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Anger in France over Trump comments on Bataclan attacks

France on Saturday condemned remarks by US President Donald Trump about the 2015 attacks in Paris and called on him to show respect for the victims of the bloodshed that saw jihadists attack the Bataclan concert hall and other targets.

Anger in France over Trump comments on Bataclan attacks
Photo: AFP

“France expresses its firm disapproval of the comments by President Trump about the attacks of November 13 2015 in Paris and asks for respect of the memory of the victims,” foreign ministry spokeswoman Agnes von der Muhll said in a statement.

Trump spoke about gun laws in France and Britain during a free-wheeling speech in front of gun owners in Texas on Friday.

“Nobody has guns in Paris and we all remember more than 130 people, plus tremendous numbers of people that were horribly, horribly wounded. You notice nobody ever talks about them,” he told the audience.

“They were brutally killed by a small group of terrorists that had guns. They took their time and gunned them down one by one,” Trump added.

He then mimicked the assailants shooting their weapons, saying: “Boom. Come over here. Boom, come over here. Boom.”

The November 2015 attacks by gunman loyal to the Islamic State group were the worst in France's history and left the capital and wider country deeply traumatised.

Jihadists armed with assault rifles and suicide vests struck outside a France-Germany football match at the national stadium, cafes and bars, and the Bataclan concert hall in a coordinated assault that left 130 people dead and more than 350 wounded.

The comments from Trump came less than a week after French President Emmanuel Macron visited Washington as guest of honour for a state visit which saw both of the leaders eager to stress their friendship.

Former French president Francois Hollande and ex-prime minister Manuel Valls, who were in power at the time of the 2015 attacks, expressed their outrage in separate statements on Saturday.

Hollande called Trump's remarks “shameful” and said they “said a lot about what he (Trump) thinks of France and its values.”

Valls wrote on Twitter “indecent and incompetent. What more can I say?” 

PARIS

Fluffy nuisance: Outcry as Paris sends Invalides rabbits into exile

Efforts to relocate wild rabbits that are a common sight on the lawns of the historic Invalides memorial complex have provoked criticism from animal rights groups.

Fluffy nuisance: Outcry as Paris sends Invalides rabbits into exile

Tourists and Parisians have long been accustomed to the sight of wild rabbits frolicking around the lawns of Les Invalides, one of the French capital’s great landmarks.

But efforts are underway to relocate the fluffy animals, accused of damaging the gardens and drains around the giant edifice that houses Napoleon’s tomb, authorities said.

Police said that several dozen bunnies had been captured since late January and relocated to the private estate of Breau in the Seine-et-Marne region outside Paris, a move that has prompted an outcry from animal rights activists.

“Two operations have taken place since 25 January,” the police prefecture told AFP.

“Twenty-four healthy rabbits were captured on each occasion and released after vaccination” in Seine-et-Marne, the prefecture said.

Six more operations are scheduled to take place in the coming weeks.

Around 300 wild rabbits live around Les Invalides, according to estimates.

“The overpopulation on the site is leading to deteriorating living conditions and health risks,” the prefecture said.

Authorities estimate the cost of restoring the site, which has been damaged by the proliferation of underground galleries and the deterioration of gardens, pipes and flora, at €366,000.

Animal rights groups denounced the operation.

The Paris Animaux Zoopolis group said the rabbits were being subjected to “intense stress” or could be killed “under the guise of relocation”.

“A number of rabbits will die during capture and potentially during transport,” said the group, accusing authorities of being “opaque” about their methods.

The animal rights group also noted that Breau was home to the headquarters of the Seine-et-Marne hunting federation.

The police prefecture insisted that the animals would not be hunted.

In 2021, authorities classified the rabbits living in Paris as a nuisance but the order was reversed following an outcry from animal groups who have been pushing for a peaceful cohabitation with the animals.

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