PARIS: France announced partial curfews in Paris and other cities on Monday after weekend demonstrations over soaring prices degenerated into some of the worst street violence in recent years.
Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu did not rule out imposing a state of emergency after the interior minister said police had “lost control”.
Tourists in Paris had a taste of the disruption on Monday when they found the Louvre closed because of a small group of student protesters, while the US embassy in Paris urged American citizens to avoid the demonstrations.
Facing accusations that it failed to anticipate and respond to the violence, the government has vowed to re-establish order, while officials scrambled to contain public anger.
The unrest, erupting just six months before France elects a successor to President Emmanuel Macron, threatened to continue, with organisers calling for a new round of protests next Saturday.
Authorities said partial curfews would be enforced from Monday evening to Tuesday morning in a number of cities including Paris, Lille and Lyon, to protect businesses.
In the capital, a curfew was ordered from 11:00 pm (2100 GMT), while demonstrations were banned from 8:00 pm.