The Paris public prosecutor's office indicated that "51 police custody were underway on Saturday morning" following the demonstrations and fires that occurred on Friday at Gare de Lyon in Paris, on the sidelines of the concert by the Congolese star Fally Ipupa.
Multiple incidents on Friday evening
The Congolese rumba singer, accused of being close to the government in power in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), had not performed in France for years, for fear of overflows. Before the start of his concert at the AccorHotels Arena, multiple incidents broke out early Friday evening around the station and the neighborhood near Bercy. Several scooters and garbage cans were set on fire, producing thick swirls of smoke in the area. Invaded by smoke, the underground part of the station was evacuated as a precaution and the traffic of metros and RER was disrupted.
Around 6:30 p.m., the fires were brought under control by the firefighters and around thirty vehicles, especially two-wheelers, fully charred, said an AFP journalist. The police headquarters had placed the concert under close surveillance, banning the multiple demonstrations planned by the opponents. But for several days, the battle of opinions was raging on Twitter around the arrival of the singer.
Firefighters' action hampered
The first arrests of demonstrators defying the ban began at midday. At 11 pm, 71 people had been arrested, according to the prefecture, which denounced the "scandalous behavior" of certain demonstrators who obstructed the action of the firefighters. The "arsonist" is among those arrested, said a police source.