france24--2020-03-13--Paris mayor's race takes a run at Airbnb-style rentals

Airbnb has made a mantra of travelling off the beaten path and `` living like a local '' .
But in Paris , the apartment-sharing giant 's biggest market globally , a number of those locals say the path to their doors – and through their cobbled courtyards , and up the echoey stairwells of their charming walk-ups – are now well-beaten enough , merci .
The result ?
Every major candidate in the race for Paris City Hall is stumping , more or less , to roll up the welcome mat .
After taking the fight to Airbnb for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ has pledged to hold a referendum in every Paris arrondissement ( district ) over Airbnb if she wins re-election after the March 22 run-off .
The issue of short-term tourist rentals was hardly a glint in the eye of politicians in 2014 , during the last Paris mayor 's race .
This time , candidates from left to right are campaigning on technical solutions to what is , they appear to agree , a problem .
`` Local shops [ are ] disappearing , but Airbnbs [ are ] everywhere , which fuel @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that targets affluent tourists alone , '' green EELV candidate David Belliard 's programme rails , namechecking Montmartre and the Marais .
`` Whole neighbourhoods are dying because Parisians are forced to leave them , no longer able to afford to live or shop there . ''
The French Communist Party 's Ian Brossat , who is Hidalgo 's right-hand-man on housing , has touted a ban .
Brossat even wrote a book on the subject in 2018 called `` Airbnb : The Uber-ised City '' .
But the right does n't disagree @ @ @ @ @ @ @ short-term rental `` platforms have killed places like the Ile Saint-Louis '' , and told French daily Le Monde that `` Airbnb must be restricted , regulated and banned in some districts '' .
City Hall contenders are proposing to lower the number of days Parisians are allowed to rent out their own homes , down from 120 , and/or double , even triple , the number of inspectors charged with sussing out infractions , up from the current 35 .
Detractors include local residents groups , who deride short-term rental tourists as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ driving out businesses authentic neighbourhoods need ; and hoteliers , who see short-term rental landlords as free-riders impinging on their businesses without the expense of meeting industry norms .
When Airbnb signed a major sponsorship deal in November with the International Olympic Committee through 2028 — a stretch that includes the Paris 2024 summer Games — Hidalgo and Paris hoteliers alike were livid .
`` For us , in the beginning , Airbnb was n't a problem when it fell under the sharing economy , '' Brossat tells FRANCE 24 in his bright @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the Marais .
`` The problem is that pretty quickly it went from a sharing economy to a predatory economy , with more and more professionals stepping into the breach who decided to make a business of it full-time . ''
Paris 's Communist deputy mayor in charge of housing under the Socialist Hidalgo , Brossat cites as concerns now the loss of housing , residents being replaced with tourists , the noise tourists bring into residential buildings , and neighbourhoods losing their identities when they `` are no longer lived in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Saint-Louis or the Marais , Brossat says .
`` We have 26 percent of the housing in the first four arrondissements of Paris no longer occupied by residents year-round , '' be it because the properties are now second homes or Airbnb-style rentals .
`` We do n't want Paris to become solely a display case . ''
Mayor Hidalgo 's long-standing battle with Airbnb is well-documented .
Over the course of her six-year term , City Hall beefed up a housing-fraud brigade that scrapes the web and beats the pavement , following @ @ @ @ @ @ @ once a month , fanning out across a single neighbourhood for a crackdown operation .
The City of Paris has tacked on new constraints like requiring registration numbers for every rental .
It has squeezed into local legislation all that French law allows to rein in overzealous landlords , then lobbied the French government for broader powers .
From Airbnb , it obtained the payment of a tourist tax on stays , like the one hotels collect – in 2019 Paris brought in €15.3m from this tourist tax .
Hidalgo and Brossat have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Brussels and at the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg .
As it stands today , Paris homeowners are allowed to rent out their primary residences for up to 120 days per year ; they can rent out their second homes in Paris all year round , but only if they also rent out an equivalent property as social housing in the same neighbourhood or put up twice the surface for rent as traditional housing .
Professionals can buy up some commercial spaces to rent out short-term if they apply to change the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Still , local politicians and many Parisians alike want more done .
`` When I became deputy mayor in 2014 , residents did n't understand why we were tackling this phenomenon , '' Brossat says .
`` Today , they reproach us for not going far enough .
So it 's clear the situation has changed . ''
And how quickly it has .
`` Airbnb was born [ in San Francisco ] in 2008 and has developed pretty exponentially since 2010 , notably in Paris , which is the city most concerned @ @ @ @ @ @ @ particularly by Airbnb , '' says Sciences Po Rennes lecturer Thomas Aguilera , a specialist on public policy , urban planning and tourism .
He says Paris listings number `` between 60,000 and 100,000 apartments on all platforms , so not just Airbnb ... an exponential development , quick , massive and pertaining to just about every neighbourhood '' .
But the academic guards against making causal leaps .
The rise of Airbnb , after all , fits into a larger story about mass tourism and globalisation that began well before two California @ @ @ @ @ @ @ living-room floor on the road to fame and fortune .
It is part of the narrative of `` intensive touristification '' that invested cities like Barcelona , Berlin , Venice , Prague and Lisbon in the 1990s and 2000s .
Paris , after all , is the world 's tourism capital .
Aguilera and colleagues Francesca Artioli and Claire Colomb are conducting a research project to measure short-term rentals ' impact on cities , but he says economists , geographers and sociologists are only beginning to make sense of the data .
`` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a scientific model , that puts a causal link between Airbnb 's development and residents disappearing in the Marais , '' Aguilera cautions , as just one example of the work left to be done .
`` It might be proven , but it has to be done first . ''
The numbers game , indeed , is rife in the French capital .
The City of Paris estimates that some 20,000 to 30,000 apartments have been lost to the Parisian rental market , rented out short-term year-round through Airbnb and some 300 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for its part , says it only had 4,100 apartments rented out for more than 120 days in Paris in 2019 , and of those only 1,040 for more than 255 days .
As of December 2019 , Airbnb is required to file a list of its rentals with authorities annually .
But the French government did n't obligate the firm to append a listing 's web address , the URL , as Paris requested , which means it takes `` ten times longer '' , Brossat says , for inspectors to cross-check @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , yeah .
Airbnb is lying , '' says Brossat , with a cackle .
`` Airbnb is not telling us the truth about its numbers .
When we ask Parisians what they think , what they feel , we see that the phenomenon has spread much more than Airbnb says .
But there is n't much point in the numbers war .
The issue for us is to protect Parisians .
Airbnb is protecting its business , '' Brossat says in office , its walls clad with with art and an antique @ @ @ @ @ @ @ n't blame tourists for seeking out an authentic local experience in the world 's tourism capital .
But the thing about Paris is , as Europe 's smallest capital by size , there are n't all that many locals to speak of .
A dense warren of streets struck through with avenues and the city 's compact old-build charm mean there is precious little space for new construction within its Périphérique ring-road .
About 2.15 million people live in Paris , set against the 50 million tourists who visited the greater Paris area @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are fewer Parisians every year .
`` Between 2012 and 2017 , the population rose in every department in France , except Paris , '' the country 's statistical agency , l'Insee , wrote in December 2019 .
`` The capital loses 11,000 inhabitants every year , even though it was gaining 10,000 between 2007 and 2012 . ''
Many attribute the mini-exodus at least in part to the rising cost of housing in a city that saw property prices hit the symbolic €10,000 per square metre mark last August , skyrocketing 66 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ appear to be driving middle-class families out of town .
There were 1,400 fewer children in Paris schools last September , after drops between 2,000 and 3,000 over the previous four years .
Some quarters have lost more locals than others .
The city 's expensive central districts have been shedding residents disproportionately .
In the very heart of the city , the 2nd arrondissement has lost more than 10 percent of its population since 2015 and seen three kindergarten classes close .
As it happens , while Paris 's central arrondissements bid @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are also seeing short-term rental properties bloom en masse .
And residents ' frustration has crystallised around Airbnb as the dominant market player .
Looking to succeed the current EELV green party mayor of the 2nd arrondissement in a new district that takes in the first four arrondissements , Raphaëlle Rémy-Leleu is campaigning for `` a brigade of 100 inspectors in the capital to fight against the diverting of the principal of the collaborative economy and the disneylandification of the central neighbourhoods '' .
`` Airbnb did n't cause the housing problems .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ than that .
But it is an accelerator of that gentrification , '' Brossat says at City Hall .
`` Housing was n't cheap in the centre of Paris before Airbnb .
But the problem has accelerated because of Airbnb , '' he says .
`` There is a demographic phenomenon linked to a lower birth rate .
But there is also an incontestable phenomenon of the eviction of families [ as rentals develop ] .
A number of apartments that were being rented to families are now rented to tourists year-round .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Disneyland reference resonates with speech therapist Aurore Wait .
`` I get the feeling that I 'm in an artificial city where there are no longer people who work .
There are essentially people in leisure situations , '' says Wait , who has lived in the 2nd arrondissement for 40 years .
`` If you 're over 40 , you feel a bit in the way , '' the 60-year-old tells FRANCE 24 .
Wait was attending an event on Monday off the pedestrian rue Montorgueil in the 2nd on `` the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and residents '' .
Hosted by group called ParisVsBnB , which documents the spread of short-term rentals in the city , and housing rights group Droit au Logement , it was billed as a debate but it was n't a particular heated one .
Despite burgeoning coronavirus concerns , more than a hundred people turned out for the event at the local sports centre 's amphitheatre .
Most seemed to agree with the posted premise that short-term rentals are detrimental here .
`` How can one even conceive of a 20m2 apartment that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Franck Briand of ParisVsBnB asked rhetorically on stage .
`` It 's something that was completely unimaginable eight years ago .
Today , thanks to rentals by the day , that is what is happening in our neighbourhood , in the second arrondissement . ''
Jean-Baptiste Eyraud , the spokesman for Droit au Logement , took the mic at one point , intoning `` Airbnb everywhere , housing nowhere ! ''
and briefly got a chant going through the crowd .
Another man was invited to talk about the `` We sign it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in Paris , with 12,659 signatures so far .
Others came with questions about how to fight noisy short-term rentals in their buildings .
One young woman suggested , in hardly veiled terms , squatting rentals to bring awareness to the housing cause .
Aurore Wait , for her part , has been trying to put her finger on a feeling , about why she 's been so uneasy about pedestrian- and bicycle-friendly redevelopment in Paris .
Looking at a map at the debate of where Airbnb rentals are concentrated in Paris was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ neighbourhood is going to become a completely fake neighbourhood made for tourists , '' overrun with space for `` meandering '' , she says .
`` What I do n't understand is , why am I struggling with that when I could appreciate it ?
I do n't have a car in Paris , I bike , I walk a lot , and still this city has become almost intolerable to me . ''
`` The thing about Airbnb is that this city is turning into a thing that 's pleasant for tourists @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to do , '' says Wait , who lives in a sixth-floor walk-up near the Palais Royal .
She finds she avoids the pedestrian , restaurant-lined rue Montorgueil now and expresses a nostalgia for a grittier Paris , when the heart of the city beat at the rhythm of the people who live and work here .
`` There 's a sort of fake festivity [ now ] .
A sort of , hey , how funny , there are only people having drinks on terraces all day long .
It 's amazing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ anymore . ''
Up on stage , packing up after the debate went long , Briand is no stranger to that sentiment .
The ParisVsBnB member weathered four years in a flat on the rue Palestro nearby , living above a party pad .
The owner , who reportedly also runs 36 other rental properties , bought an old garage and applied for a `` change of purpose '' .
He converted it into a short-term rental for tourists that could sleep 15 .
But nobody got much sleep .
The nightly noise @ @ @ @ @ @ @ full-time neighbours to bear .
`` With all the problems we had , with the terrorist attacks in Paris , with the Gilets Jaunes , the police were n't available .
So when we called for them to intervene , they did n't come , '' Briand says .
`` We really felt abandoned , at every level , by the City , by public authorities , etc .
And they , meanwhile , during all that time , they prospered . ''
The building 's homeowners finally won a court battle against @ @ @ @ @ @ @ shut down the apartment 's basement addition .
Now , the rental sleeps six .
`` There are always a bit more and it does n't prevent parties .
But now , instead of going downstairs every day , shouting , making war , I go down every other week .
But it 's a battle that continues , '' says Briand , who is also on the Montorgueil-Saint-Denis neighbourhood council .
`` Four years .
We suffered , huh ?
In chatting with other residents on the street , we realised that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ buildings , with this party element . ''
A block over , on the rue Saint-Denis , a street famed in Paris for its motley mix of sex shops , textile wholesalers , bars and restaurants , cobbler Mickaël Amari looks none the worse for the short-term rental invasion .
Customers are unusually sparse this Tuesday lunch hour , but Amari puts that down to coronavirus more than Airbnb .
The cobbler , who has tended this shop for 13 years and watched the neighbourhood evolve , has seen the concierge businesses that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the area , like one called `` Urban Flat in Paris '' up the rue Saint-Denis .
`` There is one on the rue Saint-Sauveur , on the rue Mandar ...
There are plenty , '' he says .
Shoe and boot repair shops in particular are cited as the sorts of neighbourhood businesses at risk of replacement when a quarter tips into serving visitors instead of locals ; tourists just do n't stop in to have their brogues re-soled .
But the chatty , affable Amari , who is quick to perform @ @ @ @ @ @ @ still has plenty of local clients dropping off footwear at his `` Ali Baba 's cavern '' of a shop .
And he boasts another draw for the rental crowd since he cuts keys .
`` We make a lot of keys for them , '' he says .
`` Because they want to rent apartments out , they need three , four , five keys at a time . ''
Just then , a tall , bearded neighbour comes in looking to have a key badge made .
Is he an Airbnb @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Why ? ''
he asks .
When he hears the candidates for Paris mayor are all looking to rein in short-term rentals , he wants to learn more .
`` What are there platforms , if I might ask ?
...
I 'm wondering if they want to outlaw it , '' he says .
`` Is that a real possibility ? ''
Happy to chat `` as long as you 're not taking names '' , the 39-year-old explains that he already rents out a small studio in this `` crazy gentrifying @ @ @ @ @ @ @ commercial space in an apartment building nearby to convert into several short-term rentals .
Finding a convertible commercial space is one of the biggest hassles for Airbnb investors , he explains , `` because that 's the gem '' .
Pushing through his building 's large wood door into a long narrow stretch of courtyard , he explains the ground-floor property had been a textile workshop .
The mouldy space was `` like a sweatshop '' with the buzz of sewing machines running through the night and elicited `` endless complaints '' from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ out a number pad tucked under the workshop-style window of another courtyard apartment next door , a commercial space already converted for short-term rentals .
Tourists can unlock the door with a code .
`` The owner does n't have to say hello or anything , '' the man explains .
He notes that the noise from that other rental echoing through the resonant courtyard drove a family upstairs to move away , a situation he is looking to avoid for the family who lives next door to the space he bought .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , just to make it easy for myself .
But when I did the math , it was not even close , '' he says , wide-eyed .
`` Off the record , I understand why people are complaining , '' he says .
`` There is such a shortage of living space , in all the major European cities . ''
But he reasons he is n't taking away anyone 's housing with his new venture .
`` It would have been offices , '' he says .
Across town , Airbnb @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a low profile .
Tsaros lists five apartments near the Eiffel Tower on Airbnb for about €130 a night .
Before cancellations over the coronavirus scare , he says he was largely booked through October .
He makes no secret of the fact he has rented the apartments out illegally , without the proper authorisation .
At odds with the City , he faces up to €50,000 in fines per apartment .
So he wrote a book about it .
Tsaros 's `` Chronicles of an Airbnb renter in Paris : Revelations on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in January .
An early adopter , Tsaros first rented out his own apartment in 2008 or 2009 , he says , coming off four years of welfare benefits and managing bands in a music market ailing under the digital onslaught .
He bought a first rental apartment as a test and banks , buoyed by the results , were relaxed about financing more in quick succession .
`` That situation would not be possible today , '' he says , citing banks ' skittishness in the face of contempt at City Hall @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , pinpointing unfairness .
When he first invested , under former Socialist mayor Bertrand Delanöe , he says , the powers that be were more tolerant of short-term renters .
The landlord , who has a day job in the tourism sector on the side , sees short-term rentals as a drop in the bucket of Paris 's housing problem — representing a tiny percentage of Paris rental housing stock using the City 's numbers , or `` really nothing '' using Airbnb 's figures .
`` It 's the scapegoat , '' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Brossat [ as deputy mayor for housing ] is getting completely carried away in designating a guilty party and working his niche this way , but it is completely just abject . ''
Tsaros 's book calls for a moratorium on short-term rental inspectors ' summonses to allow an impact assessment in Paris .
`` Because we are told that Airbnb is responsible for everything , but without reasons , without arguments , '' he says .
`` Today , interest rates are extremely low .
It is obvious that over a period @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to soar .
It seems obvious to me .
But that it is n't being broached . ''
Tsaros suggests the so-called GAFAs , American tech giants like Airbnb , `` are always the bad guys '' to the Communists and Socialists at Paris City Hall .
`` For me , this is a life I 'm building , '' he says .
`` Someone who has 30 apartments is a professional .
One has to know to tell the difference . ''
If Hidalgo wins a second term this month , Parisians @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the ballot box about Airbnb within months .
But the questions on the ballot paper wo n't technically be questions Paris can answer itself , for now .
Both queries being mooted – about whether the 120-day limit should be tighter and whether short-term rentals of whole apartments should be banned – are out of Paris 's jurisdiction and meant to force the French government 's hand .
At City Hall , Brossat is clearly in favour of Paris broadening its powers on those questions .
`` I think we could obtain a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had that threat at our disposal .
It 's the nuclear weapon , '' he says .
`` Today , the government is n't in favour at all .
But I 'm convinced that if hundreds of thousands of Parisians demand it , the government will surely have to consider it . ''

