{"id":2908,"date":"2026-10-18T16:03:47","date_gmt":"2026-10-18T11:03:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/?p=2908"},"modified":"2026-10-18T16:03:47","modified_gmt":"2026-10-18T11:03:47","slug":"mass-protests-in-france-spiral-into-worst-riots-in-years","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/?p=2908","title":{"rendered":"Mass protests in France spiral into worst riots in years"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n

Rioting erupted in cities across France on Saturday as demonstrations against rising living costs and declining public services spiralled out of control in some of the worst violence the country has \u200bwitnessed for decades.<\/strong><\/p>\n

While hundreds of thousands protested peacefully in street marches in scores of cities, violent fringe groups targeted public buildings, looted luxury boutiques and supermarkets and attacked police vehicles and officers.<\/p>\n

In Limoges, the \u200ccity hall was set ablaze; in Marseille, black-clad protesters broke into city hall and defaced the building with anarchic graffiti, and in Lyon, protesters torched the city\u2019s tourist office.<\/p>\n

French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu said the government would not be \u201cintimidated\u201d by violence, and blamed the unrest on the \u201cultra-left\u201d and criminals just months before a presidential election next year.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo those who clearly want to use this violence as a \u2018warm-up\u2019 before the presidential election, I say clearly: We will not let ourselves be intimidated. No one will impose their political agenda through violence,\u201d he wrote in a post on X.<\/p>\n

Some 1,200 \u200bpeople had been arrested as part of the protests, Lecornu added while visiting the sites in the evening.<\/p>\n

Around 550,000 people had participated in the demonstrations across the country, Interior Minister Laurent Nunez said.<\/p>\n

The CGT union told Reuters \u200bit estimated protesters at 800,000 people.<\/p>\n

President Emmanuel Macron vowed to prosecute and punish people who had carried out the attacks.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe will all stand united against the sowers of chaos, who \u2060only seek to undermine our institutions and prevent those who peacefully express their demands from doing so,\u201d he wrote in a post on X.<\/p>\n

Belgium<\/a>, Portugal<\/a> and Italy<\/a> also faced smaller-scale protests on Saturday as living costs rise in Europe, while protesters in Albania<\/a> again rallied \u200bagainst perceived government corruption, a lack of jobs and poor education standards.<\/p>\n

Protesters said most people had marched peacefully, and put much of the violence down to troublemakers who had set out to cause damage and clash with the police.<\/p>\n

Many held signs \u200bbearing slogans against the police, the president and the wealthy.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are fighting because the cost of living is too harsh, because the price of fuel is too high, because high school pupils are being violently attacked and hurt all over the country just for trying to protest and ask for more teachers and decent learning conditions,\u201d said Lola, a 19-year-old protester in Paris.<\/p>\n

<\/a>Tear gas, fire and looting<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Most protests kicked off around midday, with some beginning before the official start of the demonstrations.<\/p>\n

In some parts of Paris, police fired tear gas rounds as they retreated in the face \u200bof mostly young protesters, many of whom were dressed in black and wore hoodies, masks and goggles to protect against tear gas.<\/p>\n

Rioters tried to break into the Galeries Lafayette department store, smashed up banks, ransacked a Lacoste store as well as \u200bother boutiques and looted an SFR mobile phone shop.<\/p>\n

Protesters had been setting objects ablaze all day, including numerous cars.<\/p>\n

In protests partly inspired by those in France, several hundred mostly young people protested in Brussels<\/a>, and some clashed with police.<\/p>\n

Belgian student groups have said they are \u200cprotesting against rising \u2060education costs and reforms they fear will make higher education less accessible.<\/p>\n

In Albania<\/a>, police fired what appeared to be rubber bullets at protesters during a fifth day of mass student demonstrations calling for Prime Minister Edi Rama to step down.<\/p>\n

In Portugal<\/a>, tens of thousands took to the streets of Lisbon following days of unrest to protest against housing and other living costs.<\/p>\n

Housing prices in Portugal have doubled since 2017, fuelling one of the worst affordability crises in Europe.<\/p>\n

In Italy, a march against high costs of living in Milan<\/a> degenerated into disorder, with police clearing the central cathedral square with tear gas.<\/p>\n

Police in Bologna used water cannons to try to disperse crowds and made seven arrests after another protest turned violent, the ANSA news agency reported.<\/p>\n

<\/a>French police response under scrutiny<\/strong><\/h3>\n

The \u200bprotests in France began last month at high schools in Paris\u2019 \u200bworking-class northern suburbs, where anger over teacher shortages and \u2060shabby facilities evolved into a broader movement focused on inequality, public spending and living standards.<\/p>\n

In Paris on Saturday, protesters in high-visibility vests blocked streets, recalling the Yellow Vest movement that marked Macron\u2019s previous term in office.<\/p>\n

Saturday\u2019s protests eclipsed the size of the crowds at the peak of the Yellow Vest movement, though they were far lower than the levels seen at the protests \u200bin 2023 against Macron\u2019s pension overhaul.<\/p>\n

Macron is entering the final stretch<\/a> of his presidency, facing a fragmented political landscape and growing pressure over the economy.<\/p>\n

France\u2019s efforts to reduce public debt have \u200bnot reassured investors, pushing government borrowing costs<\/a> \u2060to their highest levels in over two decades.<\/p>\n

Police tactics have drawn criticism following injuries<\/a> among demonstrators, including a teenager who lost a hand after picking up a stun grenade.<\/p>\n

The police watchdog is investigating at least two dozen allegations of police violence.<\/p>\n

Lecornu said more than 150 police officers had been injured in Saturday\u2019s protests, but did not say whether any protesters had been hurt.<\/p>\n

Nunez confirmed reports that one person had his hand torn off in clashes with police on Saturday.<\/p>\n

French media reported he tried to pick up a stun grenade.<\/p>\n

The \u2060UNSA police union \u200bposted a video on X showing crowds attacking police vans with clubs and bricks in multiple locations. The union warned the government police forces were \u200bat breaking point.<\/p>\n

\u201cToday again, in every corner of France, our colleagues are being used as punching bags. Pelted with stones, injured, trapped in real ambushes,\u201d the union said.<\/p>\n

\u201cLet everyone take responsibility: this cannot go on indefinitely. The rope is stretched to its maximum.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Rioting erupted in cities across France on Saturday as demonstrations against rising living costs and declining public services spiralled out of control in some of the worst violence the country has \u200bwitnessed for decades. While hundreds of thousands protested peacefully in street marches in scores of cities, violent fringe groups targeted public buildings, looted luxury boutiques and supermarkets and attacked police vehicles and officers. In Limoges, the \u200ccity hall was set ablaze; in Marseille, black-clad protesters broke into city hall and defaced the building with anarchic graffiti, and in Lyon,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2908","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-english"],"gutentor_comment":0,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2908","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2908"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2908\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2908"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2908"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/ipp-news.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2908"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}