By Canadian Press

French yellow vest protesters seek momentum on 15th week

Feb 23, 2019 | 7:48 AM

PARIS — Yellow vest protesters took to the streets across France on Saturday for a 15th straight weekend of demonstrations, trying to re-energize supporters while tamping down on the violence and anti-Semitism in the movement’s ranks.

Hundreds gathered at the Arc de Triomphe monument in Paris for a march through well-off neighbourhoods to protest government policies they see as favouring the rich. It was among many rallies and marches planned around Paris and in other cities.

Five separate demonstrations were organized in the French capital.

Support for the movement has ebbed in recent weeks as it has splintered and outbreaks of violence continue. Online announcements for Saturday’s marches appealed for peaceful action, and one of the weekend protests aimed to stand up against anti-Semitism.

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The extremist views of some protesters erupted in a torrent of anti-Semitic insults hurled at noted philosopher Alain Finkielkraut on the sidelines of last weekend’s Paris protest. The assault came days after the French government reported a huge rise in incidents of anti-Semitism last year.

A few hundred yellow vest protesters made the most of the sunny weather to gather at the Chambord Castle in central France for a picnic while activists reportedly blocked access to an Amazon platform in the southwestern city of Toulouse.

Local authorities in Clermont-Ferrand urged citizens to postpone their journeys to the central French city, where hundreds of yellow vest protesters gathered. The prefecture said police arrested 13 people — including seven who were placed in custody — and seized weapons including baseball bats and alarm pistols.

The yellow vest movement was named after the fluorescent garments French motorists must carry in their vehicles for emergencies. The protests started in November to oppose fuel tax hikes but have expanded into a broader public rejection of French President Emmanuel Macron’s economic policies, which protesters say favour businesses and the wealthy over ordinary French workers.

The Associated Press