Anonymous sources
Expatica France
24/05/2012French leader's Brazil visit could hasten decision on jets - Expatica France
French President Francois Hollande's visit to Brazil next month for the Rio+20 summit could help hasten Brasilia's decision on a contract to buy 36 next-generation fighter jets, a government official said Wednesday. The Rafale fighter, made by French ...
21/05/2012EU lays foundations for new 'growth' plan - Expatica France
The European Parliament is to be asked to approve the plans on Tuesday, "so that we can deliver this pilot phase in time for Wednesday's dinner," in the words of a top EU diplomat who asked to remain anonymous. But sceptics among leaders will only ...
21/03/2012French shootings: Neighbours heard shots in early hours - Expatica France
"There was always a lot of people there," said one woman, who refused to give her name. Shots rang out at around 3:00 am (0200 GMT) witnesses said. One described these as an exchange of fire, and police sources had earlier said two officers were ...
Statue of Carla Bruni as a worker angers France - Expatica France
A source close to Bruni-Sarkozy said she agreed to model for sculptor Elisabeth Cibot as she admires her work, but that "it was never suggested that her name would appear." Modelling "is her former job, she no longer does it commercially, ...
'Omar the Syrian': journalist-activist killed in Homs - Expatica France
He wanted their lives to be less bitter," said a childhood friend who has now left Syria and who also did not wish to be identified. Video footage of his funeral has been posted on the Internet that shows a crowd carrying his body inside Omar bin ...
26/01/2012French launch probe into Petroplus bankruptcy: legal source - Expatica France
Prosecutors in Nanterre, near Paris, opened the probe over suspicions that Petroplus-France, which runs a refinery in Normandy, northern France, is missing 100 million euros ($130 million) from its accounts, the source said. The source was confirming a ...
02/10/2011Kenya in bid to get French woman released - Expatica France
Kenya has "already sent envoys to Somalia to establish contact with the abductors," the official, who asked not to be named for fear of jeopardising the talks, told AFP Sunday. He said talks were ongoing and described them as "an extension of the talks ...
27/09/2011France confirms working on new finance plan - Expatica France
Officials, speaking off the record, said that France was pushing "strong" measures to shore up both Greece and its own banking sector, but that it will not announce them until the German parliament's verdict is known. Still, just the rumour of a plan ...
22/09/2011Opus Dei members in Paris dock for 'brainwashing' - Expatica France
Catherine T., who has asked not to be identified by her family name, said she joined a hoteliers' school in northeastern France in 1985, aged 14, which she later discovered was run by associates of Opus Dei. She said she was forced to take vows and ...
20/09/2011Siemens withdrew cash from Societe Generale: source - Expatica France
A source close to the matter said Siemens had placed a short-term investment at the Societe Generale and when the placement matured, decided to transfer the funds to the ECB where the deposit would perform better than if placed at a bank. ...
French couple still missing but yacht found: Yemen official - Expatica France
The official, who declined to be named, said the coalition forces operating in international waters had found their yacht but not the husband and wife who reportedly were on round-the-world voyage. "Coalition forces (operating in international waters) ...
26/08/2011Eurotunnel workers to decide Saturday on strike - Expatica France
"There has been a warning of a strike, we will see tomorrow morning if the strike will be held or not," a union official who requested anonymity told AFP. Talks between Eurotunnel and the unions, which are demanding a 14th month of salary, ...
25/07/2011News anchor quizzed in Strauss-Kahn French case - Expatica France
Patrick Poivre d'Arvor, the popular former presenter of the prime-time news on French channel TF1, was questioned by investigators from the Paris violent crimes squad, said the sources close to the enquiry, who asked not to be named. ...
04/07/2011Strauss-Kahn conspiracy theories resurface - Expatica France
A source close to the case who asked not to be named told AFP that the management of the Sofitel New York informed Accor of Strauss-Kahn's arrest within an hour of it happening, and Accor then told the French presidency. "The question of timing is ...
28/06/2011Lagarde IMF job: victory for France after scandal - Expatica France
An official in Sarkozy's office, who asked not to be named, called it "a victory for France," in comments to AFP. The French presidency has remained virtually silent on the Strauss-Kahn affair, though Environment Minister Nathalie Kosciusko-Morizet at ...
10/03/2011Sarkozy threatens Libya air strikes: source - Expatica France
French President Nicolas Sarkozy favours air strikes on Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi's command base, a source said Thursday, as France became the first country to formally embrace Libya's rebels. At an EU summit he will propose "striking an extremely ...
10/03/2011Sarkozy to propose air strikes in Libya: source - Expatica France
French President Nicolas Sarkozy will propose air strikes on Libyan leader Moamer Kadhafi's command headquarters to EU leaders, a source close to discussions told AFP on Thursday. At an EU summit on the Libyan crisis, he will propose "striking an ...
09/03/2011France to airlift Bangladeshis fleeing Libya: source - Expatica France
"We are going to run an airlift for about 12000 Bangladeshis with the financial support of Saudi Arabia," said the source, who asked not to be named. The Bangladeshis were working in Libya and have fled penniless across the border into Tunisia to ...
Ransom paid for three hostages freed in Niger: source - Expatica France
A ransom was paid to free three nationals of France, Madagascar and Togo who were taken hostage by an Al-Qaeda regional offshoot in Niger in September, a source close to the negotiations said Friday. "We were able to convince the abductors that the ...
17/02/2011G20 finance doctors seek to define symptoms - Expatica France
"We're not starting out with a prescriptive approach as to exactly what the nature of these policies should be, and how they should be deployed," added the US official, who asked not to be named. Another source close to the negotiations said there has ...
Europe looking at Egypt asset freeze, decision next week - Expatica France
"We are not considering a freeze on Mubarak's assets because the Egyptians have not asked us to," said a diplomat who asked not to be identified. ...
15/02/2011Sarkozy to make 'very short' Turkey visit: diplomat - Expatica France
... the current chairman of the G-20 group of leading economies for a visit of "five or six hours," the diplomat, who asked not to be named, told reporters. ...
10/02/2011Daimler hit by EADS insider trading charges: source - Expatica France
... with insider trading in a high-profile case relating to the sale of EADS shares in 2005 and 2006, said the official, who asked not to be named. ...
07/01/2011France probes embassy bombing in Mali: source - Expatica France
State prosecutors have asked France's domestic intelligence agency DCRI to investigate Wednesday's attack, the judicial source who asked not to be named ...
26/11/2010Air France fingers Airbus, Thales over 2009 crash - Expatica France
... crash that it was not to blame and indirectly accused manufacturers Airbus and Thales over faulty speed probes, a source close to the inquiry told AFP. ...