French President slapped in the face during public tour
French President Emmanuel Macron has been hit in the face by a man during a visit to a small town in southeast France.
The French president was greeting the public waiting for him behind barriers in the town of Tain-I'Hermitage on Tuesday after he paid a visit to a high school that is training students to work in hotels and restaurants.
The man, who was dressed in a khaki T-shirt, shouted "Down with Macronia" ("A Bas La Macronie") and slapped Macron on the left side of his face.
He was also heard screaming "Montjoie Saint Denis", the battle cry of the French army when the country was still a monarchy.
A bodyguard, who was standing right behind Macron, raised a hand to defend the president, but was a little too late in stopping the slap.
Two of Macron's security detail tacked the man to the ground, while another took Macron away.
#Macron se fait gifler en direct de #Tain pic.twitter.com/tsXdByo22U
— ⚜️ (@AlexpLille) June 8, 2021
A video posted on Twitter showed the president returning a few seconds later to continue shaking hands with onlookers.
The local mayor, Xavier Angeli, told franceinfo radio that Macron urged his security to "leave him, leave him" as the offender was being held to the ground.
French news broadcaster BFMTV said police detained two people - the man suspected of slapping Macron and another man who filmed the video.
Macron has not commented on the incident.