A French court has jailed three men on charges of rioting following a heated anti-Israeli protest in the suburbs of the capital, Paris.
The three men, aged between 21 and 28, were sentenced on Wednesday between six and 10 months on charges of participating in a rally last week in the capital’s northern district of Sarcelles.
A fourth man received a suspended sentence while a minor was fined.
The demonstration held on July 20 in protest against Israel’s ongoing onslaught on the Gaza Strip turned violent after police fired tear gas and rubber bullets to disperse the protesters.
The anti-Israeli rally was held even though French authorities banned on July 18 pro-Palestinian groups from holding rallies for security reasons.
Meanwhile, French media have reported that a fresh anti-Israeli demonstration is to be held in Paris later on Wednesday.
According to reports, the protest organized by leftist groups will be joined by some 30 French lawmakers from the ruling Socialist party as authorities have reversed the protest ban.
The French government had come under scrutiny for its decision to ban the rallies, which critics said infringed on civil liberties.
Over the past 15 days, Israeli warplanes have been hitting numerous sites in the Gaza Strip, demolishing houses and burying families in the rubble. Israeli tanks also began a ground offensive against the impoverished Palestinian land on July 17.
The Israeli raids have killed 655 Palestinians, including women and children, and injured more than 4,200 others so far.
The United Nations Security Council has expressed serious concern over the growing number of casualties in the Palestinian coastal enclave.
