France

Iran Blasts French ‘Threats’ of New Sanctions

Iran's UN mission has slammed "threats" by France to reimpose sanctions lifted under a landmark 2015 deal on Tehran's nuclear programme, media in the Islamic republic reported on Wednesday. France on Monday said that along with Germany and Britain, it "will not hesitate for a single second to reapply all the sanctions" scrapped a decade ago if ...

France Accuses Russia of Being Behind Series of Cyberattacks Against It

France on Tuesday accused Russian military intelligence of being behind a series of cyberattacks against the country over the last decade, including against an organization involved in the 2024 Paris Olympics and Emmanuel Macron's first presidential campaign in 2017. Since 2021, a branch of Russian military intelligence (GRU) dedicated to ...

Power Returns to Most of Spain, Portugal After Massive Blackout

Lights flickered back to life in Spain and Portugal Tuesday after a massive blackout hit the Iberian peninsula stranding passengers in trains and hundreds of elevators while millions saw phone and internet coverage die. Electricity had been restored to more than 90 percent of mainland Spain early Tuesday, the REE power operator said. Lights came ...

Halle Berry, Jeremy Strong to Join Cannes Film Festival Jury

American actor Halle Berry and Succession star Jeremy Strong are set to serve on the jury at the Cannes Film Festival this year, which will be headed by French actress Juliette Binoche, organisers announced on Monday. Berry and Strong will be joined by best-selling Franco-Moroccan writer Leïla Slimani, Indian filmmaker Payal Kapadia, and Italian ...

Massive Blackout Hits Spain, Portugal, France

Power went out across all of Spain and Portugal on Monday, cutting cellphone and internet networks, halting trains and trapping people in elevators, officials said. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said after an emergency government meeting on the situation, "we have no conclusive information about the reasons for this outage". He ...

Aoun Stresses Need for Israeli Withdrawal to Boost Border Security

President Joseph Aoun underscored the urgent need for Israeli forces to withdraw from five strategic points in southern Lebanon to facilitate the full deployment of the Lebanese Army (LAF) along the border. “This withdrawal is essential to enable the state to assume full responsibility for border security,” Aoun stated. Following the ...

In France, 'Fiesta' Kicks Off Six Months of Lille Cultural Celebrations

A vibrant fiesta offered a joyful response to global chaos on Saturday evening, as crowds gathered for the opening parade of Lille3000, a special six-month cultural season held roughly every three years since 2006. For this 2025 edition, aptly named Fiesta, glowing creatures covered in fluorescent boas paraded alongside spinning giants from ...

Napoleon’s Personal Sword to Be Auctioned in Paris

A sword once belonging to Napoleon, "commissioned for his personal use" in 1802 and preserved throughout his reign, will take center stage at an auction on May 22 at Hôtel Drouot in Paris. The piece, presented by the Giquello auction house, is valued between €700,000 and €1 million. "Bonaparte, then First Consul, ordered the sword between ...

El Fan Connects Lebanese Artists with European Audiences in 2025

Since its inception in November 2022, El Fan has established itself as a key player in the French-Lebanese cultural landscape. Driven by Fabienne Touma’s vision and based in France, the platform functions as both a directory of artists and a committed project designed to amplify Lebanese artistic voices internationally. “When I first ...

French FM Makes First Visit to Iraq

France's Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot will meet officials in Baghdad on Wednesday as part of a regional tour to push for a two-state solution to the Palestinian-Israeli conflict. In a statement, the French foreign ministry said that Barrot, who will also visit Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, is on a tour to help "prepare for the ...

Cannes Film Festival: 'Un homme et une femme' Honored with Dual Official Poster

The Cannes Film Festival unveiled on Monday a special dual official poster for its 78th edition, celebrating the unforgettable scene from Claude Lelouch’s classic Un homme et une femme—a first in the festival’s history. This year’s posters, launched ahead of the event taking place from May 13 to 24, feature actors Anouk Aimée and ...

Matthieu Chedid Revives 'Lamomali' with a Joyful Pulse

Sequels? Not really his thing. “Stuff like Rocky II freaks me out, the idea of repeating the same thing.” And yet, eight years after blending voices and sounds from Mali into a groundbreaking choral album, -M- is back at the helm of a new Lamomali. “At first, I wasn’t into it at all. I thought doing a pale imitation would’ve been a ...