French police officers walk next to the Eiffel tower on the sideline of a gathering to protest French President Emmanuel Macron’s plans to revamp national railway company in Paris.(Source- AP Photo/Michel Euler/File)
The head of Paris police says about 2,000 police officers will be deployed to ensure security in the French capital during an anti-government protest Saturday. Prefect Michel Delpuech promised Friday in a news conference a “powerful and consistent” effort, four days after May Day protests turned violent in the French capital.
Authorities blamed the violence on masked attackers from a libertarian group called the Black Blocs that numbered around 1,200 people in total. Six cars were burned, a McDonald’s restaurant was smashed up and automobile shops were vandalized.
Delpuech said “there is every reason to think” violent individuals will try to disturb Saturday’s protest. The march, supported by far-left party France Insoumise (Rebel France), aims at denouncing French President Emmanuel Macron’s economic changes, almost one year after his election.