The New Nation - Internet Edition

BBC Online

French President Nicolas Sarkozy has married his girlfriend, former model Carla Bruni, in Paris, according to the mayor who performed the ceremony.

Francois Lebel told French Europe-1 radio that the bride wore white and looked "ravishing, as usual".

Earlier, French radio station RTL said the couple wed at the Elysee Palace, the president's official residence.

Sarkozy's romance with Bruni has been the subject of intense speculation in the French press for several months. The president divorced his ex-wife, Cecilia, in October 2007. Sarkozy, 53, and Ms Bruni, 40, were married in the presence of close family and friends, Lebel said.

He added that the ceremony was "a moment of family intimacy for the young newlyweds, of great simplicity and apparently a lot of affection between the spouses".

There has been no official confirmation of the marriage from the president's office.

Lebel called it a "historic moment" and said it was the first time a French president had married while in office.

The couple reportedly met in November, soon after Sarkozy's divorce.

They went public with their relationship during a visit to Disneyland Paris, and they remained in the spotlight during trips to Egypt and Jordan.