protests
Concern about unrest overshadows France’s national day
French President Emmanuel Macron stands in front of a divided country on the national holiday on July 14. photo
© Lewis Joly/AP Pool/AP/dpa
In view of the recent riots, a large contingent of police is on the streets for the national holiday in France. New riots were feared, but it remained largely peaceful during the night.
Overshadowed by concerns about new ones France celebrates its national holiday, July 14th, today. President Emmanuel Macron inspects the traditional military parade on the Champs-Élysées in Paris. Guest of honor this year is Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
For fear of riots, 130,000 police officers are deployed across the country. During the night it was initially quiet, no major incidents were reported. It was even quieter than usual, Interior Minister Gérald Darmanin announced on Friday morning. “Thank you to the law enforcement and rescue services who were mobilized last night. Thanks to their massive commitment, the fairs have been able to proceed normally throughout France and we are seeing a decrease in property damage compared to 2022.”
July 14 commemorates the French Revolution, specifically the storming of the Bastille prison in Paris on July 14, 1789.
Fatal Traffic Control
After a police officer fatally shot a youth during a traffic check near Paris a good two weeks ago, there had been serious unrest in France for days. Officials were attacked with firecrackers and public buildings such as police stations and schools were set on fire. Thousands of cars burned out. The unrest died down. New riots were feared for the national holiday.
Yesterday and tonight alone, 45,000 officers should be on duty. There are also special units such as helicopters, drones and armored vehicles. Bus and tram services were stopped at 10 p.m. in all metropolitan areas. S-Bahn and the Métro in Paris remained in operation. Several cities canceled the traditional National Day fireworks display for safety reasons. There is already a nationwide ban on fireworks due to concerns about renewed riots. More than 150,000 fireworks were confiscated nationwide, police said.
Exceptionally, no television speech
In view of the tense situation, Macron decided not to make the usual television speech on the national holiday. Actually, on July 14, he had announced the first results of a 100-day program with improvements in various policy areas, which the government had pushed to put the tough pension dispute behind it and regain popularity.
Macron only said that he had not committed himself to taking stock of the success of government work on the national holiday. His speech is now expected in the near future.