There were clashes between police and protesters at mass rallies across France on Saturday, over high prices, social inequality and the state of the education system.
Police arrest hundreds of people across the country
The Interior Ministry said some 272 people had been arrested by mid-afternoon following violent incidents in Paris, Marseille, Rennes, Toulouse and Angers.
“These actions include attempted looting, clashes with law enforcement, burning of street furniture and attacks on seats of power and media,” the ministry said, blaming the unrest on what it described as the “ultra-left.”
In Paris and Marseille, police fired tear gas at demonstrators during clashes.
AFP reported that windows at the offices of French channels CNews and Europe 1 in western Paris were smashed by protesters, and journalists reported seeing several parked cars set on fire.
In Lyon, located in central France, the city’s tourist office was set ablaze with flames and black smoke billowing from the building.
Meanwhile, in Lille, protesters broke into the town hall of Lille, in northern France, and vandalized the premises before leaving, according to an AFP photographer.
Minutes later, riot police confirmed that all protesters had left.
The protests follow a first wave of demonstrations that began last month over the situation in the country’s schools, with students complaining about the absence of teachers and dilapidated facilities.
President Emmanuel Macron called for “calm and respect” ahead of the protests, saying the right to demonstrate went hand in hand with “respect for people and property.”
What do we know about the protests in France?
More than 600 protests were planned across France, according to protest organizers.
Interior Minister Laurent Nunez told France 2 television that “a fairly large turnout” was expected, while a police source told French news agency AFP that authorities estimate nearly 200,000 people will attend.
However, Paris protesters faced restrictions, with police banning gatherings around the Elysée presidential palace, the prime minister’s office and the Avenue des Champs-Elysées, as well as other key locations.
A march in the city center was also banned.
The main Parisian demonstration began at 2 p.m. (12 p.m. GMT) at Place de la République.
Reports began to emerge late Saturday morning that riot police had clashed with protesters in the Saint-Denis neighborhood on the outskirts of the capital, as well as near the Gare du Nord, among other places.
Fears of violence during French protests
Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu said Thursday that authorities feared violence during the protests.
“It’s a moment of fatigue in the country,” Lecornu said. “We are in an atmosphere of permanent crisis: wars, inflation and purchasing power problems.”
Jordan Bardella, leader of the far-right National Rally, leads the polls before next year’s presidential election elections, said he expected clashes.
“I am extremely worried,” he said during a visit to the Paris motor show. “It will be a day of chaos for France.”
The school protests that have rocked France in recent weeks have already been marked by considerable violence, with several demonstrators and more than 900 police officers injured.
In one notable incident, a teenager had one hand blown off and several fingers on the other were injured by a stun grenade.
The police’s internal watchdog is investigating at least two dozen cases of alleged police brutality.
Who participates in the demonstrations?
The students will be joined by trade unionists and remnants of the Yellow Vest movement, which staged weekly mass protests from November 2018 to June 2020, initially against rising fuel prices. They then turned into protests against the high cost of living and economic inequality in general.
Student protests in recent weeks have been supported by Jean-Luc Mélanchon, the leader of the hard-left La France Insoumise (“La France Insoumise,” or LFI), who took part in a demonstration on Tuesday.
The government criticized the LFI for adding fuel to the fire of widespread public discontent, an allegation the party denied.
Edited by: Karl Sexton
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