This article lists events from the year 2005 in France. Incumbents President: Jacques Chirac Prime Minister: Jean-Pierre Raffarin (until 31 May), Dominique de Villepin (starting 31 May) Events 5 January – Libération journalist Florence Aubenas and her Iraqi guide Hussein Hanoun Al-Saadi are taken hostage in Iraq (freed on 11 June). 11 February – André Vingt-Trois is named Archbishop of Paris. 23 February – A controversial French law on colonialism, requiring teachers to paint it in a positive light, is passed by the national legislature. 25 February – Resignation of Minister of Finance Hervé Gaymard, following a scandal over the low rent of the exclusive apartment he occupied. March – The Renault Laguna gets facelifted. 31 March – An amendment to the 35-hour workweek law is voted, extending possibilities of overtime. April – The Fillon law reforming France's education system is voted, amidst student protests numbering hundreds of thousands. 6 April – First mental 13th root calculation of a 200-digit number, computed by Alexis Lemaire. 15 April – 2005 Paris fires – 24 people are killed and around 50 are injured in a fire at a hotel in central Paris. 27 April – First flight of Airbus A380 in Toulouse. 28 April – Sales begin of the Peugeot 1007 mini MPV. 16 May – Pentecost Monday ceases to be a statutory holiday, leading to strong protests. 19 May – Vélo'v bicycle-sharing system introduced in Lyon. 29 May – French referendum on the European Constitution votes resoundingly to reject it. 31 May – A new government, headed by Dominique de Villepin, is nominated. June – The Peugeot 307 gets facelifted. 28 June – Official announcement that ITER will be built in Cadarache, Southern France. 5 July – Laurence Parisot becomes the president of the Mouvement des Entreprises de France. 2 August – Air France Flight 358 bursts into flames after skidding off the end of runway in Toronto, all passengers survive. 11 August – Ariane 5GS launches Thaïcom-4/iPStar-1, the heaviest telecommunications satellite to date at 6505 kg, into orbit. 16 August – West Caribbean Airways Flight 708 crashes in Venezuela, killing 160, mostly French citizens from Martinique. 16 August – Assassination of Frère Roger, founder of the Taizé community. September – New Renault Clio is launched at the Frankfurt Motor Show. 3 September – Jacques Chirac is hospitalized for a "small vascular incident" affecting his eyesight. 27 October – 2005 civil