France: Over 100,000 people participated in protest marches in Paris and other cities

Paris, November 14 (KUNA) -- The French Ministry of the Interior announced that approximately 106,000 people took to the streets in protest marches across France on Saturday, including 24,000 in Paris. In a statement reported by local media, the ministry said that around 70,000 police and gendarme officers were deployed nationwide to monitor between 50 and 60 planned demonstrations. According to French authorities, today’s protests saw a decline in the number of participants, alongside isolated violent incidents in several cities. The ministry stated that the situation remained generally under control, despite clashes in several cities, including Marseille, Grenoble, Lyon, Bordeaux, Montpellier, Toulouse, and Lille, where projectiles and solid objects were thrown at law enforcement officers. The ministry reported that ten police officers sustained minor injuries, and journalists in Lyon were subjected to “assaults,” noting that at least one person suspected of involvement in these attacks had been arrested. Earlier, French Interior Minister Laurent Nunez had indicated that around 60 demonstrations were expected to take place across France. (End) M.B. / M.M.J.