Officials Put Out Olympic Torch 3 Times

PARIS — Security officials extinguished the Olympic torch three times Monday as protests against China's human rights record turned a relay through Paris into a chaotic series of stops and starts.

Despite massive security, at least two activists got within almost an arm's length of the flame before they were grabbed by police. Officers tackled many protesters and carried off some of them. A protester threw water at the torch but failed to extinguish it and was also taken away.

At the start of the relay, a man identified as a Green Party activist was grabbed by security officers as he headed for 1997 400-meter world champion Stephane Diagana, the president of France's national athletics league, who was carrying the torch from the first floor of the Eiffel Tower. The man was tackled before he got close to Diagana.

Keep reading here.

Watch the turbulent protests in Paris:

Watch footage of earlier protests in London as the Olympic torch made its way through the UK:

Comments

[Metalyst]

It's mindboggling to me that it took small made-for-media attacks on innocent torch-runners in Paris and London to get much mention/comments here about the China-on-Tibet attrocities. And still no coverage on the Zimbabwe horrors, which are about to turn into another African bloodbath when Mugabe turns loose his military on his own people. If people really cared, they'd get ahead of the curve on these things, and not wait for headlines. And to the Editors: For the love of humanity...COVER ZIMBABWE. Why are you ignoring it?

[YellowPanties]

Zimbabwe is being ignored because exposure would cast a negative light on our British brothers and sisters who created the situation, as well as detail our own complicity in Mugabe's ascent to power.

Further, African horrors are so numerous and omnipresent that they overwhelm the poor dear lambs who are reporters. How can one possibly tell Idi Amin from Robert Taylor from Mugabe? Poor dears.

Lastly, I also feel that Africa is not news worthy because to delve into that mess would mean indicting all of western Europe for its colonial policies.

Capitalism at its finest, is what has caused the mess(es) in Africa, and you would then require that the pigs shit in the same trough in which they feed, if they were to cover the stories.

Zimbabwe? What about Rhodesia? Congo? Mozambique? The Tutsis and the Hutus? Eritrea? Sierra Leone? Ivory Coast? Rwanda? Somalia? See, it's too confusing, one would need an actual reporter's notebook to do any damage over there.

[Metalyst]

I agree on many points, but to blame it all on the Brits or Capitalism is to totally let Mugabe off the hook; he's been in power for decades now, slowly raping his own people/economy. There is no Capitalism to be found in Zimbabwe whatsoever, except perhaps on the black market. Mugabe has made the former "breadbasket of Africa" into a starving hellhole..­...bankrol­led by China no less, in exchange for Chinese access to raw natural resources, all controlled by Mugabe. And SA has looked the other way.

[jjc4good]

If he were a leader of principle and not profit, Bush would boycott the Olympic Opening ceremony. Alas, we al know he won't.

[WillPower]

Insulting the Chinese will somehow make things better for Tibet? I think it may make things worse.

[wmfor]

This last week, CNN has been showing a series on Dr. Martin Luther King on their morning classroom show. I suggest you watch it.

Incredible how many people told King he was just making it worse for Black people with all those protests.

[IronMikeHouston]

The USA repeats the same mistakes. You would think we could learn from history. The 1980 & 1984 boycotts did nothing but deny athletes the opportunity to compete in a sport they trained years for. Most of those protesters are KOOKS (green peace, etc.) and we shouldn't let a bunch of NUTS determine what the USA response should be. I hope if there are people actually trying to snatched the torch, they should be tazed and beaten and arrested! If you have to protest, do it peacefully.

[Ramirez]

This is unfortunate and it is the end of the Olympic Torch relay.

It is just thuggery and outrage at the world. Most Frenchmen couldn't give two shits about Tibet.

[SonofLiberty1]

Baloney Ramirez..you are just a sports enthusiast that's all.
Yes, let's protest...it's not just about Tibet..Chinese have NO RIGHT because they are trying to own America!

[Ramirez]

The Olympics have been a part of global culture for centuries, and the torch was part of that culture. The Olympics represented one time, every four years, when the world would put aside the politics and compete fairly, as equals.

This mob violence and European lawlessness threatens that. We may never see the Torch again. And that will be the legacy of Paris... not a protest against corporations, or against China, or against the Man; but a monument to mindless stupidity and violence.

[ZenCrusader]

This is GREAT. Thank you Paris !

[Katboy]

And no-one in the world gives one shit for your uninformed opinion.

[YankeeCanuck]

Thuggery is what Tibetans have endured at the hands of the Chinese for decades. Thuggery is what the civilians in Iraq have been treated to since we invaded.The French wanted no part of it.

Oh those silly froggies!! They may not care about Tibet as you say, but they do care about human rights.

[Ramirez]

What I see is an asian female athlete twisting around in a wheelchair trying to protect the Olympic torch from being grabbed by a foul-smelling French thug.

What about HER human rights?

[Economike]

Ramirez: You'll have to excuse them they don't know any better. they should be sitting around on their backside watching TV and buying Chinese products.

[mrdontplay]

Hey don't they have to start the route over since it the flame was put out?

You caint have the games with out the FLAME?

[starrianna]

Yes, dear, they have to start over, do not pass Go, and have to pay $200!

[MsLiz]

Hey, Bic is a French company, they have been keeping alternate flames.

[mrdontplay]

...too many countries that don't respect human rights. ya know USA & CHINA

BOYCOTT THE OLIMPICS!

