‘Get out of France’: Paris police tear gassing refugees and stealing blankets in freezing conditions, report reveals
February 11, 2017
Exclusive: ‘Alarming’ research shows almost two thirds of migrants ‘violently’ forced to move
Refugees sleeping on the streets in freezing conditions in Paris are having their blankets and sleeping bags stolen by police while being “violently” forced to move on, a report has found.
Research exclusively published by The Independent shows that men, women and children are being beaten and tear gassed by officers in the French capital, despite government pledges to shelter vulnerable people.
Eritrean families said they were told to “get out of France” as police tore away children’s blankets, leaving them without protection as the bitter temperatures plummeted to -7C.
Men around a bonfire at the makeshift refugee camp set up near Porte de la Chapelle, Paris, on 8 December (AFP/Getty)
Natalie Stanton, deputy director of the Refugee Rights Data Project, said researchers were confronted by “alarming” scenes in the La Chapelle area, where authorities have launched numerous clearance operations in recent months.
“While we were there we witnessed the police taking people’s belongings – some in the night, some in the daytime – it’s quite a visible phenomenon,” she added.
