At least 800,000 people demonstrate nationwide as police make 135 arrests. A protester suffers multiple finger amputations.

Massive protests against the administration of President Emmanuel Macron proceeded peacefully for much of Saturday in several French cities.

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Police brutality, however, changed the atmosphere of the day as security forces began cracking down on demonstrators. By 1 p.m., French police had made 135 arrests amid beatings of citizens.

At least 800,000 people demonstrated across France on Oct. 24. However, tensions erupted in Paris and Marseille “during the dispersal of demonstrations,” TF1 Info reported.

The Haute-Garonne prefecture reported that a young man suffered a serious hand injury at the end of a demonstration in the Arenes neighborhood.

The text reads, “In Bordeaux, protesters raise their hands to show they pose no threat; the police charge at them and brutally gas them. Across France, the grassroots movement has gained further momentum. Massive crowds have taken to the streets to demand a price freeze, the repeal of the Parcoursup system, wage increases, and the inclusion in the budget of the 10 billion euros requested by high school and university students to address their demands.”

The protester was evacuated by firefighters after several of his fingers were amputated. Videos show that a grenade thrown by police caused the young man’s injuries. Authorities said they would conduct an investigation to determine what happened.

At a news briefing, Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said 136 public order incidents had been recorded nationwide during Saturday’s demonstrations, which have drawn tens of thousands of French people into public spaces across the country so far.

“In Nantes, a police officer chokes a young man and slams his head against a wall, while his partner threatens to fire a less-lethal rubber-ball launcher at residents protesting… the Macron administration continues its repression through police brutality,” L’insoumission reported.

The text reads, “In Grenoble, police brutality has struck once again. The Isere prefect will have to answer for her actions, having altered the route of the demonstration and imposed curfews in Grenoble. Now, the police force under the ‘Minister of Violence’—Laurent Nuñez—is deploying tear gas and sowing chaos at a sanctioned demonstration. This government of incompetents is in its death throes.”

The security forces’ aggression against citizens occurred despite several cities authorizing demonstrations for Saturday, including Lille, Strasbourg, Mulhouse, Grenoble, Marseille, Toulouse, Amiens and Paris.

In Lyon, where demonstrations have been banned across a large part of the city center, law enforcement officers dispersed small gatherings using tear gas grenades.

On Friday, Nunez said that 70,000 police officers and gendarmes would be deployed nationwide for the demonstrations. Soldiers from the French army’s Operation Sentinelle would also be mobilized during the protests.

teleSUR/ JF

Source: Xinhua – TF1 Info

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