Airbnb has made a mantra of travelling off the beaten path and "living like a local". But in Paris, the apartment-sharing giant's biggest market globally, a number of those locals say the path to their doors – and through their cobbled courtyards, and up the echoey stairwells of their charming walk-ups – are now well-beaten enough, merci. The result? Every major candidate in the race for Paris City Hall is stumping, more or less, to roll up the welcome mat.
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After taking the fight to Airbnb for years as mayor, incumbent Anne Hidalgo has pledged to hold a referendum in every Paris arrondissement (district) over Airbnb if she wins re-election after the March 22 run-off.
The issue of short-term tourist rentals was hardly a glint in the eye of politicians in 2014, during the last Paris mayor's race. This time, candidates from left to right are campaigning on technical solutions to what is, they appear to agree, a problem.
"Local shops [are] disappearing, but Airbnbs [are] everywhere, which fuel property speculation, luxury shops and mono-activity that targets affluent tourists alone," green EELV candidate David Belliard's programme rails, namechecking Montmartre and the Marais."Whole neighbourhoods are dying because Parisians are forced to leave them, no longer able to afford to live or shop there."
The French Communist Party's Ian Brossat, who is Hidalgo's right-hand-man on housing, has touted a ban. Brossat even wrote a book on the subject in 2018 called "Airbnb: The Uber-ised City". But the right doesn't disagree. Conservative candidate Rachida Dati has said short-term rental "platforms have killed places like the Ile Saint-Louis", and told French daily Le Monde that "Airbnb must be restricted, regulated and banned in some districts".
City Hall contenders are proposing to lower the number of days Parisians are allowed to rent out their own homes, down from 120, and/or double, even triple, the number of inspectors charged with sussing out infractions, up from the current 35.
Detractors include local residents groups, who deride short-term rental tourists as nuisances, driving up home prices and driving out businesses authentic neighbourhoods need; and hoteliers, who see short-term rental landlords as free-riders impinging on their businesses without the expense of meeting industry norms. When Airbnb signed a major sponsorship deal in November with the International Olympic Committee through 2028 — a stretch that includes the Paris 2024 summer Games — Hidalgo and Paris hoteliers alike were livid.
Part-time Paris?
"For us, in the beginning, Airbnb wasn't a problem when it fell under the sharing economy," Brossat tells FRANCE 24 in his bright City Hall office overlooking the tin roofs of the Marais. "The problem is that pretty quickly it went from a sharing economy to a predatory economy, with more and more professionals stepping into the breach who decided to make a business of it full-time."
Paris's Communist deputy mayor in charge of housing under the Socialist Hidalgo, Brossat cites as concerns now the loss of housing, residents being replaced with tourists, the noise tourists bring into residential buildings, and neighbourhoods losing their identities when they "are no longer lived in but merely visited".
Ian Brossat in Paris on April 11, 2019. © Anne-Christine Poujoulat, AFP
Take Ile Saint-Louis or the Marais, Brossat says. "We have 26 percent of the housing in the first four arrondissements of Paris no longer occupied by residents year-round," be it because the properties are now second homes or Airbnb-style rentals. "We don't want Paris to become solely a display case."
Mayor Hidalgo's long-standing battle with Airbnb is well-documented. Over the course of her six-year term, City Hall beefed up a housing-fraud brigade that scrapes the web and beats the pavement, following up on neighbours' complaints or, once a month, fanning out across a single neighbourhood for a crackdown operation. The City of Paris has tacked on new constraints like requiring registration numbers for every rental. It has squeezed into local legislation all that French law allows to rein in overzealous landlords, then lobbied the French government for broader powers. From Airbnb, it obtained the payment of a tourist tax on stays, like the one hotels collect – in 2019 Paris brought in €15.3m from this tourist tax. Hidalgo and Brossat have also pled the city's case in Brussels and at the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg.
As it stands today, Paris homeowners are allowed to rent out their primary residences for up to 120 days per year; they can rent out their second homes in Paris all year round, but only if they also rent out an equivalent property as social housing in the same neighbourhood or put up twice the surface for rent as traditional housing. Professionals can buy up some commercial spaces to rent out short-term if they apply to change the property's purpose to hotel accommodation. Still, local politicians and many Parisians alike want more done.
"When I became deputy mayor in 2014, residents didn't understand why we were tackling this phenomenon," Brossat says. "Today, they reproach us for not going far enough. So it's clear the situation has changed."
Paris rentals: 60,000-100,000
And how quickly it has. "Airbnb was born [in San Francisco] in 2008 and has developed pretty exponentially since 2010, notably in Paris, which is the city most concerned in the world by such rentals and particularly by Airbnb," says Sciences Po Rennes lecturer Thomas Aguilera, a specialist on public policy, urban planning and tourism. He says Paris listings number "between 60,000 and 100,000 apartments on all platforms, so not just Airbnb... an exponential development, quick, massive and pertaining to just about every neighbourhood". But the academic guards against making causal leaps.
The rise of Airbnb, after all, fits into a larger story about mass tourism and globalisation that began well before two California roommates inflated an air mattress on their living-room floor on the road to fame and fortune. It is part of the narrative of "intensive touristification" that invested cities like Barcelona, Berlin, Venice, Prague and Lisbon in the 1990s and 2000s. Paris, after all, is the world's tourism capital. Aguilera and colleagues Francesca Artioli and Claire Colomb are conducting a research project to measure short-term rentals' impact on cities, but he says economists, geographers and sociologists are only beginning to make sense of the data.
"No study has proven, has developed a scientific model, that puts a causal link between Airbnb's development and residents disappearing in the Marais," Aguilera cautions, as just one example of the work left to be done. "It might be proven, but it has to be done first."
A short-term rental concierge business on the rue Saint-Denis in Paris's 2nd arrondissement. © Tracy McNicoll, France 24
The numbers game, indeed, is rife in the French capital. The City of Paris estimates that some 20,000 to 30,000 apartments have been lost to the Parisian rental market, rented out short-term year-round through Airbnb and some 300 other, smaller platforms. Airbnb, for its part, says it only had 4,100 apartments rented out for more than 120 days in Paris in 2019, and of those only 1,040 for more than 255 days. As of December 2019, Airbnb is required to file a list of its rentals with authorities annually. But the French government didn't obligate the firm to append a listing's web address, the URL, as Paris requested, which means it takes "ten times longer", Brossat says, for inspectors to cross-check the information themselves.
"Four thousand, yeah. Airbnb is lying," says Brossat, with a cackle. "Airbnb is not telling us the truth about its numbers. When we ask Parisians what they think, what they feel, we see that the phenomenon has spread much more than Airbnb says. But there isn't much point in the numbers war. The issue for us is to protect Parisians. Airbnb is protecting its business," Brossat says in office, its walls clad with art and an antique French Communist Party poster.
Exodus
One can't blame tourists for seeking out an authentic local experience in the world's tourism capital. But the thing about Paris is, as Europe's smallest capital by size, there aren't all that many locals to speak of. A dense warren of streets struck through with avenues and the city's compact old-build charm mean there is precious little space for new construction within its Périphérique ring-road. About 2.15 million people live in Paris, set against the 50 million tourists who visited the greater Paris area in 2018. And lately, there are fewer Parisians every year.
"Between 2012 and 2017, the population rose in every department in France, except Paris," the country's statistical agency, l'Insee, wrote in December 2019. "The capital loses 11,000 inhabitants every year, even though it was gaining 10,000 between 2007 and 2012."
Many attribute the mini-exodus at least in part to the rising cost of housing in a city that saw property prices hit the symbolic €10,000 per square metre mark last August, skyrocketing 66 percent over the previous decade. Prices appear to be driving middle-class families out of town. There were 1,400 fewer children in Paris schools last September, after drops between 2,000 and 3,000 over the previous four years.
Children enter their classroom on the first day of the 2019 school year at an elementary school in Paris. © Martin Bureau, AFP
Some quarters have lost more locals than others. The city's expensive central districts have been shedding residents disproportionately. In the very heart of the city, the 2nd arrondissement has lost more than 10 percent of its population since 2015 and seen three kindergarten classes close. As it happens, while Paris's central arrondissements bid au revoir to those locals, they are also seeing short-term rental properties bloom en masse. And residents' frustration has crystallised around Airbnb as the dominant market player.
Looking to succeed the current EELV green party mayor of the 2nd arrondissement in a new district that takes in the first four arrondissements, Raphaëlle Rémy-Leleu is campaigning for "a brigade of 100 inspectors in the capital to fight against the diverting of the principal of the collaborative economy and the disneylandification of the central neighbourhoods".
"Airbnb didn't cause the housing problems. The gentrification of Paris is much older than that. But it is an accelerator of that gentrification," Brossat says at City Hall. "Housing wasn't cheap in the centre of Paris before Airbnb. But the problem has accelerated because of Airbnb," he says. "There is a demographic phenomenon linked to a lower birth rate. But there is also an incontestable phenomenon of the eviction of families [as rentals develop]. A number of apartments that were being rented to families are now rented to tourists year-round. That's the truth."
'Disneylandification'
The Disneyland reference resonates with speech therapist Aurore Wait. "I get the feeling that I'm in an artificial city where there are no longer people who work. There are essentially people in leisure situations," says Wait, who has lived in the 2nd arrondissement for 40 years. "If you're over 40, you feel a bit in the way," the 60-year-old tells FRANCE 24.
Wait was attending an event on Monday off the pedestrian rue Montorgueil in the 2nd on "the harm mass tourism is doing to housing and residents". Hosted by a group called ParisVsBnB, which documents the spread of short-term rentals in the city, and housing rights group Droit au Logement, it was billed as a debate but it wasn't a particular heated one. Despite burgeoning coronavirus concerns, more than a hundred people turned out for the event at the local sports centre's amphitheatre. Most seemed to agree with the posted premise that short-term rentals are detrimental here.
"How can one even conceive of a 20m2 apartment that brings in €7,000 a month?" Franck Briand of ParisVsBnB asked rhetorically on stage. "It's something that was completely unimaginable eight years ago. Today, thanks to rentals by the day, that is what is happening in our neighbourhood, in the second arrondissement."
Jean-Baptiste Eyraud, the spokesman for Droit au Logement, took the mic at one point, intoning "Airbnb everywhere, housing nowhere!" and briefly got a chant going through the crowd. Another man was invited to talk about the "We sign it" petition he started to ban Airbnb in Paris, with 12,659 signatures so far. Others came with questions about how to fight noisy short-term rentals in their buildings. One young woman suggested, in hardly veiled terms, squatting rentals to bring awareness to the housing cause.
In 2019, Airbnb and the Louvre held a contest to spend the night in a little pyramid at the museum. © Charles Platiau, Reuters
Aurore Wait, for her part, has been trying to put her finger on a feeling, about why she's been so uneasy about pedestrian- and bicycle-friendly redevelopment in Paris. Looking at a map at the debate of where Airbnb rentals are concentrated in Paris was a revelation. "Basically, the neighbourhood is going to become a completely fake neighbourhood made for tourists," overrun with space for "meandering", she says. "What I don't understand is, why am I struggling with that when I could appreciate it? I don't have a car in Paris, I bike, I walk a lot, and still this city has become almost intolerable to me."
"The thing about Airbnb is that this city is turning into a thing that's pleasant for tourists, for people who have nothing else to do," says Wait, who lives in a sixth-floor walk-up near the Palais Royal. She finds she avoids the pedestrian, restaurant-lined rue Montorgueil now and expresses a nostalgia for a grittier Paris, when the heart of the city beat at the rhythm of the people who live and work here. "There's a sort of fake festivity [now]. A sort of, hey, how funny, there are only people having drinks on terraces all day long. It's amazing. There aren't any calm places anymore."
Up on stage, packing up after the debate went long, Briand is no stranger to that sentiment. The ParisVsBnB member weathered four years in a flat on the rue de Palestro nearby, living above a party pad. The owner, who reportedly also runs 36 other rental properties, bought an old garage and applied for a "change of purpose". He converted it into a short-term rental for tourists that could sleep 15. But nobody got much sleep. The nightly noise was too much for Briand and his full-time neighbours to bear.
"With all the problems we had, with the terrorist attacks in Paris, with the Gilets Jaunes, the police weren't available. So when we called for them to intervene, they didn't come," Briand says. "We really felt abandoned, at every level, by the City, by public authorities, etc. And they, meanwhile, during all that time, they prospered."
The building's homeowners finally won a court battle against the landlord, who was forced to shut down the apartment's basement addition. Now, the rental sleeps six. "There are always a bit more and it doesn't prevent parties. But now, instead of going downstairs every day, shouting, making war, I go down every other week. But it's a battle that continues," says Briand, who is also on the Montorgueil-Saint-Denis neighbourhood council. "Four years. We suffered, huh? In chatting with other residents on the street, we realised that this was affecting quite a few other buildings, with this party element."
Keymasters
A block over, on the rue Saint-Denis, a street famed in Paris for its motley mix of sex shops, textile wholesalers, bars and restaurants, cobbler Mickaël Amari looks none the worse for the short-term rental invasion. Customers are unusually sparse this Tuesday lunch hour, but Amari puts that down to coronavirus more than Airbnb. The cobbler, who has tended this shop for 13 years and watched the neighbourhood evolve, has seen the concierge businesses that manage short-term rentals pop up all over the area, like one called "Urban Flat in Paris" up the rue Saint-Denis. "There is one on the rue Saint-Sauveur, on the rue Mandar... There are plenty," he says.
Shoe and boot repair shops in particular are cited as the sorts of neighbourhood businesses at risk of replacement when a quarter tips into serving visitors instead of locals; tourists just don't stop in to have their brogues re-soled. But the chatty, affable Amari, who is quick to perform a magic trick for new customers, still has plenty of local clients dropping off footwear at his "Ali Baba's cavern" of a shop. And he boasts another draw for the rental crowd since he cuts keys. "We make a lot of keys for them," he says. "Because they want to rent apartments out, they need three, four, five keys at a time."
Cobbler Mickaël Amari cuts keys for Airbnb-style renters on the rue Saint-Denis in Paris's 2nd arrondissement. © Tracy McNicoll, France 24
Just then, a tall, bearded neighbour comes in looking to have a key badge made. Is he an Airbnb renter? "I do Airbnb. Why?" he asks. When he hears the candidates for Paris mayor are all looking to rein in short-term rentals, he wants to learn more. "What are there platforms, if I might ask?... I'm wondering if they want to outlaw it," he says. "Is that a real possibility?"
Happy to chat "as long as you're not taking names", the 39-year-old explains that he already rents out a small studio in this "crazy gentrifying" neighbourhood, but recently bought a commercial space in an apartment building nearby to convert into several short-term rentals. Finding a convertible commercial space is one of the biggest hassles for Airbnb investors, he explains, "because that's the gem". Pushing through his building's large wood door into a long narrow stretch of courtyard, he explains the ground-floor property had been a textile workshop. The mouldy space was "like a sweatshop" with the buzz of sewing machines running through the night and elicited "endless complaints" from building residents.
The property owner points out a number pad tucked under the workshop-style window of another courtyard apartment next door, a commercial space already converted for short-term rentals. Tourists can unlock the door with a code. "The owner doesn't have to say hello or anything," the man explains. He notes that the noise from that other rental echoing through the resonant courtyard drove a family upstairs to move away, a situation he is looking to avoid for the family who lives next door to the space he bought. "I was thinking of doing offices, just to make it easy for myself. But when I did the math, it was not even close," he says, wide-eyed.
"Off the record, I understand why people are complaining," he says. "There is such a shortage of living space, in all the major European cities." But he reasons he isn't taking away anyone's housing with his new venture. "It would have been offices," he says.
Across town, Airbnb renter Nicolas Tsaros isn't keeping such a low profile. Tsaros lists five apartments near the Eiffel Tower on Airbnb for about €130 a night. Before cancellations over the coronavirus scare, he says he was largely booked through October. He makes no secret of the fact he has rented the apartments out illegally, without the proper authorisation. At odds with the City, he faces up to €50,000 in fines per apartment. So he wrote a book about it. Tsaros's "Chronicles of an Airbnb renter in Paris: Revelations on a war against Parisians" came out in January.
One of Nicolas Tsaros's rental listings on Airbnb. © Nicolas Tsaros/Airbnb
An early adopter, Tsaros first rented out his own apartment in 2008 or 2009, he says, coming off four years of welfare benefits and managing bands in a music market ailing under the digital onslaught. He bought a first rental apartment as a test and banks, buoyed by the results, were relaxed about financing more in quick succession. "That situation would not be possible today," he says, citing banks' skittishness in the face of contempt at City Hall.
Tsaros likens himself to a whistleblower, pinpointing unfairness. When he first invested, under former Socialist mayor Bertrand Delanöe, he says, the powers that be were more tolerant of short-term renters. The landlord, who has a day job in the tourism sector on the side, sees short-term rentals as a drop in the bucket of Paris's housing problem — representing a tiny percentage of Paris rental housing stock using the City's numbers, or "really nothing" using Airbnb's figures.
"It's the scapegoat," Tsaros says. "Today, Ian Brossat [as deputy mayor for housing] is getting completely carried away in designating a guilty party and working his niche this way, but it is completely just abject."
Tsaros's book calls for a moratorium on short-term rental inspectors' summonses to allow an impact assessment in Paris. "Because we are told that Airbnb is responsible for everything, but without reasons, without arguments," he says. "Today, interest rates are extremely low. It is obvious that over a period of five years, prices were going to soar. It seems obvious to me. But that it isn't being broached."
Tsaros suggests the so-called GAFAs, American tech giants like Airbnb, "are always the bad guys" to the Communists and Socialists at Paris City Hall. "For me, this is a life I'm building," he says. "Someone who has 30 apartments is a professional. One has to know to tell the difference."
The nuclear option
If Hidalgo wins a second term this month, Parisians can expect to be called back to the ballot box about Airbnb within months. But the questions on the ballot paper won't technically be questions Paris can answer itself, for now. Both queries being mooted – about whether the 120-day limit should be tighter and whether short-term rentals of whole apartments should be banned – are out of Paris's jurisdiction and meant to force the French government's hand.
At City Hall, Brossat is clearly in favour of Paris broadening its powers on those questions.
"I think we could obtain a lot of things from Airbnb if we had that threat at our disposal. It's the nuclear weapon," he says. "Today, the government isn't in favour at all. But I'm convinced that if hundreds of thousands of Parisians demand it, the government will surely have to consider it."
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france24--2020-03-13--Canadian PM Trudeau in two-week isolation after wife tests positive for coronavirus

