Smashing shop windows and snatching boxes of goods, looters in Paris poured into stores across the capital on Saturday, facing no resistance from authorities as nationwide protests degenerated into violence.
Crowds of masked men wearing black hoodies yanked at metal store shutters until they gave way, clearing shelves of cigarettes, sunglasses, clothes, jewellery and food.
The violence erupted as hundreds of thousands of demonstrators gathered across the country to denounce the cost of living, following weeks of student protests and stoking political uncertainty six months before France’s presidential election.
Looters emerged from a supermarket carrying bags stuffed with cakes, fruit juice and alcohol.