1 dead, dozens injured in protests across France against fuel taxes

PARIS — One protester was killed and 106 other people were injured Saturday at roadblocks set up around France by citizens angry at rising fuel taxes, posing a new challenge to embattled President Emmanuel Macron.

Police officers lobbed tear gas canisters at demonstrators on the famed Champs-Elysees Avenue in Paris as groups tried to make their way to the presidential Elysee Palace. Later, hundreds of protesters entered the street dotted with luxury shops where the palace is located — and where Macron lives.

They were seen on BFMTV talking with riot police when the officers suddenly raised their shields and pushed the group back.

French Interior Ministry officials estimated 244,000 protesters were involved in several thousand demonstrations around the country, many of them spontaneous.

The protester who died, a 63-year-old woman, was killed when a driver caught in traffic accelerated in a panic at Pont-de-Beauvoisin, near Chambery, according to Louis Laugier, the prefect, or top state official, in the eastern Savoie region. An investigation was opened.

Five people were seriously injured, while the others had more minor injuries, the Interior Ministry said. It added 52 people were detained and 38 held for questioning.

Protesters, wearing yellow safety vests and dubbing themselves the “yellow jackets,” pledged to target tollbooths, roundabouts and the highway bypass that rings Paris.

The higher taxes are part of Macron’s strategy to wean France off fossil fuels. Many drivers see them as emblematic of a presidency they view as disconnected from day-to-day economic difficulties and serving the rich.

Elaine Ganley is an Associated Press writer. </s> A woman has died during protests against rising petrol and diesel prices and government plans to further hike the tax on vehicle fuel in France.

Another woman driving a car panicked when she encountered a roadblock and ran over a protester, French Interior Minister Christophe Castaner said on Saturday on live television.

The accident took place in the town of Pont-de-Beauvoisin, to the north of the city of Grenoble in south-eastern France, according to the minister.

Drivers started blocking roads across the country to protest rising fuel taxes, in a new challenge to embattled President Emmanuel Macron.

Protesters pledged to target tollbooths, roundabouts and the bypass that rings Paris on Saturday. The government is preparing to send police to remove protesters and threatening fines.

The taxes are part of Macron's strategy of weaning France off fossil fuels. Many drivers see them as emblematic of a presidency seen as disconnected from day-to-day economic difficulties.

The protesters have dubbed themselves the "yellow jackets" because they wear fluorescent vests that all French drivers must keep in their vehicles in case of car troubles.

Separately, ambulances briefly blocked Paris' Champs-Elysees on Friday to protest new rules on ambulance financing and put pressure on Macron's government. </s> Drivers in France are blocking roads across the country to protest rising fuel taxes, in a new challenge to embattled President Emmanuel Macron.

Protesters pledge to target tollbooths, roundabouts and the bypass that rings Paris on Saturday. The government is preparing to send police to remove protesters and threatening fines.

The taxes are part of Macron's strategy of weaning France off fossil fuels. Many drivers see them as emblematic of a presidency seen as disconnected from day-to-day economic difficulties.

The protesters have dubbed themselves the "yellow jackets" because they wear fluorescent vests that all French drivers must keep in their vehicles in case of car troubles.

Separately, ambulances briefly blocked Paris' Champs-Elysees on Friday to protest new rules on ambulance financing and put pressure on Macron's government. </s> Drivers are blocking roads across France to protest against rising fuel taxes, in a new challenge to embattled President Emmanuel Macron.

Drivers are blocking roads across France to protest against rising fuel taxes, in a new challenge to embattled President Emmanuel Macron.

Protesters aim to target tollbooths, roundabouts and the bypass that rings Paris, while the government is preparing to send police to remove protesters and threatening fines.

The taxes are part of Mr Macron’s strategy of weaning France off fossil fuels.

Many drivers see them as emblematic of a presidency disconnected from day-to-day economic difficulties.

The protesters have dubbed themselves the “yellow jackets” because they wear fluorescent vests that all French drivers must keep in their vehicles in case of car troubles.