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will be in isolation for two weeks after his wife , Sophie , tested positive for coronavirus on Thursday , and the outbreak prompted the province of Ontario to shutter schools to limit the spread .
Sophie Gregoire Trudeau recently returned from London and experienced flu-like symptoms , so she was tested for the coronavirus , the prime minister 's office said earlier on Thursday .
The test came back positive , it said in the evening .
`` The Prime Minister is in good health with no symptoms .
As a precautionary measure and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will be in isolation for a planned period of 14 days , '' an official statement said .
Sophie will be in quarantine for 14 days .
`` The Prime Minister will continue to fully assume his duties and will address Canadians tomorrow . ''
In a personal note , Sophie said she was `` experiencing uncomfortable symptoms of the virus , '' adding that she `` will be back on my feet soon '' .
Canada reported 145 new case of the virus , a three-fold gain from a week ago .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Canada 's 10 provinces have recorded infections .
Ontario , the most populous province , reported 17 new cases overnight , a 40 % jump .
To contain the virus , authorities ordered all schools to close from Saturday to April 5 .
Globally , more than 127,000 people have been infected by the sometimes deadly respiratory illness COVID-19 .
In a blow to hockey-obsessed Canadians , the National Hockey League suspended its season because of the outbreak , although it said its goal was to resume play `` as soon as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ so teams can compete for the Stanley Cup championship .
With the Canadian dollar at a four-year low against its U.S. counterpart and stocks plunging , the Bank of Canada announced measures to inject liquidity into the market .
Working from home on Thursday , Trudeau spoke with U.S. President Donald Trump , British Prime Minister Boris Johnson , Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte and joined a special cabinet meeting on the coronavirus by phone , his spokesman said on Twitter .
The Pacific province of British Columbia , north of Washington state @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , including to the United States .
Washington is one of the worst-affected states .
Any warning that involves the United States is politically sensitive , given the two countries ' 5,525-mile ( 8,890-km ) shared border and Canada 's overwhelming reliance on bilateral trade .
`` This is really important ... the evolving situation both in the United States and globally is a risk for all of us , '' British Columbia 's provincial chief medical officer , Bonnie Henry , told reporters .
Alberta 's chief medical officer , Deena Hinshaw @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people and canceled all international events .
Hinshaw also discouraged foreign travel .
Quebec , which has recorded 13 cases , has banned all indoor events with more than 250 people and said people returning from any foreign country should self-isolate for 14 days .
Health and education public-sector workers who travel abroad will be required to self-isolate .
Separately , Canadian authorities canceled the JUNO music awards , Canada 's version of the Grammys , and Toronto 's annual St. Patrick 's Day parade was suspended .
Ottawa committed C $ 1 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Wednesday toward bolstering the healthcare system and limiting the impact of the virus , while Ontario said on Thursday it had set aside C $ 100 million in `` contingency funding . ''
On Thursday , Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said the public health crisis alone would cost the country `` well north of C $ 10 billion . ''

