In France, a far-right activist dead after protest
Authorities arrested 11 far-left activists following the death of 23-year-old Quentin Deranque after a protest last week. Reports indicate that Deranque suffered a severe brain injury after he was beaten by at least six people.
Deranque, a far-right activist and student, was on the sidelines of a demonstration in Lyon protesting a conference featuring Rima Hassan, a member of left-wing party La France Insoumise. After the protest, two crowds of left-wing and right-wing activists began brawling in the streets, where Deranque was thrown to the ground and hit repeatedly along with two others who were able to escape. He collapsed on his way home after the attack and was subsequently brought to a hospital, where he died two days later.
Government officials blamed LFI for the violence, and many center-left groups in parliament began distancing themselves from the party. Government spokeswoman Maud Bregeon claimed that LFI had “encouraged a climate of violence for years.”
Deranque was part of the volunteer security detail for the feminist far-right group Némésis, its leader Alice Cordier told the New York Times. Among those arrested was LFI politician Raphaël Arnault’s aide, who stepped away from all parliamentary duties.
LFI said that a forced evacuation took place in its national headquarters due to a bomb threat on Wednesday following the news of the arrests. Later that day, French President Emmanuel Macron said politicians should “stay in their own lane,” referring to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni’s social media post stating the tragedy allegedly “is a wound for all of Europe.”
“I’m always struck by how people who are nationalists, who don’t want to be bothered in their own country, are always the first ones to comment on what’s happening in other countries,” Macron said.
A march is scheduled to take place in Lyon this Saturday in honor of Deranque.
In the United Kingdom, lawmakers consider youth social media ban
Following Australia’s lead last December, the United Kingdom is exploring a ban on social media use for children under 16 years of age before June. Government officials are also looking to crack down on artificial intelligence chatbot use for minors, which currently falls outside existing regulations.
On Monday, Prime Minister Keir Starmer met with parents and young people to discuss children’s online safety. Potential legislation could include closing legal loopholes to limit AI chatbot use, as well as restrictions on “infinite scrolling” and crackdowns on virtual private networks used to circumvent laws.
“Technology is moving really fast, and the law has got to keep up,” Starmer said in a press release. “With my government, Britain will be a leader, not a follower, when it comes to online safety.”
Labour minister Liz Kendall added that the government plans to address a gap in the 2023 Online Safety Act that fails to regulate private, one-on-one interactions with AI. She claimed that child safety protections were lacking given how some children are developing relationships with the chatbots.
Reports that Elon Musk’s Grok had generated non-conseual sexualized images heightened scrutiny, intensifying calls for technology companies to take greater accountability. Officials are also considering requiring data preservation to help investigators obtain key evidence following the death of a child.
In Germany, officials assess purchasing more U.S. fighter jets
Germany is considering purchasing roughly 35 additional American F-35 fighter jets, according to two anonymous sources who informed Reuters.
A representative of American defense company Lockheed Martin said the company is building F-35s ordered by Germany at a price of $80 million per plane. However, a spokesperson for the German government said there were “no concrete plans or political decision.”
“Will we still need a manned fighter jet in 20 years’ time? Do we still need it, given that we will have to develop it at great expense?” German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on a political podcast.
France and Germany are currently at odds over their Future Combat Aircraft System program, which is a collaboration between the two nations and Spain. The new jets were planned to replace German Eurofighter and French Rafale jets by 2040. The $118 billion project originally was launched in 2017 under President Emmanuel Macron and former Chancellor Angela Merkel, but industrial conflicts escalated by unions have stalled it.
This shift would increase Germany’s reliance on American military technology, distancing itself from the rest of Europe at a time of growing calls for strategic independence.
Contact Justin Yen at [email protected].