French police issue alarm over rise in teenage prostitutes
French police have issued a warning about a significant jump in the number of teenage prostitutes in France; saying the numbers have increased by as much as 70 percent in the last five years. Also how in the face of ongoing repression by the Taliban, more and more Afghan women are converting their frustration into creativity, using art as a silent but powerful form of resistance. Plus we meet Sophie Adenot, the second French female astronaut who's set to blast off into space next year and is in the midst of a rigorous training programme.
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LeMonde
3 hours ago
- LeMonde
French senator accused of spiking fellow MP's drink sent for trial
A French senator accused of having drugged a fellow member of Parliament with the intention of sexually assaulting her has been sent for trial, Agence France-Presse (AFP) learnt on Friday, June 27, from a source close to the case Two investigating magistrates sent Senator Joël Guerriau for trial for the alleged November 2023 incident, said the source, confirming a report by France 2's Complement d'enquete, an investigative television program. The judges' report, seen by AFP, says Guerriau, 67, is suspected of having spiked a glass of champagne with ecstasy that his colleague Sandrine Josso, now 49, was drinking. His intention, they alleged, was to rape or sexually assault her. Guerriau will also be tried for possession of drugs. "Joël Guerriau contests the allegations against him," said his lawyers, Henri Carpentier and Marie Roumiantseva. The truth will come in court, "far from the caricatures and rumors put about until now," they added. "Mr Guerriau does not fear the truth: He desires it." Josso's lawyer, Arnaud Godefroy, said she was relieved at the decision, "which reflects the seriousness of her complaint." On November 14, 2023, Josso, who's with the centrist MoDem party, went to the Paris home of her "political friend" – as she described him during the investigation before the judges – who was celebrating his re-election. The only guest, she left with 388 ng/ml of ecstasy in her blood, according to toxicology tests seen by AFP. This was a dose "close to double" the recreational amount, the prosecutor's office said. The tests also showed no traces of drugs in her system during the seven months prior to that evening. The judges write that although "no intimate or sexual acts were reported" during the evening, Guerriau's actions, as described by the complainant, were "consistent with those of a person with sexual intent." The Horizons party, led by former prime minister Edouard Philippe, suspended Guerriau in November 2023. Guerriau has denied any intention to sexually assault the lawmaker and has rejected the accusation that he deliberately drugged her, describing it as a "handling error."
Fashion Network
3 hours ago
- Fashion Network
Jonathan Anderson debuts at Dior: Welcome to the New Era
Jonathan Anderson presented his debut collection for Dior behind a famed French monument to its military, Les Invalides, and at the finale it felt very much like a designer marching to glory. See catwalk Think of it as the New Era, rather than the New Look, as the Irishman riffed on Dior's DNA, and many women's wear designs of Monsieur Dior himself, to create a powerful pathbreaking fashion statement. Take Monsieur's autumn 1948 multi-fold Delft dress made in silk faille which Anderson then morphed into multi-leaf white denim cargo shorts that opened the show. Or a superb check wool coat, nipped at the waits but scalloped below the hips, a look Monsieur named Caprice from spring 1948, which led to a great series elephantine men's pants with wraparound features. The Stakhanovite Anderson has clearly been putting long shifts at Dior, mastering the codes, delving into the archives. Playing on another Dior classic, Christian's Autumn 1952 dimpled moiré coat, La Cigale. But taking it forward into the 21st century with some great coats. Plus, his herringbone versions of the house's signature Bar jacket were pretty sensational. Throughout, there was a whole Edwardian feel – with high collars, stocks and knotted bows, albeit worn without shirts, and paired with great Dior grey fracks, albeit paired with faded jeans. Plus, Anderson will surely ignite huge demand for the trim linen summer gilet - in pink or finished with flowers. Many looks anchored by a new suede boxing-meets-trail bootie. He dreamed up one striking new mop bag, but otherwise played with Dior's hit fabric tote, by creating many versions printed with classic novels – from Françoise Sagan's "Bonjour Tristesse" to Bram Stroker's "Dracula". If occasionally erratic – one or two chino and striped shirts looks reminded one that Anderson has made several capsule collections for Uniqlo – it still all felt like a major menswear statement and huge hit. Without question it was the most anticipated debut by a designer at a major house this century. If there was any doubt; look at the fellow designers who showed up: Donatella Versace (for whom he briefly designed Versus), Stefano Pilati, Courrèges ' Nicolas Di Felice, Glenn Martens, Silvia Fendi, Pierpaolo Piccioli, Daniel Roseberry, Christian Louboutin, Chitose Abe, Michael Rider, Julien Dossena, Chemena Kamali, and LVMH regulars or alumni – from Pharrell Williams to Kris Van Assche. Talk about designer gridlock. See catwalk The 40-year-old Northern Irishman takes over at Dior as an already acclaimed star. Having turned Loewe, LVMH's leading Spanish brand, into the hottest show in Paris this past half decade. Jonathan's choice of location respected tradition, seeing it was the same square where his immediate predecessor Kim Jones had staged his final show for Dior in January. There the similarity ended, with not a hint of Kim's style in sight. Though the set design did recall Anderson's debut show at Loewe, which featured precisely poured concrete blocks as seats. At Dior, the audience sat on precise plywood blocks, on a plywood floor, under a high ceiling entirely made of illuminated squares. Even since he began teasing on social media his new era at Dior, it's been a respectful homage to classicism. Just like this collection, even if he also managed to turn the whole codes upside down. Somewhat eccentrically, a pre-show French speaker recounted - at length - exact cuts, darts, shapes and fabrics of Dior looks, which turned out to be indie director and French heartthrob, Louis Garrel reading from the memoir "Dior and I". Garrel, whose mop hair appears have been the inspiration for all the models hairstyle, joined Louvre director Laurence Descartes, Roger Federer, Robert Pattinson, Daniel Craig and Rihanna, in the front row. In teases and in the