The week at a glance...Europe

Warsaw

A modern parliament: Poland’s new parliament has sworn in its first transsexual lawmaker. Anna Grodzka, the former Krzysztof Begowski, was married to a woman and fathered a child before undergoing a sex-change operation and running for parliament. She was greeted with applause from her new colleagues as she entered the chamber this week. “It is a symbolic moment, but we owe this symbolism not to me but to the people of Poland because they made their choice,” said Grodzka, of the progressive Palikot party. “They wanted a modern Poland, a Poland open to variety, a Poland where all people would feel good regardless of their differences.” The parliament also elected its first female speaker this week and swore in its first openly gay lawmaker.

Cannes, France

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Overheard: President Barack Obama and French President Nicolas Sarkozy were caught in a diplomatic faux pas when the two were heard disparaging Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as a liar. In a private conversation at last week’s G-20 summit in Cannes, Sarkozy said of Netanyahu, “I cannot stand him. He’s a liar.” Obama seemed to agree, saying, “You’re fed up with him? I have to deal with him every day.” Most of the conversation, which the two leaders didn’t realize was caught on microphone, consisted of Obama criticizing Sarkozy for the way France broke with the U.S. by supporting Palestinian membership in UNESCO. The governments of France, the U.S., and Israel had no comment.