Police stop Express reporter as protest shut down after bomb threat | World | News
This is the moment French police refused to allow an Express journalist to interview demonstrators after a ‘Free Iran’ rally was closed down due to a bomb threat. Up to 100,000 anti-Iran regime demonstrators were expected to be in the square to campaign for an end to the Ayatollah’s rule. But following reports of two bomb threats, one allegedly linked to Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), a judge in the French capital ordered the march to be cancelled.
Despite the 11th hour ban, tens of thousands of fans who were unaware of the cancellation would still flock to the capital. Initial reports suggested that 20 people were arrested and 12 were seriously injured in scuffles with police. In a shocking interaction with law enforcement, journalist Paul Baldwin was refused permission by a French police officer to interview frustrated demonstrators. In a video of the meeting recorded by Paul, he says: “Am I not allowed to go in there and report on this?
The officer shrugs and replies “it’s not my problem”, while Paul counters: “You know I’m a journalist and you’re stopping me from doing my job?”
As the conversation continues, the police officer dressed in riot gear declines to prosecute and Paul points out: “So you’re a French cop and you’re stopping a British journalist from doing my job?”
Paul calmly explains “I can’t do my job” and the police officer replies “it’s not my problem”, to which Paul points out “that’s not very democratic, is it” and adds: “Democracy means journalists are allowed to operate.”
However, the police officer refuses to back down despite Paul’s objections.
The demonstration against the hardline Islamist regime in Iran comes as Tehran claims it will once again close the vital Strait of Hormuz oil and gas waterway to the Middle East just days later. Donald Trump He announced the 14-article peace agreement.
The strait, which carries about 20 percent of the world’s oil and gas and nearly 50 percent of the global fertilizer supply, reopened briefly this week after being closed after the United States and Israel launched an attack on Iran on February 28.
The shutdown caused fuel prices to rise and led to inflation in the global economy. Washington had claimed on Wednesday that a deal had been made with Iran to end the war and reopen the strait and that JD Vance would fly to Switzerland to reach an agreement.
However, the process was thrown into chaos today when the Revolutionary Guard claimed that the strait would be closed once again, blaming Israel’s attacks on Hezbollah in Lebanon for derailing the talks.
Despite the deal’s apparent failure, US Vice President JD Vance and a team from Washington are expected to meet Iranian negotiators and Pakistani mediators in Switzerland on Sunday.
A source from the National Council of Resistance of Iran (NCRI) close to the event’s organizers said: “The rally was threatened with terrorist acts and the court said terrorists would plant bombs in the crowd if the police did not stop it.
“They said there was an active threat from the monarchists and the regime.”
A spokesperson for the NCRI said: “The Administrative Court of Paris ruled today that the police ban on the 20 June demonstration was based on general grounds devoid of any contextual information.
“However, intelligence reports submitted to the Court indicate that the 20 June rally was “exposed to a major risk of attack by the Iranian regime or Iranian monarchists.”
The Express contacted police officials in Paris for comment.
