Police clash with hardliners: Thousands hit Paris on May Day

PARIS: Paris riot police fired teargas as they squared off against hardline demonstrators among tens of thousands of May Day protesters, who flooded the city on Wednesday in a test for France’s zero-tolerance policy on street violence.

Tensions were palpable as a mix of labour unionists, "yellow vest" demonstrators and anti-capitalists gathered in the French capital, putting security forces on high alert.

More than 7,400 police and gendarmes were out on the streets with orders from President Emmanuel Macron to take an "extremely firm stance" if faced with violence, as parts of the city were on security lockdown.

Clouds of teargas wafted down Montparnasse Boulevard as the security forces charged at several hundred masked, black-clad anarchists who pushed to the front of the gathering crowd, hurling bottles and flares and shouting: "Everyone hates the police!"

As well as tear gas, an AFP correspondent said police also used stingball grenades, which release scores of rubber pellets at ground level, causing an intense stinging to the legs. Elsewhere, a handful of protesters set fire to dustbins and sheets of chipboard, pouring black smoke into the air.

But the number of incidents on the sidelines of the march appeared to be fewer than expected and less serious than seen in previous months. Authorities had warned this year’s marches would likely spell trouble, coming barely a week after leaders of the yellow vest anti-government movement angrily dismissed a package of tax cuts by President Emmanuel Macron.

And with some agitators vowing on social media to turn Paris into "the capital of rioting", the government said it had deployed security on an "exceptional scale". By mid-afternoon, there were around 40,000 people at the May Day rallies in Paris, an independent media count said, while unions gave a figure of 80,000 and the interior ministry put the number at 16,000.

Ministry figures for the whole country gave a turnout of 151,000 people at events in some 200 towns and cities, but France’s powerful CGT union gave a figure of 310,000. Caught up in the melee was top CGT official Philippe Martinez who had been waiting at the head of the march when the clashes began.

Forced to leave the area, he later returned, visibly agitated, with sharp words of criticism for the police whom he accused of "charging at well-identified union members". After the initial scuffles, a sense of relative calm returned as the main procession got under way, although things degenerated again towards the end as the marchers reached Place d’Italie.

Last year, officials were caught off guard as some 1,200 troublemakers gatecrashed the main Paris march, sparking violent clashes which left shops damaged and cars burnt.

Since November, the city has struggled to cope with the weekly yellow vest protests, which have often descended into chaos with a violent minority smashing up and torching shops, restaurants and newspaper stands.