Police seize hammers, knives, saws and catapults as they stop 500 vehicles driving into Paris
Police seize hammers, knives, saws and catapults as they stop 500 vehicles driving into Paris for furious Canadian-style Freedom Convoy blockade over Covid rules and energy price rises despite authorities’ ban
Paris police said 500 vehicles were stopped at two entry points as they tried to get inside the French capitalElsewhere, at least two protesters were detained amid a seizure of bladed weapons, slingshots and gas masks Inspired by Canadian truckers, demonstrators are protesting Covid rules, but also fast-rising energy pricesSome drivers parked about 50 miles (80km) from Paris left at around 5am local time, according to messagesIt follows hundreds of cars, motorhomes and vans from Lille and elsewhere stopping at city’s gates last night
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Police seized hammers, knives, saws and catapults as they halted at least 500 vehicles driving into Paris today in a ‘Freedom Convoy’ protest over Covid rules and energy price rises, defying a ban by authorities aiming to stop a blockade of the city.
The French capital’s police department said on Twitter that several convoys were stopped from entering at key city arteries and over 200 motorists were handed tickets.
Elsewhere, at least two protesters were detained amid a seizure of bladed weapons, slingshots and gas masks in one central Parisian square.
Some 7,000 officers have been mobilized for the weekend protests, creating checkpoints, deploying armored personnel carriers and setting up water cannons to brace the city for the protests.
Inspired by Canadian truckers paralysing border traffic with the United States, the demonstrators are railing against coronavirus restrictions such as France’s vaccination pass, but also fast-rising energy prices.
Protesters tried to weave toward Paris from every direction, waving French flags and honking at onlookers from their car windows, while some convoys sought to avoid police detection on Friday by travelling along local roads.
The French action has no single leader or goal, and comes as months of protests against French government vaccination rules have been waning.
Today’s protest follows hundreds of cars, motorhomes and vans from Lille, Strasbourg, Chateaubourg and elsewhere stopped at the gates of Paris last night, but a police source said no convoy had entered the capital.
A yellow vest supporter, pictured left, and a biker gesture toward a camper van driving on the Champs-Elysees avenue in Paris, France, while a police officer checks documents on Saturday
‘Freedom convoy’ protesters speak with police officers at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, France, on Saturday as demonstrators, inspired by Canadian truckers paralysing border traffic with the US, arrive in the French capital
Two people were arrested after demonstrators were found in possession of gas cannisters, hammers, knives and a saw in Denfert-Rochereau, Paris, France, on Saturday morning
Paris police also seized slingshots (right) and gas masks (left) on Saturday morning. One message earlier said the aim was to ‘create a mass of vehicles that the forces of order would find impossible to contain’
Traffic jams form at the Porte de Bagnolet, eastern Paris, on Saturday as convoys of protesters arrive in the French capital with some hoping to blockade the capital in opposition to Covid restrictions and rising energy prices
A demonstrator wearing a yellow vest holds a sign reading ‘Let’s convoy our anger for our liberty’ as he gathers with other protestors at the Place d’Italie in Paris on Saturday
Protestors gather together at the Place d’Italie in Paris, France, on Saturday as ‘freedom convoy’ demonstrators arrive in the French capital, inspired by Canadian truckers paralysing border traffic with the US
French gendarmes stand next to an armored vehicle VBRG parked at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, France, on Saturday morning as convoys of protesters arrive in the French capital
Some drivers parked on the fringes of Chartres, about 50 miles (80km) from Paris, left at around 5am local time (4am GMT), according to messages.
One said the aim was to ‘create a mass of vehicles that the forces of order would find impossible to contain’.
One claimed that, ‘faced with several thousand vehicles capable of stopping or being on the move’, the police would not be able to do much.
Nearly 7,200 police and gendarmes are being deployed over the next three days to enforce the ban on vehicle convoys, Paris police headquarters said.
The prefect of the Paris police department, Didier Lallement, said they had created a temporary car pound which, together with dozens of tow trucks, will ‘put an end to any blockage’.
Police showed off their anti-blockage arsenal on Twitter, publishing photographs of loader tractors for the removal of barricades as well as trucks equipped with cranes or water cannons.
Gendarmerie armoured vehicles have also been deployed in the streets of the capital for the first time since the ‘yellow vest’ protests at the end of 2018.
It’s not just in France that such protests are brewing. Dozens of trucks and other vehicles, from tractors to a car towing a caravan arrived in The Hague Saturday morning as part of a ‘freedom convoy,’ blocking an entrance to the historic parliamentary complex.
French gendarmes patrol at the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, France, early this morning as convoys of protesters arrive in the capital. Some hope to blockade the city the city in opposition to Covid-19 restrictions
Members of the Brav-M patrol ride along the Champs Elysee as a ‘Freedom Convoy’ protest was expected in Paris, France, on Saturday morning. Paris police have prohibited the convoy, as announced by the capital’s prefect on February 10
Police officers check the documents of a camper van driver on the Champs-Elysees avenue in Paris as French drivers and their ‘freedom convoy’ arrive in the capital to protest against the Covid vaccine and restrictions
French police stop vehicles to prevent members of the ‘freedom convoy’ from protesting on the Champs Elysee in Paris, France, on Saturday
Police officers check the documents of a campervan driver participating in the French ‘freedom convoy’ on the Champs Elysee in Paris on February 12
A police officer gestures towards the camera as others control a camper van owner on the Champs-Elysees avenue in Paris, France, on Saturday
Demonstrators wearing yellow vests gather together at the Place d’Italie in Paris on Saturday as convoys of protesters arrive in the French capital to rail against Covid restrictions and rising energy prices
A ‘freedom convoy’ protester plays an instrument while waiting in traffic along a street early on Saturday morning in Paris, France as numerous convoys head toward the French capital
One motorhome with the word ‘freedom’ scrawled across the back is seen being intercepted by a police officer in Paris, France, on Saturday morning as protesters head to the capital
Police officers control camper vans on the Champs-Elysees avenue in Paris, France, on Saturday. The force intercepted at least 500 vehicles attempting to enter the French capital this morning
A police officer walks past a camper van driving on the Champs-Elysees avenue in Paris, France, on Saturday. The force said that several convoys were stopped from entering at key city arteries
Police officers check a campervan driver’s documents on the Champs-Elysees avenue in Paris, France, on Saturday morning
A picture posted to the Paris Police department’s Twitter page shows officers checking multiple campervans in Paris today
A group of protesters joined the truckers carrying a banner emblazoned with the Dutch words ‘Love & freedom, no dictatorship.’
