عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
World

French-Moroccan Karim Bouamrane Eyed for Prime Minister Role

Karim Bouamrane delivering a speech at the opening of “Socrates Street” in the Olympic Village, March 2024 (Getty)
Karim Bouamrane delivering a speech at the opening of “Socrates Street” in the Olympic Village, March 2024 (Getty)
TT
TT

French-Moroccan Karim Bouamrane Eyed for Prime Minister Role

Karim Bouamrane delivering a speech at the opening of “Socrates Street” in the Olympic Village, March 2024 (Getty)
Karim Bouamrane delivering a speech at the opening of “Socrates Street” in the Olympic Village, March 2024 (Getty)

If French President Emmanuel Macron chooses Karim Bouamrane, born to Moroccan parents, to form the new government, he will follow a precedent of foreign-born politicians reaching high positions in France.
Former President Nicolas Sarkozy had Hungarian heritage, and former Prime Minister Manuel Valls, who served under President François Hollande, was of Spanish origin from Catalonia.
Outgoing Prime Minister Gabriel Attal’s grandfather was born in Tunisia. Among Moroccans, Rachida Dati and Najat Vallaud-Belkacem have also held significant positions, such as Minister of Culture and Minister of Education, respectively.
The potential appointment of a Maghreb-born politician reflects a significant change in French politics, especially given the recent strong showing of the far-right in elections. Macron is expected to announce the new Prime Minister after consulting with parliamentary leaders on Friday and Monday.
The Élysée Palace has not set a deadline for this decision, emphasizing that Macron wants a thorough and respectful consultation to ensure the new Prime Minister can build a stable majority. Macron aims to honor the Constitution and voters’ choices in this selection.
Macron has not yet confirmed whether Karim Bouamrane will be appointed as the new Prime Minister.
Bouamrane is a serious candidate, but others are also being considered. Macron might also choose an unexpected candidate.
Bouamrane’s profile has risen recently due to the parliamentary election results announced on July 7, which failed to produce a clear majority. This has delayed the appointment of a new Prime Minister.
It is noteworthy that Attal resigned on August 16, but his government is still in place.
Bouamrane, once relatively unknown, has gained significant media attention both in France and internationally. Major outlets like Der Spiegel, The New York Times, and El País have covered him.
The French media is keen to see how Macron addresses the delay in forming a new government, especially as the focus shifts from the successful Olympics to urgent political, economic, and social issues.

Most Viewed

 
 
World

Tram Derails in Central Milan, Leaving One Dead, 40 Injured

Emergency services work at the scene of a derailment on Line 9 in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 27, 2026. (AP)
Emergency services work at the scene of a derailment on Line 9 in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 27, 2026. (AP)
TT
TT

Tram Derails in Central Milan, Leaving One Dead, 40 Injured

Emergency services work at the scene of a derailment on Line 9 in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 27, 2026. (AP)
Emergency services work at the scene of a derailment on Line 9 in Milan, Italy, Friday, Feb. 27, 2026. (AP)

One person was killed and around 40 injured, including one in a critical condition, when a tram derailed in central Milan on Friday, a spokesperson for local ‌firefighters said.

The ‌tram, one of ‌the ⁠newest models in ⁠operation in Milan, came off the tracks in Vittorio Veneto street, one of the city's key downtown corridors, crashing into the ⁠window of a shop, the ‌spokesperson ‌Vittorio Di Giacomo told Reuters.

Local ‌emergency services said 13 ‌ambulances were on the scene.

Civil protection teams set up a tent to assist the injured, according ‌to a Reuters eyewitness.

The Milan transport company, ATM, ⁠said ⁠in a statement it was "deeply shocked" by the accident, expressed its sympathy to all those affected and said it was working with judicial authorities to try to understand what caused it.

World

Bill Clinton to Lawmakers Investigating Epstein: ‘I Saw Nothing’

Members of the media gather outside the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center as the House Oversight Committee conducts a deposition with former US President Bill Clinton as part of the committee's investigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, in Chappaqua, New York, on February 27, 2026. (AFP)
Members of the media gather outside the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center as the House Oversight Committee conducts a deposition with former US President Bill Clinton as part of the committee's investigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, in Chappaqua, New York, on February 27, 2026. (AFP)
TT
TT

Bill Clinton to Lawmakers Investigating Epstein: ‘I Saw Nothing’

Members of the media gather outside the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center as the House Oversight Committee conducts a deposition with former US President Bill Clinton as part of the committee's investigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, in Chappaqua, New York, on February 27, 2026. (AFP)
Members of the media gather outside the Chappaqua Performing Arts Center as the House Oversight Committee conducts a deposition with former US President Bill Clinton as part of the committee's investigation into convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, in Chappaqua, New York, on February 27, 2026. (AFP)

Bill Clinton told lawmakers on Friday that he "saw nothing that gave me pause" when he spent time with Jeffrey Epstein, as the former president gave closed-door testimony about his relationship with the late sex offender.

In a prepared statement, Clinton told the House of Representatives Oversight Committee that he would not have flown on the late financier's plane if he had known about his alleged sex trafficking of underage girls, and would have reported him if he did.

"We are only here because he hid it from everyone so well for so long," Clinton said.

Clinton flew on Epstein's plane several ‌times in the ‌early 2000s after he left office and before Epstein's 2008 conviction of ‌soliciting ⁠prostitution from a ⁠minor. A tranche of millions of documents released by the Justice Department includes photos of Clinton with women whose faces are redacted.