show, Jonathan also played on Monsieur Dior's great affection for British taste with an opening Instagram post of a blue shirt fabric with a pin for Dior. Putting that online in mid-April six weeks before his appointment was official. Posting all manner of hints from a tape measure curled into a thimble to look like a snail on huge leaf, to an embroidered Louis XIV chair, he personally redesigned. Anderson – who will direct menswear, women's wear and couture at Dior - restored the house's dove gray logo, and replaced the all capital Dior, with just the "D" capitalized. Seen at the entrance to the huge show tent, over a giant illustration of Dior's neo-classical salon on Avenue Montaigne, which witnessed the birth of the house, and the legendary New Look on February 12, 1947. Which segued into two works of fine art – oil paintings by J.B.S. Chardin of a vase full of flowers, or a plate of raspberries – that hung inside the show. Both lent for the show by the Louvre, and much admired by LVMH CEO, and Anderson's ultimate boss, French billionaire, Bernard Arnault, who studied them carefully. As did Jonathan's proud parents, his rugby playing father and one-time captain of the Irish national rugby team Willie, and his elegant schoolteacher mum, Heather. See catwalk Post show, when asked his thoughts on the show, Arnault told 'It was, frankly, magnifique!' Though perhaps the most chatter this fashion sea change inspired by Anderson's idiosyncratic invitation – a ceramic white plate with three ceramic eggs. Like the solid stools, there was a sense of reassurance. Back when Jonathan was a teen growing up in the outskirts of the small town of Magherafelt in County Derry, his first teenage job was gathering eggs from a local farm. 'Next thing you know, we came back home and there was a sign, 'eggs for sale.' Jonathan has always been an incredibly hard worker. He puts his head down and never stops. But he is still the same person we knew when he left Northern Ireland. And we like that,' said his proud dad.
Euronews
3 hours ago
- Euronews
We don't know where they are, say families of French prisoners in Iran
For three years, Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris, a French couple accused of "espionage" by Iran, have been held in Tehran's Evin prison, a large complex in the capital where torture and executions are commonplace. For Noémie Kohler, Cécile's sister, the Israeli strike on 23 June targeting Evin prison was everything she had feared. Despite the ceasefire between Iran and Israel that came into force on Tuesday 24 June, she is anxiously awaiting news. "We spent hours not knowing whether Cécile and Jacques had been hit by the bombing, or whether they were still alive. In the evening, the French Minister of Foreign Affairs was informed that Cécile and Jacques had not been hit by the Iranian authorities, but so far we have had no concrete sign of life, nor any direct contact with them," she says. Following the Israeli strike, the Iranian prison authorities announced the transfer of a number of prisoners to other prisons. But the family doesn't know if the couple are among them. "We know nothing about their situation, we're extremely worried, we imagine they've been transferred too, but we don't know where," explains Noémie. Until now, Cécile, a 40-year-old literature teacher, and Jacques, a 71-year-old retired mathematics teacher, have been held in section 209 of Evin prison, where political prisoners and foreign nationals are detained. "On 6 October 2023, they were forced to make forced confessions on Iranian television. They were made to confess that they were agents of the French intelligence services," explains Noémie, who claims that the couple were on a tourist trip when they were arrested on 7 May 2022. Noémie's last contact with her sister was on 28 May 2025. "We can't call her, she always calls us and it's very random, it's up to her jailers. It's almost always WhatsApp videos of between three and ten minutes under close surveillance, sometimes we wait a month, sometimes three," she explains. Under these conditions, it is difficult for the family to speak freely with Noémie. "Every time we call each other, her face is surrounded by a very tight chador [a head covering similar to a hijab] and through her body language, we know that there are people around her, we hear people whispering around her, we feel that she is under pressure," she adds. Since their imprisonment in May 2022, Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris have been granted just four consular visits. The French government lodged an application against Iran with the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on 16 May, designating them as "state hostages" and accusing Iran of violating the right to consular protection enshrined in the Vienna Convention. "On 30 May 2025, following France's request, Cécile and Jacques received their fifth consular visit in three years. We were told that they still have no furniture, that they sleep on the floor in a windowless cell that is lit 24 hours a day. They only see daylight three times a week and go out into an inner courtyard for around 30 minutes," explains Noémie. "Since December 2024, they have been waiting for a verdict, which they are told will be extremely severe and imminent, but it never arrives - it's psychological torture," she adds. She believes that Cécile and Jacques' condition has deteriorated rapidly in recent months: "They are increasingly weakened by their detention, they are getting worse and worse, they are at the end of their tether. They really doubt France's ability to get them out of there." In an article published on X on 21 June, French President Emmanuel Macron stated that he had called for the release of the French couple during a call with Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian: "Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris must be released. Their inhumane detention is unjust. I expect them to return to France." Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris are officially the last French nationals detained in Iran, following the release of Olivier Grondeau in March 2025, who was imprisoned in October 2022. On 20 June, the Iranian news agency Tasnim announced that a European citizen, whose nationality was not disclosed, had recently been arrested in Iran, accused of "spying in sensitive areas" of the country. According to estimates by the NGO Hostage Aid Worldwide, around 15 Europeans and dual nationals from Sweden, France, Switzerland, Cyprus, Germany and the UK are imprisoned in Iran. Human rights groups accuse Tehran of practising a policy of hostage diplomacy, using Europeans and dual nationals as "bargaining chips" to facilitate its negotiations with the West.
