Emmanuel Macron’s team closes ranks as ex-aide’s scandal takes toll on French leader
A top presidential security aide was filmed manhandling May Day protesters, and accusations of a cover-up have followed
Emmanuel Macron’s administration on Tuesday defended its handling of the scandal sparked by a top presidential security aide filmed manhandling May Day protesters, which has seen the French leader’s approval ratings sink to a record low.
In a stormy parliamentary session dominated by questions about Alexandre Benalla, who faces charges of assault and impersonating a police officer, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe insisted that “nothing has been hidden” from the public.
Videos have emerged over the past week showing Benalla, 26, hitting a young man during the May 1 protest in Paris while wearing a riot officer’s helmet and police armband, and wrestling a woman to the ground.
Macron’s aides did not inform prosecutors about the incident, despite a law requiring public officials to alert authorities if laws are broken.
The scandal, called “Benallagate” in France, has prompted furious opposition claims of an attempted cover-up, which the government denies.