Demonstrations of November 14: a BFMTV team attacked on the sidelines of the mobilization in Lyon

A BFMTV team was violently attacked by demonstrators on the sidelines of the Lyon procession on Saturday, November 14 in the afternoon. The television team consisted of two journalists and two security guards. Demonstrators "threw themselves on them", it was "very violent, with a desire for lynching", triggering "an offensive leap by the CRS to protect them", explained the Rhône prefecture. One of the alleged attackers was arrested, the Interior Ministry announced on Saturday evening.

"It was very, very strong, one of them was hit several times. His camera was thrown on the ground, broken, and then they recovered it and stole it. And he was in shock," an independent freelancer who witnessed the scene told AFP. “I had to remove my press badge myself, otherwise I would have been lynched too,” added this witness, who publishes videos under the name “Medave Prod” on social networks and says he received “two stones in the foot”. In a tweet, prefect Etienne Guyot condemned "with the greatest firmness the attacks committed today against journalists during the demonstration", recalling that "press freedom and the right to inform are fundamental pillars of our democracy".

The Lyon demonstration, where activists from several causes gathered – march for the climate, for the rights of children and youth – brought together 8,000 people, according to the authorities. If the atmosphere was good-natured in the vast majority of the procession, tensions quickly appeared at its head, with mortars fired by demonstrators and tear gas grenades fired by the police. A barricade was also set up, then set on fire shortly before the attack on the journalists.