Hundreds of people sidestepped a ban on demonstrations Sunday by marching in different neighborhoods in the capital city of Ajaccio on the French Mediterranean island of Corsica, AFP reported. Some were marching in opposition to recent anti-Arab riots, in which fire was set to a building home to 1,700 people, half of them not of French origin.
"We aren't thugs, we aren't racists," they chanted as they marched to the police station.
Corsica has seen days of rioting against Arabs and refugees, during which two men were detained. Demonstrators vandalized a Muslim prayer hall, and burned books including copies of the Quran. A firefighter said that protesters tried to ambush emergency services by setting fires, and trying to attack them with iron bars and baseball bats.
Demonstrators marched through Ajaccio on Saturday shouting, "This is our home," and "Arabs get out."
Following the riots, Corsica's administrator Christophe Mirand announced a ban on demonstrations until Jan. 4 in the neighborhood of Jardins de l'impeur, a flashpoint for the protests.
"This behavior must stop. It hurts Corsica's image," Mirmand said.
The unrest comes at a time of heightened tension following the Paris attacks which killed 130 people. During regional French elections in mid-December, Corsica's nationalist party took power for the first time.
