In an interview published this week in France, former Olympics gold medallist Guy Drut, a member of the International Olympic Committee and as such a director of the 2024 Paris Olympics and Paralympics organising committee, argued in favour of voting for the far-right Rassemblement National party in the forthcoming legislative elections. His comments, including warning of a “fascist threat” from the Left, followed calls from numerous sports personalities for the public to mobilise against the far-right which is running high in opinion polls. Antton Rouget reports.
Pro-Kremlin online networks led a disinformation campaign in support of the chairman of the French far-right Rassemblement National (RN) party during the recent European Parliament elections. After the far-right garnered almost 32% of votes cast in France, President Emmanuel Macron called snap legislative elections, plunging the country into political chaos. But that recent disinformation campaign was just the latest that has targeted France, and there are fears that a major operation may now try to influence the outcome of the imminent legislative poll. Justine Brabant and Matthieu Suc report.
Far-right Italian prime minister Giorgia Meloni has been hosting a summit of leaders of the G7 countries, where the war in Ukraine and Gaza, and economic relations with China were high on the agenda. But despite the grins during the photocalls, Meloni is the only one with anything to laugh about, emerging triumphant from European elections which severely weakened French President Emmanuel Macron, who called snap general elections which could lead to the formation of a far-right government. The parties of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and his coalition allies were similarly battered. Meanwhile, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak faces defeat in general elections in July, and US President Joe Biden faces a tough re-election bid. François Bougon reports.
Following the huge success of the French far-right Rassemblement National party (the former Front National) in the polling on Sunday to elect members to the new assembly of the European Parliament, President Emmanuel Macron has called a surprise snap election of France’s national parliament, due in three weeks’ time. In this op-ed article, Mediapart political correspondent Ellen Salvi argues why Macron’s strategy, adopted since 2017, of presenting himself as the only alternative to the far-right has reached its limit, and now threatens a major disaster for the country.
Christophe Deloire, the secretary general of press freedom NGO Reporters sans Frontières (Reporters Without Borders), has died at the age of 53, it was announced on Saturday. Mediapart salutes the importance of the battles he fought for the cause of a free, independent and pluralist press and, as Mediapart’s publishing editor Carine Fouteau writes here, we keep in mind our common combat over issues of major importance for the media.
A collective organisation representing associations dedicated to assisting people in situations of social exclusion this week published a report documenting the crackdown in Paris on the homeless and squatters ahead of the Olympic Games to be held in the capital this summer. It notes that a “social clean-up” began in earnest last year, and has led to the evictions and forced expulsions of more than 12,000 people. Faïza Zerouala reports.
Speaking on France's LCI news channel last week, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu waved the banner of defending 'Judaeo-Christian civilisation' as he sought to justify his crusade against the Palestinian people. In this analysis, Mediapart co-founder Edwy Plenel deconstructs an historical falsehood that ignores the long history of Christian anti-Semitism.
The French Ministry of the Interior has just announced that the final areas of the capital city Nouméa have been brought back under control as a form of peace slowly returns to New Caledonia following the recent unrest. Meanwhile the crackdown on those accused of being involved in the disturbances – which led to seven deaths, including two gendarmes, and saw a state of emergency imposed – has started. On Wednesday two men were jailed for acts that caused no injury or any specified material damage. The criminal court in Nouméa justified the severity of the sentences by pointing to the context of the unrest. Gilles Caprais reports from Nouméa.
Bernard Arnault has got his hands on the French capital. On top of the 200 or so LVMH addresses counted by Mediapart in the city, the luxury goods multinational run by the billionaire is quietly appropriating symbolic locations for itself, with the approval of city hall. This Mediapart investigation into the group's raid on Paris has been carried out by Dan Israel, Martine Orange, Khedidja Zerouali and Florence Loève.
The deadly strike that hit a camp for displaced people at Rafah once again highlights the extreme violence that Israel has been carrying out for nearly eight months against the Gaza Strip. Western countries, including France, can no longer just be content with issuing superficial condemnations of such attacks, argue Rachida El Azzouzi and Mediapart's joint editor-in-chief Lénaïg Bredoux in this op-ed article.
