Despite the far-left New Popular Front winning the second round of elections, riots broke out in France as left-wing extremists rallied in anticipation of a victory for Marine Le Pen’s populist National Rally party.
Ahead of the second round of voting on Saturday, the government deployed 30,000 police, including 5,000 in Paris, anticipating violence by far-left forces if right-wing populists repeat their first-round victory in general elections called by French President Emmanuel Macron.
The reporters of the newspaper Le Figaro are reporting this evening the current situation in the Republic with extremely violent insults on its behalf: the police have filed the first charges against the suspects, a vehicle in the city shoots fireballs and bullets fired are fired into the CRS. pic.twitter.com/JNhkUvPSey
— Le Figaro (@Le_Figaro) July 7, 2024
Black Bloc Antifa-style militants were filmed firing fireworks and other projectiles at police as they overran the French capital, as well as setting street furniture and bicycles on fire, with protesters also seen waving Palestinian and Antifa flags.
Protests and riots have also broken out in cities across France, including Rennes, Lyon and Marseille. Figaro Reports.
Police set fire to an artificial corpse on top of a barricade at a party on the night of the second tour. #ElectionLegislation2024 Where is the Republic located? #Paris. pic.twitter.com/DckhMaeXiz
— CLPRESS / Press Agency (@CLPRESSFR) July 7, 2024
While the New Popular Front coalition of socialists, radical environmentalists and outright communists won the most seats and is currently expected to secure between 187 and 198 seats in the National Assembly, the far-left continues to show its violent side, clashing with police in Paris and other cities on Sunday night.
Police fought off rioters who set fire to barricades, and officers in Republic Square intervened to prevent celebrations from taking place. #ElectionLegislation2024 from #Paris. pic.twitter.com/aLXfRJ63ia
— CLPRESS / Press Agency (@CLPRESSFR) July 7, 2024
Macron had warned that a vote for either the populist right or the far-left Socialist-Communist Union would lead to a “civil war” in France, but in a desperate attempt to prevent the Rally National from taking control of parliament, he teamed up with the left-wing New Popular Front to form an electoral coalition for the second round.
An “Anti-fascist action flag” is raised during an election night rally after the announcement of the first results of the second round of the French parliamentary elections, at Place de la Republique in Paris on July 7, 2024. Photo by Emmanuel Dunant/AFP. (Photo by Emmanuel Dunant/AFP via Getty Images)
The battle to form a coalition government is expected to continue in the coming days. Macron’s deputy prime minister, Gabriel Attal, is due to announce his resignation on Sunday night. Far-left leader Jean-Luc Mélenchon has demanded that Macron either resign or appoint a member of his new Popular Front party as the next prime minister.
⚡️Scenes of chaos in Republic Square after unrest sparked by leftists. pic.twitter.com/kSnBDZFDUH
— Frontieres (@Frontieresmedia) July 7, 2024
Marine Le Pen, her deputy Jordan Bardella and Eric Ciotti, leader of the centre-right Republicans, denounced Macron’s electoral pact with the far-left as an “unholy alliance”.
In contrast to the scare tactics deployed by Macron, the French political establishment and traditional media regarding the rise of the so-called “far right,” it is Macron’s new left-wing partners like Mélenchon who have broadly supported political violence and insurrection in France over the past year.
I’m in Paris right now. #ElectionLegislation2024 pic.twitter.com/HAWKcr2W1E
— Remix News & Views (@RMXnews) July 7, 2024
Ahead of the election, Le Pen commented on accusations that her party poses a threat to democracy. Said“The far-left has been violent for years… and this has gone completely unpunished. Macron said: ‘It’s either me or chaos’. He is the chaos! We, on the other hand, represent calm and order. The RN has never organised a demonstration against the election results, has never prevented an opposition gathering, has never turned the National Assembly into a zone to be defended.”
‘When a police officer dies, Le Pen loses votes’: Violent far-left rhetoric abounds as French elections loom https://t.co/M4e8viOLNO
— Breitbart London (@BreitbartLondon) June 29, 2024
