'A sweet madness' or 'uncivilised barbarians'? Papers discuss aftermath of PSG win

After Paris Saint-Germain's Champions League victory on Saturday, the story is still on the front pages of most French dailies. Left-wing Libération writes that "Paris is well worth a jubilation". The paper says that the win resonated across France all weekend. In a similar tone, Le Parisien's front page says "Day of jubilation". The Parisian daily is talking about Sunday's festivities across Paris, and how fans got to celebrate with their beloved football stars. The paper calls it "A sweet madness". But with two people dead and hundreds arrested, the victory wasn't that sweet. Right-wing daily Le Figaro also mentions the post-win violence on its front page, where the title of an editorial reads "Paris can no longer be a party". The article condemns the aftermath of the match and all the "sirens, knives, injured police officers and even deaths". It says that "thugs" and "gangs" tried to invade the ring road around Paris and the Champs-Élysées. “The issue is no longer one of security, it's one of culture," says the article, blaming "uncivilised barbarians" for causing the destruction. An article in L'Opinion says that "on Saturday evening, euphoria gave way to chaos". It asks how a football win can "generate such an impulse for hatred and destruction", adding that scenes in London, Madrid or Manchester after a victory aren't the same. 

After a major attack on Russia's military aviation on Sunday, Kyiv claims it has destroyed nearly 40 aircraft and struck thousands of kilometres inside Russia's borders. The Financial Times calls it a "bold" strike "deep inside Russian territory". The Ukrainian intelligence service, the SBU, says they'd been preparing the operation for over a year. In an opinion piece, The Washington Post says that "Ukraine just rewrote the rules of war". It adds that the Ukrainians revealed a vulnerability that shows the need for a "massive investment in counter-drone systems". Ukrainian daily The Kyiv Post writes that US President Donald Trump wasn't given a heads-up about the attack. An official told the paper that the operation was "purely Ukrainian" and the US didn't have anything to do with it. As for reactions from the Russian side, Radio Free Europe's team in Siberia spoke to Russians there, who "appeared to be shaken". "Now the war has reached us too," they told the paper. The article writes that many Russians had thus far only seen and felt the war from afar. 

Moving to Eastern Europe, Bulgarians have been protesting against the adoption of the euro. The Bulgarian Telegraph Agency reports that protests have been held in several cities across the country. The demonstrators are asking for a referendum vote so that they can choose whether to keep the Bulgarian lev or switch to the euro. Radio Free Europe reports that it will be decided this week whether the euro will be adopted from next year, with the European Commission expected to greenlight the move. The paper notes that this comes despite the many protesters who carry Russian flags and have expressed anti-European sentiments. Some Bulgarians say they fear that adopting the euro will lead to even more corruption and inflation in the country. According to a survey, 50 percent of Bulgarians are against the euro's adoption.

We finish with some health news. British daily The Standard reports that using weight loss drugs might not lead to the desired effects, according to research. It talks about side effects like so-called Ozempic teeth or oral health problems and more serious health issues like hypoglycemia. The results are also not long-lasting, as a lot of people who stop taking the drug return to their original weight within a year. On the brighter side, the fight against cancer is advancing. The Financial Times reports that AstraZeneca has unveiled a drug that can stop mutating tumours before they start to grow. AstraZeneca said that it hopes to become "the number one cancer company globally". The Independent writes about another study, this time on colon cancer. Researchers have found that regular exercise can reduce the risk of death by more than a third. The scientists hope the findings will show doctors that including exercise plans is crucial for cancer patients. 

You can catch our press review every morning on France 24 at 7:20am and 9:20am (Paris time), from Monday to Friday.