France was wracked by its worst rioting in years on Saturday as weeks of mass protests against poor conditions in schools and the rising cost of living exploded into widespread violence.
There were clashes with police, arson and looting in Paris and other cities.
Countrywide, nearly 2,400 people were arrested and almost 1,000 police officers and gendarmes were injured.
More than half a million people took to the streets across the country, including about 110,000 in Paris.
Violence ensued in many cities.
In Paris, the worst unrest centered on Place de la Republique, in the northeast of the city center, where masked rioters torched cars, smashed cash machines and looted and burned shops and restaurants nearby.
Entire streets were devastated.
Rioters targeted government buildings and officials in several cities.
In the central city of Limoges, parts of the historic city hall were set ablaze and its spire collapsed.
In Marseille in the south, protesters stormed the city hall, ramming open the doors with security barriers before police drove them out.
In Bordeaux in the southwest, the residence of the prefect, the government’s top representative in the region, was damaged.
In many cases, black-clad, hooded radicals were behind the violence.
Unrest flared again at Place de la Republique yesterday afternoon, when groups of youths clashed with riot police, who fired tear gas before withdrawing from the square.
In many cases, black-clad, hooded radicals
High school students from the Paris suburbs started blocking school entrances in mid-September to demand more teachers, smaller classes and repairs to dilapidated buildings.
The blockages spread to hundreds of schools nationwide within two weeks and grew increasingly violent, with bands of hooded teenagers torching school buildings, looting shops and attacking police, school staff and some bystanders.
The movement has since broadened into a revolt over living standards, drawing in unions, left-wing parties and, more recently, the “yellow vest” movement, a grassroots campaign against the high cost of living that rocked France between 2018 and 2019.
The yellow vest revival began on social media in September, driven by anger over soaring fuel prices caused by the US-Israeli war on Iran, and called a nationwide day of action for Saturday that drew a large turnout.
The government, struggling with a public debt crisis and pushing an austerity budget through a hung parliament, has little money to spend on schools or to ease rising prices.
It has held talks with student organizations and promised its first concrete measures for schools by the end of October.
But protesters have dismissed the offers so far as crumbs.
Schools closed this weekend for a two-week fall holiday, which should halt school blockages until early November.
Student organizations have said they intend to resume protests after the break, but they could re-erupt sooner.
The government has not ruled out declaring a state of emergency but said partial, localized curfews might be applied.
At the best of times, demonstrations for various causes in the capital and the rest of the country can be disruptive and have the potential to turn violent.
Personnel should steer clear of all demonstrations and under no circumstances should attempt to pass through protesters in a vehicle or on foot. Personnel should remain indoors if unrest erupts nearby.
They should comply with any curfews or emergency measures imposed.
Multinationals should review and if necessary upgrade access controls and should have contingency plans in place for aggressive protest-related activity.
France’s notoriously radical unions regularly stage disruptive strikes, with flights, inter-city trains and urban public transportation sometimes affected.
The news should be monitored to reduce inconveniences caused by possible strikes.
