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Yahoo
5 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Who Is French President Emmanuel Macron's Wife, Brigitte Macron? All About the Former Teacher and Her Relationship with the Politician
French President Emmanuel Macron has been with his wife, Brigitte, for nearly two decades. After meeting the former high school teacher while the now-president was a student, the pair tied the knot in 2007. During a September 2017 conversation with CNN, Emmanuel, who became president in 2017, said that "love" is a big part of the "balance" in his life. 'Love is part of my life and my balance,' he said. 'I do believe that you don't build something great and you don't behave properly if you're not balanced and a strong couple. I've been with my wife for decades now and she's part of me.' More recently, on May 25, a video circulated the internet that appeared to show Emmanuel being pushed in the face by his wife. According to French outlet Le Figaro, a palace official responded to the clip by claiming it was "a moment when the president and his wife were relaxing one last time before the start of the trip by having a laugh." "it was a moment of closeness," the official added, per the news agency. So, who is Emmanuel Macron's wife? Here's everything to know about Brigitte Macron and her relationship with the French president. Brigitte and Emmanuel met when he was a student at Le Providence, a Catholic school in northern France. Brigitte worked as a drama teacher and was 39 years old at the time, while Emmanuel was 15. The president's parents originally thought he was seeing Brigitte's daughter, but when they found out he had feelings for the teacher, they sent him to boarding school. "Emmanuel had to leave for Paris," she told Paris Match. "I told myself that he would fall in love with someone his [own] age. It didn't happen." The two kept in touch over the years, but Brigitte was married at the time and had three children who were around Emmanuel's age, and she chose to prioritize them. "That lasted 10 years, the time to put them on the rails. You can imagine what they were hearing," she said. "But I didn't want to miss out on my life." Brigitte, who is 25 years older than Emmanuel, was already married for three years before he was born in December 1977. She admitted in an interview with France's RTL radio station that having an age gap in their relationship has been difficult. "We are not a model couple," Brigitte said. "Of course we are not the ideal couple. Being a couple is complicated, it's an everyday struggle (...) When you have a big age difference, it can be even more complicated." She added, however, that she doesn't feel the word "cougar" applies to her, and is offensive. "What is this word, it doesn't describe anything!" she said. "I have always been attracted to men of my age. Except Emmanuel Macron, who was the exception." Brigitte and her first husband André-Louis Auzière, a banker, had three children together: Sébastien, Laurence and Tiphaine. She also has seven grandchildren. All of Brigitte's children went on to be successful in their own careers, becoming a cardiologist, lawyer and a statistical engineer. When Brigitte started her relationship with Emmanuel, she knew that it would hurt her children, but after putting it off for a decade, she also realized she had to do what would make her happy. 'I know that I have hurt my children, and that is the thing I reproach myself for the most. But I couldn't not do it,' she told Elle in December 2017. 'There are times in your life when you make critical choices. And for me, this was one of those times.' Emmanuel and Brigitte tied the knot in 2007, a year afer she divorced her ex-husband, who later died in 2019. Before the reception, Brigitte told Paris Match that Emmanuel thanked her children for supporting their relationship. 'Thanks for accepting us, a not-quite-normal couple,' he said. The politician has cited his wife as his 'anchor,' helping to keep him honest and focused in his job, without sparing him the truth. 