France’s President Francois Hollande is considering suing Closer magazine after it claimed he was having an affair with actress Julie Gayet.
Francois Hollande told AFP the report was an “attack on the right to privacy”.
The latest edition of the weekly tabloid Closer features seven pages of revelations and photos about Francois Hollande’s alleged affair with Julie Gayet.
Julie Gayet, 41, is an established television and cinema actress who has appeared in more than 50 films.
Rumors of their alleged relationship have been circulating on the internet for many months.
Last March, Julie Gayet filed a complaint with prosecutors in Paris against various bloggers and websites that were reporting on the rumors.
Julie Gayet’s lawyer at the time said there was no basis to the claims.
Francois Hollande, 59, told the AFP that he “like every other citizen has a right” to privacy.
In a statement issued personally rather than by his office, Francois Hollande said he was “looking into possible action, including legal action” against Closer magazine.
However, Francois Hollande does not deny the allegation of an affair.
Closer‘s print edition came out on Friday and shows pictures it claims support the rumors that the president routinely spends the night with Julie Gayet at a flat not far from the Elysee Palace.
The pictures show Francois Hollande and Julie Gayet arriving separately. Francois Hollande, wearing a helmet, is on a motorbike driven by a chauffeur.
The magazine claims Francois Hollande’s bodyguard arrives the following morning to deliver croissants.
Francois Hollande lives with his partner Valerie Trierweiler, a journalist for whom he left fellow Socialist politician Segolene Royal, the mother of his four children.
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