PARIS (AP) — A car and a newspaper kiosk were set on fire in Paris as police used tear gas and water cannons to disperse violent groups of protesters, while similar tensions erupted in other big cities on the fringes of nationwide demonstrations against rising living costs and in support of high school students’ grievances.
In Lyon, France’s third-largest city, fire broke out inside a tourist office. Smoke and flames were seen rising from the building.
In the southern port city of Marseille, some shops and a municipal police station were damaged, while some protesters briefly forced their way into the lobby of City Hall.
In Paris, police used tear gas and water cannons to push back people wearing hoods and masks and throwing fireworks and other objects at officers in the Place de la République, northeast of the Paris city center. Large numbers of riot police were deployed in the square and surrounding streets.
The majority of peaceful protesters joined the march that started moving toward northwestern Paris.
Protesters across France responded to calls on social media to revive the “yellow vest” movement, which emerged in 2018 against social injustice. Student groups protesting since mid-September through school blockades have urged supporters to join them.
The CGT, one of France’s major labor unions, also backed the protests, calling for “higher wages and pensions, lower prices and the protection of public services that meet people’s needs.”
Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez’s office earlier said authorities had recorded 140 protest actions outside the Paris region by midday, involving over 30,000 people. Authorities reported at least 166 arrests across the country.
Nuñez’s office pointed to violence carried out by people wearing masks in Paris, Marseille, Rennes, Toulouse and Angers.
President Emmanuel Macron appealed Friday for calm. “There is a constitutional right to protest and to express oneself,” he said in Brussels. “But this right comes with the need to respect. Respect for people, respect for property, and therefore a commitment not to insult or destroy.”
Police banned some other proposed gatherings in central Paris. Many metro stations were closed Saturday at police request, including those around the Champs-Elysées and near the presidential palace, parliament and government offices.
In recent weeks, France has seen thousands of arrests, hundreds of injuries and schools set on fire as the new school year descended into nationwide student protests that are influencing the country’s presidential election campaign and drawing international attention.
Among protesters, particularly gruesome wounds suffered by some teenagers have been blamed on police riot-control weapons. Nuñez suspended the use of a type of police stun grenade against the young demonstrators after a 15-year-old lost a hand.
On Tuesday, climate and social justice activist Greta Thunberg joined students at a high school in the Paris suburb of Saint-Denis.
Scuffles and fires break out as protesters rally across France, joining students 2026
IUSTITIA.BG – Investigations 2009-2026 2026-10-17 13:49:03
Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law
