Did you miss the news this morning? We have put together a summary to help you see things more clearly.
This Friday marks the start of the Christmas holidays but also… traffic jams. For the occasion, Bison futé will even be draped in a color hated by motorists: red. Major disruptions in the direction of departures are in fact expected this Friday and Saturday. The traffic information center sees red Friday and Saturday in the Paris region and Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. The rest of the country is classified orange. In Île-de-France, road traffic will be busy “from late morning towards the various toll gates, particularly on the A6 and A10 motorways”. Bison futé therefore advises leaving the Paris metropolitan area before 10 a.m.
Although traffic is expected to be difficult on the roads, fears have been lifted for travel between France and England. The discussions between the Eurotunnel unions and their management have indeed borne fruit. The surprise strike that began at midday on Thursday ended and the Channel Tunnel was able to reopen in the evening. The Eurostar company has indicated that it will resume its rotations at normal times this Friday morning. The SNCF subsidiary must also add six additional trains from this Friday to Sunday. In total, Eurostar canceled 30 trains on Thursday departing from Paris, London and Brussels. The company said it would reimburse everyone whose train was canceled.
The divorce is consummated between France and Niger. It must be said that since the generals came to power in Niamey during a coup on July 26, relations have been particularly bad between the two countries. Paris has therefore decided to close its embassy because “it is no longer able to function normally or carry out its missions”, we learned from diplomatic sources on Thursday. This extremely rare measure comes after Niamey announced on December 12 the departure of all French soldiers deployed in Niger as part of the anti-jihadist fight by December 22, i.e. this Friday.