China-Taiwan: Beijing rehearses 'sealing off' island in third day of drills - BBC

Reuters

By Kelly Ng

BBC News

China said it was simulating "sealing off" Taiwan in a third day of drills as it appeared to use an aircraft carrier to launch jets towards the island.

Taiwan said it had detected jets to its east while China said its Shandong aircraft carrier had taken part.

Beijing began the exercises on Saturday after Taiwan President Tsai Ing-wen met the US House Speaker in California.

So far however the drills are not as big as those that followed Nancy Pelosi's visit to Taipei last August.

Taiwan considers itself a sovereign state. China sees it as a breakaway province that will eventually be brought under Beijing's control - by force if necessary.

On Monday Taiwan said it had spotted another 70 warplanes and 11 ships in its surrounding waters.

A map of flight paths released by Taiwan's defence ministry showed four J-15 fighter jets to the island's east - suggesting that the Chinese military is for the first time simulating strikes from the east rather than the west where China's mainland lies.

Analysts said it was likely the jets had come from China's Shandong aircraft carrier - one of two such carriers it possesses - which is currently deployed in the western Pacific ocean, about 320km (200 miles) from Taiwan.

The Chinese military confirmed on Monday in a statement that the Shandong had "participated" in Monday's exercises. It said fighter planes loaded with live ammunition had "carried out multiple waves of simulated strikes on important targets".

Japan's defence ministry said on Monday that the Shandong had also conducted air operations in the preceding days.

Jet fighters and helicopters took off and landed on the carrier 120 times between Friday and Sunday, the Japanese ministry said.

Also on Monday the US sent the USS Milius, a guided-missile destroyer, through part of the South China Sea about 1,300km (800 miles) south of Taiwan.

China said the ship had "illegally intruded" into its waters, while the US maintained the operation was consistent with international law.

Washington had repeatedly called for China to exercise restraint following President Tsai's meeting with Kevin McCarthy, the third most senior US government figure. Beijing meanwhile had warned the US and Taiwan of "resolute counter-measures" if Ms Tsai met Mr McCarthy.

China announced the drills after top foreign leaders it was hosting - including French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen - left the country.

Mr Macron later urged Europe not to get dragged into a confrontation between Washington and Beijing over Taiwan in remarks that have attracted some criticism.

On his flight out of China he told reporters Europe risked getting "caught up in crises that are not ours" and this would make it harder to build "strategic autonomy".

China's drills began on Saturday after Ms Tsai had returned from her 10-day trip to the US and Central America.

Ms Pelosi's high-profile visit to Taiwan last August, while she was the US House of Representatives Speaker, was followed by four days of unprecedented military drills, which saw China fire ballistic missiles into the seas around Taiwan. Ms Pelosi was the highest-ranking US official to land in Taiwan since the 1990s.

However some analysts say such military exercises may have diminishing impact over time.

"To maintain the same fear factor, [China will] have to ramp it up bigger and bigger each time as their actions will have a normalising effect after a while," said Ian Chong, a non-resident scholar at Carnegie China.

• What we learned from August's drills

Taiwan's status has been ambiguous since 1949, when the Chinese Civil War turned in favour of the Chinese Communist Party and the country's old ruling government retreated to the island.

China's President Xi Jinping has said "reunification" with Taiwan "must be fulfilled".

China and Taiwan: The basics

• Why do China and Taiwan have poor relations? China sees the self-ruled island as a part of its territory and insists it should be unified with the mainland, by force if necessary
• How is Taiwan governed? The island has its own constitution, democratically elected leaders, and about 300,000 active troops in its armed forces
• Who recognises Taiwan? Only a few countries recognise Taiwan. Most recognise the Chinese government in Beijing instead. The US has no official ties with Taiwan but does have a law which requires it to provide the island with the means to defend itself

Related Topics

• China
• Taiwan
• China-US relations

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2023-04-10 07:52:00Z
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Marseille explosion: Two bodies found after two buildings collapse - Sky News

Two bodies have been found under the rubble of two buildings that collapsed following an explosion in the south of France.

