Mass riots hit Apple Store in Bordeaux, France

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Riots 2
Chaos as looters grab Apple products from tables and shelves.
Screenshot: AIiFeTTaHoglu61/Twitter

Apple’s Bordeaux retail store in France was raided over the weekend as continued anti-government protests raged.

In a clip widely shared on Twitter, looters entered the Apple Sainte-Catherine store on Saturday night. They proceeded to pull MacBooks, iPhones and other items off the shelves and tables. Some of those involved with the incident were wearing the yellow vests associated with the riots.

Raids of Apple Stores has, unfortunately, been a theme of 2018. Earlier this year, 17 people were arrested in the U.S. after repeated robberies of Apple Stores in California.

Unlike those incidents, however, the Bordeaux Apple Store break-in is part of a much larger incident.

Around 125,000 protestors took to the streets on Saturday. The riots against President Emmanuel Macron’s government are taking issue with increased taxation at a time when wages are low. There is also plenty of anti-1 percent sentiment (meaning people criticizing wealth inequality) amidst criticism of pro-business reforms. In Paris alone, 89,000 police have been deployed to deal with the violence.

It’s not clear exactly why the Apple Store was targeted. As with any large riots, there’s plenty of opportunistic activity that gets swept up in political protest. However, Apple has frequently been criticized in the French media for issues such as alleged tax evasion.

Provided that the proper arrests can be made, there may be more of this story to come.

Source: Sputnik News

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