After more than two months of Yellow Vest protests against the economic policies of the French government, President Emmanuel Macron claimed that he too could be a ‘yellow vest’ if the movement stands for higher salaries. “If being a yellow vest means wanting fewer parliamentarians and work being paid better, I am a yellow vest, too!” Macron said on Thursday in an attempt to align with the grassroots movement against economic injustice, which was born as a protest against the French government’s policies. In an interview with several French journalists (BFM TV, Paris Match, Le Figaro) he described the Yellow Vests as a social and political movement without “a fixed claim and leader,” as well as saying that it has “mutated” since its inception and has been “infiltrated by 40,000 to 50,000 militants who want the destruction of institutions.” Macron also spoke about the RIC – the “Citizens’ Initiative Referendum” – a referendum demanded

Police have deployed water cannon during a rally against the controversial UN migration pact in Brussels. Officers were seen scuffling with protesters, who threw firecrackers before facing off with law-enforcement. The rally was dubbed the ‘March against Marrakech’ in reference to the city where the pact was signed earlier in December. It was organized by the right-wing Vlaams Belang party which has long been a vocal opponent of the agreement. While having initially kicked off peacefully, the demonstration started to heat up with some of the participants burning firecrackers and hurling bottles as they marched down the street. Part of the crowd who rallied on Sunday, also vented their anger by rooting out and throwing around traffic signs and what appeared to be parts of some fences. Riot police marched out in full riot gear to quell the unease. They later moved in with water cannon against some of the protesters. At least two of them were seen being sprayed w