Violence Erupts at Rally in France
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PARIS — Supporters of right-wing extremist Jean-Marie Le Pen beat up Arabs and leftist students Saturday during a motorcade demonstration calling for the restoration of the guillotine in France.
“The National Front picked a fight with groups of Arabs and blacks,” said a crepe salesman in the downtown Boulevard des Italiens, who said his clients were among those hurt.
The trouble began when scores of cars driven by backers of Le Pen’s far-right National Front blocked the bustling boulevard. The cars were covered with posters urging Parisians to support reinstating the death penalty.
Reporters said that people jumped out of automobiles in the convoy and waded into groups of Arabs watching from cafe tables, punching and kicking them. Le Pen, a former presidential candidate, argues that the ills of French society could be resolved by expelling Arab and North African immigrants. He also has urged the reinstatement of execution by guillotine to curb street crime in France.
The guillotine and the death penalty in France were abolished in 1981. The guillotine was used, albeit rarely, until 1977.
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