By Zoila Palma: Thousands of demonstrators gathered in Paris and other French cities today as authorities deployed 70,000 police officers to prevent a repeat of the riots and looting that swept across the country the previous weekend, Reuters report.
Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said 135 people had been arrested nationwide by early afternoon, with some arrests following searches that uncovered fireworks, ball bearings and other items that could be used as weapons.
The heightened security measures included the deployment of 10,000 additional police officers and gendarmes compared with October 17, when protests over the cost of living and deteriorating public services escalated into some of France’s worst unrest in years.
While the main demonstration in Paris began peacefully, police fired tear gas at crowds in Lyon, the country’s third-largest city. Nunez warned that authorities faced significant calls for disruption from political groups and criminals.
Much of central Paris took on the appearance of a city under lockdown, with businesses boarding up storefronts, major cultural institutions closing and more than 20 metro stations shutting down.
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