French President Emmanuel Macron was slapped by a bystander in the southeastern part of the country earlier this week, serving as a reminder that those with influential positions in the public eye are often at risk of attracting unwanted attention.
WATCH: President Emmanuel Macron receives a slap in the face while greeting people during an official visit in France. Two men have been arrested.
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— talkRADIO (@talkRADIO) June 8, 2021
Here are five other moments when a politician fell victim to an unconventional attack while out greeting members of the public:
Brexit Party Leader Nigel Farage
The milkshake incident involving the United Kingdom’s Brexit leader Nigel Farage is by far one of the most bizarre protest attacks on any politician — if not for the sheer absurdity of seeing a milkshake lobbed at a person.
The attack occurred on May 20, 2019, and was described in a court to be “politically motivated.” Paul Crowther was the man behind the incident and later justified his tossed milkshake, saying, “The bile and the racism he [Farage] spouts out in this country is far more damaging than a bit of milkshake to his front.” Crowther was assigned by a judge to complete 150 hours of community service and instructed to pay a fine of 350 pounds for Farage’s suit damages.
After he was covered in a banana-and-salted-caramel milkshake, Farage said, “I won’t even acknowledge the low-grade behavior that I was subjected to this morning. I won’t dignify it. I will ignore it. Perhaps keep buying new clothes and carry on.”
President George W. Bush
Former President George W. Bush was a target of an angry Iraqi journalist during a trip to Baghdad in 2008, who threw not one, but both shoes at the 43rd commander in chief.
The reporter was Muntadhar al Zaidi, who worked for an Iraqi-owned television network based in Egypt. He threw his shoes at Bush’s head but ultimately missed as the former president ducked to avoid a painful blow.
“This is a farewell kiss from the Iraqi people, you dog,” the reporter yelled in Arabic as he threw the footwear toward a wall behind Bush’s podium.
German Chancellor Helmut Kohl
Former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl failed to see the yoke when he was attacked by a group of protesters.
Kohl was exiting the city hall in Halle, Germany, in 1991 when nearly 30 young protesters began throwing eggs at him. He immediately ran toward the crowd being kept behind a barricade and began grabbing at the protesters who were covering the politician in yolks and eggshells.
Kohl was eventually brought inside to a safe location after the incident, and the protesters left the scene. One month following the protest, he faced another egg attack on a visit to eastern Germany.
California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger
Kohl is by no means the only politician to fall victim to eggshells. In California, former Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger took an egg to the upper torso just before a significant 2003 campaign speech in Long Beach.
The movie-star-turned-politician laughed off the incident as he continued to shake hands with supporters on his way up to the podium.
A campaign worker attempted to clean off his yellow sports jacket, but Schwarzenegger eventually took it off to deliver his full speech.
Albuquerque, New Mexico, mayoral candidate Manny Gonzales
One of the most recent and bizarre inductees into the hall of fame for strange assaults is Democratic mayoral candidate Manny Gonzales of Albuquerque, a sheriff who was taunted by a remote control drone with a sex toy attached to it on June 3.
Kaelan Ashby Dreyer, a 20-year-old member attendee of Gonzales’s campaign event, unsuccessfully attempted to grab the drone before the owner of the venue snatched it away from the candidate’s stage.
Dreyer reportedly called Gonzales a “tyrant” and swung his fist into the air, punching the sheriff’s hands. Gonzales said the punch did not injure him and called the campaign event “a huge success despite the efforts of a few troublemakers.”