Rescuers are continuing to search for at least six people in the southern city of Marseille.

Marseille Mayor Benoit Payan said: "This morning the sorrow and pain are great. Two bodies were found under the rubble.

"I am thinking of the loved ones of those who suffer and remain in worry. Marseille stands by their side.

"Rescue and search operations continue unabated."

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0:16

Search for missing in Marseille

Mr Payan told French media that more than 100 firefighters are searching for at least six people believed to have been trapped when the five-storey residential building collapsed.

Marseille prosecutor Dominique Laurens said the burning debris was too hot for dogs in the firefighters' canine team to work until Sunday afternoon.

An investigation has been opened for involuntary injury and a gas explosion is among the lines of inquiry, Ms Laurens added.

The collapse happened shortly before 1am on Sunday and about 200 people were evacuated from their homes in the area.

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TV footage showed clouds of smoke rising from the ruins as firefighters tried to douse the flames in Marseille.

The collapse of the buildings caused a fire that has complicated the rescue effort, Ms Laurens told reporters.

Five people were taken to hospital with serious but not life-threatening injuries.

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Image: A fire truck next to one of the collapsed buildings. Pic: BFMTV/via Reuters

A man who gave his name only as Roland said survivors had "lost everything".

"We have nothing, not even an ID card," he told local newspaper La Provence.

He managed to get out of the building at 15 Rue de Tivoli with his wife and two children before it collapsed along with a neighbouring one.

There was also a partial collapse of a third building.

In total, 30 buildings in the area were evacuated, said Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, who visited the site.

"Thoughts are with Marseille," President Emmanuel Macron tweeted.

In 2018, about a kilometre from the collapses, three buildings considered not fit for habitation also collapsed,
killing eight people.

The mayor of Marseille said a parallel could not be drawn between the two events, while the prosecutor said the buildings that collapsed on Sunday were not known to have any structural problems.

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2023-04-10 08:15:00Z
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Dalai Lama apologises after kissing boy and asking him to ‘suck his tongue’ - The Guardian

The Dalai Lama has apologised after he faced allegations of inappropriate behaviour after kissing a young boy on the lips and asking him to “suck his tongue” at a public event in India.

The interaction, which took place in late February at the Dalai Lama’s temple in Dharamshala, was attended by about 100 young students who had just graduated from the Indian M3M Foundation.

The Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso, is the holiest figure in Tibetan Buddhism and has lived in exile in India since 1959, when Tibet was annexed by China.

In a video that has gone viral, one of the young male students approached a microphone at the event and asked the Dalai Lama: “Can I hug you?”

The Dalai Lama, 87, told the boy to come up to the platform where he was seated. Motioning to his cheek, he is heard saying “first here”, after which the child kissed him and gave him a hug.

The Dalai Lama kept hold of the boy, saying “I think here also” and then planted a kiss on his lips. “And suck my tongue,” the Dalai Lama then said, sticking out his tongue, forehead to forehead with the student. The boy quickly stuck out his own tongue and went to move away while the Dalai Lama laughed and pulled the boy in for another hug, as the audience laughed.

The spiritual leader then spoke to the boy, advising him to look to those who create “peace and happiness” and not to follow “human beings who always kill other people”, before giving him a final hug.

As the video spread across the internet it was condemned by many, who called it “inappropriate”, “scandalous” and “disgusting”. The controversy prompted an apology from the office of the Dalai Lama, who said his behaviour had been “innocent and playful”.

It said in a statement: “His holiness wishes to apologise to the boy and his family as well as his many friends across the world, for the hurt his words may have caused.

“His holiness often teases people he meets in an innocent and playful way, even in public and before cameras. He regrets the incident.”

The Dalai Lama has faced previous controversies. In 2019 he caused an outcry after suggesting that if the Dalai Lama returned as a woman “she should be more attractive”, for which his office apologised.

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2023-04-10 08:43:00Z
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China simulates strikes on Taiwan from aircraft carriers as drills enter third day - The Guardian

China’s military is practising ship-launched strikes on Taiwan from the east, information released by Taiwan’s defence ministry on Monday indicated, as Beijing’s retaliatory military drills entered their third day.

