Hell with 92 injured and hundreds arrested in "Yellow Vests"
Several cosmopolitan neighborhoods of Paris today became the scene of guerrilla city scenes on the sidelines of the mobilization of the "yellow vests", who are protesting against the rising cost of living. The police announced that 205 arrests were made after the violent incidents in Paris.
"The riots and violence we see in Paris today are unacceptable and the protesters must oppose the extremist groups that are taking advantage of the situation by undermining the legitimate allegations of the 'yellow vests'," said Health Minister Anies Bizin.
According to the Ministry of the Interior, the third day of national mobilization of the "yellow vests" had 75.000 protesters today in France at 15.00 local time.
The first day of national action on November 17 had 282.000 protesters and the second 106.000, of whom 8.000 were in Paris, according to Interior Ministry figures.
At least 19 metro stations and two historic department stores in central Paris, the Lafayette Gallery and the Predant, have been closed as violent clashes between protesters and police spread in the French capital.
Among the stations closed are Charles de Gaulle-Etoile, located at the western end of the Champs Elysees, the Opera House and the Bastille.
At the same time, firefighters are conducting a firefighting operation in a building near the Champs Elysees, eyewitnesses said. They set fire to a building near the Arc de Triomphe while the violence spread during the mobilization.
At the same time, according to Reuters, protesters stole an automatic rifle from a police vehicle in central Paris. So far, 65 people have been injured. Among the injured are 11 police officers.
"Unacceptable riots," government officials say
"The riots and violence we see in Paris today are unacceptable and the protesters must oppose the extremist groups that are taking advantage of the situation by undermining the legitimate allegations of the 'yellow vests,'" said Health Minister Anies Bizin.
"I am shocked by the attacks (made) on the symbols of France," Prime Minister Edouard Philippe told reporters. "We are committed to dialogue, but also to respecting the law."
