"I thought it was from January 3," astonished a young man without a mask on his face, strolling on the busy avenue on this festive evening.

"You used your joker for the evening," warns Virgil, police captain of the 8th arrondissement police station in Paris, reminding him of the measures in force since the same day in the capital.

Announced Wednesday evening, the wearing of the mask outdoors has made a comeback in the streets since Friday in Paris - with the exception of the Bois de Vincennes and Boulogne - and in many other departments and cities, to face the outbreak of variant Omicron, now the majority in France.

Before the pandemic, between 250,000 and 300,000 people gathered on the Champs-Élysées to celebrate the transition to the New Year.

Most of the people who strolled at the beginning of the night on the famous avenue were decked out in a mask.

There remains a minority, spotted by the patrol of six officials.

"For a small minority indeed, there is still teaching to be done, some ignore this obligation and a tiny minority still possibly claims the non-wearing of the mask and these people will be fined", explains to AFP the captain .

"I was eating something", "It was to take pictures", "we're leaving the restaurant", several people argue during their check-up.

"I don't have TV at home, I didn't know I had to put on the mask", apologizes a young man, before adding "all that for a mask".

The reflection strongly displeases the police captain, who decides to issue a fine of 135 euros.

"If we take these measures, it is because the situation is serious (...) + All that for a mask +, it proves that you have not apprehended this reality," he said to the offender.

The threshold of 200,000 positive Covid cases was reached for the first time on Wednesday, a new record after some 180,000 cases on Tuesday.

- "Restrictive"-

Further on, a couple of Belgian tourists are called to order.

"I was not aware because we come from Belgium and in Belgium it's not like that, we just put on the mask when we enter interior spaces", says Antoine Pham, 38, who came to spend the evening at Paris with his partner.

"It's binding to put on the mask, (...) but there is no problem" to respect this rule, he adds with a smile, bag of buttons in hand.

"On the one hand, they are right but we can not constantly wear the mask ... It annoys me!", Nina Meli, a young woman of 18 from the South, also came to wake up in the capital.

"I do not accept that we put on the mask, we are deprived of our freedom in the end (...), we can no longer do what we want," she said, reluctantly agreeing to reposition its square of black fabric on the face.

Onlookers pass on the Champs Elysées in Paris while police officers patrol to enforce the wearing of masks, December 31, 2021 JULIEN DE ROSA AFP

In addition to the return of this tool, emblematic of the health crisis, other restrictions have been taken by the Paris police headquarters, such as the ban on spontaneous gatherings and "all dance activities in all establishments open to the public".

The traditional fireworks display and the concerts planned on the Champs-Élysées for New Year's Eve were canceled by the Paris town hall.

© 2021 AFP