France in chaos as angry fishermen launch blockade in fuel price fury | World | News– www.express.co.uk

Furious French fishermen have launched dramatic blockades across southern oil depots, bringing parts of the country to a standstill as fuel costs skyrocket to record levels. Demonstrators descended on the Frontignan oil depot near Sète on Wednesday morning (September 16), setting up barricades just 24 hours after a similar blockade at the Fos-sur-Mer oil terminal near Marseille.

Around 100 fishermen and supporters at Frontignan vowed to ramp up pressure on Paris, demanding urgent meetings with Fisheries Minister Catherine Chabaud and securing an immediate reduction in diesel prices. The industrial action comes as the nation faces historic fuel misery, driven by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East and the closure of the strategic Strait of Hormuz.

Official figures show unleaded 95-E10 has surged to an average of €2.11 per litre – the highest price recorded since data collection began in 1985 – while diesel has climbed to €2.29, with some regions recording eye-watering prices of €2.80 per litre.

The coordinated protests have triggered panic at the pumps, with around 9% of service stations nationwide reporting shortages of at least one fuel type.

On top of fuel prices, fishermen have warned that their working conditions have deteriorated to a breaking point as sky-high operating costs are stripping away their livelihoods. Protesters reported they are struggling to keep afloat financially while navigating what they describe as a suffocating mountain of new administrative red tape and regulatory demands from both Paris and Brussels.

Tensions flared on Tuesday (September 15) when police stepped in to clear roughly 50 fishermen who had blocked 50 tanker trucks for around seven hours at Fos-sur-Mer, Bouches-du-Rhône, where protesters displayed banners reading: “Europe is killing us” and “The EU is sinking our boats and Paris is watching us”. The protest follows similar demonstrations on Monday in Sète and Port-Vendres, in Pyrénées-Orientales.