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NZ Herald
6 days ago
- Politics
- NZ Herald
French President Francois Mitterrand gave green light to bombing – Rainbow Warrior: A Forgotten History
'He was lying because he was involved.' Over the course of the series we've heard from three key French witnesses about Mitterrand's level of responsibility in the bombing of the Greenpeace boat in Auckland Harbour 40 years ago. Colonel Jean-Luc Kister, the man who placed the bombs on the hull of the boat and who would go on to lead the combat dive unit, said Mitterrand would have had to sign off on the operation. 'Francois Mitterrand, yes, it's clear that such a clandestine operation at that level, they request all the time the green fire from the President.' (Kister's phrase 'green fire' – a direct translation of the French 'feu vert' - means the green light.) Kister said Mitterrand would have had to go if it was proven he knew about the operation. Hubert Vedrine, the former French Minister of Foreign Affairs, who for decades was one of Mitterrand's closest confidants, says the French President told him face-to-face that he had 'confirmed the instructions' his Minister of Defence had given to the DGSE, the French spy service. However, Vedrine maintained that those instructions were simply to 'neutralise' the zone around the French nuclear testing site at Mururoa and to continue the tests. From there, it was up to the defence ministry and the spy service to put those instructions into action. He said there was a big gap between Mitterrand's instructions and what happened. But Vedrine – who, in one form or another has advised every French president over the past five decades – said in another context that he was 'not 100% for transparency'. He was speaking in relation to former French President Francois Hollande's acknowledgement that he had ordered the assassinations of French citizens who had joined Isis – another off-the-books operation by France, shrouded in state secrecy. Plenel said Defence Minister Charles Hernu and DGSE boss Admiral Pierre Lacoste were forced out of their jobs after the French Government admitted that the Rainbow Warrior bombers were following orders. But the parliamentary inquiry that was promised never eventuated as it would have been too dangerous for Mitterrand. While France paid compensation to the family of Fernando Pereira, Greenpeace and the New Zealand Government, Mitterrand remained in power for another 10 years. He died a year later in 1996 from prostate cancer – an illness he had concealed from the French public throughout his presidency. Rainbow Warrior: A Forgotten History is a six-episode true crime series. Follow the series on iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes are released on Thursdays. The series is hosted and produced by John Daniell and Noelle McCarthy of Bird of Paradise Productions in co-production with the NZ Herald. Rainbow Warrior: A Forgotten History is supported by New Zealand on Air.
NZ Herald
05-08-2025
- Entertainment
- NZ Herald
Book of the day: Liar's Game by Jack Beaumont
Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech. Beijing airport: Scene of the crime in a twisty tale featuring the Chinese secret service. Photo / Getty Images Jack Beaumont is the pseudonym of an ex-operative for the DGSE, the French equivalent of the CIA. Liar's Game is the third thriller featuring spy Alec de Payns, which has seen Beaumont become a surefire bestseller in Australia, where he now lives with his wife and children. When an apparent North Korean defector is killed at Beijing airport while de Payns is attempting an extraction, questions begin to be asked: is there a traitor in the service, or is this an elaborate power play by a faction in the government to wrest back power over the agency? Will the blame for the botched operation be laid at our protagonist's feet? There's also an ongoing case of a wealthy Russian businessman who is buying up South-East Asian cybersecurity technology, and a French tech executive who is unwittingly in the cross hairs of the Chinese secret service. If that's not enough, de Payns is trying to salvage his relationship with his wife, an OECD economist, who is becoming increasingly resentful of his job and the effect it has on him. He's day drinking and mentally brittle after decades of service – a job where most burn out in five years. Beaumont's intelligence background means there are plenty of authentic trade craft and real-world operational details, as well as vivid descriptions of the challenges of working clandestinely in cities across Europe and Asia. De Payn's day-to-day life – clearly based on Beaumont's experience – involves living under various aliases as required by the job, one day a man 'working in computers', the next a post-grad tech student, the next a European tourist. There's also – inevitably – a beautiful Russian woman, who de Payns must befriend, a process helped by his good looks and quick wit. But will she be the first to challenge his rule of not having sex with a target and remain true to his wife? While Beaumont's not the prose master John Le Carré was, his writing is clear, concise and engaging and shines in action set pieces, which are never overplayed. A daring, airborne escape from Vietnam after another botched operation is a highlight. And, like Le Carré, Beaumont writes of the unending bureaucracy of the service, budget constraints and inter-departmental rivalries (Beaumont provides a handy diagram of the complex French intelligence agencies as an afternote). That leads to some levity in what is otherwise a pretty dense narrative, as our protagonist laments the strict service allowance for DGSE meals while on the job and contends that '… if you wanted to find the French spy on a plane, just ask all the passengers to empty their pockets; the one with a small pile of €10 receipts was probably from the DGSE.' Much of the novel's plot focuses on AI, cybersecurity and quantum computing, and the competition between powers to gain advantage in the escalating tech race ‒ all timely subjects. Beaumont is excellent at describing the mental toll that clandestine work can take while also relaying the sense of camaraderie built between team members whose lives depend on each other, because, as de Payns will find out, sometimes those you work for will turn their backs as soon as things go wrong. Liar's Game is another excellent addition to the series and a must-read for spy-fiction aficionados.