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will be in isolation for two weeks after his wife, Sophie, tested positive for coronavirus on Thursday, and the outbreak prompted the province of Ontario to shutter schools to limit the spread.
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Sophie Gregoire Trudeau recently returned from London and experienced flu-like symptoms, so she was tested for the coronavirus, the prime minister's office said earlier on Thursday. The test came back positive, it said in the evening.
"The Prime Minister is in good health with no symptoms. As a precautionary measure and following the advice of doctors, he will be in isolation for a planned period of 14 days," an official statement said. Sophie will be in quarantine for 14 days.
"The Prime Minister will continue to fully assume his duties and will address Canadians tomorrow."
In a personal note, Sophie said she was "experiencing uncomfortable symptoms of the virus," adding that she "will be back on my feet soon".
Canada reported 145 new case of the virus, a three-fold gain from a week ago. There has been one death. Seven of Canada's 10 provinces have recorded infections.
Ontario, the most populous province, reported 17 new cases overnight, a 40% jump. To contain the virus, authorities ordered all schools to close from Saturday to April 5.
Globally, more than 127,000 people have been infected by the sometimes deadly respiratory illness COVID-19.
In a blow to hockey-obsessed Canadians, the National Hockey League suspended its season because of the outbreak, although it said its goal was to resume play "as soon as it is appropriate and prudent," so teams can compete for the Stanley Cup championship.
With the Canadian dollar at a four-year low against its U.S. counterpart and stocks plunging, the Bank of Canada announced measures to inject liquidity into the market.
Working from home on Thursday, Trudeau spoke with U.S. President Donald Trump, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte and joined a special cabinet meeting on the coronavirus by phone, his spokesman said on Twitter.
The Pacific province of British Columbia, north of Washington state, advised against all non-essential foreign travel, including to the United States. Washington is one of the worst-affected states.
Any warning that involves the United States is politically sensitive, given the two countries' 5,525-mile (8,890-km) shared border and Canada's overwhelming reliance on bilateral trade.
"This is really important ... the evolving situation both in the United States and globally is a risk for all of us," British Columbia's provincial chief medical officer, Bonnie Henry, told reporters.
Alberta's chief medical officer, Deena Hinshaw, banned gatherings of more than 250 people and canceled all international events. Hinshaw also discouraged foreign travel.
Quebec, which has recorded 13 cases, has banned all indoor events with more than 250 people and said people returning from any foreign country should self-isolate for 14 days. Health and education public-sector workers who travel abroad will be required to self-isolate.
Separately, Canadian authorities canceled the JUNO music awards, Canada's version of the Grammys, and Toronto's annual St. Patrick's Day parade was suspended.
Ottawa committed C$1 billion ($723 million) on Wednesday toward bolstering the healthcare system and limiting the impact of the virus, while Ontario said on Thursday it had set aside C$100 million in "contingency funding."
On Thursday, Alberta Premier Jason Kenney said the public health crisis alone would cost the country "well north of C$10 billion."
(REUTERS)
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france24--2020-03-12--US carries out retaliatory air strikes in Iraq against Iran-backed militia

