The World Briefly

January 05, 2023

Protect the Treasures

France

French energy suppliers agreed this week to allow bakeries to negotiate new payment plans for this year, as soaring prices have forced many bakers to close down shops, CNBC reported Wednesday. Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire announced that energy suppliers agreed to “dissolve contracts when prices...

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The World Briefly

December 15, 2022

Closing a Long Chapter

France

A French court handed down prison terms Tuesday for eight individuals convicted for their involvement in the 2016 terrorist attack in Nice when an extremist drove a truck into crowds on the city’s Promenade des Anglais killing 86 and injuring more than 450, Agence France-Presse...

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Need to Know

December 14, 2022

Greening Pains

France

The European Union plans on banning new non-electric cars starting in 2035. This big shift in the international auto market is part of an effort to reduce new vehicular carbon emissions to reduce the impacts of climate change. As Yale Environment 360 explained, droughts that bring...

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The World Briefly

December 13, 2022

Free to Love

France

France will make condoms free for everyone aged 25 and under starting next year, a move aimed at curbing the rise of sexually transmitted infections in the country, Business Insider reported. President Emmanuel Macron announced the decision in a Twitter video, saying it was part of...

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The World Briefly

December 02, 2022

The Right To Be Boring

France

France’s highest court ruled that a Paris-based consulting firm wrongfully dismissed an employee for not being “fun” enough at work, the Washington Post reported. The case is related to a man who was fired from Cubik Partners in 2015 after refusing to participate in seminars and...

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The World Briefly

November 28, 2022

Seeing Red

France

French lawmakers dropped a proposed ban on bullfighting amid a lack of support for the bill and opposition from southern regions in France where the sport is popular, Local France reported. The lower house of parliament was set to vote on the bill this week. But...

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The World Briefly

November 18, 2022

Au Revoir

France

Mehran Karimi Nasseri, the Iranian refugee whose saga inspired a famous Hollywood movie, countless articles and no small amount of wonder from travelers and airport staff, died this week at Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport, his home of 18 years, the Washington Post reported. “There is...

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The World Briefly

November 15, 2022

Bailing Water

FranceUnited Kingdom

France and the United Kingdom signed an agreement Monday that aims to stop migrants from crossing the English Channel to the UK, a deadly pathway that has also become a source of friction between the neighboring countries, the Associated Press reported. The accord, which was signed...

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The World Briefly

November 11, 2022

The End

France

French President Emmanuel Macron formally ended France’s decade-long military operation to fight jihadist fighters in Africa’s Sahel region, part of the country’s shifting of its strategic priorities against the backdrop of the Ukraine war and China’s growing assertiveness, the BBC reported. During a speech at the...

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The World Briefly

November 02, 2022

Writing It Out Loud

France

A new campaign in France is allowing children to report abuse by dropping letters in easily accessible mailboxes, an initiative that has allowed authorities to launch investigations into cases that would otherwise go unreported and also better determine the scale of child abuse in the...

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The World Briefly

October 21, 2022

The Bigger Picture

France

Worker strikes in France continued this week as many employees are demanding better pay amid concerns of a bitter winter ahead in Europe exacerbated by record inflation and the energy crisis, the Washington Post reported. Strikes initially began weeks ago when workers in oil and gas...

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The World Briefly

October 14, 2022

Running Out of Gas

France

Oil workers at a refinery in northern France agreed to return to work Thursday but other oil workers around the country remained on strike, leading to continuing petrol shortages across the country, Radio France Internationale reported. The move came after the French government issued orders to...

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The World Briefly

October 07, 2022

A Sort of Boycott

France

A number of major French cities will eschew their normal practice of setting up fan zones showing the World Cup soccer tournament in Qatar next month, in protest against the Gulf country’s human rights record, Euronews reported. Cities such as Paris, Marseille and Lyon have opted...

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The World Briefly

September 07, 2022

The Time For Justice

France

Eight defendants went on trial this week over their involvement in the 2016 Bastille Day attack that killed 86 people in the French coastal city of Nice, one of the worst terrorist acts in the country’s history, the Wall Street Journal reported. Six years ago, Mohamed...

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The World Briefly

August 10, 2022

The Lonely Visitor

France

France has become captivated by the plight of a solo beluga whale stranded in the Seine near Paris and which is refusing to eat, the Associated Press reported. First appearing last week, the lost whale was seen “gently meandering” in a stretch of the river between...

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The World Briefly

July 14, 2022

Loud and Proud

France

French President Emmanuel Macron, facing a parliamentary inquiry, defended his support of Uber after a major document leak from the company showed he was extraordinarily welcoming of the American ride-hailing giant before he was elected, the Washington Post reported. Known as the “Uber Files,” the leaked...

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The World Briefly

July 06, 2022

Betraying Gustave

France

Paris’ iconic Eiffel Tower is riddled with rust and structurally weak, according to a series of leaked reports that come as the city prepares to host the 2024 Olympic Games, the Guardian reported. French magazine Marianne published a number of reports this week showing that the...

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The World Briefly

July 01, 2022

A Small Slice of Relief

France

A French court found 20 men accused of organizing and perpetrating the November 2015 terrorist attacks in Paris guilty this week, ending a long-running saga centering on multiple attacks that sent shockwaves throughout France and around the world, Euronews reported. The attacks, perpetrated by an Islamic...

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The World Briefly

June 29, 2022

Thoughtless Poison

FranceGuadeloupeMartinique

A court in Paris found the French government guilty of wrongful negligence over the use of a banned pesticide in the French Caribbean Islands of Guadeloupe and Martinique but rejected demands to compensate the victims, the Associated Press reported. The case centers on the use of...

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The World Briefly

June 24, 2022

The Loaded Swimsuit

France

France’s top administrative court ruled against the wearing of full-body swimwear, including the burkini, in public pools this week, amid an intense national debate about the country’s principle of secularism and the respect for fundamental rights, Reuters reported. The case began when the city of Grenoble...

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