Mag promises to remove Francois Hollande affair story from website

The magazine that published a story about French President Francois Hollande's alleged affair with an actress, has promised to remove the story from its website.

The blatant breach of France's draconian privacy laws prompted outrage and a show of unity that has until now eluded the French president, whose popularity has plummeted since he took office in 2012.

Closer magazine's special edition and seven-page article, with photographs, appear to have taken France's political class by surprise, the Guardian reported.

The magazine claimed the president had been crossing Paris on the back of a scooter to make clandestine visits to Julie Gayet, 41.

Photos apparently taken the following morning show Hollande's bodyguard arriving at her flat with what Closer said was a bag of croissants.

In a statement from the Elysee Palace, Holland, 59, did not directly deny the report.

Instead he accused the magazine of invading his privacy and said he was considering legal action against Closer, which caused a storm in 2012 after publishing paparazzi photographs of the topless Duchess of Cambridge on a private holiday in the south of France.

Laurence Pieau, editor of Closer, promised to remove the story from the magazine website, following a demand from Gayet's lawyer.