Page 10 - Paris

Paris Olympics opening ceremony to be held during sunset on July 26

The opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics along the river Seine will be held during sunset, organizers said Friday. It's the first time an Olympic opening ceremony will be held outside a stadium setting, in line with the Paris organizers' motto: Games Wide Open. About 10,500 athletes will parade through the heart of the French capital on boats on the Seine along a 6-kilometer (3.7-mile) route. Organizers said the open-air event will start on July 26 at 7:30 pm (Paris time). They said the ceremony will offer an unprecedented experience, using the natural light of the setting sun with all its nuances to illuminate the river promenade of all the world's best athletes along the Seine, in the heart of the capital. This week, the French government said tourists won't be given free access to watch the opening ceremony over security concerns. Free access will be invitation-only instead. Organizers had planned a grandiose opening ceremony on July 26 for as many as 6,00,000 people, most ..

Tourists not to have free access to Olympics opening ceremony in Paris

Tourists won't be allowed to watch the opening ceremony of the Paris Olympics along the Seine River for free, the French government announced Tuesday, as it grapples with security concerns about the unprecedented open-air event. Free access will be invitation-only instead. Organizers had planned a grandiose opening ceremony July 26 for as many as 600,000 people, most watching free of charge from riverbanks. But security and logistical concerns and an outcry from booksellers along the city's picturesque quays have led the government to progressively scale back ambitions. Earlier this year, the overall number of spectators was reduced to around 300,000. On Tuesday, Interior Minister Grald Darmanin said that 104,000 of them will be paying ticket holders with spots along the lower riverbanks, with another 222,000 watching for free from the upper banks. But he said that the free tickets will not be available to the public via open registration as earlier envisaged, and will be ...

Eiffel Tower reopens to visitors after a 6-day closure due to staff strike

The Eiffel Tower reopened to visitors on Sunday after a six-day closure because of striking employees demanding better maintenance of the historic landmark, showing traces of rust, and salary hikes. The operator of the 330-metre (1,083-foot) tower said in a statement it reached an agreement with unions representing the workers after promising to allocate an ambitious 380 million euro (about USD 412 million) investment by 2031 for renovation work. This week, it also launched salary negotiations, expected to be finalised next month, after employees on strike demanded an increase proportionate to revenue from ticket sales. The 135-year-old tower will feature prominently in the July 26-August 11 Paris Games and the following Paralympics. The Olympic and Paralympic medals in Paris are being embedded with pieces from a hexagonal chunk of iron taken from the historic landmark. The Eiffel Tower is typically open 365 days a year. Last year, the monument was closed to visitors for 10 days ..

Eiffel Tower working staff goes on strike ahead of Summer Olympics

Eiffel tower working staff has gone on strike due to salary and maintenance issues. The Eiffel tower website advised visitors to check website before heading to the landmark

France, Ukraine to sign security pact in Paris in presence of Zelenskyy

French President Emmanuel Macron will sign a bilateral security agreement with his Ukrainian counterpart, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, on Friday in Paris to provide long-term support to the war-ravaged country which has been battling Russia's full-scale invasion for nearly two years. The French presidency said in a statement Thursday that Macron and Zelenskyy's bilateral meeting in late afternoon will be followed by a news conference and a working dinner at the Elysee presidential palace. It did not release specific details about the agreement. Macron said earlier this year that France was negotiating a bilateral deal on the model the one Ukraine recently agreed with the United Kingdom, which covers 10 years and provides a package worth 2.5 billion pounds (USD 3.2 billion) over the next fiscal year. It is the largest the UK has given to Ukraine since the war began. A French official, speaking anonymously because he was not allowed to disclosed the details of the deal, said the agreement aim

France, Ukraine to sign security pact in Paris in presence of Zelenskyy

French President Emmanuel will sign a bilateral security agreement with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Friday in Paris, the French presidency said in a statement. It did not release specific details about the agreement, to be signed at the Elysee presidential palace. This will be the third visit by Zelenskyy to Paris since Russia's invasion of Ukraine almost two years ago, following those in February and May 2023, the statement said.