The defence ministry did not give the positions of People’s Liberation Army (PLA) ships it had detected, but a map of PLA aircraft detections show four J-15 fighter jets east of Taiwan, in the western Pacific, on Saturday.

The J-15s have never been seen inside Taiwan’s air defence identification zone (ADIZ) before, and are known to be launched from two PLA aircraft carriers, including the Shandong which had been tracked by Taiwan and Japan sailing past Taiwan into waters to its south-east late last week.

On Monday Japan confirmed its military had responded to the drills, scrambling jets in response to the PLA’s aircraft launches.

On Saturday, Beijing launched three days of military exercises targeting Taiwan in response to Taiwan’s president, Tsai Ing-wen, meeting the US house speaker, Kevin McCarthy in Los Angeles last week.

The drills have not matched the scale of those launched in retaliation to a Taipei visit by McCarthy’s predecessor, Nancy Pelosi, which included missile launches, but do appear to show an escalation in the Chinese military’s training for strikes on Taiwan, observers said.

In the 24 hours to 6am Monday, Taiwan’s defence ministry detected 70 PLA aircraft and 11 ships inside its ADIZ. The ADIZ is a large area monitored for defence purposes, and the PLA assets did not enter sovereign Taiwan territory.

However the ministry said 35 of the planes had crossed the median line – a de facto border in the international waters of the Taiwan Strait.

The launch of J-15s suggested the PLA was “practising strikes on Taiwan from an encirclement-style posture”, independent defence analyst Ben Lewis told the Guardian.

“I view this as an escalation in how the PLA operates around Taiwan, as to our knowledge it has never happened before. Second, these activities provide Chinese carrier pilots with the opportunity to practise this kind of operation in the area where they may execute them during an actual conflict.”

The PLA also claimed to have simulated joint precision missile strikes on “key targets” in Taiwan, according to state media and an animation posted online by the PLA’s Eastern Theatre Command which depicted attacks on Taipei and Kaohsiung from missile bases on the Chinese mainland.

Taiwan’s defence ministry on Monday repeated that it was operating under a principle of “not escalating conflicts and not causing disputes”, but had conducted response drills including shore-based anti-ship missile vehicles and rapid deployment of missile speedboats.

The J-15 launches also prompted a military response from Japan. On Monday its ministry of defence confirmed it had scrambled jets after recording takeoffs and landings by about 80 fighter jets and 40 helicopters from the Shandong.

Japan’s ministry also provided tracking maps of the Shandong and four other ships in its company, revealing it to have moved closer to Taiwan’s east coast between Friday and Sunday.

Speaking after Chinese and Japanese officials met for a regular discussion about maritime disputes, Japan’s chief cabinet secretary Hirokazu Matsuno told reporters Japan was watching the drills closely.

“The importance of peace and stability in the Taiwan Strait is not only important for the security of Japan, but also for the stability of the international community as a whole,” he said.

The US has said it is watching developments closely. On Monday the US Navy confirmed it had conducted a freedom of navigation exercise in the South China Sea, near the disputed Spratly Islands. The US conducts such missions on a semi-regular basis, to challenge various countries’ claims over international waters, consistently drawing an angry response from China. A short time later, Beijing accused the US of having “illegally intruded”.

The drills have so far been far smaller in scale than those launched after Pelosi’s visit, which went for more than a week, and surrounded Taiwan’s main island with multiple live-fire exercise zones and missile launches, significantly disrupting air and sea traffic. Chinese officials at the time said the exercises mimicked a blockade China may one day use against Taiwan.

On Sunday a former Taiwan legislator, Guo Zhengliang, told local media that these drills were “not as obvious” as last August, but seemed “closer to the actual state of war” in the specifics of operation. Guo noted the involvement of all three branches of the PLA, coast guard patrols, and heavy assets like the Shandong.

Chinese state media, the People’s Daily, said in an editorial on Monday that both sets of drills sent a “clear message that Taiwan will not tolerate any challenge on Taiwan”. “Beijing has repeatedly stressed that the Taiwan question is its domestic affair and national reunification is its core interest. Any such provocations will always be met with a firm response.”

