Tag: ROUEN

‘Journalists come down’: Yellow Vests chant ‘fake news’ outside French TV station (VIDEOS)

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Dozens of Yellow Vest protesters have descended on the headquarters of France’s BFM TV channel accusing the station of broadcasting “fake news” and calling for the resignation of President Emmanuel Macron.

The demonstrators arrived at the offices in Paris around an hour after the gathering was announced on Facebook. There was already a heavy police presence at the building in the city’s 15th arrondissement when the crowd formed.

One of the protesters told RT France that BFM TV spreads false information about the movement, alleging that the channel purposefully underplays the size of its demonstrations.

AFP is reporting that “several hundred” Yellow Vests gathered outside the headquarters and Police used tear gas grenades on the crowd after the protesters lobbed projectiles in their direction.

The group reportedly chanted “journalists come down”, “fake news” and “Macron out”.

Riot police also fired tear gas during clashes in Rouen in Normandy and in Nantes in western France on Saturday, which is the seventh week of the mass rallies that have divided the country since the movement sprang up in November.

ALSO ON RT.COMTear gas fired as Yellow Vests and police clash in French city of Rouen (VIDEOS)

Official turnout numbers have dropped significantly on earlier weeks but organizers say the dip is due to the holiday season. The protesters say the movement will continue to grow in 2019 and plans are underway for New Year’s Eve protests.

The rallies initially began as a demonstration against fuel hikes but have since morphed into a broad rejection of Macron’s policies. On Thursday a group of about 40 Yellow Vests tried to storm the medieval fort of Bregancon that serves as the president’s official summer retreat.

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Tear gas fired as Yellow Vests and police clash in French city of Rouen (VIDEOS)

Yellow Vests in Rouen as the street fills with tear gas.

French police have deployed tear gas in a bid to quell Yellow Vest protesters in a tense stand-off in the city of Rouen in Normandy.

Demonstrations quickly spiralled out of control in the northern French city on Saturday as protesters and riot police clashed in the streets of the picturesque town.

Journalist Simon Louvet, who is in Rouen, tweeted: “The GJ (Gilet Jaunes) are in the streets around Jeanne D’Arc Street and are gassed, they flee running and regroup.”are gassed, they flee running and regroup.”

The protesters also set fire to the entrance of the local office of the Bank of France, the country’s central bank.

Away from the violence, a large group of protesters also marched through the streets, waving French flags and chanting slogans.

Paris, the scene of the most dramatic demonstrations since the rallies began in November, was significantly quieter than previous weeks but it also saw dozens of Yellow Vests gathered on Champs-Elysees on Saturday.

On Thursday, a group of the protesters attempted to storm the Mediterranean castle that serves as President Emmanuel Macron’s summer retreat.

The weeks of demonstrations have polarized France. The movement began as rallies against fuel-price hikes, but it soon morphed into nationwide protests against government policies.

The fuel hikes were scrapped by the government but people have continued to demand more concessions, including lower taxes and even Macron’s resignation.

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