French President Francois Hollande said on Wednesday he was scrapping his plan for constitutional reforms in the wake of the November 13 attacks in Paris, including a measure to strip convicted terrorists of their nationality. He announced in a televised statement he was “closing the constitutional debate” on the reforms after the lower house, the National Assembly, and opposition-dominated Senate failed to agree on the text.
Hollande proposed the reforms after ISIS suicide bombers and gunmen killed 130 people across Paris. “A compromise appears out of reach on the stripping of terrorists’ nationality,” Hollande said. “I also note that a section of the opposition is hostile to any constitutional revision. I deeply regret this attitude. Hollande pledged that despite dropping the reform plans, he would not “deviate from the commitments I have taken... To ensure the security of our country.”