FIFA ruled out the possibility of replaying the disputed France-Ireland World Cup qualifier on Friday, rejecting an Irish appeal to stage the playoff again after Thierry Henry handled the ball to set up the deciding goal in extra time.

France’s government is launching swine flu vaccinations for targeted high-risk groups, though polls suggest most French people are hesitant about the shots.

Former French President Jacques Chirac has been ordered to stand trial in an alleged corruption scandal dating back to his tenure as Paris mayor, a judicial official said Friday.

NASCAR founder Bill France Sr. headlined the five inductees into the first Hall of Fame class, a group that drew mixed reactions to the inclusion of France’s son instead of driver David Pearson. France, who formed the National Association of Stock Car Racing in 1947, was the first inductee announced yesterday in a ceremony that followed a lengthy voting session at the Charlotte Convention Center.

File this under “Only in France”: France apparently operates Europe’s nastiest prisons. The places are overcrowded and are deteriorating dramatically. Gangs form. We know what you are thinking: that this sounds a lot like the U.S., like the Richmond City Jail, for instance. Here’s la différence: The Fleury-Mérogis prison dates to 1969 and was designed by a modernist architect famous once upon a time. Although the place lies among fields, it resembles those mass estates intended to remake the urban landscape. For several decades planners erected buildings for housing, business, worship, the arts, and, as we see, prisons that conformed to lofty social theories. The results often pleased critics and the granters of awards but infuriated those destined to live or work (or serve time) in them.

Paleontologists are reporting the discovery in eastern France of some of the largest dinosaur footprints ever documented, measuring nearly 5 feet in diameter.

French police cleared out then bulldozed a squalid, sprawling forest camp known as the “jungle” near the northern city of Calais on Tuesday, detaining hundreds of illegal migrants who had hoped to slip across the English Channel into Britain.

The most recent economic data from France, Germany, Japan, and Hong Kong report modest growth (although Japan has produced troubling numbers as well). The recession may be over in those happy climes, as desperate optimists hope. The news also allows commentators to play their favorite sport. Particularly regarding attitudes toward our European friends, observers of all stripes suggest conditions prove them right.

JEAN-PIERRE VERGES
Associated Press Writer

I recently had the pleasure of visiting the Aquitaine region in the southwestern part of France. It’s a unique and beautiful place that oozes a rich and fierce history. There are 12thand 13th-century castles that dot the banks of the Dordogne River and quaint villages and “bastides” (walled towns) that boast incredible outdoor markets brimming with local culinary specialties unique to this region of France.

A burn victim who received a simultaneous partial face and double hand transplant in a French hospital has died, the Paris Public Hospital authority said Monday.

The religious right was right after all. Civil unions have weakened the institution of marriage. But gay people aren’t to blame—straight people are. Here’s the deal. Gay marriage is banned in France. But about a decade ago, France’s Socialist government created a compromise—a civil solidarity pact, known by its French acronym PACS—as a form of quasi-marriage for homosexual couples. Conservatives in France denounced the measure as a threat to traditional morality, just as conservatives in the U.S. have denounced gay marriage, civil unions, and similar arrangements here. Couples entering into PACS agreements can take advantage of various tax, inheritance, and similar benefits without getting wed. The bonds of PACS unions are also easier to sunder: Rather than having to go through a divorce, one or both partners can end the arrangement by submitting a written request in court. No alimony, no property claims—no muss, no fuss.