Macron Blames 'Ultra-Left Groups' for France's Riots and Says Unauthorized Protests Will Be Banned Ahead of Saturday
The French president said last Saturday's violence was an attempt 'to bring down the Republic.' Paris shops are boarding up, Lyon's Saturday protest is banned, and unions are being offered alternative routes.
French President Emmanuel Macron said Thursday that "ultra-left groups" are behind the riots and looting that have spread across France, and that his government will ban protests called by people "with no legitimate authority." Fox News reports his remarks, which it sources to Reuters and the Associated Press.
What he said. Reuters quoted Macron after a meeting with intelligence officials: "Last Saturday we had political and seditious acts by ultra-left groups whose aim is to bring down the Republic." On the days ahead, he said, "The general recommendation is that there should be no demonstrations in the coming days." Unions that file requests will get an examination from the prefects "in accordance with the law," he said, but with alternative routes proposed to protect city centers, businesses and public buildings.
On the ground. Thousands of people marched in Paris on Thursday, the AP reported, gathering peacefully under heavy police presence. Organizers said an administrative court overturned a ban the Paris police prefecture had issued, after they challenged it. The prefecture had cited the risk of street violence after groups of masked youths clashed with police, looted shops and burned cars over the weekend. Reuters reported that businesses in central Paris have begun boarding up windows, and that local authorities banned a protest planned for Saturday in Lyon.
What comes next. Fox says Thursday's march was seen as a prelude to Saturday's larger demonstration, when activists from the "yellow vest" movement, whose fuel price protests shook France in 2018 and 2019, and the CGT labor union are expected to join. The protests began in September with calls for education reform and have grown into broader anti-government demonstrations that French officials say are fueled by far-left groups. Fox's page also carries a related headline saying the State Department has warned of worse destruction from a second weekend of planned riots. We did not read that story.
Note for readers: the "ultra-left" attribution is Macron's and French officials'. Fox's report does not include a response from the groups accused or from the unions. It notes that the AP described Thursday's march as peaceful.