Iran Press/ Europe: Police in Paris clashed with hooded, black-clad demonstrators on Saturday as thousands of people joined traditional May Day protests across France to demand social and economic justice and voice their opposition to government plans to change unemployment benefits.
Police made 46 arrests in the capital, where garbage bins were set on fire and the windows of a bank branch were smashed, momentarily delaying the march, Reuters reported.
More than 106,000 people marched throughout France, including 17,000 in Paris, according to the Interior Ministry.
Trade unionists were joined by members of the "Yellow Vest" movement, which triggered a wave of anti-government protests three years ago, and by workers from sectors hit hard by pandemic restrictions such as culture.
Marchers, most wearing masks in line with coronavirus rules, carried banners reading, "Dividends, not unemployment benefits are the income of lazy people," and, "We want to live, not survive".
The Prefecture de Police, which deployed 5,000 officers in Paris, said it had prevented 'Black Bloc' anarchists from forming a group. Three police officers were injured in Paris.
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