65,000 security forces deployed amid riot fears

Eiffel Tower will be closed tomorrow due to planned ‘yellow vest’ protests in Paris

France will deploy more than 65,000 security forces amid fears of new rioting at protests tomorrow in Paris and around the nation, despite President Emmanuel Macron’s surrender over a fuel tax hike that unleashed weeks of unrest.

Police unions and local authorities held emergency meetings yesterday to strategise on how to handle the weekend protests, while disparate groups of protesters did the same thing, sharing their plans on social networks and chat groups.

Prime Minister Edouard Philippe told senators yesterday that the government will deploy “exceptional” security measures for the protests in Paris and elsewhere, with additional new forces on top of the 65,000 security officers in place.

Some “yellow vest” protesters, members of France’s leading unions and prominent politicians across the political spectrum called for calm Thursday after the worst rioting in Paris in decades last weekend.

Many shops and restaurants in the centre of Paris plan to shut down tomorrow, fearing a repeat of the violence.

Scores of protesting teens clashed with police at a high school west of Paris yesterday, as part of nationwide student protests over new university admissions procedures and rising fees. Drivers wearing yellow vests continued to block roads, now demanding broader tax cuts and wider government social benefits.

A small union representing police administrators called for a strike tomorrow, which could further complicate security measures.

Eiffel Tower to close

The Eiffel Tower closed tomorrow planned protests the monument’s said yesterday.

The expected demonstrations, a week after violence in the French capital, would make it impossible to ensure “adequate security conditions” at the landmark, the operator said. will be due to in Paris, operator