Letter from Paris: January 21, 2026 News Digest

Investigators have not given up their quest for the stolen Louvre jewels after the brazen heist in broad daylight last October. In recent statements about the case status, Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau admitted there aren’t any new leads despite the fact that the four thieves (and a fifth accomplice) have been arrested. (A surveillance video showing the thieves in action was recently released to the public, and promptly went viral.) As reported by Le Monde, the case remains a “top priority”— Beccuau said “our main objective is still to recover the jewelry.” There are no indications that the loot was smuggled out of France. The stolen jewelry is worth an estimated $102 million.

Speaking of the Louvre, the museum recently hiked ticket prices for non-EU visitors by almost half. Tickets now cost €32 instead of €22. As explained by Deutsche Welle, “so-called ‘dual pricing’ is quite common in less wealthy countries but rare in richer regions.” Given the amount of renovation work that the Louvre requires, “the French government has defended the two-tier pricing system, saying it would help raise an extra €20-30 million annually for the museum.” Other cultural venues are also planning similar price hikes, including the Palais Garnier, the Versailles Palace, and the Chateau de Chambord in the Loire Valley.

The floor of a fifth-floor Paris apartment in the 11th arrondissement collapsed during a birthday party on Saturday. Firefighters and police quickly mobilized to help the injured, including one person who had gone into cardiorespiratory arrest. There had been some 50 people at the gathering on rue Amelot. Investigators believe that the floor collapsed because of water infiltration on the balcony, weakening the support beams. The 18th-century building’s structure remains intact.

Also on Saturday, protestors gathered in Paris on Saturday to show their opposition to the Iranian regime’s crackdown on protestors. They marched from the Pantheon through the Latin Quarter.

Design lovers flocked to Paris this month for the popular Maison&Objet fair, which took place at the Paris Nord Villepinte Exhibition Center. Homes, fabrics, and interiors design houses show off new collections, and the complementary Paris Déco Off event — which is open to the general public — assembles a circuit of 150 showrooms and gallery exhibits. Also known as “Fashion Week for the interiors industry,” the event is an inspiring celebration of design. Wallpaper* published a roundup of “12 best things,” including Baccarat’s collab with designer Harry Nuriev, Maison Leleu’s Art Deco-inspired collection, Liberty’s new wallpaper collection, and Lalique’s crystal sculptures, which you can read in full here.

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French farmers dumped 30 tons of potatoes outside the National Assembly to protest the EU-Mercosur free-trade agreement. Throughout the month, farmers have been driving their tractors into the city to express outrage about the trade deal. As reported by RFI, “French farmers unions say the deal threatens local agriculture by creating unfair competition with cheaper South American imports.” A union leader explained: “This is going to lead to imports of foreign goods that we are perfectly able to produce in France and that don’t respect standards which are imposed on French farming.” Yet the historic deal was signed on Saturday — despite France’s opposition. Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said, “the geopolitical importance of this agreement cannot be overstated,” particularly at a time of American tariffs. 

Indeed American president Trump is threatening the EU with more tariffs if the US is not allowed to pursue claims to Greenland, he declared in a social media post. As reported by the New York Times, “He is slapping new tariffs on a bloc of European nations until they come to the negotiating table to sell Greenland… Greenland is a territory of Denmark, which will be hit with a 10 percent tariff on all goods sent to the United States beginning on Feb. 1.” Fellow NATO members Norway, Sweden, France, Germany, Britain, the Netherlands and Finland — who have supported Denmark — would also be subject to the tariff, which Trump threatened to increase to 25% in June. These threats outraged Europe. France recently deployed troops to Greenland, at Denmark’s request, to take part in joint military exercises alongside Germany and Nordic countries.