Posted on 03/25/2012 6:05:57 PM PDT by Cincinna
François Hollande has accused President Nicolas Sarkozy of failing to live up to law-and-order promises, in a bid to regain the initiative after the terrorist drama in Toulouse last week. The run-up to the first round of voting in the French presidential election on April 22 is set to prove a gruelling test for the opposition Socialist candidate, whose long-standing lead in the opinion polls is under pressure from both Mr Sarkozy and Jean-Luc Mélenchon, the candidate of the hardline Left Front.
In a sign of the increasingly bitter tone of the campaign, Mr Sarkozy was quoted as calling Mr Hollande “nul” (or “useless”) in a Le Monde magazine profile. Mr Sarkozy scents a breakthrough – buoyed by a poll showing 74 per cent support for his handling of the crisis over the killing of three Jewish children, a Jewish teacher and three Muslim paratroopers by the self-styled Islamist terrorist Mohamed Merah, who later died in a shoot-out with police. The president piled on the pressure at the weekend, reiterating his accusation that his Socialist rival was soft on security issues.
(Excerpt) Read more at ft.com ...
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• Preliminary charges filed against gunman’s brother
Preliminary murder and terrorism charges were filed Sunday against Abdelkader Merah, the brother of the Toulouse gunman. Preliminary charges in French law means that there is a strong reason to suspect a crime but more time is needed to investigate.
http://www.france24.com/en/node/5310103
• French election rivals spar over national security
http://www.france24.com/en/node/5310081
the three French Paras were Moslems? Really?
There were four French Paratroopers attacked. Three were shot dead on the spot, one lies in a hospital hovering between life and death.
Three were Muslim of North African ancestry, one from Martinique, a part of the French DOM-TOM in the Caribbean.
They all served their country with honor and distinction, and died wearing the uniform if France, which is why they were targeted.
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