IN PHOTOS: ‘Yellow vest’ protests paralyze France, spill over into Belgium and the Netherlands

What started as a Facebook campaign against fuel tax increases has spiraled into a protest movement which paralyzed the French capital of Paris before spilling over into Belgium and the Netherlands.

Over 89,000 police were deployed across France on Saturday — some 8,000 in Paris alone — as authorities faced raging crowds of yellow-vested protesters.

READ MORE: Hundreds arrested in ‘yellow vest’ protests in Paris

The so-called “yellow vest” movement is named for the fluorescent jackets carried by French motorists.

WATCH: Full coverage of the ‘yellow vest’ protests on Globalnews.ca

1:25 French interior minister says Paris protest under control

• French interior minister says Paris protest under control
• Paris shop looted during Yellow Vests protests
• Police use water cannon against Yellow Vests protesters in Paris
• Protesters draped in French flags and yellow vests lie down on the Champs Elysee
• This is the armoured vehicle France will deploy to curb ‘Yellow Vest’ protests
• French shops close as Paris braces for more ‘Yellow Vest’ weekend protests
• Yellow vests movement continues to ignite France, three weeks later

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Cars have been burned, shops looted, tear gas fired and arrests made — and the protesters don’t appear to be going away anytime soon, despite the French government announcing that it will be suspending fuel tax increases for six months.

Here are some photos that show the scale of the “yellow vest” protests:

— With files from Reuters

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