Almost 3,000 People Hurt in French 'Yellow Vest' Rallies

As many as 2,891 people have been injured in a month of the so-called yellow vest protests in France, local media reported, citing the French Interior Ministry.

News ID: 442576

Date: 23 December 2018 - 17:32

RNA - The interior ministry told the BFMTV broadcaster that a total of 1,843 civilians and 1,048 law enforcement officers had been injured since the start of the demonstrations on November 17.

The survey commissioned by the Elabe research institute for BFMTV found that 70 percent of the 1,010 French sampled on December 18-19 supported or sympathized with the "Yellow Vest" protesters.

The outlet noted that the support was down 3 points from the week before. Thirty-three percent said they disapproved or opposed the movement, and 11 percent spoke of outright hostility. The same poll found that the French were divided over whether protests should continue, with 54 percent saying they should carry on and 46 percent saying they should stop.

The yellow vest demonstrations were sparked by anger over fuel tax increases in France and have ever since expanded into wider grievances. President Emmanuel Macron came up with a set of proposals to help low-income families last week, but weekly rallies continued.

In particular, the proposed measures included annual bonuses for employees and exemptions from increased social security tax for pensioners earning less than 2,000 euros (over $2,200) per month.

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