Image Source : AP
Notre Dame is reopening for the first time since a fire in 2019 nearly destroyed the 12th-century cathedral in Paris.
Image Source : ap
World leaders including, US President-elect Donald Trump, US First Lady Jill Biden, Britain’s Prince William and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy attended the event on Saturday.
Image Source : ap
Over 2,500 people thronged Paris streets on Saturday as the reopening scheduled for weekends (December 7, 8). Saturday’s events started with Archbishop Laurent Ulrich symbolically reopening Notre Dame’s grand wooden doors with three resounding knocks.
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French President addressed the event and declared, “The bells of Notre Dame are ringing again” during the reopening ceremony. The restoration is seen as a moment of triumph for French President Emmanuel Macron as the cathedral has been rebuilt in just five years.
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During the reopening, clergy walked down the central isle after the service in Notre Dame Cathedral.
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Flooded with light and song, the cathedral came alive in a moment of breathtaking spectacle. What had been a silent, soot-blackened ruin five years ago now blazed with renewed vitality.
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A fire ravaged Notre Dame in April 2019, collapsing its roof and spire and destroying its interior. The incident gained worldwide solidarity. It was under renovation when the fire incident took place.
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French President Emmanuel Macron treated the fire as a national emergency, rushing to the scene. The cloud of smoke covered Paris and was visible from far away. However, after five years, the cathedral stands anew.