Soup thrown at Mona Lisa in Louvre Paris; da Vinci's artwork 'safe'

According to the Louvre museum officials, the artwork, guarded by a glass shield, did not face any damage. The Paris museum plans to lodge a complaint against the protestors

Macron seeks to refresh his presidency, says country has 'aces' to succeed

President Emmanuel Macron used a prime-time news conference ON Tuesday to lay out broad plans to strengthen and better prepare France for global crises, saying the country has "all the aces to succeed". The press conference was Macron's latest effort to reinvigorate his presidency after a series of bruising domestic battles, notably about France's retirement age and how to better control immigration, and riots last year that swept hundreds of cities, towns and villages after the fatal police shooting of a teenager. Now, Macron is hoping to hit reset and make a fresh start in a year when France will be in the global spotlight as host of the Summer Olympics in Paris. Last week, Macron installed a new prime minister, France's youngest ever, and new ministers -- also part of a renewed drive by Macron to infuse his leadership with renewed energy. On Tuesday night, the new Prime Minister Gabriel Attal (34) and Cabinet members looked on, seated together to one side, as Macron held court in

French PM Elisabeth Borne resigns amid political turmoil over Macron's immigration law

French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne resigned on Monday, ahead of the European parliament elections and Paris Olympics, as President Macron seeks new momentum for his second term.

Punia urges govt to restart wrestling activities in view of Paris Olympics

Olympic medallist Bajrang Punia on Saturday urged the Sports Ministry to restart the wrestling activities in the country with just seven months remaining for next year's Paris Games, and said no one seemed to have taken the preparations for the quadrennial showpiece seriously. Wrestling action has come to a standstill for the last several months owing to the turmoil within the fraternity following the grapplers' protests against former president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh. Even the election of a new Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) committee could not restore normalcy as the Sports Ministry suspended the Sanjay Singh-led panel citing the violation of its own constitution in announcing the national U-15 and U-20 Championships. "Wrestling activities have come to a standstill for the last several months. Neither has any nationals been held nor have any camps been organised to prepare the players (for Paris Olympics)," Punia wrote on his 'X' account. Punia, who had decided to return

Push to safeguard Paris Olympics promises of jobs, new starts after riots

With a name that doesn't ring old-school French like Jean, Pierre or Jacques, and a home address in a tough suburb of Paris where riots flared, Salah Benkadmir is discovering how hard it can be to make prospective employers in France see beyond their prejudices. Despite having a high school diploma in sales and work experience as a vendor on his resume, the 19-year-old job seeker says that when he sends it to stores making hires, often no one calls him back. I feel like I've got a label stuck to me. It is very unpleasant," he says. But with the Olympic Games soon to hit Paris, Benkadmir thinks his fortunes may be about to improve. Organizers urgently need thousands of security guards to help keep athletes and spectators safe and reduce the likelihood of another deadly extremist attack in the French capital. Demand for people at checkpoints, to scan tickets and help manage crowds is so great that France's state employment agency is offering free and expedited security guard training

'Donkey' flight, stranded in France, lands in Mumbai. Here is all we know

The Airbus A340, carrying 303 passengers, had taken off from Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and was grounded at the Vatry airport

Grounded plane with 303 passengers, mostly Indians, allowed to leave France

A Nicaragua-bound flight carrying 303 passengers, mostly Indians, was allowed to resume its journey on Monday after three days of grounding by the French authorities at an airport near Paris over suspected "human trafficking", according to local media reports on Sunday. After authorising the plane to leave, the French judges chose to cancel the hearings of the over 300 passengers due to irregularities in the procedure, BFM TV, a French news broadcast television and radio network, reported. Four French judges earlier in the day began questioning the 303 passengers detained by French authorities at Vatry airport, 150 km east of Paris, since Thursday over suspected "human trafficking". The hearings were conducted as part of the investigation opened by the Paris prosecutor's office on suspicion of human trafficking. The plane is expected to take off again on Monday morning. Its destination is not yet known. It could travel to India, where the passengers are from, to Nicaragua, its ...

Saudi Arabia's capital Riyadh to host World Expo 2030, beats S Korea

Saudi Arabia's capital Riyadh was chosen on Tuesday to host the 2030 World Expo, beating out South Korean port city Busan and Rome for an event expected to draw millions of visitors. Riyadh was picked by a majority of 119 out of 165 votes by the member states of the Paris-based Bureau International des Expositions.

