Francois Murphy
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/ 12 December 2007

Gadaffi accuses Europeans of abusing immigrants

Libyan leader Moammar Gadaffi fought back against criticism of his rights record on Tuesday by accusing European countries of abusing African immigrants. ”They brought us here like cattle to do hard and dirty work, and then they throw us to live on the outskirts of towns and when we claim our rights, the police beat us,” he said.

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/ 18 June 2007

Sarkozy wins reform mandate despite setback

French President Nicolas Sarkozy met his prime minister on Monday after securing an unexpectedly small parliamentary majority and losing a senior minister — setbacks that nonetheless left his reform programme on track. Sarkozy formally reappointed Prime Minister Francois Fillon, and their first task will be to find a replacement for government number two Alain Juppe.

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/ 17 May 2007

Sarkozy names moderate Fillon as PM

French President Nicolas Sarkozy named Francois Fillon as Prime Minister on Thursday, banking on the moderate conservative’s negotiating skills to push through sweeping reforms in the face of union resistance. On his first full day in office, Sarkozy held a breakfast meeting with Fillon before confirming the appointment of the 53-year-old.