Hollande honours 'southern D-Day' vets

President Francois Hollande and 15 African leaders paid tribute Friday to the hundreds of thousands of troops who, 70 years ago, launched the southern invasion of occupied France that opened up a second western front against Hitler's Nazis. READ  

• 15/08 Hollande to lead 'southern D-Day' tributes »

Hollande urges Russia to respect Ukraine territory

French President Francois Hollande called on Russia to respect Ukraine's territorial integrity and urged the Russian and Ukrainian leaders to launch talks to de-escalate the tension on their border. READ  

• 12/08 Hollande tells Putin of his 'grave concerns' »

France to increase support to Iraqi Kurds

France has said it would boost support to Kurdish fighters battling Islamic State militants, while Germany will send four planes with humanitarian aid to Kurds in northern Iraq on Friday. READ  

• 13/08 France to supply arms to Iraqi Kurds 'within hours' »
• 11/08 France calls on EU to arm Iraqi Kurds »
• 10/08 French FM heads to Baghdad for talks »

Athlete stripped of gold medal for peeling shirt

France's Mahiedine Mekhissi was stripped of his gold medal and disqualified from the European Athletics Championships in Zurich on Thursday after peeling off his shirt before he crossed the line in first place in the 3,000-metre steeplechase. READ  

15 French 'false friends' you need to watch out for

When struggling for the right word in French, it can be tempting just to use an English word said in a French accent. Unfortunately, French is littered with pesky "false friends" that have very different meanings. Here's 15 to avoid. READ  

What France means to you in just one tweet

The Local France has been asking readers this week to squeeze their view of France into just 140 characters or less, in other words just one tweet. Here's what you came up with up for #FranceinaTweet. READ  

12 reasons to invest in Paris and seven not to

Chiara Corazza, whose job it is to attract foreign investors to Paris, lists the reasons why international companies should back ventures in the French capital despite the country's economic woes. She also tells us about the things they complain about. READ  

• 13/08 New interactive map plots Paris film locations »
• 13/08 'France gets a bad image, the reality is different' »
• 11/08 Paris looks to 'selfies' in battle against lovelocks »

'Dangerous' (blow-up) crocs seized in France

French customs officials on Thursday announced the seizure of 14,000 “dangerous” crocodiles at the Charles de Gaulle international airport in Paris. The bright-green inflatable beach toys had to be put down. READ  

Steward 'sexually abused' scared passenger

A Malaysia Airlines cabin crew member has been detained in France over allegations that he sexually assaulted a passenger who was scared of flying with the disaster-prone airline. READ  

Versailles pickpocket steals €10k from tourist

Chinese tourists have once again proved rich pickings for thieves in Paris when one visitor tothe Chateau de Versailles lost a staggering €10,500 when thieves rifled through his pockets. Chinese tourists have been warned not to carry wads of cash. READ  

• 11/08 France keeps crown as top tourist destination »
• 27/06 Twelve things tourists do that annoy Parisians »
• 28/04 'Welcome to Paris': Minister charms Chinese »

Could Paris get its own €50 million ‘ski resort’?

Parisians may soon be able to ski all year round without having to go anywhere near the Alps. Plans are reportedly on the table to open a €50 million indoor ski resort in the suburbs of Paris. However there may be some opposition to the project. READ  

'You'd have to be crazy to stay in Paris in August'

The eternal debate of whether staying in Paris for the month of August is pure joy or punishment is taken up here by The Local's Joshua Melvin and Ben McPartland. They debate the heat, tourists, Paris plages, and the seductive call of the rest of France. READ  

Driving in France: How to stay out of trouble

Driving in France might seem simple, but foreign motorists, especially Anglos can get in plenty of trouble here, thanks in part to the unique or lesser-known rules of la route. We've put together a list of those you need to know to avoid a police fine (or a crash) this summer. READ  

'Give me a grumpy Paris waiter any day'

Would you rather have the brusque and serious Parisian 'serveur' or the tip-driven and smiley American waitress? The Local's Joshua Melvin (left) and Ben McPartland (right) battle it out here over whose service is better. READ  

Twelve things tourists do that annoy Parisians

Parisians get a bad name for their supposed unfriendly treatment of tourists, but what if us visitors are partly to blame for the that famed surly welcome from the locals? Here are 12 things tourists do that can wind up the French, according to our readers. READ  

Austrian wins name fight with Lady Gaga

Pop diva Lady Gaga has lost her battle to stop an Austrian man from calling his energy drink GaGa. READ  

Landslide derails Swiss passenger train

Five passengers were seriously injured when a landslide derailed a train in a mountainous area of the canton of Graubünden in eastern Switzerland on Wednesday, following heavy rain in the region. READ  

Russia push into Ukraine 'unacceptable': Germany

Russian intervention in Ukraine, including for expressed humanitarian purposes is "unacceptable" without Kiev's authorization, Chancellor Angela Merkel and Barack Obama agreed in a telephone call on Saturday. READ  

Conservative leader: 'I'm gay, so what?'

Søren Pape Poulsen came out as homosexual and said he was surprised that it should be an issue in modern day Denmark. His announcement came as he faced criticism for illegally supporting a football club as mayor of Viborg. READ  

Woman on Madrid plane had 1.7kg coke in breasts

A Venezuelan woman with 1.7 kilos of cocaine hidden in her breast implants was arrested at Madrid airport after arriving on a flight from Colombia, police said on Friday. READ  

'Take down Facebook honeymoon snaps': court

A court in Naples has ordered a woman to take down photos posted on Facebook from her honeymoon after her husband complained that he did not give his permission for her to post them. She may even have to pay damages. READ  

Second death within hours at Chess Olympics

A second chess player died at the Norway Chess Olympiad in Tromsø on Thursday. READ  

Islamic extremist shakes Sweden with TV threat

An Islamic extremist who threatened Sweden on Arabic TV has police on alert. One terror expert says the threat should be taken seriously, and that Sweden is in desperate need of a counter-extremism programme. READ