LYON, Sept 27, 2021 (BSS/AFP) - A man pelted French President Emmanuel 
Macron with an egg while he was visiting a restaurant and hotel trade fair in 
the southeastern city of Lyon on Monday.

   The egg hit his shoulder but bounced off without breaking.

   The assailant was quickly subdued and removed from the room, with Macron 
saying he would try to speak with him later.

   "If he has something to tell me, let him come," Macron said at the 
International Catering, Hotel and Food Trade Fair (SIRHA). "I'll go see him 
afterwards."

   It was a startling disturbance of the warm welcome by fair attendees for 
the centrist president, not least after he announced that restaurant tips 
paid by credit card would no longer be taxed.

   Eggs from irate protesters are a common occupational hazard for French 
politicians, and Macron is no exception.

   When he was still a candidate for the presidency in 2017, an egg exploded 
against his head during a crowd visit at the national agriculture fair in 
Paris.

   More recently, a man slapped him across the face while he was shaking 
hands with well-wishers in the southern city of Valence in June.

   The 28-year-old man, who told a court he sympathised with the anti-
government "yellow vest" protests of 2018 and 2019, was sentenced to four 
months in prison.

   Macron's security detail is expected to be on high alert in coming months 
as the centrist leader multiplies his public appearances ahead of a widely 
expected re-election campaign.

   So far he has not officially declared his candidacy for another five-year 
term in voting set for next April.