FILE PHOTO: A lone jogger, wearing a protective face mask, runs with her dog in the Tuileries Garden in Paris as a lockdown is imposed to slow the rate of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) spread in France, March 23, 2020. REUTERS/Charles Platiau/File Photo

PARIS: The French public will be provided millions of washable face masks from early May, the government said on Friday (Apr 24) amid a row over its flip-flopping on the value of masks in protecting against coronavirus infection.