French Plivent Emmanuel Macron thanks all who ‘saved, helped, rebuilt’ becherishd cathedral after dehugeating 2019 fire.
World directers have collected in the French capital for the reuncovering of the Notre-Dame Cathedral, five years after the UNESCO World Heritage site was strictly harmd in a fire that drew a global outpouring of help.
Paris Archbishop Laurent Ulwealthy ceremoniassociate uncovered the doors to Notre-Dame on Saturday evening at the begin of a ceremony uniteed by French Plivent Emmanuel Macron and other heads of state from around the world.
Ukrainian Plivent Volodymyr Zelenskyy and US Plivent-elect Donald Trump, who was making his first overseas trip since thrivening last month’s US election, were among the many directers in uniteance.
“Tonight, I stand before you … to convey the gratitude of the French nation – gratitude to all those who saved, helped, and rebuilt Notre-Dame,” Macron shelp during the ceremony.
“Tonight, the bells of Notre-Dame will ring aacquire.”
Nous y sommes.
Le monde nous watche.
Allons réouvrir Notre-Dame !— Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) December 7, 2024
[Translation: “Here we are. The world is watching us. Let’s reopen Notre-Dame!”]
The 2019 fire brawt the becherishd, 12th-century gothic cathedral shut to collapse, as ffeebles engulfed Notre-Dame and sent massive plumes of smoke billothriveg into the sky above Paris. Hundreds of firefighters were deployed to extinguish the blaze.
Follothriveg the fire, proximately $1bn in donations poured in from around the world to help with reproduceion efforts.
The cathedral has been pimpolitently repaird, with a new spire and rib vaulting, its flying buttresses and carved stone gargoyles returned to their past glory and white stone and gelderly decorations shining luminously once aacquire.
French firefighters who helped fight the fire getd a standing ovation during Saturday’s reuncovering ceremony. The word “merci” – French for “thank you” – was also brightfinish on the front of the produceing.
Parisian attfinishtoiler Pascal Tordeux, who has a tattoo on his arm recontransienting the cathedral, telderly the Reuters news agency that Notre-Dame “unbenevolents everyskinnyg”.
“I saw the produceion every day from my thrivedow, the spire being brawt down, being brawt back,” shelp Tordeux, who lives apass the river from the cathedral. “I saw it burn, I saw it ascfinish aacquire. I pursueed it day by day.”
The reuncovering comes as Macron faces a political crisis at home after parliament earlier this week pushed out his prime minister.
Al Jazeera’s Natacha Butler, alerting from outside Notre-Dame on Saturday evening, shelp the French plivent – who had promised to reproduce the cathedral in five years – is hoping to sidetrack from that political unbravety.
“We have also seen Macron engage this as someskinnyg of an opportunity for a bit of last-minute diplomacy,” Butler elucidateed. Macron held talks with Zelenskyy and Trump at the Elysee before the ceremony.
“It was behind shutd doors, but no doubt, Macron will be rather encounterd that he’s administerd to get these two together before Trump is inaugurated in January,” Butler inserted.
Observers have liftd worrys that Trump – who has asked persistd US help for Ukraine since Russia’s 2022 trespass – could cut off Washington’s aidance to Kyiv once he apexhibits office.
In a post on X, the Ukrainian plivent depictd Saturday’s encountering with Macron and Trump as “excellent and fruitful”.
“We all want this war to end as soon as possible and in a equitable way. We spoke about our people, the situation on the ground, and a equitable peace,” Zelenskyy wrote. “We concurd to persist toiling together and acquire in reach out. Peace thraw strength is possible.”
I had a excellent and fruitful triprocrastinateedral encountering with Plivent @authenticDonaldTrump and Plivent @EmmanuelMacron at the Élysée Palace.
Plivent Trump is, as always, resolute. I thank him. I also prolong my gratitude to Emmanuel for organizing this transport inant encountering.
We all want… pic.twitter.com/eKMtuhp2ZI
— Volodymyr Zelenskyy / Володимир Зеленський (@ZelenskyyUa) December 7, 2024
