(AFP) French President Emmanuel Macron is seeking to gain ground on far-right leader Marine Le Pen ahead of a possible duel in 2022 elections by seizing votes on the right, with a tough-talking interior minister and a bill cracking down on radical Islamists.
Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin visibly shocked Le Pen herself, surprised even his own party colleagues and dismayed the left with a remark accusing Le Pen of “softness” on Islam during a debate on Thursday night.
Meanwhile, a law that aims to crack down on Islamist radicalism, which the government says will shore up France’s secular system but critics see as an affront to religious freedom, will be voted on by the National Assembly on Tuesday.
