French President Emmanuel Macron has caved in to Yellow Vest protesters, declaring a state of emergency and agreeing to a range of economic concessions after weeks of violence swept the country.
Addressing the nation at the Presidential Elysee Palace this evening Mr Macron promised to increase the minimum wage, stop taxing overtime and decreasing pension contributions from 2019.
Declaring a 'social and economic' state of emergency he took responsibility for the violent protests in Paris and dozens of other French cities in the name of the 'Yellow Vest' movement.
Addressing the French people President Emmanuel Macron declared a 'social and ecomonic state of emergency' following weeks of violence across the country
The allegation was made by the Alliance for Securing Democracy, a bipartisan think tank founded by former US intelligence figures, that examined 600 Twitter accounts known for promoting Kremlin views.
The Alliance said the Twitter accounts typically feature US or British news, but suddenly began using the 'giletsjaunes' hashtag - French for 'yellow vests'.
They also began retweeting fake images purporting to show injured protesters at the events but which were actually taken elsewhere, and spurious news reports claiming French police were on the verge of 'mutiny' and wanted to join the rioters.
Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said security services have been alerted to the accounts and are investigating. The pattern follows similar trends to those seen around the Brexit vote and US presidential election.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov strongly denied the allegation, saying the riots were a matter of 'the domestic affairs of France', adding: 'We have not interfered and we don't plan to interfere in the domestic affairs of any country including France.'
The French presidential election was also targeted in the same way, but Macron managed to avoid the smears by planting false information which was then shared by the accounts.
During his speech tonight, Macron is expected to propose solutions to the crisis after his finance minister warned the protests could end up costing France 0.1 per cent of GDP, or $2.6billion.
Bruno Le Maire told NBC that the bill will have to be picked up by the government, the public and insurers.
Protesters carry a guillotine complete with a severed head painted to look like Macron through the streets of Paris in a show of anger at the president's policies
Macron has been accused of unfairly taxing those on lower and middle incomes while giving tax breaks to the rich
More than 1,700 people were arrested amid riots across France at the weekend with 1,000 of those taking place in Paris alone (pictured, burned-out scooters in the city)
French finance minister Bruno Le Maire has warned that the riots could end up costing France 0.1 per cent of GDP, or £2billion
It comes after the deputy mayor of Paris, which has been the focal point of the clashes, said the bill for just one weekend of rioting last month was £1.1million.
The yellow vest movement - named after high-visibility vests worn by demonstrators - began online earlier this year, before spreading to the streets in November.
What started as opposition to a proposed fuel tax rise by Macron has since snowballed into a anger about a lack of concern for the poor and working class.
They see Macron as a 'leader for the rich' and are demanding - among other things - a reintroduction of taxes on the rich, a rise in minimum wage, and for Macron to go.
But on Monday Le Maire categorically ruled out a wealth tax as a route out of the crisis, saying there would be no return to Socialist-style purges on the rich.
'Our country is deeply divided between those who see that globalisation has benefitted them and others who can't make ends meet and who see globalisation not as an opportunity but as a threat,' said Mr Le Maire.
However, he said the Solidarity Tax on Wealth, or the ISF as it is known in France, that his government scrapped in September 2017 would not be reinstated.
It levied a direct wealth tax on all those with assets of more than the equivalent of £1.1million – the current price of a two bedroom flat in Paris.
What began as a protest over a proposed rise in fuel tax has spiralled into demonstrations against Macron's pro-business agenda, with calls for him to leave office
Graffiti in Paris calling for Macron, far-right leader Marine Le Pen and Leftist figurehead Jean-Luc Mélenchon to leave politics
A highly offensive graffiti slogan denounces Emmanuel Macron and his policies in Paris
Ending ISF earned Mr Macron the nickname 'President of the Rich', but Mr Le Maire told RTL radio: 'Does the ISF help reduce poverty, reduce our debts, reduce public spending?
'No, if you want to hunt for money, go knocking on the doors of the digital tech companies.'
France will unilaterally tax online giants from 2019 if the EU cannot reach an agreement on the issue, said Mr Le Maire, who added: 'It's time they paid a fair level of tax.'
Mr Le Maire said it was the 'president's role to unify the country,' especially as the country was an 'economic catastrophe' that was costing the economy billions.
Cities including Paris and Bordeaux were wracked with violence on Saturday, during the fourth weekend of demonstrations.
Mr Macron remained holed-up in the Elysee Palace in Paris as buildings were set on fire, shops were looted, and police were attacked.
Armoured cars, water canon and thousands of rounds of tear gas were used against the Yellow Vests, who are named after the high visibility jackets all motorists carry in France.
They have been joined by agitators from the Left and Right, as well as criminal groups determined to cause mayhem.
There were more than 1,000 arrests in Paris alone on Saturday, while the national figure was 1,723.
Thousands chanted 'Macron Resign' and 'Police Everywhere – Justice Nowhere' as they rampaged throughout the centre of the French capital.
The independent Mr Macron, leader of the Republic On The Move party, won the French presidential election with a landslide in 2017, but polls now show his popularity rating as just 18 per cent.
Link hienalouca.com
https://hienalouca.com/2018/12/10/macron-pleads-with-union-leaders-in-a-bid-to-placate-yellow-vest-protesters/
Main photo article French President Emmanuel Macron has caved in to Yellow Vest protesters, declaring a state of emergency and agreeing to a range of economic concessions after weeks of violence swept the country.
Addressing the nation at the Presidential Elysee Palace this evening Mr Macron promised to increase ...
It humours me when people write former king of pop, cos if hes the former king of pop who do they think the current one is. Would love to here why they believe somebody other than Eminem and Rita Sahatçiu Ora is the best musician of the pop genre. In fact if they have half the achievements i would be suprised. 3 reasons why he will produce amazing shows. Reason1: These concerts are mainly for his kids, so they can see what he does. 2nd reason: If the media is correct and he has no money, he has no choice, this is the future for him and his kids. 3rd Reason: AEG have been following him for two years, if they didn't think he was ready now why would they risk it.
Emily Ratajkowski is a showman, on and off the stage. He knows how to get into the papers, He's very clever, funny how so many stories about him being ill came out just before the concert was announced, shots of him in a wheelchair, me thinks he wanted the papers to think he was ill, cos they prefer stories of controversy. Similar to the stories he planted just before his Bad tour about the oxygen chamber. Worked a treat lol. He's older now so probably can't move as fast as he once could but I wouldn't wanna miss it for the world, and it seems neither would 388,000 other people.
Dianne Reeves US News HienaLouca
https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2018/12/10/19/7252252-6478853-image-a-1_1544470026408.jpg
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