From mediating in the crisis in Lebanon to defending Iran's nuclear deal, President Emmanuel Macron aims to fill the vacuum left by an isolationist America to boost France's clout in the Middle East.
The promising political career of the Frenchman crowned Mr Universe ended prematurely this week amid a doping scandal. The bodybuilder wasn't the only one whose local election hopes ended in shame this week either.
Travellers and commuters in France have been warned to expect disruption to their travel plans over the next two days when rail workers will stage a strike in protest against proposed reforms. Find out if you will be affected.
This weekend could bring the game of the Ligue 1 season so far, with leaders Marseille taking on second-placed Monaco. After a rocky start, champions PSG should take three points from newly promoted Guingamp.
The Tour Montparnasse, the most famous skyscraper in the French capital, has been hit by new asbestos fears with workers having to be evacuated and companies deserting its office space.
Under suspicion since his wife and beauty queen daughter disappeared weeks ago, Francisco Benitez hanged himself on Monday. Later, a dark revelation about his past provided a chilling development in a saga which is dominating headlines in France.
Three people, reportedly including a brother and sister, have been killed after a plane carrying tourists crashed on Thursday in the town of Vertaizon in central France. The nationalities of the victims are not yet known.
Eight feminists flashed their breasts in the heart of Paris's Notre Dame cathedral on Tuesday to celebrate Pope Benedict XVI's shock resignation announcement.
An 18-year-old man who threatened on Facebook the editors of the French satirical weekly that published cartoons of a naked Prophet Muhammad was charged Sunday with terrorism-related activity, a judicial source said.
About 10,000 Bangladeshis took to the streets of Dhaka on Friday to demonstrate against an anti-Islam film made in the US and cartoons in a French satirical magazine caricaturing the Prophet Muhammad.
Bloody clashes and violence flared Friday as Pakistan shut down for mass protests against a US-made anti-Islam film that has fanned global Muslim anger, inflamed further by French cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad.
Thousands of Pakistanis clashed with police firing live rounds and tear gas Thursday as anger mounted in the Muslim world over a US-made anti-Islam film and French cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad.
Paris police have banned two demonstrations planned for Saturday, including one in front of the city's Grand Mosque, to protest against a US-made anti-Islam film, a police source said.
<p><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">Voters may be rewarding President Sarkozy for his very public efforts to save the euro over recent weeks, if a new poll is to be believed.</span></p>
<p>Paris police have arrested around 20 Christian fundamentalists who burst into a theatre and threw stink bombs to protest against a play featuring the face of Christ drizzled with fake excrement.</p>
<p><span style="font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">The French are famed for their relaxed approach to extra-marital affairs, but is the country's love of a bit on the side really just a bit of a myth? Or is adultery really a very French affair? Matthew Warren investigates.</span></p>
