PARIS, France (AFP) — France placed the northern Pas-de-Calais region under weekend lockdown over the spread of Covid-19, the third area to be singled out for tighter restrictions as the government battles to avoid a third national lockdown. Announcing the measure, Prime Minister Jean Castex said that with more than 400 confirmed cases per 100,000 people the Pas-de-Calais had nearly twice the national average. The lockdown will start at 8:00 am on Saturday and end […]
Tag: France
France, Germany struggle to sell AstraZeneca vaccine safety
by Joseph Schmid with Michelle Fitzpatrick in Frankfurt PARIS, France (AFP) — Already facing a daunting Covid vaccination challenge, French and German authorities are fighting to convince more people that a jab from the pharma giant AstraZeneca is just as effective as others. Stocks of the vaccines from the British-Swedish firm are going unused in both countries despite the desire to end a pandemic that has sparked a social and economic calamity on a scale […]
Toxic mine leaves poisoned legacy in French town
by Adam PLOWRIGHT Agence France-Presse WITTELSHEIM, France (AFP) — Jean-Pierre Hecht, a miner in eastern France, remembers how attractive the idea sounded when he first heard about it: a dying pit could be turned into something useful and environmentally friendly. Back in the 1990s, the local state mining group MDPA approached the community in the town of Wittelsheim in Alsace with an idea for stocking hazardous waste in a nearby potash mine. “The pitch was […]
French state liable for climate inaction, court rules
by Stéphane ORJOLLET Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — A French court on Wednesday held the state responsible for its failure to take sufficient measures to halt climate change, a first in the country hailed as a victory by NGOs who brought the case with the backing of over two million citizens. The administrative court in Paris ruled that the government’s failure to convert its commitments on reducing greenhouse gas emissions into policy made it […]
France imposes border controls in scramble to avoid lockdown
PARIS, France (AFP) — New border controls came into force in France on Sunday as part of a massive effort to contain the spread of Covid-19 and avoid another nationwide lockdown. After a slow start to vaccinations, French health authorities reported that a million people had received coronavirus inoculations by Saturday. But stubbornly high new rates for infections, hospitalizations and Covid deaths fuelled fears France may need another full lockdown, which would be the third, […]
French state in dock over climate change inaction
by Amélie BOTTOLLIER-DEPOIS Agence France-Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — Paris court began hearing Thursday a complaint brought by NGOs backed by two million citizens accusing the French state of failing to act to halt climate change, the first such case in the country. The campaign groups want the court to hold the state responsible for ecological damage and say victory would mark a symbolic step in the fight to persuade governments to do more. If […]
France imposes 6 pm nationwide virus curfew
by Jürgen HECKER and Joseph SCHMID PARIS, France (AFP) — The French government will impose a daily nationwide curfew at 6 pm starting Saturday to combat a worrying increase in Covid-19 cases, Prime Minister Jean Castex said on Thursday. The measure will remain in force for at least two weeks, Castex told a news conference. Except for emergency services, all services and shops will have to close at that time, he said. “The virus is […]
France tightens virus curfew in several regions
PARIS, France (AFP) — The French government on Friday announced it is bringing forward its nighttime curfew by two hours in 15 regions to help combat the coronavirus, as infections remain high. The 15 of France’s 101 departments affected by the switch from Saturday, to a curfew beginning at 6:00 pm rather than 8:00 pm, include the Les Alpes-Maritimes department where the Mediterranean city of Nice is located. The other areas are concentrated in the […]
France considering extending virus curfews
by Hugues HONORE PARIS, France (AFP) — France is considering starting its curfew earlier in the evening in parts of the country to try to contain the spread of the coronavirus, Health Minister Olivier Veran said Tuesday. The government has for the moment ruled out a return to a full lockdown, either nationally or at the local level, he added. The proposal is to extend the existing 8pm-6am overnight curfew, starting it at 6pm in […]
First Covid vaccine doses arrive in France
PARIS, France (AFP) — France’s first doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine were delivered early Saturday to the Paris hospital system’s central pharmacy outside the capital, an AFP journalist saw. After more than 62,000 Covid-19 deaths in France, shots are set to begin with people in two elderly care homes on Sunday, the same day the rest of the EU begins injections. A refrigerated truck brought the roughly 19,500 doses from the Pfizer factory […]
France confirms first case on its soil of British virus variant
PARIS, France (AFP) — France has confirmed the first case of a new coronavirus variant that recently emerged in Britain, its health ministry said. The new strain of the virus, which experts fear is more contagious, has prompted more than 50 countries to impose travel restrictions on the UK. The first French case — found in a citizen living in Britain who arrived from London on December 19 — is asymptomatic and self-isolating at […]
Three police shot dead, fourth wounded in central France: prosecutors
LYON, France (AFP) — Three police were shot dead and a fourth wounded in Puy-de-Dome in central France on Wednesday, sources in the public prosecutor’s office told AFP. The police officers, who were responding to a call over domestic violence, were shot by a 48-year-old man as they attempted to rescue a woman. © Agence France-Presse