Iraqi Shiite fighters from the Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitaries fire their weapons as they advance near the town of Tal Abtah , south of Tal Afar , on November 30 , 2016 .
The United States waged a series of precision air strikes on Thursday against an Iran-backed militia in Iraq that it blamed for a major rocket attack a day earlier that killed two American troops and a 26-year-old British soldier .
The U.S. strikes appeared limited in scope and narrowly tailored , targeting five weapons storage facilities used by Kataib Hezbollah militants - including facilities used to store weaponry @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the Pentagon said .
Iraq 's military said in a statement that the U.S. air strikes hit four locations in Iraq .
The U.S. military did not estimate how many people in Iraq may have been killed in the strikes , which officials said were carried out by piloted aircraft .
But there no was no indication of the kind of high-profile killings that President Donald Trump authorized in January , when the United States targeted a top Iranian general , Qassem Soleimani .
U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper , in a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that the United States was prepared to respond again , if needed .
`` We will take any action necessary to protect our forces in Iraq and the region , '' Esper said .
Trump had been quick to authorize the U.S. military to respond following Wednesday 's attack in Iraq , in which militants fired dozens of 107 mm Katyusha rockets from a truck , striking Iraq 's Taji military camp north of Baghdad .
Out of the roughly 30 rockets fired , some 18 hit the base .
No one has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was the third time in recent months the U.S. military lashed out against Kataib Hezbollah .
It killed more than two dozen militants in December in response to an attack on an Iraqi base that killed a U.S. contractor .
The U.S. military drone strike in January that targeted Soleimani also killed Kataib Hezbollah founder Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis .
It was unclear whether the latest strikes would deter the militants from further action .
The rocket attack on Taji took place on what would have been Soleimani 's 63rd birthday , suggesting the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Dennis Ross , a former U.S. ambassador now at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy think tank , cast doubt on the Pentagon 's ability to deter Kataib Hezbollah .
`` Regrettably , these attacks on our forces will continue as Iran has no problem fighting to the last of the Shia militias and believe they can force us out of Iraq , '' he said on Twitter .
Iran retaliated for the U.S. drone strike that killed Soleimani by launching missiles from its territory at an Iraq base hosting U.S. troops @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with brain injuries .
In the latest attack , 14 U.S.-led coalition personnel were wounded , including American , British , Polish and other nationals .
Private-industry contractors were among the wounded .
U.S. Army General Mark Milley , chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff , told Pentagon reporters that five of the wounded were categorized as `` urgent , '' suggesting serious injuries that could require rapid medical evacuation .
The UK named its fallen service member as Lance Corporal Brodie Gillon .
The United States has not yet identified the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sign of concern that tensions between the United States and Iran could be headed toward open conflict , the Democratic-led U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation on Wednesday to limit Trump 's ability to wage war against Iran .
The Republican president has been engaged in a maximum-pressure campaign of renewed sanctions and near-constant rhetoric against Iran , after pulling the United States out of the international nuclear deal reached during the administration of his Democratic predecessor , Barack Obama .
Tensions between Washington and Tehran have mostly played out on Iraqi soil @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have regularly been rocketing and shelling bases in Iraq that host U.S. forces and the area around the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad .

The United States waged a series of precision air strikes on Thursday against an Iran-backed militia in Iraq that it blamed for a major rocket attack a day earlier that killed two American troops and a 26-year-old British soldier.
Iraqi Shiite fighters from the Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitaries fire their weapons as they advance near the town of Tal Abtah, south of Tal Afar, on November 30, 2016.
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The U.S. strikes appeared limited in scope and narrowly tailored, targeting five weapons storage facilities used by Kataib Hezbollah militants - including facilities used to store weaponry for past attacks on U.S.-led coalition troops, the Pentagon said.
Iraq's military said in a statement that the U.S. air strikes hit four locations in Iraq.
The U.S. military did not estimate how many people in Iraq may have been killed in the strikes, which officials said were carried out by piloted aircraft.
But there no was no indication of the kind of high-profile killings that President Donald Trump authorized in January, when the United States targeted a top Iranian general, Qassem Soleimani.
U.S. Defense Secretary Mark Esper, in a Pentagon statement detailing the strikes, cautioned that the United States was prepared to respond again, if needed.
"We will take any action necessary to protect our forces in Iraq and the region," Esper said.
Trump had been quick to authorize the U.S. military to respond following Wednesday's attack in Iraq, in which militants fired dozens of 107 mm Katyusha rockets from a truck, striking Iraq's Taji military camp north of Baghdad.
Out of the roughly 30 rockets fired, some 18 hit the base. No one has claimed responsibility for the attack.
It was the third time in recent months the U.S. military lashed out against Kataib Hezbollah. It killed more than two dozen militants in December in response to an attack on an Iraqi base that killed a U.S. contractor. The U.S. military drone strike in January that targeted Soleimani also killed Kataib Hezbollah founder Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis.
It was unclear whether the latest strikes would deter the militants from further action. The rocket attack on Taji took place on what would have been Soleimani's 63rd birthday, suggesting the militants were still looking for revenge.
Further attacks?
Dennis Ross, a former U.S. ambassador now at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy think tank, cast doubt on the Pentagon's ability to deter Kataib Hezbollah.
"Regrettably, these attacks on our forces will continue as Iran has no problem fighting to the last of the Shia militias and believe they can force us out of Iraq," he said on Twitter.
Iran retaliated for the U.S. drone strike that killed Soleimani by launching missiles from its territory at an Iraq base hosting U.S. troops - leaving more than 100 U.S. forces with brain injuries.
In the latest attack, 14 U.S.-led coalition personnel were wounded, including American, British, Polish and other nationals. Private-industry contractors were among the wounded.
U.S. Army General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told Pentagon reporters that five of the wounded were categorized as "urgent," suggesting serious injuries that could require rapid medical evacuation.
The UK named its fallen service member as Lance Corporal Brodie Gillon. The United States has not yet identified the U.S. service members killed.
In a sign of concern that tensions between the United States and Iran could be headed toward open conflict, the Democratic-led U.S. House of Representatives passed legislation on Wednesday to limit Trump's ability to wage war against Iran.
The Republican president has been engaged in a maximum-pressure campaign of renewed sanctions and near-constant rhetoric against Iran, after pulling the United States out of the international nuclear deal reached during the administration of his Democratic predecessor, Barack Obama.
Tensions between Washington and Tehran have mostly played out on Iraqi soil in recent months.
Iran-backed paramilitary groups have regularly been rocketing and shelling bases in Iraq that host U.S. forces and the area around the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad.
(REUTERS)
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france24--2020-03-13--Wall Street has its worst day since 1987

