Protesters angered by higher fuel taxes blocked access to three oil depots in France and sporadic unrest erupted in the overseas territory of Reunion, in a third day of demonstrations against President Emmanuel Macron's economic reforms.
Up to 20,000 protesters clad in fluorescent high-visibility jackets blocked highways across France with burning barricades and convoys of slow-moving trucks, as the government showed no sign of backtracking on a further fuel tax hike on Jan. 1.
French oil and gas giant Total said it operated two of the three affected depots on mainland France, one in Vern, near the northwest city of Rennes, and the other in Fos-sur-Mer in the south. A fourth depot was blocked on Reunion, a former French colony that lies between Mauritius and Madagascar.