The French prime minister’s office says that France suspended the sale of arms and tear gas to Egypt in late January, as an uprising to force the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak mounted. The official says that the decision to suspend the sale of arms was made at a January 27 meeting. The meeting came two days after the French Customs service suspended authorisation to export equipment to maintain public order, notably explosive products such as tear gas.
France’s Foreign Ministry says that three French journalists and a researcher who went missing in Cairo amid attacks on journalists during violent demonstrations have been located and are safe. The New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists says it has documented at least 101 cases of direct attacks on journalists and news facilities over the past week. The Paris-based World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers called on Egyptian authorities to protect journalists covering protests in Egypt.