French President Macron slapped, two people held
French President Emmanuel Macron was slapped in the face during a visit to southern France before he was quickly pulled away unharmed by his bodyguards. In a video posted online, a man wearing a standard Covid facemask exchanges a few words with Macron as the president approaches the crowd during a visit in the town of Tain L’Hermitage. As Macron grips his arm, the man hits the head of state on his left cheek before being controlled by the presidential security detail. Two people, both 28-years-old were arrested, local authorities said.
PARIS: French President Emmanuel Macron was slapped on Tuesday in the face by a bystander during a visit to the town of Tain-l’Hermitage in southeast France’s Drome region. Macron’s office confirmed a video of the incident widely circulating online.
In the video, Macron is seen reaching out his hand to greet a man in a small crowd of onlookers standing behind a metal barrier after the president visited a training college for the hospitality industry.
The man shouts “Down with Macronia” and then slaps the French president on his left cheek. He can also be heard shouting “Montjoie Saint Denis”, the battle cry of the French army when the country was still a monarchy.
Two people were arrested following the incident, a police source told Reuters. The identity of the man who slapped Macron, and his motive, were unclear.
Macron was on a visit to the Drome region to meet restaurateurs and students and talk about returning to a normal life after the Covid-19 pandemic.
It was one of a series of visits he is making, his aides say, to get a feel of the nation’s pulse before a presidential election next year. After a brief pause, he continued his visit to the region.