France Police Deploy 70,000 Officers as 980 Arrested in New Protest Wave

Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez confirmed on Saturday evening that French police arrested nearly 1,000 people during a new round of nationwide protests. He stated that the total number of detainees would continue to rise as authorities processed those taken into custody. Two individuals sustained serious injuries during the demonstrations, with one hospitalized in Toulouse and the other in Clermont-Ferrand.

The government mobilized approximately 70,000 police officers to manage the crowds. This deployment came after President Emmanuel Macron issued a decree earlier in the week restricting permitted demonstrations to those organized by recognized trade unions. Authorities aimed to prevent a recurrence of the severe disorder seen the previous weekend. That earlier event involved looting, arson, and a high number of officer injuries.

Estimates for the total turnout varied by source. The interior ministry calculated that 410,000 people participated in the marches. Unions claimed the number reached approximately 800,000. Restrictions were imposed in several cities to control movement and density. These measures followed fast-track court hearings in recent days, which resulted in hundreds of jail sentences for vandalism, arson, and looting.

Clashes began in the evening after largely peaceful daytime marches. In Paris, the unrest started near Porte de Vincennes as a march from Porte d'Italie concluded. Police utilized tear gas and water cannon to disperse groups. An elite unit typically assigned to organized crime and counter-terrorism operations joined the response. Protesters constructed makeshift barricades and threw projectiles at officers. Masked youths were seen smashing the windows of a car dealership while police charged with batons.

Similar incidents occurred in other major cities. In Marseille, demonstrators set fire to barricades and used metal sheets to block streets. Rubbish bins were also set alight. In Bordeaux, people tore boards off a shop. In Lyon, police fired tear gas to clear a crowd that had gathered in an area declared off-limits by the local prefecture. One protester, who identified as a student, said there were around 150 people in the group and visibility was poor due to the gas.

Nuñez described the composition of the groups involved in the clashes. He noted that several thousand radical activists gathered at the rear of the marches. He identified approximately 500 individuals specifically as rioters. The minister attributed the volatility to this smaller subset of participants rather than the entire crowd.

Protesters expressed frustration over the cost of living and conditions in schools. A 26-year-old woman named Zelie, speaking from Paris, said people were suffering greatly. Two masked teenagers stated that their generation felt abandoned by the government. One of the teenagers acknowledged that looting was not ideal but blamed poverty and police violence. He added that the protests would end once demands were met.

In Orléans, roughly 13,000 people rallied peacefully against the hard-right National Rally party. The unrest also affected other European cities. Riot police in Tirana, Albania, fired tear gas at thousands of anti-government demonstrators. Clashes were reported in Brussels. In Milan, hundreds of soldiers and police prevented protesters from gathering due to fears of renewed violence.

The previous weekend saw approximately 550,000 demonstrators take to the streets. That event resulted in more than 2,500 arrests. Over 2,000 shops and businesses were directly affected by the disorder. Chambers of Commerce and Industry estimated the damage at hundreds of millions of euros. About 1,000 police officers were injured, and one demonstrator lost a hand to a crowd-control grenade. With presidential elections scheduled for six months from now, leading political contenders have placed blame on Macron and his cabinet.