The protesters accused French President Emmanuel Macron of “abuse of power” and a “coup d’etat” because of anti-COVID measures. This is reported by the newspaper Le Monde with reference to the data of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

114 thousand people took part in the protests on Saturday, July 17. So, three rallies were held in Paris. According to the police, at least 18 thousand people took part in them.

In Marseille, about four thousand people came to the rallies, in Nice — 1.6 thousand. In the Gironde, in the southwest of France, where local authorities have imposed a ban on rallies — about 1.2 thousand. There, protesters blocked the movement of trams and vehicles.

Earlier it became known that in France, violators of the mandatory anti-weed regime will be fined tens of thousands of euros and put in prison. The corresponding measures are prescribed by the new bill of the President of the country Emmanuel Macron.

On July 12, it was reported that the authorities of the republic created a system of sanitary passes that indicate vaccination or a negative test for COVID-19. The French will be obliged to present a pass for visiting cafes and restaurants, mass events, and using long-distance public transport. The country has also introduced mandatory vaccination against coronavirus for medical workers.