- Palestinian officials say Israeli forces kill two in West Bank
- Football leagues, unions file EU complaint against FIFA in calendar dispute
- Nigeria boycott AFCON qualifier in Libya after 'inhumane treatment'
- India to recall top envoy to Canada: foreign ministry
- Hezbollah, Israeli troops in 'violent clashes' after drone strike
- China insists won't renounce 'use of force' to take Taiwan as drills end
- Painkiller sale plan to US gives France major headache
- Italy begins landmark migrant transfers to Albania
- Russia jails French researcher for three years
- 'Unsustainable' housing crisis bedevils Spain's socialist govt
- Stocks shrug off China disappointment but oil slides
- New Zealand 4-0 up in America's Cup but British show signs of life
- Russian prosecutor demands 3 years prison for French researcher
- 'Innocent' British nerve agent victim caught in global murder plot: inquiry
- Afghan Taliban vow to implement media ban on images of living things
- Russian prosecutor demands 3 years, 3 months jail for French researcher
- England ready for Pakistan's spin assault in second Test
- New Zealand's Ravindra excited for India Tests with father in crowd
- India's capital bans fireworks to curb air pollution
- Stocks diverge, oil retreats as China disappoints markets
- FIFA to open 'global dialogue' on transfer system after Diarra ruling
- Trio wins economics Nobel for work on wealth inequality
- Starmer vows to cut red tape as he urges foreign investors to 'back' UK
- Ex-Stasi officer jailed over 1974 Berlin border killing
- 'Not viable': Barcelona turns against surging tourism
- Hezbollah says targeted Israeli naval base after deadly drone strike
- Rice praises 'unbelievable' England interim boss Carsley despite uncertainty
- Nepali teenager hailed as hero after climbing world's 8,000m peaks
- England captain Stokes back from injury for second Pakistan Test
- Shanghai stocks gain after stimulus briefing as markets rally
- Shanghai stocks gain after stimulus briefing as Asian markets rally
- South Korea military says 'fully ready' as drone flights anger North
- Pakistan 'vigilantes' behind rise in online blasphemy cases
- Nearly 90, but opera legend Kabaivanska is still calling tune
- Smith experiment as Test opener over, Green out of India series
- With inflation down, ECB eyes faster tempo of rate cuts
- Is life possible on a Jupiter moon? NASA goes to investigate
- Dodgers crush Mets 9-0 in MLB playoff series opener
- South Korea military says 'fully ready' as drone tensions soar
- Cummins back, Marsh and Head out of Pakistan ODI series
- Shanghai stocks swing after stimulus briefing as most of Asia rises
- New Zealand's Latham promises 'no fear' as he takes charge for India Tests
- Kyrgios vows to 'shut up' doubters with December comeback
- Public hearings start into death of Brit by Russian nerve agent
- Ex-Stasi officer faces verdict over 1974 Berlin border killing
- Role of government, poverty research tipped for economics Nobel
- 'Stolen satire' feeds US election misinformation
- Rookie McCarty captures first PGA Tour title in Black Desert Championship
- Australia all-rounder Green ruled out of India Test series
- Seeing double in Nigeria's 'twins capital of the world'
Macron rejects PM resignation ahead of talks on France deadlock
French President Emmanuel Macron Tuesday rejected a resignation offer from his prime minister ahead of talks with the opposition seeking to end the deadlock sparked by his failure to secure a majority in parliamentary elections.
Macron was due to host far-right leader Marine Le Pen and other political party chiefs for rare talks at the Elysee as he seeks solutions to an unprecedented situation that risks plunging his second term into crisis two months after it began.
The Elysee said French Prime Minister Elisabeth Borne, blamed by some analysts for heading a lacklustre campaign, had offered her resignation to Macron but the head of state turned it down.
Macron believes the government needs to "stay on task and act" and the president will now seek "constructive solutions" to the political deadlock in talks with opposition parties, said a presidential official, who asked not to be named.
Macron is due to start Tuesday's flurry of discussions by talking with Christian Jacob, the head of the traditional right-wing the Republicans (LR), a party on the decline in recent months but which now may be courted by the president to give him a majority.
Socialist Party leader Olivier Faure and Communist Party boss Fabien Roussel -- members of the NUPES left-wing alliance -- will also meet Macron, although the hard-left leader Jean-Luc Melenchon is not scheduled to do so.
And in a rare encounter, Macron will at 17:30 Paris time (1530 GMT) host Le Pen, his rival in presidential elections and leader of the far-right National Rally (RN).
The aim is to "build solutions to serve the French" at a time when there is no "alternative majority" to that of Macron's ruling alliance, said the Elysee.
- Resurgent opposition -
While Macron's Ensemble (Together) coalition remains the largest party after Sunday's National Assembly elections, it fell dozens of seats short of keeping the absolute majority it has enjoyed for the last five years.
Melenchon and Le Pen made big gains, leaving them as major players in the new parliament.
Macron's Together alliance won 244 seats, well short of the 289 needed for an overall majority, in a low-turnout vote that resulted in an abstention rate of 53.77 percent.
The election saw NUPES become the main opposition force along with its allies on 137 seats, according to interior ministry figures.
But it appears unlikely the coalition of Socialists, Communists, Greens and the hard-left France Unbowed will be able to retain common cause in the legislature.
Melenchon, the France Unbowed chief who orchestrated the alliance, called its results "fairly disappointing" and proposed Monday to make NUPES a permanent left-wing bloc.
He said it would not be a full-on merger but simply an effective "alternative" force in parliament, though the offer was immediately rejected by the three other NUPES parties.
Meanwhile the far right under Le Pen posted the best legislative performance in its history, becoming the strongest single opposition party with 89 seats, up from eight in the outgoing chamber.
A confident Le Pen said her party would demand to chair the National Assembly's powerful finance commission, as is tradition for the biggest opposition party.
Melenchon said he would bring a motion of no confidence against Borne in early July, when she is to lay out her policy priorities for the next five years.
Even if Borne will stay in her post for now, a cabinet shake-up is on the horizon.
Macron's health and environment ministers were beaten and by tradition will have to resign, as did the parliament speaker and the head of Macron's parliament group.
- 'What now?' -
The options available to Macron range from seeking to form a new coalition alliance, passing legislation based on ad hoc agreements, or even calling new elections.
One option would be an alliance with the Republicans, which has 61 MPs.
But LR president Jacob has insisted his party intends to "stay in opposition".
"What can he (Macron) do now?" said the headline in the Le Parisien daily. "Macron in an impasse, NUPES already divided," added Le Figaro.
Macron had hoped to mark his second term with an ambitious programme of tax cuts, welfare reform and raising the retirement age. All that is now in question.
burs-sjw/ech/yad
D.Moore--AMWN