PARIS: Six people, including three security personnel, were injured during protests in Paris against the result of the first round of the French presidential elections, police said on Monday.
At least 29 people remained in police custody following the demonstrations in which leftist activists came out to voice their opposition to independent centrist candidate Emmanuel Macron and far-right National Front leader Marine Le Pen, both of whom are set to battle it out at the runoff Elysee Palace on May 7, the police told Efe news.
Anti-fascist and anti-capitalist demonstrators gathered at Place de la Bastille and Place de la Republique, in the heart of Paris, two hours before polling stations for the first round of voting closed on Sunday night at 8 p.m.
Initially, protestors built barricades in the squares, but as exit poll data started to filter through pointing to a victory for both Macron and Le Pen, the demonstrations became more violent.
Several people threw firecrackers, causing damage to nearby vehicles and shop windows.
Activists in Toulouse, Lyon, Bordeaux and Grenoble also staged protests that turned violent.