Faits divers 
L’Elysée a annoncé jeudi matin la mort d’un soldat français engagé dans l’opération Serval au nord du Mali. Il s’agit d’un sous-officier du 2e régiment étranger de parachutistes de Calvi. Il a été tué par une bombe artisanale posée par un groupe djihadiste, selon le ministre de la Défense Jean-Yves Le Drian. Cela porte à huit le nombre de soldats français morts au Mali depuis le lancement de l’opération Serval en janvier 2013.
The Elysée Palace announced on Thursday morning the death of a French soldier with the military operation Serval in the north of Mali. The man in question was a junior officer of the foreign legion Calvi parachute regiment. He was killed by a home-made bomb planted by a djihadiste group, according to the minister of Defence Jean-Yves Le Drian. This brings to eight the number of French soldiers who died in Mali since the start of the operation Serval in January 2013.
Politique, Société
Le président de la République a présidé ce jeudi la cérémonie de commémoration du 8 Mai 1945 sur les Champs-Elysées et autour de la flamme du soldat inconnu à Paris. 69 ans après la capitulation de l’Allemagne nazie face aux Alliés, et le jour de l’annonce d’un huitième soldat français tué au Mali, le chef de l’Etat a mené la cérémonie tout en sobriété, devant une foule clairsemée, qui ne l’a pas chahuté.
The president f the Republic presided on Thursday at the commemoration for the 8th May 1945 on the Champs-Elysées around the eternal flame of the unknown soldier in Paris. 69 years after the surrender to the Allies of nazi Germany, and the day that an eight French soldier had died in Mali, the head of State performed the ceremony with complete sobriety and solemnity, before a sparse and quiet gathering, who respected the occasion silently and without cheers.
About bill
Worked in the technical / engineering area as a Science Laboratory Technician and as an Aeronautics Engineer.
The artistic side involves writing under the nom de plume of Billy Olsenn, his recently written play 'A Case of Wine' was staged by the players group Straight Make-Up at the 2012 Birr one act drama festival. It's next staging was in the one act circuit is in Cavan, at Maudebawn on Sat 10 Nov 2012. Then it was performed in the Bray, Co.Wicklow at the very popular one act festival in January 2013.
Next play is FEAR. A dark tale about revenge on the cruel death of two pensioners by young thugs. Neighbours hatch a devious and dangerous plan to exact old-style revenge. Bill is a member of the Drama League of Ireland and his plays have been critically vetted and certified as original pieces of work by the DLI.
Another literary project is that of commemoration of an aircraft crash on Djouce mountain in Wicklow in 1946. Bill wrote articles for the 50th, 60th and most recently the 70th anniversary, (12 Aug
2016) all were published in the Wicklow Times and ensured the survivors of the crash, all French Girl Guides, were not forgotten. Articles reproduced on this website.
But mostly this site gives a more general European and specific French slant on popular and not so popular articles of French news, translated to English by the author. Each article is translated on a paragraph by paragraph basis so easy to read in either language and even possible to improve either language by comparison of the short English and French paragraphs. Amusez vous bien.
The author is currently writing an easy to read technical aviation book centered around the Fokker 50.
Another interest is that dealt with in another of Bill's websites www.realnamara.net, a Statue of the mother of God, Mary. It was erected in 1972 in Dublin, at the end of the Bull Wall near Clontarf, and my grandfather William Nelson, was the main instigator of that project. I give talks on the history of the statue and my grandfather's adventurous and dangerous life at sea.
Technical assistance with each website is by J O'N.
