A bad omen, or just bad weather? Hours after he was sworn in as France's new president, François Hollande's plane was struck by lightning en route to Germany to discuss the Greek crisis with Chancellor Angela Merkel. The first Socialist to hold the office in 17 years battled stormy weather during his inauguration ceremony, after he tried to ensure that it would be as low-key as possible, with neither his children nor those of his partner, Valérie Trierweiler, in attendance. Hollande said he will try to “find a compromise” between Germany’s focus on austerity and Greek unrest.
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