The PLA drills began shortly after Tsai returned to Taiwan, and also coincided with the departure of several foreign leaders who had been visiting China and its leader, Xi Jinping. Analysts had speculated that the presence of foreign leaders may have tempered or delayed Beijing’s response to Tsai’s US trip, which it had labelled a “provocation”. Prior to the military drills, Beijing had announced only sanctions against Taiwan and US officials and institutions that had facilitated her trip.

One of the visiting leaders, French president Emmanuel Macron, on Sunday urged against Europe becoming “followers” in the cross-strait issue, by adapting to “the American rhythm or a Chinese overreaction”.

He said Europe had no interest in an acceleration of the crisis over Taiwan and should pursue a strategy independent of both Washington and Beijing.

The drills have had little effect on daily life in Taiwan, and apart from extensive media coverage on day one, have not registered among the top headlines. Coverage of Macron’s comments focused largely on criticisms and accusations that he was “pandering” to Xi.

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2023-04-10 04:37:00Z
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Ukraine-Russia news – live: Document leak has forced Kyiv to change war plans - The Independent

Related video: Russia arrests US journalist on espionage allegations

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Ukraine has already altered some of its military plans after a large leak of classified documents, a source close to Volodymyr Zelensky said.

The apparent leak of Pentagon documents from late February revealed, among other classified intelligence, that Ukraine’s air defence systems are at risk of running out of missiles and ammunition within weeks.

One of the documents marked “Secret” shows how Ukraine’s Soviet-era S-300 air defence systems will be depleted by 2 May if the Ukrainian forces continue to use the ammunition at the current rate.

It comes as Ukraine is seeing intense fighting along the western approaches leading to Bakhmut, the general staff of Ukraine’s armed forces has said.

“The enemy is trying to take our city-fortress at any cost,” said Serhiy Cherevatyi, a spokesperson for Ukraine’s eastern military command.

Bakhmut has been the setting for the longest single battle of the Ukraine war so far, and has been besieged by Russian forces for many months.

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Ukraine has altered military plans after leak – CNN

A source close to Volodymyr Zelensky has said that Ukraine has already altered some of its military plans after a large leak of classified documents, reported CNN.

The documents also show the degree to which the US has penetrated the Russian defence ministry and its proxy mercenary Wagner Group, mostly through intercepted communications and human sources, while also likely raising their chances of being cut off.

Among the leaks was information on key weaknesses in Ukraine’s weaponry, air defence, and battalion sizes and readiness at a crucial point in the war as Ukraine seeks to turn the corner with its spring offensive.

Arpan Rai10 April 2023 04:01

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South Korea to discuss 'issues raised' from leaked documents with US

South Korea is aware of news reports about a leak of several classified U.S. military documents and it plans to discuss “issues raised” as a result of the leak with the United States, a South Korean presidential official said on Sunday.

Several classified U.S. military documents have recently been posted on social media offering a partial, month-old snapshot of the war in Ukraine, three U.S. officials told Reuters on Friday, adding that Russia or pro-Russian elements were likely behind the leak.

Reuters has not been able to verify the authenticity of the documents. The U.S. Justice Department has said it is investigating the leak.

One of the documents, obtained by Reuters, showed details about internal discussions among top South Korean top officials about U.S. pressure on Seoul to help supply weapons to Ukraine, and its policy of not doing so.

The document, which does not appear to have a date on it, said that South Korea had agreed to sell artillery shells to help the United States replenish its stockpiles, insisting that the “end user” should be the U.S. military. But internally, top South Korean officials were worried that the United States would divert them to Ukraine.

The report was based in part on signals intelligence, which suggests the United States had been spying on South Korea, one of its most important allies.

The South Korean presidential official, speaking to reporters, declined to respond to questions about U.S. spying or to confirm any details from the leaked documents.

Asked if South Korea planned to lodge a protest or demand an explanation from the United States, the official, who declined to be identified, said the government would review precedents and cases involving other countries.

