-
‘Check your rent is not too high’: Mixed reaction to new Paris poster
The campaign contributes to the ‘clichéd, outdated caricature of the chubby, arrogant landlord’, one property specialist says
-
Woman to take legal action after being removed from French easyJet flight for swearing
The passenger was forcibly removed by border police after debate over cabin bag size and claims she ‘was treated like a terrorist’
-
December French rail strike: Less disruption expected than forecast
High-speed services should not be affected during the Christmas season
Pétain will not be honoured at Les Invalides ceremony
Elysée Palace and government move to cool controversy over President's comments
A military ceremony at Les Invalides on Saturday will not pay tribute to the controversial Marshal Pétain, both the Elysée Palace and government officials have insisted.
The clarification was made in a bid to cool the controversy of President Emmanuel Macron's defence of the World War One military leader, who later became Prime Minister of the Vichy government during World War Two.
As reported, President Macron had said it was "legitimate" to pay tribute to Marshal Pétain on Saturday at Les Invalides.
But, following an outcry, officials at the Elysée and in government said that Marshal Pétain would not be included in the ceremony on Saturday, which the President will not attend.
"As indicated several times in recent days, Saturday, November 10 will only be honored the Marshals present at the Invalides: Foch, Lyautey, Franchet d'Esperey, Maunoury and Fayolle," the Elysée said in a statement on Twitter.
Comme indiqué à plusieurs reprises ces derniers jours, le samedi 10 novembre ne seront honorés que les maréchaux présents aux Invalides : Foch, Lyautey, Franchet d’Esperey, Maunoury et Fayolle.
— Élysée Infos (@ElyseeInfos) November 7, 2018
French government spokesman Benjamin Griveaux had earlier insisted the issue was a "false controversy." He quoted Charles de Gaulle, as saying of Petain in 1966 that "the glory he earned in Verdun .... can be neither contested nor go unrecognised by the nation."
Stay informed:
Sign up to our free weekly e-newsletter
Subscribe to access all our online articles and receive our printed monthly newspaper The Connexion at your home. News analysis, features and practical help for English-speakers in France