Yellow vests (illustration) – Vincent Loison / SIPA
Anti SlogansMacron, Philippe or Blanquer, anti-police or against pension reform … Saturday afternoon, a few thousand demonstrators marched to
Paris, at the call of
“Yellow vests”. A rally marked by tear gas and arrests.
Tensions erupted early in the afternoon with the police, who intervened “to disperse a bloc which was trying to constitute a procession,” according to the Paris police headquarters.
Split procession and disturbed circulation
The situation became tense between the Place de la République and the Place de la Bastille, where the police fired tear gas and de-encircling grenades around 4 p.m. The procession split and traffic was disrupted. Hooded youths shouted “Revolution!” When CRS called to evacuate the area.
The procession arrived under the tear gas at Place de la Bastille, where there were numerous law enforcement vehicles. Earlier in the afternoon, at the East train station, the protesters sang “The street, it’s ours” and again “Macron, we’re coming to pick you up at your house”. The police, who were the targets of projectile jets, fired tear gas.
Fire at a construction hut near the Gare de Lyon
But it is especially on arrival at the Gare de Lyon, that the face-to-face hardened in this procession organized for the 62nd day of mobilization of “yellow vests”, with in particular the fire of a construction hut a few meters from the station entrance.
The police used many times tear gas but also a water cannon. After 6 p.m., when the CRS called on the demonstrators to evacuate the area, several groups dispersed in the surrounding streets, lighting trash fires.
Fifty-nine people were arrested, said the Paris Prefecture of Police shortly after 8:00 p.m. Thirty-three people had been placed in police custody at 6 p.m., said the Paris prosecutor’s office.
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