'For me, it's very important for my personal balance to have somebody at home telling you the truth every day,' he told CNN. He continued, 'Access to truth is one of the main challenges. Somebody with her deep convictions and knowing you for what you are and loving you for what you are — not for what you represent or your role or your honors … That is very important to me. That is my anchor.' Brigitte confirmed to Elle that she and her husband try to avoid spending nights apart if possible, even with his busy schedule. 'It comforts me when Emmanuel is by my side,' she said. 'I wouldn't want to speak for him, but I'm pretty sure he feels the same way. We're just like any other couple. We agree, we disagree. We argue, we stop arguing. It's very fluid.' Brigitte added that while she used to be a 'big worrier' before she married Emmanuel, since they got together they both have ceased worrying as much. 'A bit like the Platonic idea that you meet your better half and you fit together,' she said. 'Given our age difference, that fit wasn't so obvious for us, but we fit. When I read about us as a couple, I always feel like I'm reading someone else's story. Yet it's a simple story.' In July 2024, Emmanuel and Brigitte were spotted at the Paris Olympics. The couple attended the opening ceremony, as well as several sporting events. On May 25, a video emerged of what appeared to be Emmanuel being pushed in the face by Brigitte as they arrived in Hanoi, Vietnam, and exited the presidential plane. According to ABC News, Emmanuel played down the incident, telling reporters, "We are bickering and joking with my wife and a video becomes a sort of geoplanetary catastrophe." "In the world we live in, we don't have a lot of time to lose" on discussing such topics, he added. Per the outlet, Emmanuel also denied any "domestic scene," and said that it was "all a bit of nonsense." Read the original article on People
Middle East Eye
6 days ago
- Politics
- Middle East Eye
Opinion: 'France's Muslim Brotherhood report is manufacturing a threat'
A new government report, presented by France's Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau, revives the spectre of the Muslim Brotherhood as an underground Islamist threat poised to capture local and national institutions. But behind this alarmist framing lies a deeper political strategy: to delegitimise non-compliant Muslim political participation ahead of the 2026 and 2027 elections, and to bolster the far-right parties as the most credible guardians of the republic against a manufactured enemy. On 21 May, a confidential report - drafted by two civil servants and initially classified as "Secret Défense" before being leaked to Le Figaro - was presented to France's National Security Council. It warned of an alleged strategy of "entrism" by Muslim Brotherhood-linked actors to infiltrate and gradually transform public institutions, including schools, town halls, and sports associations. While the report offered no specific names or data, it was swiftly amplified by government officials and conservative media figures. Retailleau described it as evidence of "Islamist submersion", while former Prime Minister Gabriel Attal called for new legislation on "separatism", including a hijab ban for girls under 15. The narrative is familiar - and so is the timing.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Emmanuel Macron pushed in face by wife - as his office plays down video of 'squabble'
A video showing Emmanuel Macron being pushed in the face by his wife has been played down by the French president's office. Brigitte Macron placed her hands on her husband's face as they prepared to exit their plane after touching down in Vietnam at the start of a South East Asia tour. is seen taking a step back before he recovers and waves to the cameras at the bottom of the aircraft stairs. The pair then walk down the steps together. The Elysee initially denied the authenticity of images of the interaction before eventually verifying they were real, French media reported. Read more from Sky News: The clip has sparked suggestions of an argument between the pair but an Elysee official played down the moment. A source close to the president told the Le Figaro newspaper the pair had "squabbled" but it was a "moment of closeness". The Elysee official denied the video showed a row between the couple, who have been married since 2007. "It was a moment when the president and his wife were relaxing one last time before the start of the trip by having a laugh," the official said.
