Paris police use tear gas to prevent yellow vest protests
2018: Who are France's 'yellow vest' protesters?02:33
Paris (CNN)A large police presence in Paris prevented "gilets jaunes" or yellow vest protesters from gathering on Saturday, the 45th week since protests started on November 17 last year.
In the morning, a CNN team saw small-scale confrontations between police and protesters -- including officers firing tear gas -- on the Champs-Élysées, the luxury shopping street in central Paris.
Police walk through a tear gas cloud on the Champs-Élysées Saturday.
The Paris Police Prefecture said about 7,500 officers had been deployed on Saturday in the French capital. Police said they had questioned more than 100 people as of 1 p.m. Paris time (7 a.m. ET).
The Champs-Élysées, popular with tourists and Parisians alike, has been a focal point for the gilets jaunes since the movement against President Emmanuel Macron's proposed economic reforms began. The protests have proven an enduring challenge to Macron's presidency.
A protester holds up a yellow vest in front of the Arc de Triomphe on the Champs-Élysées Saturday.
On Wednesday, local authorities issued a decree forbidding the gilets jaunes from gathering on the Champs-Élysées on the weekend.
Paris Police Commissioner Didier Lallement told reporters the police contingent deployed on Saturday would match that of May 1, which saw violent scenes and scores of demonstrators gathered en masse. He said on Friday: "Tomorrow, there will be people who will want revenge... I want to tell them that we will be there."
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