'I'm not anti-Semite,' French footballer Anelka says amid rowFrench footballer Nicolas Anelka on Sunday strongly defended a controversial gesture he made during a weekend match, saying "I am neither anti-Semite nor racist", even as British football authorities mulled possible punishment.
Coloured tattoos escape ban in FranceTattoo artists in France, who were up in arms about a government ban on certain dyes, say the health ministry has reassured them they will be able to keep using coloured ink, attributing the uproar to a misunderstanding of thousands of pages of regulations.
Chinese billionaire feared dead in France helicopter crashFour people were feared dead Saturday including a Chinese billionaire and his 12-year-old son after the helicopter in which he was overflying his newly purchased French vineyard crashed into a river.
21 December 2013
French Revolution's 'monster' gets modern diagnosisDepending on what you read, Maximilien de Robespierre was a defender of the poor and downtrodden -- "the Incorruptible" who defended the values of the French Revolution to the end.
21 December 2013
Hollande hopes Poland to join French troops in CARFrench President Francois Hollande said he expected Poland to announce Friday that it would provide military backing for France's troops in the Central African Republic.
20 December 2013
China to build two new Antarctic bases: state mediaChinese workers are on their way to build the country's fourth Antarctic research base and a fifth is being planned, state-run media said Thursday as the country expands its imprint on the icy continent.
20 December 2013
EU finance ministers reach banking union dealEU finance ministers Wednesday reached a banking union accord which will hand Brussels unprecedented new powers to prevent failing banks from wrecking the economy, official sources said.
19 December 2013
Nearly 1,000 killed by ex-rebels in C. Africa capital: AmnestyThe Central African Republic's mostly Muslim ex-rebels killed nearly 1,000 people in the capital Bangui two weeks ago in a rampage avenging deadly Christian militia attacks, Amnesty International said in a report Thursday.
Up to 500 dead in South Sudan clashes: UNClashes between rival army factions in South Sudan have left up to 500 dead and 800 wounded, a top UN official told the UN Security Council on Tuesday.
18 December 2013
Eurozone ministers make progress on Banking UnionEurozone finance ministers said early Wednesday they had made progress on a new bank regulatory system, especially on the funding of a mechanism to close failing banks before they damage the economy.
Hollande vows to share French technology with BrazilFrench President Francois Hollande, on a state visit to Brazil, on touted his country's readiness Thursday to share its technological know-how with the emerging South American powerhouse.
13 December 2013
French court urged to extradite Kazakhstan tycoon AblyazovProsecutors on Thursday urged a French court to grant requests from Russia and Ukraine for the extradition of exiled Kazakh oligarch Mukhtar Ablyazov wanted on embezzlement charges.
13 December 2013
Boko Haram leader claims Dec. 2 attack in new videoBoko Haram's leader said in a video obtained by AFP on Thursday that the group was behind a daring raid on military installations in the north Nigerian city of Maiduguri earlier this month.
$1mn Picasso yours for just $135Still stumped for a Christmas present? Then what about an exquisite $1 million Picasso for the living room, yours for just $135 at an online charity raffle.
04 December 2013
Cartier the 'King of Jewellers' shines in Paris expoFrom the royal diadem worn by Kate Middleton at her wedding to an outsized maharaja's necklace, hundreds of glimmering treasures go on show this week in a major Paris exhibit on Cartier.