by Mariëtte Le Roux Agence France Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — France was preparing Wednesday for tough new restrictions to halt a flare-up in Covid-19 cases that has alarmed doctors, with a second lockdown widely mooted as hospitals battle an influx of patients. President Emmanuel Macron is to announce more measures in a televised address to the nation Wednesday evening, a day after officials announced coronavirus 523 deaths in 24 hours — the highest […]
Tag: France
Europe, WHO sound alarm over resurgent virus crisis
by Johannes Ledel with AFP bureaus Agence France Presse STOCKHOLM, Sweden (AFP) — The EU’s disease control agency on Friday joined frantic health workers across Europe in sounding the alarm about the surge in coronavirus infections as the World Health Organization warned of an “exponential” rise in cases. Several countries in Europe are reporting infection rates higher than during the first wave of the pandemic in March and April. Spain’s “real number” of infections […]
France closes Paris mosque in clampdown over teacher’s beheading
by Alexandre HIELARD / Mariëtte Le Roux Agence France Presse PARIS, France (AFP) — French authorities said Tuesday they would close a Paris mosque as part of a clampdown on radical Islam that has yielded over a dozen arrests following the beheading of a teacher who had shown his pupils a cartoon of the Prophet Mohammed. The mosque in a densely-populated suburb northeast of Paris had disseminated a video on its Facebook page days […]
Europe tightens virus curbs as global cases top 40 million
by Agence France Presse bureaus DUBLIN, Ireland (AFP) — A number of European countries took urgent new measures on Monday to combat a second wave of coronavirus infections, as the World Health Organization blamed the surge in worldwide cases — now more than 40 million — on countries’ failure to quarantine infected people properly. Ireland and Wales became the first countries on the continent to re-enter lockdown as the number of people who have […]
France daily coronavirus cases top record 30,000
PARIS, France (AFP) — The number of people who have tested positive for coronavirus in France over the past 24 hours has exceeded 30,000 for the first time, official data showed on Thursday. France’s public health agency said that a total 30,621 confirmed cases of Covid-19 had been detected in the past 24 hours, a record daily total. The number of people who have died from the novel coronavirus over the same 24-hour period stood […]
France says to re-impose state of health emergency
PARIS, France (AFP) — The French government said on Wednesday it was re-imposing a state of health emergency to contain the spread of Covid-19. The move, announced shortly before President Emmanuel Macron was to appear on national television to announce fresh coronavirus measures, will allow “measures proportional to the health risks to be taken”, and will enter into force on Saturday, according to minutes from a cabinet meeting Wednesday. France was facing “a health catastrophe”, […]
France risks new lockdowns if Covid surge worsens: PM
PARIS, France (AFP) — French authorities could be forced to impose new lockdowns in a bid to contain another surge in coronavirus cases that is putting a strain on hospitals, Prime Minister Jean Castex warned Monday. “If over the next two weeks we see the epidemic indicators worsen, if intensive care beds fill up even more than we expect, we will indeed take additional measures,” Castex said in an interview with France Info radio. Asked […]
France, Italy step up rescue efforts after floods
by Chloe Fabre with Vincenzo Pinto in Garessio, Italy SAINT-MARTIN-VERSUBIE, France (AFP) — French and Italian rescue services stepped up search efforts Sunday after floods cut off several villages in the mountainous border regions, causing widespread damage and killing at least four people. Others remained unaccounted for on the French side of the border after storms, torrential rain and flash floods battered the area, washing away roads and houses, cutting off entire villages and triggering […]
Coronavirus could overwhelm France, top doctor warns
PARIS, France (AFP) — France will face a months-long coronavirus epidemic that will overwhelm its health system if something does not change, one of the country’s top medical figures warned Sunday. “The second wave is arriving faster than we thought,” Patrick Bouet, head of the National Council of the Order of Doctors, told the weekly Journal du Dimanche. Fresh restrictions to slow the spread of the disease in the country’s worst-hit areas, including the […]
Record infections in France as restrictions spark outcry
by Paul Ricard with Sandra Laffont in Marseille PARIS, France (AFP) — France reported a new record for daily coronavirus infections on Thursday a day after the government announced new restrictions on bars and restaurants in major cities which have provoked an outcry from local politicians and business owners. Figures from Public Health France showed that 16,096 people had tested positive for Covid-19 over the last 24 hours, a record — though experts advise that […]
Eiffel Tower evacuated for 2 hours after bomb threat: police
PARIS, France (AFP) — The Eiffel Tower in Paris was evacuated for two hours Wednesday after an anonymous caller threatened to blow up the great edifice in the heart of the French capital, police said. After an inspection, nothing suspicious was found and the Eiffel Tower was able to reopen to visitors. “A man phoned up, shouted ‘Allah Akbar’ and said he was going to ‘blow up everything’” at the Eiffel Tower, said a police […]
One missing as torrential rain hits southern France
MARSEILLE, France (AFP) — One person was reported missing on Saturday and hundreds evacuated from their homes after torrential rains swept southern France, authorities said. The Gard region, where firefighters reported the missing person, was on red alert after as much as 350 millimetres (13.5 inches) of rain fell in parts of the Cevennes mountain range on the edge of the Massif Central. A similar amount cut off 10 departmental roads in the Gard, among […]





