France Protests Draw Over 400,000 People as Clashes Erupt

More than 400,000 people took to the streets in France to protest

Demonstrations across France on Saturday, 24 October, were attended by 410,000 people, including 110,000 in Paris. These figures were provided by the country’s Ministry of the Interior. According to estimates by the General Confederation of Labour of France (CGT), the number of participants was close to 800,000, of whom 250,000 took to the streets of the capital.

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According to the Ministry of the Interior, 550,000 people took part in similar demonstrations last week. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez stated that, on the whole, the demonstrations had passed peacefully, despite isolated incidents of vandalism and looting. He said that around a thousand people had been arrested.

In Paris, a group of people attempted to break into an Audi car showroom on Boulevard de la Cour de Vincennes, but the police thwarted this attempt, the prefecture reported. Clashes also broke out on Boulevard de Vincennes: according to Le Parisien, more than 500 people attacked police officers. The newspaper reported that 66 people were detained.

In Grenoble, rioters looted a Spar supermarket. According to the local newspaper *Le Dauphiné libéré*, cans of drinks, crisps, pizza and other food items were thrown into the crowd, whilst some people carried goods out of the shop.

Clashes also broke out in Strasbourg, where bus stops and rubbish bins were damaged and set alight. The police arrested ten people. In Clermont-Ferrand, four people were injured and six were arrested.

In Nice, three people were injured and a further 11 were arrested. Clashes broke out there between demonstrators and members of far-right groups, after which the police used tear gas. In Toulouse, in the Arènes district, one demonstrator was injured.

In Bordeaux, paving stones were thrown at police officers. Several officers sustained minor injuries, and more than 35 people were arrested, according to Le Parisien.

Around 70,000 police officers were deployed to maintain order across the country, including in Paris. Earlier, Núñez reported that helicopters, armoured vehicles and water cannons had also been deployed as part of the operation.

Due to the protests, Paris’s major museums, including the Louvre, the Musée d’Orsay, the Picasso Museum and the Grand Palais, announced they would be closed on Saturday. The previous nationwide protest, which took place last weekend, was accompanied by widespread unrest.

This story was translated with the assistance of artificial intelligence.The translation was also reviewed by the Logos Press editorial team.

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