Didn’t you follow the news this weekend? This is obviously because you knew your favorite website was going to give you the recap at the end of the day. Come on, catch up on the news with our “replay”. We’re going to talk about war in Ukraine, deaths at the Blois funfair or even Laurent Wauquiez in Japan. Write everything down, thanks to us you will shine at dinner (and start important debates about kites).
The United States is dropping billions
A “phew” of relief was heard from one end of the globe to the other. At a time when American parliamentarians validated a huge aid plan for Ukraine, kyiv was pleased to finally see its prayers answered. In Washington, Democrats even waved Ukrainian flags in the hemicycle. Long debated and postponed, the United States envelope reached around 61 billion dollars. A colossal figure but which also aims to make up for aid which had dried up, while the Republicans had blocked any new envelope for a year and a half.
To find out more, here is the recap from our journalist Xavier Régnier.
Laurent Wauquiez is going to Japan (and that’s the problem)
It’s a journey that raises many questions. The socialist and environmentalist opponents of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes regional council are demanding “transparency” after an article on a professional trip by the president of the region Laurent Wauquiez to Japan. The world published on Saturday an investigation entitled Laurent Wauquiez’s very “confidential” trip to Japan, on a trip from March 8 to 15. The region’s economic development agency, of which Laurent Wauquiez is co-president, was the organizer of this mission.
The regional opposition is particularly questioning the organization of a dinner with nearly 150 French and Japanese business leaders in a Michelin-starred restaurant in Tokyo. She also reiterates her criticism of Laurent Wauquiez’s expenses. It can be read here.
The camels are showing off at the castle
Around fifty camels, dromedaries, llamas and alpacas wandered through the Bois de Vincennes on Saturday. Coming from Canada, the United States, Qatar, Peru, etc., the camelids, adorned with the colors of the 34 participating delegations, attracted the crowd at the start of the parade, on the esplanade of the Château de Vincennes (Val-de -Marl).
President of the Federation for the Development of Camelids in France and Europe (FFDCFE), Christian Schoettl, at the origin of the initiative, regretted having had to give up going in front of the Eiffel Tower. The year 2024 having been designated as the year of camelids by the UN and UNESCO, the organization planned to roll their humps to camelids from the banks of the Seine to UNESCO headquarters, in the very chic 7th arrondissement of the capital . The police headquarters finally vetoed it, citing, among other things, an area “affected by infrastructure” in view of the Olympic Games and the impact on traffic.
The objective of the event? Support “the cause of the camel in the French capital of human rights” and promote “the essential contribution” of these “heroes of the deserts and highlands” who provide for “millions of households living in hostile environments in more from 90 countries.
All the camels in photo slides are here.
Thrown from a ride at the funfair
A drama unfolded last night at the Blois funfair. A 27-year-old young woman died after being thrown from a ride shortly after 11 p.m. Originally from Blois, the victim, evacuated to the city hospital, “did not survive his injuries”, indicates the town hall in a press release, adding that “a legal investigation is underway”. According to France 3, the owner of the low-rise attraction was placed in police custody for involuntary manslaughter. The rest of the information, read here.
She gets spat on and files a complaint
Fatima Saidi may remember her first trip to France for a long time, and not for the best reasons. The 22-year-old Moroccan influencer, who lives in Madrid, claims to have been the target of spit on by a jogger while she was walking near the Eiffel Tower with a friend last Tuesday. A jogger “literally spat on us while we were choosing a restaurant for lunch,” she says on Instagram.
“He kept running and gave us the finger. His attitude was hostile and he looked at us badly,” she also testifies in The Parisian. His testimony can be read here.
Additional information: At the time of writing, OM has not yet played its match against Toulouse (our live here), nor OL against PSG (our other live here). But on the sporting side, we can point out that, this weekend, the Blues were a success in Cardiff, that Pogacar won alone in Liège-Bastogne-Liège, that Max Verstappen won for the first time in Shanghai and that the he Olympique Lyonnais women’s team staged a crazy comeback against PSG.