The rumors about the divorce of the French Presidents Nicolas Sarkozy intensified after the newspaper L'Est Republicain reported that the couple’s "separation and divorce" would be made public imminently.

On Thursday, the Swiss daily Journal du Tribune reported that Cecilia Sarkozy was no longer in Paris, but had spent several days in a Geneva hotel before leaving for London.

According to L'Est Republicain the couple has not been living together since July 14. On that day, observant television viewers could see Sarkozy trying to take his wife's hand during the Bastille Day parade, and she resolutely refusing it.

The last official public appearance of Cecilia Sarkozy was in July when she landed in Bulgaria with the six medical workers released from Libya. According to the media reports she negotiated directly with Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi the released of the Bulgarian nurses.

But she did not accompany her husband to the Bulgarian capital Sofia, where on October 4 he received Bulgaria's top award for his efforts to win the release of the six medical workers.

The last time Cecilia Sarkozy was seen in public was last month at the funeral of his first husband, television presenter Jacques Martin.

The Elysee Palace spokesman David Martinon declined to comment on the press reports.

“I have no comment to make on press rumors,” he said. Also, the first lady's spokeswoman, Carina Alfonso-Martin, said: "We can't comment on all rumors like that."