Paris mayor quitting Musk's 'global sewer' platform X ahead of Olympics

The mayor of future Olympic host city Paris says she is quitting X, accusing Elon Musk 's platform previously known as Twitter of spreading disinformation and hatred and of becoming a gigantic global sewer that is toxic for democracy and constructive debate. With its thousands of anonymous accounts and its troll farms, life on Twitter is the exact opposite of democratic life, Mayor Anne Hidalgo said in a long post titled, Why I am leaving Twitter. I refuse to endorse this evil scheme, she wrote. An Associated Press request for comment emailed to X got an automated reply, Busy now, please check back later. Hidalgo's office said posts on Monday in French and English that announced her departure from X would be the Socialist mayor's last and that she will then close her account which has 1.5 million followers at the end of the week. Her office said that Paris City Hall is keeping its own separate account on X. Hidalgo's withdrawal from X follows a fractious period for the mayor. S

French military to send 15,000 soldiers to security ops for Paris Olympics

France's military is planning to contribute 15,000 soldiers to the massive security operation for next year's Paris Olympics, an army general involved in the preparations said Thursday. The bulk of the military force nearly 10,000 troops will be deployed in the Paris region, where most Olympic events will be concentrated, said Gen Christophe Abad, the military governor of Paris who serves as military adviser to the French capital's police chief. Military forces will also be employed for the games as far as 15,000 km (nearly 10,000 miles) away in Tahiti, where navy vessels will safeguard the venue there for Olympic surfing. In Paris, a temporary military camp for 5,000 troops will be set up in a park in the southeast of the capital, putting the force close to the city's Olympic sites, Abad said. The security operation for the July 26 to Aug 11 Olympics, and Paralympic Games that follow, is unprecedented in scale for France. Tens of thousands of police officers and private security

Western, Arab officials gather in Paris to provide aid to civilians in Gaza

Officials from Western and Arab nations, the United Nations and nongovernmental organisations are gathering Thursday in Paris for a conference on how to provide aid to civilians in the Gaza Strip during Israel's war with Hamas, including proposals for a humanitarian maritime corridor and floating field hospitals. French President Emmanuel Macron, who has called for a humanitarian pause in the war, wants the conference to address the besieged Palestinian enclave's growing needs including food, water, health supplies, electricity and fuel. Over 50 nations are expected to attend including several European countries, the United States and regional powers like Jordan, Egypt and the Gulf countries, the French presidency said. Also attending is Palestinian Prime Minister Mohammad Shtayyeh. Israeli authorities won't participate in Thursday's conference, the Elysee said. The head of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, the UN's top aid official and the president of the International ...

Louvre Museum in Paris evacuated after threat, France under high alert

The Louvre Museum in Paris is evacuating all visitors and staff and closing early Saturday because it received a written threat. It said the move was linked to the government's decision to put France on high alert after a fatal school stabbing by a suspected extremist. The Louvre communication service said no one has been hurt and no incident has been reported. Paris police said verifications in the museum are underway. Police officers cordoned off the area as tourists and other visitors streamed out of the museum. The French government raised the threat alert level and is deploying 7,000 troops to increase security after Friday's school attack. The government is also concerned about fallout in France from the war between Israel and Hamas. The Louvre, home to masterpieces such as the Mona Lisa, welcomes between 30,000 and 40,000 visitors per day.

Rajnath Singh visits Safran's engine manufacturing facility near Paris

Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday visited a jet engine manufacturing facility of French firm Safran near Paris and witnessed latest developments in aero-engine technology. Singh's visit to the facility at Gennevilliers assumed significance as Safran is looking at co-developing a fighter aircraft engine in India under a mega project. The defence minister is visiting France after concluding his trip to Italy. Singh also interacted with a group of CEOs of top French defence companies in Paris and highlighted to them the advantages of co-development and co-production of defence hardware in India that he said could be exported to third countries. The defence ministry said Singh visited the Safran Engine Division's R and D Centre at Gennevilliers near Paris and witnessed the latest developments in aero-engine technology. It said Olivier Andries, the Global CEO of Safran, welcomed the defence minister to the facility and, along with his team, gave a detailed briefing to ...

Hotel prices in Paris surge up to 300% ahead of next year's Olympics

Travelers heading to the French capital can expect to pay about $685 a night for a three-star hotel, compared with around $178 for a typical July stay, according to data from Google