PARIS – French President Emmanuel Macron was slapped by a man at a receiving line as he came out of a professional high school in southeastern France, according to a video circulating on social media.
“A man attempted to hit the president. We've no further comment to make at this stage,” said an Elysée official on Tuesday.
As Macron approached the receiving line, a person is seen slapping him in the face. Macron is immediately pulled away by his personal security officer. The president was seen a few minutes afterwards with his wife, warmly and cheerfully greeting people at another stop.
Two men were arrested, according to an interior ministry official.
Macron is visiting a town in southeastern France as part of a whistle-stop tour of the country.
The last time he faced violence from a crowd was at the height of the Yellow Jackets protests in December 2018, when his car was blocked by protesters.
Politicians from across the political spectrum condemned the physical attack and denounced a political context of mounting verbal violence.
Prime Minister Jean Castex called for a “Republican awakening, adding: ”Democracy is debate, dialogue, expressing legitimate disagreements, but it can't in any way be violence, verbal aggression or physical aggression.”
Far-right leader Marine Le Pen also “firmly condemned” what she called “an intolerable physical aggression against the president of the republic.”
UPDATED: This story has been updated to show the interior ministry confirmed two arrests.