Separately, ambulances briefly blocked Paris’s Champs-Elysees on Friday to protest against new rules on ambulance financing and put pressure on Mr Macron’s government. </s> Protesters angry over high fuel prices were expected to block access to French fuel depots and stop traffic on major roads for a fourth day Tuesday, incensed by the government's refusal to scrap anti-pollution taxes.

One person was accidentally killed and 528 people have been injured, 17 seriously, during the "Yellow Vest" protests that have galvanised resistance to President Emmanuel Macron's economic policies.

As the protests rumbled on, it emerged four men were taken into custody and charged as part of an anti-terrorist investigation in the southeastern city of Saint-Etienne on Saturday - the first day of the blockades - accused of planning to take advantage of the police mobilisation for the demonstrations to mount a terror attack, according to Le Parisien newspaper.

One of the suspects texted his fiancee saying, "It's going to bleed on November 17", the newspaper said.

Officials were not immediately available to comment on the report.

On Monday, tens of thousands of demonstrators were still manning hundreds of barricades on motorways and petrol stations, down from nearly 300,000 protesters at over 2,000 sites on Saturday.

Oil giant Total confirmed that some of its trucks had been prevented from reaching depots in the south and east of the country, causing alarm among small business owners.

"The worst thing would be to block the economy and make the whole situation worse," Alain Griset, head of the U2P federation of small and medium-sized businesses said in a statement.

On Monday, security forces cleared protesters from several sites, including a suspension bridge leading to the southwestern city of Bordeaux that had been blocked for three days.

'Much more than fuel'

The "Yellow Vest" movement - named after the high-visibility vests motorists are required to carry in their cars - was sparked by rising diesel prices, which many blame on taxes implemented in recent years as part of France's anti-pollution fight.

It quickly snowballed into a protest by rural and small-town France over falling spending power of the less well-off under Macron, assailed as a "president of the rich".

"It's about much more than fuel. They (the government) have left us with nothing," Dominique, a 50-year-old unemployed technician told AFP at a roadblock in the town of Martigues, near the southern city of Marseille.

Macron's government, which is trying to buff its environmental credentials, has vowed not to back down on trying to wean people off their cars through fuel taxes.

While the number of protesters has fallen since the weekend, in tandem with plummeting temperatures, further large-scale demonstrations are planned.

Two separate calls for mass protests in Paris on November 24 were widely circulated on social media.

The start of the protests was marred by the death of a 63-year-old demonstrator, who was run down by a panicked motorist at a roadblock in the eastern Savoie region.

Several other people were injured in attempts by truck drivers and motorists to force their way through barricades.

A 32-year-old man was sentenced to four months in prison Monday for endangering life by taking part in a human chain on a highway in the northeast of France.

Fresh clashes Sunday in the "yellow vest" fuel price protests across France led to more injuries to add to the more than 400 already reported by Interior Minister Christophe Castaner.

Although the protests appeared to be less widespread than those seen at the 87 locations tallied by the interior ministry overnight, protestors again clashed with police - and sometimes motorists.

Sunday's protests touched several regions across France, but their intensity appeared to be diminishing, according to AFP journalists.

Police were searching for a motorist who forced a road block at Saint-Quentin, northeast France, leaving one protestor seriously injured.

And police used tear gas to break up a gathering of about a thousand protestors near the northern city of Caen, after vandalism of traffic radar and the burning of wooden pallets.

Earlier Sunday, Interior Minister Christophe Castaner reported that the first day and night of protests had left one person dead and more than 400 people hurt, 14 seriously.

The injury toll followed what Castaner described as a "restive" night in 87 locations around the country, where protesters had blocked roads to express their anger at a series of hikes in petrol tax.

The injured, 409 in total, included 28 police, paramilitary police or firefighters.

French retail group Auchan reported violent incidents at around 20 shopping centres where it operates hypermarkets.

Castaner told RTL radio that 288,000 people had taken part in Saturday's protests at 2,034 locations countrywide.

About 3,500 stayed out overnight, he added.

Police questioned 282 protesters in total, 73 during the night, of whom 157 were taken into custody.

"Last night was restive... There were assaults, fights, stabbings," Castaner said.

"There were fights among 'yellow vest' protesters."

Budget Minister Gerald Darmanin said Sunday the government was aware of unhappiness over high fuel taxes, but said it had "a duty" to transform the French economy with the aim of making it less oil-dependent.

