Paris police arrest scores amid strike over pension reform

PARIS (AP) — Paris police fired tear gas at demonstrators Thursday as the Eiffel Tower shut down, France’s high-speed trains came to a standstill and hundreds of thousands marched nationwide in a strike over the government’s plan to overhaul the retirement system.

At least 90 people were arrested in Paris by evening as the protests wound down.

Police said 65,000 people took to the streets of the French capital, and over 800,000 nationwide in often-tense demonstrations aimed at forcing President Emmanuel Macron to abandon pension reform.

The open-ended walkout by the country’s unions represents the biggest challenge to Macron since the yellow vest movement against economic inequality erupted a year ago.

Opponents fear the changes to how and when workers can retire will threaten the hard-fought French way of life.

Macron himself remained “calm and determined” to push it through, according to a top presidential official.

In Paris, small groups of masked activists smashed store windows, set fires and hurled flares on the sidelines of a march that was otherwise peaceful. Demonstrators also shot firecrackers at police in body armour.

Some journalists were mugged in the street.

The Louvre closed some of its galleries, and the Palace of Versailles shut down.

Subway stations across Paris closed their gates, high-speed TGV trains cancelled their runs, and nearly 20% of flights at Paris’ Orly Airport were reported grounded.

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