As trading ended on Thursday in Wall Street 's worst day for three decades , shell-shocked investors had no idea how much further the market was likely to fall as the coronavirus pandemic spread fear of a global recession .
A 16-day drop of almost 27 % in the S & P 500 has left portfolios in tatters .
The suspension of professional sports games , canceled conventions and half-empty restaurants has raised fears - not about whether the longest U.S. economic expansion on record is ending - but about how deep a now presumed recession will be .
`` @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2008 .
It was worse than Sept. 11 .
I started in 1993 and this was the most panicked market I 've ever seen , '' said Christopher Stanton , chief investment officer at Sunrise Capital Partners LLC in San Diego .
`` People are just trading on conjectures stacked on additional conjectures . ''
Drops of 10 % in the Dow Jones Industrial Average and 9.5 % in the S & P 500 were the worst for both since 1987 .
On Oct. 19 , 1987 , now known as `` Black @ @ @ @ @ @ @ % in its biggest ever-single day decline .
Wall Street 's most recent selloff comes as countries around the world grapple with how to contain the fast-moving coronavirus and its economic effects .
The velocity and depth of the drop has shocked investors accustomed to a decade of gains on Wall Street that were interrupted by only a handful of corrections .
`` Fear of missing out has turned into fear of the unknown , '' lamented John McClain , fixed income portfolio manager at Diamond Hill Capital Management , in Columbus , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a situation like this before . ''
The S & P 500 's rout has left it trading at under 16 times expected earnings , its lowest level since early 2019 , according to Refinitiv Datastream .
But that figure offers little confidence because earnings estimates for companies are likely to fall as corporations provide more details about how badly they have been hurt by the virus that broke out in China late last year and has now spread across the globe .
`` With a recession all but guaranteed at this point @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bear market territory today , one question worth asking is , how much is priced in ? ''
Bespoke Investment Group wrote in a research note .
Reflecting that uncertainty , the Cboe Volatility Index , known as Wall Street 's `` fear gauge , '' jumped on Thursday in its biggest-ever one-day surge .
`` This is not an economic problem - there are ramifications of it that are economic - but the problem is this virus and the panic it is causing , '' said Tim Ghriskey , chief investment strategist @ @ @ @ @ @ @ `` Is the panic overdone ?
I would say it is definitely overdone , but that does n't stop people from being freaked out . ''
That panic spread beyond stocks , with demand for dollars via the currency derivative market surging to its highest level for years in a sign that coronavirus-induced economic stress is starting to manifest itself in a broad scramble for greenback funding .
Among the victims of Wall Street 's implosion is U.S. President Donald Trump , who touted a stunning run-up in the stock market as evidence @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Most of those gains have now evaporated .
Investors are also becoming increasingly concerned that the coronavirus outbreak will hit U.S. corporate cash flow if it keeps workers at home or prevents companies from paying employees .
Bond funds have taken a hit and companies including Boeing are drawing on credit lines .
Traders expect the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates again aggressively at its policy meeting next week to counter the coronavirus .
That followed the Fed 's surprise 50 basis rate cut last week , which failed to stabilize @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coordinated fiscal and monetary policy , as well as government , '' said McClain .
`` People need to know there 's a plan in place .
This is n't Twitter .
You have got to have details . ''

As trading ended on Thursday in Wall Street's worst day for three decades, shell-shocked investors had no idea how much further the market was likely to fall as the coronavirus pandemic spread fear of a global recession.
Advertising Read more
A 16-day drop of almost 27% in the S&P 500 has left portfolios in tatters. The suspension of professional sports games, canceled conventions and half-empty restaurants has raised fears - not about whether the longest U.S. economic expansion on record is ending - but about how deep a now presumed recession will be.
"This was worse than any day in 2008. It was worse than Sept. 11. I started in 1993 and this was the most panicked market I've ever seen," said Christopher Stanton, chief investment officer at Sunrise Capital Partners LLC in San Diego. "People are just trading on conjectures stacked on additional conjectures."
Drops of 10% in the Dow Jones Industrial Average and 9.5% in the S&P 500 were the worst for both since 1987. On Oct. 19, 1987, now known as "Black Monday," the Dow crashed 22.6% in its biggest ever-single day decline.
Wall Street's most recent selloff comes as countries around the world grapple with how to contain the fast-moving coronavirus and its economic effects.
The velocity and depth of the drop has shocked investors accustomed to a decade of gains on Wall Street that were interrupted by only a handful of corrections.
"Fear of missing out has turned into fear of the unknown," lamented John McClain, fixed income portfolio manager at Diamond Hill Capital Management, in Columbus, Ohio. "We haven't seen a situation like this before."
The S&P 500's rout has left it trading at under 16 times expected earnings, its lowest level since early 2019, according to Refinitiv Datastream. But that figure offers little confidence because earnings estimates for companies are likely to fall as corporations provide more details about how badly they have been hurt by the virus that broke out in China late last year and has now spread across the globe.
"With a recession all but guaranteed at this point and the S&P 500 entering bear market territory today, one question worth asking is, how much is priced in?" Bespoke Investment Group wrote in a research note.
Reflecting that uncertainty, the Cboe Volatility Index , known as Wall Street's "fear gauge," jumped on Thursday in its biggest-ever one-day surge.
"This is not an economic problem - there are ramifications of it that are economic - but the problem is this virus and the panic it is causing," said Tim Ghriskey, chief investment strategist at Inverness Counsel in New York. "Is the panic overdone? I would say it is definitely overdone, but that doesn't stop people from being freaked out."
That panic spread beyond stocks, with demand for dollars via the currency derivative market surging to its highest level for years in a sign that coronavirus-induced economic stress is starting to manifest itself in a broad scramble for greenback funding.
Among the victims of Wall Street's implosion is U.S. President Donald Trump, who touted a stunning run-up in the stock market as evidence of his success in the White House. Most of those gains have now evaporated.
Investors are also becoming increasingly concerned that the coronavirus outbreak will hit U.S. corporate cash flow if it keeps workers at home or prevents companies from paying employees. Bond funds have taken a hit and companies including Boeing are drawing on credit lines.
Traders expect the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates again aggressively at its policy meeting next week to counter the coronavirus. That followed the Fed's surprise 50 basis rate cut last week, which failed to stabilize markets.
"We have to see coordinated fiscal and monetary policy, as well as government," said McClain. "People need to know there's a plan in place. This isn't Twitter. You have got to have details."
(REUTERS)
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france24--2020-03-12--US judge orders WikiLeaks source Chelsea Manning to be released from prison immediately

© Former US Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning speaks to reporters outside the US federal courthouse in Alexandria , Virginia on March 8 , 2019 .
A U.S. federal judge on Thursday ordered that former U.S. Army soldier and WikiLeaks source Chelsea Manning should be immediately released from prison , where she was being held for refusing to testify in an ongoing U.S. investigation of WikiLeaks .
An entry in the U.S. District Court docket in Alexandria , Virginia , signed by Judge Anthony Trenga , also rejected a request by Manning to cancel fines which he had imposed for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to pay fines totaling $ 256,000 .
A detention hearing for Manning scheduled for Friday was canceled .
`` Needless to say we are relieved and ask that you respect her privacy while she gets on her feet , '' Manning 's defense team said in an emailed statement .
On Wednesday , a spokesman for Manning 's defense team said Manning had attempted to commit suicide and had been taken to hospital , where she was recovering .
Spokesman Andy Stepanian said that in spite of her imprisonment and the imposition of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in her refusal to participate in a secret grand jury process that she sees as highly susceptible to abuse . ''
Prior to her recent incarceration for refusing to testify , Manning had served seven years in a military prison for leaking hundreds of thousands of U.S. military messages and cables to WikiLeaks , before being released on the order of President Barack Obama .
WikiLeaks , an internet-based `` dead letter drop '' for leakers of classified or sensitive information , was founded by Australian citizen Julian Assange in 2006 .
Assange @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as British courts consider a request from U.S. prosecutors for his extradition to the United States .
He is wanted on charges of conspiring with Manning to hack into a Pentagon computer system containing classified materials .

