries Lafayette offers fan specials as the violent sport becomes suddenly chic. But for the Telegraph's Janine di Giovanni, one of the most violent sports offers only...

US Laborers Work Hard for the Money

New UN report says Americans more productive than peers

(Newser) - Labor Day is a well-deserved rest for Americans, as a new UN report shows US laborers work longer, harder, and get more done than their counterparts worldwide. The average US worker produces the most wealth, raking in $63,885 yearly, followed by Irish laborers at $55,986. Only Norway beat...

Zut Alors! Rude French Scaring Off Tourists

Sweeten up, official warns his compatriots

(Newser) - France to the French: Take it easy on foreigners. After the land of vin and fromage fell for the first time in years as the top traveling spot, the tourism bureau has issued guidelines about courtesy, the Guardian reports. “Our greatest handicap,” said a tourist official, “is...

It's Bon Voyage for Noriega
It's Bon Voyage for Noriega

It's Bon Voyage for Noriega

Judge OKs France's extradition request for former dictator; he'll serve jail term there

(Newser) - Former dictator of Panama Manuel Noriega will be extradited to France to serve ten more years of jail time. Noriega has done 18 years in a Miami prison, and will be released for good behavior next month. He faces money laundering charges in France, but had asked to return to...

French Prez Warns of 'Bombing Iran' Over Nukes

Sarko calls for more sanctions

(Newser) - French President Nicolas Sarkozy took a bead on Iran in his first major foreign policy speech yesterday, suggesting that if Iran's nuclear weapons program wasn't halted, bombing could be the only alternative. He called Iran's atomic ambitions "without doubt the most serious crisis that weighs today on the international...

Judge Allows Noriega Extradition
Judge Allows Noriega Extradition

Judge Allows Noriega Extradition

Ex-general wants to dodge French charges by returning to Panama

(Newser) - A federal judge today rejected former dictator Manuel Noriega's request to return to Panama following his release from a Miami prison next month, the Miami Herald reports. Noriega sought to avoid extradition to France, where he faces a 10-year sentence for a conviction in abstentia on money laundering charges. Noriega...

Some Sarkozy Lost in Translation
Some Sarkozy Lost in Translation

Some Sarkozy Lost in Translation

Photo altered to reduce president's love handles

(Newser) - The French president’s “love handles” got a makeover this week when Paris Match Photoshopped them down to size in pics from his US holiday. An otherwise manly bare-chested shot of Sarkozy canoeing with his son shows his stomach to be distinctly slimmer than in Reuter’s original photo....

France Eyes Diplomatic Role in Iraq
France Eyes Diplomatic
Role in Iraq

France Eyes Diplomatic Role in Iraq

New foreign minister may take on peace conference

(Newser) - "Everyone knows the Americans will not be able to get this country out of difficulty alone," the new French foreign minister, Bernard Kouchner, told a French radio station on his way out of Iraq yesterday. Kouchner 's 3-day visit confirmed that the French see a role for themselves...

Sarkozy: Short, Hyper, and Still Very European

The new Napoleon may signal a world turning away from America

(Newser) - A New Yorker profile compares Nicolas Sarkozy to Napoleon: He's not just short, but he's both more Euro-centric and less of a reactionary than most Americans think. In fact, Adam Gopnik, who dubs the brazen, mercurial Sarko a "human bomb," writes than the nouveau regime may signal "...

French Minister Visits Iraq, Forges US Bond

First visit to war-torn country is 'message of solidarity' with Iraqis

(Newser) - France tipped a symbolic hat to the US today by sending its foreign minister on a visit to Baghdad. Bernard Kouchner is the first French minister to visit Iraq since the US invasion of 2003 and comes at a time when analysts say that US-French relations are warming. Kouchner, who...

Bullfighting Dustup Has France on Guard

Government bans violent protest ad but lets festivals continue

(Newser) - Animal activists and bullfighting fans in France are butting heads over an anti-bullfighting ad that shows bulls being speared and slaughtered. The French government banned the ad as too violent, prompting cries of hypocrisy from a well organized group of celebrities and dignitaries who have been protesting the gruesome "...

French Foodies Eating Up 'Ratatouille'

Soi-disant epicures love the intricately realistic animated chef flick

(Newser) - Legions of French citizens are crowding theaters for a first taste of Pixar's latest 3-D animated feature Ratatouille, the story of a rodent chef in Paris and now the 4th highest-grossing movie premiere in France's history. The French, known for their devotion to everything food-related, are raving about "Ratatouille"...

Bush, Sarko Melt Chill in Maine
Bush, Sarko Melt Chill in Maine

Bush, Sarko Melt Chill in Maine

Leaders scarf burgers, begin to patch up old alliance

(Newser) - Praise from a vacationing French President Nicolas Sarkozy and a down-home welcome from President Bush to the family compound in Maine this weekend signaled a radical switch in the tense relations between the two nations. The leaders were relaxed and affable with one another as they boated, chatted and chomped...

Stolen Picassos Recovered
Stolen Picassos Recovered

Stolen Picassos Recovered

Trio busted in theft of $66M paintings lifted from Paris home of artist's granddaughter

(Newser) - Two stolen Picassos worth more than $66 million have been recovered by French police who swooped in as the thieves were about to sell the rolled-up canvases. Tipped off by a suspicious art dealer, investigators set up round-the-clock surveillance of  the suspects for more than a month. Three men have...

Sacre Bleu! Harry Potter Translator Pinched

Teen suspected in illicit French version

(Newser) - A French boy suspected of posting a translation of the latest Harry Potter novel was arrested Monday, the AP reported today. The 16-year-old didn't appear to have financial gain in mind, a prosecutor said—with the French version not due until October, "he just wanted to get the book...

Art Heist at French Museum
Art Heist at French Museum

Art Heist at French Museum

Sisley, Monet lost when gunmen storm French museum in brazen daylight heist

(Newser) - Hooded gunmen stormed a French museum in Nice yesterday afternoon and stole two Brueghel masterpieces, a Sisley, and a Monet. The thieves ordered employees to lie on the floor before stuffing the paintings in bags and fleeing. Police believe the heist was a "special order" for a private buyer...

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