A poll published Sunday in the Journal de Dimanche weekly said that 62 percent of those questioned believed their purchasing power was more important than a fast transition towards renewable energy.

Prime Minister Edouard Philippe was to appear on national TV Sunday evening to discuss the protests. </s> PARIS
• A motorist accidentally hit and killed a protester taking part in a campaign of road blockades across France yesterday, as thousands gathered on motorways in a backlash against higher fuel taxes.

The demonstrators, part of a grassroots movement dubbed the "yellow vest" blockade, caused logjams on highways and blocked roundabouts as they railed against the fuel tax hikes introduced by President Emmanuel Macron.

The protests, largely orchestrated on social media and which aimed to prevent road access to some fuel depots and airports, have also drawn broader support from some voters dissatisfied with Mr Macron's economic reforms.

At a blockade on a road in the south-eastern department of Savoie, a driver panicked when protesters surrounded her car and she accelerated, hitting and killing a woman demonstrator, Interior Minister Christophe Castaner said in televised comments.

Sixteen people had light injuries in other accidents across the country, while a person run over by a car in the north was in a critical state, according to the interior ministry.

Some incidents occurred as drivers not taking part tried to get around the blockades, police sources said.

More than 2,000 rallies were taking place across the country, gathering about 124,000 protesters, according to Mr Castaner's second assessment, at midday yesterday.

Protesters gathered at sensitive flashpoints including the entry to a tunnel under the Mont Blanc mountain in the Alps, and traffic was backed up on several highways.

There were also rallies in cities, including Marseille where about 100 people, wearing the high visibility vests drivers keep in their cars, blocked roads around its port.

The backlash is the latest confrontation between Mr Macron and voters, mostly based in the countryside and provincial towns and cities, who view the former investment banker as the representative of a remote urban elite.

During his 18 months in power, Mr Macron, 40, has often pushed through reforms, including an overhaul of indebted state rail operator SNCF, in the face of opposition from labour unions.

But the "yellow vest" movement has snowballed swiftly over the past month, catching Mr Macron and even opposition parties off guard.

It has already prompted a rare concession from the government, which announced earlier in the month fresh funds to help motorists on the lowest incomes.

Taxes account for about 60 per cent of the price at the pump in France.

The higher fuel taxes were approved late last year but started to bite as oil prices surged in October, even though they have since eased off somewhat.

France is trying to end its addiction to diesel. The diesel tax increases are designed to encourage drivers to switch to more environmentally-friendly cars. </s> Protesters angry over high fuel prices blocked access to fuel depots and stopped traffic on major roads Monday after the government refused to back down on fuel taxes following a weekend of demonstrations across France.

A spokesman for French oil giant, Total said protesters blocked access to three fuel depots on Monday. Two of the depots, one in Vern, near the northwest city of Rennes, and the other in Fos-sur-Mer in the south, are operated by Total, the spokesman said.

The third depot, part-owned but not run by Total, is at La Rochelle, the spokesman said.

More than 400 people were injured during the “yellow vest” protests which began Saturday with nearly 300,000 participants country-wide.

Early Monday, dozens of barricades were still being manned on motorways and roundabouts, but far fewer than the more than 2,000 sites on Saturday and 150 on Sunday.

Other protesters continued to camp out in supermarket parking lots.

“The movement is not exceptional... and obviously isn’t as big as on Saturday,” Laurent Nunez, junior interior minister, told CNews, adding that police would continue to intervene to ensure major roads are not blocked.

A handful of skirmishes were reported overnight, including in the northern port city of Calais where an Australian truck driver was detained after trying to force his way through a barricade.

A British motorist was also detained trying to break through a barricade in Calais.

The grassroots movement emerged on social media last month over a surge in fuel prices this year, in particular for diesel, which many blame on taxes implemented in recent years as part of France’s anti-pollution fight.

It quickly snowballed into a broader protest over stagnant spending power under President Emmanuel Macron.

“I earn 500 euros ($570) a month how do you expect me to live on that? With what I earn I can only allow myself one meal a day,” said Jean-Luc, a 57-year-old protesting in Calais.

