Wednesday December 25, 2024

1 death caused by roadblock of "Yellow Vest" protesters in France

Published : 03 Dec 2018, 01:04

DF-Xinhua Report

"Yellow vest" protestors confront police at the Champs-Elysees Avenue in Paris, France on Nov. 24, 2018. For a week, "yellow vests" protestors have blocked highways across French cities with burning barricades and slow-moving trucks, obstructing the access to fuel depots, shopping centers and some factories. File Photo Xinhua.

A motorist died overnight because of the roadblock caused by "Yellow Vest" protesters in the city of Arles, south France, French media reported Sunday.

The motorist hit a heavy truck at standstill due to a roadblock caused by the protesters, a local prosecutor was quoted by the French TV channel BFMTV as saying.

"This accident is directly related to a barrage of Yellow Vests that caused a huge traffic jam of 10 km ... A van hit a heavy truck full force before being in turn hit by another vehicle", explained the prosecutor, according to BFMTV.

The movement "Yellow Vests", which aims to express the anger of the people against rising fuel prices, launched the third day of mobilization on Saturday in Paris and several areas in France. The planned peaceful demonstration evolved into an act of unprecedented violence in Paris.

According to new figures from the Police Prefecture of Paris, 412 individuals were arrested on the sidelines of the violence that took place on the streets of Paris on Saturday. Among them, 378 were placed in custody, reported BFMTV, adding that 133 people were injured including 23 police officers.