Fans Clash with Police as France Reaches World Cup Final (+ Video, Photos)
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – France’s World Cup semi-final win celebration turned ugly, with dozens of football fans tossing fire bombs at riot police near Paris' Champs Elysee.
Gendarmes were forced to fire tear gas to disperse the hostile crowd as they threw objects in their direction.
Debris including plastic traffic barriers, metal railings and even a sofa were all placed in the middle of the street after thousands massed near the Arc de Triomphe monument to celebrate the French victory, the Mirror reported.
A line of riot police and armored vehicles were mobilized to remove the agitated mob from the area.
Fleeing protesters erected barricades using metal railings to disrupt their advance through the street.
Earlier, a large and ecstatic crowd gathered in the city center to watch France's 1-0 win over neighboring rivals Belgium.
Delirious supporters draped in the Tricolor flag spilled on to Parisian boulevards as the blare of car horns reverberated through the French capital.
In a fan zone outside City Hall on the banks of the River Seine, jubilant supporters embraced and lit smoke flares.
In the southern city of Nice, more than two dozen fans were hurt when the detonation of firecrackers triggered a brief stampede near the seafront.