French authorities investigate rape allegations against woman who was on President Macron’s staff, World News

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French prosecutors have opened an investigation to investigate the allegations of a female soldier who was part of President Emmanuel Macron’s defense staff.

According to French media, the woman was raped by a colleague during a party at the presidential palace in Lyse in July.

Macron was reportedly present at the farewell party but left shortly after giving a short speech.

Some of the guests then proceeded to the premises of the President’s personal staff in an annex of the palace, where the sexual assault allegedly took place.

The young woman immediately went to a nearby police station after the alleged assault and reported the rape that night.

The victim and the alleged perpetrator were colleagues and deployed to the high security office of the Lyse Palace in charge of sensitive government matters.

A presidential official told AFP news agency that as soon as authorities learned of the allegations, action was immediately taken to support the alleged victim.

The woman and the accused were both assigned to other duties, the palace said.

Macron’s office would wait for judicial inquiries before deciding on any further action, an official told news agencies.

Macron is committed to tackling the issue of violence against women and his government introduced a new law setting the age of consent at 15 in response to the scandals in March.

He is expected to run for a second term as president in elections slated for April 2022, although he has yet to declare his candidacy.

(With contributions from agencies)

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