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Air France takes control of KLM in merger share swap

Air France has acquired control of KLM Royal Dutch, the two carriers announced Tuesday, cementing both their agreed merger and the privatization of Air France.

In a joint statement, the French and Dutch airlines said they had cleared the last hurdle in the merger they agreed to last year to create Air France-KLM, the world’s biggest airline in terms of revenue.

KLM shareholders tendered almost 42 million shares representing 89.2% of the airline’s capital in a share swap offer that closed Monday evening, the statement said.

U.S. Expects Guantanamo Releases to France Soon

The United States expects to soon begin releasing some detainees from its Guantanamo prison into the hands of French authorities, Secretary of State Colin Powell said on Thursday.

Seven French nationals are among around 600 people held at the camp in Cuba because Washington suspects they are members of al Qaeda and Afghanistan’s former ruling Taliban militia.

The U.S., which has held the detainees caught abroad in its “war on terrorism” at the Guantanamo U.S. naval base in Cuba, has already handed over some prisoners to countries such as Britain and Denmark.

Vandals damage Jewish graves in eastern France

Vandals painted swastikas and other anti-Semitic graffiti on headstones at a Jewish cemetery in eastern France, an act that drew the swift condemnation of the government on Friday.

French President Jacques Chirac promised a tough crackdown on anti-Jewish violence after the vandalism on the cemetery in Herrlisheim.

“Anti-Semitism is contrary to all the values, principles and ideas of the Republic,” Chirac said.

Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin’s office said he immediately wrote a letter to a local Jewish group to express outrage, and Interior Minister Dominique de Villepin called off appointments and immediately headed to the village in the Alsace region.

Chirac: EU enlargement opportunity for France, but Turkey not ready

Two days before the EU embraces 10 new members, French President Jacques Chirac said Thursday that enlargement will turn Europe into an economic powerhouse, but he warned that Turkey has not yet met the conditions to join.

Speaking at a rare news conference at the Elysee presidential palace, Chirac sought to reassure the French public about the EU’s expansion after opinion polls showed people are concerned about its effects on employment and social welfare — as well as on French national identity.

“I want to say to French men and women that this Europe, which is our common heritage and birthright, is now more than ever an opportunity for us and our future,” the president said in a brief speech before taking questions.