France: Police Arrest 85 Yellow Vest Protesters

French police on Saturday arrested 85 Yellow Vest protesters in the capital Paris, according to local media reports.



Yellow Vest protests, which started as a reaction to fuel tax hikes and evolved into an uprising against French President Emmanuel Macron, continues on Saturday despite the government's call to halt it.



Earlier, local state broadcaster France info reported that at least 25 people were arrested in Paris on Saturday ahead of the planned protests.



The number of people arrested last week during same hours was over 500.



On Thursday, Maxime Nicolle, one of the prominent figures of the Yellow Vest movement, said they will hold protests despite the government's calls to stop after Strasbourg shooting.



The protesters gathered on the Champs-Elysees and the Opera Square once again in the fifth weekends of the demonstrations.



Sometimes tension escalates between the police and protesters, who are less in number compared to past weeks.



The French police use pepper gas to disperse the crowd, who are spread to streets near Champs-Elysees.



Stores and restaurants on the iconic street are closed, many metro lines are out of service due to the protests.



Police said that around 16,000 people have attended protests across the country so far, and streets and roads were blocked 199 times.



A total of 89,000 police officers are on duty in the country, 8,000 of which are in Paris together with 14 armored vehicles.



Since Nov. 17, thousands of protesters wearing bright yellow vests -- dubbed the Yellow Vests -- have been gathering in major French cities, including the capital Paris, to protest Macron's controversial fuel tax hikes and the deteriorating economic situation.



The demonstrators, who generally live in rural areas due to high rents in the cities, have called on Macron to cut fuel taxes and ease their economic difficulties.



During demonstrations, at least four people have been killed and more than a thousand others wounded.



President Macron said that taxes on overtime pay would be abolished as of next year and announced social security tax cuts for pensioners earning less than €2,000.



However, the protesters have found President Macron's statement "insufficient." -