Paris:
French police on Sunday arrested three topless rights protesters who approached the motorcade of US President Donald Trump on the Champs-Elysees in Paris heading to a ceremony marking 100 years since the end of World War I.
One of the protesters, who had slogans including “fake peacemakers” and “hypocrisy parade” written on their chests, got within metres of the rear of the motorcade after jumping over a barricade.
She was grabbed by a police officer, while a second woman could be seen being hauled away by security services on the edge of the famous thoroughfare.
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A third woman, who was positioned a little higher up the avenue, also managed to breach the security cordon and run towards Trump’s convoy with her arms raised.
She too was quickly overpowered by the police and all three were arrested.
The incident revealed chinks in the tight security put in place for the event, with some 10,000 security force members deployed around a city which has been hit by a series of jihadist attacks since 2015.
Interior Minister Christophe Castaner said Trump’s security had “in no way been threatened”.
Inna Shevchenko, one of the leaders of radical feminist group Femen, confirmed the group was behind the protest.
“FEMEN activists ‘welcomed’ the cortege of @realDonaldTrump twice on his way to Arc de Triumph,” she tweeted.
Constance Lefevre, another activist who was among the crowd but did not participate in the protest, told AFP that Femen was protesting the presence in Paris of leaders “who are responsible for most of the world’s conflicts”.
She cited Trump, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish Presidents Recep Tayyip Erdogan, among others.
Trump’s motorcade briefly paused due to the breach of security before continuing on to the Arc de Triomphe where around 70 world leaders had gathered to mark the centenary of the Armistice.
Three Femen protesters had already demonstrated at the Arc De Triomphe on Saturday morning to denounce the presence of “war criminals” among the guests at the ceremony.
The three were also arrested.
