Macron Characterizes Situation in French Overseas Department of Guadeloupe as 'Explosive'

PARIS (Sputnik) - The situation in the French overseas department of Guadeloupe, where protests against sanitary measures and mandatory vaccinations have led to clashes and violence, is "very explosive," French President Emmanuel Macron said on Monday.

"The current situation is very explosive ... There are people who are trying to take advantage of it," Macron said during his trip to Amiens as aired by French BFMTV broadcaster.

He stressed that it is necessary to continue to convince protesters that vaccination is the best defence and that health can be neither played with nor used for political struggle.

The French leader also called on the residents of Guadeloupe not to succumb to manipulation by opponents of vaccination.

Earlier on Monday, 40 people were detained as a result of outbreaks of violence in the French overseas department of Guadeloupe, two police officers were injured. According to the prefecture, on the night from Saturday to Sunday, groups of people, many of whom armed, tried to loot and smash shops in the towns of the region. Burning barriers were erected in the streets.

In August, French authorities enhanced lockdown measures in some overseas territories over a rise in hospitalizations caused by the spread of the Delta coronavirus variant, known to be more contagious.

From August 9, sanitary passes in France are mandatory for visiting cafes, restaurants, as well as for flights and trips on long-distance trains. The document assumes the passage of the full cycle of vaccination against COVID-19, the presence of a negative test for coronavirus infection or confirmation of having recovered from COVID-19.