Paris  - A homeless man was found frozen to death in Paris early Friday, the sixth homeless individual to have died of the cold in the Paris area in the past month, France Info radio reported.

The body of the 55-year-old man was found on a sidewalk in the fashionable Fourth Arrondissement, not far from the Place de la Bastille, a site popular with tourists.

On Wednesday, Housing Minister Christine Boutin had provoked outrage among civil rights organizations by demanding a law that would allow authorities to force homeless people into shelters during bad weather.

Prime Minister Francois Fillon said Thursday that there would be "no question of forcing" the homeless to sleep in shelters during cold snaps.

He added, however, that "all means must be used to convince those who are in danger of dying to enter a shelter." (dpa)