France

Former French Prime Minister Edouard Balladur has died at 97, announced by his family. Balladur, who served from 1993 to 1995, was honoured by President Emmanuel Macron and PM Sebastien Lecornu as a devoted public servant and reformist statesman, marking his significant impact on French politics.

A lawyer for the chief defendant in a French mass rape trial on Wednesday, November 27, urged the court to recall his good side after prosecutors demanded lengthy jail terms for the dozens of suspects. The main defendant, Dominique Pelicot, has admitted enlisting dozens of strangers to rape his then-wife while she was drugged and unconscious.

Provisions for immunity from prosecution at the International Criminal Court (ICC) apply to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the French foreign ministry said on Wednesday, November 27. In a statement the ministry reaffirmed its commitment to international justice after the ICC issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu, but also said that the Israeli leader was covered by immunity rules that apply to states which are not a party to the ICC. Israeli is not an ICC member.

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