German journalist expelled from France ahead of G7 Summit in Biarritz

German journalist expelled from France ahead of G7 Summit in Biarritz
By Angela Barnes
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A German journalist has been expelled from France ahead of the G7 Summit in Biarritz as security tightens.

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French authorities have expelled a German journalist from the country and banned him from staying in France until after next week's G7 Summit in Biarritz.

He was arrested a week ago in the Cote d'Or in eastern France before being deported back to Germany.

France's Ministry of the Interior confirmed the expulsion.

The man was due to report at the summit for German radio station Dreyeckland.

He told the broadcaster in an interview that he believed it happened because the Ministry of the Interior wanted to remove the "disturbing people" before the G7 began on August 24.

"After a roadside check, I was arrested and spent nearly 24 hours in an eviction cell because I was designated as a leftist activist, although at first I was not I did not say the reason for my arrest but just said that it concerned something about the right of residence," he told Dreyeckland.

"They (the French police) told me that I had been checked a year and a half ago in Bure near the nuclear waste landfill site where for the first time the police had taken my identity but they also said that I was suspected of committing crimes at the Hamburg G20 (in the summer of 2017), but without any conviction: investigations are still ongoing," he added.

The man said he has a lawyer to challenge the decision of the French officials.

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