French leaders pledge to restore order after weekend of violent riots across the country

Paris — French authorities planned to declare a state of emergency and implement local curfews on Monday as the nation recovered from a weekend of violence. Widespread anti-government protests in many major cities degenerated into riotswith damage to historic properties and thousands of arrests.

In hard-hit Marseille, France’s second-largest city, all large gatherings were banned Monday following the violence, which began weeks ago with protests by young people furious at the state of their schools but quickly escalated into nationwide demonstrations against the rising cost of living and declining public services.

Limoges’ 19th-century town hall was burned to the ground on Saturday by masked rioters who hijacked protests across France, looting stores, burning cars and buildings and clashing with police as protests turned violent.

More than 2,500 people have been arrested, the French Justice Ministry said.

The U.S. State Department issued an advisory Monday urging Americans to “avoid areas of protests.”

In a speech on Sunday evening, French President Emmanuel Macron promised that “those who sought to overthrow the republic will be held accountable.”

Speaking on Monday, Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu blamed at least part of the violence on “an ultra-left movement determined to orchestrate deep unrest in the country in the run-up to the presidential election” in April.

He said police “lost control” during the unrest and as the Yellow Vest protest movement, which organized the weekend rallies that turned violent, called for a new round of demonstrations on Saturday, he called on regional authorities to impose “partial” and “localized” curfews to protect businesses.

“I am absolutely determined to restore public order,” Lecornu said, adding that the government was ready to impose a national state of emergency, “if necessary.”

Speaking about the alleged agitators, Lecornu said there was “an entire network that could be mobilized to challenge the timing of the presidential election and the holding of the presidential election itself,” adding that the government was determined to protect the country’s democratic process.

“We will under no circumstances allow violent minorities to impose a program of violence and, of course, to prevent us from holding these elections,” he said, acknowledging that high school students’ protests against class conditions were legitimate, but adding that “the freedom to demonstrate is being undermined.”

While French officials have suggested no connection between the unrest and immigration, President Trump asserted one in a brief social media post Monday, declaring: “Migrants have taken over France. They must CLOSE THE BORDERS, FAST!”

Damage to monuments

The capital Paris experienced the worst unrest and residents woke up on Monday to streets littered with debris and burned vehicles. But serious damage was inflicted across the country, with centuries of heritage damaged or destroyed by the flames.

Video captured the moment the clock tower of the historic town hall of Limoges, southwest France – a landmark that stood for almost 150 years, surviving two world wars – was engulfed in flames and collapsed.

The tourist office of the city of Lyon, in the east of the country, has been located for years on one of the most beautiful and famous squares in France. But vandals, most of them masked, rampaged around the building and also set fires there.

The city hall of Marseille on the Mediterranean coast, which dates from the 1600s, was also stormed and vandalized with graffiti.

On Monday, hundreds of protesters gathered outside the iconic Louvre museum in Paris to support the students who started the protests more than a month ago.

What the protesters say they want

The protests began about a month ago as demonstrations by high school students, with thousands taking to the streets peacefully to express their frustration over crumbling schools, overcrowded classrooms and a lack of teachers.

But it has turned into a nationwide wave of anger over the soaring cost of living, wages not keeping up with inflation and the collapse of public services.

More than 500,000 people took to the streets on Saturday when the unrest reached its peak. But as the government alludes to, there have also been opportunists: people and groups looting, vandalizing and attacking police as they attempted to control the crowds.

“There are so many reasons,” Kamil Alahyan, 18, told AFP. “The politicians who lie, the ultra-rich who have accumulated more and more wealth over the last ten years… each has a different reason.”

Anae, a 24-year-old student in Grenoble, tells AFP that she has finished her studies but now has “no income. I have no money. I don’t necessarily have a secure future. Our planet is burning. And we have a government that makes fun of us!”