“A new level has been reached in the violence” during certain demonstrations on May 1, Elisabeth Borne said on Tuesday, judging that all “public officials” should “condemn it with the greatest firmness”.
“The perpetrators of these abuses” against the police “will be identified and brought to justice,” the Prime Minister also told the National Assembly. On the sidelines of the May Day demonstrations, 540 people were arrested in France, including 305 in Paris, and 406 police officers and gendarmes were injured, according to the Ministry of the Interior.
“The vast majority of the demonstrations went perfectly and I want to salute the spirit of responsibility of the trade unions and the commitment of the prefects and the police to guarantee the fundamental freedom to demonstrate and preserve the safety of the processions. “Said Elisabeth Borne before the Assembly, questioned by the president of the Horizons group, Laurent Marcangeli, during questions to the government.
“In several large cities, including Paris, Lille, Lyon or Nantes, as had already been the case in previous demonstrations, violent groups mingled with peaceful processions. These groups have only one objective, to attack the forces of order, to create disorder and chaos” and “this violence is intolerable”, developed the Prime Minister.
“The images we have seen, in particular those of a policeman burned by a molotov cocktail [à Paris, NDLR], are unbearable and illustrate that a new level has been reached in the violence”, added the tenant of Matignon, for which “all of us, public officials, must condemn it in the strongest possible terms”.
The government and the right on Tuesday accused LFI leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon of “complicity” for failing to condemn the violence against the police during the May Day demonstrations, for which he held “100%” responsible. » Minister Gérald Darmanin.
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