London: A no-fly zone has been imposed by
France's President Nicolas Sarkozy over his wife Carla Bruni's
chic Riviera retreat where the couple would spend their Easter
break, a media report said.
An official decree threatens pilots with a fine
of up to 40,000 Euros or six months in prison for descending
below 3,000 feet above 43-year-old Carla Bruni's large seaside
villa at Cap Nigre, Lavandou, 'The Daily Telegraph' reported.
The decree came a year after the French First Couple
irked locals by declaring beaches surrounding the residence
off limits.
The low-fly ban lasts from April 8 to 26, prompting
speculation over how long the president intends to prolong his
Easter break, the report said.
"While the President's private engagements are never
made public, I think we can be rest assured he will take no
more than a long weekend or two around Easter given France's
current involvements abroad," an Elys?e Palace adviser said.
56-year-old Sarkozy's first imposed a no-fly zone at
Cap Nigre in 2008, shortly after marrying the former Italian
supermodel. But, the ban did not stop photographers snatching
shots of the first couple in swimsuits jumping off rocks into
the sea.
PTI
First Published: Thursday, April 14, 2011, 18:48