NZ Herald
30-07-2025
- NZ Herald
Black pantyhose helped NZ police nail French spies – Rainbow Warrior: A Forgotten History
Jean Luc Kister, one of the pair of combat divers who planted the bombs on the Rainbow Warrior, explains that the team was given orders to drop the bottles in Auckland Harbour. Although the air was let out, the bottles still washed up. Maurice Whitham, who was second in command of the investigation, says that gave police a lead to follow. They contacted France's Nato allies, the British Navy, who gave them a dive bottle supplied only to the French military. 'Our scientists went through this whole thing of checking the bottles found in Auckland Harbour with the one given to us from the British. The construction of the thing was identical.' The second part of the match, involving the pantyhose, fell to young Constable Nick Hall, who spoke French and had been sent to Paris as part of a small police team. Whitham recalls that Hall was tasked with buying 'some black pantyhose like grandma would wear with the seam down the back. And so he was going around all these shops. We suspected he was being followed wherever he went.' Whitham laughs about it now. 'They must have been thinking 'he's pretty kinky this fella''. Ultimately, after Hall brought home about a dozen samples, scientists discovered one pair was an identical match to the pantyhose on the oxygen bottle. They were made on a very old 1945 machine and never exported from France. As Whitham put it, 'Suddenly we were getting there...' Kister and the other diver had escaped, so linking the bottles and the pantyhose back to France was important for the police case against DGSE officers Alain Mafart and Dominique Prieur, who still denied involvement in the bombing. The oxygen bottle wrapped in black pantyhose used by the French spies who bombed the Rainbow Warrior. Photo / Maurice Whitham Meanwhile, the police team in Paris found the early co-operation from their French counterparts had mysteriously dried up, apparently because of orders from higher up. They were getting most of their useful information from the French newspapers, which Hall translated for his colleagues each day. They did not know at the time that behind the scenes, Pierre Verbrugghe, a high-ranking French police officer was pushing French journalist Edwy Plenel towards the truth. Plenel, who explained Verbrugghe's crucial role to the Rainbow Warrior: A Forgotten History series, says he met several times with his police source, but the most important meeting was in a Paris restaurant. Plenel said they had 'a very long conversation with good cooking and many, many alcohols, very long in the night and you don't take notes, you must remember what he said'. The story about a previously unknown third team in the Rainbow Warrior operation – published by Le Monde the week after that boozy restaurant meeting – would break open the case and lead to the French Government admitting guilt. Rainbow Warrior: A Forgotten History is a six-episode true crime series. Follow the series on iHeartRadio, Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. New episodes are released on Thursdays. The series is hosted and produced by John Daniell and Noelle McCarthy of Bird of Paradise Productions in co-production with the NZ Herald. Rainbow Warrior: A Forgotten History is supported by NZ on Air.
LeMonde
26-07-2025
- Sport
- LeMonde
Paris's Georges-Vallerey pool combines a seaside resort with the Olympic spirit
With its two large concrete pilasters that give it the stature of a Doric temple and its pediment bearing the five Olympic rings, the Georges-Vallerey pool makes an impression as soon as you enter. Inaugurated in 1924 for the Paris Olympic Games, this emblematic pool in the 20 th arrondissement, located above the Place des Lilas, recently reconnected with its past: It was one of the training pools for the Paris 2024 Olympics. With the water temperature set at 27°C, a reduced staff and security provided by France's foreign intelligence agency, the DGSE (whose offices are next door), the pool's brand-new director, Christopher Sadones, was unlikely to forget the logistics involved in the event. "Léon Marchand trained in lane 4," he said. "My only regret is that I didn't dare ask him for a photo." A former lifeguard, water polo player and coach, Sadones, a high-level athlete, is a fitting reflection of this competition pool. Throughout the year, his 50-meter pool attracts strong swimmers from the neighborhood and beyond, some of whom are members of the SCUF (Sporting Club Universitaire de France), whose swimming division is one of the most renowned in Paris. "Here, you can see some truly beautiful freestyles," confirmed the creator of the Instagram account Nageuse Parisienne, dedicated to Paris' swimming pools, who is a regular at the facility and wishes to remain anonymous. "There are those who slap the water with their hands, those who slice through it as if trying to part it. Some movements are quick, others slow and very elongated." The Georges-Vallerey pool boasts another major asset: its large retractable roof, which takes just six minutes to open when the outdoor temperature reaches 25°C, adding a cheerful, seaside feeling to its sporting atmosphere.
