The man arrested over the murder of a German tourist near the Eiffel Tower on Saturday night, Armand Rajabpour-Miyandoab, was convicted in 2018 for involvement in a terrorist criminal conspiracy, having previously been in contact with the killers of two French police officers and a French priest. Then, after he was released from prison, he communicated online with the man who shortly afterwards killed teacher Samuel Paty in a Paris suburb. Rajabpour-Miyandoab, now aged 26, subsequently managed to convince the authorities that he was a reformed character. But some of those in charge of his rehabilitation have now told Mediapart that they always harboured doubts about whether he had left the world of radicalism behind. Matthieu Suc reports.
Democracy depends on factual truths being placed at the heart of public debate rather than the relativity of opinions, writes Mediapart publishing editor Edwy Plenel in this op-ed article. Beyond the urgent need to free the media from the control of monied interests, this was the key political question that was raised at a recent national convention on the independent press, in which Mediapart took part.
On Wednesday France's justice minister Éric Dupond-Moretti was cleared of claims of an unlawful conflict of interest by a special court composed largely of politicians. Meanwhile, the country's labour minister Olivier Dussopt is continuing to carry out his official duties while on trial in a criminal court; and on top of that, the former budget minister and convicted tax fraud Jérôme Cahuzac has just announced he is seeking a return to politics. In what he describes as a bleak week for the country, Mediapart's Fabrice Arfi argues in this op-ed article that the relationship between French democracy and public ethics is crumbling yet further.
In the early hours of November 24th 2021, at least 27 people died when their inflatable dinghy sank off the French coast as they attempted a clandestine crossing of the Channel to Britain. The tragedy highlighted the desperate plight of tens of thousands of migrants who attempt the perilous crossing in flimsy and overcrowded boats, while the drownings continue. Mediapart interviewed two French maritime rescue volunteers who recount the terrifying incidents they have been involved in to save migrants from the treacherous Channel waters, and who complain of insufficient resources in face of the scale of the problem. Nejma Brahim and Pascale Pascariello report.
The European Union is currently preparing a directive on corporate “due diligence” which would impose strict rules aimed at preventing the negative social and environmental consequences of business activities. The European Parliament earlier this year voted in favour of including the financial sector in the directive but, according to documents obtained by Mediapart, France has made headway in its lobbying efforts to exclude financial institutions from the initial legislation, subject to a future review. As Ludovic Lamant reports, the move by Paris, denounced by NGOs and MEPs, is on course to significantly weaken what is one of the most awaited pieces of legislation of the European Parliament’s current term.
In September, the French charitable association Restos du cœur, which runs a nationwide network of tens of thousands of volunteers managing food banks and mobile street kitchens, announced that these would have to turn people away this winter due to growing demand and insufficient funding. Despite subsequent donations, the association is still grappling with a shortfall of food supplies, forcing it to apply stricter criteria for those seeking aid. As its winter campaign began this week, some families are refused help, while those accepted are receiving smaller parcels, much to the distress of the charity’s frontline volunteers. Manuel Magrez reports from two of its centres near Paris.
Julius Mwale, presented by Forbes magazine as “one of Kenya’s top entrepreneurs”, is fêted for his rags-to-riches life story in which he claims to have created a “multi-billion-dollar” company in the US. With ambitious and well-publicised projects to build pioneering smart cities in Kenya and Senegal, he enjoys rubbing shoulders with African presidents and celebrities from the worlds of entertainment and sports. But this investigation by Mediapart tells a different story, one of a trail of claims for unpaid bills, disputes with investors and lenders, and unfinished projects. Clément Bonnerot and Sonia Rolley report.
For the first time, three major French banks and a large insurance group face a criminal complaint for alleged money laundering linked to the deforestation of the Amazon. The complaint has been deposed against banks BNP Paribas, BPCE and Crédit Agricole and insurance firm Axa. The Paris-based advocacy and litigation association behind the move, Sherpa, say that these financial institutions “cannot have been unaware that they were financing illegal activities”. Jade Lindgaard reports on this ground-breaking action.
The planned presence of the far-right in Paris this Sunday at a demonstration against anti-Semitism which has been organised by the presidents of the French Parliament's two chambers has left the Right embarrassed and the Left divided. As Ellen Salvi explains, this situation is the direct result of several years of deliberate efforts to create political confusion, fed by Emmanuel Macron and his supporters.
In recent months Siddiq Haftar, the eldest son of Libyan military strongman and suspected war criminal Khalifa Haftar, has been seeking to establish his international credentials as he eyes a possible bid to be his country's president one day. One of his ambitions was to be greeted in style at the European Parliament, and he duly visited the institution in September. But, as Mediapart reveals, the visit, led by a media-friendly imam and a far-right Member of the European Parliament, turned to fiasco. Yann Philippin and Antton Rouget report.
