Tear gas and clashes between protesters and police bring much of France to a standstill
A nationwide strike brought much of France to a standstill on Thursday with more than half a million people hitting the streets to protest the government's planned overhaul of the pension system, one of President Emmanuel Macron's most ambitious reforms.
"People made plans to deal with today and tomorrow, but I'm really worried about Monday, that's when the hassle is going to start," a customer service agent for the national railway company SNCF said at Montparnasse train station in Paris. Macron's office said on Thursday that Prime Minister Edouard Philippe would lay out the framework for the reform next week, after wrapping up negotiations with unions.Around 90 percent of high-speed TGV trains as well as regional lines were cancelled, and Air France has axed 30 percent of domestic flights and 15 percent of short-haul international routes.
The Eiffel Tower and the Orsay museum were shut because of staff shortages, while the Louvre, the Pompidou Centre and other museums warned that some wings and exhibits were closed. Paris police chief Didier Lallement said around 6,000 members of the security forces would be deployed in the capital, and businesses along the demonstration routes have been ordered to shut.
He has already faced a series of protests this year by the "yellow vests" as well as police, firefighters, teachers, hospital workers and lawyers.
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