France says ‘merci’ to virus heroes on poignant Bastille Day

Tue, 14 Jul, 2020 - 14:42

Associated Press reporters

Medics in white coats replaced uniformed soldiers as stars of France’s Bastille Day ceremonies as the usual grandiose military parade was recalibrated to honour medics who died fighting Covid-19, supermarket cashiers, postal workers and other heroes of the pandemic.

In eastern Paris, meanwhile, medical workers’ unions marched to decry equipment and staff shortages that plagued public hospitals as the virus raced across France.