(Photo Credit: AFP)

French Nationals Protest On Bastille Day

Bastille Day is a celebratory national holiday in France. But this year, things took a violent turn when the French riot police used tear gas on protesters at the Bastille Day military parade.

The rioters were believed to be “black bloc” protesters, the violent arm of the Yellow Vest movement. The Yellow Vest movement is the name of anti-government protesters in France, particularly those opposed to new fuel taxes that were proposed in 2019. Yellow vest demonstrations were banned in the country after the protests turned violent in March.

French police confirmed that 150 people were arrested in Paris, where rioters assaulted police and lit furniture and trash bins on fire.

“A few shop windows were broken in streets near the avenue and the glass of a bus shelter was destroyed,” The Local of France reports. “Police fired tear gas at protesters and at least 150 people were arrested, including ‘yellow vest’ leaders Eric Drouet, Maxime Nicolle and Jérôme Rodrigues, who was arrested earlier in the day in an area near the Champs-Elysées.”

Later that night, police in Lyon and Marseilles had to break up riots after Algeria beat Nigeria in a soccer match. France has a large population of African immigrants from both countries, and fans of the two teams clashed after the game, resulting in assaults and arsons in both cities.