Articles about France

Two-month arrangement aimed at preventing small-boat crossings comes as existing deal expiresThe UK will pay France an extra £16.2m to keep police patrolling Channel beaches and prevent a surge in small-boat crossings after negotiators failed to agree a permanent deal before a midnight deadline.The stopgap arrangement, which will last for two months, comes after French negotiators refused to give in to UK demands for further interventions and patrols to stop asylum seekers from reaching the UK via the Channel. Continue reading...

Negotiations deadlocked as No 10 wants more action by French officials but France has concerns over safetyThe UK’s agreement with France to pay for beach patrols is on the verge of collapse amid wrangling over the number of small boat interceptions and the safety of asylum seekers in French waters.Negotiations over plans to revamp the three-year, £480m deal remain deadlocked, despite the involvement of ministers including Shabana Mahmood, the home secretary. The deal expires at midnight on Tuesday. Continue reading...

• France's defense ministry announced 35 countries participating in military discussions for a defensive mission to escort commercial vessels through the Strait of Hormuz. • The talks address Iran's threats to toll or block the vital waterway, critical for global energy flows. • Initiative gains traction amid US pressure on allies, potentially easing oil price spikes affecting US consumers.

Exclusive: At least four people have travelled back to the UK by lorry in the last two weeksAsylum seekers who arrived in the UK in small boats and were forcibly returned to France under the controversial “one in, one out” deal have returned to the UK in lorries, the Guardian has learned.When asked about the recent returnees, the Home Office said that people who came back to the UK after removal to France were detained and returned to France at the earliest opportunity. Amnesty International UK has called for “one in, one out” to be scrapped. Continue reading...

Body is latest in series to be found in Dijon. Scientists trying to work out why Gauls buried some of their dead in this wayChildren at a primary school in eastern France found a strange attraction next to their playground this week: a skeleton sitting upright, peeking out the top of a circular pit.It is the latest in a series of bodies discovered in the city of Dijon that were buried in a seated position facing west. Continue reading...

Ballots in 35,000 villages, towns and cities will be closely watched for signals about party strategies and alliancesFrance has begun voting in the first round of municipal elections, seen as crucial a test of the political temperature before next year’s presidential election.The vote for mayors and councillors in 35,000 villages, towns and cities across France is focused on local issues including security, housing and refuse collection and is very different from national elections. Continue reading...

Djidji Ayôkwé was handed to Ivorian officials in Paris earlier this monthA sacred artefact looted by French colonial authorities more than a century ago has been returned to Côte d’Ivoire in one of the most significant cultural restitutions to a former French colony in years.The Djidji Ayôkwé, a talking drum confiscated in 1916 by French administrators, landed at 8.45am on Friday at the airport in Port Bouët on the outskirts of the economic capital, Abidjan. It was handed over to Ivorian officials in Paris earlier this month after being removed from the Quai Branly – Jacques Chirac Museum. Continue reading...