The abrupt cancellation of the permit for a pro-Palestine protest march in France provided legal grounds for the police to employ a form of political repression reminiscent of the measures taken during the yellow vests protests – imposing substantial fines.

Just 90 minutes prior to a highly anticipated pro-Palestine march scheduled to take place in Paris last weekend to denounce 'Israel's' atrocities in Gaza, local authorities suddenly rescinded the protest permit.

This last-minute cancellation empowered the French police to enforce significant fines. Out of the approximately 4,000 attendees, 1,400 demonstrators were fined €135 each, resulting in nearly €200,000 collected from the pockets of peaceful protesters, many of whom were unaware of the sudden protest ban.

Watch | #French Police attack and use gas canisters to disperse pro-#Palestine protesters in Paris.#France pic.twitter.com/UYRFN6VOSq

— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) October 12, 2023

While some of the fines may be waived because of the contentious permit cancellation, the initial amounts were extensively covered by the media.

The fines are evidently a tactic employed to discourage individuals from publicly expressing support for Palestine.

"The fines are an obvious instrument being used to dissuade people from supporting Palestine publicly.

However, many activists say they will never stop protesting Israel's attempted genocide against Gaza.

I think the government is finally realizing this and that they just can't give such a huge number of fines over and over."

 

- Nicolas Shahshahani, Europalestine

Countrywide prohibition on all pro-Palestine marches

The imposition of substantial fines on a large scale is the most recent illustration of how France has, in essence, made public expressions of support for Palestine a criminal offense and has suppressed criticism against what is widely seen as a disproportionate backing of "Tel Aviv", even in the face of Israeli war crimes that have appalled the global community.

According to Nicolas Shahshahani from Europalestine, it's crucial to remember that this is just one facet of the French government's unwavering endorsement of 'Israel'. Recently, Macron proposed the idea of employing the Western coalition against ISIL against the Gaza population.

He has also pursued a countrywide prohibition on all pro-Palestinian marches, consistently raising concerns of anti-Semitism and attempting to ban the Boycott, Divestment, and Sanctions (BDS) campaign.

Read next: French President Macron arrives in "Israel"