Brigitte Macron addresses new claims over slapping French president

WorldPolitics
14 May 2026 • 5:45 PM MYT
The Independent
The Independent

The world’s most free-thinking newspaper

Brigitte Macron addresses new claims over slapping French president

  • Brigitte Macron has denied claims that she slapped her husband, Emmanuel Macron, last year after reportedly seeing text exchanges between him and actress Golshifteh Farahani.
  • The alleged incident occurred during a state visit to Vietnam, which the Elysée Palace initially dismissed as ‘horseplay’.
  • A new book by Florian Tardif suggests the slap resulted from a ”dispute” over messages, some of which allegedly read “I find you very pretty”.
  • Sources close to Mrs Macron told Le Parisien that she “categorically denied” the account and stated she never looks at her husband's mobile phone.
  • This denial comes amidst a history of attacks and conspiracy theories against Mrs Macron, including false claims about her gender and sexuality.

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