Various incidents broke out in Paris on Tuesday on the fringes of a vast rally to denounce police violence, AFP reporters said Tuesday evening.
The police prefecture tweeted that there were incidents, that it had forbidden the rally and that law enforcement was intervening. They recommended people to stay away.
Quelques incidents en marge de la #ManifestationInterdite pour lesquels les #FDO sont en train d'intervenir.@prefpolice conseille d'éviter le secteur. pic.twitter.com/Ti1GrEpAYb
— Préfecture de Police (@prefpolice) June 2, 2020
The rally was initiated by the Adama collective, named after Adama Traoré, who died in 2016 after being arrested.
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Thousands of people gathered around the Palace of Justice before they were dispersed.
The rally started at 7:00 PM and was disrupted by projectiles being thrown, and police used tear gas.
Demonstrators then dispersed onto surrounding streets and onto the ring, where hundreds of them blocked cars, letting them pass through one by one.
They also threw rocks at officers, who responded by firing nonlethal rounds. Additionally, barricades were erected and some bicycles were set on fire.
"Today, it's no longer just the fight of the Traoré family. It is the fight of all of you," Adama's sister Assa told the crowd. "Today, when we're fighting for George Floyd, we're fighting for Adama Traoré."
Young protestors of all origins chanted "revolt" and "everybody hates the police."
The death of 46-year-old black American George Floyd last week has sparked a series of protests all across the United States and over the world, including in Belgium. Some 50 people gathered in Brussels on Monday for a Black Lives Matter demonstration, and "Please, I can't breathe" (among Floyd's final words) being graffitied on a train.
The police had banned the Paris demonstration on Tuesday morning citing the state of health emergency which prohibits any public gatherings of more than ten people.
Jason Spinks
The Brussels Times
