French police fired tear gas at protesters Saturday as authorities deployed 70,000 security personnel across the country to prevent a repeat of last weekend’s riots and looting, amid renewed demonstrations over the rising cost of living and growing political tensions ahead of next year’s presidential election.
In the southeastern city of Lyon, police used tear gas to disperse about 150 protesters near the city center after some briefly attempted to block a road in an area where demonstrations had been banned, an Agence France-Presse (AFP) journalist witnessed.
Authorities across France tightened security as businesses prepared for possible violence, with memories of last weekend’s clashes still fresh. Police equipped with riot gear were deployed in areas previously affected by vandalism and looting, while retailers took precautions to protect their properties.
The Interior Ministry said 70,000 security personnel had been mobilized nationwide in response to what it described as a high risk of violence.
“We will not tolerate any unrest,” Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said Friday, warning that social media posts had circulated calls for violence and looting.
In Paris, many shops boarded up their windows, and some major retailers notified customers they would remain closed Saturday. Near the Bastille neighborhood, a clothing store removed all its merchandise from display shelves, while a nearby restaurant covered its windows with boards but put up signs assuring customers it remained open.
The Louvre and Musee d’Orsay museums were also closed as security concerns disrupted activity in the capital.
Paris police ordered a union-organized march to be moved at the last minute from the central-eastern Bastille area to Porte d’Italie, on the southeastern edge of the city. Unions said they would reluctantly accept the relocation, while the Yellow Vest movement, which led disruptive protests against President Emmanuel Macron in 2018, indicated it would defy the order.
Protests target Macron and the far right
Saturday’s demonstrations also took aim at Macron and Marine Le Pen, whose far-right National Rally party was holding a congress in the central city of Orleans to launch its campaign for presidential elections scheduled in six months.
Thousands of demonstrators marched against Le Pen and Macron, chanting slogans including “Macron resign. Le Pen in prison.”
The olitical tensions reflect an increasingly volatile atmosphere ahead of the vote, with opinion polls suggesting Le Pen is well positioned to succeed Macron, who cannot seek a third consecutive term.
Organizers of the nationwide demonstrations accuse Macron’s government of failing to address public anger over rising living costs and poor conditions in schools. Inflation has intensified pressure on households across France, with the war in the Middle East, launched in February by U.S. President Donald Trump and Israel, contributing to the surge in prices.
Last weekend’s demonstrations descended into violence in several locations as groups on the fringes of the protests clashed with police, vandalized public buildings and looted hundreds of shops. Authorities arrested about 2,700 people, while retailers estimated that damage and stolen merchandise had cost the sector hundreds of millions of euros.
Macron blamed the worst violence on what he described as “ultra-left” groups seeking to undermine the French Republic.
His government has sought to distinguish peaceful demonstrations and legitimate grievances from the vandalism, arson and looting that accompanied last weekend’s unrest. Macron has said authorities would accept union-led demonstrations while cracking down on gatherings they consider illegitimate.
French courts have already sentenced 217 people to prison over the previous weekend’s violence, officials said. About half were first-time offenders.
Authorities in Marseille initially banned all protests but announced Friday that a union-organized demonstration would be permitted as an exception.
Rights groups question protest restrictions
The tightening of restrictions has drawn criticism from human rights organizations, which warn that broad bans and police measures could undermine the right to peaceful assembly.
Amnesty International condemned what it called “a slide toward authoritarian practice,” arguing that the measures jeopardized the right to demonstrate peacefully.
Eva Cosse, a senior Europe researcher at Human Rights Watch, said authorities had a responsibility to balance public safety with the protection of demonstrators’ rights.
“Police have a responsibility both to ensure that protests can take place peacefully and safely and to protect the public from violent disorder,” Cosse said.
The unrest comes amid a wider wave of demonstrations across Europe, including in Italy, Belgium, Spain and Portugal, where protesters have raised concerns over different issues, with inflation and education among the recurring grievances. Italy has deployed 500 troops to help contain street violence in Milan.