Prime Minister Edouard Philippe said Sunday night that the government had heard the anger, but that it would maintain the fuel taxes, which are set to increase again in January.

Last week, the government unveiled a 500 million euro package of measures to help low-income households, including energy subsidies and higher scrappage bonuses for the purchase of cleaner vehicles.

But even some lawmakers in Macron’s Republic on the Move (LREM) party are urging the government to do more to help ease fuel and energy costs as winter approaches.

“We need to maintain environmental taxes, [French PM Philippe] is right to reiterate this, but we also need more measures to assist the French, especially the middle classes and the less well-off,” LREM lawmaker Matthieu Orphelin told RFI radio on Monday. </s> PARIS: Protesters angry over high fuel prices blocked access to fuel depots and stopped traffic on major roads on Monday with the government refusing to back down on fuel taxes after a weekend of demonstrations across France.

One person was accidentally killed and more than 400 people injured during the “yellow vest” protests which began Saturday with nearly 300,000 participants nationwide.Early Monday, dozens of barricades were still being manned on motorways and roundabouts, far fewer than the more than 2,000 sites on Saturday.

Around 200 trucks were backed up along a road leading to a fuel depot in the western city of Rennes, where some protesters had camped out overnight, an AFP reporter said. Others continued to camp out in supermarket parking lots. “The movement is not exceptional... and obviously isn’t as big as on Saturday,” Laurent Nunez, junior interior minister, told CNews, adding that police would continue to intervene to ensure major roads are not blocked.

But further large-scale protests are already being planned. A call by a member of the rightwing Debout La France (Stand Up France) party for protesters to descend on Paris on Saturday and “block” the city has been viewed over 165,000 times on Facebook. </s> A second person died in France amid nationwide protests against fuel tax hikes that saw hundreds injured and key roads paralyzed by demonstrations. The French Interior Ministry sent its "sincere condolences" in a statement to the family and friends of a motorcyclist killed in an accident near a dam Monday in the southeastern Drome region. The ministry did not give details about how he was killed.

Hundreds of thousands of people blockaded roads across France on the weekend, wearing high-visibility yellow vests in a national wave of defiance aimed at President Emmanuel Macron. The protests had waned by Tuesday but the disruption underlined the anger and frustration felt by many motorists, particularly in rural areas or small towns, fed up with what they see as the government's anti-car policies, including tax hikes on diesel. Only a fraction of the nearly 300,000 people that manned the barricades on Saturday still camped out in the bitter cold. Further protests are planned for the weekend, with some calling for a blockade of Paris. Protests have also erupted in Reunion, a French overseas territory island in the Indian Ocean, where authorities introduced a partial curfew in some neighborhoods after a night of violence.

The Interior Ministry condemned the violence that has led to 552 people injured, 17 seriously, over four days of protests that have come to encompass a wide variety of grievances over the rising cost of living. The centrist Macron, who has made a point of not backing down in the face of public pressure during his time in office, called Tuesday for more "dialogue" to better explain his policies. Prime Minister Edouard Philippe, meanwhile, urged ruling Republic on the Move lawmakers to stand firm in the face of voter criticism, saying the party would reap the rewards of its "constancy and determination."

Agence France-Presse (AFP) judicial sources on Tuesday denied media reports that a group of men arrested earlier this month in the city of Saint-Etienne on suspicion of plotting an attack had planned to strike during Saturday's fuel protests.

The grassroots movement, which has won backing from opposition parties on both the left and right as well as a majority of respondents in opinion polls, accuses Macron of squeezing the less well-off while reducing taxes for the rich. "It's about much more than fuel. They [the government] have left us with nothing" Dominique, a 50-year-old unemployed technician told AFP at a roadblock in the town of Martigues, near the southern city of Marseille.

Macron's government, trying to improve its environmental credentials, has vowed not to back down on trying to wean people off their cars through fuel taxes. The government has unveiled a 500-million-euro package of measures to help low-income households, including energy subsidies and higher scrappage bonuses for the purchase of cleaner vehicles.
Hundreds of thousands protest against fuel taxes in France by blocking roadways. One person is killed and more than 200 are injured in subsequent altercations.