- Nobel prize a timely reminder, Hiroshima locals say
- Hezbollah fires at Israel as wars rage on Yom Kippur
- Analysts warn more detail needed on new China economic measures
- China tees up fresh spending to boost ailing economy
- China says will issue special bonds to boost ailing economy
- China offers $325 bn in fiscal stimulus for ailing economy
- Dodgers drop Padres 2-0 to advance in MLB playoffs
- Alexei Navalny wrote he knew he would die in prison in new memoir
- Last-minute legal ruling allows betting on US election
- Despite hurricanes, Floridians refuse to leave 'paradise'
- Israel observes Yom Kippur amid firestorm over Lebanon strikes
- Trump demonizes migrants in dark, misleading speech
- X says 'alert' to manipulation efforts after pro-Russia bots report
- US, European markets rise before Boeing unveils sweeping job cuts
- Small Quebec company dominates one part of NHL hockey: jerseys
- Comoros shock Tunisia, Salah, Mbeumo strike in AFCON qualifiers
- Boeing to cut 10% of workforce as it sees big Q3 loss
- Germany win in Nations League as 10-man Dutch rescue point
- Undav brace sends Germany to victory against Bosnia
- Israel says fired at 'threat' near UN position in Lebanon
- Want to film in Paris? No sexism allowed
- Ecuador's last mountain iceman dies at 80
- Milton leaves at least 16 dead, millions without power in Florida
- Senegal set to announce breakaway development agenda: PM
- UN says 2 peacekeepers wounded in south Lebanon explosions
- Injury-hit Australia thrash 'embarrassing' Pakistan at Women's T20 World Cup
- Internal TikTok documents show prioritization of traffic over well-being
- Israel says fired at 'immediate threat' near UN position in Lebanon
- New US coach Pochettino hails Pulisic but worries over workload
- Brazil orders closure of 2,000 betting sites
- UK govt urged to raise pro-democracy tycoon's case with China
- Sculptor Lalanne's animal creations sell for $59 mn
- From Tesla to Trump: Behind Musk's giant leap into politics
- US, European markets rise as investors weigh rates, earnings
- In Colombia, children trade plastic waste for school supplies
- Supercharged hurricanes trigger 'perfect storm' for disinformation
- JPMorgan Chase profits top estimates, bank sees 'resilient' US economy
- Djokovic proves staying power as he progresses to Shanghai semi-finals
- Sheffield Utd boss Wilder 'numb' after Baldock death
- Little progress at key meet ahead of COP29 climate summit
- Fans immerse themselves in Marina Abramovic's first China exhibition
- Israel says conducting review after UN peacekeepers wounded in Lebanon
- 'Party atmosphere': Skygazers treated to another aurora show
- Djokovic 'overwhelmed' after 'greatest rival' Nadal's retirement
- Zelensky in Berlin says hopes war with Russia will end next year
- Kyrgyzstan opens rare probe into glacier destruction
- European Mediterranean states discuss Middle East, migration
- Djokovic proves staying power as progresses to Shanghai semi-finals
- Hurricane Milton leaves at least 16 dead as Florida cleans up
- Britain face 'ultimate challenge' in America's Cup duel with New Zealand
Right-wing alliance sparks outrage ahead of French polls
The leader of France's main right-wing party on Tuesday backed an alliance with the far right of Marine Le Pen in snap legislative elections, triggering a crisis within his own party and fury from the government.
The stunning announcement by the Republicans (LR) leader Eric Ciotti in a TV interview is the first time in modern French political history that a leader of a traditional party has backed an alliance with the far-right National Rally (RN).
President Emmanuel Macron on Sunday called the elections on June 30, with a second round on July 7, in a major gamble after the RN scored more than double the number of votes of his centrist alliance in the EU elections.
With less than three weeks to go before the first round, Macron is facing opposition alliances crystallising on the left and right amid warnings that his bet could backfire.
A Harris Interactive-Toluna poll published on Monday suggested just 19 percent of people would back him, compared to 34 percent for the far-right National Rally.
But in an interview, Macron ruled out resigning after the election.
The forthcoming ballot has set alarm bells ringing across Europe, as it risks hobbling France -- historically a key player in brokering compromise in Brussels and support for Ukraine against Russian invasion.
"We need to have an alliance while remaining ourselves... an alliance with the RN and its candidates," Ciotti told TF1 television, adding that he had already held discussions with Le Pen, a three-time presidential candidate, and RN party leader Jordan Bardella.
Le Pen praised "the courageous choice" and "sense of responsibility" of Ciotti, saying she hoped that a significant number of LR figures would follow him.
- End of 'sanitary cordon' -
The LR traces its history back to postwar leader Charles de Gaulle and is the political home of ex-presidents such as Jacques Chirac and Nicolas Sarkozy.
Now "40 years of a pseudo sanitary cordon -- which caused many elections to be lost -- is disappearing," Le Pen, now head of RN deputies in the lower house National Assembly, told AFP.
But Ciotti's move, which he said was aimed at creating a "significant" group in the new National Assembly after the elections, risks tearing apart his own party.
"I see all those currently agitating for coalitions, for alliances, for little combinations. I'll say right away: I don't believe in it," said Laurent Wauquiez, the leader of the central Auvergne-Rhone-Alpes region seen as a presidential prospect for 2027.
Ciotti "lied to us" about his plans, said Bruno Retailleau, head of the Republicans in the Senate upper house.
"This is disloyalty. It's a failure to be upright," he added.
The LR speaker of the Senate, Gerard Larcher, a heavyweight figure, said he would "never swallow" an agreement with the RN and called on Ciotti to resign.
But speaking to reporters after the interview, Ciotti said he would not resign and emphasised that his mandate depended on party activists.
Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, a past defector from the LR to Macron's alliance, described the move as a "dishonour to the Gaullist family" and compared it to the Munich accords with Nazi Germany on the eve of World War II.
- 'Right decision' -
Macron's office delayed until Wednesday a major press conference initially slated for Tuesday afternoon, while insisting that the nationwide vote would put a choice before the French people of "Republican forces on one side and extremist forces on the other".
Macron told Figaro Magazine he ruled out resigning, "whatever the result" of snap elections.
Macron scoffed at a question about whether he was "crazy" to dissolve parliament and call for elections at such short notice.
"I am only thinking of France. It was the right decision, in the interest of the country," he said, adding that he was prepared to debate head to head with Le Pen.
With just 19 days until the first round on June 30 -- the shortest campaign since France's Fifth Republic was founded in 1958 -- Macron's task to shore up support for his centrist camp is formidable, according to polls.
The Medef big business federation said it would support "projects favourable to economic reform and European ambition, with respect for social democracy".
France's fractious left-wing parties appeared to quickly set aside differences that had shattered their parliamentary alliance, notably their conflicting responses to the war in Gaza.
Socialists, Greens, Communists and the hard-left France Unbowed (LFI) said they would "support joint candidates, right from the first round" of the election -- the same strategy that gleaned them a total 151 seats in the 577-seat parliament in June 2022.
F.Schneider--AMWN