Tens of thousands protest across France over rising living costs, police powers and government policies, as nationwide demonstrations continue for a fifth consecutive Saturday

PARIS: Tens of thousands of protesters paraded in the streets of France on Saturday, some clambering up statues with French flags as they vented on issues ranging from the rising cost of living to a proposal to give police greater legal protection.

The European Union’s second largest economy has been gripped by high-school blockades and mass demonstrations for more than a month, with the far right leading in the polls to win presidential elections next year to replace Emmanuel Macron.

Around 106,000 people took to the streets nationwide, including 24,000 in Paris, the interior ministry said, in the lowest turnout in recent weeks.