Anti-government protests across France descended into violence on Saturday, with masked demonstrators looting shops, setting vehicles ablaze and clashing with riot police in Paris, Marseille and Montpellier, while damage was reported at public buildings and monuments in several cities. Footage credited to a UAE media outlet, Viory, shows protesters smashing…...
Anti-government protests across France descended into violence on Saturday, with masked demonstrators looting shops, setting vehicles ablaze and clashing with riot police in Paris, Marseille and Montpellier, while damage was reported at public buildings and monuments in several cities.
Footage credited to a UAE media outlet, Viory, shows protesters smashing shop windows and emerging from ransacked premises carrying goods in Paris, while cars and bicycles burned along streets, including Boulevard de Sébastopol and areas near Place de la République.
In Marseille, demonstrators overturned rubbish bins, set them on fire and erected makeshift barricades as police advanced on the crowd and fired tear gas. Some protesters were seen throwing objects at officers and spraying graffiti on shop windows.
Protesters also reportedly stormed the city hall in Marseille and vandalised the building, while shops and a municipal police station were damaged.
In Montpellier, masked demonstrators forced their way into shops and threw merchandise onto the streets as police deployed tear gas to disperse crowds.
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The unrest also spread to central Paris, where the Monument to the Republic was defaced with graffiti and its outer wall damaged. Clashes broke out at Place de la République, with protesters throwing rocks and other objects towards police lines, who responded with tear gas and water cannons.
In Lyon, a tourism office was reportedly set on fire.
French authorities reported at least 272 arrests nationwide by mid-afternoon, while the Interior Ministry said more than 32,000 people had taken part in about 140 protest actions outside the capital by early afternoon.
The demonstrations brought together students, workers, trade unionists, farmers, climate activists and supporters of the Yellow Vest movement, with participants demanding relief from rising living costs, higher wages and increased investment in public services.
The protests followed weeks of student-led demonstrations over education funding, teacher shortages, overcrowded classrooms, deteriorating school buildings and concerns about policing.
The Yellow Vest movement, which emerged in 2018 over fuel taxes, later expanded into wider protests against rising living costs and government economic policies.
Ahead of Saturday’s nationwide demonstrations, French President Emmanuel Macron appealed for calm on Friday, saying the right to demonstrate must be accompanied by respect for people and property.