Black-clad anarchists clashed with police and smashed storefronts as France’s annual day of left-wing protest turned violent
Hundreds of protesters packed the streets of Paris on Sunday to mark Could Day, an annual day of demonstration by socialists and commerce unions. With masked ‘black bloc’ anarchists among the many crowd, violence and vandalism quickly adopted.
At the least 5,000 cops had been deployed to the streets of the French capital, backed up by armored vehicles and water cannons. This yr’s protests got here every week after French President Emmanuel Macron was re-elected, and with round 250 demonstrations deliberate within the metropolis alone, commerce union boss Philippe Martinez known as on residents to “take to the streets” and make the protests “as large as doable.”
Leftist chief Jean-Luc Melenchon known as on his followers to oppose Macron’s deliberate pension reforms, and marchers held banners decrying the centrist president’s plans to boost the retirement age to 65.
Amid crowds of peaceable marchers, teams wearing black and sporting masks quickly scuffled with police. Tear gasoline was fired and video footage confirmed officers tackling suspects to the bottom, whereas one other clip confirmed a bunch of heavily-armored officers charging protesters who pelted them with projectiles.
Rioters smashed a McDonald’s, earlier than police arrived to guard the restaurant, and different companies – together with banks, insurance coverage corporations, and at the very least one actual property workplace – had been additionally focused.
PARIS – Les barrières servent de bélier pour dégrader une banque. Nombreuses dégradations, aucune intervention des policiers qui semblent laisser faire. #1erMaipic.twitter.com/3Ac6VvEmdO
— Clément Lanot (@ClementLanot) May 1, 2022
Protesters piled constructing supplies and trash within the streets, earlier than setting these barricades alight. Among the fires despatched choking clouds of black smoke into the air.
It’s unclear how many individuals have been arrested so far. Protests have additionally taken place in quite a lot of French cities, together with Lille, Nantes, Toulouse, and Marseille.
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