PARIS.- On Sunday January 11, more than one and a half million people marched in homage to the victims of the recent attacks in the capital, and in rejection of extremist violence, in a protest described as historic.
In the midst of an exceptional security presence, a genuine human tide swept through Paris´ central avenues, from Republic Square to Nation Square.
Participants interviewed by Prensa Latina, among which included people of different nationalities, stated that they were marching against racism, terrorism, anti-Semitism and all forms of extremist violence, in addition to fighting for freedom of expression and the press.
At Republic Square, the departure point, there were even children with their parents. The parents highlighted their right to prepare their children to live in a world where, sadly, acts of this nature occur.
Hundreds of protesters, carrying flags of various nationalities, climbed the giant statue in the middle of the square and sang France’s national anthem.
On the posters could be read “I am Charlie, I am the police, I am Arab, I am Jewish, I am French,” in reference to the victims of the attacks who were journalists, cartoonists, police officers and members of the Jewish community.
Also participating in the march was French President François Hollande with members of his government and families of the victims. Similarly, more than 40 heads of state and government from Europe and across the world were also present, as well as numerous personalities.
Around 2,000 police officials and 1,350 soldiers were deployed in order to guarantee safety. There were another 150 civil police, shooters on the roofs of Paris and multiple motorists who accompanied the march.
The city sewers were checked before the march and subway stations en route to the protest were closed.
More than 500,000 people also came together on January 11 to protest in other French cities. On January 10 around 700,000 people took to the streets.
In addition, a tribute was held to the victims of the Grand Synagogue of Paris, with the participation of President Francois Hollande.
On Wednesday January 7, two men dressed in black and armed with an AK-47rifle, stormed the building of Charlie Hebdo shouting “Allah is great” and opened fire before fleeing the scene, according to witnesses. 12 people died in the attack.
On January 8 and 9 shootings also occurred in other areas in the capital, resulting in the death of five innocent people.
On the evening of Friday January 9, two simultaneous police operations in two locations (one in Paris itself and the other in the north east of France), led to the apprehension of those responsible for the crimes.
