IQN (NewsDesk): Police and protesters clashed in Paris and several other French cities on Saturday as hundreds of thousands of people joined anti government demonstrations that were largely peaceful for much of the day.
France’s interior ministry estimated that about 410,000 people took part nationwide, including 110,000 in Paris, with about 70,000 police officers deployed across the country. Tens of thousands marched in the capital, and thousands more rallied in Marseille, Lyon and Lille. Clashes broke out at the end of the Paris march, where police fired water cannon and stun grenades, and tear gas was used in several cities. At least 135 people were detained. Fires were burning in Paris and Marseille before the marches began.
The movement, which has shaken France for more than a month, brings together students, teachers, unions and “yellow vest” activists protesting the cost of living and rising fuel prices, and demanding better schools and public services. Far left leader Jean Luc Mélenchon called the Paris march a total victory for the social movement before the violence began.
