Police clashed with protesters in Paris as nationwide demonstrations over the rising cost of living descended into violence, with cars set alight, shops looted and at least 272 people arrested across France.
Officers fired tear gas and used water cannon at the Place de la République after masked and hooded demonstrators threw fireworks, paving stones and other objects. Several people were injured during the confrontations.
Thick black smoke rose from burning cars, bicycles and rubbish bins, while a kiosk was also set on fire. Police said they were trying to stop smaller groups from reaching government buildings.
The office of Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez reported “a growing number of violent incidents” across the country, including attacks on officers, looting and damage to public buildings.
Many metro stations were closed at the request of police, including those near the Champs-Élysées, the presidential palace, parliament and government offices. Other demonstrators took part in a peaceful march towards north-west Paris, chanting the national anthem and waving French flags.
Violence reported in Lyon and Marseille
In Lyon, where about 20,000 people joined the march, a fire broke out inside a tourist office. In Marseille, shops and a municipal police station were damaged, while protesters briefly entered the lobby of the city hall.
“This is unacceptable,” the city’s mayor, Benoît Payan, told BFM TV, describing the damage inside the building as “limited”. Nuñez’s office also reported violence involving masked groups in Rennes, Toulouse, Montpellier and Grenoble.
The demonstrations were promoted on social media as a revival of the yellow vest movement, which began in 2018 in opposition to social inequality. Protesters said they were angry about sharp rises in the cost of petrol, energy and food.
Sonia Mabrouk, who travelled from a suburb west of Paris with her daughter, a high school student, said she was protesting against “everything that’s going wrong”, particularly the neglect of public services.
“There’s a general sense of frustration and anger,” she said, criticising policies that she believed favoured the rich while placing pressure on poorer households. Many demonstrators wore the fluorescent yellow vests associated with the earlier protests.
Student protests add to pressure on government
The rallies followed weeks of school blockades by student groups, which began in mid-September. The CGT trade union also supported the demonstrations, calling for higher wages and pensions, lower prices and the protection of public services.
The union said more than 500,000 people took part across France. Far-left presidential candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon, who has backed the high school movement, joined the Paris protest.
The student demonstrations have involved thousands of arrests, hundreds of injuries and schools being set on fire. Some teenagers have suffered serious wounds that protesters have blamed on police riot-control weapons.
Mr Nuñez suspended the use of a type of police stun grenade against young demonstrators after a 15-year-old lost a hand.
