France detains 135 people on a day of mass demonstrations across the country
French police detained 135 people during the first half of the day on Saturday amid mass demonstrations taking place across the country.
This was reported by Interior Minister Laurent Nunez.
"For the most part, these detentions were made following searches [of personal belongings] and in connection with the confiscation of items that could be used as weapons," he said on the BFMTV television channel.
According to the minister, no serious incidents have been recorded so far. Nevertheless, he expressed concern over the presence of a large number of representatives of left-wing and far-left movements in Orleans, who gathered for a demonstration against the National Rally party ahead of the start of its two-day political congress in that city. According to preliminary data, about 35,000 people took part in the demonstrations that began in the first half of the day. In total, around 136 different actions are planned for this Saturday, whereas on October 17 there were 264.
On October 17, mass demonstrations against rising fuel prices and the decline in the population's purchasing power took place in Paris and throughout France. According to the organizers' estimates, 800,000 people took part in them, while the Interior Ministry counted 550,000, which was twice as many as the forecasts of law enforcement analysts. In a number of cities, the protests escalated into riots and clashes with police. Nunez promised that the authorities would continue to prosecute all participants in the pogroms and looting.