South Korea has signed major deals providing hundreds of tanks, aircraft and other weapons to NATO member Poland since Russia invaded Ukraine. But President Yoon Suk Yeol has said that a South Korean law that forbids supplying weapons to countries engaged in conflict makes it difficult to send arms to Ukraine.

The South Korean official said there was no change to South Korea’s policy.

Maryam Zakir-Hussain10 April 2023 08:25

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Russian offensive ‘approaching culmination’, say analysts

The Institute for the Study of War, a Washington-based think tank, said it thinks Russia’s overall offensive “is approaching culmination”.

The institute cited Ivan Tymochko, the head of the Ukrainian Council of Reservists for the country’s ground forces, as reporting that recent Russian attacks appeared designed to distract and disperse Ukrainian troops preparing for a potential counter-offensive.

“Tymochko stated that Russian forces are not making serious advances anywhere on the front line,” the think tank said.

Noting that Russia has made heavy use of artillery to “offset key shortcomings in combat capability”, the institute said reported ammunition shortages would “undermine the Russian military’s ability to continue offsetting its other weaknesses and limitations”.

Below is the latest daily conflict map from the ISW:

Liam James10 April 2023 08:00

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Ukraine could run out of weapons and missiles within weeks, leaked documents show

Ukraine’s air defence systems are facing the risk of running out of missiles and ammunition within weeks, according to an apparent leak of Pentagon documents from February.

One of the documents marked “Secret” shows how Ukraine’s Soviet-era S-300 air defence systems will be depleted by 2 May if the Ukrainian forces continue to use the ammunition at the current rate.

It is likely that Ukraine’s Buk air defence systems could run into trouble by mid-April, a report by the New York Times showed. The air defence system counters Russia’s air power sites along with the S-300.

The air defence systems protecting troops on the battle field front line could be “completely reduced” by 23 May, the report added.

Arpan Rai10 April 2023 07:16

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Ukraine children back home after alleged deportation

More than 30 children were reunited with their families in Ukraine this weekend after being taken by invading forces to Russia or Russian-occupied Crimea.

Kyiv estimates nearly 19,500 children have been taken by Russian troops since Moscow invaded in February last year, in what it condemns as illegal deportations.

Moscow, which control chunks of Ukraine’s east and south, denies abducting children and says they have been transported away for their own safety.

Alla Yatsentiuk embraces her 14-year-old son Danylo, who went to a Russian-organised summer camp from non-government controlled territories and was then taken to Russia, after returning via the Ukraine-Belarus border, in Volyn

Liam James10 April 2023 07:00

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On the frontline with Belarusian volunteers for Ukraine

Troops from Kastus Kalinouski, a regiment of Belarusian volunteers fighting for Ukraine, have been pictured on the frontline near Bakhmut, Donetsk.

A recent Foreign Policy profile of the volunteers heard how they were risking lengthy prison sentences, including for family members, for fighting with Ukraine against the Russian invasion, which Belarus has aided.

Belarusian volunteer soldiers from the Kastus Kalinouski regiment fire a mortar near Bakhmut

(AFP/Getty)

A volunteer carries a 120mm mortar shell at a front line position near Bakhmut

(AFP/Getty)

Liam James10 April 2023 06:00

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US Department of Justice starts investigation into crucial leak

The US Department of Justice has started an investigation to check the source behind the leak of significant US intelligence documents shared on social media platforms like Twitter, Discord and Telegram among others in recent weeks.

It will also investigate if the documents were altered.

These documents have been labelled secret and resemble routine updates that the US military’s joint staff would produce daily but not distribute publicly.

They are dated ranging from 23 February to 1 March, and provide what appears to be details on the progress of weapons and equipment going into Ukraine with more precise timelines and amounts than the US generally provides publicly.

The US officials have said that this leak is being taken seriously as they look to probe and work toward a more formal assessment of what is in the documents and how they were leaked.

Arpan Rai10 April 2023 05:54

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Russia trying to take Bakhmut fortress ‘at any cost’ as heaviest fight rages

The heaviest fighting was seen along the western approaches leading to Bakhmut, the general staff of Ukraine’s armed forces has said.

