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Palestinian flags fly at French protests alongside Yellow Vests
Protesters waved Palestinian flags at France’s cost-of-living demonstrations. A protester was also pictured waving a Palestinian flag in front of a torched tourist office in Lyon.
Protesters at Saturday’s nationwide demonstrations in France against the cost of living and school conditions also unfurled Palestinian flags. In the marches, Palestinian flags flew side by side with the yellow vests that have become the movement’s symbol.
About 800,000 people took part according to unions and 550,000 according to the Interior Ministry, with 110,000 reported marching in Paris alone. High school and university students, Yellow Vests, climate activists and trade unionists came together in the same processions.
Lyon: a Palestinian flag before a burning building
In Lyon, the tourist office on Place Bellecour was ransacked and then set on fire. The Rhône prefecture said some groups obstructed firefighters. According to media reports, some of the protesters at the scene wore yellow vests while others carried Palestinian flags. One widely shared photo shows a hooded protester waving a Palestinian flag in front of a building engulfed in flames.
Another image shows a masked protester who climbed an equestrian statue waving a Palestinian flag.
Paris: a yellow vest for the Monument to the Republic
In Paris, clashes broke out at Place de la République, where the march began; a vehicle and a newspaper kiosk were set on fire. Protesters climbed the Monument to the Republic in the middle of the square, and black tears were painted on the eyes of one of the statues on its base.
Protesters also dressed the statue of Marianne, the symbol of the French Republic, in a yellow vest, the protest movement’s emblem.
Another protester who drew attention wore a Deadpool costume and reportedly a Palestinian keffiyeh. Dancing in front of a police line, he became a focus for the crowd and photographers.
In Paris, the Chanel store on rue des Francs-Bourgeois was looted. In Marseille, protesters chanted “It’s the revolution, we’re taking the Bastille.” Marseille Mayor Benoît Payan said those resorting to violence were discrediting the high school students’ demands.
Flags at school protests since September
Palestinian flags have been seen outside many schools since the school blockades began at a high school in Créteil on Sept. 21. In an opinion piece published in L’Express, writer and journalist Omar Youssef Souleimane wrote that the Palestinian cause is not among the official demands of high school organizations but has become one of the strongest mobilizing causes among young people since Oct. 7, 2023. Souleimane said figures from La France Insoumise (LFI), such as Rima Hassan, Mathilde Panot and Louis Boyard, had backed the school blockades and placed Palestine at the center of their messaging, describing it as political appropriation ahead of the 2027 election.
A video that spread online on Oct. 10, showing a large crowd with Palestinian flags at Place de la République, was also linked by some accounts to the student protests. When and at which demonstration the video was filmed could not be independently verified.
Macron: those who smash will be punished
President Emmanuel Macron said those who attacked prefectures, businesses and town halls would be prosecuted and punished. Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said there had been “scenes of looting” in many cities and that about 400 people had been detained.
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