SAINTE-SOLINE, France, March 25 (Reuters) – A policeman and a protester were seriously injured on Saturday in clashes during an unauthorized demonstration against the construction of a water tank for agricultural irrigation in western France.
Police fired tear gas to repel some protesters who were throwing fireworks and other projectiles as they crossed fields to approach the construction area in the rural Sainte-Soline district. At least three police vehicles were set on fire, television footage showed.
Emmanuelle Dubee, prefect for the surrounding region, said at least 6,000 protesters had joined the march, defying a ban on protests at the site of a similar protest last October it also turned violent.
An officer and a protester were in critical condition, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said, adding that their lives were not in danger.
In all, seven protesters and 24 police officers were injured, said Darmanin, who blamed some 1,000 far-left activists for the violence. Riots had started in nearby areas on the Friday before the violence on Saturday, and police detained 12 people, he added.
About 3,200 police officers, some in helicopters and on ATVs, fanned out for the demonstration, authorities said. Stun grenades were used to repel the protesters, Darmanin said.
The protest over the irrigation project comes after weeks of demonstrations in France against a pension reform which have turned violent since the government pushed through the legislation without a final parliamentary vote.
the worst of france drought registered last summer sharpened the debate on water resources in the largest agricultural sector in the European Union.
Supporters say artificial reservoirs are a way to use water efficiently when needed, while critics, who call them “mega-basins,” argue that they are gargantuan and favor big farms.
Reporting by Yves Herman and Marco Trujillo; Additional reporting and writing by Gus Trompiz; Edited by Mike Harrison
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