“The enemy is trying to take our city-fortress at any cost,” Serhiy Cherevatyi, a spokesperson for Ukraine’s eastern military command, said.

He added: “Although it is extremely difficult, we are still in control of the situation. Our units are holding back the enemy and inflicting a maximum of damage.”

Volodymyr Zelensky and his military have said that the Ukrainian forces will keep defending Bakhmut against repeated Russian attacks, though Mr Zelensky last week acknowledged that if troops risked being encircled they could be pulled back.

Bakhmut has been the setting for the longest single battle of the Ukraine war so far, and has been besieged by Russian forces for many months.

Arpan Rai10 April 2023 05:27

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Russia fired 40 airstrikes overnight, says Ukraine

Between Saturday and Sunday mornings, Russian forces launched 40 airstrikes, four missile strikes and 58 attacks from multiple-rocket launchers on various parts of Ukraine, the General Staff of the Ukrainian armed forces reported.

According to the General Staff, Russia focused attacks on the Donetsk province communities of Lyman, Bakhmut, Avdiivka and Marinka.

Donetsk regional governor Pavlo Kyrylenko said on Sunday morning that two civilians were wounded on Saturday.

Officials in Kherson province, where Ukrainian forces forced a partial Russian retreat in November, said the southern region also received numerous attacks. They did not report any casualties.

Ukrainian servicemen walks along trenches near the town of Bakhmut on Saturday

(AFP/Getty)

Liam James10 April 2023 05:00

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Russia carrying out cultural genocide in occupied Ukraine, systematic religious persecution – ISW

Russian occupation authorities are likely conducting a campaign of systematic religious persecution in occupied Ukraine, the Institute for the Study of War has said in its special assessment.

It added that Russian religious persecutions are likely also part of an ongoing Russian cultural genocide and ethnic cleansing campaign by Vladimir Putin’s forces looking to “extirpate the idea of an independent Ukrainian nationality or Ukrainian Orthodox Church.”

“Since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February last year Russian soldiers or occupation authorities have reportedly committed at least 76 acts of religious persecution in Ukraine,” the US-based think-tank monitoring the war said.

It added: “Russian authorities have closed, nationalised, or forcefully converted at least 26 places of worship to the Kremlin-controlled Russian Orthodox Church of the Moscow Patriarchate, killed or seized at least 29 clergy or religious leaders, and looted, desecrated, or deliberately destroyed at least 13 places of worship in occupied Ukraine.”

These cases of religious repression are likely not isolated incidents but rather part of a deliberate campaign to systematically eradicate “undesirable” religious organisations in Ukraine and promote the Moscow Patriarchate, the ISW said.

Arpan Rai10 April 2023 04:57

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2023-04-10 07:25:05Z
CBMiamh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmluZGVwZW5kZW50LmNvLnVrL25ld3Mvd29ybGQvZXVyb3BlL3VrcmFpbmUtcnVzc2lhLXB1dGluLXdlYXBvbnMtdGFua3Mtd2FyLWludGVsLWIyMzE3MDA4Lmh0bWzSAQA

Two bodies found after Marseille building destroyed in explosion - BBC

EPA

By Laura Gozzi & Christy Cooney

BBC News

Two bodies have been found after an explosion flattened a four-storey apartment building in the southern French city of Marseille.

Local authorities said six people remained unaccounted for and that rescue efforts were ongoing.

The blast occurred in the La Plaine neighbourhood at 00:49 local time on Sunday (23:49 BST on Saturday).

The cause remains unclear, but investigators are looking into the possibility of a gas leak.

Five people from neighbouring buildings sustained minor injuries in the explosion and around 200 people had to be evacuated from their homes. Two nearby blocks partially collapsed a few hours later without causing any additional injuries.

On Monday the mayor of Marseille, Benoit Payan, warned nearby buildings were at risk of collapsing.

Around 100 firefighters attended the scene to tackle a blaze that burned under the rubble throughout Sunday.

The fire hampered progress and made it difficult for rescuers to deploy sniffer dogs, although authorities said on Sunday evening that the blaze was showing signs of abating.

