Paris
The medieval martial arts enthusiast who slapped President Emmanuel Macron across the face told a court he was a right-wing sympathiser who had acted because the president represented all that was rotten with France, BFM TV reported.
Damien Tarel, 28, told the court in Valence that several days ahead of Macron’s visit to the southeastern Drome region, he had thought about throwing an egg or a cream tart at the president, the news channel reported.
“I think that Macron represents very neatly the decay of our country,” he told the court, according to BFM TV.
“If I had challenged Macron to a duel at sunrise, I doubt he would have responded.”
Macron later described the attack as an isolated incident and said violence and hate were a threat to democracy.—Agencies
