LYON, (France) Oct 21 (Bernama-Anadolu) -- Authorities in several French cities extended or introduced curfews Tuesday evening following violence during weekend protests, with Paris and Lyon extending existing restrictions and the city of Marseille imposing the measure for the first time, targeting minors, Anadolu Ajansi reported, citing news portal France Info.
In Paris, the police prefecture extended the curfew to Place de la Republique and parts of the Les Halles district, from 11 pm local time Tuesday until 6 am Wednesday.
Authorities also renewed a ban on all undeclared gatherings from 8 pm to 6 am, covering several key areas in the capital, including the vicinity of the Elysee Palace, the National Assembly, the Senate, the Champs-Elysees, Chatelet, and major railway stations.
In Lyon, the curfew in the city centre was extended from 9 pm to 6 am, while the ban on gatherings was brought forward to 4 pm from 6 pm and will remain in force until the curfew begins.
Meanwhile, Benoit Payan, mayor of the coastal city of Marseille, announced a localised curfew targeting minors, effective from 10 pm Tuesday until 5 am over the coming days in parts of the city centre.
In Toulouse, authorities announced that a curfew would take effect Thursday evening and remain in force until Sunday, between midnight and 5 am.
Curfews already announced in the cities of Bordeaux and Nice will continue as planned. Separately, the French Professional Football League announced the postponement of Saturday's Ligue 2 match between Montpellier and Paris’ Red Star following the announcement of new protests.
The match, originally scheduled for Saturday afternoon, has been postponed to Monday at the request of authorities.
Around 550,000 people took part in 110 demonstrations across France on Saturday, including 110,000 in Paris, while there were about 400 arrests nationwide.
-- BERNAMA-ANADOLU