Metro
22-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Metro
Steven Knight's 'compelling' thriller series quietly added to free streamer
A thriller series starring Elisabeth Moss is now streaming for free (Picture: FX) A week after her long-running series The Handmaid's Tale came to an end, UK fans can now binge an 'underrated' thriller starring Elisabeth Moss. Released on Hulu in the US and on Disney Plus locally last year, The Veil was written by Steven Knight, best known for creating Peaky Blinders and SAS: Rogue Heroes. Ahead of its release, it was teased the cat-and-mouse storyline would appeal to fans of Killing Eve and promised to keep viewers on the edge of their seats. 'The Veil explores the surprising and fraught relationship between two women who play a deadly game of truth and lies on the road from Istanbul to Paris and London,' the official synopsis said. 'One woman has a secret, the other a mission to reveal it before thousands of lives are lost. In the shadows, mission controllers at the CIA and French DGSE must put differences aside and work together to avert potential disaster.' Elisabeth plays Imogen Salter, a veteran MI6 agent with a specialty in undercover work. The Veil follows two women engaged in a 'deadly game of truths and lies' (Picture: FX) To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Up Next Previous Page Next Page The Veil also stars Yumna Marwan as Adilah El Idrissi, a French woman suspected of being an ISIS leader planning an attack on the West, Dali Benssalah as Malik Amar, an agent with French intelligence agency DGSE and Imogen's boyfriend, and Josh Charles as Max Peterson, an obnoxious CIA agent collaborating with Malik and Imogen. After a two year wait for the show to hit screens, a year later UK fans can now finally also tune in for free. This week Channel 4 uploaded the entire series to its streaming service. Although the six-episode series divided critics and fans, those who did love it gave glowing reviews. 'Exciting and astonishing, The Veil beautifully balances stunt-filled escapades and a rich narrative,' Variety wrote. It was originally released last year and is now available on Channel 4 (Picture: FX) 'Overall, The Veil seems like a fun show to get lost in as you unravel the mystery each week,' Common Sense Media shared. 'By the end of the six episodes of The Veil, I was convinced that this is Moss' best role, and best performance, yet. She's amazing,' NPR added. Meanwhile fans said it was 'utterly compelling', 'underrated' and 'full of constant twists'. After her breakout role as Zoey Bartlet in The West Wing, Moss went on to star as Peggy Olson in Mad Men, before playing June/ Offred in The Handmaid's Tale, which ran from 2017 until this year. Speaking to RTE ahead of the initial premiere of The Veil, the actress said this had been one of her hardest roles to date. The series was created by Peaky Blinders' Steven Knight (Picture: Alan Chapman/ Dave Benett/ WireImage) 'It was much more challenging than I've ever experienced given the different skills and different things I had to do with the dialect, the stunts, fight training, and speaking a couple of different languages here and there, and then traveling around the world, so it definitely felt like, if possible, I've found something even more challenging than The Handmaid's Tale,' she said. During filming she even fractured a vertebrae in her back, an injury that left her lying on a roof in Istanbul for two hours. After 'hitting a wall the wrong way' when undertaking a stunt, Moss was still determined to push on and was back on set the next day, but with limited mobility. 'I didn't know if we were going to be able to come back and shoot on this rooftop in the Grand Bazaar in Istanbul. It's not like that is an easy thing to accomplish. But luckily, we, as a production, and then FX, thank God, let us go back and shoot it again. Which was incredible, an incredible opportunity,' she told Variety. Got a story? If you've got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@ calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we'd love to hear from you. Arrow MORE: South Park scores groundbreaking $1,500,000,000 deal after fans vow to cancel streaming subscriptions Arrow MORE: Malcolm-Jamal Warner's powerful 'last message' leaves fans heartbroken Arrow MORE: 7 of the most thrilling TV shows to watch for Shark Week