The building is believed to have had one apartment on each storey, and city officials said earlier that the people missing included a "young couple".

Rescue operations continued into the early hours of Monday with the help of a crane and lights.

In a brief statement announcing the discovery of the bodies, the fire department said that "given the difficulties of intervention, the extraction [of the bodies from the site] will take time".

A local gymnasium and two schools have been opened to accommodate the people who have had to leave their homes. Psychological support is also being offered.

French President Emmanuel Macron said on Twitter that he was "thinking of those affected and their loved ones" and thanked the emergency workers for their efforts.

Mayor of Marseille Benoît Payan said rescuers remained "determined" to find people alive. "Hope must hold us," he said.

'Unlike anything I've ever heard'

One local told French media that they heard an explosion "unlike anything I've ever heard".

Speaking to the AFP news agency, Saveria Mosnier, who lives nearby, said: "I was sleeping and there was this huge blast that really shook the room. I was shocked awake as if I had been dreaming."

She added that "we very quickly smelled a strong gas odour that hung around. We could still smell it this morning".

Deputy Mayor Yannick Ohanessian told reporters at the scene that "several witnesses have reached us this morning to say there was a suspicious smell of gas".

Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin visited the scene on Sunday and Housing Minister Olivier Klein is due to visit on Monday.

In 2018, housing standards in Marseille came under scrutiny after two dilapidated buildings in the working class district of Noailles collapsed, killing eight people.

Following that incident, charities estimated that 40,000 people in the city were living in poorly-built homes, but on Sunday officials appeared to rule out structural issues as a cause of the latest collapse.

Christophe Mirmand, a local authority leader in the Bouches-du-Rhone region, said there was no danger notice on the building and that it was not in a neighbourhood identified as having substandard housing. The comments were echoed by Mr Payan.

Related Topics

• France
• Marseille
• Emmanuel Macron

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2023-04-10 06:21:39Z
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French Alps avalanche: Guides among 4 killed at Armancette glacier - BBC

Reuters

By Kathryn Armstrong

BBC News

At least four people have died in an avalanche in the French Alps, the country's interior minister, Gerald Darmanin, has said.

It happened at the Armancette glacier near Mont Blanc in south-eastern France around midday on Sunday local time.

The local deputy mayor has confirmed that two of the dead were mountain guides.

Several injured people have been taken to hospital, and two people are still missing.

Jean-Luc Mattel, deputy mayor of the nearby Contamines-Montjoie village, said the avalanche was caused by a slab of snow detaching from the top of the mountain.

Search and rescue dogs and mountain-rescue teams worked all day to try to reach those who were caught, who are all thought to have been backcountry skiing.

The search for two missing people is expected to resume on Monday.

Mr Mattel said the risk level on Sunday morning was "reasonable" and the guides, both of them locals, were highly experienced.

"Today, we are mourning, and there is great sadness among all of us mountaineers, friends of Les Contamines, those who died are people we knew, and all our thoughts go out to their families," he said.

Mr Darmanin and French President Emmanuel Macron have also expressed their sympathy.

Before the incident, a nearby ski resort called Les Contamines-Montjoie posted a video on social media showing a huge wall of snow moving down from the Dômes de Miage, which the glacier is a part of.

It is not clear if the video shows the avalanche in which the people died.

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One eyewitness told France Television that she was hiking just in front of the Armancette glacier when she saw the avalanche happening and took out her phone to film it.

"I had put the phone in front of me but then I was looking with my eyes more than in the lens and suddenly there was a huge, huge, huge cloud that came down to the bottom, it split into two," she said.

"I think of the families, I think of the people, of those who got out of it, who had the fright of their life, of those who are still there."

The nearby resort urged people to be careful if they were venturing off-piste - away from the prepared ski runs.

Officials have told the AFP news agency that a further avalanche could not be ruled out.

Two brothers died in an avalanche on the same glacier in 2014. They were both experienced mountaineers and had been properly equipped.

Related Topics

• Alps
• France
• Mont Blanc

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2023-04-09 19:48:32Z
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