A U.S. federal judge on Thursday ordered that former U.S. Army soldier and WikiLeaks source Chelsea Manning should be immediately released from prison, where she was being held for refusing to testify in an ongoing U.S. investigation of WikiLeaks.
© Former US Army intelligence analyst Chelsea Manning speaks to reporters outside the US federal courthouse in Alexandria, Virginia on March 8, 2019.
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An entry in the U.S. District Court docket in Alexandria, Virginia, signed by Judge Anthony Trenga, also rejected a request by Manning to cancel fines which he had imposed for her refusal to testify and ordered her to pay fines totaling $256,000.
A detention hearing for Manning scheduled for Friday was canceled.
"Needless to say we are relieved and ask that you respect her privacy while she gets on her feet," Manning's defense team said in an emailed statement.
On Wednesday, a spokesman for Manning's defense team said Manning had attempted to commit suicide and had been taken to hospital, where she was recovering.
Spokesman Andy Stepanian said that in spite of her imprisonment and the imposition of financial sanctions, Manning remained "unwavering in her refusal to participate in a secret grand jury process that she sees as highly susceptible to abuse."
Prior to her recent incarceration for refusing to testify, Manning had served seven years in a military prison for leaking hundreds of thousands of U.S. military messages and cables to WikiLeaks, before being released on the order of President Barack Obama.
WikiLeaks, an internet-based "dead letter drop" for leakers of classified or sensitive information, was founded by Australian citizen Julian Assange in 2006.
Assange is being held in a London prison as British courts consider a request from U.S. prosecutors for his extradition to the United States. He is wanted on charges of conspiring with Manning to hack into a Pentagon computer system containing classified materials.
(REUTERS)
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france24--2020-03-12--WHO warns Europe now coronavirus 'epicentre' as outbreak continues to spread

WHO warns Europe now coronavirus 'epicentre ' as outbreak continues to spread US President Donald Trump on Friday declared a @ @ @ @ @ the coronavirus pandemic , aiming to make up to $ 50 billion available for US @ @ @ @ @ its spread .
Earlier in the day , the World Health Organization warned that Europe @ @ @ @ @ '' of the pandemic , reporting more daily cases than China did at the height @ @ @ @ @ our FRANCE 24 live blog for the news as it happened .

Live blog
As it happened: US declares state of emergency, WHO warns Europe now 'epicentre' of coronavirus
US President Donald Trump on Friday declared a national emergency in response to the coronavirus pandemic, aiming to make up to $50 billion available for US states and territories to fight its spread. Earlier in the day, the World Health Organization warned that Europe was now the "epicentre" of the pandemic, reporting more daily cases than China did at the height of its outbreak. Review our FRANCE 24 live blog for the news as it happened.
Police check cars at the exit of the Paznaun Valley on March 13, 2020 in Tyrol, Austria. © Jakob Gruber, AFP
Advertising Read more US President Donald Trump declared a national emergency that he said makes up to $50 billion in aid available for US states and territories.
Thousands of Algerians marched against the country’s ruling elite despite the coronavirus pandemic. In downtown Algiers, police wore face masks and a group of youngsters sold protective gear and liquid soap.
In the US Democratic presidential race, former Vice President Joe Biden is holding a town hall for Illinois voters from 800 miles away in Delaware, while Senator Bernie Sanders has ceased holding rallies around the country and is staging daily news conferences in his home state of Vermont.
Egypt reported 13 new cases of coronavirus, bringing the country’s total to 93.
"Europe has now become the epicentre of the pandemic," WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a virtual press conference, describing the more than 5,000 deaths worldwide as "a tragic milestone".
In France, 79 people have died of the coronavirus (up from 61 on Thursday), while the number of cases has climbed to 3,661. All schools, crèches and universities across France will be closed from Monday.
Stock markets rebounded after Thursday’s plunge with European stocks staging a comeback, rising 8 percent by Friday afternoon after recording early losses. The Dow rose 773.20 points, or 3.6 percent, at opening to 21,973.82.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has announced a two-week state of emergency beginning Saturday.
Italy remains on a nationwide lockdown as its coronavirus death toll jumped by 250 in one day to 1,266, an increase of 25 percent. The country's total number of cases rose to 17,660 from 15,113, an increase of 17 percent.
China reported its lowest-ever number of new coronavirus cases: just eight on Friday, with no new domestic infections outside Hubei province.
Major sports events have been cancelled, including Champions League and Premier League matches. Daily newsletterReceive essential international news every morning Subscribe Take international news everywhere with you! Download the France 24 app


france24--2020-03-13--Italy's coronavirus death toll surges as Lombardy seeks tougher curbs

The death toll from coronavirus in Italy has jumped by 250 in the last 24 hours , the biggest daily increase ever recorded by any country , as the worst-affected Lombardy region asked for a complete shutdown of factories and offices .
The government this week imposed drastic curbs nationwide , shutting bars , restaurants and most shops , and banning non-essential travel in an effort to halt the worst outbreak of the disease outside China .
The measures so far show no sign of slowing the number of deaths , which rose by 25 % in a day to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Protection Agency said on Friday .
The total number of cases rose to 17,660 from 15,113 the day before , an increase of some 17 % .
Lombardy 's health chief Giulio Gallera said the government 's restrictions were not enough for the region which surrounds the financial capital Milan and accounts for three quarters of all the country 's fatalities .
`` We are asking for an exception to be made for Lombardy , '' he told RAI 3 television , calling for the closure of factories , offices and public transport @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can resist for at least eight days , maybe we will see things turn around . ''
There was no indication of whether Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte would agree to further curbs in Italy 's business heartlands , with the government increasingly concerned about the long-term scars the virus will leave on the fragile economy .
Some companies , such as car maker Fiat Chrysler , have decided to shut down part of their operations , while premium brakes maker Brembo announced on Friday it would temporarily stop work at all its four @ @ @ @ @ @ @ two objectives : Taking care of the sick and preventing infections , and taking care of our economy , '' Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio said on Friday .
He was speaking at an event to thank China for sending 31 tonnes of medical supplies , including masks and respirators , to Italy , as well as a team of doctors .
`` Italy is not alone , '' Di Maio said .
`` China is getting back on its feet and soon we too will be back on our feet . ''
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ % of all those who test positive from the highly contagious virus , is much higher than that of most other countries .
Italian health authorities attribute this mainly to an elderly population , with the majority of victims more than 80 years old with underlying health problems .
However , other explanations have also been suggested .
Ilaria Capua , a virologist at Florida University , said this week that many patients may be dying due to separate infections from antibiotic-resistent bacteria in Italian hospitals .
Another factor may be that Lombardy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of patients needing intensive care .
The health ministry has said it can quickly increase intensive care units by 50 % nationwide , but a ministry source told Reuters on Friday that this `` may not be enough in regions like Lombardy if we can not halt the contagion . ''
Giuseppe Remuzzi , head of the Mario Negri pharmacological institute , told daily Corriere della Sera that people are increasingly `` terrified '' of going to hospital , and are not calling emergency services until they can barely breathe .
Italy has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of its closest European allies to the crisis , with EU states refusing earlier this month requests for help as they stockpiled face masks and other medical equipment for their own citizens .
Austria and Slovenia have also drawn diplomatic displeasure by drastically limiting cross-border road traffic , leading to lengthy tailbacks and widespread confusion .
Four buses carrying Ukrainian nationals trying to get home from Italy were turned back at the Slovenian frontier overnight .
`` We ca n't continue our journey .
We have children on board , we are tired @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said an upset woman , who did not give her name .
`` If something happens , we want to die in our homes , in our country , '' said a Ukrainian man next to her .
In Rome , Pope Francis rebelled against a decision by his Roman Catholic Church to close all the 750 churches in the Italian capital - an unprecedented move in modern history .
`` Drastic measures are not always good , '' the pope said on Friday in improvised remarks at the start of his morning @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Within hours , the Church in Rome rowed back on the order and said all parish churches and those run by religious communities could remain open .

