French deep tech spinout Diamfab crystallizes hopes for diamond semiconductors to support green transition

As more funding flows into deep tech to address difficult global problems like climate change, PhD entrepreneurs coming out of Europe’s top universities and labs are increasingly turning their research into companies. French spinout Diamfab, founded in 2019, is one example. Its co-founders, CEO Gauthier Chicot and CTO Khaled Driche, both PhDs in nanoelectronics and … Read more

French lawmakers are weighing a bill banning all types of hair discrimination

PARIS — French lawmakers are debating a bill Thursday that would ban discrimination over the texture, length, color or style of someone’s hair. Its authors hope the groundbreaking measure sends a message of support to Black people and others who have faced hostility in the workplace and beyond because of their hair. “It’s about time,” … Read more

Lebanese authorities detain suspected French drug dealer days after releasing him on bail

BEIRUT — Lebanese authorities Friday detained a suspected French drug dealer a few days after releasing him on bail, judicial officials said. The officials said members of Lebanon’s General Security Directorate detained Abdel Karim Touil at the request of the country’s prosecutor general and he was being held at the Justice Palace in Beirut. Officials … Read more

Philippe de Gaulle, naval commander and son of French leader, dies at 102

Philippe de Gaulle, a longtime French naval commander who carried a family legacy as the eldest child of wartime hero and president Charles de Gaulle, but who described his famous lineage as both an honor and burden, died March 13 in Paris. He was 102. The death, at a veterans’ hospital, was announced by the … Read more

French startup Nijta hopes to protect voice privacy in AI use cases

A recording of your voice may seem innocuous, but it can actually reveal your identity, as well as additional data about you, such as how you are feeling. But it can also uncover diseases from which you may suffer. People may not have grasped this yet, but companies that process data are increasingly aware that … Read more

A French frigate ‘destroys’ a German sub in Norway’s waters in NATO’s biggest drills since Cold War

ABOARD THE FRENCH FRIGATE NORMANDIE — Large NATO drills in the frigid fjords of northern Norway may be just war games meant to hone the fighting skills of the newly expanded 32-nation military alliance. But for troops taking part, they are very real. And that’s the whole point. With drills underway now, NATO is baring … Read more

French lawmakers gather for historic vote to make abortion a constitutional right

PARIS — A bill to enshrine a woman’s right to an abortion in the French Constitution goes to a historic vote on Monday, as lawmakers gathered for a joint session of parliament at the Palace of Versailles on Monday. The measure was promised by President Emmanuel Macron following a rollback of abortion rights in court … Read more

French police hunt an assailant who attacked a man near a Paris synagogue

PARIS — French authorities were searching for an assailant who attacked a man leaving a synagogue in Paris, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said. Darmanin said late Saturday that the alleged attack on Friday evening targeting a man in his early 60s was “a new antisemitic attack that occurred in Paris.” “Everything is being done to … Read more

French actor urges lawmakers to investigate sex crimes and sexism in the film industry

PARIS — The woman leading a push for a reckoning about sexual abuse in France’s world-renowned cinema industry urged lawmakers Thursday to establish a commission to investigate sex crimes and sexism in the sector. With French film-making in the spotlight ahead of the Oscars next month, Judith Godrèche gave emotional testimony to a French Senate … Read more

French police might throw Kanye West’s wife Bianca Censori in jail

Bianca Censori risks facing jail or fine after a bold outing with Kanye West in Paris French police might throw Kanye West’s wife Bianca Censori in jail Kanye West’s wife, Bianca Censori, has continued her streak of wearing bold outfits that is – now – at risk of inviting jail time from the French authorities … Read more