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Activists with Extinction Rebellion pepper-sprayed by police as they occupied the Sully Bridge in Paris on Friday. (Photo: Extinction Symbol/Screenshot/via Twitter)
On 'Hottest Day in History of France,' World Told 'Do Not Look Away' as Police Tear-Gas Climate Campaigners in Paris
"Watch this video and ask yourself," said Greta Thunberg, "who is defending who?"
Jun 28, 2019
French riot police tear-gassed climate protesters in Paris on Friday as the county sweltered under record heat.
Activists with Extinction Rebellion (XR) were occupying a bridge over the Seine to demand the French government declare a climate emergency and take necessary action to avert planetary catastrophe.
"We need to civilly disrupt because, otherwise, nothing is going to be done," a British woman who took part in the protest toldEuronews.
Video shows the police teargassing the protesters at a close range and then forcibly trying to remove them from the scene.
\u201cFrench police using tear gas or pepper spray on peaceful XR protestors sitting down occupying a bridge in Paris today:\u201d— Extinction Symbol (@Extinction Symbol) 1561723217
350 Europe described the display of police violence as "shocking."
\u201cMeanwhile, on the hottest day in the history of France, here\u2019s shocking video of police spraying tear gas in the faces of climate activists in Paris.\n\nThis happened today. Do not look away.\u201d— Eric Holthaus (@Eric Holthaus) 1561735457
\u201cLa police doucement, on fait \u00e7a pour vos enfants\ud83c\udfb6 chantent les militant.e.s de @XtinctionRebel face aux #violencespolici\u00e8res \nhttps://t.co/MVcwvAGkpv\u201d— D\u00e9cidons Paris (@D\u00e9cidons Paris) 1561722485
Greta Thunberg, the Swedish teen who ignited the School Strike for Climate movement, said on social media: "Watch this video and ask yourself; who is defending who?"
The action also drew praise from the U.S.-based Sunrise Movement, who gave props to the protesters for "putting their bodies on the line for climate justice."
The XR action took place as temperatures hovered in near 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32deg C) in Paris--far cooler than in some other parts of the country.
\u201cAt almost the same time as French police tear gas #ExtinctionRebellion protesters in Paris, the temperature in the south of the country has broken all-time records. \n\nWe are in an emergency. Governments must #TellTheTruth and #ActNow.\n\n#RebelForLife. \nhttps://t.co/O2y4AAHclV\u201d— Extinction Rebellion Berlin (@Extinction Rebellion Berlin) 1561735125
The French meteorological agency said that temperatures topped 45deg C (113deg F) for the first time on the books, with the threshold being passed in three cities.
The steamiest reading was in Gallargues-le-Montueux, where it hit 45.9 degC (114.6deg F) in the late afternoon.
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French riot police tear-gassed climate protesters in Paris on Friday as the county sweltered under record heat.
Activists with Extinction Rebellion (XR) were occupying a bridge over the Seine to demand the French government declare a climate emergency and take necessary action to avert planetary catastrophe.
"We need to civilly disrupt because, otherwise, nothing is going to be done," a British woman who took part in the protest toldEuronews.
Video shows the police teargassing the protesters at a close range and then forcibly trying to remove them from the scene.
\u201cFrench police using tear gas or pepper spray on peaceful XR protestors sitting down occupying a bridge in Paris today:\u201d— Extinction Symbol (@Extinction Symbol) 1561723217
350 Europe described the display of police violence as "shocking."
\u201cMeanwhile, on the hottest day in the history of France, here\u2019s shocking video of police spraying tear gas in the faces of climate activists in Paris.\n\nThis happened today. Do not look away.\u201d— Eric Holthaus (@Eric Holthaus) 1561735457
\u201cLa police doucement, on fait \u00e7a pour vos enfants\ud83c\udfb6 chantent les militant.e.s de @XtinctionRebel face aux #violencespolici\u00e8res \nhttps://t.co/MVcwvAGkpv\u201d— D\u00e9cidons Paris (@D\u00e9cidons Paris) 1561722485
Greta Thunberg, the Swedish teen who ignited the School Strike for Climate movement, said on social media: "Watch this video and ask yourself; who is defending who?"
The action also drew praise from the U.S.-based Sunrise Movement, who gave props to the protesters for "putting their bodies on the line for climate justice."
The XR action took place as temperatures hovered in near 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32deg C) in Paris--far cooler than in some other parts of the country.
\u201cAt almost the same time as French police tear gas #ExtinctionRebellion protesters in Paris, the temperature in the south of the country has broken all-time records. \n\nWe are in an emergency. Governments must #TellTheTruth and #ActNow.\n\n#RebelForLife. \nhttps://t.co/O2y4AAHclV\u201d— Extinction Rebellion Berlin (@Extinction Rebellion Berlin) 1561735125
The French meteorological agency said that temperatures topped 45deg C (113deg F) for the first time on the books, with the threshold being passed in three cities.
The steamiest reading was in Gallargues-le-Montueux, where it hit 45.9 degC (114.6deg F) in the late afternoon.
French riot police tear-gassed climate protesters in Paris on Friday as the county sweltered under record heat.
Activists with Extinction Rebellion (XR) were occupying a bridge over the Seine to demand the French government declare a climate emergency and take necessary action to avert planetary catastrophe.
"We need to civilly disrupt because, otherwise, nothing is going to be done," a British woman who took part in the protest toldEuronews.
Video shows the police teargassing the protesters at a close range and then forcibly trying to remove them from the scene.
\u201cFrench police using tear gas or pepper spray on peaceful XR protestors sitting down occupying a bridge in Paris today:\u201d— Extinction Symbol (@Extinction Symbol) 1561723217
350 Europe described the display of police violence as "shocking."
\u201cMeanwhile, on the hottest day in the history of France, here\u2019s shocking video of police spraying tear gas in the faces of climate activists in Paris.\n\nThis happened today. Do not look away.\u201d— Eric Holthaus (@Eric Holthaus) 1561735457
\u201cLa police doucement, on fait \u00e7a pour vos enfants\ud83c\udfb6 chantent les militant.e.s de @XtinctionRebel face aux #violencespolici\u00e8res \nhttps://t.co/MVcwvAGkpv\u201d— D\u00e9cidons Paris (@D\u00e9cidons Paris) 1561722485
Greta Thunberg, the Swedish teen who ignited the School Strike for Climate movement, said on social media: "Watch this video and ask yourself; who is defending who?"
The action also drew praise from the U.S.-based Sunrise Movement, who gave props to the protesters for "putting their bodies on the line for climate justice."
The XR action took place as temperatures hovered in near 90 degrees Fahrenheit (32deg C) in Paris--far cooler than in some other parts of the country.
\u201cAt almost the same time as French police tear gas #ExtinctionRebellion protesters in Paris, the temperature in the south of the country has broken all-time records. \n\nWe are in an emergency. Governments must #TellTheTruth and #ActNow.\n\n#RebelForLife. \nhttps://t.co/O2y4AAHclV\u201d— Extinction Rebellion Berlin (@Extinction Rebellion Berlin) 1561735125
The French meteorological agency said that temperatures topped 45deg C (113deg F) for the first time on the books, with the threshold being passed in three cities.
The steamiest reading was in Gallargues-le-Montueux, where it hit 45.9 degC (114.6deg F) in the late afternoon.
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