Troubled Christmas Eve in Paris: Thousands protest

Paris  

Troubled in Paris after fatal shooting - police fired tear gas at protesters  

Of:  

Jacob Ruderstam  

Published: Less than 2 hours ago  

Updated: Less than 50 min ago 

NEWS  

Three people were shot dead at a Kurdish cultural center in Paris yesterday.  

On Christmas Eve, thousands of people gathered in the streets of the capital to demonstrate.  

31 policemen were injured.  

Yesterday, a fatal shooting shook the French capital, Paris. Three people lost their lives and several were injured when a 69-year-old man opened fire at a Kurdish cultural center.  

The public prosecutor's office says in a statement that it now suspects that a racist motive is behind the act. The man, who is known to the police from before, is suspected of murder and weapons offences, according to Reuters.

Photo: Lewis Joly/AP  

On Christmas Eve, thousands of angry people gathered at the Place de la Republique in the eastern parts of the capital. Activists, politicians and anti-racism groups all came together to show their displeasure after the act.  

- We know we are threatened. Kurds in general, Kurdish activists and militants. France owes us protection, says Berivan Firat, spokesperson for the Kurdish Democratic Council CDK-F, to BFM TV.

          Photo: Lewis Joly/AP 

Police had to fire tear gas  

The news agency AP writes that the demonstration was largely peaceful, although the police were forced to intervene when a few people became violent. Cars are said to have been sabotaged and overturned and several small fires are said to have been started in the streets.  

Young people allegedly threw objects at the police, who responded by firing tear gas. Departures on several subway lines have been canceled as a safety measure in connection with the unrest.  

BFM TV reports that 31 police officers have received minor injuries in connection with the demonstrations. According to the channel, one protester was injured. 

The unrest occurred despite the fact that the police chief in Paris earlier in the day met with members and representatives from Kurdish organizers to talk about the risk of violence during the demonstrations.

The country's interior minister Gerald Darmanin says in a statement that the 69-year-old man acted alone and did not belong to any extremist group or radical movement.  

         

          Photo: Lewis Joly/A