Yellow vest protester dies in France after being hit by truck, prosecutor says

Driver taken into custody after accident on roundabout in Avignon

A man wearing a yellow vest waves a French flag in front of burning tyres at a road blockade during a protest against the rise in the price of oil and the cost of living (AFP/Getty ImagesPASCAL GUYOT/AFP/Getty Images)

A yellow vest protester has been killed after being hit by a truck at a roundabout in Avignon, France‘s prosecutor’s office has said.

“The driver of the truck was taken into custody. The victim was 23-years-old,” Avignon’s deputy attorney Caroline Armand said, according to the AFP news agency.

The accident happened on a roundabout at the Avignon South exit of the A7 motorway in the early hours of Thursday morning.

It comes as France’s president Emmanuel Macron attempts to regain control after months of yellow vest protests which have caused disruption across the country.

The movement has protested against the rise in the price of oil and the cost of living.

Mr Macron strived to show he was responding to the protesters’ demands for tax relief by maintaining his planned agenda on Wednesday despite a shooting in Strasbourg which left two people dead and raised France to its highest terror alert level.

He held his weekly cabinet meeting and talks with large public and private companies, notably to encourage them to give a tax-free, year-end bonus to their employees.

Mr Macron broke a long silence in the face of the burgeoning protest movement and appealed for calm in an atypical televised address to the nation.

He announced tax relief for retirees and a boost to the purchasing power of workers.

But some members of the movement have already called for fresh protests on Saturday, arguing the government’s measures are not sufficient.

Others have called for a “truce”, acknowledging progress has been made.

French ministers have also called for a halt to the protests in the wake of the attack in Strasbourg.

The country’s justice and interior ministers suggested the the protests should come to an end following the shooting.

Three online polls made after Mr Macron’s speech by the Odoxa, Opinionway and Elabe institutes show a majority of respondents still have sympathy for the yellow vest movement, but support appears to be receding compared to previous weeks.