Paris marches against emergency law

Several thousand people have marched in French cities to protest against a state of emergency introduced after November’s attacks in Paris and a proposed nationality-stripping law that led France’s justice minister to quit last week.

President François Hollande’s Socialist government adopted state of emergency legislation following the November 13 Islamist militant attacks that left 130 people dead, and it plans to extend the measures for a further three months after they expire next month.

Opponents say the increased police powers and restrictions on public gatherings damage democracy and are ineffective in tackling terrorist threats. The debate has become intense as the government has pursued plans to deprive convicted terrorists of French nationality.