Projectiles Thrown at Russian Consulate in France, One Explodes, Says Source

Bomb-squad officers prepare a demining robot in front of the Russian consulate in Marseille, after improvised explosive devices were thrown, on February 24, 2025. (AFP)
Bomb-squad officers prepare a demining robot in front of the Russian consulate in Marseille, after improvised explosive devices were thrown, on February 24, 2025. (AFP)
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Projectiles Thrown at Russian Consulate in France, One Explodes, Says Source

Bomb-squad officers prepare a demining robot in front of the Russian consulate in Marseille, after improvised explosive devices were thrown, on February 24, 2025. (AFP)
Bomb-squad officers prepare a demining robot in front of the Russian consulate in Marseille, after improvised explosive devices were thrown, on February 24, 2025. (AFP)

Two projectiles were thrown at the perimeter wall of Russia's consulate in the southern French port city of Marseille on Monday, one of which exploded, a French security source said. 

It was not immediately clear if the projectiles cleared the wall. BFM TV said the projectiles were Molotov cocktails and that they landed in the consulate's garden. 

Russia demanded a full French investigation and said the incident looked like an act of terrorism, state news agency TASS reported. 

No one was injured, the security source said. Consulate staff were kept indoors and police set up a security perimeter around the consulate. 

The incident in the southern French city took place on the third anniversary of the Russia-Ukraine war. 

"The explosions on the territory of the Russian Consulate General in Marseille have all the hallmarks of a terrorist attack," TASS quoted Russia's Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova as saying. 

Marseille, France’s second-largest city and a major Mediterranean port, is home to a diverse population but does not have a notably large Russian community. France has seen multiple protests against Russia’s war in Ukraine since 2022, including demonstrations in Marseille, Paris, and other cities. 



Maldives Ban Israelis to Protest Gaza War 

The Maldives had lifted a previous ban on Israeli tourists in the early 1990s and briefly moved to restore relations in 2010. (Getty Images/AFP)
The Maldives had lifted a previous ban on Israeli tourists in the early 1990s and briefly moved to restore relations in 2010. (Getty Images/AFP)
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Maldives Ban Israelis to Protest Gaza War 

The Maldives had lifted a previous ban on Israeli tourists in the early 1990s and briefly moved to restore relations in 2010. (Getty Images/AFP)
The Maldives had lifted a previous ban on Israeli tourists in the early 1990s and briefly moved to restore relations in 2010. (Getty Images/AFP)

The Maldives announced Tuesday it was banning the entry of Israelis from the luxury tourist archipelago in "resolute solidarity" with the Palestinian people.

President Mohamed Muizzu ratified the legislation shortly after it was approved by parliament on Tuesday.

"The ratification reflects the government's firm stance in response to the continuing atrocities and ongoing acts of genocide committed by Israel against the Palestinian people," his office said in a statement.

"The Maldives reaffirms its resolute solidarity with the Palestinian cause."

The ban will be implemented with immediate effect, a spokesman for Muizzu's office told AFP.

The Maldives, a small Islamic republic of 1,192 strategically located coral islets, is known for its secluded white sandy beaches, shallow turquoise lagoons and Robinson Crusoe-style getaways.

Official data showed that only 59 Israeli tourists visited the archipelago in February, among 214,000 other foreign arrivals.

The Maldives had lifted a previous ban on Israeli tourists in the early 1990s and briefly moved to restore relations in 2010.

Opposition parties and government allies in the Maldives have been pressuring Muizzu to ban Israelis as a statement of opposition to the Gaza war.

Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs urged its citizens last year to avoid travelling to the Maldives.

The Gaza war broke out after Palestinian group Hamas' October 2023 attack on Israel, which resulted in the deaths of 1,218 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on official Israeli figures.

Gaza's health ministry said on Sunday that at least 1,613 Palestinians had been killed since March 18, when a ceasefire collapsed, taking the overall death toll since the war began to 50,983.