Here's what happened after a French man slapped President Macron in the face

Here's what happened after a French man slapped President Macron in the face
World

On June 8, French President Emmanuel Macron was visiting Tain-L'Hermitage, France when he was slapped in the face by a 28-year-old man named Damien Tarel — who identifies with France's far-right movement and opposes Macron's centrist policies. Tarel, who pled guilty in a courtroom in Valance in Southern France, has been sentenced to 18 months in jail — although Reuters reports that the judge suspended 14 of those months.

Reuters notes, "Tarel attacked Macron when the French president was shaking hands with members of the public during a walkabout in France's Drome region. Tarel said that several days ahead of Macron's visit to the region, he had thought about throwing an egg or a cream tart at the president, but added the slap was not premeditated."

Tarel reportedly told the court, "I think that Macron represents very neatly the decay of our country. If I had challenged Macron to a duel at sunrise, I doubt he would have responded."

Macron was elected president of France in 2017, defeating White nationalist and far-right candidate Marine Le Pen — who heads the National Rally party, formerly the National Front. And Le Pen is planning to challenge Macron again in 2022, when he will be seeking reelection. Le Pen campaigned on an isolationist anti-immigrant platform in 2017 and has called for France to leave the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.

Here's the video of the incident:

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