Middle East Eye
6 days ago
- Politics
- Middle East Eye
France's Muslim Brotherhood report is manufacturing a threat
A new government report, presented by France's Interior Minister Bruno Retailleau, revives the spectre of the Muslim Brotherhood as an underground Islamist threat poised to capture local and national institutions. But behind this alarmist framing lies a deeper political strategy: to delegitimise non-compliant Muslim political participation ahead of the 2026 and 2027 elections, and to bolster the far right parties as the most credible guardians of the republic against a manufactured enemy. On 21 May, a confidential report - drafted by two civil servants and initially classified as "Secret Défense" before being leaked to Le Figaro - was presented to France's National Security Council. It warned of an alleged strategy of "entrism" by Muslim Brotherhood-linked actors to infiltrate and gradually transform public institutions, including schools, town halls, and sports associations. While the report offered no specific names or data, it was swiftly amplified by government officials and conservative media figures. Retailleau described it as evidence of "Islamist submersion", while former Prime Minister Gabriel Attal called for new legislation on "separatism", including a hijab ban for girls under 15. The narrative is familiar - and so is the timing. New MEE newsletter: Jerusalem Dispatch Sign up to get the latest insights and analysis on Israel-Palestine, alongside Turkey Unpacked and other MEE newsletters With the far right gaining traction and the left showing signs of revival in urban constituencies, the French President Emmanuel Macron's government and the traditional right are converging around a securitarian consensus. Retailleau's dual role crystallises this alignment. The objective is not to counter Islamist influence, but to control electoral dynamics. After the near-defeat of the Rassemblement National (Le Pen's National Rally) in July 2024 - due largely to high turnout in left-leaning, working-class, Muslim-majority districts - the executive fears a repeat. A 'strategic' fear This fear is not ideological; it is strategic. The Gaza war has triggered widespread anger among French Muslims, particularly the youth. Many now view the state not just as indifferent, but complicit. For Muslims in France, there is no safe place Read More » In this climate, the prospect of renewed electoral mobilisation by Muslim voters is recast as a threat to national cohesion - not because of what it is, part of a widespread frustration with a failed voting system manipulated from the top, but because of what it disrupts: a well-established political machinery - the right and far right's race to dominate the narrative, rally conservative voters, and monopolise the field as the only viable custodians of republican order. But what do we actually know about the Muslim Brotherhood's real presence in French political life? Drawing on my 20 years of research on Islamist activism in France and my recent report on Muslim voting and political representation, I find no evidence of any coordinated electoral ambition linked to the Brotherhood networks. On the contrary, my fieldwork shows that the narrative of a "Muslim political project" has been disproportionately shaped by political actors - especially from the right and far right - who weaponise visibility to preemptively delegitimise future candidacies. What exists instead is a scattered, often localised landscape of civic engagement shaped less by religious ideology than by territorial injustice and political exclusion. If religion plays a role in electoral decisions, it intersects with class position, local trust in institutions, and varying interpretations of democratic participation. According to field interviews, Muslim voters are primarily motivated by concrete, everyday concerns: safe neighbourhoods, functioning public schools, and access to decent housing. This civic engagement often takes the form of defensive participation - attempts to protect one's dignity in a system where being Muslim and politically visible remains highly suspect. My research shows that even the most basic forms of civic expression, such as voting, are shaped by a desire to escape territorial discrimination rather than promote a religious agenda. The myth of a Muslim bloc vote is sustained by political fantasy - often co-constructed by extreme-right anti-Muslim rhetoric and opportunistic mobilisation on the left A significant share of socially conservative Muslims abstain, due to mistrust and a lack of credible representation by candidates who stigmatise them all year long but ask them to mobilise during elections "to block the far right". The myth of a Muslim bloc vote is sustained less by sociological reality than by political fantasy - often co-constructed by extreme-right anti-Muslim rhetoric and opportunistic mobilisation on the left. My findings show that such projections of cohesion obscure the diversity of political opinions among Muslims, which range from abstention to votes for mainstream left, centrist, or even conservative parties depending on the context. When minority candidates from Muslim backgrounds are elected, they rarely position themselves along sectarian lines. Instead, they embody a sociological normalisation of France's diversity where Muslim mayors and MPs are no longer considered exceptions. Imams, when they do offer voting instructions, do so more often at the request of candidates who canvass all their potential "constituencies" before elections than from their own initiative - much like in synagogues or churches before elections. Political utility Despite the disengagement of Brotherhood-inspired leadership and the disconnection between younger generations and any such legacy, the