FRANCE MOBILISES 70,000 POLICE AS SOCIAL ANGER SPILLS ONTO STREETS, TEAR GAS AND ARRESTS MARK FRESH UNREST
October 24, 2026
France deployed up to 70,000 police officers nationwide on Saturday as thousands of demonstrators took to the streets over rising living costs, wages and education funding, prompting authorities to impose tighter security measures following a week of violent unrest. The demonstrations unfolded amid fears of renewed looting, attacks on businesses and damage to public buildings after the previous weekend’s clashes exposed serious challenges for law enforcement.
Interior Minister Laurent Nuñez announced the nationwide deployment, supported by helicopters, armoured vehicles and water cannons. The extensive security operation followed demonstrations the previous Saturday in which more than half a million people reportedly took to the streets and around 3,000 shops across France were damaged or looted.
Nuñez said police had arrested 135 people in connection with the protests and seized various weapons as authorities sought to prevent further violence. The minister had acknowledged earlier in the week that police lost control in some cities during the previous weekend’s unrest. He offered to resign, but President Emmanuel Macron refused to accept his resignation.
In Paris, authorities changed the route of a union-organised march, moving it away from the planned Bastille-to-Nation route to a stretch between Porte d’Italie and Porte de Vincennes on the southeastern edge of the capital. The restrictions were intended to keep demonstrators away from central areas affected by the earlier violence. Police at Bastille used loudspeakers to instruct people to leave the area or face a fine of 135 euros.
The security measures extended beyond policing on the streets. Major Parisian cultural institutions, including the Louvre, the Orsay Museum, the Picasso Museum and the Grand Palais, were closed on Saturday because of concerns about possible disorder. Art Basel also cancelled its weekend programme, while shopkeepers across the capital boarded up storefronts in anticipation of renewed clashes and vandalism.
Demonstrations were planned in Paris and Marseille, while authorities banned some rallies in Lyon, Nice and Montpellier. French media reported that police used tear gas in Lyon on Saturday morning to disperse demonstrators. Trade unions criticised the restrictions, arguing that the bans infringed freedom of expression, a right protected under the French Constitution.
The protests have grown beyond their original focus on school staffing shortages. The movement began last month after concerns emerged over staffing at a high school southeast of Paris, but it has since expanded into a wider expression of dissatisfaction with education provision, household expenses and working conditions.
Student groups are demanding 250,000 additional places in higher education and an end to selection through Parcoursup, France’s national university admissions system. Their demands also include recruiting more teachers, repairing schools and universities, increasing student grants by 200 euros a month and freezing rents in public student accommodation.
Workers and trade unions are seeking higher wages and pensions to help households cope with the rising cost of living. The convergence of student demands and labour grievances has broadened the movement, placing pressure on the government to respond to concerns about public services and living standards.
Macron met representatives of high-school students on Friday. According to the students, he promised to overhaul the university admissions system, but they insisted that demonstrations should continue until concrete measures were formally announced. The unrest has added to the political pressure on the president during the final stretch of his current term.
The day's demonstrations also included a major rally in Orléans, approximately 110 kilometres south of Paris, where thousands marched against the far right. The protest took place alongside a two-day congress of Marine Le Pen’s National Rally party ahead of next spring’s presidential election, adding another political dimension to the nationwide mobilisation.
France’s security operation comes amid wider unrest elsewhere in Europe. Italy deployed an additional 500 soldiers to Milan ahead of fresh demonstrations, while protests were also planned in several Italian cities. In Albania, student-led demonstrators prepared another anti-government rally in Tirana over education facilities, tuition fees and corruption. In Spain, thousands of retirees and supporters marched to demand protection for public pensions.
The situation in France reflects the intersection of economic grievances, demands for improved public services and fears over public safety. While the government has defended restrictions and extensive police deployment as necessary to protect businesses, public buildings and city centres, trade unions have raised concerns about limits on the right to demonstrate.
With protests continuing and the authorities maintaining a large security presence, the immediate challenge for France is to prevent further violence while addressing the grievances driving the demonstrations. The scale of the deployment and the precautionary closure of major public institutions underscore the seriousness with which officials are treating the prospect of renewed unrest.
