In a riposte at Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s claim that his country is waging a war of civilisations, French President Emmanuel Macron last Thursday said he was “not sure that one defends a civilisation by spreading barbarism oneself”. It was the latest example of Macron’s hardening stance towards the Israeli government, which has included his calls for sanctions on arms sales, and the strained relations with Netanyahu in particular. Ilyes Ramdani reports on the background to the French president’s shifting position over the Middle East conflict.
After expressing his intention of “personally” involving himself in seeking a solution to the crisis in France’s South Pacific territory of New Caledonia, where tensions were ignited earlier this year after a move by president Emmanuel Macron to reform the electoral register to the detriment of the pro-independence movement of the indigenous Kanak people, the new French prime minister, Michel Barnier, was forced into a U-turn by Macron, who doggedly refuses to recognise errors in his approach to the crisis, in which 13 people have died. Ellen Salvi reports.
On Saturday President Emmanuel Macron appointed France's most rightwing government in twelve years. All factions on the Right are represented in prime minister Michel Barnier's team, even if this has meant disregarding the results of the parliamentary elections held back on July 7th. The appointment of Didier Migaud, a former leftwing MP, to the justice ministry serves as a token gesture to the Left. Otherwise, the sharp shift to the Right is clear, as is the rickety appearance of the whole edifice. Mediapart's political correspondent Ilyes Ramdani gives his analysis of the new government team.
Demonstrations against the high cost of living that began at the start of September have been causing tensions in the French Caribbean département of Martinique. However, the issue of food prices and the cost of other consumer goods is not new, and nor is it confined just to this island. As Amandine Ascensio reports, it is a persistent reality as a result of the obsolete way the economy is organised, something which has its roots in colonial times.
Last week a national conference on information, the 'États Généraux de l'Information', which was established by President Emmanuel Macron in 2023, published its proposals for the future of the news industry. But, writes Mediapart’s publishing editor Carine Fouteau, its report revealed the media sector's inability to grasp the essential changes needed to defend independent, public-interest journalism. This is despite the fact that the need for strong counterbalances to the country's business and political powers is now greater than ever.
Michel Barnier, 73, the former European Union commissioner and Brexit negotiator, a member of France’s conservative Les Républicains party, was on Thursday appointed by President Emmanuel Macron as the country's new prime minister. The move came after several days of discussions between Macron and the conservatives and the far-right, and two months after snap parliamentary elections produced a hung parliament, but in which the leftwing coalition, the Nouveau Front Populaire emerged as the largest single political force. Barnier’s appointment is a snub to the message of the urns, writes Mediapart political correspondent Ellen Salvi, and does nothing to resolve a situation which the French president is solely responsible for.
Obesity is a global issue and despite its reputation for high quality produce and cuisine France is no exception. The proportion of French people who are obese has risen from 8.5% to around 18% in under 30 years. But is obesity hereditary or is a person's social status the cause – or both? Studies show that children of obese individuals are at significant risk of becoming obese themselves. Genetics, social environment, and junk food habits: specialists are increasingly understanding a problem that now affects nearly 10 million people in France. Mediapart's health correspondent Rozenn Le Saint reports.
The landslide of votes cast for the far-right Rassemblement National party in the first round of France’s parliamentary elections on Sunday have put it on course to gain a possible absolute majority in the National Assembly after next Sunday’s final, second-round vote. Among the far-right candidates whose high scores last Sunday leave them likely to be elected to parliament next weekend are individuals who take to social media with openly racist, anti-Semitic, Islamophobic and homophobic comments. Antton Rouget reports.
A collapse in support for the centre-right camp of President Emmanuel Macron, a stronger leftwing alliance and a potentially game-changing breakthrough by the far-right Rassemblement National ... as voters head for the ballot box today for the first round of what is both an uncertain and an historic parliamentary election, Mediapart examines what is at stake for the main political groups taking part. Mathieu Dejean, Pauline Graulle, Youmni Kezzouf, Ilyes Ramdani and Ellen Salvi report.
The hastily-formed New Popular Front (NFP), which combines the Left and the Greens, is having to work on plans to broaden its electoral support beyond its own base in order to win the Parliamentary elections, the first round of which takes place on Sunday June 30th. Despite a toxic debate on anti-Semitism and the false equivalence opponents are making between the leftwing alliance and the far-right Rassemblement National, key figures in the NFP are working hard on a strategy they believe can bring them success in the election's decisive second round on July 7th. Part of this approach is to emphasise the wide-reaching benefits across society of their own manifesto pledges rather than just warning about the dangers posed by the far right. Mathieu Dejean reports.
