France braces for more violence over high living costs

By Yusuf Ozcan</p> <p>PARIS (AA) – At least 89,000 police officers will be deployed across France amid fears of violence during anti-government protests this weekend. </p> <p>Some 8,000 police officers will be on duty in Paris and armored vehicles will also be deployed, Prime Minister Edouard Philippe told French television station TF1 Thursday.</p> <p>&quot;We face people who do not come to protest but to destroy,&quot; he said.</p> <p>Shops and restaurants on Paris's Champs-Elysees and some museums will also be closed. </p> <p>The Eiffel Tower’s management announced on its Twitter account that it will remain closed to the public Saturday due to demonstrations and visitors will be automatically refunded.</p> <p>Thousands of &quot;yellow vest&quot; protesters have been gathering in major French cities including Paris since Nov. 17 to protest President Emmanuel Macron's controversial fuel tax hikes and the deteriorating economic situation in France.</p> <p>The demonstrators, who generally live in rural areas due to high rents in the cities, called on Macron to cut fuel taxes and make economic arrangements to ease their lives.</p> <p>Philippe announced Tuesday that France would delay fuel tax increases for six months and the suspension would also apply to increases in gas and electricity prices.</p> <p> The government abandoned the fuel tax hikes the following day.</p> <p>“The government is ready for dialogue and is showing it because this tax increase has been dropped from the 2019 budget bill,” Philippe said in a speech at the National Assembly, or lower house of parliament.</p> <p>At least three people have died during the riots while 1,043 others have been injured, including 222 members of the security forces. As many as 1,424 people have been arrested.</p> <p>According to a recent survey, 84 percent of the French people — mostly from the middle-income group — support the protests.</p> <p>Fuel prices in France have risen more than 20 percent this year.

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