"A heart sitting in a pile of ashes": Reactions to the Notre Dame fire
The Notre Dame fire has caused grief and concern among many Europeans and politicians. On the other hand, the inadequate media coverage of the fire, which is being described as a disaster, has sparked a wave of criticism. Trump's tweet has also become controversial.
The flames have been contained, but the aftershocks of the fire continue. On Monday evening, April 16, one of the main symbols of Paris was destroyed by fire. A number of world politicians expressed their sympathy for the French government and people and expressed their regret over the fire.
French newspapers began publishing commentary on the fire on Tuesday, April 16. The Catholic newspaper La Croix headlined its article on the Notre Dame fire as: “A heart sitting in a pile of ashes.”
The Parisian newspaper spoke of the tears of Paris, of this lady of France. The Figaro called the event a "catastrophe" and the newspaper "Eco" used the title "Paris tragedy" for its report.
International reactions
French President Emmanuel Macron expressed deep regret over the fire on Monday evening, April 16, and announced that France would begin the reconstruction and restoration of the church as soon as possible. Macron told reporters that this is what the French people expect from the country's government.
Politicians from different countries around the world have also reacted to what has been considered a cultural disaster.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel called the Notre Dame fire a "painful event." German government spokesman Steffen Seibert quoted Merkel as calling Notre Dame a symbol of France and a cultural symbol of Europe.
German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas also said that the Notre Dame fire had touched everyone's hearts. He expressed solidarity with the French rescue workers and firefighters.
Heinrich Bedford-Ström, president of the German Protestant Church Council, called Notre Dame the "soul of Paris" in a post on Facebook.
Vatican spokesman Alessandro Gisotti also referred to the church as a symbol and icon of Christianity.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said he was shocked by the images of the fire at Notre Dame, expressing his condolences to the people and government of France.
Criticism of news coverage
The way some media outlets covered the Notre Dame fire also drew strong criticism. For example, Armin Laschet, the prime minister of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia from the Christian Democratic Party, strongly criticized German television channel 1.
Lachte announced in a Twitter post that while media outlets such as Al Jazeera and Russia Today were covering the Notre Dame fire live, and while right-wing forces were busy spreading their false propaganda, German state media was asleep.
The Prime Minister of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia also wrote that while millions of people were busy with news about the fire in one of Europe's most important cultural symbols, German television channel One broadcast a film about animals.
Lashte also said that people had to turn to the American CNN channel to follow news about the fire.
Ulrich Deppendorf, former head of the Berlin studio of German TV Channel 1, also criticized the network's coverage of the news in a Twitter post.
This is while the network's officials have responded by saying that the news about the fire was covered on the broadcaster's news programs, "TagsShow" and "TagsMan."
Trump's controversial statements
US President Donald Trump has drawn criticism from many French people on social media after posting a tweet. Trump wrote in the tweet:
"Seeing the images of the fire at Notre Dame is really terrifying for me. Maybe water cannons can be used to put out the fire. But you have to hurry!"
One user responded to Trump's Twitter post, writing: "Can you teach us French people how to put out fires? We French people have no idea about this. Right now, the French are gathering and dying to put out the fire. But they haven't gotten any results from their work. We ask you, the powerful leader of the world, to help us!"
It was then reported that Jarrett Araud, the French ambassador to Washington, called Donald Trump an “idiot” in an interview with CNN over the tweet. The French ambassador denied the allegation in a tweet.
Gerard Araud wrote in this Twitter post: "It is not honest to announce such a thing. I only stated the position of the French fire brigade, which believes that using a water tanker plane to put out the fire (given the severity of the water hitting the structures) could damage this building."
