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CRIME

French World War Two memorial vandalised with anti-health pass slogan

A memorial to French World War II soldiers and Resistance fighters has been vandalised with an anti-health pass slogan, authorities said, an act that President Emmanuel Macron branded an "insult" to the nation's memory.

President Emmanuel Macron at a ceremony at the Mont Valerien World War Two monument on November 11th, 2021
French President Emmanuel Macron attended the monument on November 11th. Photo:Christophe Petit Tesson / POOL / AFP

The Mont Valerien monument in Suresnes, west of Paris, was vandalised with “Anti Pass” painted in large letters, with the style of the double-s reminiscent of that used by Nazis for their SS inscriptions, authorities said.

The inscription on the monument – which was inaugurated in 1960 by then-president Charles de Gaulle – is 50m long, they said.

Macron called the act, “an insult to the memory of our heroes and the memory of the nation”.

In a tweet, he said that “to sully this sacred place of the republic is to violate what unites us. The perpetrators will be found and put on trial.”

France requires a health pass, which demonstrates proof of vaccination, Covid recovery or a negative test result, for access to restaurants and cafes, public transport and cultural venues, a requirement that sparked major protests last summer.

The government is pushing for a fast rollout of booster shots in an effort to avoid another lockdown, amid a fifth wave of infections and concerns over the new Omicron variant.

It has also said the pass will lapse after seven months for anyone who fails to get a booster shot.

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CRIME

Thieves again ram-raid luxury shop in France

Thieves on Thursday smashed a car into a luxury store for the third time this year in the same French city to steal handbags and other valuables, a police source said.

Thieves again ram-raid luxury shop in France

The burglary at dawn from the Hermes shop in the northeastern city of Lille comes just days after another store belonging to Louis Vuitton was targeted some 100 metres down the road on Wednesday last week.

The Louis Vuitton shop was itself already burgled in January.

The thieves on Thursday made off with clothes, jewelry and handbags, but part of the loot was abandoned on site, the source said.

They also left behind two cars, including the one used to ram-raid the shop, but police were on the lookout for a third vehicle used, the source added.

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