Shocking moment French police KNOCK OUT protester during ‘Blood and Fire’ pension clashes: Locals say ‘Paris is a mess’ as support for demonstrators dwindles
- Live footage broadcast by French station BFM TV showed riot police charging
- They smashed into a middle-aged man, launching him several feet backward
- His head slammed into the concrete and he was immediately knocked out cold
This is the shocking moment a protester was launched through the air and knocked out cold by charging riot police on the streets of Paris yesterday.
Live footage broadcast by French station BFM TV showed how the middle-aged victim, who was standing close to a pedestrian crossing, was lifted off his feet and flung several feet backward when riot police surged past him.
The back of his head slammed into the concrete, immediately knocking him out cold.
Undeterred, the horde of armoured officers continued on, sprinting further down the street towards demonstrators hitting out at French president Emmanuel Marcon’s controversial pension Bill.
Moments later, a small group of officers noticed the man was unresponsive and pulled him into the recovery position – though Parisian police did not respond to a Reuters request for comment on the man’s health later on Tuesday evening.
The sickening scene came as 70 people were arrested in the French capital alone yesterday according to BFM TV.
Meanwhile, French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin, who has accused demonstrators of bringing ‘fire and blood’ to Paris, tweeted that 201 people have been detained since protests broke out.
This is the moment the man’s head slammed into the concrete on the streets of Paris
A police officer surrounds an unconscious man lying on the floor during pension protests, in Paris, France, March 28, 2023 in still image from video obtained from social media
A small group of officers noticed the man was unresponsive and pulled him into the recovery position
The man remained unconscious for several minutes. His condition is unknown
Union leaders and political foes of President Macron blame his government for protest violence that has flared in recent weeks, saying his pension reforms are sparking it.
Critics also allege that police officers are using excessive force against protesters. A police oversight body is investigating multiple claims of wrongdoing by officers.
The new wave of strikes and protests this week was the 10th time since January that unions have called on workers to walk out and for demonstrators to flood the streets in protest against Macron’s push to move back France’s legal retirement age from 62 to 64.
Unable to get a majority in parliament’s lower house for the unpopular reforms, Macron rammed them through using a special constitutional power – a move which further flared the anger and led to yet more protests.
However, sanitation workers in Paris are now returning to work to clear the heaps of rubbish that have piled up over their weeks-long strike, with protests beginning to wind down in intensity.
Rubbish mounds of up to 10,000 tonnes along the French capital’s streets – reportedly equal to the weight of the Eiffel Tower – have become a striking visual symbol of opposition to Marcon’s Bill raising the retirement age.
One banner held aloft by a protester dressed as a Gaul read, ‘Macron declared war on the people’ after the president raised the retirement age without a parliamentary vote
Students held a banner in front of a raging fire on the tenth day of nationwide strikes today as unrest grows across the country
Gerald Darmanin, France’s Interior Minister, said 13,000 police and gendarmes were mobilised, including 5,500 in Paris alone. Pictured: A protester clashes with an officer
A protestor throws a stone as he stands amid tear gas during a demonstration after the government pushed a pensions reform through parliament without a vote
Clean-up crews were today beginning to collect debris from the streets after CGT, the union representing sanitation workers, said its three-week-long strike was over on Wednesday.
They joined others who were legally requisitioned to help with the clean-up.
‘It’s good that the trash is collected. It’s very unsanitary, and some residents already have trouble with rats and mice. It can be dangerous if it’s left too long,’ artist Gil Franco, 73, said.
The dwindling number of protesters is seen by some as the beginning of the end of demonstrations against the pension Bill.
‘People are getting tired of it. There has been too much violence. Paris is a mess, and I want to get on with normal life,’ resident Amandine Betout, 32, said.
Tuesday’s protests in Paris saw dozens of arrests and flare-ups of violence, although significantly fewer people participated in the action nationwide.
The interior ministry put the number of demonstrators nationwide at 740,000, down from more than one million five days ago when protesters voiced their anger at Macron’s order to push the Bill through parliament without a vote.
For unions, the fight against the law is far from over. An eleventh day of action is scheduled for April 6.
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