A teenager threw an egg at French President Emmanuel Macron at an international food fair in Lyon. Macron was hit by the egg on the shoulder as he was walking through a crowd at the event on Monday.
Footage of the incident was uploaded to social media and immediately became viral. In the video, Macron was seen hit by an egg, which had bounced off his shoulder without breaking. Two of his bodyguards immediately reacted to the attack and a young man is seen being taken away.
One reporter had heard Macron say that if the man had a problem with him it would have been better if he had come to him to talk about it. The incident occurred at the SIRHA food and hospitality fair in the French city of Lyon.
Authorities identified the teenager as a 19-year-old student, who is now in police custody. Investigators are still trying to determine the motivation behind the attack. Lyon prosecutors said the teenager will likely be charged with "assault on a person in a position of public authority."
French President Emmanuel Macron was hit with an egg while he was visiting Lyon. A man was arrested after the incident at the international catering, hotel, and food trade fair in the city, French media said https://t.co/e1Mqvzmpio pic.twitter.com/j0ia8ugWxx — Reuters (@Reuters) September 27, 2021
This isn't the first time Macron has had eggs thrown at him. In 2017, Macron was hit with an egg on his head when he was just a presidential candidate. During that incident, the egg had cracked on his head.
Macron has also been the victim of several other public attacks. In June this year, Macron was slapped across the face by a man when he was greeting the public in southeastern France. The man was quickly tackled by Macron's bodyguards, while others pulled the president away from the crowd. During that time, Macron said that he denounced just violent and stupid actions.
Like previous French presidents, Macron likes to mingle with the general public during different events. This practice, also known locally as "crowd baths," is typical in French politics.
With the presidential elections now just months away, Macron has increased his public appearances to charm votes. Earlier in the year, Macron's political party had performed poorly in regional elections. While Macron has yet to formally announce if he will be running in the next presidential elections, most do expect him to run for another term.