label persists. Not because it reflects a coherent political project, but because it offers the perfect scapegoat. In fact, Muslim electoral mobilisation in France is far behind that of comparable European countries where Muslim elected officials have become a structural feature of democratic life. Twenty years on, the French hijab ban is normalised across the political spectrum Read More » The government's strategy depends on ambiguity. The report's vagueness is not a flaw - it is intentional. By invoking an invisible enemy, the state gains rhetorical power: to justify increased surveillance, repress dissent, and perform toughness for conservative audiences. Despite this, even explicitly Muslim political formations like the Union des Démocrates Musulmans de France/Union of French Muslim Democrats (UDMF) or Parti Égalité Justice/Equality Justice Party (PEJ) have struggled to gain traction and acknowledgement, revealing that the "Muslim vote" is less an organised force than a projection of political anxiety. This securitarian agenda has deepened since 2017. Under the pretext of combating "separatism", France has closed mosques, dissolved NGOs, and restricted public expressions of dissent. These moves do not address violence; they police visibility. Muslim citizens are cast as a democratic firewall - useful only when voting against the far right, never empowered to vote for themselves. The real question This is not to dismiss all concerns about the rise of a rupture-oriented Islam among some young people as fabricated, but rather to argue that legitimate challenges - from addressing genuine disaffection to fostering authentic integration - are better addressed through inclusive democratic processes and representative politics than through surveillance and exclusion. When citizens feel their voices can be heard through the ballot box and institutional channels, they are less likely to seek alternatives outside the democratic framework. Many are tired of this. Fatigue is growing. The equation - vote for us to block Marie Le Pen's National Front - no longer resonates. After Gaza, the feeling is not just one of betrayal but of dispossession. When citizens feel their voices can be heard through the ballot box and institutional channels, they are less likely to seek alternatives outside the democratic framework This stems from France's political alignment with Israel during the war, its refusal to recognise the scale of civilian suffering in Gaza, and the repression of pro-Palestinian expression at home - from banning marches to silencing slogans. Many young Muslims experience this not as foreign policy, but as the confirmation that their grief, their voices, and their political concerns are structurally illegitimate in the public sphere. What haunts the political establishment is not radicalisation. It is the ballot box. The Brotherhood is not invoked because it poses a real threat to the republic. It is invoked because it provides a convenient frame to exclude and discredit a political subject that escapes official scripts: a post-colonial electorate that may no longer vote as expected. Unless this script changes, France risks pushing an entire generation further from its institutions. Abstention, disaffiliation, or fragile protest coalitions may follow - none of them manageable through repression or electoral criminalisation alone. The real question is not whether the Brotherhood is vampirising Muslim political claims and votes. It is why the French state still uses this frame to control the electoral behaviour of France's Muslims - revealing a profound misunderstanding of how younger generations of Muslims engage with politics today, and the full spectrum of their diversity. The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Eye.
See - Sada Elbalad
25-05-2025
- Politics
- See - Sada Elbalad
10 killed in road accident in Colombia
Basant Ahmed A university in Colombia reported that at least 10 people were killed when a bus carrying students and teachers crashed into a bridge barrier in the west of the country. Police Chief Luis Fernando Atuesta said, according to the French newspaper Le Figaro, that the accident occurred on a bridge in Quindío province, adding that 26 passengers were on board the bus. Atuesta explained that, according to preliminary investigations, the driver lost control of the vehicle, causing it to crash into the bridge's barrier. read more Gold prices rise, 21 Karat at EGP 3685 NATO's Role in Israeli-Palestinian Conflict US Expresses 'Strong Opposition' to New Turkish Military Operation in Syria Shoukry Meets Director-General of FAO Lavrov: confrontation bet. nuclear powers must be avoided News Iran Summons French Ambassador over Foreign Minister Remarks News Aboul Gheit Condemns Israeli Escalation in West Bank News Greek PM: Athens Plays Key Role in Improving Energy Security in Region News One Person Injured in Explosion at Ukrainian Embassy in Madrid News Egypt confirms denial of airspace access to US B-52 bombers News Ayat Khaddoura's Final Video Captures Bombardment of Beit Lahia News Australia Fines Telegram $600,000 Over Terrorism, Child Abuse Content Arts & Culture Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban's $4.7M LA Home Burglarized Sports Former Al Zamalek Player Ibrahim Shika Passes away after Long Battle with Cancer Sports Neymar Announced for Brazil's Preliminary List for 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers News Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly Inaugurates Two Indian Companies Arts & Culture New Archaeological Discovery from 26th Dynasty Uncovered in Karnak Temple Business Fear & Greed Index Plummets to Lowest Level Ever Recorded amid Global Trade War Arts & Culture Zahi Hawass: Claims of Columns Beneath the Pyramid of Khafre Are Lies
