The French public prosecutor announced on Wednesday that the French judiciary had launched an investigation into two rape allegations against the French government’s foreign minister for development, Crisola Zakharopoulos.
Zacharopoulos, a French woman of Greek descent, holds the post of Secretary of State for Development, Francophonie and International Partnerships.
The Marian Weekly, which leaked the case, said the two complaints were related to facts that occurred as part of her work as a gynecologist.
According to the prosecutor’s office, the first complaint was filed on May 25, and the investigation began two days later, and the second complaint was filed on June 16.
The newspaper quoted a source close to the case as saying that the facts attributed to the second complaint occurred in a “medical framework” in 2016 and related to an adult woman.
Zakharopoulos, 46, who has been Europe’s vice president since 2019, was appointed foreign minister last month.
He is a member of President Emmanuel Macron’s Republic on the Move party, recently renamed Ennahda.
And last year, the government commissioned him to report on endometriosis, a topic he has been devoting to for years.
And submitted his report to the Elysee in January.
Allegations of sexual violence were made against several French ministers, including Interior Minister Gerald Darwin, who was charged with rape, which was first dropped and the case reopened, with the prosecutor deciding to close the case. And do not prosecute in early 2022.
Recently, the Minister of Solidarity Damianabad was accused of rape.
The Paris prosecutor announced that he would not launch a preliminary investigation into the matter.
The announcement of the investigation into Zakharopoulos comes as Macron faces a stalemate since Sunday after losing an absolute majority in parliament following parliamentary elections.
Source: Lebanon Debate
