Police fired tear gas and used water cannons Saturday to disperse protestors in Paris who are demonstrating for a second weekend against rising fuel prices.
Protesters are calling on French President Emmanuel Macron to step back from planned hike of taxes on gasoline.
His popularity has slipped to a new low, according to an opinion poll published Friday, which found only 26 percent of French people had a favorable opinion of Macron.
TOPSHOT – Protestors clash with riot police amid tear gas during a demonstration of Yellow vests (Gilets jaunes) on the Champs Elysees in Paris, on November 24, 2018 during a protest against rising oil prices and living costs. – Demonstrators who have blocked French roads over the past week dressed in high-visibility jackets, are set to cause another day of disruption on November 24 amid calls to bring Paris to a standstill. (Photo by Lucas BARIOULET / AFP) (Photo credit should read LUCAS BARIOULET/AFP/Getty Images)
The French president is attempting to re-focus frustration with the tax onto rising global oil prices.
Police and government officials are increasingly concerned that far-right and far-left extremists are infiltrating the grassroots protesters, inciting violence.
By early Saturday afternoon, there were about 23,000 protesters across the country, out of which 8,000 in Paris, Le Monde reported.
