Battle of Titans in Paris

The Clearstream defamation trial, in which French President Nicolas Sarkozy appears as plaintiff against former prime minister Dominique de Villepin, began in Paris last Monday. Dominique Barella, president of the French magistrates' trade union USM, writes in the daily Le Monde: "What's at stake here: which of the two heroes of the French Right will win the day? This battle of Titans is a grotesque story about a ridiculous list concocted by amateurs. This list has not the slightest financial or physical impact on anyone at all. A prestigious group of personalities whose names were allegedly wrongly added to a list of secret accounts holders will press into the court room which has become as fashionable as a beach promenade. All of Paris, show business, press and politics, will walk up the courthouse staircase. The entire judicial machine - the Minister of Justice will also take the stand - has been mobilised for this expensive spectacle. ... During which time the world continues to turn, Iran suffers and worries, North Korea arms itself, the public deficit grows and people are being laid off."

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