UPDATE - French Capital Sees 11th Weekend Of Protests Against COVID-19 Passes

PARIS (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 26th September, 2021) Protesters against mandatory COVID-19 passes took to the streets of Paris for an 11th consecutive Saturday, a Sputnik correspondent reported.

The demonstrators gathered near the Gare de Lyon railroad terminal in the city's 12th district and marched across Paris to the Sacre-Coeur basilica on the Montmartre hill.

The procession was shadowed by police officers.

A separate protest, organized by Florian Philippot, the leader of the right-wing Patriots party, started at the Place de Barcelone square in the 16th district.

According to the BFMTV broadcaster, some 64,000 people took part in almost 200 protests against COVID-19 passes on Saturday nationwide, with 7,200 in Paris alone.

The Nice-Matin newspaper reported that police used tear gas against protesters in Nice who tried to organize a demonstration in front of the house of the city mayor, Christian Estrosi.

"To attack my family home is unspeakable and illustrates the savagery of those who claim to defend a just cause," Estrosi wrote on Twitter on Saturday.

In July, French President Emmanuel Macron announced a series of new restrictions to contain the spread of COVID-19, including a special health pass indicating that a person has either been vaccinated or has a negative test result.

The pass is required in museums, theaters, restaurants, bars, shopping centers, as well as on planes and long-distance trains.

The move caused widespread consternation in the French society, with protests against the measure rocking the country every week, although the number of demonstrators has been steadily going down.