Violent protests in France enter their third week and bring together more than 70,000 in Paris, says Fox Business

For the third week in a row, violent protests took to the streets of France, with a march in Paris that brought together more than 70,000 people, according to Fox Business presenter Charlie. Images shown by the channel show protesters throwing objects at police that, according to the broadcaster, appear to be Molotov cocktails.

The presenter also stated that a far-left presidential candidate was seen at some of the events and that critics accuse him of encouraging the upheaval. The transcript does not name the politician or detail the origin of the protests.

Guest review

To analyze the topic, the channel interviewed Christian Whiton, former senior advisor at the State Department in the Donald Trump administration. In Whiton's assessment, the number of Islamists who appear to be involved in the current demonstrations is striking.

According to him, it is a union between the left and political Islam, something that, in his opinion, would not be so surprising, since both groups want to control people's lives and, he said, hate Israel and the United States. Whiton cited burning American and Israeli flags and criticized European media for classifying the acts as mostly peaceful.

The guest also assessed that the episode shows what happens when the establishment fails and is pushed to the side, as, in his view, happened in France, the United Kingdom and Germany. The presenter, in turn, said that the case reminds us of the consequences of opening the borders and letting everyone in. These are opinions attributed to the channel and the interviewee, not independently verified conclusions.

Iran and geopolitical risk

In the same program, the channel addressed new threats from Iran's supreme leader, who promised attacks with a "geographically unrestricted" response. Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that President Trump prefers diplomacy, but that the United States is ready to act militarily. According to Rubio, the country remains the most capable military force on the planet and the president has not made a decision.

Whiton said Iran must be taken seriously, but noted that its leaders' threats sometimes appear greater than they appear to be. According to him, Trump said he will decide after Tuesday's elections whether to resume large-scale combat operations. The guest advised the president to "go deep or go home."

The former advisor argued that Iran is in a fragile position: it is practically unable to export oil through the Strait of Hormuz, is losing money and is under severe pressure. In his view, Tehran wants to negotiate and knows how to contact Washington. He said that if Iran accepted a deal, it could resume some oil exports and get rid of some sanctions.

Whiton stated that the US maintains the ability to strike again and mentioned around 100,000 precision bombs capable of hitting any target within range of an aircraft over Iranian territory. It is up to the president to decide, he concluded.

What to watch for in the market

The transcription does not contain data on stock markets, interest rates, the dollar or oil. Still, the scenario described, of social instability in Europe and tension around the Strait of Hormuz, is the type of geopolitical risk factor that investors usually follow. The outcome of Trump's decision after Tuesday's elections will be a point of attention for the energy market.

Automatically translated from Portuguese.