Police clash with masked rioters after largely peaceful protests across France
Police used teargas against masked groups in Paris, Marseille and other French cities on 31 October, after a third wave of protests over the cost of living and public services. The interior ministry put turnout at about 320,000 nationwide.
France saw a third wave of protests on 31 October over the cost of living and deteriorating public services. The demonstrations were largely peaceful during the day, but clashes between police and masked groups broke out in the evening in Paris, Marseille and other cities. Police in several cities used teargas and stun grenades to disperse crowds.
According to the French interior ministry, about 320,000 people took part nationwide, compared with an estimated 410,000 the previous weekend. In Paris, where the march followed boulevards on the south-eastern outskirts and avoided the city centre, 70,000 people took part. Some demonstrators wore Halloween costumes.
Unrest in Paris, Lyon and Toulouse
The Paris march began peacefully at the Porte de Bagnolet, but at its destination, the Porte de Charenton, dozens of masked people dressed in black used hammers to pry up paving stones and throw them at police. French media reported that at least one incendiary device was thrown at security forces. The Paris police prefecture said a hardcore of several hundred rioters was attacking officers with projectiles, including a molotov cocktail. Police responded with teargas and baton charges.
In Lyon, protesters threw projectiles at police, who fired teargas. In Toulouse, police used water cannon against an unauthorised protest that drew several thousand people, mostly young.
Interior minister Laurent Nuñez had said earlier in the week that 70,000 police and gendarmes would be deployed to curb violence, and had described Saturday as a "very high risk" day.
Who is protesting and what comes next
The rallies brought together school students, who have been calling for better conditions for a month, trade unions and gilets jaunes (yellow vests) protesters, united by anger over the cost of living, inequality and Emmanuel Macron's government. The first wave, on 17 October, brought widespread street violence and looting and became one of the worst days of civil unrest in France's recent history.
Sabrine Kharbach of the student organisation Union Étudiante said new school and university blockades were planned for Tuesday and Thursday, after which students would join the 5 November demonstration called by workers and trade unions.
Protests elsewhere in Europe
In Germany, during youth-led protests called "Gen Z regelt!", police used water cannon in Cologne after protesters targeted officers with fireworks, and a march in Frankfurt was briefly halted. In Berlin, protesters hurled bottles and eggs, and in Hamburg they set barricades ablaze. Police were on alert in Barcelona and in Italy after calls for new gatherings and recent clashes.