Police urged the protesters to move to a park, where the municipality said they could demonstrate, and warned the public about traffic problems in the city.
French Prime Minister Jean Castex vowed to remain steadfast, saying: ‘If they block traffic or if they try to block the capital, we must be very firm about this.’
Paris police estimated 3,300 vehicles were involved in the various convoys by Friday afternoon.
They are demanding a withdrawal of the government’s vaccine pass, which is required for access to many public spaces, and more help with their energy bills.
Lisa, a 62-year-old retired health worker who joined a convoy of more than 1,000 vehicles leaving Chateaubourg in the western Brittany region early Friday, said: ‘People need to see us, and to listen to the people who just want to live a normal and free life.’
Police stop ‘freedom convoy’ protesters along a street this morning in Paris, France. Inspired by Canadian truckers paralysing border traffic with the United States, the demonstrators are protesting coronavirus restrictions, but also rising energy prices
Police stop ‘freedom convoy’ protesters along a street in Paris this morning. Some drivers parked on the fringes of Chartres, about 50 miles (80km) from Paris, left at around 5am local time (4am GMT), according to messages
Police officers check a camper van driver on the Champs-Elysees avenue in Paris, France, on Saturday.
Just two months ahead of presidential elections and with the government desperate to avoid violent scenes in the capital, Macron said on Friday that he understood the ‘fatigue’ linked to the Covid pandemic (police stop protesters on a street today)
The protesters are demanding a withdrawal of the government’s vaccine pass, which is required for access to many public spaces, and more help with their energy bills (police stop ‘freedom convoy’ members along a street today)
Police stop members of a ‘freedom Convoy’ along a street this morning in Paris, France. Today’s protest follows hundreds of cars, motorhomes and vans from Lille, Strasbourg, Chateaubourg and elsewhere stopped at the gates of Paris last night
Just two months ahead of presidential elections and with the government desperate to avoid violent scenes in the capital, Macron said on Friday that he understood the ‘fatigue’ linked to the Covid-19 pandemic.
He told the Ouest-France newspaper: ‘This fatigue also leads to anger. I understand it and I respect it. But I call for the utmost calm.’
Police banned the gathering yesterday because of feared ‘public order disturbances’, saying protesters who tried to block roads would face fines or arrest.
The order prohibiting the assembly of convoys was upheld on Friday by the courts, which rejected two appeals.
Anti-vaccine and ‘yellow vest’ activist Sophie Tissier said: ‘It’s a betrayal. The basis of the order is not respectful of the law, of the freedom to demonstrate.’
Armoured police vehicles park by the Arc de Triomphe as they await the arrival of multiple ‘Freedom Convoy’s’ this morning in Paris. The city’s police office said 500 vehicles were stopped at two entry points as they tried to get inside
Police showed off their anti-blockage arsenal on Twitter, publishing photographs of loader tractors for the removal of barricades as well as trucks equipped with cranes or water cannon
Gendarmerie armoured vehicles have also been deployed in the streets of the capital for the first time since the ‘yellow vest’ protests at the end of 2018
The prefect of the Paris police, Didier Lallement, said they had created a temporary car pound which, together with dozens of tow trucks, will ‘put an end to any blockage’.
Nearly 7,200 police and gendarmes are being deployed over the next three days to enforce the ban on vehicle convoys, Paris police headquarters said. Pictured: Armoured police vehicles drive along the Champs Elysees on Saturday morning)
Armoured police vehicles park by the Arc de Triomphe as they await the arrival of multiple ‘Freedom Convoys’ early this morning in Paris, France. Numerous convoys have been headed toward the French capital since Wednesday
Like other protesters, Lisa has been active in the ‘yellow vest’ movement that erupted over a fuel tax hike before becoming a platform for other complaints against President Emmanuel Macron.
But the Prime Minister of France said: ‘The right to demonstrate and to have an opinion are a constitutionally guaranteed right in our republic and in our democracy. The right to block others or to prevent coming and going is not.’
Refuting any desire to block the capital, the demonstrators were hoping to swell the ranks of the regular Saturday protests against the government’s vaccine pass.
Robin, on his way from Illkirch-Graffenstaden in the eastern Alsace region, said: ‘It’s important that we don’t interfere with other people on the roads. That way we’ll keep the population on our side, like they did in Canada.’
Some want to then travel to Brussels for a ‘European convergence’ of protesters planned there for Monday.
Phil, a 58-year-old on his way by truck from Brittany, said his refusal to get vaccinated had created ‘upheaval’ in his family and work relations, adding: ‘When you join a demonstration you feel less alone.’
