TimesOnline: France's first lady Carla Bruni puts her star power at the service of Aids - Charles Bremner

Carla Bruni and husband French President Nicolas Sarkozy

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France's first lady Carla Bruni puts her star power at the service of Aids - Charles Bremner

Citing the memory of her dead brother, Carla Bruni, France's first lady, today put her celebrity power at the service of the cause of Aids, becoming an ambassador for the main international fund fighting the disease. The model-turned-singer, who married President Sarkozy in February, confirmed that her deep interest in Aids relief had been spurred by the death of Virginio Bruni-Tedeschi, who died of the disease in July 2006. "Because of my brother, of course I am very sensitive to the issue of Aids," she said. "This is a pandemic. We tend to forget, we are used to it. But look at the figures. It's staggering.