During a demonstration of - Adria Salido Zarco / SIPA

  • This Saturday, in Toulouse, took place act 64 of "yellow vests" in which several hundred demonstrators participated.
  • While the police prevented access to Place du Capitole, demonstrators took refuge in rue du Taur, notably in a church.
  • A police officer pursued a protester in the church, "inadvertently" according to the prefecture, which raised a wave of criticism.

Even the Archbishop of Toulouse decided to react this Sunday. "I remind you that our churches remain places of peace and asylum which must be respected as such", insisted in a press release by Monsignor Robert Le Gall.

The day before, on the sidelines of act 64 of the "yellow vests", a police officer pursued a demonstrator who had taken refuge in the church Notre-Dame du Taur, located close to the Capitol in Toulouse. A scene filmed and broadcast on social networks on the YouTube channel AB7 Media, which has sparked controversy since then.

Police enter a church to exit #GILETS_JAUNES # Acte64 # Toulouse @ Ab7Media @millerofficiel pic.twitter.com/Sh2Rh5C4km

- Laurent Bigot / AB7 Média (@laurentbigotfr) February 1, 2020

Like every Saturday, the Capitol was banned. The rue du Taur, where the incident takes place, is a street perpendicular to the Place de l'Hotel de Ville. To prevent demonstrators from entering it, police checkpoints are installed and tear gas is used to drive them back.

"Inadvertently" according to the prefecture

This is what happened again on Saturday. In this face-to-face meeting, "yellow vests" took refuge under the porches of several buildings on rue du Taur. "It was then that the police sought to extract the demonstrators from these various buildings. A policeman inadvertently entered the porch of the Church of Notre Dame du Taur in order to extract a woman from it by grabbing her by the arm. The police immediately released this woman when he realized that he found himself on the porch of a church, "said the prefecture of Haute-Garonne on Saturday evening, seeing the controversy swell.

“In no case did the police enter the interior of the church. He did not cross the swinging doors which lead to the nave. He did not make any arrests at that time. There was no coercive exercise ”, continues the press release from the State services.

Press release from Monsignor Le Gall about the entry of a policeman into Notre Dame du Taur during the demonstration of February 1, 2020 @ afpfr @ France3MidiPy @bleuoccitanie @actutoulouse @ladepechedumidi @lemondefr @Le_Figaro @LaVieHebdo @Toulouse @PrefetOccitanie pic. twitter.com/ZfPlYUuXbs

- Diocese of Toulouse (@toulousecatho) February 2, 2020

If the Archbishop of Toulouse recognizes "the climate of violence" experienced for over a year every Saturday and "the difficult work accomplished by these police forces in our country", he nevertheless calls "everyone to be more calm in a desire for dialogue ”.

On Saturday, on the sidelines of the demonstration, six people were arrested: two for throwing projectiles against the police and concealed faces, two others for participating in a demonstration with concealed faces and two for carrying prohibited weapons, a knife and a telescopic baton.

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  • Video
  • Controversy
  • Demonstration
  • Police
  • Yellow vests
  • Church
  • Toulouse