Vaccination centers vandalized in France amid protests against COVID-19 measures


As tens of thousands of protesters hit the streets to demonstrate against France's new COVID-19 measures, two vaccination sites were vandalized, French authorities said.
On Friday night, vandals used fire hoses to flood a clinic in Lans-en-Vercors, BBC News reports, and on Saturday, a site in Urrugne was partially destroyed in an arson attack. There was anti-vaccine graffiti also found near the clinic in Lans-en-Vercors.
Since the start of the pandemic, at least 111,000 people have died of COVID-19 in France. New coronavirus cases are on the rise, and the French government wants to stop the spread of the highly contagious Delta variant. After scientists who advise the government warned that a fourth wave is on the way, French President Emmanuel Macron announced new mitigation measures, including mandatory vaccinations for health workers and passes to show people are fully vaccinated.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
This triggered the weekend's protests, where demonstrators, encouraged by far-right politician Florian Philippot, marched with signs claiming their freedom was being taken away because of the measures. Slightly more than 50 percent of the French population has received one COVID-19 vaccine dose, and less than 40 percent is fully vaccinated. Since Macron's announcement, hundreds of thousands of people have signed up to get vaccinated, BBC News reports.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
How generative AI is changing the way we write and speak
In The Spotlight ChatGPT and other large language model tools are quietly influencing which words we use
-
How long can Nato keep Donald Trump happy?
Today's Big Question Military alliance pulls out all the stops to woo US president on his peacemaker victory lap
-
Easy Money: the Charles Ponzi Story – an 'enlightening' podcast
The Week Recommends Apple Original podcast explores the 'fascinating' tale of the man who gave the investment scam its name
-
Trump says Iran and Israel agreed to ceasefire
Speed Read This followed a night of Israeli airstrikes on Tehran and multiple waves of missiles fired by Iran
-
Israel strikes Iran, killing military and nuclear chiefs
Speed Read Israeli officials said the attack was a 'preemptive' strike on Iran's nuclear program
-
Israel deports Thunberg after seizing Gaza aid boat
speed read The Swedish activist was delivering food and medical aid to Palestine, highlighting the growing humanitarian crisis there
-
Colombian senator shot on streets of Bogotá
speed read Miguel Uribe Turbay, who has announced his candidacy for next year's presidential election, was shot at a rally
-
Trump says Putin vowed retaliation for Kyiv strike
speed read The Russian president intends to respond to Ukraine's weekend drone strikes on Moscow's warplanes
-
Dutch government falls over immigration policy
speed read The government collapsed after anti-immigration politician Geert Wilders quit the right-wing coalition
-
South Korea elects liberal Lee as president
speed read Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party, was elected president following months of political instability in the wake of Yoon Suk Yeol's impeachment
-
Nationalist wins tight Polish presidential election
speed read Karol Nawrocki beat Rafal Trzaskowski in Poland's presidential runoff election