"I saw nothing, and I did nothing wrong," Clinton said.

His testimony follows that of his wife, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, who told the panel on Thursday that she did not remember ever meeting Epstein and had nothing to share about his sex crimes.

She said she was also asked about UFOs and a 2016-era conspiracy theory during the ⁠seven-hour session.

The panel's Republican chairman, Representative James Comer of Kentucky, said he ‌would ask the former president about the photos released ‌by the Justice Department. The committee is also expected to quiz Clinton about Epstein's involvement with the couple's ‌charitable foundation.

Comer said video of Hillary Clinton's testimony could be released as soon as ‌Friday. Comer repeatedly has said the Clintons are not accused of wrongdoing.

They agreed to testify near their main residence of Chappaqua, New York, after the House threatened to hold them in contempt of Congress for refusing to cooperate. Some Democrats supported the move.

Epstein died in jail in 2019 while facing federal sex-trafficking crimes. His death was ruled a suicide.

World

Macron to Set Out How France’s Nuclear Arms Could Protect Europe

French President Emmanuel Macron attends a joint news conference with Slovenia's Prime Minister Robert Golob at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, Friday, Feb. 27, 2026. (AP)
French President Emmanuel Macron attends a joint news conference with Slovenia's Prime Minister Robert Golob at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, Friday, Feb. 27, 2026. (AP)
TT
TT

Macron to Set Out How France’s Nuclear Arms Could Protect Europe

French President Emmanuel Macron attends a joint news conference with Slovenia's Prime Minister Robert Golob at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, Friday, Feb. 27, 2026. (AP)
French President Emmanuel Macron attends a joint news conference with Slovenia's Prime Minister Robert Golob at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, Friday, Feb. 27, 2026. (AP)

French President Emmanual Macron is Monday to reveal his vision for how France's nuclear arsenal could bolster defense in Europe, with the continent scrambling to re-arm against an aggressive Russia and as Washington turns away.

The speech by Macron, at France's Ile Longue nuclear submarine base, will be closely watched across Europe, which for decades has relied on the United States' nuclear deterrent but is now increasingly debating whether to bolster its own arsenals.

He is expected to update France's nuclear doctrine, with a member of his team telling AFP to expect "fairly significant shifts and developments" but declining to give any further details.

Macron has previously proposed to consider how France -- the European Union's only nuclear power -- could contribute to protecting Europe.

He said this month he is considering a doctrine that could include "special cooperation, joint exercises, and shared security interests with certain key countries".

Last year, Macron said he was ready to discuss possible deployment of French aircraft armed with nuclear weapons in other European countries.

France maintains the world's fourth-largest nuclear arsenal, estimated at around 290 warheads. Britain, which exited the EU in 2106, is the only other European nuclear power.

By contrast, the United States and Russia, the world's two main atomic powers, have thousands of nuclear warheads each.

Reassurances from US officials that Washington's deterrent would continue to cover Europe under the NATO alliance have done little to quell European fears of fickleness under US President Donald Trump.

"It is clear that we will need to reflect together on how French and British deterrence can fit into a more assertive European defense," Bernard Rogel, who served as top military adviser to Macron, told AFP.

- '27 buttons' -

This month, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said that he was holding "confidential talks with the French president about European nuclear deterrence".

Britain's Prime Minister Keir Starmer has said the UK's nuclear deterrent already protects fellow NATO members, but stressed that he was "enhancing our nuclear cooperation with France".

But how exactly nuclear cooperation would work between the EU's 27 states is another story.

Rogel insisted that control over the launch decision will remain in French hands.

"I can't see us having 27 buttons. From a credibility standpoint, that just doesn't work," he said.

On top of that, France's austerity drive and strains in the relationship between it and fellow EU powerhouse Germany, have exposed fault lines in any potential security agreement.

This month, German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul criticized French defense spending, calling for Paris to do more to turn calls for European security sovereignty into concrete action.

"We are looking forward to and eagerly await another speech by the French president," Wadephul added.

But Rafael Loss, a policy fellow at the European Council on Foreign Relations, said leaders should find confidence in European support for strengthening nuclear deterrence.

He said people in Bulgaria, Denmark, Estonia, Germany, Poland, Portugal, Spain and Switzerland now tend to support rather than oppose the idea of developing an alternative European nuclear deterrent.

"French and British nuclear forces -- as the core of a future European strategic deterrent -- likely need to grow in size and change composition (or both)," he wrote.

While a NATO member, France does not make its atomic weapons available to the alliance.

But in his last nuclear doctrine update in 2020, Macron called for dialogue among EU countries about what role the French nuclear deterrent could play.

- 'Expectations' -

NATO's secretary-general at the time, Jens Stoltenberg, dismissed Macron's call for strategic dialogue in Europe, arguing that a "tried and tested" deterrent was already in place.

But the picture changed after Russian leader Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine in 2022, repeatedly brandishing the threat of Moscow's nuclear arsenal, while Trump has pushed Europe down his list of priorities.

Florian Galleri, a historian specializing in contemporary military studies and nuclear doctrines, also warned that Macron would have to tread carefully, pointing to his low approval ratings one year before the end of his presidency.

"This speech creates expectations," he said. "If it is weak, people will wonder why it was made in the first place. If it is strong, with real changes, the consequences could be significant."

But Macron's address could also spark a domestic political backlash ahead of the 2027 presidential election, in which Marine Le Pen's Euroskeptic far right is seen as having its best chance yet at winning the top job.

"The fear is that it could discredit any form of European dimension," said Galleri.