The death toll from coronavirus in Italy has jumped by 250 in the last 24 hours, the biggest daily increase ever recorded by any country, as the worst-affected Lombardy region asked for a complete shutdown of factories and offices.
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The government this week imposed drastic curbs nationwide, shutting bars, restaurants and most shops, and banning non-essential travel in an effort to halt the worst outbreak of the disease outside China.
The measures so far show no sign of slowing the number of deaths, which rose by 25% in a day to 1,266, the head of the Civil Protection Agency said on Friday.
The total number of cases in Italy rose to 17,660 from 15,113 the day before, an increase of some 17%.
Lombardy's health chief Giulio Gallera said the government's restrictions were not enough for the region which surrounds the financial capital Milan and accounts for three quarters of all the country's fatalities.
"We are asking for an exception to be made for Lombardy," he told RAI 3 television, calling for the closure of factories, offices and public transport in the region. "If we can resist for at least eight days, maybe we will see things turn around."
There was no indication of whether Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte would agree to further curbs in Italy's business heartlands, with the government increasingly concerned about the long-term scars the virus will leave on the fragile economy.
Some companies, such as car maker Fiat Chrysler, have decided to shut down part of their operations, while premium brakes maker Brembo announced on Friday it would temporarily stop work at all its four Italian plants.
"Today we have two objectives: Taking care of the sick and preventing infections, and taking care of our economy," Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio said on Friday.
He was speaking at an event to thank China for sending 31 tonnes of medical supplies, including masks and respirators, to Italy, as well as a team of doctors.
"Italy is not alone," Di Maio said. "China is getting back on its feet and soon we too will be back on our feet."
Fatality rate
Italy's fatality rate, at 7% of all those who test positive from the highly contagious virus, is much higher than that of most other countries.
Italian health authorities attribute this mainly to an elderly population, with the majority of victims more than 80 years old with underlying health problems. However, other explanations have also been suggested.
Ilaria Capua, a virologist at Florida University, said this week that many patients may be dying due to separate infections from antibiotic-resistant bacteria in Italian hospitals.
Another factor may be that Lombardy is having mounting problems treating the number of patients needing intensive care.
The health ministry has said it can quickly increase intensive care units by 50% nationwide, but a ministry source told Reuters on Friday that this "may not be enough in regions like Lombardy if we cannot halt the contagion."
Giuseppe Remuzzi, head of the Mario Negri pharmacological institute, told daily Corriere della Sera that people are increasingly "terrified" of going to hospital, and are not calling emergency services until they can barely breathe.
Italy has been dismayed by the response of some of its closest European allies to the crisis, with EU states refusing earlier this month requests for help as they stockpiled face masks and other medical equipment for their own citizens.
Bus turned back at Slovenian border
Austria and Slovenia have also drawn diplomatic displeasure by drastically limiting cross-border road traffic, leading to lengthy tailbacks and widespread confusion.
Four buses carrying Ukrainian nationals trying to get home from Italy were turned back at the Slovenian frontier overnight.
"We can't continue our journey. We have children on board, we are tired and we can't continue," said an upset woman, who did not give her name. "If something happens, we want to die in our homes, in our country," said a Ukrainian man next to her.
In Rome, Pope Francis rebelled against a decision by his Roman Catholic Church to close all the 750 churches in the Italian capital - an unprecedented move in modern history.
"Drastic measures are not always good," the pope said on Friday in improvised remarks at the start of his morning Mass, streamed on the Internet.
Within hours, the Church in Rome rowed back on the order and said all parish churches and those run by religious communities could remain open.
(REUTERS)
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france24--2020-03-13--Trump declares national emergency over coronavirus, aiming to free billions in aid

US President Donald Trump addressed reporters outside the White House about the country 's response to the spread of the coronavirus .
US President Donald Trump on Friday declared a national emergency over the fast-spreading coronavirus , opening the door to providing what he said was about $ 50 billion in federal aid to fight the disease .
Trump made the announcement at a news conference outside the White House as he battled to show Americans that he is aggressively addressing the virus after appearing to play down the threat for weeks .
Trump said he was declaring the national @ @ @ @ @ @ @ full power of the federal government '' .
He urged every state to set up emergency centres to help fight the virus .
Pressure has been mounting for Trump to declare an infectious disease emergency under the 1988 Stafford Act that would allow the Federal Emergency Management Agency ( FEMA ) to provide disaster funds to state and local governments and to deploy support teams .
Trump has invoked the Stafford Act many times during his presidency , approving major disaster declarations to address flooding in the Midwest and wildfires in California , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bill Clinton in 2000 used a Stafford Act emergency declaration to address outbreaks of the West Nile virus .
`` To unleash the full power of the federal government in this effort today , I am officially declaring a national emergency , '' Trump said .
`` Two very big words .
The action I am taking will open up access to up to $ 50 billion – a very important and a large amount for states and territories or localities in our shared fight against this disease . ''
Trump said the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sector to accelerate production of test kits to make them more widely available to Americans .
He said there will be about 5 million coronavirus tests available but doubted that many will be needed .
He urged Americans to only seek out the test if they feel they need it .
`` We do n't want people to take a test if we feel that they should n't be doing it and we do n't want everyone running out and taking – only if you have certain symptoms , '' he said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ National Institutes of Health expert who is on Trump 's coronavirus task force .
`` We still have a long way to go .
There will be many more cases .
But we 'll take care of that , '' said Fauci , the nation 's top infectious disease expert .
`` What 's going on here today is going to help it end sooner than it would have . ''

US President Donald Trump on Friday declared a national emergency over the fast-spreading coronavirus, opening the door to providing what he said was about $50 billion in federal aid to fight the disease.
US President Donald Trump addressed reporters outside the White House about the country's response to the spread of the coronavirus.
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Trump made the announcement at a news conference outside the White House as he battled to show Americans that he is aggressively addressing the virus after appearing to play down the threat for weeks.
Trump said he was declaring the national emergency in order to "unleash the full power of the federal government". He urged every state to set up emergency centres to help fight the virus.
Pressure has been mounting for Trump to declare an infectious disease emergency under the 1988 Stafford Act that would allow the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to provide disaster funds to state and local governments and to deploy support teams.
Trump has invoked the Stafford Act many times during his presidency, approving major disaster declarations to address flooding in the Midwest and wildfires in California, among other events. Former US President Bill Clinton in 2000 used a Stafford Act emergency declaration to address outbreaks of the West Nile virus.
"To unleash the full power of the federal government in this effort today, I am officially declaring a national emergency," Trump said. "Two very big words. The action I am taking will open up access to up to $50 billion – a very important and a large amount for states and territories or localities in our shared fight against this disease."
01:37
Trump said the federal government was partnering with the private sector to accelerate production of test kits to make them more widely available to Americans.
He said there will be about 5 million coronavirus tests available but doubted that many will be needed. He urged Americans to only seek out the test if they feel they need it.
"We don't want people to take a test if we feel that they shouldn't be doing it and we don't want everyone running out and taking – only if you have certain symptoms," he said.
Alongside Trump was Anthony Fauci, the National Institutes of Health expert who is on Trump's coronavirus task force.
"We still have a long way to go. There will be many more cases. But we'll take care of that," said Fauci, the nation's top infectious disease expert. "What's going on here today is going to help it end sooner than it would have."
(FRANCE 24 with REUTERS)
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france24--2020-03-13--Hungary's Orban blames foreigners, migration for coronavirus spread

Hungary 's nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban said Friday that foreigners and migration are to blame for the appearance and spread of coronavirus in Hungary .
Hungary 's nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Friday blamed foreigners and migration for the spread of coronavirus in Hungary , as the authorities announced that two infected Iranians were to be expelled .
Orban , asked during a radio interview why Hungary had closed its universities but not schools in response to the virus outbreak , said it was because `` there are lots of foreigners there '' .
`` Our experience is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and that it is spreading among foreigners , '' he said .
So far , Hungary has confirmed 19 cases of infections , nine of them Iranians ( mostly university scholarship-holders ) , one British national , and the rest Hungarians .
`` It 's no coincidence that the virus first showed up among Iranians , '' said Orban .
`` We can not separate the tens of thousands of foreign students from the Hungarian students , that 's why we thought it best to stop all visits to those institutions , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ announced Friday that two Iranian students diagnosed with the virus would be expelled because they had left a hospital quarantine hall without permission and with no protective clothing .
They had been aggressive towards the medical staff who placed them in isolation , the statement added .
The pair would be expelled as soon as their health permitted and banned from staying in Hungary for three years .
In Hungarian-language messages posted on its Facebook page the government has warned Iranians of detention and deportation if they do n't cooperate with disease control @ @ @ @ @ @ @ infections were confirmed -- both Iranian students -- Budapest suspended the issuing of visas to Iranian citizens .
Earlier in March Hungary barred the doors indefinitely to its border camps for asylum-seekers as it said refugees and migrants arriving there may have been in virus hotspot Iran .
Government officials and pro-Orban media have also drawn a link between the virus outbreak and migration .
`` We are fighting a two-front war , one front is called migration , and the other one belongs to the coronavirus , there is a logical connection @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with movement , '' Orban said Friday .

Hungary's nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Friday blamed foreigners and migration for the spread of coronavirus in Hungary, as the authorities announced that two infected Iranians were to be expelled.
Hungary's nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban said Friday that foreigners and migration are to blame for the appearance and spread of coronavirus in Hungary.
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Orban, asked during a radio interview why Hungary had closed its universities but not schools in response to the virus outbreak, said it was because "there are lots of foreigners there".
"Our experience is that primarily foreigners brought in the disease, and that it is spreading among foreigners," he said.
So far, Hungary has confirmed 19 cases of infections, nine of them Iranians (mostly university scholarship-holders), one British national, and the rest Hungarians.
"It's no coincidence that the virus first showed up among Iranians," said Orban.
"We cannot separate the tens of thousands of foreign students from the Hungarian students, that's why we thought it best to stop all visits to those institutions," he said.
Interior ministry announces two expulsions
The interior ministry announced Friday that two Iranian students diagnosed with the virus would be expelled because they had left a hospital quarantine hall without permission and with no protective clothing.
They had been aggressive towards the medical staff who placed them in isolation, the statement added. The pair would be expelled as soon as their health permitted and banned from staying in Hungary for three years.
In Hungarian-language messages posted on its Facebook page the government has warned Iranians of detention and deportation if they don't cooperate with disease control authorities.
Last week after the first infections were confirmed -- both Iranian students -- Budapest suspended the issuing of visas to Iranian citizens.
Earlier in March Hungary barred the doors indefinitely to its border camps for asylum-seekers as it said refugees and migrants arriving there may have been in virus hotspot Iran.
Government officials and pro-Orban media have also drawn a link between the virus outbreak and migration.
"We are fighting a two-front war, one front is called migration, and the other one belongs to the coronavirus, there is a logical connection between the two, as both spread with movement," Orban said Friday.
(AFP)
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