BREAKING NEWS

Paris braces for second wave of protests over rising fuel costs

PARIS - Tens of thousands of people will rally in Paris on Saturday against rising fuel costs and President Emmanuel Macron's economic policies, the second weekend of "yellow vest" protests that have led to widespread national disruption.
Security forces are concerned that far-left and far-right extremists may infiltrate the demonstrations, escalating the crowd-control challenges. Around 30,000 people are expected to protest in Paris alone, Denis Jacob, secretary general of police union Alternative Police, told Reuters.
Some 3,000 police officers have been drafted in to work in Paris on Saturday, city hall said, with security forces having to handle a demonstration against sexual violence, a soccer match and a rugby game in the capital on the same day.
For more than a week, protesters clad in the fluorescent yellow jackets that all motorists in France must have in their cars have blocked highways across the country with burning barricades and convoys of slow-moving trucks, obstructing access to fuel depots, shopping centers and some factories.
They are opposed to taxes Macron introduced last year on diesel and petrol to encourage people to shift to more environmentally friendly transport. Alongside the tax, the government has offered incentives to buy green or electric vehicles.