France has launched a probe into an attempt on the life of a news photographer who was seriously hurt while covering unrest in Reims, the European Federation of Journalists said Monday
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 01st March, 2021) France has launched a probe into an attempt on the life of a news photographer who was seriously hurt while covering unrest in Reims, the European Federation of Journalists said Monday.
"Authorities in France have opened an investigation for attempted murder," the organization said in a statement.
Christian Lantenois, 65, traveled to the Croix-Rouge neighborhood on Saturday after reports of youth violence emerged. He was found "in great distress" on the ground near his car that was identifiable as belonging to L'Union daily. He was taken to a intensive care ward. His condition on Sunday was serious but stable.
"We are outraged to learn of this new aggression against a photographer in France... We monitor more and more violence against journalists in Europe," Ricardo Gutierrez, the federation's chief, said.
French journalists' unions issued a joint declaration saying Lantenois had become a "symbol of the scorned journalist" whom attackers felt the right to vent on. They said this was a serious attack on the freedom to inform.
