More than 400 migrants were evacuated from a theater in Paris where they had been squatting for more than three months.
Police reportedly used tear gas at the beginning of the operation, but for the most part, the evacuation went on without incident, Reuters reported.
“At this stage, this was the thing to do because the situation was becoming complicated, tense and dangerous inside,” Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo told France Inter radio, according to Reuters.
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French police arrested more than 46 people in the Tuesday operation, according to reports. It was not clear whether all 46 of those arrested were migrants, as police clashed with activists supporting the squatters during the operation.
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Paris Police Prefect Laurent Nuñez said that some were arrested for “rebelling” while the evacuation operation was taking place and others were detained for “administrative checks,” according to Le Monde. Nuñez apparently called the migrants’ occupation of Paris’ Gaite Lyrique theater a threat to “public order,” the outlet added.
A banner outside the theater read “400 lives in danger, 80 jobs under threat.”
The Gaite Lyrique Theater in Paris was forced to suspend operations in December, days after migrants began taking over the venue, demanding food and shelter. Gaite Lyrique apparently slammed authorities for their “inaction” on the situation, reports indicate.
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