PARIS — French authorities arrested more than 1,800 people after nationwide protests over rising living costs and deteriorating public schools erupted into some of the worst rioting France has seen in years, leaving shops looted, buildings torched and whole streets in Paris described as devastated.
More than 500 police officers, gendarmes and firefighters were injured in the unrest, Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez said Sunday, as communities across the country woke up to burned-out cars, shattered storefronts and debris-strewn streets.
“The Republic will not yield,” Nuñez wrote on X, according to The Guardian.
One person died of a heart attack during the protests, Paris police said, without providing further details. The Paris prosecutor’s office said it had opened an investigation.
Hundreds of thousands march
About 550,000 people took part in demonstrations across France on Saturday, including 110,000 in Paris, according to authorities. Organizers put the turnout at about 800,000.
The marches were largely peaceful during the day, as protesters denounced soaring prices and poor conditions in schools and other public services. But as night fell, violent groups clashed with police, set fires and broke into shops.
In Paris, 855 people were arrested in the capital region alone, police said Sunday.
Destruction across the country
Looting was reported in hundreds of businesses in several cities, including Paris, Marseille, Lyon and Bordeaux, according to Nuñez.
Around Paris’ Place de la République on Sunday morning, dislodged cobblestones, shattered storefronts and broken glass marked the aftermath of the violence, The Associated Press reported. A car was set ablaze at the square on Saturday, and looting and damage were reported in other tourist and shopping areas in the city center.
In Lyon, a tourism office was set on fire. Protesters also targeted public buildings, including city halls and local government offices, according to authorities.
One demonstrator’s hand was blown off during clashes, France 24 reported.
Groups of young people looted shops and started fires in Paris as protests wound down, prompting police to respond with tear gas and baton charges in narrow streets, CNN reported.
Government blames far-left groups
Nuñez described the troublemakers as “extremely violent, radical far-left groups” that sought confrontations with police and targeted public buildings, according to the AP. He said they had been joined by criminals who looted and ransacked businesses.
The minister said “nothing can justify” the violence, CNN reported, while drawing a distinction between the right to protest and deliberately sowing disorder.
Some protesters, however, accused police of escalating tensions. One demonstrator who attended a march with his son told France 24 that the mood had been calm before police used tear gas.
“There was a good atmosphere and then suddenly they (the police) started gassing us,” said the protester, Jules Petrichor, 47.
Political reaction
The unrest quickly became a political issue ahead of next year’s presidential election to replace President Emmanuel Macron, scheduled in about six months.
Far-right leader Marine Le Pen, a leading presidential candidate, condemned the violence and sided with the police.
“Rioters have again spoiled the Oct. 17 demonstrations for the protection of purchasing power,” Le Pen wrote on X, according to the AP.
The violence is likely to intensify debate over public security, the cost of living and government spending on public services in the run-up to the election.
Roots of the anger
The protests grew out of student-led rallies that swept parts of France last month over crumbling schools, before expanding into a broader movement against rising prices and perceived government inaction.
The cost of living has climbed sharply in Europe, driven in part by the war in the Middle East, which has disrupted oil and gas supplies and pushed up energy and fuel prices.
The movement reflects long-simmering anger across generations over stagnant wages, rising costs and the state of public services.
Unrest spreads across Europe
The protests in France are part of a wider wave of unrest in Europe. Demonstrations have convulsed Spain in recent weeks and have spread to Italy and Portugal, according to The Guardian, with rioters clashing with police and setting property on fire in Milan and a tent encampment emerging in Lisbon over the weekend.
France’s history of protest
France has a long tradition of mass street protests, and demonstrations over economic grievances have frequently turned violent. The “yellow vest” movement, which began in 2018 over fuel taxes, led to weeks of clashes and thousands of arrests, while protests against pension reform in 2023 also saw widespread unrest.
The scale of Saturday’s arrests and injuries places the latest protests among the most violent in recent years.
Authorities are assessing the damage and pursuing those arrested, while officials are bracing for the possibility of further demonstrations.
Organizers have not announced their next steps, but the anger driving the movement shows little sign of fading as living costs remain high and the presidential election approaches.
The government is likely to face pressure both to restore order and to address the economic concerns that drew hundreds of thousands of people into the streets.