[RogerHWerner]

In many respects, China reminds me of the old USSR; it's less of a nation than a cobbling together of disparate nationalities held together by threat of force. It will be interesting to see if China changes its form of government before it comes apart owing to political unrest, economic inequality between urban Yuppies and rural folk, or environmental collapse. That the IOC would award an Olympic games to a government such as that exists in China points to the abysmal state of the world. Few nations have perfect human rights records and fewer still a semblance of economic justice. If the IOC actually paid attention to human rights and economic justice, they would be hard pressed finding a host nation. Commend the French for protesting the Chinese Olympics but don't forget the French electorate chose the right wing Sarkozy as president and that last year there were massive protests by economically disenfranchised Muslims in many of France' cities. It's about time for the IOC to accept the fact that the Olympics are at least as much political as they are athletic and trying to keep them separate is patently silly.

[shanghaislim]

Sir, you are so so far from the truth. The are a country of one major majority with a smaller make-up of ethnic groups.

Them coming apart.....­..........­.......NEV­ER gonna happen. They have kept it together since the Warring States period in 221 B.C. and they will be around a lot longer than the US and these infant democracies. Do you think America can last 2000 years? Another 200?

[Economike]

I think it doubtfull that the continent of America will disapperar. The US, who knows.

[YellerDawg]

Allons enfants de la patrie!
Bravo, France. The true Olympic spirit lives. The Chinese will regret the day they bought the Olympics. This is already a very expensive PR catastrophe.
Liberte! Egalite! Fraternite! Lafeyette, we are here!

[Ramirez]

Mob rule! Violence! Vive la France!

[damnadamson]

it's called demonstrating in a democracy not mob rule ! something that is being taken away from Americans on a daily basis thanks to the boys in the white house. we're not so far from china and it's policies. to check out our new free speech zones watch this;

http://www.glumbert.com/media/freespeechzone

[SonofLiberty1]

Viva la France!

[Trueheart]

Some people care enough about what happens to brave little Tibet, and don't care if they are breaking the law to protest.

President Bush has called for negotiations, and for foreign journalists to be allowed into China, but says he will not boycott the Olympic Games. So far, only Czechoslovakia will boycott, but Europeans are making noises that they may well do the same unless China backs off.

China, now the United States' second-largest lender, is financing our budget debt. (Japan #1) Watching CBS 60 minutes last night on this topic, I could only shake my head in what I would call disbelief...except that I've been witness to how this happened, as have we all, so I can't say I wasn't aware. Each time I read that President Clinton had granted "most favored nation" trade status to China, I thought about the lack of freedom afforded to the Chinese people; labor camps which produce the goods we buy and tiny Tibet.

The extent to which this debt affects our ability to stand with Tibet against Chinese aggression calls for more than head shaking. Makes me wonder when the athletes will begin pulling out--regardless of what their state leaders have decided. That will be another "People's" action, and one which won't be stopped or remedied by a "protective police bubble."

[eugenegerard]

The Chinese have no problem with government sanctioned murder.

[serialcoma]

Except that they can't seem to conduct enough of it to satisfy themselves.

[ChrisInTennessee]

Nor does the Bush administraton. America can no longer take the high road with all the horrors put in place by the thugs in washington and their corporate sponsors. We are not what we once were...

[YankeeCanuck]

But " we the people" can still speak out and make our voices heard on these matters.
And we can vote to change our administration-- the job is not done in the Presidential election either. For a regime change, we need a strong majority in the House and Senate.

Then we may move closer to the founding principles of our country.

[Ping]

But the Bush Administration is not shooting at us.

[rrafiringa]

The difference between Parisians and New Yorkers, is that the Parisians have a constitutional right to strike when they are not happy about something, and they exercise that right anytime they are not happy. Here you get jailed if the state government doesn't agree to the strike.
They keep their government in check, work 35 hours full time, get a lot of paid vacations throughout the year, social assistance, and have a stagnant economy, they prize their way of life. Paris is a nice place to raise a family, if you have a decent job and speak French.
In New York, we leave our checks and balance system unchecked, work more than horses, barely have time for anything, 2 weeks of paid vacations max, social assistance sucks, and the economy tends to either soars up or goes rock bottom, there's no way of life but work and make money, it's one of the worst places to raise your kids unless you have enough money to seclude them into the higher strata of society, you don't have to speak English to make a living although it helps.

[StanTheManic]

Hey, Frenchie: ever hear of a thing called a fire extinguisher?

Anyway, at least France is a free country where people can still protest, not like the United Police States of America.

[BlackLeatherRain]

They tried that in London, i believe, and it did not work.

[eugenegerard]

God Bless the French. They KNOW you have to stand up to MONSTERS.
We could learn from them.

[cls105]

jesus, the police needs to chill a little bit.. they seem a little over passionate and need to stop fighting other human beings. i hope someone steals it and throws it into the crowd... lets make the world proud in sf

[AnnArky]

The French, for all we Wimpy Americans like to bad-mouth them, do know how to protest against the corporate/political machine. That China is hosting what are know as the "Goodwill Games" is a tasteless joke of universal proportions. "Freedom Fries" indeed.

[julieeiluj]

Viva la France. They still know how to revolt....;)

[starrianna]

Oh my gosh those Frenchies are so BRAVE!

Maybe I should go out and eat my Freedom Fries and then crawl back to my condo in the middle of the night without calling anyone so that the government won't see or hear me.

Am I allowed to call them French Fries again, or will I get in trouble?