Europe

Le Pen sets aside party presidency to “unite” France

PARIS, France (Reuters) — French presidential candidate Marine Le Pen said on Monday (April 24) that she was stepping aside from the leadership of her far-right National Front party in a bid to unite the French people as she prepared for the second round of the presidential election. Most polls see Le Pen trailing her centrist rival Emmanuel Macron 40 points to 60, and she has to widen her support if she can hope to […]

Macron, Le Pen set for French election run-off

by Adam Plowright and Joshua Melvin Agence France Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — Pro-European Emmanuel Macron is set to face far-right candidate Marine Le Pen in France’s presidential run-off, making him a clear favorite to emerge as the country’s youngest leader in modern history. Macron was projected to win 23.9 percent in Sunday’s first round, slightly ahead of National Front (FN) leader Le Pen with 21.7 percent, according to estimates on public television. They will […]

Early French vote turnout slightly higher than 2012: official

PARIS, France (AFP) — Turnout in the first round of the French presidential election at 1000 GMT on Sunday was slightly higher than at the same stage in 2012, the interior ministry said. Four hours after polling stations opened, turnout was just over 28.5 percent, which would put the final turnout on course to beat the figure of 79.48 percent in the first round in 2012.

France votes in presidential nailbiter

by Guy Jackson Agence France Presse France began voting Sunday under heavy security in the first round of the most unpredictable presidential election in decades, with the outcome seen as vital for the future of the beleaguered European Union. Far-right leader Marine Le Pen and centrist Emmanuel Macron are the favorites to progress to a run-off on May 7 but the result is too close to call in a deeply divided country. Le Pen, the […]

Arrest of WikiLeaks’ Assange a “priority:” US top cop

(Agence France Presse) — The arrest of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is a United States “priority,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions said Thursday, as media reports indicated his office was preparing charges against the fugitive anti-hero. “We are going to step up our effort and already are stepping up our efforts on all leaks,” Sessions, America’s top cop, said at a news conference in response to a reporter’s question about a US priority to arrest Assange. […]

Islamic State claims Paris shooting; one policeman killed

PARIS, France (Reuters) — Paris’ Champs-Elysees boulevard looked more like a combat zone than the tourist and shopping mecca it is on Thursday night (April 20) after a drive-up-and-shoot attack in which a police officer was killed. Hundreds of police officers armed with machine guns, helmets or balaclavas and bullet-proof vests swarmed over an area of Paris popular with, but suddenly bereft of, late night shoppers, cafe customers and dance club revellers. Witness Chelloug, a […]

Britain’s Queen Elizabeth celebrates 91st birthday

by Rosie Scammell Agence France Presse Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II celebrates her 91st birthday on Friday, with the world’s longest-reigning monarch taking a step back from royal duties to allow the younger generation to step forward. A gun salute at London’s Tower Bridge and at Hyde Park will mark the Queen’s birthday, a notably more low-key affair after a year of festivities to mark her hitting 90. A thousand beacons were lit around the country on […]

French policeman killed in Paris attack claimed by IS

by Adam Plowright, Katell Prigent and Joshua Melvin Agence France Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — A known terror suspect shot dead a French policeman and wounded two others Thursday on Paris’s Champs Elysees in an attack claimed by the Islamic State group days before a presidential election. Observers had long feared bloodshed ahead of Sunday’s vote in France following a string of atrocities since 2015 and the violence is likely to thrust security to the front of voters’ […]

One officer killed, one wounded in Champs Elysees shooting: police

PARIS, France (AFP) — One police officer was killed and another wounded Thursday in a shooting on Paris’s Champs Elysees, police said, just days ahead of France’s presidential election. France’s interior ministry said the attacker was killed in the incident in the early evening on the world-famous boulevard. The famous shopping street in the heart of the city, which is usually teeming with tourists and Parisians, was blocked by armed police and metro stations in […]

UK ex-finance minister quits parliament before snap election

LONDON, United Kingdom (AFP) — Former British finance minister George Osborne, a key opponent of Brexit, said Wednesday he was quitting parliament but would “go on fighting” for Britain as editor of London’s Evening Standard newspaper. “I am stepping down from the House of Commons — for now,” Osborne wrote in a letter to his constituents, leaving the door open for a potential comeback. “I will go on fighting for that Britain I love from […]