Macron under pressure to find way out of pension crisis after night of clashes

24/3/2023 18:48

        President Emmanuel Macron was under pressure on Friday to find a way out of a crisis that has seen some of France's worst street violence in years over a pension bill he has pushed through parliament without a vote.
        
        In Paris and many cities across the country, clean-up crews sifted through broken glass, charred garbage cans and shattered bus stops after violent clashes overnight between black-clad anarchists and police.
        
        Some 441 police officers were injured and 475 people were arrested. Dozens of protesters were also injured, including a woman who lost a thumb in the Normandy town of Rouen.
        
        The protest rallies that gathered large crowds throughout the day were otherwise largely peaceful.
        
        Opinion polls show a wide majority of voters are opposed to delaying retirement age by two years to 64. They were further angered by the government deciding to skip the vote in parliament.