PARIS: Thieves who staged a daring daylight heist at the Louvre museum in Paris made off with jewels worth an estimated 88 million euros ($102.63 million), Paris public prosecutor Laure Beccuau said on Tuesday.
“It is important to remember that this damage is an economic damage, but it is nothing compared to the historical damage caused by this theft,” the prosecutor told RTL radio.
In what some politicians branded a national humiliation, four people broke into the Louvre on Sunday using a crane to smash an upstairs window. They took objects from a gallery for royal jewelry before escaping on motorbikes.
The eight items of stolen jewelry included a tiara and earrings from the set of Queen Marie-Amélie and Queen Hortense, of the early 19th century. The crown of Empress Eugenie was found outside the museum, apparently dropped during the getaway.
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Damage from Louvre jewelry heist estimated at 88 million euros, Paris prosecutor says
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Damage from Louvre jewelry heist estimated at 88 million euros, Paris prosecutor says
- Four people broke into the Louvre on Sunday
- They took objects from a gallery for royal jewelry
Merz pushes PA’s Abbas on reforms ahead of Israel trip
BERLIN: German Chancellor Friedrich Merz called for reforms of the Palestinian Authority in a phone call with its leader Mahmud Abbas early Saturday, hours before taking off for Israel.
Speaking from Berlin, Merz urged Abbas to push through “urgently necessary reforms” at the Palestinian Authority so that the organization could “play a constructive role in a post-war order,” according to German government spokesman Stefan Kornelius.
Merz also underscored German support for US President Donald Trump’s peace plan for Gaza and “welcomed the Palestinian Authority’s cooperative attitude” toward the deal in the call, the spokesman said.
The fragile ceasefire agreement to end the Gaza war is supposed to be just the first phase of the plan.
Germany is among Israel’s closest allies and most outspoken supporters.
Merz’s call with Abbas came hours before the chancellor was scheduled to leave Berlin late Saturday morning for an overnight visit to Israel.
After a brief stop in Jordan, where Merz is scheduled to meet with the Jordanian King Abdullah II, Merz is expected to arrive in Jerusalem for meetings with top Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Merz also plans to visit the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Israel.
In his call with Abbas, Merz reiterated Germany’s position that a two-state solution remains the ultimate way to achieve peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians, according to the spokesman.
Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials hvae repeatedly rejected the prospect of an independent Palestinian state.
The Palestinian militant group Hamas, which seized control of the Gaza Strip from the Palestinian Authority in 2007, has also explicitly ruled out a two-state solution.
Speaking from Berlin, Merz urged Abbas to push through “urgently necessary reforms” at the Palestinian Authority so that the organization could “play a constructive role in a post-war order,” according to German government spokesman Stefan Kornelius.
Merz also underscored German support for US President Donald Trump’s peace plan for Gaza and “welcomed the Palestinian Authority’s cooperative attitude” toward the deal in the call, the spokesman said.
The fragile ceasefire agreement to end the Gaza war is supposed to be just the first phase of the plan.
Germany is among Israel’s closest allies and most outspoken supporters.
Merz’s call with Abbas came hours before the chancellor was scheduled to leave Berlin late Saturday morning for an overnight visit to Israel.
After a brief stop in Jordan, where Merz is scheduled to meet with the Jordanian King Abdullah II, Merz is expected to arrive in Jerusalem for meetings with top Israeli leaders, including Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Merz also plans to visit the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Israel.
In his call with Abbas, Merz reiterated Germany’s position that a two-state solution remains the ultimate way to achieve peace and security for Israelis and Palestinians, according to the spokesman.
Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials hvae repeatedly rejected the prospect of an independent Palestinian state.
The Palestinian militant group Hamas, which seized control of the Gaza Strip from the Palestinian Authority in 2007, has also explicitly ruled out a two-state solution.
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