French investigate violence that erupted at far-right rally

LE PECQ, France (AP) — French prosecutors opened an investigation Monday into violence that erupted at the first official campaign rally of a far-right candidate who has shaken up France's presidential race.

The prosecutors' office said police detained around 60 people after fists and chairs flew and anti-racism activists were left bloodied at candidate Eric Zemmour's rally Sunday with thousands of supporters north of Paris.

Campaign group SOS Racisme condemned savage beatings that targeted its activists at the rally. It was Zemmour's first since the 63-year-old far-right author and former TV commentator with repeated convictions for hate speech officially launched his run for the French presidency last week.

France is holding a presidential election on April 10, with a runoff if needed on April 24. President Emmanuel Macron is expected to seek a second term but he has yet to declare his candidacy. The far-right leader who Macron defeated in 2017, Marine Le Pen, is also running again.

SOS Racisme's president, Dominique Sopo, likened the violence at Zemmour's rally to white supremacist attacks against civil rights activists in the United States. The group said five of its members were injured after they were punched, thrown to the ground and had chairs thrown at them. Blood ran down the face of one activist from a cut on her head.

People at the rally “were so drunk with hate, so open with their hatred and their violence, that they're not bothered about beating people and women bloody with cameras present," Sopo said. “This candidate unleashes hatred in his wake.”

As well as the violence targeting SOS Racisme campaigners, the prosecutors' office said it also is investigating a fracas that involved Zemmour himself.

Video images showed a man surging out of the crowd with...